Fangless: The Alpha's Vampire Mate-Chapter 346: The Unseen Heroes

That boy had vanished. Roderick was certain Ol’gaz had discovered their secret dealings—and Florian’s desperate attempts to build mental defenses. The latter had failed, spectacularly so. There was no other explanation for Ol’gaz’s smugness, that insufferable look like he ruled the world.

There used to be two Florians: one, the real boy—a young vampire with a fragile will—and the other, a malevolent impostor. They would arrive together at the meeting chamber. Lately, the boy would cause a scene and end up locked in the adjacent room.

But now, only one Florian came.

Which one came? Where was the other one? He didn’t need an answer. It was painfully clear who stood beside the emperor. The expression, the posture... it was the demon.

Roderick clenched his fists. He swallowed the one burning question that he needed to know: Where is the boy?

Confusion gripped him at first, but it quickly gave way to a surge of cold, consuming fear. His fingers clenched into tight fists as he counted each ticking second. Any moment now—this second or the next—someone would call his name. He was certain Ol’gaz would betray him to the emperor.

Roderick’s mind scrambled for excuses, frantically weaving them together like fragile threads. What could possibly placate the emperor? What justification might spare him from the wrath of a man known for his merciless judgment?

He knew all too well that Emperor Kaan wasn’t the kind of ruler who listened. He didn’t seek explanations, only results. Subordinates were tools, pawns on a board he alone could see. Roderick was no exception. Once the emperor discovered what he had done behind his back, he wouldn’t hesitate. Death would be swift, maybe even public.

And yet, in his rising panic, Roderick clung to a faint, desperate hope that somewhere in that dark, calculating heart, Kaan held a flicker of affection for the man who had served him faithfully for decades.

But the seconds passed. Then minutes. The meeting ended—nothing happened. The next meeting came and went, and still, nothing. And the one after that—silence. freёnovelkiss.com

Roderick paced in his chambers, gnawing at his nails, nerves frayed thin. What was the demon scheming? What game was Ol’gaz playing?

From then on, Roderick watched the demon more closely than ever. He studied every word, every glance, every movement, hoping to catch a glimpse of the truth hidden beneath the mask. If he could uncover Ol’gaz’s plan—if he could find where the boy was being kept—then maybe, just maybe, he could stop him. Maybe he could still save the boy and the vampire race.

Ol’gaz’s continued indifference—its blatant dismissal of Roderick—began to tell a different story. Maybe there was no elaborate scheme. Maybe the demon simply didn’t care. To Ol’gaz, Roderick wasn’t a threat, not even worth the effort of betrayal.

It stung, bruising his pride more than he cared to admit. But in that insult, he saw an opening.

If neither the demon nor the emperor spared him a second glance, then he could move freely. Quietly. Unnoticed by the two most powerful beings on earth.

That’s how it began.

Roderick quietly began to gather a discreet circle of magic wielders. After earning his place in the emperor’s innermost circle and learning the empire’s most secretive affairs, he found himself once again at Emperor Kaan’s side as his right-hand man.

He wasn’t just in charge of the emperor’s personal schedules; he also oversaw the underground projects that Kaan had kept hidden from the public eye.

In his position, Roderick became intimately familiar with the magic wielders—he managed them, passed along their reports to the emperor, and ensured Kaan could rest in his chambers undisturbed.

The upside to being an errand boy was that he knew every face of the mages under his command. He heard their complaints, overheard their private conversations.

In the process, Roderick learned much. He discovered who among the magic wielders was disillusioned with the emperor’s use of their talents, who feared the coming storm, and who truly believed in Kaan’s vision for the future.

But Roderick kept quiet. Speaking to the emperor about it would serve him no purpose. He wasn’t fully aligned with Kaan anymore. He stayed close, watching, ensuring the emperor didn’t make a disastrous move—something that might bring the world to its knees.

Roderick waited, biding his time, knowing that soon enough, his knowledge would be needed. And this was the moment. The day Riona arrived in Asvaldur, accompanied by the elders of the Nightshade Coven.

The news that the ten original vampires had set foot on Asvaldur’s land sent a ripple of fear through the local vampires. But none dared voice a protest.

Most of them idolized the elders, seeing them as the gods of their kind. But eventually, some rebelled—driven by fear, more than defiance. To challenge the original vampires was to seek certain death. Who would be foolish enough to do that? But Emperor Kaan was never one to accept refusal.

Roderick had fully expected him to execute the rebels, as he usually did. But this time, Kaan’s response was different. Rather than killing them, he decided to turn them into his weapons.

If they had the audacity to rebel while awake, then they would simply be made to sleep forever. Forever puppets to Kaan’s will.

Roderick rushed to meet the mages who had turned against the emperor.

In secret, they had been working together to devise a cure for the poisonous mist—a near-impossible task, given that it was a weapon crafted by a demon. But after countless attempts, they had finally succeeded in creating a handful of vials.

Their plan had been to make more, but time was running out. Riona was nearing the mountain, only days away from entering Asvaldur’s inner city. Hearing this, Emperor Kaan had enacted his cruel plan, turning every single vampire in Asvaldur into his puppets—everyone, except Roderick, who had gone into hiding with the mages.

Many of the mages had sacrificed themselves, entrusting the vials of the cure to Roderick and the strongest among them. One witch, her eyes brimming with tears, took Roderick’s hand.

"Save the world," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I beg you. There’s so much I still need to understand. I can’t die like this."

Roderick felt a pang in his chest. He couldn’t promise what he wasn’t certain he could deliver, but this might be the last time she could voice her wish. Soon, the nightmare terror would claim her. With a heavy heart, he nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"I will risk my life so you can reclaim yours," Roderick said, then turned to the other mages who chose not to take the cure. "Every single one of you is a hero. I’ll make sure the world knows your names. Future generations will remember who made the sacrifice to save them."