The woman collected her composure, hooked the wand to her belt and shook some dust off her robe. She did so, unminding me as if I’d disappeared for a second. I silently observed her while she seemed to gather her thoughts.

Maybe the moonlight was lying, but she was gorgeous, or maybe it was my recency bias. It had been quite some time since my last encounter with a beautiful woman, more than I cared to confess... I wanted to see her in daylight—

“So, who are you? What are you doing here?” she asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I cleared my throat and the daring thoughts with it. “Passing by.”

She suppressed a laugh. “Sure. Passing by Adrian Thane’s enchanted mansion is a thing everybody just does! Well, I’m Elise, Acolyte of Summoning.”

Oh, magi and their titles. I rolled my eyes. In the dark, she didn’t notice it.

“You’re no mage,” she continued, sure of herself. “You’re a thief. And if you’re here, you’re nicking something. What is it?”

I quite liked her directness.

“That’s not really any of your business,” I said. I knew it would annoy her.

“Oh, come on! We’re both here for different reasons. It doesn’t matter if you tell me yours.”

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“Tell me yours first.”

She sighed. “Sure,” she said, and I swore she rolled her eyes. “If you knew anything about Adrian Thane, you’d know he was involved in some dark business. I know the Academy is hiding something. His death was a cover-up, I’m sure of it. I’m hoping I find answers here.”

She spoke with genuine passion and curiosity. It intrigued me. Her enthusiasm was for sure contagious.

“Did you know his body was never found?” she continued without me asking. “Did you know he was feared by the other Archmagi? And did you know the Academy has had a grip on the Crown for centuries?”

“Ehm… No, I didn’t.” And I didn’t really care, but I didn’t tell her that.

She continued anyway. “I bet Adrian found something and was killed for it.”

She sounded a little bit like those conspiracy theorists that hung out on Regal Square. For a mage, she wasn’t like the vain, arrogant fellow who loved to explain how the world worked to the people. She was actually pleasant, despite being chatty.

I decided to tell her why I was there. I wasn’t sure why, but I felt I could trust her. Even though trust didn’t mean much in Perlgate.

“There’s a document someone wants,” I said.

“Someone?” she instantly asked. “Who? How much are they paying you?”

“A hundred thousand.”

She gasped. “Bloody Morx! Must be important. Can I join you?”

“Why?” I frowned.

“Because if someone is willing to pay a hundred workers’ yearly salaries for just one document, it must be important. And I want to see it.”

I shrugged. What difference did it make whether she accompanied me or not? She was welcome to follow me if seeing a piece of paper made her happy. I liked her presence, and she smelled nice. Plus, if she got in my way, killing her would be an easy task.

After all, she was just an acolyte.