°•♡Chapter 74~ The Price of Her Mercy

《》Ansel's POV

The torch flickered as I moved quickly, but carefully—not fast enough to be detected, not slow enough to be caught.

The map trembled slightly in my hand, the parchment was worn thin at the edges from use. I had memorized the path weeks ago, but I still checked every turn. One wrong step and I’d end up in the waterway beneath the Citadel or completely lost.

It was very helpful that Caelin had drawn these maps. He knew these tunnels. Too well. They thought it was because of his rank. But he told me once that he used to run down here as a boy. Long before the council.

Now he was just another secret buried under our feet.

I kept walking.

The air grew colder the closer I got to the exit. And the stone passage eventually gave way to roots and soil. The path narrowed before opening into the hidden hatch.

Caelin had told me once during one of our late-night meetings "If you ever need to disappear, follow the mushrooms" I found the tiny glowing caps now and smiled bi