Chapter 55: Lost

"The Night Market is the epicentre," Kaelus deduced, his tactical mind taking over. "The crowds, the noise, the magical distractions... it is the perfect cover for an abduction ring. Mages utilizing spatial magic, perhaps? Or illusionists?"

"We don’t know," Julian admitted, looking defeated. "Our mages can find no residual teleportation signatures. The trail just... goes cold. The perpetrators are incredibly skilled, heavily funded, and completely ruthless. That is why I forbade the outing. If you take her down there, with her striking appearance, in the chaos of the festival... she would be a prime target. Even with you beside her, Kaelus, a single distraction, a single flash-bang spell or smoke bomb, and they could snatch her. I will not add her to the list of the lost."

A heavy, solemn silence fell over the knights.

Sir Lucas lowered his head.

Sir Boris dropped his mangled iron gauntlet to the floor.

The idea of children being stolen was abhorrent to the men of the Bastion.

They were killers, yes, but they killed monsters and corrupt tyrants.

Children were sacred.

"I understand," Kaelus said softly. His hand, still resting on Seraphina’s head, stroked her hair gently. He looked down at her. "Did you hear that, Seraphina? It is not safe. The bad men are taking children. We cannot go to the festival tonight."

He expected her to cry again.

He expected her to be terrified, to demand to hide under the bed.

He was preparing to pick her up, to carry her back to the safety of the pillows, and perhaps send Lucas out to buy the entire inventory of a pastry shop to make up for the disappointment.

But Seraphina did not cry.

She slowly pulled her face away from Kaelus’s coat, revealing a spectacular mess of snot, tears, and a fiercely determined scowl.

She aggressively wiped her nose on her sleeve, completely ruining the pristine white linen of her pinafore.

She looked up, not at Kaelus, but directly at Marquess Julian Myer.

The adult soul residing inside the six-year-old body had completely shifted gears.

The desire for a sugar dragon was gone.

The petty tantrum she threw a moment ago was evaporating.

She had lived in an orphanage.

She knew what it was like to be a child no one cared about.

She knew what it was like to be powerless, small, and vulnerable to the whims of the strong.

The idea of twelve kids— kids who probably just wanted a candied apple and a glowing lantern, being dragged into the dark by monsters, made her blood boil.

More importantly, she was not just a child.

She was a Supreme Dark Archmage.

She could see ghosts.

She could see the spiritual residue of sin, fear, and death.

If these kidnappers were using magic to hide their tracks, if they were killing people to cover it up, they wouldn’t be able to hide from her.

"Twelve?" Seraphina asked, her voice slightly hoarse from the fake crying, but completely steady.

Julian nodded sadly. "Yes, little one. Twelve children."

"And the guards can’t find them because the bad men are using sneaky magic to hide?" she pressed, her dark eyes narrowing with a terrifying, calculating glint that looked entirely too much like the Archduke.

"We believe so," Julian sighed.

Seraphina turned to Kaelus.

She grabbed the fabric of his coat with both hands and yanked downward, forcing the towering Archduke to lean down to her level.

"Papa," she whispered loudly, her voice echoing in the quiet room. "You said I was the best bait."

Kaelus froze.

Sir Lucas’s jaw dropped.

Julian blinked in utter confusion.

"Seraphina," Kaelus started, a profound sense of dread washing over him. "I have my own judgments over a situation. No means no."

"Yes!" she insisted, her snot-nosed, tear-stained face suddenly a mask of absolute, heroic determination. "You brought me from the orphanage to be bait for the bad guys! You said so! If the bad guys are taking kids, and they are using sneaky magic to hide, they won’t be able to hide from me! I can see the floaty people! I can see the dark stuff! If they try to take me, I’ll know exactly where they are!"

"Absolutely not," Kaelus said, his voice hard as diamond. "I am not using you as bait for an unknown abduction ring. You are only a snotty kid who is six years old!"

"I am a Supreme Dark Archmage!" Seraphina corrected, placing her hands on her hips, completely blowing her own cover in front of the Marquess.

Julian gasped, staggering backward. "A... a what? A Dark Archmage?! Kaelus, is she insane?!"

"She is dramatic," Kaelus snapped, glaring at Julian, then looking back at Seraphina. "The answer is no. It is just a disaster. The risk is unacceptable."

But Seraphina was not to be deterred.

She knew she couldn’t win a logical argument with the Reaper of the North.

So, she resorted to biological and emotional warfare.

She let go of his coat, turned around, and marched straight up to Marquess Julian.

She grabbed the hem of Julian’s pristine silver coat.

She looked up at him, her giant, dark eyes welling with fresh, perfectly calibrated tears.

She tilted her head, making herself look as small, fragile, and heartbreakingly innocent as possible.

"Mr. Marquess," Seraphina whimpered, her voice trembling like a violin string about to snap. "Don’t you want to save the lost boys and girls? Their mommies and daddies are probably crying right now. Just like my mommy and daddy cried before they died. If we don’t help them, they might never come home. But I have Papa Duke. He is the strongest, scariest monster in the whole wide world! If the bad men try to grab me, Papa will freeze their heads off! We have to help them! Please, Papa?"

It was a devastating, point-blank emotional shotgun blast.

Julian Myer, the gentle, compassionate noble who had been tearing his hair out for a month trying to save his people, stared down at the weeping, courageous little girl begging to help him.