CH294 Silent Secrets

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Any other day, Alex might have felt a touch of embarrassment at having his hair ruffled in front of others. But today, he didn't mind. It was Zora's form of intimacy, they were among close confidants, and—most importantly—he enjoyed the softness of her bosom and the warmth it carried.

Eventually, Zora let him go and turned her attention to Udara.

"It has been a while. You look… much better," Zora said with a faint smile.

"The Fury family took good care of me, just as you recommended," Udara replied politely.

Yet, for some reason, she avoided meeting Zora's gaze. The small gesture made Zora frown, but before she could press the matter, Alex folded his arms and cut in.

"I heard from my father that you sent Udara to him on my behalf," Alex said evenly, his sharp eyes on Zora. "And that you made a number of other moves without telling me. Granted, Udara has been a perfect fit as my Shadow Guard, but there are still some things Father said that I believe we need to clear up."

A flicker of surprise crossed Zora's eyes. She glanced at Udara briefly, then sighed and shook her head.

"You are right. We have much to discuss. But first, there's someone else you need to pay respects to."

Alex and Zora locked eyes for a long moment before he finally nodded.

There was no reason to ruin the warmth of his return just yet. Besides, this wasn't the right setting to dig into such matters.

He checked his connection to the Enclave's security formation and found his access still intact. With a thought, he opened a portal—one that only three people, himself and Zora included, could use in the entire Enclave.

"I'll be back soon. I should greet the old man first," Alex said as he turned. "Can you send them to my quarters?"

"I will," Zora assured.

"Thanks." Alex gave a small smile before stepping into the portal. The gate sealed shut behind him.

As soon as it closed, Zora turned her gaze on Pinchcoin.

"Baldrich, may we have the room?" she asked.

"Very well," Pinchcoin nodded, satisfied. He had already achieved what he came for, and as for what the two women wished to discuss—it was none of his concern, nor did he care to know.

Once Pinchcoin left, Zora returned to her seat. She sat down and, while patting Fen's head, stared imperiously at Udara.

"You are his Shadow Guard? Really?" she asked.

"It… it just sort of happened," Udara mumbled.

"Whose idea was it? Yours or the Earl's?" Zora pressed curtly.

"…the Earl's," Udara admitted.

"Okay, that makes things a little better." Zora sighed. "But do you have any idea how much more complicated this makes everything? Why haven't you told him the truth yet?"

"I was waiting for the right time, but the chance never came up," Udara quickly said.

"Of course the right time never came up. There's never going to be a right time if you keep clamming up in front of him," Zora retorted.

Whine~

Fen rubbed his head against her palm as if pleading on Udara's behalf.

"Oh, you…!" Zora smiled and rubbed under his chin and neck. "Don't worry, I'm not angry at her. Just… annoyed."

She turned back to Udara.

"You've made this more complicated than it has to be. But fine, I'll take care of it. I'm partly responsible for dragging you into this after all," she said.

Then she added, "Don't worry, I won't reveal your secret. That's your story to tell. But there will always be a gap between the two of you if you keep hiding it.

"He's really big on trust, and I don't doubt he already suspects you're keeping something from him. I don't know how long he'll wait before doubt starts to take root.

"I can buy you some time to sort it out for yourself, but that's all… unless you don't want to follow through with the plan any—"

"No, I do!" Udara blurted. "I… I just need a little more time."

Zora studied her for a long moment before finally nodding. "Fine. I'll see what I can do."

Relief washed over Udara.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Zora sighed, but soon a smile tugged at her lips. She stood and opened her arms.

"Come on."

Udara's eyes lit up. She rushed forward, and the two women embraced.

"Welcome home, sister," Zora said warmly.

"I'm back, Big Sis Zora," Udara replied.

Alex stepped into the portal, arriving in the familiar cavern space.

He immediately caught the sound of rhythmic breathing and turned toward the source. Uthvaazgol's colossal Ancient Dragon body rested there, and Alex couldn't help but sigh in awe.

Even in slumber, the Dragon exuded an unshakable threat. Alex felt that, if the Ancient One wasn't deliberately restraining its breath, even as he slept, a single exhale could collapse the cavern, perhaps even shatter the entire Dragonspine Mountain.

The thought alone sent a shiver down his spine.

"You are back," Merlin's voice echoed in his ears.

An instant later, the old human male avatar of the Ancient Dragon materialised before him.

Alex frowned.

"Master, are you alright? You seem… weaker." He narrowed his eyes.

His Truth-Seeker eyes intuitively scanned over the old man's form. What he saw made his stomach tighten. The sheer vibrancy of mana around Merlin had diminished by nearly half.

"Don't panic, boy," Merlin said casually. "As you can see, I am taking a short nap. This time I only left a smaller wisp of my Will than usual in this form."

Alex's lips twitched.

Even this so-called "smaller than usual" wisp radiated a dread greater than any Legend he had ever met. Granted, his encounters with Legends were few—barely a handful—but still, the gap was undeniable.

If this weakened fragment of Uthvaazgol's Will felt so overwhelming, then just how powerful was the Ancient Dragon's true self?

'He should be at least Class 8… right?' Alex thought.

"Oh? I see you've brought a new companion," Merlin suddenly remarked.

"Ah, yes." Alex was pulled from his thoughts. "This is Senu."

At his prompt, the Nightmare Eagle emerged from his shadow, where she had been resting since entering the Enclave's boundary.

Senu perched silently on his shoulder, her crimson eyes flicking between Merlin and the slumbering mountain-sized Dragon behind him. Her usual arrogance was nowhere to be found. Instead, she seemed… humbled, almost reverent.

Alex raised a brow.

This was the best behaviour he'd seen from her since the day she was born!

"Come here, child," Merlin beckoned, extending his arm.

Senu looked at Alex. At his nod, she leapt gracefully, gliding over to perch on Merlin's forearm.

"Fascinating." Merlin's gaze sharpened as he examined her. Then he looked back at Alex with a smile. "First it was a wolf—an Ice-Fire elemental mutation, strengthened further by innate Wood affinity. And now, an eagle… a Nightmare Eagle of the Dankrot Forest, no less, with a Darkness-Light mutation supported by an innate Spatial affinity."

He chuckled. "You certainly attract interesting beasts."

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