This had to be it. Right?
Riley's lungs felt strange, not in the suffocating way he expected when plunging into water, but in the odd rhythm of breathing freely beneath the surface. Kael's magic wrapped around him, seamless as always, and for once, he didn't complain.
They were underwater now, following the lingering mana signatures that had stopped at the stream. The surface above shimmered faintly, distant and distorted, while all around them the world was dark and hushed, broken only by the faint current tugging at their clothes.
Riley's eyes darted left, then right. Nothing. Just water, rocks, and waving strands of river grass. His chest tightened with doubt. He turned sharply toward Kael, brows furrowed, clearly demanding without words: Are you sure?
The dragon lord didn't speak. He didn't need to. His golden eyes shifted toward the distance, narrowing, then flicked back at Riley with a look that all but said yes.
And then Riley saw it.
