Jake fell to his knees, panting. “Please…” he begged, trying to catch his breath. “You… didn’t… have to go so hard on me.”

  First Gellius, now this. I can’t be bothered.

  “That will do for the night.” Asariel said, with a look of satisfaction on his face after, relatively speaking, beating the equivalent of a lobotomized baby. He put the wooden swords back in the armory and offered a hand to Jake. “Like I said, you’re improving. I received word from Gellius—I won’t be seeing you until the Trial. You needed such practice.”

  Jake accepted the hand with a feeling of déjà vu. “Practice, right,” he muttered.

  Another night of defeat.

  “That being said, Jake, I have a gift I’d like to hand you.”

  Intrigued, Jake observed as Asariel stepped towards a seemingly ordinary patch of ground near a flowering bush. With a precise movement, the young lord tapped his foot twice on a specific spot. To Jake’s astonishment, a section of the garden floor slid away, revealing a compartment housing an exquisite weapons rack.

  “A family secret,” Asariel winked, reaching into the arsenal. He withdrew a sheathed sword, one that instantly hooked Jake’s attention.

  A katana…

  “Kuroyuki, The Sword Instrument.” Asariel said, presenting the weapon to Jake. “Legend says it was hand forged by one of the council members themselves, in a land far beyond our borders. I think it’s time it saw some use again.”

  Jake’s eyes widened as he received the gift, marveling at the immaculate sword. Its curved blade rippling with a wavy gray hue, and the hilt, wrapped in pristine white silk with gold accents. Although slightly heavier, the katana had considerably less wind resistance than the wooden swords, defying the basic laws of matter that he was familiar with. “Asariel, I… I can’t accept this. It’s way above my payroll.”

  “Nonsense. A sword is meant to be wielded, not gather dust. Besides,” he added, “Do you plan to partake in the Trial barehanded?”

  He’s right. Shut up and take it, Jake.

  Overwhelmed with gratitude, Jake bowed. “Thank you. I promise to treasure it.”

  The weight of the new sword at his hip served as a vow to Asariel.

  I won’t let you down.

  But it was finally over, the end of his long day of ordeals and shortcomings. He could almost hear his bed chanting his name upstairs. As he made his way out of the inner garden, the exhaustion weighing him down, he saw Ella, waiting patiently at the entrance and staring sightlessly ahead.

  Must be waiting on her brothe—

  “Jake, are you finished?” she asked before he could complete his thought, her head tilting slightly as she heard him approach.

  “Yeah, just finished losing another bout to your brother,” he replied with a tired smile.

  She smiled excitedly, “Come, I have something important to show you. I found it in the library earlier today.” She grabbed his hand, practically dragging him through the halls and into the library. Once in the library, she guided him to a tall chair and clambered up, her nimble fingers running across the spines of the books. After a moment of concentrated searching, she let out a small gasp and pulled a thick volume from the shelves.

  I know where this is going…

  A soft click echoed through the room as she pulled it free, with a section of the bookcase swinging open, revealing a hidden passageway.

  Jake sighed.

  Someone in the creative department was seriously slacking off.

  “I simply stumbled upon this,” Ella explained, her face still lit with excitement. “But I’m unable to explore it alone as I can’t use muscle memory to get through it like most places in the manor. I need your help, Jake. I’m certain brother is aware of this and is keeping secrets from me. Joshua must also be in cahoots with him. As of right now, you’re all I can rely on.”

  Jake hesitated, “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  Her expression hardened with apprehension.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Jake looked over at his sword for reassurance.

  I guess that’s a yes.

  “Alright, lets go,” he said.

  They stepped through the doorway, touching the damp interior walls, into a narrow spiral staircase that descended into the darkness. As they made their way down, the air grew cooler and the light of the library faded away. The only sound was the echo of their footsteps against the stone steps.

  “This place is eerie,” Ella whispered, her voice barely more than a breath.

  Jake squeezed her hand tighter. “Stay close. We’re almost there,” he said, not actually knowing the length of the endless staircase they had gone down.

  “This might be our only chance,” she said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well,” she started. “I suspect the doorway is under a strong magical influence.”

  “Why is that?”

  “The book that served as a lever—yesterday, I had taken that very book off the shelf and it hadn’t activated the doorway then. I believe the lever switches day by day. With there being hundreds of books in the library, it would be nearly impossible to find the lever without grabbing Joshua’s attention.”

  “I see. So that explains why you hadn’t found it until today.”

  She nodded.

  After what felt like an eternity, they reached the bottom. A heavy wooden door stood before them, ancient and covered in cobwebs. Before Jake could twist the doorknob open, a realization seemed to hit Ella.

  “The Soundpecker,” she whispered. It didn’t take long for Jake to register it either. That familiar sound of a scratching quill on parchment. The source was right behind the door. Jake was never a betting man, but he sure would stake his life savings on it not being a ‘soundpecker’ after all.

  “Should we really be doing this?” He whispered back, starting to reconsider. “Someone’s behind this door, how will we explain ourselves?”

  “We must uncover who it is. Otherwise how can I possibly feel safe in my own home. If it gets to it, I promise to defend you using my authority.”

  There was no turning back, Ella was clearly dead-set on finding out who and what was behind the wooden door.

  Jake twisted the doorknob, pushed it open with a creak, and stepped into the room beyond.

  The room was small and circular, with a single candle burning on a table in the center. Shadows were cast on the walls as the candle flickered, with a strange glow. As they stepped further inside, Jake heard a quick movement, something scurrying in the darkness.

  “What was that?” Ella asked, her voice tense.

  “I don’t know,” Jake admitted. “But we’re not alone.”

  The candle flickered out, plunging the room into complete darkness. Jake’s heart raced as he strained to see anything. Suddenly, he felt a presence near him, a low growl resonating from the shadows.

  Before he could react, something leapt at him, knocking him to the ground. He grappled with the creature, feeling rough, scaly skin beneath his fingers. With a surge of adrenaline, he managed to throw it off and scramble to his feet.

  “Ella, get behind me!”

  Ella moved quickly, positioning herself behind Jake’s voice as he faced the creature. The dim light from the open door behind them provided just enough illumination to reveal what they were dealing with. A small, hideously ugly Goblin. Its sharp teeth bared in a snarl and its eyes fixed on Jake.

  Jake took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. “Stay back, creature,” he warned, brandishing his fist.

  The goblin hissed and lunged again. Jake pounded at it, landing a punch square on its broad nose. The goblin, yelped and retreated, but Jake could tell it wasn’t going to give up easily.

  “We have to take this opportunity and leave,” Jake said urgently, backing towards the door.

  Ella nodded, her face pale. “Look around, there must be something else in this room.”

  Jake glanced around the room, his eyes scanning for anything that might help. On the far side of the room, he saw a small chest, half-hidden behind a stack of old crates. “There, on the far left,” he said, giving her a positional cue. “There’s a chest. Maybe we can find something useful.”

  Ella moved quickly to the chest, her fingers feeling along its surface until she found the latch. She opened it with a creak, and inside she found a small collection of scrolls.

  Jake had no time to inspect them as the goblin lunged at Ella this time. He grabbed his new sheathed, katana and struck the repulsive goblin with the hilt. The creature shrieked and recoiled, backing into the shadows.

  Jake advanced, holding the katana in hand. “Leave now, and you won’t be harmed,” he said, his voice steady.

  The goblin hissed one last time before turning and fleeing into the darkness.

  “It’s gone,” Jake told Ella who was behind him, holding the scrolls against her chest.

  They stood there for a moment, catching their breath.

  “What is this place and why is this the living space of a goblin?” Jake asked, looking around the room now that the immediate danger had passed.

  “I don’t know, but it’s clear that there’s something important here. Something someone—brother—wanted to keep hidden.”

  Jake nodded, “We need to find out what these scrolls say. They might have some answers.”

  “Let’s get back to the library. We can study them there.”

  As they made their way back up to the spiral staircase, Jake couldn’t shake the feeling that he was going against Asariel.

  Back in the library, they spread the scrolls out on a table. Ella’s fingers traced the parchment as she attempted to magic read. “These are written in an ancient language,” she said, grabbing what appeared to be a dictionary from a shelf. “I can decipher it, but it will take some time.”

  Jake nodded, glancing at the full moons in the sky, already dreading the thought of his training session with Gellius the next day.

  “Then we’d best get started,” he said, pulling back a chair beside Ella.

  ***

  [One Week Later] DAY OF THE ESTERROSIAN MAGE CORP BRANCH - Trial

  Jake pushed open the massive doors of the Great Hall, his entrance drawing more than a few head turns and curious glances. His clothes were tattered, face bloodied and bruised with a barely healed cut running along his cheek.

  The hall buzzed with nervous energy, filled with at least a hundred aspiring warriors. Jake’s eyes swept across the luxurious hall, taking in the competition. Some paced anxiously, while others stood as still as statues. Many looked formidable, their auras barely visible to his newly trained eye, thanks to Gellius.

  He took his place in line for the registration queue, squaring his shoulders. Asariel and Gellius would be watching, and Jake was ready.