After the headmaster departed through his own method, the Emperor stood alone in his private study for a long moment. The fire had burned low, casting long shadows across the room. His body still hummed with the satisfaction of the fight, muscles loose and warm despite the bruises forming beneath his clothes.
But pleasure could not last. Duty called, time for some rat cleaning.
He moved to the far wall, where a simple tapestry hung depicting the Samael phoenix in flight. He pressed his palm against the fabric, and a section of the wall slid silently aside, revealing a dark passage.
He did not enter. He simply stood at the threshold and spoke two words.
"Come forth."
The darkness in the passage shifted. For a moment, nothing happened. Then two figures emerged, stepping from the shadows as if they had always been part of them.
