My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Chapter 986: Chapter 988: Meet up

She ripped her feet out of the mud with a wet pull, wincing as her face twisted in disgust.

”Ahh,” she gasped, lowering her head to glare at her ruined shoes.

”This place is so underdeveloped. It’s like we’re not even in the Empire,” Luna muttered, scraping the sole of her boot against a stone.

Iris scoffed, dragging her fingers through her damp hair and flicking droplets away.

”You clearly don’t leave the capital often. From what I hear, some regional nobles don’t exactly care about roads.”

Luna lifted her eyes toward the city ahead. It was so bad they could have taken the main road, but that path was currently occupied by military deployment. Normal carriages were not allowed through.

She could have passed if she raised her grandfather’s flag.

But this was a low-key operation.

Which was why they were stuck trudging through a miserable stretch of half-tarred road drowned in potholes and mud.

Iris tilted her face upward as a thin drizzle began to settle into her hair.

”It is the rainy season after all.”

Luna turned to glance behind them. Her carriage was being physically pushed through the mud by two strained attendants. She watched for a moment, then turned her gaze back to the city.

”I hope what we find is worth this trek through the mud.”

They trudged forward, Iris leading while Luna followed a step behind. The academy had already concluded its mid-semester evaluation and was preparing for the end-semester one. The last time they had an evaluation, Damon, Evangeline, and several students had ended up inside a death zone.

Thinking of her brother, Luna let out a slow breath.

’I hope they’re alright.’

She was not prepared to lose anyone else to the demons.

They reached the smaller city gate. It was less guarded and far easier to pass through. They did not need to reveal their true identities. Their academy uniforms alone were enough for the guards to step aside respectfully.

Once inside, Luna knocked the mud off her shoes against the stone edge of the path. They moved under the canopy of a tree and waited for the carriage to be freed from the road.

At this pace, it would take a few more minutes.

”You really think we’ll find anything here?” Iris asked, glancing sideways at Luna.

Luna shook her head slowly.

”Isn’t that why we’re looking? A lot of clues point here... or rather, a lot of them don’t. I just have a hunch.”

She placed a finger against her chin as she thought.

”The student Marcus Fayjoy colluded with dark powers and killed his friends one after the other. Then he disappeared. The academy was never sure if he was dead or alive. You could say there was no conclusion. No closure.”

Iris nodded slowly.

”The last place he was spotted was right after the mid-semester evaluation. From what we know, he was heading to an unused building. After a few weeks, we discovered which one it was, but there wasn’t much evidence linking his actions to my father’s death.”

Luna nodded faintly. That part had been a dead end.

”Yes. We assumed he was being covered for. And from our investigation, it was someone with an affinity for space magic. According to academy records, that pointed to Professor Chrome... who was killed by my brother.”

Iris bent slightly as the drizzle grew heavier, the sound of rain clattering softly against nearby rooftops.

Without looking up, Luna waved her hand. A faint shimmering barrier formed over their heads, shielding them from the droplets slipping past the canopy.

”Oddly enough, my brother is connected to all of this. He killed Chrome and had been clashing with the Marcus Fayjoy group. And like most of the victims... the bodies were never found.”

”Which makes me believe Marcus was only a pawn,” Luna added coldly, her expression going flat.

Iris looked up at her.

”Then who is the mastermind?”

”It wasn’t Chrome. He’s dead.” Luna rubbed her temple as she spoke, pacing a small circle beneath the tree. ”So it has to be someone who wants my brother dead... or I could be wrong and Marcus Fayjoy is still alive.”

”That’s just speculation at this point,” Iris snapped, turning toward her with visible irritation at the back-and-forth in her reasoning.

”Yes, but our primary clue was the claw marks.” Luna stopped pacing and looked up at her. ”We found traces of them in different places. One of those was the war games arena.”

She frowned slightly, searching her memory.

”There’s a disconnect in my head, but those claw marks were on the battlefield where Amon fought. I just can’t be sure.”

Iris narrowed her eyes at the growing absurdity of it all.

”You think Amon killed my father?”

Luna shook her head immediately.

”No. Not at all.” She lifted both hands slightly in denial. ”I’m just trying to connect fragments. But I know there’s a link here somewhere. A bridge between Amon, the claw marks, Chrome, and Marcus Fayjoy.”

”This is getting bigger than we thought,” Iris muttered, folding her arms as she leaned back against the tree.

Luna let out a quiet sigh. That was why they were here: to uncover the truth.

She was really thankful for Luna; if she weren’t there to help her, she would be hard-pressed to do this alone. She didn’t have enough influence or backing to get these documents or the manpower.

Luna, on the other hand, was the granddaughter of the Golden Sun, and everyone knew how much he adored her. One word from her and he would make a move.

”My brother and Lilith must know something. They just don’t think we’re reliable enough to tell. So I’ll figure it out myself... and get stronger while I’m at it.”

Iris’s gaze shifted past Luna toward the distance, where the Fayjoy household flag fluttered faintly through the drizzle.

”Well, let’s hope this journey isn’t for nothing.”

Just as she was about to say more, the carriage finally rolled through the gate, wheels dragging free of the mud.

Luna’s lips curved into a small smile as she stepped forward.

”Our ride is here. Let’s go see Lord Fayjoy.”