The Genius Mage Was Reincarnated Into A Swordsman Family - Chapter 201

Chapter 201: Silent Vigil
The White Lion fortress buzzed with a tension rarely felt within its stone walls. Hundreds of griffons had returned from the north, their riders bearing expressions that silenced even the most curious onlookers. Word spread quickly—something catastrophic had happened at Northwatch, something beyond the scope of conventional threats.

In the medical wing, healers worked in shifts around the two survivors. Alexandra had recovered enough to sit upright, sipping restorative broth while debriefing senior officers. Though her physical wounds were healing, her eyes remained haunted, distant—fixed on something the others couldn’t see.

“You’re certain about what you witnessed?” Commander Varis asked for the third time, his skepticism barely concealed. “The Duke transformed into some kind of… hybrid creature?”

“I’ve told you everything exactly as it happened,” Alexandra replied, her voice steady despite her exhaustion. “The entire city was compromised. Every resident had been replaced by homunculi—artificial beings created through forbidden alchemy. The Duke was attempting to use the Eternal Rift as a gateway.”

Kalix, who had been silently observing from the corner, finally intervened. “She’s already provided a full report, Varis. Lady Alexandra needs rest, not interrogation.”

Varis’s expression tightened. “With all due respect, Captain, this goes beyond standard protocol. An entire city and the Eternal Rift have disappeared without trace. And the only survivor’s account involves forbidden alchemy, mysterious entities, and a twelve-year-old boy somehow possessed by something called ‘Gluttony.'” He gestured toward the adjacent chamber where Klaus lay unconscious. “These aren’t just any survivors—they’re Lionharts. Saint Raphael’s daughter and the patriarch’s grandson.”

“Which is precisely why I’ve already dispatched messengers to the Lionhart Estate,” Kalix countered. “Saint Raphael is on his way. Until then, we follow protocol—treat the wounded, secure the perimeter, and prepare a comprehensive report.”

Alexandra’s attention drifted from their argument to the partially open door leading to Klaus’s chamber. Healers moved efficiently around her cousin’s still form, their faces grim as each treatment failed to elicit any response. She could just make out his silver hair against the white pillow, his chest rising and falling in shallow, mechanical rhythm that provided the only evidence he still lived.

“I need to see him,” she said suddenly, interrupting the commanders’ debate.

Both men turned to her, momentarily surprised by the request.

“You should focus on your own recovery,” Varis began.

“She’s Raphael’s daughter,” Kalix reminded him with a pointed look. “If anyone should be with the boy, it’s his cousin.”

Varis conceded with a reluctant nod, and Alexandra rose from the bed, ignoring the protest of her aching muscles. She moved to the adjacent chamber where Klaus lay motionless, surrounded by healing runes that pulsed with soft blue light. The White Lion’s most skilled healers had worked for hours, yet his condition remained unchanged—physically stable but mentally absent.

She approached his bedside, studying his face. In repose, he looked his true age—a twelve-year-old boy bearing a burden no child should carry. The ash-streaked silver hair had been cleaned, his wounds bandaged, yet something fundamental remained broken within him.

“You saved us all,” she whispered, placing a hand gently on his forehead. “Whatever you became, whatever price you paid… Father will find a way to bring you back.”

The healer nearest her, an older woman with kind eyes, spoke softly. “His body heals, but his mind… it’s as if it’s simply not there anymore. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Alexandra sighed deeply. “My father is coming. If anyone can help him, it’s—”

A commotion in the corridor interrupted her. Raised voices, hurried footsteps, then the chamber door swung open to reveal Raphael Lionhart himself. Alexandra’s heart leapt at the sight of her father—tall and imposing, with silver-streaked blonde hair and compassionate eyes that belied his formidable reputation. Unlike most nobles, he wore simple white robes, their only adornment a small emblem of the Lionhart crest over the heart.

“Father!” Alexandra exclaimed, relief washing over her like a physical wave.

Raphael crossed the room in three swift strides, embracing his daughter tightly. “Alexandra,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion. “When I heard…” He pulled back to examine her face, his healer’s eyes assessing her condition even as his father’s heart calmed at seeing her alive.

“I’m alright,” she assured him. “But Klaus—”

Raphael turned toward the bed, his expression shifting to focused concern. He placed one hand on Klaus’s forehead and the other over his heart, closing his eyes in concentration. The air in the chamber seemed to thicken, pressure building as Raphael’s healing power manifested—not the typical blue glow of conventional healing magic, but a pure white light that emanated from within.

“His body lives,” Raphael said after a long moment, his voice tight with concern. “But his consciousness is… fragmented. Scattered. As if something tore through his mind and left only pieces behind.”

He opened his eyes, examining the faded rune on Klaus’s palm with growing alarm. His gaze briefly shifted to the darkened mark on Klaus’s arm—a subtle pattern resembling a dragon’s head—but he made no comment about it. Instead, he looked up at Alexandra. “Tell me what happened. All of it.”

She recounted the events once more—the Duke’s transformation, the Convergence, Klaus’s appearance at the barrier control station with midnight-black hair and abyssal eyes, calling himself Gluttony. How he had confronted the Duke with power that consumed rather than destroyed, how he had somehow redirected the Eternal Rift before sending her away with a touch.

Raphael listened without interruption, his expression growing increasingly grave. When she finished, he turned back to Klaus, examining the rune with renewed intensity.

“We need to move him to the Lionhart Estate immediately,” he announced. “My healing facilities there are better equipped for this type of… intervention.”

Alexandra nodded. “Will he recover, Father?”

Raphael’s expression softened slightly as he met his daughter’s concerned gaze. “You care deeply for your cousin.”

“He saved us all,” she replied simply. “He saved the entire continent, perhaps.”

“Perhaps,” Raphael agreed, though something in his tone suggested he understood more than he was willing to share. “I’ve received troubling reports from the Annex Mansion. His dragon has been inconsolable—refusing food, unable to sleep, staring northward and occasionally emitting a keening cry that chills the blood of everyone who hears it.”

Alexandra’s expression darkened with concern. She had only seen the small black dragon a few times, but she remembered how fiercely protective it had been of Klaus.

“Indeed.” Raphael turned to Kalix, who had entered silently during their conversation. “Captain, I’ll need your fastest griffons and an escort. Klaus must reach the Lionhart Estate without delay.”

“Already arranged,” Kalix confirmed. “Our best flyers are standing by.”

“I’m coming too,” Alexandra said, her tone brooking no argument. “I’ve done my duty as a White Lion officer. Now I must do my duty as a Lionhart.”

Raphael nodded, understanding the determination in his daughter’s eyes. “Of course. Your presence may prove valuable, especially if he regains consciousness. He’ll need family beside him.”

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