Chapter 288: The Woman From The Torn Pages
Throughout it all, they noticed how Ivan never truly left Eve’s side. His attention to her was instinctive, as though it no longer required any thought. It was so much more than before, and seeing it unfold so naturally warmed their hearts in a way words could not quite capture.
If there was one thing the events in Dartmouth had given them, it was this.
Whatever pain and chaos had come with it, it had drawn Evelyn and Ivan closer than they had ever been. And after learning that their lives had been intertwined from the very beginning, it felt less like a coincidence and more like the world gently correcting itself.
It was currently twelve in the afternoon, with the sun shining brightly upon them. Rain had been scarce these days, but the nights were much chillier, accompanied by strong winds. Damien, Cece, Edward, and Eve sat at a table in the royal library, thick books spread out in front of each of them.
Ivan had stepped out some time earlier to receive updates from Alex regarding the ongoing investigations. After giving Eve a sweet kiss on the cheek, he excused himself.
The royal library of Dracoria Palace was a veritable gold mine for any dedicated scholar in pursuit of knowledge, as it contained nearly every book one could possibly imagine.
It was a grand, gilded library stretched endlessly ahead, with its arched ceiling heavy with gold detailing and history. Crystal chandeliers and sunlight seeping through the long arched windows casted warm light across polished wooden floors. Their glow was reflected by towering shelves packed with leather-bound books. Plush armchairs and small tables invited quiet reading, while soft lamps and subtle floral touches tempered the opulence.
While no staff were allowed to enter except those with clearance to tidy the place under Arthur’s strict supervision, even they would not dare to step inside while Evelyn was present. Beyond the library walls, the Ignis Blades were stationed so extensively that not even an ant could hope to slip through unnoticed.
The silence was shattered when Damien slammed his book shut with a loud thump and leaned back in his chair with a sigh that suggested deep personal suffering. "I swear to God, I have never read this many books in three days. Not even during exams, and that is saying something."
He jabbed his thumb toward a leaning stack of more than fifty books. "At this point, I am fairly certain this pile is reading me. How are you all still going?"
Evelyn glanced up and offered Damien a small smile before returning to her reading, clearly immune to his suffering.
Cece sighed, "Damien, if this was all too much for you, why didn’t you just leave with Ivan?"
"And miss out on whatever world-altering discovery you lot might stumble into?" Damien replied, looking at Cece as though she had deeply wounded his pride. "Absolutely not."
Edward let out a quiet chuckle. "You are talking as if we are about to uncover something any second now."
Before Damien could deliver a suitably dramatic rebuttal....
"Oh! I think I found something!" Eve exclaimed.
Damien raised a brow at Edward and said smugly, "See? Told you so."
"Spoke too soon," Edward muttered under his breath as he rose from his seat, the others following as they gathered behind Eve.
"This book has been heavily tampered with, with most of the details omitted, but it does speak of the Dark Lord," Eve began, immediately drawing everyone’s full attention.
She pointed to the text and read aloud:
"It was said that the Dark Lord alone was the greatest threat the history of mankind had ever faced. Yet there were others who aided him in his quest to conquer the world, turning it into another hell. It was believed that many trusted individuals stood by his side, each terrifying and vicious in their own right.
Among them was a woman who was always with him. The nature of their relationship remains unknown, but she possessed the ability to control powerful creatures from hell, such as Nocthrax, lower category demons, Azrathuls, and many more."
"Azrathuls?" Cece exclaimed in horror. "Meaning there were more creatures like that roaming the world at the time?"
Damien let out a long, impressed whistle. "Well. That is officially the least comforting bedtime story I have ever heard. Let us all collectively hope there was only one of those things, the one you and Ivan kindly obliterated."
"Who could that woman have been?" Edward asked, his brow knitting.
"Is there anything else about her?" Cece pressed.
Eve flipped through a few more pages, scanning quickly before shaking her head. "No. As I said, the book has been heavily tampered with. It skips straight to mankind winning the war and then happily moves on, as if none of this matters." She sighed in disappointment.
"So," he said casually, resting his chin on his hand, "there is a mysterious woman glued to the Dark Lord, and now there is a mysterious woman who wiped your memories and tried to break fate itself. I am not saying it is the same person, but if this were a play, the audience would be screaming at the stage by now."
Every head snapped towards him in unison.
Damien blinked. "What?" he asked, suddenly defensive. "I am just saying, history does love a dramatic callback."
"You....do you think....that could be possible?" Eve whispered, the colour draining from her face as dread crept into her eyes.
Damien stared at her for a moment before realisation struck.
He clicked his tongue, "No," he said at once. "I was only speaking lightly, Evelyn. There is no need to..." He faltered, then corrected himself, his tone sobering down. "I mean it. I truly do not believe it is possible."
He straightened and spoke in a much more serious tone, "The Great War of Ruins ended thousands of years ago. No one could have survived that long. No vampires or lumens. And you know that neither of them even existed until after the war ended, after the...you know.....celestial beings left this world."
He paused, letting the words settle before continuing, "And even if we entertain the idea for a moment, you are eighteen. Ivan is twenty-one. That woman would have to be centuries old to still be alive today." He shook his head slowly. "That kind of survival defies everything we know. I highly doubt it."
A heavy silence settled between them as they mulled over Damien’s explanation.
"But....what if..." Eve began carefully, her voice barely above a whisper. "What if the woman was neither of those? Some other species altogether? The book never mentions what she was."
Cece frowned thoughtfully. "And who said a vampire cannot live for centuries? Our father and King Iskara themselves are already over a century old. Then there is Ivan’s grandfather, who must be several centuries older than both of them."
"Even lumens can live that long," Edward added, nodding in agreement.
Damien exhaled sharply. "Yes, but we are talking about thousands of years ago. But you are both forgetting one thing. Vampires and lumens did not exist until after the war ended."
He paused, rubbing his temple. "Maybe Evelyn’s theory holds more weight, that she was some other species altogether, if we are to assume that the woman who fought beside the Dark Lord is the same one who tampered with your memories." He scoffed lightly, "Which I honestly would find unbelievable."
"But it could be a possibility," Eve thought out loud.
Damien turned to her, disbelief flashing across his face. "Evelyn, are you seriously suggesting that one of the most evil women to have fought alongside the Dark Lord could simply roam around freely without being detected by lumens, who have an exceptional sensitivity to dark magic?"
Eve pursed her lips and considered it, because Damien was right. Septimus and King Solan, with their higher magic potency, would have been able to sense it. Even if not with the same precision that she and Ivan possessed, the kind that allowed them to pinpoint its exact location or be drawn towards it in order to destroy it.
She let out a frustrated sigh. "Well, if you ask me, none of this makes any sense. Not why my mother’s grave was empty, nor why that thing spawned from the grave itself."
Everyone present felt their expressions soften at her distress. It was difficult to comprehend everything that had been unfolding.
Cece reached across the table and clasped Eve’s hand in hers. "Hey. We will take it as it comes, okay? Remember, you are not alone in this. We are all in this together."
Damien and Edward joined in as well. "Yes, we are all in this together."
Eve felt a swell of gratitude at their words and, beneath it, a quiet pang of guilt for sharing her burdens so openly. She was not used to this, to having people stand beside her so steadfastly.
She smiled at them, her voice soft, "Tha-"
"Uh uh," Damien cut in gently, shaking his head. "Do not thank us, Evelyn. We are family already, are we not?"
