Chapter 1052: The Tower

Chapter 1052 – The Tower

The glass doors opened as they approached, not touched by any servant.

The three of them stepped outside.

The backyard was enormous.

Calling it a backyard felt insulting. It was not a yard. It was an estate plain pretending to be private property. The green stretched wider than a football stadium, then another, then perhaps a third for good measure because rich families apparently did not believe in reasonable lawn sizes.

Perfectly cut grass rolled toward distant tree lines. Stone paths curved through manicured gardens. Old statues stood half-hidden among hedges. A small artificial lake shimmered to the left, bordered by willow trees. Farther back, the land rose slightly toward a hill guarded by darker woods.

And there... Lux saw it.

The tower.

It stood in the distance, past the gardens and beyond a low field of silver grass.

Too old for the estate around it.

At first glance, it looked like a medieval watchtower, weathered but intact. Thick stone walls. Narrow windows. A circular body tapering slightly toward the top. Vines climbed part of its surface, though not enough to hide the carved lines running through the stone.

But Lux’s eyes saw more.

The tower was wrong.

It did not feel built.

It felt held.

As if something inside it had been forced into shape and then told to remain useful.

The air around it carried pressure. Not like a curse screaming. Not yet.

More like a sleeping soldier gripping a weapon in his dream.

Naomi noticed Lux’s expression change. "Do you see it?"

Lux’s voice lowered. "Yes."

Adrian stopped beside them.

For once, he did not look proud of the structure. He looked tired. "Our history says it was a symbol of Delacour wealth."

Lux kept his eyes on the tower.

Adrian continued, "Long ago, Delacour built the tower as protection for this wild land. That is what the official records say. Bandits, territorial disputes, old road control, guarding trade routes. The usual family history. Heroic, useful, flattering."

His mouth twisted faintly. "At least that is what we knew."

Lux glanced at him.

Adrian’s gaze remained on the tower. "But we found another version of the story."

Naomi looked at her father.

Adrian did not look back. "The tower was once human."

Lux said nothing.

Naomi’s expression tightened.

Adrian’s voice became quieter. "A powerful one."

The wind moved across the field.

For a second, the silver grass rippled toward the tower, then away from it, as if even nature could not decide whether to approach.

"Why he turned into a tower," Adrian said, "we don’t know."

Lux’s eyes narrowed faintly. He did not speak yet.

Inside him, Greed and Lust both went still.

Greed saw ownership. Binding. Purpose forced into structure.

Lust saw desire frozen. Will buried. A person turned into function.

Neither liked it.

Naomi glanced at Lux’s hand.

He was not touching her now, but she felt the change in him. The sharpened attention. The quiet anger that appeared whenever something alive had been reduced into asset, fuel, tool, property.

Lux’s jaw tightened once, then relaxed.

Adrian saw it. A strange discomfort moved through him.

Because Lux looked angry.

The demon did not react the way Adrian expected demons to react.

It was becoming very inconvenient.

A small vehicle approached from the side path.

A buggy car, sleek and white, designed for estate grounds rather than roads. It hummed quietly as it arrived, driven by an older groundskeeper who looked like he had been instructed not to ask questions even if the guest had horns.

The buggy stopped near them.

Adrian stepped in first.

Naomi followed.

Lux waited and helped her into the seat automatically, one hand briefly at her back.

Adrian saw. And this time, the gesture irritated him less.

Lux stepped in beside Naomi.

The buggy started moving.

The estate rolled past them.

For several moments, no one spoke.

The farther they went, the more the air changed.

Less mansion.

More old stone.

Adrian stared forward. He was still not ready to accept Lux. Maybe he never would be.

But as the buggy carried them toward the tower that should not exist, he found himself thinking something he disliked deeply.

If Hell had truly sent a demon into his daughter’s life... At least it had sent one who knew how to stay.

The buggy slowed near the edge of the silver grass field.

Up close, the tower looked worse.

Worse than ruined.

Ruins had honesty. Broken stones admitted what time had done to them. This tower stood too straight, too patient, too intact beneath the sky. Its gray surface carried age, but not weakness. Vines clung to it like they were afraid to let go. The narrow windows were dark, yet somehow Lux felt watched.

The buggy stopped.

Adrian stepped down first, still wearing the face of a man escorting a guest through family property, not a father leading a demon prince toward a secret that had eaten the truth for generations.

Lux turned to Naomi and extended his hand.

Naomi looked at it.

Then took it.

He helped her down carefully, fingers steady at her palm, his other hand briefly hovering near her waist in case the uneven ground caught her heel.

Adrian saw it.

Again. Damn it!

Naomi touched the grass, then looked toward the tower. Her expression tightened.

Lux did not release her hand immediately.

Only after she steadied herself did he let go.

Adrian cleared his throat. "There are a few things you should know before—"

Lux had already started walking.

Slowly.

Not rude exactly.

Just focused.

His gaze moved along the tower from base to upper stonework, then back again. He circled slightly, stepping through the silver grass as if each stride was measuring pressure, angle, history, and hidden intent.

Adrian’s mouth closed.

The groundskeeper looked between them nervously.

Adrian waved him off. "You may go."

The buggy retreated down the path.

Adrian followed Lux, irritation rising and unease beneath it.

Naomi walked behind them, silent.

Lux stopped ten steps from the tower.

His eyes narrowed.

Then his voice came quiet.

"This wasn’t built."

Adrian’s spine stiffened.

Lux lifted his hand, not touching the stone yet. "It was arranged around someone."