Greed's revelation hung in the cold, dead air of Northwatch like the smoke from a funeral pyre. The wind howled across the barren landscape, but Klaus didn't hear it. His mind was a storm of connecting dots, each realization striking harder than the last.
He stared at the endless sea of black ash, but he wasn't seeing the destruction. He was seeing the architecture of a trap three thousand years or more in the making.
"It was all part of Arkadius's plan, wasn't it?" Klaus asked aloud, his voice raw. He wasn't speaking to Greed or Dudu; he was shouting at the universe itself, demanding an answer from the silent, frozen sky.
Dudu shifted uneasily, its massive claws digging into the scorched earth. Through the Meister Bond, the dragon felt the surging anger and cold fear radiating from its master—a volatile mix that tasted like ozone and blood. It let out a low, questioning growl, its golden eyes fixed on Klaus.
