As soon as I step inside Scarlett's office Anaid pushes me to the floor, pressing the edge of a dagger against my neck.

"Oh, I see you two are getting along fine" Scarlett calmly says, not even bothering to look up from her book.

"He can't be trusted, he is too unpredictable. He broke the spell in a fit of rage and I don't think he will obey" Anaid almost cuts my neck, but I break free and hold the blade with my hands, painting red as I hold it in place "We should kill him"

"Did he fulfill his task?" Scarlett asks closing the book with a loud slap, followed by the door behind us closing.

"...Yes, he killed Garret, brought me his head, and almost got us caught by the entire city Garders" She emphasizes the last bit, relaxing a bit the force behind her arm but I still hold on tightly to the dagger.

"And did anyone that saw his face survive?"

"I do not know. As I said, he broke the spell"

"None," My shadow grows and reaches all the way to Scarlett's seat, where it grows out off the floor, Cornus, the big creature with a human face, had been following me "Two adults..." Its neck stretches unnaturally large until his face is close to Scarlett's "and a child"

Those last words make a pit in my stomach, not more, not another face. Not another ghost to haunt me. I didn't mean to.

"You what?" Anaid seems almost out of breath, and I don't need to see her face to know she is furious.

"Anaid, get off our guest" Scarlett commands and although Anaid remains in place for a bit, she does stand up and steps away from me.

"You can't be thinking about letting this...monster join us, is not right," Anaid says as she throws daggers at me with her eyes, the red in them almost glowing brighter.

"Rich words coming from another murderer" Scarlett spits as she finally stands up from her chair, her black eyes falling on the furious witch "To me, while shown in a regrettable way, does seem like he will obey...I dare say, he did better than your first time"

"...So that's it? You told the bird to follow me to see if I would let another child escape? A test of my loyalty?"

"Oh, no. I know you wouldn't get in my way, considering everything I've given to you and will give in the future" She slowly closes the distance between her and us, her eyes glancing at me "It's a perk of doing business with me. You stay true to your word, and I will stay true to mine"

"Hard to believe from someone nicknamed the betrayer" I speak up, my knuckles white as I clench my fists.

"Having second thoughts now? A little late don't you think?"Scarlett giggles.

"He also wanted information about you, Scarlett" Cornus says as his neck slowly goes back to normal.

"But why would he ask a stranger? You could've asked" She looks away from me.

"If you didn't send Cornus to spy on me then why him? Why do want another person to do my job?" Anaid says, firmly and takes a step forward, crossing her arms in front of her.

"Well, you were absolutely right about the first bit you spoke. he is rather unpredictable, so I entrusted Cornus to make sure no...unwanted revelations occurred by mistake" She looks at Anaid before she can speak "And I do believe your part in this task has been concluded. Do take leave if you will"

Right after she finishes the door opens on it's on. Anaid seems about to protest, but settles on grunting and loudly walking out of the room, bumping her shoulder against mine as she does. Slamming the door behind her.

"She will warm up, in due time" Scarlett takes a few steps toward her desk, her bony fingers tracing the outline of a wine bottle "You may leave now Cornus unless there is anything of importance to be shared" At her words, Cornus melts back into the floor "It occurred to me today that you never got to taste this exquisite wine, here"

With a few gestures of her hand, the bottle levitates and pours its contents into a glass, which also floats all the way to me and I grab it. My bloodied and still wounded hand grabbed it tightly.

"I don't usually take in personal students, but her case is rather, exceptional, just like yours" Scarlett holds her hands and turns toward me "I had another a decade or two ago, but couldn't bring herself to complete the final test and ran away. Some just don't have it in them to do what must be done to secure their destiny...do drink, I swear you will love it"

I stare into the wine, and down it in one go. It is strong, and I can't tell if it's sweet or anything, but the immediate sense of ease it gives is...dangerously comforting.

"What did I tell you, here" Scarlett sends the bottle to me "Take it with you. I had high hopes for your performance so I already send word to make all the preparations to deliver on my side of the deal, tomorrow morning you will leave, and return to the Farwoods with your due" The door behind me opens again "Farewell, Nakor...due be aware that a little extra something has been added to the list of your demands...and I bet you will love it"

Stolen story; please report.

I leave, my body doesn't feel like my own. Even more so than these past days with the artifact that turns me into a human. I glance at Nama who waves at me and approaches, but I quicken my step and ignore her. Don't talk to me. How can I look at you in the eyes knowing I took a child's life? Someone who could have been as old as your son?

With heavy breathing, I reach my room and lock the door. Then I drink the bottle of wine, I need that calm, that peace. Once empty I throw it to the wall and send flying shards of glass. But is not enough.

I trash the bed, I break the furniture, and when my tired self faces the mirror in the wall when I lay eyes on the facade of my flesh I scream as I punch it and shatter it, then throw my necklace away returning to my true self. A knock on the door.

"Excuse me, pardon my intrusion" Hulian unlocks the door and steps in, quickly closing it behind him as he notices I'm in my goblin form "Oh dear, that was quite the fright, good luck that I shoo away the curious girls and boys surrounding your door"

"Leave me be" I growl, looking at him behind my shoulder.

"Are you sure? It seems to me that you are going through a bit of a rough time. A listening ear may-"

"Yes! I want you to get the fuck out of here!" I shout, turning around in anger as I bare my teeth, stumbling a little, fuck, that wine is getting to my head "I don't need your pity"

"Pity? Oh no, please. If our Mistress has taken such a strong interest in you, there is no doubt that there must be something great in you. It is a little early to drink though." He says walking to the side and picking up the furniture on the ground.

"Are you senile? I told you to get out!" Now I do stumble, and manage to grab on the corner of the bed, wearing these oversized clothes is not helping.

"And yet I remain," He says looking at me as he puts a cracked vase on top of a small table. Giving his usual, annoyingly honest smile "Try it, I don't want you to spill out your deepest, darkest, most embarrassing secrets. Just share what's in your mind. Take it from someone who has lived for many decades, keeping things inside only makes them worst" He walks further in, picking up the shards of the bottle I smashed into pieces.

"Yeah, sure. I will sit down on your lap, cry my eyes out, and hope you make sense of the fucking mess that is my...my mind" The nameless voice laughs distantly "No, I don't think so. Fuck off" I groan as I let my body fall to the floor, my back resting against the bed.

"Hm, fair enough. We barely know each other after all. Maybe there is someone you could speak to, a friend? Although I have to admit I do feel a bit hurt, I took us for, at least regulars that speak to each other at a bar type of friends"

"No, don't you get it? Have you- Are losing your sight? Haven't you seen what I am?!"

"Yes, a goblin with a voice that does not fit him at all...woah, this is quite strong," He says looking at the label of the wine, then puts all the broken shards next to the vase "You are intelligent, clearly capable of holding a conversation, which is rare in your kind and I know deep down, you are not as bad as you try to look like. With all those qualities, the only thing stopping you from making meaningful bonds is your own self"

"What?" That wine is making my head spin "Shut up, I'm fine on my own. It's better that way"

"That is where you are mistaken. We all need people to rely on, fight with, and fight for. If you isolate yourself, it will be a long, dry, and sad life" He walks in front of me, to pick up a dresser I had thrown to the ground.

"I don't get it...why are you doing this? What do you gain? I won't betray your mistress if that's what you want to make sure of"

"That is something I will never be sure of. But I'm not here right now on behalf of her, I'm here right now because you seem like you need it"

"Need what? A senile, old man who can't get off my back?"

"A friend," He says looking at me "And that is what I gain from you, or at least hope to. I spend many years of my life alone, thinking the best way to avoid getting hurt was not to give anyone the chance ever again. Because that is what men like us often fear the most. Letting someone get close, only to lose them, or for them to betray us"

He approaches me and extends a hand toward me, by instinct, I reach for the shortsword and swing, but to my shock, he stops the blade with his hand, and not a single drop of blood falls from it. He takes the sword from my hand and helps me to my feet.

"Like us?"

"Men who have killed, who have murdered others knowing they do not deserve it. A life of red often records itself with the ink of the same color and writes down our names beneath each soul we harvest. Eventually, it is all we see. Names, faces, and voices"

"No...no...I-I killed a child" I speak, the words come out rushed, and low. But it feels like someone dug a digger in my chest once again "It was an accident, It was an accident. I reacted, I wasn't thinking straight...I saw a blade and my body moved on its own" He simply stands there, his smile gone, but no disdain in his eyes "It's how it always ends. I kill things, directly or indirectly, in some way or another, innocent people die, and people I care about die...I am Rokan. Not Nakor, ROKAN"

"Destroyer, bringer of sorrow, misery maker...Monster...I see"

"Yes, now you see. That's what I meant...this is what I am"

"But you suffer. Here you are, after throwing a fit of anger knowing no better way to deal with the guilt of your actions. Because you think that is everything you will ever be. But no, Rokan the monster, I've met many men in my life, who have done much more heinous acts in their lives and revel in them, and you don't have to be one of them, you can be something else"

"Something else? How? How can I be something else if I thrive in battle? If I want to fuck, and kill? If it's almost a need for me, a thirst that can't be quenched?"

"Choose. You can't change your nature, but with your intelligence, you can choose not to give in to it either. A sword can go through the heart of an innocent man as easily as it can be used to defend the ones you love. Weapons are not meant to be used one way or the other, it is the person wielding them that chooses what they are" He glances at the sword in his hand, then to me "A destroyer, or a protector. The question you should be asking yourself is what are you killing for?"

"...A home, I want a home. And the only way I can get one is if I have a kingdom" Now he seems surprised by my confession, but after chewing my words for a bit he hands me the sword.

"To have a home you need other people living in it, people you love or care for. Otherwise, an empty home is no better than a prison" He walks up to the door and holds the handle, looking at me one last time "True bravery is to let yourself be vulnerable, only cowards choose to hide from the world. Just because you cover your eyes and everything goes dark, it doesn't mean that the world stops existing. It is still there, but it will only be worth it if you share it"

And he leaves, leaving me alone with my thoughts.