“You suffered an incredible loss at Levener’s hand,” Lord Juler explains. “It’s not surprising you can barely remember it. Your lack of fundamental knowledge truly showed. Princess Valarith, as I had already told her, was rash. We shouldn’t have allowed such a match. Not until you really learn some magic.”

“Didn’t you just say I almost killed him?”

“Almost doesn’t matter. There’s only one winner.”

That’s Levener’s voice in my head again.

“Ok, buddy. Whatever makes you sleep at night. But now, Lord Juler. This whole fate thing... did you tell something to Lucinda about it?”

“No, Joey Luciani. Your friend is not aware of the information we are keeping from you. Princess Valarith has explained some things about the Omnium Compendium and your growth to her, though. She also knows that you are not properly from this world. But we will leave the details to you.”

“What? What do you mean?” I ask, confused. “Why would you tell her about me coming from another world?”

“You saved her,” Valarith suddenly speaks out. “Tides do not cross if they are not meant to. When they do, great calamities or boons are generated. Hiding harmless things is a practice reserved for Teiko’s people, not a disciple of a Vanedeni.”

I look blankly ahead and glance at Lord Juler.

“The Princess is invoking Vanedeni customs. We don’t keep secrets unless we really need to. Secrets and insults are taboo in our culture. As far as traditionalism goes, I’m not a great conservator – I mostly busied myself with the study of magic throughout the years. But she is right. That was the best choice, and it is a courtesy to you that we are leaving the details in your hands. We also asked her to wait for you to talk about it and not reveal anything until then.”

“Ok, wait a second.”

I fish in my bag of holding and recoil for a second when I find a missing corpse.

“We teleported Atticus’s body to his family estate,” Lord Juler clarifies.

“Mh.”

I take out a cylinder of metal and slowly uncork the top. Then, I take out a cup with a heating enchantment. As my coffee heats up and becomes sippable, I massage my forehead with the other hand.

“Ok. Vanedenis. Ok.”

I take a long sip in a general state of silence. At least Lucinda’s not here. She gave me some privacy to talk with these three nutjobs.

“The Canti are involved, aren’t they? And your people. That’s what fate means,” I say with the cup's rim still touching my lips, basically speaking into the coffee.

Princess Valarith looks sharply at me and purses her lips.

“It is not a matter of your concern,” Levener says in a deep voice.

“Listen, baldie, I don’t know what’s your problem with me—if you are jealous or whatever, but can you drop this act? I mean, are you slightly autistic or something? Or are you just stupid? Because I swear, I’m liking this conversation less and less. And your presence here is certainly not required on my account.”

Levener looks good, as I already said. He has a shaved head and a body-builder frame. Even his face is good-looking. And he seems like one of those not-evidently-strong people; more like ‘secretly-super-strong-grandpa-strong.’

“Insults among the Vanedenis—”

Valarith raises her hand again, shutting him up. I look at her hand this time and find it incredibly normal. It’s a bit consumed by the writing, and you can clearly see some calluses on it. It’s not what you would expect from a centuries-old mystical Princess. It’s more like what you would expect from a middle-aged librarian who enjoys her job but is frustrated by all the red tape.

“You are too young,” Valarith says in her broken speech patterns. “And now, everyone is hunting for you.”

“Huh?”

“The Elves have declared you a criminal, charged you with treason, and ordered your immediate execution if you are to be found anywhere. Dead or alive, but preferably dead.”

I look at Lord Juler and think I didn’t hear correctly.

“A criminal?”

“They are using the death of Appius as a pretext. They say it wasn’t you who killed Adriana and Appius, but my master. They are accusing you of allying with the Vanedeni royalty and taking part in a larger conspiracy to cripple the future of Lucerna.”

I look blankly at Levener and fix my gaze on him even once he’s done talking.

“They are afraid of your magic, Joey Luciani. They think you are a Vanedeni hero.”

This time, it’s Lord Juler speaking.

“But—what about Stan, King Tiberius? And Laura?”

“We are intercepting every communication channel, even the most cryptic ones. The palace has restored the exiled Queen, and Princess Laura has returned to court. King Tiberius – or Stan, as you call him – has gone back to the royal palace. He’s brought the King’s children with him, and he’s teaching them magic personally.”

“I don’t understand.”

“The swift death of two [Archmages] and their best prospect for the future is a political earthquake. Feeble foundations hold this country up. Elves are duplicitous and weak. At least Hydras are just duplicitous. But the problem is that the current royal family is at risk of losing power while other families try to capitalize on its weakness. King Tiberius needs to help his descendants consolidate their power. And they need to show a united front; that’s why their Queen is back,” Lord Juler says.

“And Princess Laura?” I ask, flabbergasted.

“She has a new marriage arrangement, and she’s willing to go through with it this time. If she doesn’t, the Kingdom of Lucerna might undergo a civil war.”

“And she didn’t fight this? Are you telling me that the Laura I know is just going along with this circus? And what about a civil war? Isn’t Stan strong enough to quash whatever opposition they have? And why am I a criminal?!”

“When Princess Valarith teleported us away, Princess Laura asked to be brought back to her mother immediately. She went to visit her and, while traveling, she begged King Tiberius to pardon her. He did, for some reason. And he should be strong enough. But politics is not just about massacring everyone when you are at the helm. The noble families of Lucerna could have the kingdom burn in a fortnight. Even if King Tiberius could protect the royal family, he couldn’t protect all their subjects. The nobles hold a lot of power at the moment, especially since Laura’s endorsement of you created many enemies for the royal family at the Nine Towers Academy. And that’s why you are a criminal now. They trialed you as a treacherous spy at court and decreed that you are to be executed. This quelled some of the voices at the academy and among the nobles suggesting they were plotting with you. They are simply taking their distance to keep their power intact.”

“And so, all I did, all Laura did, was for nothing?”

“They act based on convenience, Joey Luciani. I wouldn’t be surprised if I were you,” Lord Juler gives me a small, regretful nod.

“And why shouldn’t I be surprised?!” I say with a note of anger in my voice.

Lord Juler looks at me solemnly, with a gaze that could pierce not just stone but even pure diamond. Few times have I seen him with such gravitas about him.

“Because they are not Vanedenis.”