Chapter 38 · Hunter's Gambit

"Kneel," Augustus commanded. His voice didn't just carry; it vibrated through the floorboards of the Void palace, rattling the black crystals lining the walls.

Cane didn't move. He didn't even blink. He just kept his arm draped heavily around Selena’s shoulders, pulling her flush against his side. He could feel her trembling—a fine, rhythmic shudder that pulsed against his ribs. He liked it. He liked knowing that while the world’s most powerful man was shouting, Selena was only reacting to him.

"I don't remember asking for your opinion on my posture, Augustus," Cane said. His voice was a low, dangerous drawl. He tightened his grip on Selena, his fingers digging slightly into the soft fabric of her dress.

Augustus stepped forward, his boots clicking sharply on the obsidian floor. The air around him shimmered with a gold-white light that looked like a joke in this place. This was the Void. Here, gold didn't mean holiness; it meant desperation.

"You're playing house with a broken doll," Augustus spat. He stopped ten feet away, his eyes scanning Selena with a look of pure disgust. "She was the Holy Maiden. The beacon of Luminis. And look at her now.