Chapter 968: Stolen
Chapter 968 – Stolen
The morning came.
Lux woke early, as always, despite sleeping late. His body had learned that rest was negotiable and responsibility was not, which was probably a tragic flaw disguised as discipline. Still, when dawn spread across the mansion windows, he was already dressed, awake, and standing in the kitchen with Lyra, reviewing breakfast like a general planning supply routes.
He did not cook.
That would have been terrifying.
But he helped choose.
Naomi needed something balanced and light because mortal bodies had limits, no matter how stubborn the woman was.
Rava needed seafood, naturally.
Mira preferred stronger flavors.
Sira liked things luxurious and unnecessarily pretty.
Ely would need something gentle after the blood resonance.
Fiera needed meat and fruit.
Lullaby needed soft bread, warm milk, and something sweet enough to lure her out of sleep.
Gula needed... everything.
Lyra listened with professional calm as Lux adjusted the menu with the seriousness of a battlefield commander.
The dining table filled slowly after that.
One by one, the women woke, freshened up, and came downstairs. The mood was softer than last night, but not lighter. Everyone remembered. Everyone knew today might not stay peaceful.
Still, breakfast existed.
And breakfast, as Gula had established, was strategy.
Sira sat beside Lux, hair perfect, because Pride refused evidence.
Naomi checked her phone while drinking coffee. Rava ate quietly, looking more awake than most. Mira arrived composed, though her eyes went to Lux first.
Ely looked a little tired, but steady.
Fiera stretched lazily as she sat, tails swaying behind her.
Lullaby arrived wrapped in a blanket and immediately accepted the warm milk like an offering.
Yue came with silent grace.
Gula appeared last with suspicious timing and a plate already half full.
For several minutes, they simply ate.
Then Sira leaned back in her chair and looked at Lux. "How’s the investigation?"
Lux sliced into his food with calm precision. "It’s finished."
The table paused.
Ely looked up quickly. "Already?"
"I got the report this morning."
Gula pointed her fork at him. "Did you sleep?"
Lux looked at her.
She narrowed her eyes.
"That wasn’t an answer."
"It was a strategic silence."
"Suspicious."
Sira waved one hand. "Leave his terrible habits for later. Report first."
Lux placed his fork down. "The demon who helped Ely’s ancestor was not Kaelmor’s father or grandfather."
Ely went still.
Lux looked at her properly. "They shared the same bloodline, yes. Same Ash Ledger sigil. But the promise was not made to Kaelmor."
Sira’s eyes sharpened. "So he really stole it?"
"Likely."
Mira leaned forward. "Likely is not proof."
"I know."
Sira asked, "Do you have proof?"
Lux tapped the table once. "A little."
That made Naomi lift her gaze from her phone.
Lux continued, "The volcanic eruption was almost certainly manipulated. The probability came back around eighty percent. That means the rescue may have been staged, amplified, or at least exploited by an Ash Ledger bearer."
Ely’s face paled.
Lux’s voice softened slightly, but not enough to weaken the facts.
"The sigil was carried by many demons in the past. Not one. A lot. They weren’t strong. Most weren’t noble. They were oath witnesses, debt binders, claim preservers. If Kaelmor consolidated those claims when he erased the bloodline, then he may have taken over debts that never belonged to him personally."
Naomi’s expression turned cold. "That’s ugly."
"Very."
Rava looked at Ely. "And your ancestor may not know?"
Lux nodded. "Or she may know but still believe the debt belongs to whoever holds the claim. That’s the hard part."
Ely’s hands folded around her cup. "So the next part depends on her."
Lux looked at her. "Believe it or not, yes."
Silence touched the table.
Not hopeless silence.
Thinking silence.
Ely swallowed. "So you’re going to move today?"
Lux leaned back slightly. "That depends on you."
Ely blinked. "Me?"
"The place is your territory," Lux said. "Sacred elven land. The book reacted to your blood. The system marked access as likely bloodline-restricted. I’ll need you to get in."
Ely looked down at her plate.
There was fear there.
A sacred ancient site tied to her ancestor, a demon king’s hidden power, and a debt that might have shaped elven history. Anyone sensible would be afraid.
Mira spoke first. "Then we’ll back her up for today’s work."
Ely looked at her.
Mira lifted her chin. "What? You have mortal obligations, right? Family business, estate matters, whatever high elves do when they’re not accidentally unlocking ancestral trauma."
Ely blinked.
Fiera smiled and leaned forward, resting her chin in her palm. "Yeah, we can do that."
Naomi nodded. "Ely, just send us your schedule today."
Rava smiled gently. "We can divide it."
Ely looked around them, surprised.
"You don’t need to—"
Sira cut in. "We know."
Gula swallowed a pancake whole in a manner no one wanted to analyze.
"That’s why it counts."
Ely’s eyes softened. "I’ll send it to your phones."
Rava nodded. "Since all of us will back Ely up for the job, then I guess..." Her gaze moved toward Lux. "The demons will back Lux up."
Sira immediately raised one finger. "Ehm, excuse me."
Rava looked at her.
Sira’s expression was offended in a very aristocratic way. "We are devils. Not demons."
Lux closed his eyes.
Gula pointed her fork at Sira. "Is this really the time for taxonomy?"
"Yes," Sira said.
Mira nodded once. "She’s right."
Naomi sighed. "Of course she is."
Fiera grinned. "I’m not a devil or demon. Where do I stand?" she joked.
"Near me," Lux said without thinking.
Fiera’s tails froze.
Sira slowly turned to him.
Rava smiled into her cup.
Naomi hid her amusement badly.
Gula whispered, "Oh, he says things like that casually?"
Lullaby, half-asleep, mumbled, "Mm. Dangerous."
Lux decided to own it.
He lifted his coffee and took a calm sip.
"Yes."
Yue, who had been quiet through most of breakfast, finally spoke.
"Labels aside, Rava’s point stands. Lux will need infernal support. Sira, Gula, and Lullaby can help. I can provide ancient resonance and memory recognition."
Gula lifted a hand. "I can detect if the place is eating something."
Lux looked at her. "Do not eat the shrine."
"I said detect."
"You thought about it."
Sira looked at Ely. "We handle your schedule. You handle the sacred elf gate thing."
Ely let out a breath that looked almost like a laugh. "That makes it sound simple."
Naomi smiled. "It won’t be. But we’ll make it manageable."
Lux watched them.
He did not say thank you this time.
Not because he didn’t feel it.
Because if he said it, the table might get too warm again, and his chest was already doing that annoying tight thing from last night.
"We’ll be moving in two hours."
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