Chapter 79

Pain and panic gnawed at me, sharp and relentless, as they dragged me through the dark halls. Every step felt heavier than the last, like I was sinking into some kind of living nightmare. My hands were bound, my wrists chafed raw, and my body screamed for me to fight back. I tried, but there were too many, and their grips were iron.

The air was thick, metallic, the kind of scent that made my stomach twist. My mind refused to stop racing Rhea. Rhea was alone, scared. She had to be. And I wasn’t there to protect her. My chest tightened at the thought, at the unbearable weight of failure pressing down on me.

Then we entered a large, cold room, the kind of room that promised pain before it even began. I recognized it immediately. The implements, the chains, the shadows stretching across the walls they all screamed of torture. My eyes adjusted, scanning desperately, and then I saw her. Shiraya.

She was there, bound, struggling against her restraints but subdued. Her gre