“I always knew this day would come,” my dad said with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair.
He and my mom had been discussing possible movements the Demons could make when I broke the news to them. The map at the center of the Svend’s grand hall now lie forgotten as my dad closed his eyes.
“You know, a normal father’s greatest worry is what boy their daughter brings home, not when will she declare war on the entire world.”
“I am just announcing my revival, not declaring war,” I replied with my hands on my hips indignantly.
“Most nations will not see the difference,” my dad said with a dismissive wave.
“If it makes you feel any better, I can always go out and find a bunch of random boys for you to meet.”
“Absolutely not! You bringing one stray home is more than enough.”
My mom stood from the table and walked to my side, before placing a hand on my shoulder. “Have you thought this through, sweetheart? Is this really what you want?”
I smiled up at my mom and nodded. “It is time. Svend and I will send out the announcement tomorrow. Soon, the entire world will know of Aurielle’s return.”
Before I could react, my mom pulled me into a tight hug. “I trust your decisions, Wren. Just be careful. Once they know who you are, everyone will be after you. Some will come to kill you, others to gain your favor. Just remember, no matter what, we are always here for you.”
I felt a warmth in my chest and returned the hug. I closed my eyes and savored the small moment of peace. “I know, Mom.”
“Since you have decided to do this, you must have a plan, right?” my dad asked, interrupting the moment.
I separated from my mom and nodded. “I plan to create an undead to use as my public face. Nobody will know that it is not my real body, allowing us to continue our lives without all the distractions that would come from my identity.”
“And what do you plan to do when King Sebastion comes knocking? I doubt a body double will fool him for long.”
“I… will decide when the time comes. The boy was my student for more than a decade. I should be able to come up with something.”
My dad shook his head in exasperation. “That does not exactly scream confidence. Tia and I will try and think of a proper plan. Until then, just… stay safe.”
“I will Dad,” I replied with a big smile. I then looked around in confusion. “Where is Charly? I haven’t seen him in over a day. He should know too.”
“Your brother found out Svend and Cyra have a library,” my mom replied simply.
I did not need any more information than that to know why I had not seen Charly around. Until he had read every single book there, we would not be able to pry Charly out of the library for anything less than a world-ending disaster.
“If you are going to see Charly, would you bring him something to eat?” my mom asked, “He missed breakfast and it is already time for lunch.”
I nodded and after some quick instruction from my mom, I soon found my way to the large kitchen at the back of Svend’s manor.
I smelled the kitchen before I saw it. The aroma of roasted meat wafted through the halls and the grumbling in my stomach made me remember that I had also skipped breakfast this morning. However, my hunger was quickly forgotten when the pressure of a domain pressed down on my shoulders the moment I entered the kitchen.
As the large door swung open, I was greeted by a strange sight, even for me. Hundreds of ingredients were suspended in the air by the power of the domain. Bright yellow flames spun around the room, moving in beat with a humming girl currently chopping a vegetable.
“Doesn’t Svend have servants to do this sort of thing?” I asked as I leaned against the doorframe with a grin.
Cyra yelped in surprise. Her domain wavered, nearly causing all the food floating in the air to fall to the floor before Cyra was able to catch it. The girl turned on me, knife waved in my direction, and her face bright red as she shouted.
“What are you doing in here? The kitchen is mine, get out!”
I ignored Cyra as I stepped into the kitchen and plucked a small piece of meat out of the air. I popped the morsel into my mouth and was surprised by the explosion of flavor. “This is actually really good.”
“Of course it is,” Cyra replied with a scowl, “I am a world-class chef, one of the best.”
“Really? I thought Tressans considered such things frivolous.”
“They do, I don’t,” Cyra said with a huff, “What do you want. If you are just here to make fun of me then leave.”
“Actually, I came in here to get some food for my brother.”
“Your brother? Oh right, the boy in the library. Give me a few minutes. I was about to go up there anyway.”
I shrugged and moved out of the way so Cyra could finish cooking. I watched silently for the next few minutes as Cyra used her domain to manipulate ingredients and her innate talent to cook the food to a perfect temperature inside and out.
“If you had shown this much control during our little game, I might have lost,” I remarked as I watched Cyra work.
“Cooking is not a game. Everything needs to be perfect,” Cyra replied curtly.
“For Svend?”
Cyra paused again, her face once more turning red. “Yes,” she whispered.
“What is your relationship with him? How did someone from Tressa end up following someone from the Seventh Division?”
“He is my husband,” she said without looking up.
My eyes narrowed as I observed Cyra closely as she continued working. “The Seventh Division does not have the concept of marriage. The closest they know is a concubine.”
The pressure of the domain in the room increased tenfold, nearly forcing me to my knees. Cyra turned on me once again, fury in her voice. “Svend is no longer a part of the Seventh Division. If you question our marriage again, I will cook you like the rest of the meat. Understand?”
I raised my hands in surrender under the enraged glare of the woman. “Sorry, sorry, I was not trying to offend you. I was just surprised.”
The pressure of the domain lessened back down to a reasonable level and I moved my own flames to start repairing the aggravated injuries the pressure caused.
Cyra let out a long breath. “I am sorry too. I should not lose my temper like that. It is just a touchy subject for me.”
“I understand, life is complicated. So long as you are happy, I will not stick my nose in where it does not belong.”
“Thank you,” Cyra said. With a wave of her hand, most of the floating ingredients moved to rest on a nearby countertop while some moved to form an elaborate design atop two plates. I could not stop my mouth from watering as the delectable dishes were formed. “Come on, I am at a stopping point. I will take you to the library.”
Cyra picked up the two plates and led the way upstairs. The library was a surprisingly well-lit room with a large window along the back wall. Rows and rows of books lined all the way to the ceiling. There had to be thousands of them. To my surprise, I saw not only books from this realm but also others that were once popular among the Divisions. A vast majority of these were adventure novels or rather spicy romance novels, and I could not help but look at Cyra curiously.
She actively avoided my pointed stare as she cleared her throat. “When I learned Michael was sending us to such a rural realm, I made sure I would have plenty of entertainment to last at least a few decades. only a few of the books are of any educational value, but they are all great reads. If you get the time, you should check a few of them out.”
“I will,” I replied with a grin.
At the back of the library, I saw Charly sitting at the only table in the room with a thick book out in front of him. To my surprise, he was not alone. There was a young girl, maybe a year younger than Charly with braided blonde hair, sitting next to him. She was also reading a thick book. Neither of the two people seemed to acknowledge the other as they read in silence.
Charly looked up as we approached, a big smile on his face. “Wren, look at this. This book has the same text written in almost a hundred different languages. With this book, I might be able to translate the other books sitting in Dragon’s Nest! I also found a dozen medical books written in the Thirteen Divisions. This place is incredible!”
“I am glad you are having fun but remember to come up for air sometimes,” I said with a sigh as Cyra sat one of the plates in front of Charly and the second one in front of the unknown girl.
“Eat,” Cyra commanded, “Do not forget again.”
The girl silently nodded without looking up from her book. Her arm moved with a robotic disinterest as she picked up the fork on the plate and shoveled food into her mouth without looking at it or even seeming to taste it.
“Who is your friend?” I asked Charly with a mischievous grin.
“I don’t know,” Charly said with a shake of his head, “She will not talk to me. Though, she did point out a few books that I was looking for once.”
“You got her to respond?” Cyra remarked in surprise, “She does not usually do that around strangers.”
“Who is she?” Charly asked.
“We call her Ghost. I have never been able to get an actual name out of her. She is living proof that an innate talent is not always a blessing.”
“Really? What happened?”
Cyra shrugged. “From what I learned; the kid had an innate talent that forced obedience in others. If they tried to disobey, their heart would stop. Somehow, a few years ago, she accidentally used it on herself. Now, she has to spend every waking moment reading or she will die. Once Svend learned about what happened he moved her here. At least this way she has a variety of books to read instead of the same one over and over again.”
“Is there no way to help her?” Charly asked as he looked at the girl. She did not even seem to register that we were talking about her.
“Maybe if we were in the divisions,” Cyra replied with a sigh, “There, the doctors would be able to purposely stop her heart long enough for the compulsion to break then restart it, but here it would be too much of a risk. The only other ways to save her would be to either have someone with the same innate talent, stronger than her, counteract the compulsion, or for Ghost to create a domain of her own. Neither of those is very likely to happen though.”
“I never thought innate talents could hurt their wielder,” Charly mumbled as he looked down at the floor.
“Don’t feel too bad for her, kid,” Cyra said with a pat on his back, “I know it's hard to tell, but I have gotten used to her minute reactions. She is actually pretty happy right now. She wished for a life where she did not have to do anything but read forever and that is exactly what she got.”
“Still, I wish there was something I could do for her.”
“If you want to help her, brush out her hair and fix her braids. They are coming loose again. You do not mind if he does it, right Ghost?”
The girl shook her head without looking up from the book and Cyra smiled.
“There we go. I will leave it to you.” Before Charly could say anything else, Cyra spun and walked out of the room.
Charly stood there with a blank expression as he processed what just happened. He then looked over at me. “Do you know how to braid hair?”
I laughed at Charly’s lost puppy eyes and nodded. “Go get a brush. I will help you.”
“I always knew this day would come,” my dad said with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair.
He and my mom had been discussing possible movements the Demons could make when I broke the news to them. The map at the center of the Svend’s grand hall now lie forgotten as my dad closed his eyes.
“You know, a normal father’s greatest worry is what boy their daughter brings home, not when will she declare war on the entire world.”
“I am just announcing my revival, not declaring war,” I replied with my hands on my hips indignantly.
“Most nations will not see the difference,” my dad said with a dismissive wave.
“If it makes you feel any better, I can always go out and find a bunch of random boys for you to meet.”
“Absolutely not! You bringing one stray home is more than enough.”
My mom stood from the table and walked to my side, before placing a hand on my shoulder. “Have you thought this through, sweetheart? Is this really what you want?”
I smiled up at my mom and nodded. “It is time. Svend and I will send out the announcement tomorrow. Soon, the entire world will know of Aurielle’s return.”
Before I could react, my mom pulled me into a tight hug. “I trust your decisions, Wren. Just be careful. Once they know who you are, everyone will be after you. Some will come to kill you, others to gain your favor. Just remember, no matter what, we are always here for you.”
I felt a warmth in my chest and returned the hug. I closed my eyes and savored the small moment of peace. “I know, Mom.”
“Since you have decided to do this, you must have a plan, right?” my dad asked, interrupting the moment.
I separated from my mom and nodded. “I plan to create an undead to use as my public face. Nobody will know that it is not my real body, allowing us to continue our lives without all the distractions that would come from my identity.”
“And what do you plan to do when King Sebastion comes knocking? I doubt a body double will fool him for long.”
“I… will decide when the time comes. The boy was my student for more than a decade. I should be able to come up with something.”
My dad shook his head in exasperation. “That does not exactly scream confidence. Tia and I will try and think of a proper plan. Until then, just… stay safe.”
“I will Dad,” I replied with a big smile. I then looked around in confusion. “Where is Charly? I haven’t seen him in over a day. He should know too.”
“Your brother found out Svend and Cyra have a library,” my mom replied simply.
I did not need any more information than that to know why I had not seen Charly around. Until he had read every single book there, we would not be able to pry Charly out of the library for anything less than a world-ending disaster.
“If you are going to see Charly, would you bring him something to eat?” my mom asked, “He missed breakfast and it is already time for lunch.”
I nodded and after some quick instruction from my mom, I soon found my way to the large kitchen at the back of Svend’s manor.
I smelled the kitchen before I saw it. The aroma of roasted meat wafted through the halls and the grumbling in my stomach made me remember that I had also skipped breakfast this morning. However, my hunger was quickly forgotten when the pressure of a domain pressed down on my shoulders the moment I entered the kitchen.
As the large door swung open, I was greeted by a strange sight, even for me. Hundreds of ingredients were suspended in the air by the power of the domain. Bright yellow flames spun around the room, moving in beat with a humming girl currently chopping a vegetable.
“Doesn’t Svend have servants to do this sort of thing?” I asked as I leaned against the doorframe with a grin.
Cyra yelped in surprise. Her domain wavered, nearly causing all the food floating in the air to fall to the floor before Cyra was able to catch it. The girl turned on me, knife waved in my direction, and her face bright red as she shouted.
“What are you doing in here? The kitchen is mine, get out!”
I ignored Cyra as I stepped into the kitchen and plucked a small piece of meat out of the air. I popped the morsel into my mouth and was surprised by the explosion of flavor. “This is actually really good.”
“Of course it is,” Cyra replied with a scowl, “I am a world-class chef, one of the best.”
“Really? I thought Tressans considered such things frivolous.”
“They do, I don’t,” Cyra said with a huff, “What do you want. If you are just here to make fun of me then leave.”
“Actually, I came in here to get some food for my brother.”
“Your brother? Oh right, the boy in the library. Give me a few minutes. I was about to go up there anyway.”
I shrugged and moved out of the way so Cyra could finish cooking. I watched silently for the next few minutes as Cyra used her domain to manipulate ingredients and her innate talent to cook the food to a perfect temperature inside and out.
“If you had shown this much control during our little game, I might have lost,” I remarked as I watched Cyra work.
“Cooking is not a game. Everything needs to be perfect,” Cyra replied curtly.
“For Svend?”
Cyra paused again, her face once more turning red. “Yes,” she whispered.
“What is your relationship with him? How did someone from Tressa end up following someone from the Seventh Division?”
“He is my husband,” she said without looking up.
My eyes narrowed as I observed Cyra closely as she continued working. “The Seventh Division does not have the concept of marriage. The closest they know is a concubine.”
The pressure of the domain in the room increased tenfold, nearly forcing me to my knees. Cyra turned on me once again, fury in her voice. “Svend is no longer a part of the Seventh Division. If you question our marriage again, I will cook you like the rest of the meat. Understand?”
I raised my hands in surrender under the enraged glare of the woman. “Sorry, sorry, I was not trying to offend you. I was just surprised.”
The pressure of the domain lessened back down to a reasonable level and I moved my own flames to start repairing the aggravated injuries the pressure caused.
Cyra let out a long breath. “I am sorry too. I should not lose my temper like that. It is just a touchy subject for me.”
“I understand, life is complicated. So long as you are happy, I will not stick my nose in where it does not belong.”
“Thank you,” Cyra said. With a wave of her hand, most of the floating ingredients moved to rest on a nearby countertop while some moved to form an elaborate design atop two plates. I could not stop my mouth from watering as the delectable dishes were formed. “Come on, I am at a stopping point. I will take you to the library.”
Cyra picked up the two plates and led the way upstairs. The library was a surprisingly well-lit room with a large window along the back wall. Rows and rows of books lined all the way to the ceiling. There had to be thousands of them. To my surprise, I saw not only books from this realm but also others that were once popular among the Divisions. A vast majority of these were adventure novels or rather spicy romance novels, and I could not help but look at Cyra curiously.
She actively avoided my pointed stare as she cleared her throat. “When I learned Michael was sending us to such a rural realm, I made sure I would have plenty of entertainment to last at least a few decades. only a few of the books are of any educational value, but they are all great reads. If you get the time, you should check a few of them out.”
“I will,” I replied with a grin.
At the back of the library, I saw Charly sitting at the only table in the room with a thick book out in front of him. To my surprise, he was not alone. There was a young girl, maybe a year younger than Charly with braided blonde hair, sitting next to him. She was also reading a thick book. Neither of the two people seemed to acknowledge the other as they read in silence.
Charly looked up as we approached, a big smile on his face. “Wren, look at this. This book has the same text written in almost a hundred different languages. With this book, I might be able to translate the other books sitting in Dragon’s Nest! I also found a dozen medical books written in the Thirteen Divisions. This place is incredible!”
“I am glad you are having fun but remember to come up for air sometimes,” I said with a sigh as Cyra sat one of the plates in front of Charly and the second one in front of the unknown girl.
“Eat,” Cyra commanded, “Do not forget again.”
The girl silently nodded without looking up from her book. Her arm moved with a robotic disinterest as she picked up the fork on the plate and shoveled food into her mouth without looking at it or even seeming to taste it.
“Who is your friend?” I asked Charly with a mischievous grin.
“I don’t know,” Charly said with a shake of his head, “She will not talk to me. Though, she did point out a few books that I was looking for once.”
“You got her to respond?” Cyra remarked in surprise, “She does not usually do that around strangers.”
“Who is she?” Charly asked.
“We call her Ghost. I have never been able to get an actual name out of her. She is living proof that an innate talent is not always a blessing.”
“Really? What happened?”
Cyra shrugged. “From what I learned; the kid had an innate talent that forced obedience in others. If they tried to disobey, their heart would stop. Somehow, a few years ago, she accidentally used it on herself. Now, she has to spend every waking moment reading or she will die. Once Svend learned about what happened he moved her here. At least this way she has a variety of books to read instead of the same one over and over again.”
“Is there no way to help her?” Charly asked as he looked at the girl. She did not even seem to register that we were talking about her.
“Maybe if we were in the divisions,” Cyra replied with a sigh, “There, the doctors would be able to purposely stop her heart long enough for the compulsion to break then restart it, but here it would be too much of a risk. The only other ways to save her would be to either have someone with the same innate talent, stronger than her, counteract the compulsion, or for Ghost to create a domain of her own. Neither of those is very likely to happen though.”
“I never thought innate talents could hurt their wielder,” Charly mumbled as he looked down at the floor.
“Don’t feel too bad for her, kid,” Cyra said with a pat on his back, “I know it's hard to tell, but I have gotten used to her minute reactions. She is actually pretty happy right now. She wished for a life where she did not have to do anything but read forever and that is exactly what she got.”
“Still, I wish there was something I could do for her.”
“If you want to help her, brush out her hair and fix her braids. They are coming loose again. You do not mind if he does it, right Ghost?”
The girl shook her head without looking up from the book and Cyra smiled.
“There we go. I will leave it to you.” Before Charly could say anything else, Cyra spun and walked out of the room.
Charly stood there with a blank expression as he processed what just happened. He then looked over at me. “Do you know how to braid hair?”
I laughed at Charly’s lost puppy eyes and nodded. “Go get a brush. I will help you.”
