Tenebrous Wolf
Chapter 55: Lost House of Luminance

Chapter 55: Lost House of Luminance

Klaus headed to his dormitory room after studying runes in the library. Naturally, he made a quick stop at the cafeteria, grabbing two bags filled with various delicacies. Of course, these weren’t just for him, he had to feed the lazy succubus waiting in his room as well.

Setting that aside, his thoughts gradually drifted elsewhere. For some reason, Yuki hadn’t been attending their rune study sessions lately, and when he asked her about it, she simply replied with, "Sorry, I’m busy," before abruptly ending the call on the other end.

No matter how he looked at it, something felt off. When had she become so busy that she couldn’t attend their study sessions?

Ah, no. It was selfish of him to think that way. Perhaps she had simply decided to focus on her pilot training rather than waste time with him. Yes, there was no reason for him to expect all of her time. It wasn’t like they were dating or anything of the sort, and there was a strong chance Yuki didn’t even understand what dating was.

They were simply study partners. That was the extent of their relationship.

Despite knowing that, I can’t help but feel a certain way. Could it be that I really enjoyed her company? As I thought, I’m becoming too greedy.

With a sigh, Klaus shook his head and quickened his pace toward his dorm. There was no point in overthinking things. If Yuki had something going on, it was her business. He had no right to interfere whatsoever.

Still, the lingering sense of unease refused to fade.

When he reached his door, he fished out his keycard and swiped it. As the lock clicked open, he pushed the door inward and stepped inside, only to be greeted by the sight of a certain succubus sprawled across his bed, lazily watching some video on her Mini pad.

Upon hearing him enter, she barely glanced up."Took you long enough," she drawled. "I was this close to withering away from starvation."

Klaus rolled his eyes and tossed one of the bags onto the bed.

"Right. Because the demon race are known for being so fragile."

The succubus, Briar, grinned and sat up, then snatched the bag with a satisfied hum.

"Still, it’s nice to see that my personal servant knows his duties.

Klaus’s eyebrow twitched.

"Personal servant, is that it? You know what, screw that. I really don’t have the strength to deal with your antics right now."

Saying so, he placed his own bag on the table before opening his laptop and switching it on, whereupon Briar frowned in displeasure as she munched on a beef burger.

"What got up your butt? Did a girl refuse to suck your dick or something?"

"Not everything is about sex."

"But I didn’t mention anything about sex, did I? I see. So this is about a girl after all..."

"Ugh. Something like that. Wait a minute, why am I even talking to someone that can’t even say thank you?!"

"Because, dear servant, I’m the only one around who’s willing to entertain your brooding. You’re welcome, by the way!"

Klaus shot her a glare before sighing and rubbing his temple.

"Whatever. Just eat your food and stop bothering me."

"Hmph."

Briar huffed but didn’t bother him anymore, for now. Instead, she focused entirely on her meal, allowing Klaus the moment of silence he needed.

Seizing the opportunity, he turned back to his laptop.

Recalling Cecilia’s words, he quickly typed "Luminous Clan" into the search engine and hit Enter.

However, the results were... strange. Or rather, there were none.

"Search could not be found."

Klaus frowned.

In this day and age, it was almost impossible for something to have no digital footprint. Even classified information usually left traces such as redacted files, vague references, restricted-access documents. But here, there was completely nothing. It was as if the Luminous Clan didn’t exist at all.

His fingers tapped idly against the desk as he stared at the screen.

Cecilia clearly expected me to find something, but... what if she knew I wouldn’t?

What if she told him to search up completely classified information that hasn’t been exposed to the public? Honestly, that would make sense, especially when she was reluctant to even mention the "Luminous Clan" as if it was some kind of taboo. A taboo?

Wait, could it be...

Struck by an idea, Klaus quickly masked his IP address using an application, switched to incognito mode, and accessed the dark web. It was the kind of place where buried, censored, or deliberately erased information often resurfaced. A lawless domain where people could hire assassins, trade in illicit goods, or share gruesome evidence of unspeakable crimes.

A dangerous place.

But for uncovering hidden truths, it was perfect.

Klaus navigated through a few encrypted forums, his fingers moving swiftly across the keyboard as he input keywords; Luminous Clan, hidden factions, erased history. He scrolled past irrelevant discussions and conspiracy theories until something finally caught his eye.

A thread titled: "The Forgotten Light – What Happened to the Luminous Clan?"

His pulse quickened.

Clicking on it, he was met with a single post from an anonymous user.

"If you’re wondering what happened to those nutjobs, don’t bother. They’re all fucking dead. If I remembered correctly, they turned traitor and tried to take out the Emperor? Blasphemous fuckers! Did they even realise what they were trying to do? It’s a shame really. They used to be the primary protectors of the Emperor too before they turned crazy! Crazy fucks! I’m sure all of them are rotting in hell! Ah, praise the Emperor!!"

Below that, there was a long thread of responses. Klaus took his time scrolling through each one, filtering through the noise. When he was done, he pieced together a rough timeline.

From what he gathered, the Luminous Clan † was an ancient household, the first Imperial Clan to ever exist. They were regarded as the Progenitors of the Imperial Clans. The main head of the clan was the Heavenly Wing, both legendary figures who played a pivotal role in the Great War against the Demon Race. Their efforts were instrumental in sealing the demons away, and in the aftermath, they became the Emperor’s sworn protectors. Then, at some point, due to an unknown reason, they betrayed the Emperor and attempted to assassinate him, which resulted in their complete annihilation by the other Imperial Clans.

It was a simple story, really. But something didn’t add up.

Upon further research, Heavenly Wing was recorded as the second Ascendant to conquer the Second Fracture and attain the rank of Inquisitor, while his son, Silent Sword — the War God — was the second to overcome the Third Fracture and become humanity’s Second Saint. Their contributions to humanity were monumental, enough to etch their names into history as legendary heroes. And yet, there was nothing about them. No records online, no mentions in historical archives, not even a passing reference in school curriculums.

It made no sense at all. It was as if their entire existence and contributions has been erased from society’s history.

Klaus leaned back against his chair and processed the matter more thoughtfully. The more he dug into the Luminous Clan, the more things didn’t add up. Their entire legacy was wiped clean.

But why?

If they had truly been traitors, there would have been records condemning them, warnings in history books about their betrayal. Instead, there was nothing. Not even propaganda to vilify them.

It was as if someone had gone to great lengths to erase them from the face of the world.

What was the reason behind this and the most concerning of all, how was Seraphim connected to all this?

..... No way!

As the realization crept in, Klaus’s whole body trembled. The implications were staggering, and suddenly, everything up to this point made perfect sense.

He had already suspected that she belonged to an Imperial Clan, but never in his wildest thoughts did he imagine that she was from that Imperial Clan, the Progenitors of the Imperial Clans!

Her full name was Seraphim Luminous from the Great Luminous Clan!

No wonder Miguel had addressed her as Lady during weapon training. It was subtle, but now that he thought about it, the way people treated her had always been different. Even then, despite her noble lineage, she could never be called princess, not when she was the daughter of a Traitorous Clan.

No. It couldn’t even be called a Clan anymore.

Everyone was dead. She was the only one left.

But that was strange. Why had she been spared?

If an entire clan was being wiped out, it would make sense to kill everyone so why spare her? Maybe she managed to escape by some miracle, but that doesn’t explain her presence in the Sanctuary. Why would she come back to hell? Scratch that, how did she even manage to enter the Sanctuary?

There was no way the Sanctuary’s Board of Directors was unaware of her existence. Someone like her wouldn’t simply slip through the cracks. No, she must have been kept alive for a reason.

The question was, why?

Perhaps those from wealthy backgrounds, like aristocrats and high-ranking officials, already knew about her existence but chose to remain silent.

He considered asking Adrian, given his ties to an Imperial Clan, but ultimately dismissed the idea as there was no guarantee he would provide an answer. In fact, Adrian had already made his stance clear by pretending not to know Seraphim, signaling his intent to stay out of whatever surrounded her.

Miguel, on the other hand, likely knew something. But how was Klaus supposed to approach him about it? Walking around and revealing that he had uncovered Seraphim’s true identity would be reckless, if not outright dangerous.

What to do? He wondered anxiously. It felt like he had stumbled into dangerous territory of his own accord.

Obviously, he had no intention of getting involved. She might be going through hell, but he was certain, without a shred of doubt, that he wouldn’t follow her into the depths of hell.

Respectfully speaking, he had his own problems to deal with. For instance, the succubus devouring food like a damn glutton!

Not only did he have to prepare for his first departure, but he also had to do so while keeping her existence a secret and that included providing for all her needs! (No her wants of course).

Klaus felt like he was going to cry. Maybe he should cry. Who knew the life of an Awakened would be this complicated and exhausting!?

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Me and my big fucking head! Who the hell asked you to involve yourself in this?! Wait... Aren’t I already involved since I sent her to the infirmary?

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuccccckkkk! I’m so screwed!

Struggling to control his chaotic thoughts while also resisting the overwhelming urge to slam his head into the table, Klaus groaned loudly and buried his face in his hands.

Maybe if he ignored everything, it would all just go away. Yes, everything would magically fix itself if he pretended to be ignorant and continued living as he always had.

Yeah, right. Like hell that was going to happen!

"Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune! Misfortune!"

Muttering so rapidly, Klaus slowly entered a Half-Cognition state, whereupon Briar noticed his strange behaviour and paused mid-bite.

Then, she frowned.

The way he muttered "misfortune" over and over again while clutching his head was... concerning, to say the least.

"Oi," she called out and waved a fry in front of his face. "Did you finally break? Tsk, tsk. It would be troublesome for me if you suddenly went crazy. Um, hello?"

No response.

Instead, Klaus remained hunched over his laptop, hands still buried in his hair. It was as though his mind had drifted into an alternate reality.

Briar clicked her tongue.

"Hey, dumbass, snap out of it."

Still nothing.

Her frown deepened.

It wasn’t like Klaus to completely ignore her, no matter how annoying she was being. In fact, he always had a sharp comeback ready, but now, he was just sitting there, lost in some trance-like state.

Briar sat up straighter. Something was definitely wrong.

With a sigh, she set her food aside and reached out, poking his forehead. "Oi! Wake up before I start drawing dicks on your stupid face."

At that moment, Klaus shuddered violently. His head jerked up and his hazy eyes locked onto Briar’s with an almost inhuman intensity.

She stiffened.

His eyes had turned crimson as blood. His fingers twitched slightly, and his breathing was erratic, as if his body was running on pure adrenaline.

"...Shit," Briar muttered, finally realizing what was happening.

Just when she was about to move back, Klaus suddenly lunged at her and grabbed her by the wrist before pinning her to the bed with his full body weight.

"Eh... Wh-Wha..."

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! EVER SINCE YOU CAME INTO MY LIFE, IT WAS ALWAYS ONE THING TO ANOTHER! I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE! YOU’RE GOING TO PAY!"

With a growl, Klaus moved his right hand and tore her top with just one swipe. Briar, who was still in shock, slowly realised what had happened and her eyes widened in disbelief.

"HOLY MOTHER OF DEPRAVITY! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR DAMN MIND!?"

"SHUT THE HELL UP! I’M GOING TO DO THE FUCK I WANT!"

"LIKE HELL YOU ARE! IF YOU’RE SUDDENLY GOING TO HAVE A MELTDOWN, DO IT WITHOUT BEING FORCEFUL SO SNAP OUT OF IT, YOU DAMN IDIOT!!"

Shouting so, Briar summoned all her strength and slammed her forehead into Klaus’s nose.

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