Chapter 173: Unbroken Wards, Unanswered Questions

Cyrus’s reflexes exploded into motion before conscious thought caught up.

Dragon instincts, honed by millennia of protecting what mattered most, launched him from the bed in a blur of crimson energy.

His bare feet hit the marble as he dove forward, hands cupping around the falling obsidian shell just inches from the unforgiving floor.

The egg settled into his palms with surprising warmth.

Kane sagged against the dresser, nine silver tails drooping with relief.

"Thank goodness," he breathed, pressing a hand to his racing heart. "I thought—"

"It’s safe." Cyrus straightened slowly, cradling the egg against his chest with protective instincts he didn’t fully understand.

The obsidian surface pulsed faintly, responding to his dragon aura.

"We should bring it to Veyr Corp," he said, nodding toward the egg in Cyrus’s hands.

"Maybe the medical team can figure out how to hatch it properly. Elias had it hooked up to all those machines—there has to be a way."

Cyrus’s grip tightened protectively around the shell.

"I’m not certain artificial incubation would accomplish anything beneficial. Dragon eggs require specific conditions—"

"But we can’t just leave it here." Kane’s voice carried urgent conviction. "What if Elias’s gang breaks in again? They managed it once already."

Cyrus paused, the egg growing heavier in his hands as Kane’s words sank in.

"Kane, how did they breach my wards?"

The question hung between them like a loaded weapon.

Cyrus’s penthouse defenses were legendary—layered dragon magic reinforced by centuries of paranoid refinement. Even other ancient spirits would struggle to crack those barriers.

Yet somehow, Elias’s people had entered the building and penetrated the penthouse itself.

"I assumed they used the service corridors," Kane said slowly, his own certainty wavering. "But your wards should have covered those too."

Cyrus’s red eyes narrowed as he mentally catalogued every possible vulnerability.

The elevator required biometric confirmation. The balcony was sixty floors above street level. The service entrances were warded against unauthorized magical signatures.

Kane walked across the marble floor, his nine tails swishing restlessly behind him as he approached the main entrance.

"Check the wards again," he said, crossing his arms. "Something doesn’t add up."

Cyrus followed, still cradling the dragon egg against his chest. He pressed his free palm against the reinforced steel door and closed his eyes, extending his senses into the layered protections surrounding his sanctuary.

Crimson energy rippled outward like sonar, mapping every defensive enchantment.

The wards hummed with unbroken strength. Each layer remained intact, untampered with, exactly as he’d left them.

"Strange," Cyrus murmured, confusion creeping into his voice. "Every ward is pristine."

Kane frowned, his enhanced senses picking up traces of residual magic that didn’t belong.

"That’s impossible. I saw them breach the entrance. They were definitely inside."

"I know what you saw," Cyrus said, opening his eyes. "But these protections haven’t been disturbed. Either they found a method I’ve never encountered, or—"

"Or we have a bigger problem than we thought." Kane shook his head, golden eyes darkening.

Cyrus studied Kane’s determined expression, recognizing the stubborn set of his jaw.

"I’m guessing you still plan to take the egg to Veyr Corp."

"Absolutely, the egg comes with us." Kane confirmed with stubborn determination.

Cyrus sighed, dragon instincts warring between leaving the egg and indulging Kane’s wishes.

Kane’s newfound powers made him formidable but also unpredictable. Arguing with a nine-tailed fox in full protective mode seemed unwise.

"Very well," he conceded. "But we’ll need proper containment protocols."

Twenty minutes later, they descended to the parking garage, both fully dressed and Kane carrying a specially warded case containing the dragon egg.

Cyrus had reinforced the container with enough protective enchantments to survive a small explosion.

Kane slid into the Lamborghini’s passenger seat, the case secured on his lap like precious cargo.

"Veyr Corp it is," Cyrus said, starting the engine. "Though I suspect Isabelle will have strong opinions about our newest acquisition."

The familiar purr of the engine filled the underground space as they pulled onto Feilun’s streets.

Soon, they reached the familiar skyrise of Veyr Corp.

The valet’s practiced hands accepted Cyrus’s Lamborghini keys before the car disappeared into Veyr Corp’s underground garage.

Kane clutched the warded case against his chest as they crossed the marble lobby, his nine tails hidden beneath carefully maintained glamour.

The elevator descended through layers of security, each floor bringing them deeper into the medical wing’s sterile corridors.

Isabelle waited outside Rina’s observation room, her silver hair pulled into an even more severe bun than usual.

Dark circles shadowed her ice-blue eyes, and her normally pristine suit showed subtle wrinkles.

"Cyrus, you’re back," she said, relief bleeding through her composed facade. "You didn’t respond to communications—"

"We had complications," Cyrus said, his red eyes scanning Isabelle’s weary expression.

"How is Rina?"

"Stable, but deteriorating. The synthetic compounds are advancing faster than projected."

Kane’s heart clenched as he glanced through the observation window at Rina, who lay motionless on the medical bed.

"We might have something," Kane said, opening the warded case. The vial of Singing Shard essence glowed with pale green luminescence, its surface warm to the touch.

"Healing essence, directly from the source."

Isabelle’s eyebrows rose as she examined the vial, her expression shifting from hope to skepticism.

"Where exactly did you acquire concentrated shard essence?"

Kane and Cyrus exchanged glances.

"It’s a long story," Cyrus said dryly.

"Involving Elias Thorne, underground laboratories, and several violations of international supernatural treaties," Kane added.

Isabelle’s ice-blue eyes narrowed as she processed the implications.

"This essence—you extracted it from Elias’s facility? The same compounds he was using for his enhancement experiments?"

Kane nodded, impressed despite the circumstances.

"You figured that out fast."

"I know Elias," Isabelle said, her voice carrying decades of bitter experience. "And I’ve had my suspicions about his recent activities."

She held the vial up to the light, watching the pale green essence swirl within.

"But if he created the agents that caused Rina’s condition in the first place, how can we trust anything from his laboratory?"

Kane stepped forward, his conviction unwavering.

"This is different. The Singing Shard has healing properties—it’s not the same compound that hurt her.

His golden eyes met Isabelle’s ice-blue gaze.

"There’s only one way to find out."

Isabelle sighed. "Very well. I’ll have the essence analyzed by our best spirit chemists before we consider any treatment applications."