Sitting up from her bed, Lilith rubbed her eyes and stretched her arms and legs. Two days had passed since her talk with Lily and Jack. They left yesterday, and after saying goodbye, there wasn’t much for her to do outside of mulling over the demon they mentioned, and even then, thinking about it anymore wouldn’t do her any good. “Now then,” Lilith sat up from the bed and, after doing some last stretches, changed into a more casual set of clothing and made her way to the baths. Tomorrow was the day the self-appointed leaders set for the convoy to leave, which meant Lilith had to be ready if she wished to travel with the group.

The baths were quite peaceful, allowing Lilith to go in, clean up, and leave with no hassle, and after feeling clean and ready for the rest of the day, she went through her mental list of things she had to do. The list was short, with only one truly important thing, so after getting back to her room, dressing herself in her uniform, she took off to the magic store where Lyonel was far too busy to give much heed of her entry.

Lilith waited in the line, which moved fast since the people there weren’t looking to put in orders, but were there to collect them. Lyonel shuffled back and forth from the counter to the backroom, organizing vials and handing them over to their owners, and when it became Lilith’s turn, it was the same. With a quick thank you, she left Lyonel to his own devices and left the shop.

It must be tiring, Lilith thought to herself as she left. Lyonel didn’t seem to have slept since the last time she was there. “He’s still young, but an apprentice would help him a lot,” Lilith concluded while thinking about it.

Looking around in the lobby, she had to decide what to do until the next day. These lulls between traveling while technically good were sometimes too much. It gave her far more time than she needed to relax, but when you have an extra day to do so, you just sit around and wait. There was never anything much to do at these Inns since they weren’t created for vacations. Regardless, even with these lulls, this group moved faster than others.

For the rest of the day, Lilith went at her own pace, eating when she needed to, and tried to relax as much as she could. She kept to herself, as she didn’t find a need to start any conversations. Although she wasn’t a fan, Alex always reminded her to take advantage of these breaks because there was no telling when the next one would be. In a way, even though reluctantly, it became ingrained in her to take it easy, so she did until the morning when she woke up early, changed, and got ready to leave.

It was loud, with everyone moving about, readying their horses and making sure their cargo was there and secure. Everyone was busy, which was especially the case for the merchants hulling around their wares. They would wake up far earlier than everyone else, then nap after a few hours after leaving while someone else would take over. Missing the leaving time was not an option for any of them, as they would either have to travel alone hoping to catch up, or wait for another group and waste not only time but money staying at an Inn.

“Young lady,” a familiar voice called out, causing Lilith’s attention to focus away from the carts. It was the older lady she had a brief conversation with and the older man next to her who seemed far more awake than the day‌ she met him. Lilith didn’t notice it before, but she wore a gray robe alongside a large hat while carrying a staff that had several magical stones embedded into it.

“It’s wonderful to see you again, Mrs.”

“Mrs. Charlotte,” she smiled, finishing Lilith’s sentence.

“And Sir. Troy.”

“Likewise.” Troy bowed slightly, a sword dangling from his hip.

“You seem to be in splendid health,” Lilith commented. “Both of you.”

“Why thank you,” Charlotte said.

It surprised Lilith. Charlotte stood up straight, and although she had long, gray hair, she looked far younger than she let on, and Troy was the same. Slick white hair and a build unbelievable for an older man his age. The perks of a warrior, Lilith assumed, as her gaze went to his weapon. He didn’t seem to be the type to fight. He even seemed senile when they first met, but now his eyes were clear and his poster was slack but ready.

“Not to be rude, but it seemed strange for you two to be traveling, but now that I see both of you, I can tell I was quite wrong,” Lilith said.

Charlotte let out a small laugh while covering her mouth. “You took the words right out of my mouth. It’s rare to see a cursed one traveling alone.”

Lilith’s smile cracked slightly at her comment. Was that called for? She thought. Is this the power of aging? Not caring what others think and just saying what’s on your mind? “Why thank you, I get by just fine.”

Charlotte held her smile, and Troy kept a straight face, keeping out of the conversation. His arm rested on the hilt of his sword as he looked around.

“If you wouldn’t mind, would you like to join us in our carriage? It’s not fancy, but it will be better than walking.” Charlotte asked.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“I’ll take you up on that offer,” Lilith responded, and immediately after, as if she expected the response, Charlotte walked past and Troy followed, heading towards the carriage. The more she realized it, the stranger these two became. A carriage? To travel in? They didn’t seem like merchants and Charlotte was clearly a mage, maybe even an archmage, considering her age.

“Are you two headed to Mystral?” Lilith asked.

“Yes, for a gathering.” Charlotte answered.

“A gathering?” Lilith asked.

“A gathering of mages. I’m sure you’ve heard of it.”

“Ah, is it that time of year?”

“Indeed, it is. We have much to talk about this year as well.”

“And what would that be?”

Charlotte put a finger to her lips and in a hushed manner said, “unfortunately, I can’t say the details.” With a smile, she went into the carriage, followed by Troy and then Lilith, who sat across from the both of them.

“Are you by chance an archemage?” Lilith asked.

“Yes, I am,” she responded quickly, as if there was no reason to hide the fact. “I’ve been one for quite some time.”

“Is that why you knew I was cursed?” Lilith asked earnestly.

“Your hair, sweety. It’s as dark as the night sky.”

“But that can’t be the only thing.”

“Well,” Charlotte tilted her hat up, letting Lilith to see directly into her eyes. Her eyes glowed white, indicating mana infusing her irises. “You mana is far from normal. Instead of a normal white color, it’s as black as your hair.”

“Even when I’m not using it?” Lilith asked, puzzled by her findings.

“Oh my, yes, and it is far darker than any other I’ve seen before.”

“Can others see what you see?” Lilith asked in a concerned voice. This was the first time in her 23 years of living that anyone had pointed out her mana. She knew people could see when she used it, but never once did she suspect anyone having the ability to notice even when she wasn’t actively using it.

“No, not everyone, only archmages,” Charlotte reassured her. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much. For anyone in the know, they can simply assume from your hair color. Although black hair isn’t unnatural, it’s the black hair and red eye combo that does it. Either way, even though we call it a cruse-”

“No one treats it as one,” Lilith injected.

“Correct. Outside of the Holy Empire, there shouldn’t be many issues. Most people either don’t know or don’t care.”

“You know a lot,” Lilith stated.

“Well, I’ve always had a keen interest in your kind. Plus, It’s a hot topic in the meetings.” Charlotte paused. “On that note…” She looked up at Lilith. “Maybe you should be careful.”

“Why?” Lilith blinked, wondering why the sudden reverse of opinion.

“Since your mana is far darker than other cursed that I’ve seen, other archmages, if they were to come across you, might get too curious, and some of them are far too unhinged.”

“I’ll be careful.” Lilith felt a shiver go down her spine.

“I wouldn’t stress over it. Although there will be a lot of archmages in Mystral, I doubt anyone will leave and wander about outside of myself.”

Lilith looked out the window, watching as the convoy took off. One by one, the wagons left alongside the only carriage within the convoy, sitting in the middle of the line. “Looks like we’re moving.”

“We have a long ride. I hope you’ll keep me company with conversation while we travel.”

“Of course, and I’m sure I’ll have a lot of questions to ask. “

“Ask away,” Charlotte smiled.

…………………………..

The ride to Mystral was as uneventful although more enjoyable than the first half of the journey. Being part of such a large convoy made even the more insane bandits think twice before attacking, so the only issues they ran into were the occasional demons starved for meat. Charlotte and Lilith talked a lot. Things about magic, how she became an archmage and who to look out for. Sometimes Lilith told her about her own travels and places she had visited while delivering mail. From these conversations, Lilith learned quickly that Charlotte was much older than she looked. A known standard even for non-mages was that the amount of mana you possessed helped slow your aging if you actively took advantage, which was something out of reach for Lilith, even with her near endless amounts of it. The conversations were fruitful, and after each stop and Inn, she would join them in their carriage, sometimes talking or just resting until they finally reached the next mega city.

One of the biggest questions Lilith asked was what she knew about the curse. No one ever provided her with the information she wanted to know, aside from the standard information that could be found in any library around the world, but she always assumed there was more to it. If it was as basic as it was, then why would it be called a curse? It never made complete sense to her. Charlotte didn’t go into any details, but from what Lilith understood, she knew a lot more than what she let on and ended the conversation with Charlotte telling her to visit them in Deepmere to know more. Lilith couldn’t understand why she had to wait to go visit her, but there wasn’t much else she could do but wait. No matter how much convincing she tried, Charlotte didn’t budge.

“Mystral, the city of mages.” Lilith looked around. It wasn’t the first time she traveled to Mystral, nor would it be the last. It was one of the major cities she went to, and unlike the other mega cities within reach, it became one of the most advanced cities ruled by humans. Even with no intervention of dwarven technology, or elven mysticism, the city became the home of magicians ever since the usurping of a previous king. There was a lot to look at and a lot to visit, be it the looming towers which made people question the physics behind them or the major magic schools and shops. Mystral had everything and anything magical-related.

After saying goodbye to Charlotte and Troy, Lilith found an inn, and by the time she settled down into a room, the sun had already dipped behind the buildings as the moon crept into frame. The streetlights slowly flickered on one after another, lighting up the streets as if it was daytime. Sitting down at the opened window, she watched as people walked down the road. Her eyes hovered towards the enormous castle in the distance, which sat in between the long towers.

“I wonder what topics they’ll talk about,” Lilith thought while crossing her arms on the windowsill and letting her chin rest in the crevice of her elbow. She looked at the building for a while longer, and after a yawn, she stood up. “Well, then,” she closed the window before changing out of her uniform, “food, then sleep.”