Mary crouched beside the closed door, hiding in the spot where the door would swing open. At the same time, she hesitated to begin casting a light spell, as her chanting might be heard.

That moment of indecision made her refrain from casting it. As the approaching footsteps grew louder, she began to make out the conversation.

“…I have the data here to back up my report,” Cedric was saying.

“That really won’t be necessary,” replied Theodore’s voice.

Mary felt a bit more at ease. If a fight were to break out, Theodore would handle it much better than she ever could.

“Of course, it’s necessary. I’d prefer you to be convinced of my management, so you can speak highly of me to your father. Who knows? Maybe he’ll realize I’m being wasted in such a small town”

“I’m convinced. I have no reason to doubt your word. Besides, we’ve taken a stroll through the main square and the gardens; I can only say it’s a very pleasant and well-designed area.”

Mary thought to herself that the area where the wealthiest residents lived was indeed well-kept—nothing like the lower districts.

The footsteps stopped in front of the door, followed by the sound of fabric rustling. A moment later, the key slid into the lock and began to turn.

She was doomed. There was no way she could avoid being discovered.

Then, she heard light footsteps running down the hallway, and her maid’s voice addressing Theodore:

“Sir, forgive the interruption, but the lady isn’t feeling well. She must have eaten something that upset her, and she’s asking for the herbal tea I usually prepare for her in these situations. However, I can’t find the bag—it’s not with her belongings. Perhaps it’s in your room, among your things.”

“And you disturb us for this?” Cedric sounded irritated at being interrupted. “Ask my housekeeper to unlock the door for you,” he grumbled, finishing the turn of the key.

Immediately, he opened the door. Mary pressed herself against the wall. The wood stopped mere centimeters from her face and body.

“Theodore?” asked Berta, hesitant.

“Do as he says, no problem.”

The two men entered the room, heading straight for the desk. Mary heard the baronet open a drawer. She decided this was her chance and began to peek around the edge of the door to slip out. Theodore, however, glanced in her direction and gestured for her to stay hidden.

She obeyed.

Just before the baronet finished searching the drawer, grabbed some documents, turned, and handed them to Theodore.

Mary couldn’t help but freeze for a moment, wondering if she’d almost been caught.

But that thought quickly became irrelevant as Cedric moved toward her to close the door. The moment he extended his hand to grab the handle, and Mary came into his line of sight, she instinctively shut her eyes in fear. She didn’t want to see herself completely exposed as the nobleman shut the door.

It’s over. He’s seen me, she thought.

But then, she heard his footsteps returning to Theodore and his voice instructing him to review the figures in the report.

Mary didn’t even dare to breathe. She opened her eyelids and saw herself standing right there, in plain view. Yet, the baronet behaved as though he hadn’t noticed her.

Had Theodore enchanted him? Was that why he’d signaled for her to stay still?

It didn’t make sense—she didn’t know of any water magic spell that could achieve such an effect.

She glanced at Theodore, who now avoided turning his head toward where she was. After a few minutes, during which the heir assured the baronet he would relay everything to his father, the two left, and the door closed once again.

Mary took more than a minute to muster the courage to move. Slowly, she stepped away from the wall, advancing a few steps. Then she turned and looked. The wall was still there. But… shouldn’t it have been a little farther away?

She reached out her hand. It vanished as if she were a ghost sinking her fingers into the white plaster.

She stifled a gasp and pulled her hand back. It reappeared before her.

“An illusion…” she whispered to herself.

And an impressively crafted one at that.

Water magic. She should have guessed Theodore was capable of something like this. Until now, she had only seen his combat spells. Her friend was undoubtedly impressive; leveling up a spell was a challenging task.

She pressed her ear to the door again and, hearing nothing, opened it and hurried back to her room. On the way, she passed a maid who looked at her at her quizzically, holding a teapot in her hand.

“Berta asked me to bring this for you. Are you feeling better?” the maid asked.

“No, actually, I was just looking for Berta to see if she found the herbs. Please bring it into my room. Thank you very much.”

“Miss, excuse me. Thank you, Theren, I’ll take care of it myself,” said Berta as she approached and took the tray from the maid’s hands.

----------------------------------------

Safe.

That was Mary’s first thought once she was back in her room alone with Berta.

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Now, all they had to do was maintain the charade until the following morning when they would leave.

“Miss, when I saw them heading to the study earlier than expected, I thought you were still inside. I tried to help by improvising the story about you feeling unwell.”

“I know. Thank you.”

“But later, I didn’t see you in your room as we had agreed. Where were you?”

Mary didn’t mind the question.

“In the study. Saved thanks to Theodore’s illusion magic.”

Just then, they heard a knock at the door. It was Theodore.

“Mary, I’m glad you made it back safely.”

“Thanks to you.”

“You know you can count on me. If you’d been discovered, I’d have gotten you out of there. One way or another.”

“What level is that illusion spell?” she asked curiously.

Theodore gave her a faint smile.

“That’s not something you ask a mage. Or are we already at that level of trust?” he teased.

Mary diverted her gaze, slightly flustered. Theodore didn’t usually joke, and she suddenly remembered how he had been flirting with her.

Theodore started laughing. It helped ease the tension that had built up over the study incident.

“Well, did you find anything?” he asked.

“I’m sorry, no,” the maid replied.

“Oh, yes. I found exactly what we were looking for,” Mary said, smiling for the first time since her visit to the tavern.

----------------------------------------

They were back at the academy.

Mary had struggled to be polite to the baronet during dinner, and the next morning, they left shortly after breakfast.

Cedric, for his part, didn’t seem to suspect anything and appeared pleased, thinking Theodore would recommend him to his father for the management of a larger city

The first thing they did upon arrival was to look for Vincent. They found him sitting on a bench in the gardens with Alistair and Darius. Though it was still morning, there were no classes, as they were suspended during the fifteen days allotted for missions.

“Good thing you’re back, Theodore,” Vincent said to his friend after greeting them. “At this rate, we won’t get to clear the dungeon for our mission. Remember, we need to run it several times to gather all those ingredients”

“Well, about that, I think we’ll have enough time.”

“You think?” Vincent raised an eyebrow, surprised.

“Don’t complicate things more,” Alistair chimed in—the prince’s other childhood friend and, like Darius, a warrior with fire affinity. “We’ve only cleared it once so far, and yesterday, we didn’t go back because we were waiting for you…”

“Oh, I’m sorry for causing you all this trouble,” Mary murmured.

“Don’t mind him, Mary,” Darius said, giving his friend a not-so-gentle punch on the shoulder. “We’re glad Theodore was able to help you. He’s just being impatient.”

Alistair opened his mouth to protest, but Mary couldn’t help letting out a small laugh. After all, Darius wasn’t exactly the most patient person himself. Vincent was quicker than Alistair and asked:

“So, Mary, do you need anything else?”

“Yes. We’ve uncovered evidence of a child trafficking ring, and we know the next sale is set to take place in two nights at a farm on the outskirts of Tharion.”

The prince’s eyes widened in surprise, and he turned to Theodore.

“Have you informed your father?”

“Not yet. I suspect most of Tharion’s soldiers are bribed by the baronet, and deploying troops from the capital of the marquisate could tip them off.”

“Hmm… You’re right. But we can’t handle this on our own. Who knows how many armed men and mages they might have? Even though our levels are some of the highest in our class, we’re still just first-year students.”

“What about Ronan’s bear?” Darius suggested. “I bet it could take on even Catrina.”

He was referring to their combat instructor, a woman famous for her skill with weapons and her bad temper.

“Maybe, but I’d prefer to have more backup,” the prince replied. “Theodore, your father might be upset if we don’t inform him. Could you go to the city and speak with the commanding officer of the local army? Have him send a messenger to your father. And while you’re at it, coordinate with him so we have troops accompany us when we move to stop the sale.”

He was referring to Solstar, the city near the academy.

“Of course,” Theodore answered. “Should we set up an ambush?” The prince nodded. “Then we’ll need to arrive early to scout the area, the farm, and its surroundings without being seen. I’ll speak with the officer and arrange everything. Should we inform one of the professors as well?”

“I don’t think their help will be necessary,” Vincent said, “but Mary, since your mission uncovered something this big, it might be a good idea to inform Catrina so the academy knows what we’re planning.”

“Catrina?” She asked. “I don’t interact with her much.”

“She’s one of the professors the headmaster trusts the most. In fact, my brother has encouraged me to try to make her my mentor in the second year.”

“All right. Can I tell Ronan and Bianca as well?”

“Of course. They’ve already helped you, so they’re involved,” the prince said with a kind smile.

Mary felt much more at ease, knowing the rescue mission was in good hands. With the army’s support, the chances of success were much higher than if she tried to ambush them on her own. As always, the prince had been incredibly helpful.

From the very first day she arrived at the academy, alone and feeling lost, he had reached out to her with kindness and support.

They parted ways. Theodore headed to the city, while his friends prepared for their dungeon run, planning to clear it once more before the ambush.

Mary headed to her room, where she found Bianca waiting for her at the door.

“Hey, how did it go? Berta just came back and gave me a brief rundown.” Bianca greeted her

“Hi, Bianca. I can’t thank you enough letting me borrow such a gem. What kind of training do you give your maids at the L'Crom household?”

“Training?”

“She knows how to find secret compartments in drawers, prevent doors from locking, and infiltrate among the staff.”

Bianca, looking puzzled, shrugged.

“None that I know of. I’ll have to talk to her—Berta seems more intriguing than she lets on. And to think she’s been with me for years...”

“Do you want to come in?” Mary asked, gesturing to her room.

“No, you rest a bit. We’ll meet at lunchtime so you can tell Ronan too, and you won’t have to repeat everything twice. Theodore, from what Darius said, is being roped into a mission, so it’ll just be the three of us.”

“Perfect. I’ll fill you both in later.”

“Great. Ronan’s been a bit restless, training like a madman in the gym with Bob and Joe. I guess those two skeletons are rubbing their restlessness off on him.”

Mary nodded and opened her door. She stepped inside as her friend walked down the hallway.

There were still a couple of hours until lunch. At least she could change clothes and rest a bit after over three hours in the carriage. No matter how cushioned and upholstered they were, befitting high nobility, Theodore’s carriage seats felt uncomfortable to her—especially since the bumps in the road seemed to target her backside.

The truth was, Mary didn’t know if it was just her outlook on life, but she felt immensely grateful to have found such wonderful friends.

The evil and cruelty she had witnessed at the tavern—the delight in causing harm—still lingered in the corner of her mind, threatening to overwhelm her. She sensed that if she dwelled on it too much, something terrible would happen to her.

She wasn’t naive; she’d heard many stories of light mages losing their magic because the world was simply too harsh for them.

Mary had grown up sheltered in her parents’ home, in a well-managed village where people worked hard but also had many reasons to be happy.

When she entered the academy, the headmaster had called her in. He told her that if she ever felt her light affinity wavering, they could send her to study in a more secluded place—a retreat where nobles sent their children with that affinity so the malice of others couldn’t harm them.

But Mary wanted to be near people. Otherwise, how could she help them?

That’s why, for her, the path was to focus on how wonderful life was: her parents and siblings were healthy and loved her; her teachers were supportive; she had been given an opportunity that rarely came to commoners; and even the prince and his circle of friends supported her unconditionally.

A gentle warmth began to grow in her chest, becoming more intense with each passing moment. She lay down on the bed and relaxed. Everything was going to be fine. They would rescue that girl and all the others. Justice would be served, and Theodore’s father would ensure that something like this would never happen again.