The lone knight guided me into a smaller, adjoining room where there was only a small table in the middle of it. On top of it was a large leatherbound book, and a quill made from black, puffy feathers.

“To use the Mirror, you must swear the blood oath to never tell a word about its existence to another soul. Your name, printed by blood and ink on the pages of our Book, grants you the privilege to access the Mirror of Coeccedus.”

“Why?” I asked, feeling extraordinarily perplexed. I didn’t know who this knight was. I couldn’t see his face, recognize his voice, nor even see the white of his eyes. His entire appearance was hidden behind this mask and armor. But I felt his strength and his soul burn brightly amidst the others, like a beacon in the dark storm.

“We will answer no questions,” the knight replied without any emotion. Everyone he meets probably asks the same questions. He must be tired of it.

“Very well,” I said. If this was the way Pitties and I could talk, then it was better to get this over with quickly.

The knight took a silver object from the pocket of his cloak—a circular trinket adorned with intricate engravings of spirals within spirals. He opened it and there was only a tiny pin protruding from its center.

“Break the skin of your thumb against the pin, and mark your bloody print in the book. Then, fill in your name beside it.”

I pressed my thumb into the pin. I felt a throb of pain momentarily, and before my blood could dry, I pressed a thumbprint onto the page of the book. There, in crude handwriting, I inscribed my name, and I tried to look at the ones above mine, but they were hidden by the leather wrapping of the cover.

“Only we know the names,” said the knight, sensing what I was thinking about. “Only the Our Majesty, the Royal Advisor, and us.”

I pinched my thumb to stop the bleeding and looked at the knight.

“You may go ahead,” he said.

He led me forward into the next room.

There it was very dark, except for a few lit candles on the floor that were strategically put before a small, oval mirror—the Mirror of Coeccedus. Curtains of royal blue were put before the tall windows so that no light could come through, and only the candles and the Mirror were seen.

Then, as I stood alone in the room, the silver frame of the Mirror began to faintly radiate.

I stepped closer to it and felt compelled to look at the craftsmanship.

The glass, though flawlessly clean, was wavy and rippling from age. And the frame itself was a work of art, perfectly wrought with impossibly intricate runes and symbols etched onto it. From a distance, these engravings almost appeared to be copies of the Mirror itself.

I was quickly taken by the enchanted artifact, and I stepped even closer so my breath danced on the glass’ surface. I studied the cryptic symbols, but they were foreign and I couldn’t make any sense of them. Yet just as I was utterly engrossed in the work, a shocking realization dawned on me—there was no reflection of me in the black glass.

At that very moment, Rainier Pitties emerged from the darkness, wearing long robes of black and gold, with a stiff white collar framing his jawline. He was now standing in front of me, inside the frame of the Mirror of Coeccedus.

“Ah, Jonas!” said the reflection of Rainier Pitties. But his voice came from inside my head, almost like Goxhandar talks with me. He stood in illuminated only by a dim orange from his right side, and deep shadows were cast on his face. I saw his chin and cheeks were clean-shaven, but the bags under his dark eyes told me he had very little sleep.

“Thank the Gods that I caught you. I began to fear you might leave Caffria before we could talk,” he said.

“The Knights arrived just in time,” I said, talking normally, but I could hardly hear myself. My voice was muffled and distant. “I would have left Caffria tonight, or in the early morning tomorrow.”

“Then it is good that the Knights hurried. They were in Paurli, and I told them to hurry their travels. Anyway, we can’t talk for long through the Mirror. It’s been almost two weeks. How are things?”

“I…” I stuttered. A splitting headache was forming behind my eyes.

“Ah, it’s an unfortunate side-effect of the Mirror. It often afflicts those who are unaccustomed to its peculiar magic. Very powerful magic, and very old, and one of the most prized treasures of the Crown. Priceless. Because of this artifact, the King’s reach and influence is vast.”

“I can see its importance,” I said. “With this, the king, or you, can effectively be present in many places at once.”

“Correct,” said Pitties. “However, even with its unparalleled power, it is still vulnerable to being stolen, hence the Knights of Coeccedus that protect it. They’re meticulously chosen from the finest candidates of the King’s Guard.”

“I sensed their magical powers. And what about the blood oath?” I asked.

“Unfortunately, it’s a necessary precaution,” Pitties confessed. “I trust you won’t tell anyone about the Mirror, but the Knights can’t break protocol, so you had to swear as well. They’re unbending on the rules—a byproduct of their training. But the blood oath is just a little trick that my predecessors came up with. It’s a deterrent against those who don’t understand magic and are dishonest, or plain superstitious. They will very rarely speak of the Mirror’s existence. A stroke of genius, if you ask me.”

“I want to tell Florencia about it, though—”

“Yes, yes, of course,” said Pitties impatiently. “Just nobody else, not even the rest of your team. Strictly speaking, the Mirror is not a secret of the Crown, but the fewer who know about it, the better. But never mind that, Jonas, we must hurry. The enchantments of the Mirror strain our minds greatly, and I have many meetings after you. Let’s speak quickly. How goes the investigation? Did you go to Veneiea? What did you find out?”

I explained to him about the letter we found in Veneiea, and about our investigation into Caffria, and Pecca. Also, I gave him an overview of what happened in his apartment and his victims. Pitties asked what I told the captain of the guard, and I explained that I all but handwaved the explanation away, telling him it was because of foul magic.

“Good.” Pitties was impressed. “Very good. We’re not at the stage where lowly captains can know about the Enemy. Your explanation dovetails very well with what I have been doing with Verralger. But I’ll tell you about that later. Anything else?”

I also recounted to him the theories Florencia and I came up with about there being some kind of hierarchical structure that exists among the demonic species. However, I couldn’t stop myself from mentioning how baron Vico Fiandconis behaved towards me, and the spiteful remarks he made about Pitties.

As I talked, and Pitties listened, I saw a flicker of excitement grow across his face. But unfortunately, the headache worsened. My vision went blurry, and I had to steady my balance against the wall.

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“No surprise there,” said Pitties about the Lord Mayor. “After Veneiea Massacre, the King was furious. He told me to bring him in line most severely and strictly way as I deemed necessary. I was tactful at first, but when Vico tried to downplay the significance of the massacre and roll the blame to his captains, I lost control. I had him on a very short leash, after publicly shaming his shortcomings. Needless to say, he took it poorly, but that was expected. I find most of these nobles to be too proud for their own good…”

Pitties shook his head but continued.

“Aside from that, I think you told me good news. What this guardsman, Pecca, did was terrible, of course, and horrible for the victims. But your team defeated him without any unnecessary casualties, made Caffria safer in the process, and extorted information from him. If I understand correctly, nobody has ever been able to interrogate… a demon before. Never. We all can breathe easier now. Curse it! Even Vico should be thanking you. You made his duties considerably easier. And now, we not only have a lead, but a better understanding of our Enemy. I’m very pleasantly surprised. I feared worse.”

Pitties fell into thought for a moment.

“I wonder… So Grasd Vranik—probably a name of Stotor heritage—departed from Szell, where he probably orchestrated the Odel massacre, and came to Lienor. Here, he infiltrated and corrupted people in Scorro, Veneiea, and Caffria. Then, some time ago, escaped to Lottie. I think his intentions were twofold: either undermine Lienor, possibly as a prelude to a Stotor attack—like we see happening in Lottie—or, worse yet, to corrupt our lands into an image of Stotor.”

I was taken aback by how quickly Pitties came up with that theory. Florencia and I reached that conclusion after hours of speculation. We were mostly preoccupied with thinking about how Vranik was involved with this Great Lord, Rufasmos.

“Only that, thanks to an unexpected actor, both of Vranik’s plans failed,” said Pitties.

“Thousands are dead—” I wanted to object, but the Royal Advisor interrupted.

“Of course, it’s terrible! But viewed in the larger context, its significance diminishes. Every life lost is a tragedy, but Lienor is strong. We are training more soldiers every passing day, and I have sent instructions to my spies all across the realm on what to look out for—the signs of spiritual corruption. And thanks to your work, Jonas, I can give them now even better information. This brings me to another point that you made. Jonas—the demonic cannot hide from you. Wherever you go, this scum scurries into hiding like roaches. I wanted you to be a ‘knife in the dark’, but your strengths are different. We have to rethink our approach, but that’s for a different time.”

Pitties wiped his forehead. “I’m sorry, the Mirror is wearing me down as well.”

I could see that. His eyes were strained and his voice was forced. I felt the same.

“While you were busy doing the real work, with real, tangible results,” said Pitties. “I’ve been trying to find some old books or tomes about those demons. I thought I could find the works of Juham Vil in the library of Aarnost like I said before, but I couldn’t find a trace. It’s strange. But I’ll keep looking. And Verralger and I’ve been busy drafting new laws that restrict magic use and restrain the Cappesand masters. They’ve been surprisingly cooperative, thanks to countess de-Braccarte. And of course, Esmail tried to hinder my progress at every turn. But with Our Majesty backing me fully, Esmail could do very little to counter me. Petridies, and his attack dog Verrier, was left seething over how I stripped most of their privileges. That was amusing to see. I wish I had more progress from my end, but that’s unfortunately as much as I have done. What will you do now?”

“We will travel to Lottie as quickly as possible,” I said. “We will leave either today or tomorrow morning, depending on whether the others have prepared all provisions, and are ready to go.”

Pitties nodded.

“Very good. My intuition tells me that Lottie is where all paths converge. I’ll send word to the Lord Mayor about your impending arrival in a week’s time, and urge him to help you in any way he can. But don’t hope to find Vranik in Lottie. I have many spies there, my very best men, and none have reported rumors of such extraordinary nature. I think that he has retreated into the realm of Stotor. I dare not hazard a guess as to what he might move might be. The reports coming from outside our borders are… harrowing.”

This was also the conclusion that Florencia and I had reached. There was no way this Champion of Rufasmos was in a city this heavily militarized and guarded as Lottie.

“But Jonas, the Lord Mayor is under a lot of pressure. Don’t expect much help from him. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’ll ask for your help instead. Perhaps, if you can, consider extending a helping hand to him instead.”

I wasn’t too thrilled about doing the bidding of another Lord Mayor. Pitties saw my apprehension.

“Only if you believe it will advance our cause,” said Pitties, and I nodded in relief. I was in no mood to start handing out help or favors to nobles. “Very well, there is much work that demands my attention, and you have a long journey ahead. Lottie is far, and you will find the people there different than in Caffria. Once you reach there, I can vouch for Lord Mayor Villip Fascamonta. He is the brother-in-law to the King’s younger brother. I know that these relations are confusing, but try to keep that in mind. The baron is a good man, I know him personally. And if he is rude or dismissive, try to forgive him.”

Pitties breathed in relief, but I could also see how new weights bore down on his mind.

“Jonas, I don’t know when we can talk again. Be careful and vigilant there, you will be on your own, and three times as far from the capital. Tread carefully and don’t trust anyone blindly, save for the baron, and his retainers and team. If you need to talk to some military commanders there, all you need is to mention you have talked with the Crown Prince, and this should open many possibilities. The Heir Apparent is rather popular with the troops.”

“Will you send the Mirror there soon?” I asked.

“No, not in the foreseeable future,” said Pitties. “But the King’s own brother—the Grand Marshal of the armies—is in making plans to travel there personally. He wants to bring an army with him, to strengthen our borders. We all have a bad feeling about Stotor. Oh! Before I forget. It’s about the Russo twins—their health has improved. Now they want to meet you and Miss Regalla to thank you. What should I tell them?”

I knew that Florencia liked the Russos. “If that’s what they want, that’s fine.”

“Very well. Then, I think, we are finished here. Go to Lottie, investigate, and look deep and look carefully. The situation is changing there, so before you leave, in pursuit of whatever lead you might find, let us coordinate our plans. I’m uncertain whether I will personally journey to Lottie, or if it will be our esteemed Majesty himself, or perhaps his brother in the event that neither of us can attend. Regardless, it is important that you remain at least in the province, so that we update each other. Is that alright?”

“It’s fine,” I said. And even though I first felt annoyed to be ordered like that, I understood Pitties’ point of view. We had to work together and at least coordinate our moves.

“Then this is it,” said Pitties. “Go now with haste to Lottie and don’t wander on the road. Will you be taking the straight road, or through Saffroza?”

“The straight one.”

“Very good… Very good. Then good luck, and I’m sure that whatever you find in Lottie, will benefit us greatly.”

And that marked the end of my time with the Mirror of Coeccedus. The glass surface turned a glossy black, but with it, came a surge of agonious stab of pain behind my eyes. It was many times greater than before, and I fell to my knees. But just as quickly as the pain came, it vanished into thin air, and I was left confused and exhausted.

“It is a common occurrence,” said the leading Knight from before. “A residual ache may linger but will pose no harm. But you must now leave, as the Royal Advisor has many appointments to attend with the Mirror.”

He led me back to Florencia. She was waiting, arms crossed, in the hallway before the very first room, and she seemed to be annoyed. And without a single word, the leader of the Knights closed the door behind me, leaving me alone with Flo.

“Can you believe it?” she asked. “They didn’t even let me wait there. But what was that? Who did you talk to?”

“I’ll explain on the way back.”

We left the town hall in a hurry and made our way through the streets of Caffria on top of our horses. As we rode towards the tavern, I told her all of what happened with Pitties and the Mirror, telling her to keep its secret.

“Oh!” said Florencia, as we passed a slow wagon carrying bags of flour. “This is some old and powerful magic. Can you believe nobody in Cappesand bothers to make anything like that anymore? They say it takes too long, or it’s useless and they’d rather just—”

She stopped herself before going on another rant about those useless Cappesand mages.

“But I think it went well,” she said. “It’s amazing how quickly he saw through Vranik’s plans. It took us hours to work that out.”

I laughed and agreed with her.

“And, I’m surprised that he let you go off alone like that. I was sure he would give you some sort of order or guidance.”

“I think it’s because of where we are going,” I told her.

“Yeah,” said Florencia. “But I can’t shake this nagging feeling I have about Lottie. But that’s where we have to go, so let’s not waste precious time. Besides, Lottie is a gorgeous city.”

“The City of Flowers,” I said, wondering what could’ve earned that name. Were the streets filled with flowers that bloomed during the winter? Or perhaps it was only because of its colorful heraldry. I would soon find out.

“I’ve had the pleasure of being there once,” said Florencia. “But it was almost twenty years ago, and I don’t remember much. But I remember that it was gorgeous. Lots of colors and greenery. I was only there for a few days, even before Stotor fell.”

“Then let’s go and find out,” I said and hurried my horse ahead.