The cavern stank of cold stone and old incense. Dusk-light knifed through the broken slats overhead, striping the floor like cell bars. The air felt too still—bloated with dread—as if the cave itself were holding its breath. Kai’s boots were silent. Marius followed close behind, hand on his blade, jaw clenched tight.

At the far end, on his knees among shattered lanterns and burned incense, waited Ygwulf.

When he lifted his head, his eyes were feverbright—wild, sleepless, shining with a devotion warped into madness.

“Envoy…”

Your title left him like a prayer dragged through broken glass. His voice cracked, as if he hadn’t spoken in days. “You came. You actually—”

He lurched to his feet— —and froze when Kai’s gun slammed beneath his jaw.

“Don’t move,” Kai growled.

But Ygwulf barely seemed to feel the steel. His gaze clung to you with desperate, drowning intensity. His breath trembled, each inhale sharp and uneven.

“I—I’ve rehearsed this moment a thousand times,” he whispered. “Every dream, every waking thought circling back to you. To the one I wronged. To the one I—” He bit down on the word, shaking. “Forgive me. Please."

Marius stepped forward, disgust twisting his face. “You tried to kill the envoy. You don’t get forgiveness—just justice.”

Ygwulf flinched hard. Blood welled where his nails dug into his palms, unnoticed.

“I know,” he whispered. “And still… I pray for the impossible.”

He struck a fist against his chest as if to steady a frantic heart. “I saw you in visions—Adra-lit, radiant. I thought the gods demanded your death. I thought killing you would save the world.” His voice cracked. “But when you lived—when you rose—I knew I was the blind one.”

His breath hitched. “Envoy, whatever fate you choose for me, I’ll kneel to it.”

He took a shaky half-step forward—just enough for Kai to jam the gun harder into his throat.

“You want blood?” he rasped. “Take mine. You want obedience? Command me. You want me gone?” A cracked laugh slipped free “I’ll walk into exile.”

“Pathetic,” Kai spat.

“Obsession isn’t redemption,” Marius growled.