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“What did he discover?”he asked Thornfield instead.

Thornfield looked nervously at them before squaring his shoulders.“Have you heard of the Magical Conduit Theory?”

Evander shared a puzzled look glance with Viggo and Rufus before shaking his head at the student.“We’re aware Whitley was researching magical transference.”

“The Magical Conduit Theory is based on magical transference,” Thornfield said grimly.“It’s a concept Professor Whitley and Professor Chevalier were researching.”Thornfield shot an awkward glance at Viggo.“It postulates that some thralls possess a unique neurological structure that allows them to temporarily hold magical energy.”

Evander’s blood ran cold at this, the anatomical diagrams from Whitley’s hidden chamber swimming in front of his eyes.

Viggo straightened where he’d been leaning against the wall, his expression growing thunderous.

“Wait.You’re saying whoever’s targeting thralls is intending to use them as—as experimental subjects for magic?!”

“Probably,” Thornfield said in a small voice.“Whitley and Chevalier believed thralls born with the distinctive biological property that makes them ideal conduits for magical storage cannot generate or wield magic themselves.”He faltered.“But their bodies can be used as vessels to hold and transfer magical energy between sources.”

Tension hummed through Evander.He narrowed his eyes.

“By ‘sources,’ you mean between mages?”

A muscle ticked in Thornfield’s cheek.He nodded reluctantly.

“How are the dark mages selecting these thralls?”Viggo asked, his voice tight.

Evander was not fooled by his apparent self-possession.He could practically feel the anger and outrage bubbling beneath the Brute’s skin.

“They will be targeting people with high intelligence and special talents,” Thornfield admitted quietly.“Chevalier discovered that thralls who possess that particular biological ability are usually above average intelligence and gifted in ways that make them stand out from their peers.”

Evander’s breath locked momentarily in his throat as the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place.

Horror drained some of the colour from Viggo’s face.

“So those thralls are the kind of people who could end up working for the nobility?”the Brute said hoarsely.

Rufus sucked in air, realisation dawning on his face.“By the Gods!”

Thornfield fidgeted uncomfortably.“I suppose so.But that in itself is a double-edged sword.”

“What do you mean?”Evander asked, his heart pounding.

Thornfield ran a hand through his hair.“Whitley told me Chevalier had a certain theory about the magicless who possessed those biological characteristics.Being regularly exposed to magic could actually refine their neural circuits and make them even more receptive to storing it inside their bodies.”

Viggo scowled.

A thought came to Evander then.It pierced the storm roaring through his mind, so chilling he almost wished he’d never imagined it.

“Professor Harrington told us Whitley, and likely Chevalier, were researching rare magical abilities,” he said, his mouth dry.“Of those, the powers of Archmages were of particular interest.”

His words echoed in the hush that befell them.

Thornfield swallowed nervously at his unblinking stare.

“Yes, he was,” the student finally confessed, his voice barely above a whisper.

A buzzing filled Evander’s ears.The young man’s expression had given him the answer he was after.An answer he wished was not true, but knew in his bones was likely on the mark.

“Did they find a way to steal rare magic from mages and gift it to other mages?”he asked leadenly.

Horror widened Rufus’s eyes.Viggo cursed viciously, causing Mary to startle.