The inscription of the protection seal dragged on. Although Gregor’s bone needle didn’t pierce the skin, it left a burning sensation behind with every touch like there was a small glowing ember on its tip. It wasn’t an unbearable pain but Lorelei gave out a sigh of relief when it all ended. Upon her request, the twins held two mirrors at an angle so that she was able to have a closer look at the shaman’s work.

An intricate twelve-pointed star the size of a large gold coin decorated the nape of her neck. It was made up of tiny red dots and surrounded by two circles of swirling inscriptions Lorelei couldn’t decipher. While she was looking at it, the seal started to fade until it became almost invisible. There was only a slight reddish shimmer when the sunlight hit the spot at the right angle.

“Not to brag but this is one of my best works.”

Lorelei saw Gregor’s smiling face reflected in the mirror.

“I hope it won’t bring disaster to you or the twins,” she mumbled, remembering how hurt he was after using hexes against that dreaded dhrowghost.

“This is not that type of seal, my lady.” The Binshi knight shook his head and started to clean up the ingredients for the hex. “It will simply reflect and weaken malicious hexes and alert us that you are in danger.”

“Besides, it’s just a precaution.” Rish grinned at her but soon after her face turned slightly gloomy. “Better safe than sorry. Last time I was negligent and didn’t give the lady a protection charm. This time… we will be prepared.”

“Don’t beat yourself over it.” Lorelei patted her shoulder and received a grateful smile.

Before they could talk further, there was a polite knock on the door and Milly entered the bedroom.

“I am sorry to disturb you, Lady Saya asked me to fetch Lord Gregor as soon as he finishes with the hex.”

“Did something happen?” Although he was trying to control his voice, a small tremble snuck in.

“A message arrived that Baroness De Vindur would be arriving earlier than planned.”

“Mother? When?”

“Around dinner time today.”

It was hard to believe but Gregor’s face became even more flustered than before. He sprang up and scurried for the door.

“Rish, Rasha, I leave the cleaning to you,” he shouted over his shoulder and disappeared.

Left alone with her maid and the twins, Lorelei threw them a puzzled look.

“Our Gerash is brave and valiant when fighting ghosts or Red Hands, but his mother-in-law is a different story.” Rasha snickered and started organizing the strewn-around herbs.

“Is the Baroness such a vicious person?” Lorelei lifted an eyebrow and let Milly help her on her feet.

“Lady De Vindur is as tough as nails!” Rish’s eyes sparkled as she helped her sister. “They don’t call her the Blood Hawk of Falkion for no reason.”

“Stop frightening the lady!” Milly pouted and turned to Lorelei. “Don’t worry, my lady, the Baroness is a strict but just person. She is very similar to Lady Nelini.”

“I see.” Lorelei managed to call a stiff smile on her face. “She must be a remarkable person. I can’t wait to meet her.”

As if to accompany her sour mood there was a sound of metal hitting wood. Spinning around, Lorelei saw Rasha who was standing next to her with a flustered expression and shaking hands. Splatters of the magic ink covered her clothes and the floor, the mortar she had just dropped rolling at her feet. Seeing the girl sway with a ghastly pale face, Lorelei stretched her arms and steadied the young Binshi.

“Rasha!” Rish hurried to them and helped Lorelei guide her sister to a nearby chair. “What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing,” the other twin mumbled, pinching the base of her nose. “The mortar… just slipped from my fingers. I am sorry, my lady, I’ll clean right away.”

“Stay where you are,” ordered Lorelei with a soft but unyielding tone. “Rish and Milly can sort things out.”

“But…”

“Listen to the Duchess, Rasha!” Her sister gently brushed a few strands away from her face and frowned. “You really look sick. Why didn’t you say anything until now?”

“It was simply a slip of the hand, kako,” the young warrior looked at her older twin and chewed on her lip.

“Even if you call me kako, you won’t get away so easily. My lady, is something wrong with her?”

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“It seems to be just a dizzy spell,” said Lorelei after taking the girl’s pulse for a while. “But she seems very fatigued. I don’t know if it is from the hex or…”

“No, it isn’t the hex, my lady, don’t worry.” Rasha protested hastily but was forced to hang her head under the pressure of two heavy gazes. “It’s nothing much. I just have some trouble sleeping lately.”

“For how long?” Lorelei took a better look at her face and saw faint traces of powder on her eyelids.

“Since the attack of the dhrowghost,” came the quiet reply.

“Rasha! Why didn’t you say anything?” Rish looked mortified.

“It’s just some bad dreams, nothing serious. They would go away on their own.”

“But…” To Lorelei’s surprise, Rish looked even more flustered. “But why didn’t I dream anything…?”

“How should I know?!” Rasha suddenly erupted, startling everyone in the room. “Maybe I’m just a weakling compared to big sister. Maybe I am broken.”

“That’s enough!” Lorelei clapped her hands, attracting the girls’ attention. “Both of you should calm down. Rish, please, help Milly with the cleanup while I take Rasha to my study.”

“There is no need, my lady!” Rasha tried to protest only to be cut by her mistress.

“A patient should listen to their physician. Now come.”

Lorelei carefully supported the young Binshi as the two exited the bedroom. When they arrived in her improvised laboratory, she pushed some books to the side to make space for Rasha to sit on one of the benches. Giving her one final look over her shoulder, Lorelei started pulling jars and bottles from the shelves and piling them on the table.

“You know,” she said after a brief silence, “there is nothing wrong in having bad dreams.”

There was no reply. Musing for a bit while measuring some colorful powders, Lorelei decided to try her luck again.

“My teacher was a master of healing. He could cure wounds that seemed lethal and concoct medicine to battle the most exotic ailments. But despite all his prowess, he always said that the hardest wounds to heal are the invisible ones – the ailments of the mind.”

“So you are saying that… I’m crazy,” said Rasha and choked.

“No. It means that the mind needs more time to heal than the body. And we went through something really horrifying. It is normal to have nightmares afterward. I had some too.”

“But you are a fragile noble lady!” There was an angry thump accompanying her words, indicating that her fist was hammering all her anger and frustration into the poor bench. “I am a warrior. I doubt the Duke or brother Gerash were even fazed from all of it. Even Rish had no nightmares.”

“And how can you be sure?”

“Because... Rish and I have always shared nightmares.” Shakiness replaced the anger in Rasha’s voice once again. “Even in normal dreams, we always sense each other. But this time… I was alone. There was only darkness, and those sticky shadows chasing after me. Trying to devour me. And when I called for Rish, she didn’t hear me. She wasn’t there. Instead, the darkness tried even harder to drown me…”

Lorelei left her vials and powders and hurried to hug the sniffling girl. She gently patted Rasha’s head just like Noah had done to her not all too long ago. The familiar gesture was soon followed by familiar words.

“There is no shame in being afraid. The bravest warriors are not the ones who lack fear but the ones who conquer it.”

“I… am not brave.” Rasha sniffled and smeared some tears over her cheeks with her sleeve. “I’m broken. But why is it only me that’s broken?”

“Listen to me.” Lorelei grabbed her face between her palms. “You are not broken. Every person just feels… differently. It’s not like you and Rish are the same person. And I doubt that even the Duke never feels fear or anguish. You just need more time to heal. You’ll see, soon, you will brag with the story to the knights and squires. It will be nothing more than a past memory.”

“W-will it?”

“Of course. And for the healing to happen as fast as possible, you need good rest. I will give you some sleeping tea to drink every night. It will calm your mind and body.”

With these final words, Lorelei separated from the young Binshi and returned to the table. Raha’s condition was not something a simple stewall and lemon balm tea could cure. Luckily, her master had given her some amounts of rare herbs he procured from Shareeba – magnolia bark, perilla leaves, crushed jujube and lotus seeds, powdered poria mushrooms, anemarrhena roots. Mixing them together in exact proportions would yield a medicine capable of alleviating Rasha’s anxiety and allowing her to rest at night.

It didn’t take long for the drug to be prepared and securely stored in a small earthen jar. Happy with her work, Lorelei returned to the young Binshi. The two chatted a bit while she explained to Rasha how to mix and take the tincture. Deeming that her patient had regained her composure enough, Lorelei led her out of the room and almost bumped into Rish who was eavesdropping at the door.

“I-is Rasha alright, my lady?” the older twin asked, and her tone was a mixture of guilt and anguish.

“Everything is fine. I have given her some medicine, so she should feel better soon.” Lorelei eyed her friend carefully. “Are you sure you feel alright, Rish? You are not hiding something too, right?”

“No, my lady!” The young warrior vigorously shook her head. “I feel fresher than a snow-bell and as fit as a rabbit. I can’t even tell you what I dreamt last night, but it wasn’t anything haunting.”

Rish looked at her sister and gave her a reassuring smile.

“Heads up, the lady’s medicine will help.”

Rasha only nodded and squeezed the bottle in her hands.

“You two should go now and have a good rest. If any of you feels strange, ill, anxious, or just needs to talk, come to me any time. Rasha, if the tea doesn’t help or the symptoms get worse, I think it is best to talk to Sir Gregor about this.”

“We will, my lady,” replied the twins.

Rish gathered the rest of the hex ingredients and utensils and gently guided her sister out of the room. Left alone with Milly, Lorelei rubbed her forehead and her eyes fell on the now much lighter but still visible stain on the floor.

“Poor carpet,” she mumbled. “You suffered yet again.”

“What did you say, my lady?”

“Nothing.” Lorelei shook her head and her eyes lingered on the green trees outside the window. “Do you think… this is a bad omen?”

“Don’t jinx it, my lady!” The maid twisted her fingers in a sign to ward off evil. “This is Norden. Even getting out of bed with the wrong foot can be the beginning of a curse.”

“Yes, let’s hope not.” Lorelei followed her example and said a quick prayer to the Two Fathers. “Now, Milly, help me prepare. There is a lot to do before Baroness De Vindur arrives.”