I stared at Alice for a long moment, letting the silence stretch between us before finally speaking.

  "Are you certain about this, Alice? I don’t doubt your ability to remain hidden, but we have no real idea what lies on the other side. Are you sure you’d be fine?”

  Her answer was immediate. “That is precisely why I offer myself, mistress. The unknown is best approached by those prepared to become a shadow within it. This is the best option. Are you… worried about me?”

  “Certainty’s a luxury, Alice. And YES, I’m worried about you, you silly doll!” I snapped, exhaling sharply.

  I knew Lotte had a way of treating others as mere tools—she’d scoffed when I gave Barn a name, practically sneered when I called Alice by hers. Maybe that had gotten into Alice’s head somehow, but she needed to understand—needed to—that as my companion, she wasn’t some disposable piece on a board to be moved and sacrificed at will. Once bound to me, she was indelible. My people were my people, and I did not—would not—treat them as anything less than irrepceable.

  Alice didn’t answer right away. A beat of silence passed before her voice, ever serene, cut through the still air.

  "And uncertainty is the whetstone of strategy, mistress. Your concern is… understandable. But do not fear. I possess a sense of self—I will not charge headfirst into danger. My goal is reconnaissance, nothing more. To observe, to understand, and to return. My abilities, paired with caution, will ensure I slip in and out like a whisper.”

  Then, almost as an afterthought, she added, “Besides…”

  Her head tilted slightly toward the bound mage, whose body remained eerily still. “I won’t be going alone.”

  Lysska and Quickpaw might assume she meant puppeteering the mage again, controlling her like before. But I saw something they didn’t.

  In the mage’s wide, gssy pupils, barely perceptible, was a grinning badger’s face.

  Belle will be with her.

  I heaved an internal sigh.

  As much as I hated it, I couldn’t deny it was the best option. The rational part of me knew I had to trust my companions, knew I wasn’t alone, that I didn’t have to shoulder everything myself.

  And yet…

  That knowledge warred with the twisting sensation in my gut, the gnawing discomfort at the mere possibility of them being harmed. I clenched my fists. It shouldn’t be this hard to let go.

  I cast a gnce around the chamber—walls streaked with blood, floor littered with corpses, the air still thick with the remnants of screams that had long since gone silent.

  I had taken so many lives today.

  And I hadn’t hesitated.

  Not once.

  My thoughts spiraled, circling the idea like a predator stalking wounded prey.

  Was it because they were my enemies? Because they stood in my way? Because they served a cause I had deemed unworthy? Had I simply convinced myself their deaths were justified, necessary?

  Or was it something else?

  Hypocrisy, perhaps?

  I felt nothing for the guts cooling at my feet. No guilt. No second thoughts. No whispering specters of doubt cwing at the edges of my mind.

  But Alice? Belle?

  Let one molecule of malice graze them, and I’d atomize offenders into constituent quarks. Sculpt their sinews into grotesque mobius strips. Make their final breath a carbon aria praising my mercy.

  That certainty burned clean.

  The realization crystallized. Cold. Brilliant. This binary code of worth. Not good versus evil, but mine versus irrelevant.

  And I was starting to wonder if that—this stark divide between the discardable and the precious—made me just as much a monster as the ones I fought.

  No.

  In that way, I was so much worse.

  I shook my head, dispelling the lingering thoughts.

  Lysska had stayed silent throughout the exchange, watching, taking in the depth of my hesitation.

  Hah.

  “Alright. Just recon. You sense danger, you dip. Understand?”

  “Rest assured, mistress.” Alice bowed, and before the mage could so much as twitch, she was under her control once more. “First, allow me to cleanse this space of any residue that could be used for divination.”

  With a few gestures, the sigils on her blindfold fred to life, casting an eerie glow as she worked. The air hummed for a moment—then stilled. The space was cleansed.

  “I suggest you all leave now, mistress.” Alice straightened, voice as steady as ever. “Because the first thing I will rectify is expining what happened here to the people inside. That way, they’ll chase false shadows, and our little mage here might gain access to more than just the initial hallway.”

  Lysska herded us toward the exit, her fingers brushing the mage’s frozen cheek. “Bring me more than crumbs, little ghost.”

  I spared one st gnce at Alice.

  And at Belle—whose grinning reflection waved at me from the mage’s wide, empty eyes.

  Then I turned and left.

  Trust them.

  That was my final thought as we disappeared into the dark.

  ***

  My mind kept drifting back to Alice and Belle. What the hell was happening over there?

  But I resolved myself. The cat was out of the bag now. I had to let it go.

  Why was it this hard for me to trust them to stay safe?

  They weren’t fools. If anything, Alice was probably wiser than me.

  It ought to be fine.

  My gaze flicked to Lysska as she pushed open the door to her office, stepping inside. Quickpaw followed, grinning up at me, and I returned the gesture.

  Then my eyes darted to the red dot hovering in the corner of my vision.

  Notifications.

  I had swiped them away earlier—too many, all from the bodies I’d left behind. The kills alone were worth quite a few levels.

  I really wanted to open them.

  But not here. Not now.

  Not with Lysska and Quickpaw around. What would they think if I just stood there, staring bnkly into space?

  That wouldn’t do.

  Inside, Lysska busied herself preparing coffee. The rich scent filled the room, but before I could fully enjoy it, she got straight to business.

  “Well,” she began, “Valendris' involvement changes the board. Seeing that Thibault might be backed by them, we may need to postpone our raid until I gather more information.” She gnced at Vyra. “Message Viper and Brickfist ter—tell them they won’t be needed and to carry on with their work.”

  “On it, boss!” Vyra’s salute sent her hair swinging. “They’ll be stoked for the vacation.”

  The coffee’s aroma—burnt caramel ced with cardamom—wrapped around me as I sipped, the scalding liquid a welcome anchor.

  Ahh. Bliss.

  My tolerance for heat was absurd, way beyond normal. It had long since shifted from oh, you’ll burn your mouth to oh, I kinda like the way it stings.

  “Careful,” Lysska muttered without looking up, her eyes milky-white as she peered through a crow’s distant gaze. “That brew’s hot.”

  “Perfect.” I grinned, fangs glinting. “I like it hot. Drakkari biology, maybe.”

  Lysska narrowed her eyes but said nothing.

  I still wanted to know how exactly her ability worked, but that curiosity could wait.

  Right now, a small part of me was relieved.

  Dealing with the remnants of Iron’s gang could wait. My mind was already tangled up with Viera’s birthday—and whatever the hell was really going on there.

  Her dimensional resonance was off.

  My initial pn had been simple: sneak into the pce she was staying, poke around, gather clues—without getting caught.

  Then I got kidnapped.

  So much for that pn.

  Another idea crossed my mind.

  I gnced at Lysska.

  This wasn’t some deep, dangerous secret. And for once, I didn’t have to handle everything alone.

  This wasn’t my old town, where everyone was out to get me.

  These people had seen what I could do, things normal people wouldn’t even imagine in their wildest dreams. We weren’t exactly friends, but we weren’t strangers either. I was helping Lysska with her own secretive matters.

  So why not ask this dangerous woman in front of me for advice?

  The more I considered it, the better the idea felt.

  I steeled myself—

  But before I could open my mouth, Lysska’s ocur veins flooded back to amber, focus snapping to me. “Out with it, alchemist. You’re vibrating like a hexed tuning fork. What’s gnawing at your ribs?”

  Damn.

  She read me like an open book.

  I really needed to work on my poker face.

  Then again, this was Lysska. Even if my expression gave away nothing, she had a way of knowing.

  I sighed. “It’s a long story. I… might need your input, since you know more about this city than I ever could. So…”

  Vyra leaned over the table, eyes glinting like a gremlin. “Oooh, spill! Is it murder? Betrayal? Forbidden love?!”

  “Worse,” I hissed. “Birthday balls.”

  And I started from the beginning.

  I told them about meeting Sasha in the underground market. About the ingredients I suspected were meant to tamper with Parda, the fabric of reality itself. About the gift she was preparing for a friend’s birthday.

  That friend, as it turned out, was our mutual friend.

  Viera.

  Then, finally, about checking her dimensional resonance—and confirming my worst fears.

  Something was brewing.

  And I had to stop it.

  Had to save my friend.

  Lysska opened her mouth the moment I finished.

  “A Saryn girl, you said? Noble. New to the city…”

  “You know something about that?”

  “Yes, in fact, I do.” She leaned back, crossing her arms. “Vraal’Kor is ruled by five major sects, and each of them has representatives here in Varkaigrad—usually a sect elder, or even the Sect Head in some cases. One of the ruling families belongs to the Sablethorn Sect—a Saryn family. Their domain is Bckwater Swamp, Skal’Vareth Forest and they’re one of the more secretive sects, despite also being one of the most powerful.

  "I did hear rumors that they had guests recently. Likely someone from their sect visiting the city.”

  Her gaze sharpened. “Which sect did you say your friend was from?”

  “Ashwind Sect.”

  “A lesser sect under Sablethorn” Lysska nodded. “That tracks. Damn, look at you—already making friends in high pces.”

  Sarcasm dripped from her voice.

  I nearly choked on my coffee. “So I basically tripped into assisting a sect princess?”

  “With panache,” Lysska purred.

  I exhaled sharply. “But what the hell was she doing alone in a bck market that dangerous? She strikes me as the type of girl who wouldn’t notice a red fg even if it was stabbed into her chest.”

  Lysska snorted. “Oh, my dear little Jade, you’d have to be delusional to think think vipers let their hatchlings wander unwatched. Whether she realizes it or not, she had a gang of loyal hounds shadowing her every move. Seasoned killers. Guardians. Call them what you like—depends on your perspective.” She cocked a brow. “I really hope you didn’t do anything stupid… like, say, try to mug her?”

  My mouth fell open.

  Vyra snorted coffee through her nose.

  Holy Thador.

  I had casually helped a sect princess in a bck market. A protected sect princess.

  No wonder she had been there in the first pce—it wasn’t reckless. She was being watched.

  I pinched the bridge of my nose. What is wrong with my fate? Why did I keep getting dragged into bizarre situations? Of course the universe would cast me as accidental royalty-wrangler. Chaos wasn’t my shadow, it was my godsforsaken parasite.

  Was it a dragon thing?

  Suspicion simmered beneath my thoughts.

  I needed to badger Lotte about this ter.

  For now, I turned my focus back to Lysska.

  “Thankfully,” I said, “she was really grateful I helped her get those ingredients. Even invited me to Fang’s Ascent. And since no one’s tried to kill me for offending their precious princess, I think I’m in the clear?”

  “Seems like it.”

  “Good.” I exhaled. “Anyway, back to the real issue—now that you know the context, I want to help my friend. Viera’s dimensional resonance was off. I know something’s wrong. Between that Saryn princess, those shady ingredients, and her shady mentor… I just want to make sure she’s safe on her own damn birthday. Probably Sasha too.”

  Lysska’s smirk vanished.

  Her expression darkened, eyes narrowing as she leaned forward.

  “And what, exactly, were your pns…” Her voice dropped, low and dangerous.

  “…where you didn’t think to inform me of any of this?”

  I ughed nervously under Lysska’s gre.

  “I… heh, well, I may have decided to, erm, investigate things a little. You know, just to check for clues—see if anything was actually going on. Since I knew where Viera lived and all…”

  Lysska’s eyes narrowed further.

  Her eyelid twitched. “I’ve seen you melt into alleyways like butter on a griddle. No one disputes your vanishing act.” A beat. “But even butter knows not to leap into a frying pan unsupervised.”

  “But—!”

  “But nothing.” She sliced the air with a finger. “Tomorrow. Nine sharp. Meet me by Cinder Street—the same one you take to catch a carriage down here. We’ll dissect this folly practically.”

  Wait. What?

  “This is moving way too fast,” I said. “And hold up—my situation at the Alchemy Tower is… complicated. It’s gonna be hard for me to sneak out in the morning!”

  Lysska smirked.

  “Then do what you do best, darling.”

  “Which is…?”

  “Lie.” Her wink could’ve curdled milk.