Kael's sharp gaze suddenly fell on me. It was like he could sense every flicker of fear I was trying to suppress. My fingers trembled slightly on my lap, and my heart was pounding loud enough that I swore he could hear it.
"Wait," Kael said firmly, stepping between me and the ancient demon lord. His voice echoed through the chamber, steady and authoritative. "We won't be needing her blood."
For a moment, I couldn't breathe. Relief crashed over me like a sudden wave. My shoulders sagged slightly as the tight knot in my chest loosened. I didn't realize how tense I'd been until then.
Lord Azragoth's eyes narrowed. A shadow of displeasure crossed his face like a storm cloud. The lines at the corners of his mouth deepened, and his golden eyes glowed faintly. But just as quickly as the emotion surfaced, it vanished. His expression smoothed into a mask of calm indifference, though I didn't miss the flicker of annoyance.
"Very well," he said slowly, voice dripping with restrained power. "There are other ways."
Before I could ask what he meant, Azragoth reached out and took my hands into his. His touch was surprisingly warm, but the moment his skin made contact with mine, something strange happened.
A faint pulse of energy flowed from his palms into me. It was like invisible threads were slipping beneath my skin, weaving their way through my veins, brushing against something deep inside me. My surroundings blurred for a second. I felt pressure building behind my eyes, as though someone were rifling through a locked box in my mind.
"What… what are you doing?" I whispered, instinctively trying to pull back.
"Stay still," Azragoth commanded softly, his eyes glowing brighter. "I am reading."
Reading?
I looked helplessly at Kael, who remained standing nearby, arms folded, watching with measured calm. He noticed my confusion and spoke, his voice lower now, almost like he didn't want to interrupt the process.
"He's not just a demon," Kael explained. "Lord Azragoth is half demon and half witch. He can read memories through touch."
I blinked. "Half… witch?" I asked, my voice cracking slightly.
"Yes," Kael said simply. "It's a long story for another day."
I stared at him, stunned. I'd never heard of such a thing. A half witch, half demon? That was supposed to be impossible—or at least, forbidden.
Azragoth didn't give me time to dwell on it. His fingers tightened around mine, not painfully but with enough force to anchor me in place. I felt him digging through something unseen, sifting through fragments of my past. For a heartbeat, I almost swore I saw flashes of my memories flicker across his eyes—blurry images of places, faces, and moments I couldn't even clearly remember myself.
I kept my mouth shut, swallowing my growing unease. If Kael trusted him enough to bring me here, then I had no choice but to trust this process, no matter how invasive it felt.
The room was silent except for the faint hum of magic swirling between us.