The Dragon Thief [I]

A Howling Tempest [22]

A Howling Tempest

Lanna

When Lanna and Lucien entered the manor, they were met with Alderyth and Nox in deep conversation. At their approach, the two mages turned, Nox's eyes noting their joined arrival. He glowered.

"It's happening again," Lanna started, diving straight into her worries, ignoring Nox's hateful look. "The Summoner's black magic is being casted on the estate."

Alderyth nodded.

"I'm afraid it's already complete," he said. "I suspect that if we wandered into that darkness, we'd be willingly entering the demon's soul chamber."

"Just as we did last night," Lanna muttered, the memory of being lost in that endless forest haunting her.

"How are the wards?" Lucien asked.

"Intact but there's no telling how long it can last against the Summoner's magical attacks. The darkness is rattling at the boundaries, trying to find any weakness in my spell."

Lanna frowned. "But it's a strong spell, right?" Master Alderyth was famed to be a powerful mage, albeit she'd only seen glimpses of his power.

The aged mage replied.

"Black magic is a difficult magic to contest, but for now, I'm certain that we are safe within these wards. That darkness will have a hard time getting beyond."

"We should reinforce the wards just in case," Lucien suggested. He motioned to his sack of newly acquired demon residue. "Lanna and I managed to gather the main component I need to make a poison that could stop the bone demon. I'll need time to make the compound, but if the wards can hold against the Summoner's magic, then we may be able to plan a strategy to eliminate the demon using this."

"And what about the Summoner, themself?" Nox countered, an unsubtle trace of bitterness in his question. Lanna tried to ignore his bad mood which had manifested since morning but the attitude was getting on her nerves. Was he hateful because of what had transpired last
night between their rooms in the hallway? When he'd kissed her out of the blue, unexplained?

She marched into her room after he had left her stranded in the hall and refused to dwell on the kiss. Only, that was near impossible, when the blood she drew was still on her lips after she'd bitten his tongue for invading her mouth. She fumed in her covers, furious that he had taken advantage of her in that way. He'd misunderstood her saving him when he let himself drown in the demonic sea of smoke. Lanna panicked when she came across him thrashing of suffocation and had acted on impulse. There was no deeper meaning to it beyond that, and yet...

After her anger came regret.

She hadn't disliked it as much as she told herself she did. It would be a lie to say she wasn't attracted to Nox in some capacity. It wasn't often she got the chance to be intimate with a handsome young male thanks to her previously demanding life as a thief, but the timing wasn't right. Not when they'd had a brush with death just merely hours before.

She wanted to talk to him about it. Wanted to apologise and to clarify things better. She wanted to know why he'd kissed her. Why he'd mention them sharing a bed together. But he was so mad at her that he lashed out and left before the chat even began.

Was he angry because she'd turned him down? Hurt his manly ego? Was Nox such a shallow person?

She glanced to him but he refused to meet her eyes. Lucien answered Nox's question.

"We have to capture the Summoner. Until we learn his true motives for attacking this estate and killing those servants, we can't have him silenced."