The Time Keeper

Chapter 62 - Enigmatic King

As Xerces' hand came down like a gavel sealing the sale of the pages, I hesitated, frozen from the scene I had just witnessed in my fractured sight.

The warmth trickled down my cheeks diverting my focus momentarily, a jarring sensation that compelled me to touch my cheeks, only to find my hands stained crimson. But in the still silence of the markets, I couldn't help but spin around to where everyone was looking. Towards the very buyer of the coveted pages.

The same hooded figure with orange hair. That was now three of the specially curated items at this auction.

However, as my attention lingered, a realization dawned upon me—an imperative task awaited, one that demanded my immediate attention. Fleur's red jacket weaved through the shifting crowd, signalling the need for my planned intervention.

Amidst the hush of the auction hall, I stealthily maneuvered towards the left front, aiming to sidestep the vigilant guards and slip into the office where the auction items were being secured.

"Thank you all for this wonderful night," Xerces called out. "I'll be handing back to King to close."

The pages I sought were beginning to be wheeled off the stage, tantalizingly close to my very grasp. Determined to act swiftly, I edged closer to the door, every fibre urging me to seize this opportune moment.

Yet, an eerie sensation, an illusory force, seized at my body, impeding my advance. A compelling pull resisting my movement, rendering me frozen in place and unable to take an effortless step forward. A force beyond my comprehension prevented me from approaching the door.

Refusing to invoke fractured sight again to see what it might be, I grappled against the unseen restraint trying to push forward once again, my efforts proving futile against its insidious grasp. Despite my resolve, the pages slipped into the chamber along with a guard, the door inching close behind them as it began to shut.

To my dismay, my struggle didn't go unnoticed.

A pair of white-masked guards' gaze fell upon me, conversation with another guard punctuated by an ominous gesture concealed within their trench coat.

"Thank you all ladies and gentlemen for the amazing turnout tonight," King announced to the crowd. "For those who managed to acquire any product in this auspicious auction, I applaud you for your contribution to these underground markets. Please make your way to the side of the stage once I've finished."

Beneath King's announcements, I noticed something reaching out to the door before it closed. A hand coming out of midair, piercing through the fabric of reality itself.

It reached out and quietly gripped onto the door handle right before it managed to close, holding it open just briefly for someone to get it silently.

It must be Fleur's ability.

However, she mustn't know I can't even take another step forward.

With the guards' attention still fixated on my presence, an unbidden grip clamped down on my shoulder, a voice, eerily familiar, seeped into the chaos.

"Don't turn around," the voice cautioned quietly, resonating with an urgency that halted my every instinct.

Lucas's sudden presence behind me, his voice tinged with urgency, sent a shiver down my spine. The gravity in his tone commanded obedience, and I dared not defy his warning.

In an instant, a disorienting shift warped my sight. The door to King's office surged forward, an optical illusion that contradicted the physical space between me and the door. The fabric of reality seemed to shrink like a closing accordion, drawing the office door impossibly closer, an alarming distortion beyond rational comprehension.