“Dreezy, I’m here to take you to Azeya. Please, let’s start. Dawn is the deadline,” he said, opening the carriage drawn by four horses.

  Darmian watched the carriage roll off before turning toward his own. “Now, Zurehn—once again,” he muttered, stepping inside.

  “My lord, I’ve been told the girl’s name is Dakota, from the Valtherion Kingdom,” his servant said as Darmian sat down. “She’s worth more than anticipated.” he added, seeing Darmian's smile.

  ---

  Sherlyn arrived at the All Night Inn, Dreezy escorting her. The trip wasn’t long; most of the ride was filled with talk about Azeya, each sharing bits of what they knew.

  Inside, Sherlyn was directed straight to Azeya’s room.

  “Hi there,” Azeya greeted, her usual confidence showing through a faint smirk. “Looks like you’re in good shape.”

  “Well, he knew what he was doing,” Sherlyn replied. “I think he wanted to size up Leon—or whoever’s close to him.”

  “Forget about that,” Azeya said, brushing it off. “But I have to ask… are you disappointed Ryke wasn’t the hero this time?”

  Sherlyn hesitated. “Don’t know,” she admitted, then caught herself smiling. “But it’s nice it wasn’t him. He’s smart, sure—but sometimes too confident for his own good.”

  “That same confidence almost got him killed,” Azeya said sharply. Seeing the worry on Sherlyn’s face, she softened her tone. “I said almost. He’s fine. Back to normal, actually—though he’s been sulking ever since. Angry he didn’t get to play the savior.”

  She paused, shifting the mood. “Now… where’s Dreezy?”

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  “Oh—I forgot. He’s outside, waiting in the carriage.”

  “Do you want to eat first, or should we head straight to the mansion?” Azeya asked.

  “I’m fine. We can go.”

  “Can’t wait to see Ryke, huh?” Azeya teased, her grin returning.

  “No,” Sherlyn replied quickly. “I’m looking forward to seeing my brother.”

  They made their way out.

  “Hey,” Azeya said to the receptionist as they passed. “Tell the beautiful girl I’ll come for her later.”

  The man nodded, not daring to smile.

  “Dreezy,” Azeya called as she approached the carriage, “would I be troubling you again?”

  “Trouble?” Dreezy chuckled. “That word only fits if I’m dying for you. Anything else doesn’t count.”

  “I do know which buttons to press, don’t I?” Azeya smiled, slipping her hand around his arm. “Come, escort me out. There’s something I need to tell you.”

  The carriage started moving. Sherlyn didn’t catch most of their whispered talk—her eyes were fixed on the streets, the passing faces, the swords at every hip. They were out of the city before long, greeted by another carriage waiting near the edge of the main road.

  “So the emblem might be the catalyst,” Dreezy said, amused. “I’ll get in touch with them. If it affects everyone, we’ll need to plan ahead.” He opened the carriage door, pausing before stepping in. “Next time you visit, stop by. The big man would be pleased to see you.”

  He entered his own carriage, waving them goodbye.

  “Let’s go,” Azeya said, motioning Sherlyn inside.

  ---

  “No, I said I’m not going back. To whom?” The woman’s voice was sharp, frustrated. “They don’t see what I do—not even you. But if you did, you wouldn’t want to go back either.”

  She looked away, muttering to herself. “I’m back in Maryville because of what I saw. It was crowded, yet only three of us reacted. Simple—I saw a chained—”

  “Rheis! Sis, we have to go to the market,” another voice interrupted. “And stop talking to yourself again.”

  “See? That’s why I can’t go back,” Rheis sighed, stepping out of the room. Dark-skinned, tall, and wearing a short white skirt that shaped her frame perfectly—she looked every bit the rebel she claimed to be.

  ---

  “I’ve been wondering,” Dakota whispered.

  “Not now,” Sky whispered back. “Let’s catch this one first, then we’ll talk. You go ahead—remember, drive it toward Ben.”

  She gave Dakota a light push.

  The skreevil had wandered too far from its burrow, separated from the rest. Dakota broke into a run, rushing it toward the others. Startled, the creature darted in the opposite direction—right into Sky’s path.

  It tried to flee toward the forest, but Ben cut it off, spear in hand, black shirt clinging to his frame, brown shorts dusted from the chase.

  Trapped, the skreevil had nowhere left to run. Quick as it was, months of hunting had made Sky and Ben even quicker.

  Sky closed in, sword raised—but just as she swung, the skreevil twisted mid-air, reacting faster than expected, dodging to the right—straight toward Ben.

  He didn’t hesitate. His spear shot out like instinct—clean through the skreevil’s head.

  “Nice work,” Sky said, catching her breath. “You’re getting better.”

  “Yeah,” Ben replied, gripping her hand. “Just trying to keep up.”

  “Did you get it?” Dakota called out, jogging over.

  “Yep! That makes fifteen this week,” Sky said proudly.

  “We’re a bit far from the house,” she added, glancing around.

  “Can I carry it?” Dakota asked.