Elemental Mage 2 by Vall Eric

Author:Vall, Eric
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-10-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

“Wait…” I said slowly. “What does the death of a University student have to do with the Asterium’s corruption? You don’t… do you think it wasn’t an accident?”

“I have no idea,” Jace said simply. “All I know is the name ‘Arethusa’ followed any mention of this secret society. I don’t know if Tanwen Arethusa founded it, or Conleth Arethusa discovered too much.”

“One thing’s certain, at least,” Arian announced in a grim tone. “We need to go back to the University. Investigate that old building where Arethusa died.”

“Back to the University?” Fabian gasped. “We just escaped from there!”

“True, but I think Ari’s right,” I told the blond man. “Like Jace said, we’re chasing shadows on the wall. Any inkling of a lead, we need to follow. Speaking of which, Jace, do you remember anything more about that seal you mentioned? On Adalstan’s letter?”

“Hold on a second,” the brown-haired woman replied, and she got up and went to an end table in the corner of the room, where she opened a drawer and pulled out a piece of paper and a writing utensil.

She returned to the table and spent a few minutes sketching something out. Then she passed the paper to Juliet and, when the tall woman unfolded it, I peered over to see a rough, circular sketch of some kind of crest.

“It’s not perfect,” Jace admitted. “I don’t remember every detail, but I’m confident this is most of it. It’s not like any family seal I’ve ever seen before, though.”

“No, it isn’t,” Juliet agreed with a frown. She then turned the paper toward the rest of our group. “I don’t recognize this. Do any of you?”

“No idea,” Fabian said flatly, and I could see the unease in his expression.

Like Jace, he was a Family member, so he should have been able to identify any family’s crest at the slightest glance. The fact that he couldn’t clearly didn’t sit right with him.

“Me, neither,” Arian agreed, and she cast Jace a dubious glance. “Do you remember what color it was?”

“Deep green,” she said. “Muted, with a tinge of blue. Like moss.”

“So, if it belongs to any family, it’s likely an earthshaper bloodline,” the white-haired woman remarked, still with a dubious expression on her face. “But still, that’s useful. Thank you, Jace.”

“I take it, then, that the six of you will be taking your leave?” Lady Briar asked in a mild tone. She was regarding us all with only faint interest.

“With your permission-- and your protection, if you would be so kind as to extend it, my Lady,” Fabian answered, and he stood from the table to bow deeply at the Demetra matriarch. “You have already offered up fine hospitality, for which we are profusely thankful.”

I and the others murmured in agreement and inclined our heads, but Lady Briar kept her brown eyes fixed keenly on Fabian. The blond man, meanwhile, kept his gaze directed at the floor, and I could see the tension in the straight lines of his face. He was refusing to give anything away and committing to ruthless politeness as a manner of tiny rebellion.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.