Villain's Last Chance
Chapter 30: Throne of Shadows

Chapter 30: Throne of Shadows

The silence after the storm was heavier than the destruction itself.

The Codex still pulsed with latent energy, a silent promise of what it could offer. But for now, it was still. Dormant.

And yet, something had changed.

I had changed.

Marek was the first to break the quiet. "You’re not dead. So, that’s a win, I guess."

I barely heard him. My mind was still reeling from what had just happened, the weight of knowledge pressing against my skull. The Codex had shown me fragments—truths buried beneath centuries of lies.

Elara hadn’t been just another mage.

She had been a foundation. A pillar holding up something vast and unknowable.

And now, I stood in her place.

But that wasn’t the worst of it.

Because I wasn’t just a replacement.

The Codex had chosen me.

And I had no idea what that truly meant.

Cairon was still close, his golden eyes searching mine for something—an answer I wasn’t sure I could give.

"We need to leave," he said finally. "Whatever you just did, the temple won’t hold for much longer."

As if to prove his point, a low rumble shuddered through the ground beneath us. Dust drifted from the ceiling, the walls creaking under unseen pressure.

Marek muttered another curse. "Of course it’s collapsing. Why wouldn’t it?"

I forced my thoughts back into place. Now wasn’t the time for revelations. Now was the time to survive.

We ran.

The corridors blurred past us as we retraced our steps through the labyrinth. Shadows flickered at the edges of my vision, but whether they were remnants of the Codex’s power or just tricks of the failing light, I couldn’t tell.

I didn’t look back.

I couldn’t.

The entrance came into view at last, the night sky beyond it a sharp contrast to the suffocating darkness of the temple’s interior. We didn’t stop running until we were well beyond the ruins, the ground finally steady beneath our feet.

Only then did we turn to look.

The temple stood in eerie silence. Then—with a final groan, it crumbled inward.

Dust and ash billowed into the air, swallowing the ruins whole.

It was over.

Or at least, it should have been.

Marek let out a long breath, hands on his knees. "I swear, I am never setting foot in another temple again."

I barely heard him. My gaze was still locked on the place where the Codex had been buried.

The weight of it still clung to me.

Cairon stepped closer, voice low. "What did it show you?"

I hesitated.

How could I even begin to explain? The past, the truth about Elara, the power still thrumming in my veins—it was too much.

So instead, I met his gaze and said the only thing that mattered.

"It’s not over."

His expression didn’t change, but something in his eyes darkened. "No. It’s not."

Because the Codex had given me knowledge.

But knowledge alone wasn’t enough.

Not in a world still ruled by those who would rather see me dead than allow me to wield what I had just claimed.

Not when he was still watching.

Waiting.

I turned away from the ruins, the wind carrying the scent of dust and magic through the air.

One temple had fallen.

But the real war was just beginning.

The Ride Back

The city loomed in the distance, a reminder that civilization still existed beyond the ruins of the past. The ride back was silent for the most part, each of us lost in our own thoughts.

Marek was the first to break the quiet. "So, are we going to talk about it? Or are we just going to pretend that none of that happened back there?"

I exhaled slowly. "What do you want to know?"

"How about we start with the fact that the temple nearly collapsed on top of us?" He shot me a look. "Or maybe the fact that you looked like you were about to become part of the Codex itself?"

Cairon remained quiet, his gaze fixed ahead.

I considered my answer carefully. "I saw things."

Marek snorted. "Yeah, no kidding. You looked like you were about to ascend to another plane of existence."

I clenched my jaw.

That made him pause.

Cairon finally spoke. "Explain."

I shifted in my seat. "She wasn’t just another mage. She was something... different. The Codex didn’t just hold knowledge. It was tied to her. And now—"

"You’re tied to it," Cairon finished.

I nodded.

The words sat between us, heavy and unspoken.

I didn’t need to say it aloud, but we all understood. This wasn’t the end of anything.

It was only the beginning.

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