They returned to the inn where Mister Gronde was more than happy to provide a private room for them to speak in. Dylan nipped up to their rooms, returning with a bag of healing supplies, then helping Celaine to tend her wound. In the meantime, Hump and Bud recounted what had happened.

“This lead attacker, was there anything distinctive about him?” Eliana asked.

She was a beautiful woman, with long brown hair, and eyes that seemed to see everything, holding eye contact a little longer than was comfortable. Her makeup gave Hump the impression of a wealthy merchant or minor noble. Subtle, rather than the over the top nonsense that he’d seen on the noble ladies attending tournaments or the like. He placed her somewhere in her late thirties, about the same age as Vivienne and his master, though for a wizard of her strength, it was always hard to tell. While not to the same extent as Chosen, essence slowed down aging significantly, especially after reaching Rank 4 and manifesting one’s soul.

“Nothing particularly useful,” Hump said. “He was tall and thin, like a lot of wizards. Somewhere in his forties.”

“Blue eyes,” Celaine said. “That must cut it down a little.”

She hissed, as Dylan dabbed her neck with a cloth.

“Sorry,” he said.

Eliana sighed. “A tall wizard with blue eyes isn’t much to go on.”

“The woman we captured might be able to tell you more,” Bud said. “Though I think she was telling the truth when she said she didn’t know more.”

“It’s not every day Kelisia herself appears to commemorate your mistake,” Hump said. “I don’t think she held back in the slightest. One thing that did stand out to me is that it seems this warlock group is taking advantage of adventurers without a party, or with parties that died. If that’s the case, they likely have members working at the guild to inform them of potential candidates.”

“Very perceptive.” Eliana smiled at him. “You think like an inquisitor.” She turned to Vivienne. “Where did you find this one again, Vivi?”

“They showed up on my doorstep like confused puppies,” she said.

Hump snorted, catching onto Vivienne’s intention. Not even Eliana should know that he was Sethril’s apprentice, at least not yet. “Fishers Lake had been plagued with a number of spirit attacks, and the mayor sent in a request. My party and I had just arrived in Sheercliff. They assigned us the case.”

“A dangerous job,” Eliana said. “Few iron ranked adventurers have a chance to face down threats from other realms, and even fewer come out unscathed.”

Far from unscathed, Hump thought. Instead, he said, “We got lucky. Very lucky.”

“Still, colour me impressed.” She smiled. “It seems Vivi was smart to keep the three of you around. What brought you to Sheercliff?”

“Bud, mostly,” Hump said.

“My mother was close friends with Countess Daston,” Bud explained. “And after hearing of the developing threat in the region, it seemed a good place to go.”

“Who was your mother?”

“Fiona Blackthorne. Forgive me, I was so distracted I forgot to properly introduce myself. I am Robert Blackthorne.”

“I have heard of the Blackthornes!” Eliana said. “In fact, in Elenvine I quite often work closely with a Tania Noelle. I believe her maiden name is Blackthorne.”

Bud smiled. “Quite right. She is a cousin of mine.”

“It’s amazing how small the world can sometimes seem,” Eliana said. She turned back to Hump. “It is impressive that a young wizard likely yourself has found himself such good company. I’d be very interested in the story behind that.”

Hump’s smile almost slipped at the probing question. Of course, the woman was no fool. She was an inquisitor, and Hump happened to be a wizard of typical apprentice age in the company of Vivienne. She was already suspicious.

“That’s a little embarrassing actually.” Bud scratched the back of his head. “I left home in a hurry, and not exactly with my father’s approval. It was my first time travelling alone, and I came across Hump’s fire one night. A dungeon had recently opened in Bledsbury, and we were both on our way there. Which is where we met Celaine. We’ve been travelling together ever since.”

Hump swallowed. Now that was too much information. But the woman couldn’t possibly know where he’d buried his master. Though Hump couldn’t help but feel nervous. The Wizards’ Society had to know the old man was dead somehow.

Whatever the case, Eliana didn’t seem to push any further. They briefed over their time in Bledsbury, before Vivienne turned the topic back to the matter at hand.

“Will you speak with the woman they captured?” Vivienne asked.

Eliana sighed. “I’ll certainly try. Abraxus won’t want to let an opportunity like this slip, but the Pantheon are not happy with our intrusion. I’m telling you Vivi, there’s something funny going on amongst the higher ups in this city. I’ve navigated the political circles of Elenvine for the best part of twenty-five years, and it’s never felt so much like being boxed in between two walls. At least Countess Daston seems willing to work with us, I only hope that doesn’t change when her husband returns.”

“She’s a good woman,” Vivienne said. “If you’d like, I can ask her to help you with permission.”

“I may take you up on that. For now, we’ll work through our own channels. I’m concerned that so blatantly allying with her faction may burn our other bridges. Now, I must get going. The sooner we push the matter, the better.” She stood up. “It was lovely to meet you all. I do hope we speak again.”

They saw her off before returning to their room.

“You’re going to need to be careful around her, Hump,” Celaine said. “She seems a little too interested.”

Hump nodded. “I was getting a little nervous toward the end there.”

“Can we not trust her, Master?” Dylan asked. “She seemed close.”

Vivienne sighed. “It has been a long time since we last met, and I do not wish to force her into a position to choose between her job and my word. I do not know, so I suggest we err on the side of caution.”

“She wouldn’t be very happy with us anyway,” Hump said. “There was more we didn’t tell you. These warlocks, they didn’t find us by accident. They were after the black stone. It seems they had some way of detecting it, as the woman mentioned us coming through the city gates. I thought it might be some sort of communication or locating artifact.”

Vivienne frowned. “That was our first guess too, however our investigation so far has indicated not. In fact, we were preparing to rule that out as an option as we simply cannot detect anything from it. Did she describe their method at all?”

Hump shook his head. “She was just a grunt. From the sounds of it, even the leader of the group was little more than a thug. She didn’t seem to have any idea what it was other than a stone, let alone how to track it.”

“It’s a clue. I suppose that is more than we had before. Perhaps something will come of it.”

“There was something else too,” Hump said. He took the vial of powder from his pocket. “I didn’t want to mention it in front of Eliana, but one of the warlocks used this. It… changed him. I believe the bandit warlock we encountered used it too.”

Vivienne took the vial, inspecting the powder inside.

“Vivi, I’ve been been meaning to ask you,” Hump continued. “What was the powder you used to fight the gorger? Is it the same as this?”

She stared at it a moment longer, then placed the vial on the table between them. The finely powdered substance shimmered faintly inside. “It is created using powdered essence stones of the Remnant Realm, as I believe you already suspected. Breathed in as dust, some of the potent properties of the essence are removed, making it more usable. I suspect this version his is not so effective though if it is changing them as you say.”

“That’s what you were using the essence stones for in Fishers Lake?” Hump asked.

“It’s one thing. My primary goal was to find the ancient temple and to recover what I could of their language and magic, but the essence stones were a temptation I could not ignore. This… powder, was a by-product of my research into them. I’ve been trying to harness the essence of the Remnant Realm to help strengthen the soul.”

“You think this is the way to breach the seventh rank?” Hump asked.

“I did once. Now I’m not so sure. You’ve wielded this essence before, you know the effect it has on the soul. The chaotic nature of its power. If I could harness it, I might be able to use it to build the foundation I need to progress further. Perhaps not the seventh rank, but I’ve been stuck at the fifth for many years now, I need something to push me.”

“Are you not worried about the effect it might have on you?” Celaine asked. “Couldn’t it harm your soul?”

Vivienne smiled. “My soul is not so easily harmed. But yes, hypothetically, it could, which is one of the reasons I’ve abandoned the idea.”

“You never told me it was so dangerous,” Dylan said.

“I am a wizard, Dylan, and this is just another kind of essence. Hump managed to wield an entire essence stone, albeit briefly, I was in little danger.”

The druid didn’t look happy, but he relented.

“Why did you abandon it?” Hump asked. “What if you were right?”

“As the gorger said, it is the power of a decayed world. Perhaps a boost in temporary strength, but there are no shortcuts to true power. It is concerning that these warlocks have such easy access to it though. I’ll see if we can figure out exactly what ingredients they’re using.”

They ate a short meal and prepared to head for their rooms. Only Bud remained behind, the knight preparing a letter for Emilia. It seemed he was serious about meeting with her again.

“Do you need a hand?” Hump asked.

“I think I can manage,” Bud said.

“Are you sure? I’m good at that kind of stuff.”

Behind him, Hump heard Celaine laugh and turned to glare at her. “What?”

“You are awful at this. Need I remind you of your conversation with the priestess.”

Hump huffed a laugh. “Fine! You’re on your own, Bud. Celaine has spoken.”

“I’m just inviting her for a meal,” Bud said. “It’s nothing special.”

“Of course not,” Hump said. “No pressure of course. She’s just your fiancée.”

Bud laughed. “That won’t work on me today. Kelisia is with me on my path, and I will follow it wherever she intends.”

“That’s fair. She probably gives better romantic advice than me anyway.”

***

Alone in his and Bud’s room, Hump removed his dragon egg from its pouch and took a seat on his bed, setting it in his lap. He’d come to enjoy what quiet moments he could find alone. Time to clear his head, and to think about what to do going forward. It was easier in the presence of his dragon. It kept Hump’s mind away from darker thoughts and helped to clear his mind. He wasn’t sleeping well, but at least he could rest a little this way.

He reached out for it with his essence and mind, activating their bond. He had little difficulty now. With each attempt, it became easier to form a connection, and he could more clearly sense the dragon inside. It swelled with warmth and curiosity as Hump fed it his thoughts, imagining Kelisia’s god pillar, the crowds on the Adventurers’ Guild campus, and their time with Bud’s cousin and the priestesses in the Upper City.

Celaine had told him that the dragon required a consistent stream of imagery to properly develop, but for a while, Hump had struggled to bring to mind things he thought would interest it. Now, he’d come to realise it didn’t matter. He let his mind wander, thinking on things that had interested him, the people he had seen, or anything else that might come to mind. The dragon reflected his own thoughts, caught up in his energy.

It was getting stronger. With every session, Hump could feel its curiosity growing. It brimmed with life and essence, resonating with Hump’s soul, its own thoughts becoming clearer.

There was a click, and Hump’s jerked from his trance-like state. His heart was in his ears, pounding. Fear held him in place, his logic abandoning him. He called upon his essence, prepared to fight for his life. For a moment, he was back in the darkest place in his life.

And then Bud stepped into the room, closing the door behind him, and sitting down on the adjacent bed.

The knight looked at him. “Are you alright, Hump? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

“Yes,” Hump croaked. He cleared his throat. “I’m alright. You just made me jump is all.”

Hump glanced around the room, half expecting to see the ghost of Lucile staring back at him. He took a slow breath, trying to calm his racing heart, adrenaline still coursing through him anyway. He told himself that the gorger was dead. That there was nothing left to be afraid of. He was past it, and now just had to leave it behind.

As easy as it was to think himself through the logic, his body’s reaction was always the same. Fear, anger, and another sleepless night.