Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot
Chapter 195 - 194 - A Trap.

Chapter 195: Chapter 194 - A Trap.

The tall double doors of the king’s chamber creaked open.

Argon Von Vaise stepped inside.

He now moved like a glacier wrapped in iron: slow, unshakable, and cold enough to steal the breath from the room.

The man who was trying to lighten the mood with horrible jokes was gone.

Behind him, the doors shut with a solemn thud. Crimson and gold tapestries lined the marble walls, and a single chandelier cast fractured light across the floor, like the flicker of fire on oil.

King Lorian Velmoria stood by the window, one hand loosely holding a crystal goblet, the other clasped behind his back. The crown on his head gleamed, a sharp contrast to the storm brewing in his eyes.

When he turned, his smile was nowhere to be seen.

"I didn’t summon you for pleasantries, Argon." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

His voice was calm—too calm. Like a sword still sheathed.

"You weren’t invited to this palace. So I’ll ask once: Why are you here?"

Argon didn’t speak at first.

He merely walked forward, his cloak trailing like shadowed intent.

Then, he stopped, squared his shoulders, and met the king’s gaze head-on.

"I came," he said quietly, "to help my son retrieve his woman."

A twitch cracked Lorian’s composed facade.

"...His what?"

Argon didn’t blink. "Selena. He wants her. I will make sure he gets her."

Lorian’s goblet cracked in his grip.

"That’s my daughter, Argon. My blood. Have you completely lost your mind?" His voice rose, fury edging every word.

But Argon remained unmoved.

"It doesn’t matter who she is. If Raven wants her... then she’s his."

"You dare say that to me, in my palace?" Lorian hissed. "The law between royals and Vaises has held for centuries. You of all people should remember that."

"I do," Argon said flatly. "And I’ll break it if needed."

The words landed like steel against stone.

For a long, tense breath, the two titans stared across the room, invisible swords already drawn.

Then the king chuckled, a sound too bitter to be amusement.

"You’re awfully fatherly today. Touching." His grin twisted. "Have you forgotten, Argon? You couldn’t even save your first son from dying."

Everything inside Argon went still.

His fists clenched and teeth grinded.

Lorian didn’t stop. "Ramiel, wasn’t it? A bright boy. Shame how his life ended." His eyes glinted with venom. "Killed... wasn’t he? By assassins that no one could trace. So tragic."

Argon’s hand moved.

In one swift motion, the hilt of his greatsword was in his grip, the blade halfway drawn with a metallic hiss that made the chamber tremble.

Lorian’s eyes gleamed. "Go ahead. Try it."

Argon’s sword froze just an inch from leaving its scabbard. His jaw clenched so tightly that the bones cracked.

He remembered.

The Bearer of the Ring.

He could see the line in the old Vaise history, etched into his mind like a scar.

"No Vaise blade shall draw blood from the Ringed One. To strike is to perish."

His hand trembled.

Not from fear—but restraint.

With a growl that sounded more beast than man, Argon forced the sword back into place. The metal echoed with defiance as it slid home.

Lorian took a sip from what remained of his drink, then tossed the goblet lazily aside.

The tension was thick as tar. Words might have continued—until—

Argon’s eyes narrowed.

He turned slightly.

Something was wrong.

There was a pulse—a ripple through the air. Something dark brushed the edge of his perception.

He closed his eyes, expanded his senses—

Then, his blood turned cold.

His eyes flew open.

"...No."

Lorian was watching him now, smiling again—too wide, too pleased.

"You felt it, didn’t you?" He said quietly. "Thank you, Argon... for staying just long enough to be useless."

Argon’s heart hammered.

"Where are they?" He demanded.

Lorian’s grin widened. "Oh, don’t worry. Your son will find the pieces."

In the next instant, Argon vanished.

His body blurred into a streak of steel and fury as he tore through the chamber doors, shoulder-slamming them so hard they shattered against the walls.

His boots pounded against polished marble as he moved, each step a thunderclap of rage.

’East wing. Selena’s quarters.’

He didn’t think. He didn’t breathe. He just ran.

Because the poison in the air wasn’t a metaphor anymore.

...............................

The door exploded inward, getting ripped off its hinges in a thunderous crash.

Argon entered like a storm that was given human form, his cloak flaring behind him, eyes burning with unrestrained fury. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

He had just started talking to Raven. He was trying to make up for all he had done—or, more like, not done.

But this happened.

The air in the room still trembled with residual mana—hot, chaotic, and wrong.

Books were scattered across the floor, and the carpet was singed.

At the center, etched into the scorched marble, was a circle.

A magic circle. Its lines still glowed faintly with a dark crimson hue, fading quickly like blood sinking into the water.

There, standing at the edge of that circle, as if he’d been there for hours, was—

"...You’re late," Crisaius muttered, crouched with one knee to the ground, peering closely at the symbol as if it had personally offended him.

His usual flamboyance was gone.

No wild laughter, no spinning his sword cane like a madman. Just cold focus—and a slow, irritated scratch of his chin with a gloved finger.

Argon stopped mid-stride.

The old man looked up, eyebrows twitching. "Well? Gonna start screaming or something? I’ve already had my fill of dramatic entrances today. The next one blows the roof off, I swear I’ll deduct it from your estate."

Argon ignored the jab. His gaze snapped to the circle.

"...They were here?"

"They were led here like you were led to that bastard’s chamber," Crisaius said, standing with a grunt and brushing dust off his coat. "Room was clean. Empty. I was watching it from afar in case someone tried anything cute. Then poof—door opens, children enter, and bam!"

He pointed at the circle, then spread his arms. "Magic anime villain bullshittery ensues. The teleportation circle activates the second they step inside. No chant. No trigger word. Just... proximity."

Argon’s jaw tightened. "Trap."

Crisaius rolled his eyes. "No, it was a welcome party. Of course, it was a trap! What, do I look like I’m giving historical lectures right now?"

Argon didn’t respond to Crisaius’s words, as he knew that the old man was just as angry as he was.

The old man was probably more attached to Raven than he was.

Argon stepped forward, boots grinding across the floor as he examined the circle more closely.

"Residual energy is demonic," Crisaius finally added after a short pause, his voice quieter now. "I didn’t see it coming. It wasn’t there until they stepped in. Some sort of delayed spatial array. Hiding inside the room, like a mimic. Sneaky. Old. Malicious."

He paused.

"Also annoying. I hate magic that thinks it’s smarter than me."

Argon didn’t answer again, as Crisaius’s frustration was clear from his words.

Then, the Dragon Duke narrowed his eyes.

"...So. Where did it take them?" He asked.

Crisaius snorted. "Oh please. Who do you think you’re talking to?"

He snapped his fingers, and a miniature illusion shimmered into existence between his palms—a rough map with a blinking dot.

"Same coordinates your gremlin son mentioned earlier. That demon base he was ranting about. The ’definitely real, totally not suicidal’ infiltration target."

Argon’s fists clenched. "Then we go."

"No time to waste," Crisaius agreed, spinning on his heel and already walking toward the door. "I hope you have everything you need. I’m not babysitting alone."

He stopped in the doorway, tilting his head slightly without turning back.

"...And if Raven’s dead, I am dragging his soul back just to beat it for getting kidnapped under my nose."

Argon exhaled slowly, the rage in his chest crystallizing into purpose.

"We’re getting them back."

Crisaius smiled without humor.

"Damn right, we are."

...............................

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Cradle of the Molten Veins.

"—Did anyone else just throw up in their mouth a little?" Jessy groaned, face-down on what felt suspiciously like volcanic gravel.

"My everything hurts," Rufus wheezed. "Even my eyelashes are sore."

"I hate magic circles," Clara muttered, brushing soot off her skirt. "Why do we keep walking into things glowing red? Red is always bad. It’s the universal danger color."

"I thought it was fine," Siris chimed in, oddly perky for someone upside down. "It tickled my ribs a little, like a warm blanket of doom."

Raven sat up slowly, blinking at the sulfur-filled air, the red glow bleeding from the cracks in the obsidian floor.

Lava hissed from jagged veins in the black stone, casting their surroundings in a devilish shimmer.

"...Alright," he said dryly. "Raise your hand if you were not expecting to get isekai’d into a demon volcano today."

Siris raised her hand.

Raven gave her a flat look. "You don’t count. You think everywhere is a good place to murder things."

She tilted her head innocently. "Still true."

Then the growling began.

Low, wet, hungry.

From the shadows around the jagged chamber, or more like an underground colosseum, red eyes glinted.

Claws scraped across the stone. Dozens of them. Big ones, crawling ones, flying ones—demons.

Clara’s smile disappeared.

Siris stopped being upside down.

Jessy swore in five languages.

"...Selena," Raven whispered, eyes narrowing. "We were supposed to meet her. That means—"

"She’s here," Clara said grimly, stepping up beside him. "Or worse. Taken deeper."

Raven’s fist clenched as he realized the implications and the seriousness of the situation.

"Omni," he said quietly.

A hiss of shifting metal echoed as the tattoo peeled away, reforming into a dark blade in his grip.

"Yo!" Omni’s voice echoed in his mind—low, smooth, and vaguely Brooklyn. "Smells like barbeque and disappointment. I like it. Who we slicing today?"

Raven exhaled, his eyes hardening.

"Everyone."

The group stood in a circle, backs to each other as the demons closed in.

No jokes now. No more whining.

Just war.

"Let’s end this fast," Raven said coldly.