บททั้งหมดของ Shadowbound Flame: บทที่ 21 - บทที่ 28

Chapter Twenty One - Shadows Between Us

Sierra’s POVThe sky was red again—but not the soft, blushing kind. No, this was bruised light. Torn open. Bleeding over the horizon like a wound.Sierra stood barefoot in a field of black feathers. They moved when she tried to step, sliding under her like liquid, writhing in anticipation. Above her, the sun was a cold, watching eye, stripped of warmth.And ahead—Her mother waited.Long, pale hair whipped around her face in some phantom wind. Sharp features carved from memory now sharpened further, haunted, terrified.“You’re not ready,” her mother whispered.Sierra tried to move toward her, but the feathers tugged at her ankles, rooting her in place.“You mustn’t let it in,” her mother said. “It will wear you like a crown. Twist you until you forget who you are.”The wind shifted.The sun darkened.The feathers parted.A pit of shadow yawned beneath her—not a hole, but a presence. An abyss.And it knew her.A vo

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Chapter Twenty Two – Familiar Shadows

Sierra’s POVShe was late.The mystical bell hadn’t rung yet—but the runes along the hallway sconces were already pulsing amber, ticking down like a magical countdown. One more pulse and she’d be locked out.Sierra didn’t even try to blend in. She sprinted through the last archway, shoulder braced, boots skidding slightly on polished stone. The door closed behind her with a slow, enchanted thud.“Made it.”She exhaled, relief rushing through her… until her eyes landed on the scene in front of her.Malick was already in his seat—surrounded.Elara draped herself over the desk next to him, the picture of careless elegance, lazily twirling a quill between her fingers. Patricia leaned forward on the other side, whispering something with a coy smile. Gloria sat back, quiet, her gaze tracking Malick like she was memorizing him—the rise and fall of his chest, the subtle flex of his fingers.Sierra’s gut twisted.The air felt heavier, loaded with

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Chapter Twenty Three - The Price of Power

Sierra’s POVSierra didn’t remember exactly when her legs had carried her to the training hall. All she knew was that she needed the space—the cold stone, the echoes, the way the shadows seemed less oppressive here. The walls held a different kind of silence: not empty, but expectant. Like they were waiting to see what she would do next.She pressed her palms to the smooth, cool stone, trying to steady her racing heart. Her pulse thudded in her ears, each beat echoing the memory of the purr from the summoning circle. She hadn’t meant for the shadows to answer so vividly—not like that—but a part of her had wanted them to. A part she hadn’t admitted even to herself.By the time she returned to her dorm, sleep refused to come. Her body felt restless, charged, like her blood was humming with leftover magic. She rolled onto her side, tugged the blanket tight, and squeezed her eyes shut. Don’t think about him. Don’t think about how he smelled. Don’t think about his hands. D

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Chapter Twenty Four - Loyalty’s Edge

Malick’s POVThe corridors were quieter than usual, shadows pooling beneath the ancient stone arches like spilled ink. The air felt heavier, charged, as if the school itself were holding its breath. Every footstep Malick took echoed, steady but tense, across the cold stone floors. He had a sense of anticipation prickling along his spine, a whispering warning that the calm was deceptive.He approached the Headmistress’s office, the door ajar, a sliver of warm lamplight cutting through the gloom. Inside, the Headmistress sat behind her desk, fingers laced, posture perfect, her eyes sharp and calculating as they met his.“You wanted to see me,” she said, voice like silk stretched over steel, carrying a weight he could almost feel.“It’s about Sierra,” he said immediately. No hesitation. No preamble.Her gaze sharpened. “I suppose I shouldn’t tell you much… but she’s not ordinary. You’ve been caring for her these past months, yes? Watching her… guiding her, even

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Chapter Twenty Five - Break the Seal

Sierra’s POVMalick was waiting. She felt him before she saw him — that tether between them pulling taut as she turned the corner into the east wing corridor.He didn’t greet her. Didn’t even move from where he was leaning against the stone wall, arms crossed, gaze locked on her like a hunter who had already chosen his mark.“Who is Vorath Kane?”The name hit like a thrown blade. Sharp. Cold.Sierra’s steps faltered, but she forced herself forward, keeping her face neutral. “You’ve been digging in places you shouldn’t.”“Answer me.” His tone was calm, but there was something in it — a thread of urgency he couldn’t hide.She looked him dead in the eye. “He’s my father.” Malick didn’t blink. “Ruler of dragons. Master of shadows. That’s what I found.”“Then you know enough.” Her voice was sharper than she intended. “Enough to leave it alone.”“That’s not enough for me.”“Too bad,” she said, brushing past him. “Combat class starts

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Chapter Twenty Six – Whispers in the Forest

Sierra’s POVThe forest was too quiet.Branches cracked under her boots as Sierra followed Malick deeper into the trees, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, as if that could keep the shadows from spilling through her skin again. Her breath still came unevenly — she swore she could taste iron at the back of her throat.Malick kept glancing back at her, jaw tight. He hadn’t asked anything, not when he’d found her curled against the roots, not when her magic had blasted him off his feet, not even when she’d begged him not to look at her like she was a monster.But now, leading her toward a moss-covered outbuilding tucked between the trees, his silence had weight. Like questions pressing against the walls of his chest, straining for release.The little stone outhouse looked like it hadn’t been touched in years. He shoved the door open with his shoulder, then motioned for her to step inside.“Used to come here when I needed space,” Malick muttered. “No

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Chapter Twenty Seven - Ashes Before Dawn

Sierra’s POVThe world was fragile again. The hush after the kiss still lingered, but now it felt fractured, hollow. Every time Sierra closed her eyes, she saw the shimmer of the luminous familiar she and Malick had conjured together — a creation born of love and desperation.It had been beautiful. Too beautiful. And that terrified her.If she could summon something like that by accident, what else might answer her if she slipped again? What if next time she didn’t conjure light, but ruin?Her hands wouldn’t stop trembling. She rubbed them against her thighs as she walked, the chill night air clinging to her skin like damp silk. Her throat ached with words she couldn’t force out.Behind her, Malick trailed close. His presence was steady, his silence louder than words. She didn’t dare look back, didn’t dare meet his eyes, because she knew he could already feel it — the storm pressing against her edges. The storm she was barely containing.And still — the

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Chapter Twenty Eight – The Storm

Sierra’s POVThe forest split open inside her chest.It wasn’t just whispers anymore. Shadows didn’t murmur, didn’t brush softly at her edges — they roared. They clawed her throat raw from the inside, begging release.Her knees buckled. Breath shattered as she stumbled across the roots, hands clutching at her ribs as though she could hold herself together by force alone. Her pulse was erratic, no longer hers.And Malick’s voice—Distant. Torn apart by the wind.Stay with me, Sierra—She wanted to. She reached inward, as she always did, toward her mother, toward the warmth that had once been a tether in the darkness.Please—help me—But there was only silence.And then, curling cold and absolute, a single word:Mine.The fire erupted.It burst through her skin black and wild, devouring. Trees splintered like bones cracking under an unseen hand. Small creatures shrieked and vanished into ash. The familiar they had conjur

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