All Chapters of VIREMONT ACADEMY:THE SEALED HUMAN CLAIMED BY THE FOUR SCIONS: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

The heavy, rhythmic thud of the security boots echoed loudly against the tile floor, and the sweeping beams of their magical flashlights cut through the dark hospital room like searching blades.I held my breath as Lucius pressed his lean body flush against mine, and his cold hand remained clamped firmly over my mouth to smother any sound I might make.The two armored guards stopped just a few feet away from our drawn privacy curtain, and the bright white light of their torches bled through the thin gray fabric.I braced myself for the inevitable moment they ripped the curtain back, but Lucius simply closed his eyes and let out a faint, silent breath that smelled like peppermint and dark magic.A soft blue spark flared from his fingertips, and the air around the bed instantly grew thick and heavy as he cast a localized illusion to mask our presence.The guards stood there for ten agonizing seconds, and I could hear the crackle of their radios before the lead officer finally grunted an

Those chilling words echoed in the dead silence of the restricted hallway, and the sheer weight of their meaning made my blood run ice-cold.Archon Malakar wasn't just observing me out of some twisted academic curiosity, and he certainly didn't care about my well-being.He knew exactly what kind of ancient, dangerous magic was hiding in my veins, and he was already planning to hand me over to whatever shadowy faction he was working for.A massive wave of pure panic crashed over me, and my hands started to shake so badly that I had to clench my fingers into tight fists just to steady myself.I had survived brutal beatings in the Varric mud ring, but the cold, clinical way he spoke about me like an object waiting to be sold terrified me more than any rogue shifter ever could.I needed to get out of this wing right now before that terrifying hologram noticed I was eavesdropping outside the door.I took a slow, agonizingly careful step backward away from the edge of the smooth marble pill

ZAYDEN'S POVThe sliver of harsh hallway light cut through the pitch-black closet and landed right across the tips of my boots.I could hear the slow, measured intake of Archon Malakar's breath just inches away on the other side of the cracked wooden door.If the headmaster found us hiding in the dark, he wouldn't just expel me, and he would definitely drag Liora down to whatever dungeon he kept his secret experiments in.My inner dragon roared against the inside of my ribcage, demanding to tear the door off its hinges and burn the Archon to ash for threatening what was currently in my arms.I forced the violent instinct down and pushed my royal magic outward instead, weaving a dense, suffocating thermal cloak over the tight space.The golden fire in my veins cooled into a heavy, localized void that instantly swallowed my massive heat signature and masked the distinct scent of her fresh blood.Maintaining a cloaking spell in such a cramped area felt like trying to hold a roaring bonfi

I marched straight into the dangerous gap between them, deliberately putting my fragile human body right in the crossfire of their devastating magic.Darian dug his boots into the floor and skidded to a violent halt just a few feet away from me, and his eyes widened in genuine horror as he desperately pulled his claws back to avoid slicing my arm open.Zayden cursed loudly and instantly extinguished the fire burning in his hands, and he took a quick step backward so the residual heat radiating from his skin wouldn't burn me.I stood right in the middle of the ruined corridor with my chest heaving, and I glared at both of them while my hands shook with a mixture of pain and furious adrenaline."Are you out of your mind?" Zayden snapped, and he stared at me like I had just jumped off a cliff. "You could have been burned alive stepping into the middle of that.""And you could have sliced me in half," I shot back, turning my glare onto Darian, who was still breathing heavily with his fang

"Take her down to the feeding levels immediately, and make sure she doesn't leave until the outer enclosures are spotless," Malakar ordered.Zayden opened his mouth to argue, but two guards stepped in front of the dragon prince and leveled their weapons right at his chest to force him to stand down.I didn't beg or plead for mercy because showing weakness to a man like Malakar was just handing him a weapon to use against me later.Two guards grabbed me roughly by the arms and dragged me out of the warm office before Darian could start another violent fight in the study.They marched me down the silent hallway and pushed me through a hidden service door that opened up to a steep, winding spiral staircase carved directly into the bedrock of the mountain.The polished marble floors and woven tapestries quickly gave way to damp, rusted iron walls covered in thick patches of slippery green moss.The air grew significantly colder with every single step we took downward, and the sharp, coppe