LOGINEmber Frost’s POVEira caught on to what I was getting at almost right away.As Jules and the others were still debating whether to report what we’d discovered, she made eye contact with me, her voice dropping to a quiet thread through our mind link.“You’re thinking Sir Henry’s situation might be connected to the same kind of spatial trick… aren’t you?”There was a certain unease in her tone, like she didn’t like where the thought was going, but couldn’t ignore it either.“Yes… I think so,” I said after a short pause.Eira frowned slightly, her voice dropping. “But I’ve actually been to that place with Elder Harriet and Elder Marcus. We didn’t notice anything strange like what we just saw with the ravine.”That made sense. If it was the same kind of trick, we should have felt something off back then.I shook my head a little, trying to piece it together. “Maybe it’s not built the same way,” I said. “It might not be a single space, it could be… something overlapping. One place hidden
Ember Frost’s POVI needed more than a guess—I needed something solid to hold onto.So I started asking questions.“When they showed up, what did they look like? Were they out of breath, like they’d been walking for hours… or did they look relaxed, like it was nothing?”Eira didn’t even hesitate. “They’re tired. Really tired. You can tell just by looking at them. Their steps are slow, like every movement costs them something. Some of them can barely keep their balance.”That painted a clearer picture—but not a complete one.“Did anyone look behind them at all?” I asked. “Like… checking the way they came, just to be sure?”I hesitated for a second, then added, “Or maybe their faces gave something away? Shock, confusion… even a bit of excitement? Anything that felt off?”She paused for a while.“Honestly… I didn’t really notice,” she said after a moment. “I was paying more attention to the group as a whole.”Then she added, “But some members of my team did see something. They said they
Ember Frost’s POVWe’ve had clear skies for a few days now, so this sudden shift feels a bit off. Then, almost out of nowhere, snow started falling—thick, fast, and heavy enough to cover everything in white.Still, it didn’t bother us much. In this place, winter was constant—we’d learned to move through it like it was nothing.Being used to it didn’t make it easier. There’s a difference between putting up with something and actually wanting it. And lying out in the cold until noon, feeling the chill sink deep into my bones, was definitely not my idea of a good time.The cold had soaked through my clothes a long time ago. My fingers were stiff, my legs barely responding. Every breath felt sharp in my chest, like I was inhaling ice. If I stayed like this any longer, I might just freeze into the ground and become part of it.So this was what they meant by keeping watch.At first, I thought this would be simple. Just sit, observe, and wait. It wasn’t. No one tells you how slowly time move
Ember Frost’s POVHenry didn’t fully trust the report, but he didn’t ignore it either. Something about it felt off, and he couldn’t shake that feeling.“What do you think they’re after?” he asked, his voice low but firm.Jules exhaled slowly and shook her head. “I honestly don’t know. They’ve settled in a cave at the foot of the mountain, and it looks like they plan to stay for a while. I didn’t go any closer than I had to—it didn’t feel safe. I just watched from a distance with the others. Once they were settled, we came straight back.”Henry gave a small nod. “You handled that well,” he said. He gestured toward the door. “Go to your room and take a breather. We’ve got a long night ahead, and you’ll need all your focus.”Jules looked drained but didn’t argue. After a short nod, she left for her room.The moment she stepped out, I turned to Henry. “Could this be the same human group the scouts reported earlier?” I asked, trying to make sense of it all.“They are,” he said, his express
Ember Frost’s POVI kept my eyes on Henry as he stood along the mountainside, watching every move, every reaction. But no matter how closely I studied him, nothing felt out of place. He was… too perfect. Not a single crack to hold on to.For a moment, I couldn’t help but wonder—if this demon ever grew tired of the underworld, he wouldn’t struggle to fit in here. He could slip into human life quietly, take a simple role, maybe in a craft or trade, where no one would question him. With the way he studied and copied people, he wouldn’t just blend in—he’d stand out without even trying. He could make a life for himself, gain respect, and no one would ever guess the truth behind that calm, perfect mask.The other Henry had already been sent back to the palace. But with two versions of the same man in play, I couldn’t afford to trust what I was seeing. Reaching out to my parents wasn’t an option either. As the Captain, Henry controlled all important emails. Every email in or out passed throu
Eira’s POVHenry yawned and rubbed his eyes, his voice thick with sleep. “Morning… I didn’t mean to oversleep. It gets so cold here at night; I think I might’ve caught a chill.”He shivered slightly, tugging at the edge of his sleeve as if to ward off the chill, and gave a half-smile that didn’t quite reach his tired eyes.I blinked at him, trying to wrap my head around it. “Hold on… you really spent the night here?” I asked, my voice betraying more surprise than I intended.Henry frowned, clearly puzzled by the way I was staring. After a pause, he shrugged. “Yeah… I’d rather have stayed down here, honestly. But Elder Anna said this room is full of old artifacts, so I went upstairs. Ended up keeping an eye on a bunch of creaky furniture instead,” he added with a tired sigh.That didn’t make any sense.Elder Marcus had been upstairs the entire night. There was no way he could’ve missed someone like Henry. He wasn’t exactly easy to overlook.Henry shifted uncomfortably under my gaze, a
Ember Frost’s POVWe had nothing that could truly blow things apart, no bombs, no blasting powder. A few alcohol blocks and a lighter weren’t going to do much against a tree that rose like a tower.I exhaled slowly, then turned to Eira. “You wouldn’t happen to know any fire spells, would you?”She
Ember Frost’s POVI was frozen in place, my mind blank. Eira’s words strangely made sense, yet my heart refused to accept them.“If all of this is just a trick, if someone wants us to freeze to death… then why create all these dangers inside the illusion?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
Ember Frost’s POV“You saw me, didn’t you? I saw you too.” Eira’s voice came from behind me. I spun around, heart pounding, but all I caught was a flicker of her form before it vanished again.“I was standing in front of you before,” she said, her tone calm but urgent, “and now I’m a few steps behi
Ember Frost’s POVKnowing what the mark was didn’t help us at all. Understanding something means nothing when you have no way to fight it. We were stuck with answers that led nowhere.Eira studied the mark for a long while, worry tightening her features. Her eyes narrowed as she searched through ev







