“Enough!” Luna’s voice rang out again, clear and firm. “Stop pouring your hatred onto those who are dear to me.”

  She took another step forward, never breaking eye contact with him.

  “If there’s even a shred of the friendship we once had left in you—stop. Please. For my sake.”

  For a moment, silence fell over the courtyard. Kael stared at Luna with a long, heavy gaze. His lips twitched, as though he were truly considering her words. Then laughter burst from his chest—first low, then louder and louder, until it echoed across the courtyard in deafening peals.

  “Oh, this is wonderful!” he rasped through his laughter. “Coming here really was the right decision. I haven’t been this entertained in a long time!”

  He wiped a tear of laughter from the corner of his eye and abruptly jabbed a finger at Luna.

  “You have no right to ask me for anything! Once—yes, once I would have done anything for you. But you destroyed it yourself. You trampled our friendship into the dirt. And now your words mean nothing to me. You are not my Luna. What stands before me is nothing but her shadow.”

  “Then what do you want?” Luna asked, forcing her voice to remain steady.

  Kael shrugged indifferently, slowly sweeping his gaze over everyone present. He glanced around a few times, as if hesitating, then finally let out a heavy sigh.

  “I don’t even know anymore…” He scratched the back of his head, his smile crooked. “At first, I was furious that I wasn’t even invited to this evening. Then there were those stupid children’s fairy tales about how you all met. You erased me from the past, wiped my name away, fed the kids a sweet little lie. I was angry. Very angry.”

  His voice sharpened, turning cold.

  “So I came here. And you know what? It felt better. I saw all of you and realized—nothing has changed. You’re still the same pathetic, worthless creatures you were back then. And I’m honestly amazed I ever called you my friends.”

  “If you hate it all so much…” Adam suddenly spoke up, stepping forward. “Why don’t you just leave?”

  Kael’s eyes flared. He stared at the boy for a long moment, then his lips twisted into a sinister smile.

  “Oh? That’s unexpected…” he drawled. “I didn’t think you’d have the guts to open your mouth. You’ve surprised me a little. But you know… you’re right. There’s nothing more for me to do here.”

  He spread his arms as if bidding farewell.

  “I’ve already ruined my mood for several days thanks to you all. So I suppose I’ll be going. I wish you all a wonderful evening. Enjoy it while you can. Because who knows when misfortune might fall upon you next.”

  “What do you mean by that?!” Astarion shouted, cold menace ringing in his voice.

  Kael shrugged.

  “Who knows? Maybe a new curse will fall upon the Wolfengards. Or the Ravenfords. Or, why not, the Bledharts. Wouldn’t want Elizabeth getting too relaxed.”

  He laughed—sharp and sinister.

  “So many choices! And it’s so hard to decide who to curse first… Though I’ve already cursed Luna once, so now—” His voice cut off when he noticed the looks of horror spreading across the faces before him.

  Kael slowly stretched his lips into a wide, predatory grin.

  “You heard correctly. That was me.”

  He raised his hand and began pointing, one by one.

  “The one who cursed your wife,” he pointed at Astarion. “Your friend,” his finger shifted to Arthur. “And your mother,” his finger stopped on Adam.

  He spread his arms theatrically, as if waiting for applause.

  “That was me. Kael Daskreit. Your dear old friend.”

  The moment Kael’s last word dissolved into the air, a blue flash ignited behind him.

  Adam appeared so suddenly that even the adults didn’t have time to react. His right palm was engulfed in a dense mass of lightning, bursting outward in hundreds of sparks. His hand glowed and hummed with excess power.

  The boy struck without hesitation.

  His charged palm slammed into a transparent shield that instantly unfolded around Kael’s back. Lightning veins raced across its surface, deflecting the attack, but the sheer force of the blow made the barrier hum and shudder.

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  Kael slowly turned his head, a wide, venomous smile spreading across his lips.

  “O-oh…” he drawled, savoring the moment. “Did someone dare to attack me? How interesting. But such a… childish attempt. Such a weak attack could never—”

  He didn’t finish the sentence.

  A tiny crack appeared at the very center of the barrier—barely noticeable at first, like a scratch on glass. Then a second. A third. The fractures spread with terrifying speed, and every new surge of Adam’s lightning split the defense even further.

  Kael’s smile faded.

  His own palm flared with lightning—but different, darker, a dense violet hue. Sparks flew in every direction, leaving a sharp scent of ozone in the air. Kael swung his arm, preparing to strike back, when he suddenly sensed something behind him.

  An aura. Powerful, sharp, threaded with the same lightning.

  He barely had time to turn his head and raise his arm before Astarion crashed into him with full force. His sword blazed with blue arcs, the blade humming with tension, as if the air itself were about to tear under the pressure.

  Kael met the blade with his bare hand, wrapped in violet lightning. The impact was so powerful that a small crater formed beneath Kael’s feet, the ground fracturing into a spiderweb of cracks.

  He strained, pouring all his strength into holding Astarion’s sword at bay.

  But he paid for it with his concentration. His back was left unguarded.

  And the barrier behind him shattered completely.

  Adam lunged forward, the lightning around his hand shining almost blindingly bright. Kael felt the shield collapse behind him and, for a fraction of a second, loosened his grip on Astarion’s blade.

  The count felt it. His eyes flared, and he sharply increased the pressure of his strike.

  Kael had no choice but to abandon everything and leap aside. In that same instant, two deadly trajectories crossed where he had been standing: Astarion’s blue blade from below, and Adam’s thunder-wreathed hand from above.

  The air tore apart with a deafening crack.

  Kael rolled across the ground and was back on his feet a moment later, breathing hard. But he didn’t have time to retreat.

  A red magic circle flared directly beneath him.

  A pillar of fire erupted from the circle, shooting high into the sky and engulfing Kael in solid flame. The inferno raged for several seconds, bathing the entire courtyard in a red glow, then abruptly died out.

  Kael stood where it had been.

  Alive. Unharmed.

  His chest rose and fell rapidly, and the last traces of mockery vanished from the corners of his mouth.

  He screamed, his voice echoing through the night air like a thunderclap.

  “How dare you?!” His eyes burned with rage. “You insignificant, worthless aristocrats aren’t even worthy of looking in my direction! All of you—”

  His words were cut short by another flash beneath his feet. A red magic circle appeared again, and a pillar of flame surged skyward, blinding everyone present. The ground shook, the fire roared—but when it dispersed, Kael was gone.

  “Such weak flames…” his voice came from an entirely different direction.

  Everyone spun around.

  He was standing behind the women and children, his brown eyes gleaming predatorily.

  “…could never harm me,” Kael continued with feigned indifference. “Even Astarion’s little son was more dangerous than your cheap tricks, Arthur.”

  Elizabeth instantly stepped in front of the other women and children, bracing for another attack. Kael waved her off as if she were an annoying insect.

  “Easy, Elizabeth.” He bared his teeth in a sly grin. “I’m not in the mood to hurt you. At least… not today.”

  His gaze slid over everyone before stopping on Astarion. He narrowed his eyes, his smile turning even more poisonous.

  “You know,” he said lightly, almost cheerfully, “I’m actually glad I confessed. I thought you’d just stand there with stone faces, swallowing my words. At most, I expected a few boring threats. But no.”

  His laughter rang across the courtyard, wild and rolling.

  “No, damn it! You decided to attack. I’m surprised. Angry, because you had the audacity to do it—but surprised nonetheless. Surprised to the point where I can hardly find the words. And what shocked me the most was that even Astarion and Arthur joined in.”

  He shot a sharp glance at Adam, then stepped forward and bowed, as if standing on a theater stage.

  “Thank you, boy. You saved my evening from boredom. Without you, those two idiots would never have dared to raise a hand.”

  Astarion snapped.

  “Shut up!” His voice vibrated with the lightning coiling around his sword. “This is your final warning. Get out of my estate!”

  Kael sighed heavily, theatrically lifting his eyes to the sky.

  “And who are you to give me orders…?”

  He didn’t finish.

  Astarion surged forward, his sword cleaving the air in a flash of lightning—but the blade cut through nothing but emptiness. Kael vanished an instant before the strike and reappeared the next second right beside Adam.

  He leaned closer and whispered something directly into the boy’s ear. The words were quiet, nearly soundless, but Adam’s face changed instantly—his eyes widened, his jaw tightened, and his fingers curled into a fist.

  Kael straightened, savoring the reaction, and cast one last look over everyone present. Then came a brazen smile, a flash of a magic circle beneath his feet—and he was gone, leaving behind only the faint echo of his laughter.

  In Alex’s mind, Sirena’s voice sounded—calm, but tense.

  “My lord, I’ve found information on Kael Morven.”

  Alex replied calmly in thought.

  “Thank you. But I’ll listen a little later.”

  He turned his gaze to Adam. Luna had already reached the boy—trembling all over, yet filled with resolve. She wrapped her arms around her son as if afraid to let go and whispered in a quiet, broken voice:

  “How are you, my son?”

  Adam answered almost immediately, trying to keep his tone steady.

  “I’m fine, Mom.”

  Astarion joined them. His steps were heavy, and a faint glimmer of lightning still lingered in his pupils. He bent toward his son, studying every movement, every breath.

  “What did he say to you?”

  Adam looked away, his shoulders tensing. Then he sighed and said almost indifferently:

  “He thanked me for the evening.”

  “That’s all?” Luna asked softly.

  “Yes,” Adam replied shortly.

  Astarion frowned. His sharpened senses caught his son’s rapid heartbeat, but he attributed it to the adrenaline of the clash. The count wrapped an arm around Luna’s shoulders and drew Adam close, forming a tight family circle.

  The Ravenfords closed ranks as well: Arthur placed a hand on Demian’s shoulder, Celeste embraced their daughter while simultaneously holding her husband’s hand.

  Alex stood beside his parents. Gabriel carefully drew Emma closer, and together they held Alex as if he were still a small boy. He felt a familiar warmth, and although his face remained serious, emotionally he relaxed completely.

  Only Elizabeth stayed apart. She stood slightly to the side of Gabriel and Emma, holding herself straight, as if shielding everyone from the lingering tension that still hung in the air. Her dark eyes moved from one person to another, as though making sure the danger had truly passed.