Chapter 388: Yup… They Are Mine.

"How dare you..." I snarled, my claw sizzling, rippling with crimson hatred. "Send me back NOW! so I could rip that bitch Uriel into pieces and fuck her to DEATH."

The Nine bowed deeper.

"Our deepest apologies, My Queen," a husky, distorted voice vibrated from the one in the middle, his tone almost reverent. "We acted only to save you, my queen, from a dangerous fate."

"That whore's neck is mine! MINE!" I screamed, tearing at the glowing barrier like a beast trapped. "TELL ME how to get out NOW!"

I was a heartbeat away from latching onto these nine cloaked death gods; I don't give a shit what power or aspects they may have had, or even if I'll fail or win. They simply dared to stand in the way of my revenge.

"You DARE hold me back!?" I roared, my voice cracking the stone beneath our feet. "I'll rip your faceless heads off and mount them as trophies before I let Uriel breathe another second!"

The cloaked figures didn't retreat. If anything, their bows sank deeper, as if my wrath was a storm they had long sworn to kneel in.

"Your vengeance is righteous, High Queen," the middle one rasped, his distorted voice steady despite the quake in the chamber. "But the moment is cursed. Had you struck at Uriel before the Flame, your ascension would have been denied, and the Nexus itself would have cast you out."

"SHUT UP!" I spat, my claw trembling with fury, itching to cleave them apart. "You think I fear exile? I'd burn the Nexus to cinders before bowing to its rules!"

"Not exile," another of the Nine hissed, voice low, sharp, and cold. "Oblivion."

The word slithered into me like ice water, chilling the fire that raged in my veins. My lips curled back, fangs flashing, but my claws slowed just slightly.

"Explain," I snarled, crimson eyes narrowing. "And speak fast before I turn this room into a slaughterhouse."

"My queen." The middle figure lifted his head, faceless void tilting toward me. "The Eternal Flame judges all who stand before it. Had you spilled divine blood within its chamber, the Flame would not see a warrior or a queen… it would see only corruption. And it would erase you. Utterly. No rebirth. No fragments. No legacy. Only nothing."

My stomach twisted—not with fear, but rage at the truth threading his words. My claw cracked, sparks spitting out as I dug it into the floor.

"So you chained me," I hissed, my voice dropping to a low growl. "To save me from myself."

"It is our honor," the Nine intoned as one. Their bowed heads held no fear—only utter servility and devotion as if their purpose was not just to stop me, but to shield me, too.

"You're our High Queen," a figure hummed reverently. "We live not for the will of The Nexus, but to serve the unwritten fate you choose."

"And," another spoke. "We will not see you damned for vengeance. Not today, nor any day we breathe the Night."

"Sigh..." I took a step back, pulling my claws from the cracks on the floor, and took a breath to compose myself. It took me some time to calm down and regain a composed mind, then I turned to the nine figures.

"I think you got the wrong person here. I'm not your High Queen." I spoke with a calm, smooth voice. I still believed that they made a mistake and Lilith was their true High Queen, but apparently, the Nine thought differently.

The one in the middle, representing the group, slowly rose to his feet. The shadows around his cloak rippled like smoke caught in a storm, and though he had no face, I felt his gaze pierce me like a blade.

"You are mistaken, My Queen," he said, his distorted voice echoing as if spoken from every corner of the room at once.

"You're Victoria Morgana Nosferat, Wife to the primordial goddess Lilith, Slayer of gods, Daughter of Night and Blood, Progenitor of vampires, and the High Queen of the Unspoken Realm."

Another cloaked figure rose, followed by another and another, until all Nine stood at their full height—their faces hooded, their features shrouded. I scanned the voids between their shadows and was struck once again by the intensity of their blank stares. They may have no eyes to behold me, no lips or tongues to speak. But I felt their absolute resolve, their devotion, their fanatical faith in the dark shadow I cast.

"And we," the Nine echoed in perfect synchronicity, their voices rumbling like death itself,

"... are The Night Keepers. Defenders of the Unspoken Throne. Sworn to the protection of the High Queen, Morgana!"

And like that, with a single statement, my assumptions fell apart.

'Who the fuck are these people!? What is the Unspoken Realm, and why the hell is everyone bowing at me now? Did I miss an important quest?'

'More importantly,' my rage once again peaked.

"Hold the fuck up," I growled, my wings flaring wide enough to scrape the rune-carved walls. "Did I stumble into a secret cult meeting, or are you seriously telling me there's a throne somewhere with my ass already printed on it?"

The leader tilted his hooded head, the void beneath shimmering like a black sun. "Not somewhere. Everywhere. The Unspoken Realm is the silence between realms, the darkness that binds all light, the shadow that lingers when worlds are unmade. It has always waited. And now… it waits no more."

My stomach dropped, then immediately twisted into a grin.

"So what—you're telling me I'm Queen of the cosmic nothing? Great. Perfect. Exactly what I needed. Add that to my resume: Goddess of Breeding, Blood, Night, War, Slayer of Gods, Mother of wolves, spiders, Ass-Breaker, Big dick Morgana, and now… High Queen of Fucking Silence."

"And darkness," one of them added.

"Yes! Thank you!" I spread my arms, trying not to laugh. "How dare I forget darkness. Can't forget the darkness."

"..."

For a long moment, the nine cloaked figures said nothing, allowing me to calm down again. Uriel was on the top of my to-do list, but first I needed to take care of these nine zealot death gods and learn more about this "Unspoken Realm."

"Sorry to inform you guys, but I lost my memories, so I can't be your queen even if I wanted to," I said, folding my arms and cocking my hip with a smirk. "So I suggest you go back and choose another queen—"

"We know." They spoke at the same time, interrupting my words.

"Oh..." My smirk froze, my crimson eyes narrowing. "…The fuck do you mean, you know?"

"Before you vanished into silence." The leader stepped forward, shadows peeling off him like smoke from a burning corpse. "… before your memory was unmade… You came to us. You gave your decree."

Another cloaked figure raised their hooded head, the distorted voice carrying a weight that pressed against my skin. "You told us to wait. To kneel in the dark until your return. To guard the throne until the shadow flame rekindled itself."

"Hehehe." A low laugh slipped out of me—dry, sharp, disbelieving. "Heh… so let me get this straight. Past me, or whatever version of me you saw, told you to sit in the dark like obedient little dogs, wagging your tails until I showed up again? And you actually did it?"

"We did more than wait," the Nine answered in unison, their cloaks bowing low once again. "We slaughtered the pretenders. We drowned the usurpers in silence. The throne remains pure—untouched—because you commanded it."

"That's..." I blinked, the reality of their words settling in like poison in my throat. "You can't be serious."

"We were, My Queen. Are. And we always will. For you."

I didn't want to believe it. For some reason, I began to see these nine figures in a different light. I grew up among knights and soldiers to know what absolute loyalty was, and these nine were way beyond that.

"That's impressive, you deserve to breed me as a reward." The words escaped before I knew.

"REALLY!!" all of them yelped, they fucking yelled in excitement, their whole bodies jumping like joyful puppies. "We will give you a good time, my queen! Our manhood and skills shall never fail."

"..."

Yup, I believe them now. I was suspicious about their claims before, but seeing this horny excitement proved everything. There is no doubt that they were my loyal subjects, and I bet that we had plenty of fun in the past.

'So I am High Queen.' The thoughts sank deep in my mind like a heavy stone at the bottom of a river. But then I suddenly realized something.

"Hey, I was a simple mortal before. How can I rule over gods?" I asked, curious to know how mortal me managed to rule one of the most dangerous realms in the universe.

"A Simple mortal!" All nine burst out in a dry laughter as if I had told a bad joke. The Nine started showing more emotions than before. "You were never a simple mortal, my queen, you were the Night Mother herself, you are darkness itself..."

"And you didn't rule over gods," another one added. "We achieved godhood after you left, my queen, using the item you left in our possession."

"What item?" I quickly asked, curiosity taking over me. An item that can help nine mortals become gods is certainly a big deal, and my thoughts couldn't help but wonder if this item was left to me by Lilith.

"This item." The leader of the Nine stepped forward, extending his two hands to me. In the next moment, a black crystal orb materialized in midair and fell into the palms of his hands.

The second the crystal orb met my sight, a chill shot up my spine. It wasn't a cold chill that goes inside your bones, no, it was the kind of chill that happens when a strong mate meets your sight and a warm glow explodes in the base of your gut, wanting to mate with them now.

The black crystal pulsed in his palms like a living heart, every beat sending waves of shadow through the chamber. The glow wasn't light, not exactly—it was the absence of it, a hunger wrapped in form.

"!!!" I froze, my claws curling tight as the chill ran deeper, dragging heat straight into my core. My throat went dry. My instincts screamed not to touch it, yet my body ached to wrap around it, to claim it, to fuck it into submission if I had to.

"What… is that?" I managed, my voice husky, almost a growl.

The leader bowed his hooded head, holding the orb higher as though presenting it to a goddess at an altar.

"This is the Heart of Silence. The gift you left us. The womb from which we were reborn and the artifact you created."

"It contains power, knowledge, and... the memories of your time as the High Queen of the Unspoken Realm."

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