Chapter 25 : At the Gates of Sovereign Bone
Valerius was frozen—
as though staring into a demon's eyes.
Sweat streamed down his face, soaking his collar.
Rudravaan's voice was calm.
"Who sent you here," he asked, "and where did you come from?"
Valerius swallowed.
"I–I only came to join the sect," he stammered. "I believed I could act without consequence. As for my origin… I am from a lesser state—the Vaelkar Dominion."
Rudravaan raised the knife and rested its cold edge against Valerius's throat.
"Zade told me you were tied to one of the Four Great Kingdoms."
Valerius shook violently.
"N–no. I am only a distant blood relative of East Bow. I merely borrowed their name."
Rudravaan's eyes did not change.
"Then where did your funding come from?"
Valerius hesitated.
His gaze fell to the floor.
The pressure in the room thickened.
His will collapsed.
"I trade in forbidden powders," he whispered, voice breaking. "And in people. I move them through distant routes. They pay me for it… and I use that silver."
The air seemed to crack.
Rudravaan's fury surged—yet he remembered his promise.
Valerius slammed his forehead against the floor.
"Please… forgive me!"
Rudravaan looked down at him.
Then—
He tightened his grip.
In one measured motion, the blade carved shallow lines across Valerius's body.
Not enough to kill.
Only enough to scar his flesh—and his memory.
Valerius screamed until his voice failed.
Rudravaan turned away.
He ascended the stairs, opened the door, and sat in silence.
The room remained still.
Zade and Henry did not speak.
At last, Zade swallowed.
"…Did he answer your questions?"
Rudravaan looked at him.
"Did you know," he asked calmly, "what your sect's disciples are doing behind your back?"
Zade stiffened.
"All I knew was that some troubled the common folk," he said. "I knew nothing beyond that. Why do you ask?"
Rudravaan turned his gaze aside.
"Mm. Nothing."
He paused, then added,
"Go tend to him. If you leave him as he is, he will bleed to death."
Zade's eyes widened.
"Y–you promised me—!"
Rudravaan met his stare.
"I promised not to go too far," he said. "Be grateful he still breathes."
Zade hesitated—then ran.
He found Valerius drenched in blood, breath faint, body trembling at the edge of life.
Without delay, he lifted him and carried him toward the nearest physician.
Upstairs, silence returned.
Henry finally spoke.
"Why did you go that far… even after you promised?"
Rudravaan did not look at him.
"…It was necessary."
Henry frowned.
"Then he must have spoken of something grave," he said, "to shake your calm."
Rudravaan glanced at him, a faint trace of dry amusement in his eyes.
"Oh? Since when did you grow so perceptive, brat?"
Henry crossed his arms.
"Did I not tell you to stop calling me that?"
Rudravaan was silent for a moment.
Then he spoke.
"We are going to the Sovereign Bone Citadel Sect."
Henry stared at him.
"Why? Is the matter not settled?"
Rudravaan's gaze hardened.
"No," he said quietly.
"It has only just begun."
Rudravaan asked the innkeeper for the location of the sect.
The man hesitated, then gave him the directions in a low voice.
Not long after, Rudravaan and Henry set out on foot.
The road rose toward a stone ridge where tall walls stood against the sky. At its center loomed a vast gate of dark timber and iron.
Above it hung a carved wooden banner:
SOVEREIGN BONE CITADEL SECT
The letters were ancient, bold, and unyielding.
Henry stared up at it.
"…It's enormous."
He glanced at Rudravaan.
"Are we here to fight?"
Rudravaan shook his head.
"No. We are here to ask questions."
They stepped through the gate.
Inside, the courtyard was alive.
Disciples sparred in pairs, blades flashing. Others trained in disciplined formations, while some struck the earth with bare fists, their breaths steady and controlled.
The moment Rudravaan and Henry crossed the threshold, the nearest disciples halted.
Eyes turned.
One of them stepped forward, hand resting on his weapon.
"State your names," he said, voice firm. "And your purpose for entering the Sovereign Bone Citadel Sect."