" I don't get what I said wrong? What could have been the reason for her storming off like this? ". It had been two full days since Isabella just ran off on Richard, he wanted to give her some space. In the meantime he stayed at the tavern but was mostly brooding. The only productive thing he did was shave clean. Of course Malik had noticed and when he could offer himself a break from work he decided to inquire about his friend's mood.

  " Hey bud, why are you so gloomy today? "

  " It's nothing Malik, let me drink in peace. "

  " You have been like this for the last two days, I think I gave you enough peace. Now talk before I start charging you for the rooms and this bottle of wine that you took without even asking. "

  Richard sighed heavily and took another sip of his wine.

  " Everything was going great, maybe too great. I mean I was an idiot, I just barged into her life and acted as if I already knew all of her but I didn't and I think that may have upsetted her. "

  " What did you say to her that could have caused her to be upset? "

  " Well she just told me she was leaving and I asked if I could come with her but she seemed .. distressed somehow? And she was crying when she left, I just said since she seemed troubled I could accompany her and help. "

  Malik scratched his head and walked up to his friend. He then proceeded to smack him behind the head.

  " Ahh! What the hell, Malik?! "

  " I did this because you're an idiot! She tells you she is gonna leave and she is in pain and crying and all you do is ' muu muu muu I'm sad poor me, boohoo !". You should be at her side helping her even if she doesn't want to! Follow my advice ok? When a woman tells you to go away and to give her time to think, DON'T LET HER THINK! An overthinking woman is dangerous for herself and those around her ! "

  " Wow Malik what great advice .... "

  Walking up behind him, Jessamine decided to join in their conversation.

  " What he is saying is partially true, as a woman I can attest that I do get in my head quite often and sometimes having an outside perspective is better. And in this case if your feelings for her are true and if hers are as well she probably is already missing you. "

  " You think? "

  " You are a good man Richard, the only person that doubts it is you. "

  Malik then passed his arm around Richard's neck for a warm embrace.

  " It's true Richard! You are my best friend, so you better go get her. "

  Richard pondered on the idea for a minute. " What's the worst that could happen? "

  " Yeah I guess you are both right. Jess more than Malik but still. It's early in the day so I'll probably go see her. "

  Malik simply nodded in approval while Jessamine smiled and went back to work. Richard got up and made his way to the exit and when he reached the entrance he saw Konnor coming down from his room into the main hall.

  " Richard, I was hoping I would bump into you! Can I talk to you about something? "

  " Well young man I'm in a hurry, I'm going to see Bella and I don't really have time to chat. "

  " Well you can talk and walk right? And it's been a long time since I left the city. I need the fresh air. "

  " Well, suit yourself. "

  The both of them mounted on Richard's horse and started making their way out of the city and into the mountains. Once they were far enough from town, Konnor decided to start speaking.

  " So humm, I finally spoke with Izi about what had happened. "

  " How did it go? "

  " It went well. "

  " How did you feel after you finally talked about it? "

  " Liberated? I guess, it was just more difficult than I thought it was going to be. "

  " Well I'm glad you did it. "

  " Yeah .. "

  The young man was still unable to explain exactly all that went on that night. He decided to remain silent till they arrived. Once they were near the house they dismounted and kept going on foot so that Richard's horse could rest. They arrived at the small house soon after. They walked up to the front door and after taking a deep breath, Richard knocked on the door. A few seconds passed but no answer came. He looked back at Konnor and the boy simply shrugged.

  " Maybe she is asleep? "

  " In the middle of the day? That's unlikely. Bella! Bella, it's me, open up please! "

  This time he decided to knock harder and still no answer from the other side. He decided to walk to the side of the house and noticed all the windows were closed and the curtains were drawn. " I don't like this.". He came back to the front of the house to find Konnor trying to open the door.

  " It's locked, did you see anything blocking the door? "

  " No but I have a feeling I know what's preventing us from entering, stand back."

  Richard hovered his hand over the door and felt residues of Isabella's magic on it. " She used a rune to seal her home? ". He then focused on his hand and a rune appeared on the door. Konnor stood back in surprise at the sudden light and patterns that appeared.

  " Wow, what's that? "

  " A rune, consider that for where it is, it's like a magic lock. "

  " And do you know how to open it? "

  " I learned about those two days ago, so .... maybe? Let me focus for a second, stand guard while I'm doing it. "

  " On it. "

  Konnor started walking away and checking the perimeter around the house, looking for anything suspicious. Richard focused on the rune, the base of it was an octagon and the rune had two outer circles. Within all those there was a symbol that looked like an horizontal L with the 'signature' that she had used before. . " Guess I should not have underestimated her, this one seems complicated ... ". Despite the difficulty of the rune, he was determined to break it and open the door. Focusing like he did when he placed one, he started thinking about how he wished this seal would break. He felt a warm feeling on his hand but the seal was resisting, focusing even more he kept picturing the seal breaking but soon the feeling of warmth intensified into a burning sensation but Richard kept on going, " Open! open! OPEEEEN!! ". He was using every ounce of energy he had but it was as if the more he was trying to break it, the tighter the seal was getting. In a final push he screamed in frustration but got repelled by the door. He was blasted a few meters away and landed heavily on his back, he was covered in sweat and was having trouble breathing. While trying to catch his breath he saw Konnor bending over him with a disappointed look.

  " I believe it means you failed? "

  " Yeah ... ow fuck that hurts. Help me up will ya? "

  " Yeah, take my hand. "

  Konnor helped Richard get up and they both walked up to the door, the seal was still lit up. Richard didn't know if there was a way to see any sort of damage on magical runes but he knew for sure he didn't even make a scratch on it. Konnor titled his head to the side while looking at the weird symbols.

  " So, how do we open this 'lock'? "

  " Well, there is what I just tried : brute forcing it. Or I can kind of lockpick it but I don't know how I'm supposed to even do that. Bella told me that you need some sort of codex or understanding of what the rune means to erase it. "

  " Why doesn't brute forcing work? "

  " Because either A) I'm not strong enough or B) she placed a special condition on it that we are unaware of. For all we know the condition could be 'can only be opened in 3 years' or when she specifically is the one touching it. I don't know the extent of the rules. "

  " And could it be that the condition is to specifically prevent you from breaking it? "

  " I hope not but it's a possibility ... "

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  " Then what do we do? I looked around the property and there is no trace of anything, not a single clue. "

  " Guess I'm gonna have to understand how to lockpick this and not just be lucky. It might take a while so if you want you can go back to the city. "

  " Nah I'll stay, consider me as moral support. "

  " Thanks, I'm gonna need it. "

  Right after this, Richard started working on breaking the seal.

  Konnor was sitting against a tree trunk, looking at Richard from afar. Three hours had passed since they first arrived. He had seen Richard get repelled by the rune more times than he could count but each time the man got up and went back to work. Each attempt was taking longer and Konnor had no idea if it meant progress or regression in the current work. On his side Richard was starting to understand the fundamentals of the rune." If it's like a house with foundations and walls, I need to stop trying to knock down the walls, I need to try to weaken the base. " For the past hour now, Richard had attempted to reshape the rune. " Maybe if I can't break it, I can morph it into a weaker version that I can then destroy. " Both hands on the door, he was looking down and could feel drops of sweat rolling down and falling from his face. He felt a surge of energy coming from the rune and knew it meant it was going to blast him away again. Already preparing to endure the shock, he tensed his body but instead the surge happened within the rune. When he looked at the door he noticed the base of the rune had changed shape and was now an hexagon. " So it takes me an hour to get it down from an eight to a six? Oh Creator please help me ... " . The sun was starting to set as Richard finally understood something while looking at the rune. " There is a sort of underline to the rune, I feel like somehow since I can modify the base and ignore the outer layers maybe ... maybe I can access the core and unlock the seal from the inside of some sort. ". He decided to test out his theory, he went back to the feeling he had where he could 'touch' the base. Once he was there he decided to try to insert some of his mana into it but directed back towards himself. The rune felt warmer somehow. "I'm getting close to something, I can feel it, runes aren't just magic tools, they feel alive. ". He kept on tinkering with the rune until he felt he was completely at the core of it, what he felt was exactly what he felt when he was with Isabella, he could feel a pulse, as if she was right there with him. " Please open, I want to find you.". The pulse accelerated so he infused more of his mana into it, the first outer layer collapsed, quickly followed by the second one, it was the last sprint so he gave all he had. His head was killing him, there was a constant rigging in his ears but even when he was feeling his legs buckling under him he kept his focus on the rune. Clenching his teeth in a last push, he finally felt the seal break. He started falling backwards but was catched by Konnor that came out running as he noticed the light on the door had gone more intense.

  " Richard, can you hear me?! You're bleeding! "

  Richard was having an intense nosebleed and was barely conscious but the door was finally open, the young man helped him get inside and let him sit on a chair. The inside of the home was only lit by the last rays of sunlights entering the door. Richard coughed and tried to make a flame appear on his finger to light the candles but nothing came. Unsettled, he tried focusing only to have his ears ring again and a nauseating sensation came to him. Falling to his knees, Richard puked the content of his stomach. " What is happening to me!? ". Standing up next to him, Konnor tried to help him sit again and started looking inside the house for some water. Going upstairs, he found a few jars and smelled inside of them to be sure it was water, once he was sure he went back down and offered it to Richard. While he was drinking, Konnor was scratching his head wondering what was going on.

  " I'm not going to ask if you are okay because clearly you aren't, what is happening to you? "

  " Your guess is as good as mine .. *cough**cough* "

  He was still coughing and it seems it was not getting better.

  " Do you think .. she may have cursed you? "

  " Why would she do that? *cough**cough* damn cough! "

  " Maybe the condition was 'if the seal breaks, whoever broke it dies or gets sick'. I don't know how this stuff works. "

  " It was definitely a possibility but also would not make sense if she thought about the fact that I might come looking for her ... unless she thought that there was no way I could break it and this was designed for someone else. "

  Richard painfully got up and looked around.

  " Let's not think about it too much, search the place, we need to know where she went. Go upstairs I take downstairs. "

  " Are you sure we shouldn't just go back to the tavern so you could rest? I would even stay here and keep the door open. "

  " No, I'm good, *cough**cough*! I don't need rest, I need to know where she is. "

  " Ok .. "

  They started looking around for any piece of evidence that could lead them to her. The upstair floor was relatively empty, a few water jars, the empty bathtub, a mirror and her hairbrush. Downstairs was all of her equipment, even the new glass instruments Richard got her were there. Konnor came back downstairs.

  " Found anything? "

  " No, no trace, no message, nothing .. "

  " Richard, I know it's gonna sound bad but wouldn't it be good to just ... let her do her thing? If she left like this and didn't leave anything for us to find, maybe she just doesnt wanna be found. "

  " There has to be something we are missing. "

  He looked over at her book collection and saw the one depicting the story of the world she showed to him. He took it out of the shelf and opened it and quickly skimmed through it. " I can only make out a few words. "

  " Let's go back to the tavern, I'm drained. "

  " Yeah0 "

  Back at the tavern, Richard went in one of the vacant rooms and sat down on the ground and tried to decipher some part of the book. He noticed the last sixty pages were blank. " Why would such a book have a blank end? Was it erased by someone? ". Most of all of this made no sense, since he came back from the house he tried calling upon his magic but nothing happened, not even the tiniest of feeling was happening anymore and to add to this matter he was still feeling sick, the cough was still present. The more he was thinking about it, the more frustrated he was getting.

  " All of this makes no damn sense! "

  In his frustration Richard threw the book away, putting his hands on his head he felt desperate. " Maybe the boy is right, I should stop fighting, she will come back and everything will be like it was before. But it felt off, she was sad, I want to help me, I NEED to help her. " . He went to sleep, assaulted by nausea throughout the night and nightmares.

  He was walking through a frozen forest, he could hear Isabella's screams in the distance, due to the density of the snow he could not run. When he arrived where he heard her screams he tried calling her name.

  " Bella! Bella $!! "

  The only response was a gust of cold wind that made the higher parts of the trees sway. He suddenly felt some hot air coming from behind his right ear and could also see air being condensed.

  " I'm here Richard. "

  For some reason, he could not turn around, he could feel her behind him, whispering into his ear.

  " Bella .. where are you? "

  " I'm right here Richard. "

  " But, where did you go? Why did you leave?"

  " I had to see. "

  " You had to see what? "

  " Had to see ... "

  " Bella ..? "

  Silence fell between the two of them. He could feel her hands touch his back and moving to feel his torso, he was used to her hands being cold but it was something else. He looked down and understood why, her hands were a light blue color and reflecting light like glass, they were frozen. He could see her veins still pumping but somehow she did not feel alive.

  " Bella? "

  " I'm right here. "

  " What's going on? "

  " Why did you leave me? "

  " What? "

  " Why did you leave me? "

  " I did not leave you Bella. "

  " Why did you leave me? "

  Her voice didn't seem angry but disappointed almost melancolic, she was still holding him yet her voice seems to be coming from a distance like a voice in the wind.

  " You were the one who left Bella. "

  " Why didn't you come looking for me? "

  " I am looking for you, I swear. "

  " You abandoned me. "

  " I DIDN'T !! "

  Finally he managed to break free from her embrace and turned around to look at her. What he saw shocked him to his core.

  " Richard? Why did you leave me? Why did you leave me? "

  Isabella was standing there in a plain white dress, her usual bright red hair was completely white, her eyes had turned a cold blue color and so did her lips. She looked like a moving corpse and her gaze was on him but it was like she was looking through him. She was repeating the same words as if she was stuck in time.

  " Bella what happened to you, who did this to you? "

  " You left me. "

  " Who did this to you?! "

  Finally her eyes were locked on him but her facial expression changed too, this time she seemed genuinely furious at the sight of him.

  " You BETRAYED me!! "

  " I don't know what you mean! "

  He could not react as she formed an ice spike and threw it to pierce his leg, the pain made him kneel down. He saw her pale bare feet coming closer to him. She bent over and took his face in her hands, she then pressed her cold lips on his. All of a sudden, Richard felt the opposite of what he usually feels when they kissed, a sudden surge of cold came to him, he was unable to break from this kiss. Soon after, his whole body except for his head was feeling extremely cold. Without realising, he was now at eye level with Isabella, he could not feel that he stood up. She was smiling at him now.

  " You are mine, for now and forever. "

  She started walking away, still holding his head at eye level and he realised he was moving with her. " Why am I moving with her, I can't feel my body moving? ". Just before he woke up, he understood why, as he noticed his headless body fall to the ground behind her.

  " AHHH ! "

  His scream of pain and horror transferred from his nightmare to reality. Full of sweat and out of breath, he noticed that it was still dark outside. He could hear someone running in the corridor. A few seconds later, Malik bursted inside his room with a knife, ready to defend him.

  " Richard! You are awake oh thank the Creator! "

  " Malik, what's with the knife? "

  Embarrassed by his action, Malik simply sheathed the knife in his pocket.

  " Humm your scream stressed me out, that's all. Are you feeling better? "

  " Yeah, I didn't sleep that much, it's still dark. "

  Malik stood there and stared at him.

  " Malik? "

  " Richard, it's not the same day you came back... "

  " What?! "

  " Touch your face. "

  He felt his cheeks and chin and noticed he started growing facial hair again, although he clearly remembered that he had shaved clean this very morning.

  " How long was I out?! "

  " You were asleep for a week. "

  " A WEEK?! For fuck sake Malik why didn't you wake me up?! Bella could be far away now! I need to find her! I need to - "

  " Calm down Rich'! For now you still need to rest, I'm gonna get you something to eat and then you can resume your search! You can't look for her if you are dropping dead five minutes after you start looking. "

  Looking at Malik, Richard noticed how worried his best friend was.

  " Alright. "

  Malik started walking out only to be stopped by Richard's voice.

  " Wait! "

  " What? "

  " .. thank you. For... being my best friend ...despite me being a mess..."

  Malik had a faint smile.

  " I'll always cover for you lil bro'. "

  He then closed the door and walked away. Looking around the bedroom, Richard saw the book he threw sitting on a chair. He took it and decided to resume his search. But before he had to do something. "Flame" . A small flame appeared at the tip of his finger and he used it to light the candle on the small square table. " Good, now it works, guess I was just exhausted. " . He decided to just turn the pages at random, hoping something would catch his eyes. He could read the words but not understand the meanings of them and the illustrations did not really help him. He reached the blank pages again and closed the book. " It all feels pointless, I just .. I just want to feel her again. " . He thought back at the feeling of the rune on her door, it had a sort of pulse, maybe this book will have one too, he just wanted to feel her presence. He hovered his hand over the book and he could feel a form of pulse of energy. He could see light coming from inside the book, he opened it where the light was coming from and it was where the blank pages were but they were not blank anymore. Letters made of light had appeared onto the paper " I .. I can read this! It's in the common language!"

  " This diary is dedicated to my beloved daughter, my name is Magnolia Tsorf and this is how I died ... "