My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Chapter 1084: Chapter 1085 : Sophistry

He wore a calm expression as he approached the podium, his gaze brushing through the crowd only briefly before it settled upon Emilia.

Damon’s heart sank.

She looked terrible.

Dark circles sat beneath her eyes despite every effort she had clearly made to hide them. Her face seemed thinner than before, the healthy color gone from her skin and replaced with a pale exhaustion that makeup and noble etiquette could not conceal. There was desperation in her eyes, and something else.

Paranoia.

Her gaze never lingered on one person for long.

It moved constantly.

Searching.

Examining.

Questioning.

Every noble.

Every knight.

Every servant.

Every guest.

Everyone was suspicious.

As though she expected the culprit to reveal themselves if she stared hard enough.

As though she could somehow find her son simply by refusing to stop looking.

Damon couldn’t help but think.

What is she suspicious of...

Then he stopped himself.

No.

She had every right to be suspicious considering what had happened that night.

He turned his attention toward the crowd.

”The birth of young Godric was a great moment of joy. Sadly, I was not here to witness this joyous moment. Upon my return, I was beset with this terrible news.”

His voice carried through the hall effortlessly.

”I did not even get a chance to congratulate my friend and brother-in-arms, Xander, and his wife on the arrival of their beautiful boy.”

Damon felt disgusted.

Truly disgusted.

Not with the crowd.

Not with the situation.

With himself.

Especially when he saw the way Emilia was looking at him.

Despite her paranoia.

Despite her desperation.

Despite the fact she was clearly suspicious of everyone.

She didn’t suspect him at all.

How could she?

Reasonably speaking, Damon Grey didn’t even know Godric existed.

He had been gone for over two years.

No sane person would suspect him.

The irony tasted bitter.

”I would like to keep this short.”

The hall fell completely silent.

”Whomever you are.”

”Wherever you are.”

”We will find you.”

His eyes hardened.

”And you will pay.”

The words echoed through the hall.

”And that is not coming from a warrior.”

His voice lowered.

”Nor from a hero.”

A brief pause.

”This is the promise of a father.”

The applause was immediate.

Thunderous.

People rose from their seats.

Cheers filled the hall.

This wasn’t merely a noble speaking.

This wasn’t merely a knight speaking.

This was Damon Grey.

The Dragon Slayer.

The Hero of Humanity.

The man who accomplished the impossible time and time again.

To many people present, his promise carried more weight than any royal decree.

Damon slowly lifted his head.

Far beyond the walls of the building.

Far beyond the applauding crowd.

His eyes found a distant tower.

A silent balcony.

And a familiar figure standing upon it.

Xander.

The man stood with his arms resting against the railing, watching everything unfold from afar.

He looked calm.

Unworried.

After all, he knew exactly where his son was.

And exactly who had taken him.

Seeing Damon stand before an entire hall and deliver such a speech caused the corner of Xander’s mouth to twitch upward slightly.

It was almost impressive.

The hypocrisy.

The confidence.

The sheer audacity.

Damon had the entire world fooled.

Watching him now made Xander wonder something.

How deep did Damon Grey’s lies actually go?

After all, there was an entire prophecy dedicated to the day his lies would finally be exposed.

Would today’s performance become part of it?

Would this be one of the lies revealed when that day came?

His lips moved slightly.

A single word.

One meant only for Damon.

”Liar.”

The word crossed the distance between them through magic.

No one else heard it.

No one else saw it.

Only Damon.

Because Xander wanted only Damon to hear it.

Damon’s jaw tightened slightly.

Then he stepped away from the podium.

The crowd naturally parted before him.

A path opening through nobles, knights, priests, and officials.

The further he walked, the closer he came to Emilia.

And the closer he came, the worse she looked.

She had clearly done everything possible to appear composed.

To appear dignified.

To appear strong.

Yet grief leaked through every crack in that mask.

The slight redness around her eyes.

The tension in her shoulders.

The way her fingers trembled when she thought no one was looking.

The countless tears she must have shed.

The countless sleepless nights.

Damon stopped before her.

For a moment neither spoke.

Then he slowly reached out and placed a hand upon her shoulder.

”I promise I will return your child to you.”

Emilia stared at him.

Her lips trembled.

Then she nodded.

Trying desperately to hold back fresh tears.

What she didn’t know was that Damon wasn’t technically lying.

The agreement with Xander was clear.

Damon would keep Godric until the boy came of age.

Then he would return him to his family unharmed.

He had promised to return her child.

He simply hadn’t said when.

Sophistry.

The thought disgusted him.

Yes.

Sophistry.

Twisting truth into something useful.

Shaping honesty into a weapon.

He was beginning to sound more and more like a demon.

Emilia lowered her head slightly.

If those words came from Damon Grey, then she wanted to believe them.

Needed to believe them.

Trusting him was easier than drowning in despair.

She opened her mouth.

Then closed it again.

There was something she wanted to ask.

Something she desperately wanted to ask.

A small part of her wanted to tell him everything.

About the contract.

About the mysterious voice.

About the impossible chance she had been given.

She only needed to identify the mastermind.

Three guesses.

Just three.

If she guessed correctly, her child would be returned.

Yet the words never left her mouth.

Instead she simply nodded again.

And Damon found himself wondering whether that was fortunate.

Or the beginning of an even greater disaster.

He did not know what she wanted to say, but if she had begged him for her child, then he would have broken.