The Frost Soldier and the Gilded Duty (The Heartless and the Wicked Book 2) by Maham Fatemi

Author:Maham Fatemi [Fatemi, Maham]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-10-02T16:00:00+00:00

16

When Magni was well enough to travel, they were on the road again, heading toward the Forest of Great Divide. They had stopped by the nearby village a few days prior to restock on supplies and to buy three horses to replace the ones that had been killed, and they were now nearing the infamous forest. During that time, Kolfinna had been completely consumed with thoughts of Blár, but he acted indifferent, as if nothing had happened. And it probably didn’t, because being friends shouldn’t have been a big deal.

Magni inhaled sharply with every bump on the unpaved path, his face as white as the snow flurrying around them. They could’ve reached the forest within the hour if they had their horses trot a bit faster, but they all deliberately kept up with Magni’s pace, which wasn’t more than a leisurely walk.

“You shouldn’t be traveling with us,” Eyfura finally said with a worried brow. She turned to Kolfinna. “I knew we should’ve left him at the village—”

“I’m fine,” Magni bit out for the hundredth time since they left the village.

Nollar frowned, looking between Magni and the forest, which sat at the cusp of the horizon. “I think Eyfura is right—”

“I’m not going to stay behind in the village.” Magni breathed out deeply, but whether from exasperation or pain, Kolfinna wasn’t sure. “We came here on a mission and I’m going to complete it.”

“Even if you slow us down?” Blár quirked an eyebrow. Kolfinna had thought that Blár would heal slower than Magni since he had an abdomen wound, but he was faring better than Magni. In fact, if he didn’t grimace from time to time when his horse galloped unexpectedly, she would’ve thought he was completely healed.

Magni ground his teeth together. “We can go faster.”

“No, no, let’s take our time,” Eyfura shot Blár a disapproving look.

“I think we should try to go a little faster,” Yrsa said, peering at the forest, which was drawing closer by the minute, but not close enough. Even Kolfinna wanted to spur her horse forward and tread within the Forest of Great Divide. She wanted to get this mission over with already.

“I agree with the she-chicken.” Blár jerked his thumb at Yrsa, whose face reddened at the moniker Blár had given her last week. Apparently, her name meant “she-bear,” but Blár thought it was more fitting to call her “she-chicken.” It was cruel, but Kolfinna couldn’t completely fault him. Even Kolfinna was still upset with Yrsa, who hadn’t offered an apology for her behavior to Magni or Blár—the two people the Nuckelavee affected the most.

Nollar licked his lips. “I think it’s best we take our time.”

“We’re almost there. Let’s be patient,” Kolfinna said, earning a frown from Blár.

“No, no, let’s move forward,” Magni said, clicking his tongue to his horse and gently squeezing his legs against her body. She trotted forward into a slow gallop, her powerful hooves snapping at the dead grass and melting sleet-slick ground.

It only took twenty minutes before they finally entered the forest.

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