Dark in the Dollhouse Chapter 23: Chapter 23: The Council

Read chapter 23 of Dark in the Dollhouse by Haspberry on NovelPedia.

A few hours earlier... Evander rose out of the shadow of a rotten wooden signboard. Immediately, a curtain of shadows enveloped him as his appearance changed to that of Varco. “Hmm, I am a bit earlier than I was supposed to be, but it works well enough. Otherwise, I would’ve messed up the timing,” Varco said to himself as he let out a sigh. He stroked his stubble as he thought, Arranging an expedition into the Forsaken Deep must be quite the challenge. It is the heart of Ekad and one of the most dangerous locations in the whole world, riddled with unknowns upon unknowns. It hasn’t been touched since long before the 6 th Anarchy Era. A piece of ancient history which has been the centre of countless stories and fairytales, with every one of them being more gruesome than the other. It’s a truly terrifying thing. But I must say... A wide smile spread across Varco’s face. He said as he finished his thoughts out loud, “It also makes me rather curious.” Varco chuckled as a dark blob of liquid raised up out of his hand. It popped like a balloon bursting as a faceless black mask fell onto his hand. The mask was pure black with no intricacies whatsoever. He put it on and adjusted it a bit. It had a smooth surface that covered his face like a shadow wrapping around him. And that’s exactly what it did. The whole of Varco wobbled and distorted as he turned into a transparent shadow that blended in with the wall of the alleyway he appeared into. With only the shadow of him remaining, Varco traversed through the whole of Middle Ring with a frightening speed as he jumped from the shadow of one pedestrian to the other. From the casts of lampposts and hanging signboards to the small moment between steps, Varco zoomed through all the tiny shadows of the world till he arrived at his desired destination. He removed his mask as his shadow wriggled and wisps of black smoke coagulated together to form the shape of Varco appearing out of thin air. His face came to be as black smoke trailed behind him. With a flourish that alerted his presence to the nearby pedestrians, he began walking forward. His necklace with the crescent-eyed skull glimmered under the daylight and the feather in his hat bobbed with his every step. All the pedestrians around widened their eyes in surprise as they scurried out of his way and took on wary stances. Visible fear oozed with their every action. Varco smiled as his violet eyes narrowed, taking in all of their horror. His steps halted as he arrived in front of a tall grey building. It was a wide three storey building supported by four pillars and a tall steeple at the front with four other smaller ones at each corner. The Guilds’ Association has also changed quite a bit hasn’t it? Varco thought with a smile as he knocked on the great wooden door of the building. A minute later, the door opened as a lady dressed in the clothes typical of a receptionist peeked out, “Yes, how may I-” the lady’s words halted as her eyes looked up and saw Varco. Her lips quivered and her eyes widened with horror. She stammered, “L-Lord Midnight! W-we were told you’d be coming but to a-actually be here...” the lady looked around frantically as her thoughts were sent into disarray by the mere appearance of him. She coughed into her fist as she steadied her restless heart. She reeled in her fear as she opened the gate and bowed gracefully, “You may enter sir,” she pointed towards the hall within. At least you can still communicate with the people in the Middle Ring, he nodded with a satisfied expression and began walking forward. The hall within was extravagant and well maintained with many workers and hunters going about their days, bickering and fighting with each other. There was hint of restlessness in the air as everyone looked rather tense. Yet all of it disappeared when he appeared. Some looked at him with the usual fearful gazes but this time, there were some that had specks of hostility, hatred and irritation along with the fear. The hunt