Before I could understand what just happened, Aria jumped to action, grabbing Bella by the back of her chemise’s collar and practically thrown her on my bed, right next to me.

Then she hastily stepped out to the corridor, checking if anyone else was there. Seemingly finding no one else, the blonde elf closed the door, and this time locked it with a key for good. Then she turned back to both of us with a dark glare that made me shiver and instinctively shrinking on myself.

Bella, similarly to me, was quickly assessing the situation. She was visibly confused, attempting to gather her wits after being planted face first into the bed. However, the moment she noticed the icy glare directed at us, she immediately sobered up and seemed to instinctively crawl behind me.

“Big sister, save me!” — She cried out, genuinely scared by the look of it then added in a mumbled complaint. — “The grumpy elf went crazy.”

I froze, hearing the second part of her words. Which meant that most likely Aria also heard them. I turned to her, and based on the emotionless expression she wore, my suspicion was confirmed. — “A-Aria… she is just a child… d-don’t get mad at her…” — I said while hiding the covering little girl behind me.

The woman’s stone cold exterior held firm for about a minute of staring. Then she released a long sigh, before she practically collapsed into a nearby armchair, covering her face in both of her hands.

“Ahhh…. we are so done.” — She said in a helpless voice. — “Not even half an hour passed since I against my better judgement, decided to collude with a blood mage.”

I fidgeted in my place, somewhat alarmed by the woman’s sudden turn of attitude. The shift from hostile to hopeless was just too quick for my liking. — “Umm…” — I started hesitantly. — “Are you alright?”

The woman chuckled. — “We are so dead, can’t you see it? How are you going to make sure that a seven-year-old kid won’t tell that you are a blood mage to literally everyone in the mansion?” — She paused. — “We either get rid of her, which I am not going to do or suffer the consequences of our actions. I should have closed that damn door earlier…”

I thought about what Aria said, while it really seemed like a precarious situation from her point of view. I knew something that she didn’t. I knew that this particular little girl was a very sharp and surprisingly cunning one. There was no way that she would so clumsily reveal her presence to us, not without a plan. The way she curiously peaked over my shoulder occasionally to assess the situation in the room seemed to further solidify my suspicions.

I slowly turned around, giving the little dwarven menace an assertive look. She didn’t seem to be afraid anymore. Clearly, she didn’t expect to be thrown into the room like that, it must have scared her, but she surprisingly quickly calmed down. Very suspicious.

I smiled at her gently and asked what made me most curious at this point. — “Aren’t you… afraid of me?”

Bella’s large light brown eyes looked up at me, as if she was surprised by the very question. She blinked, then said in a confused voice. — “Why would I be? Big sister is big sister.” — She cocked her head to the side, her focus moving down my face, stopping at my neck, then her eyes widened as she spotted the bloody wound.

“You are bleeding!” — She shouted in alarm. — “You must be treated immediately, you might die, if not!” — She grabbed my arm trying to pull or push me towards the door, likely to get help as fast as possible.

I felt a fluttering sense of warmth spreading over my soul, seeing her reaction. I sighed, struggling to hold back the tears that seemed to flood my eyes. What a precious child! She would immediately discard whatever plans she concocted in her little head the moment she realized I was actually hurt.

I patted her head, trying to calm her. — “It’s alright, Bella. It’s just a flesh wound.”

Unexpectedly, my words seemed to only startle the child even further. — “No!” — She shouted, becoming more aggressive in her attempts to get me out of the room. — “Grand uncle also said that, then he died!” — She shouted those words, and it quickly sobered me up. I was about to kneel down beside her in another attempt to comfort her when Aria pushed a handful of bandages into my chest.

“Get yourself treated or even better… sit down and let me do it. She is not going to calm down otherwise.” — The woman said in a definitive tone.

I gave her a pointed look, then obliged. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, while Aria quickly and efficiently cleaned the coagulated blood around the already healing cut. Then she rolled the bandage several times around my neck, tying its end snuggly with a bow.

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In the meantime, Bella was nervously fidgeting by my side, watching the entire process with a fearful expression.

At the end, Aria turned towards her, hands on her hips and said. — “See? She will be fine now. At least until we got publicly executed.” — The little girl seemed to calm down somewhat, but those words seemed to set her pants on fire.

“I can keep a secret!” — She shouted, then added in a more leveled tone. — “Better than you, anyway.”

Aria’s eyes widened slightly, she directed a thoughtful glance at me then she quickly covered up her previous surprise. — “Is that so,” — She began crossing her arms doubtfully. — “and why would I believe that?”

Bella seemed uncomfortable for a few seconds, then she admitted it somewhat reluctantly. — “Because… I need sister to teach me magic.” — The girl stated in a soft voice.

Aria, on the other hand, seemed to be completely outraged by the idea. — “I am not going to let you make a coven of blood mages under my nose!”

I rolled my eyes. — “Don’t be a sad stick, obviously I don’t intend to teach her blood magic!” — I huffed. — “We hardly even know if she can learn magic, I mean, she needs power to cast spells.”

Bella straightened up at that. She stretched her arms towards a pillow that was lying on the floor a few meters from us. The same one I smashed into Aria’s face recently. I could see Bella’s concentrated expression as she focused on the pillow. I was curious about what she intended to do, then I noticed a subtle twitch, then another and again.

In a few more seconds, both me and Aria were staring at the gently floating pillow, unassumingly swimming through the air, until it eventually plopped back on the bed, where it belonged to.

Our momentary stupor was broken by the girl’s ragged breath. Both of us turned back to her, noticing that the young dwarf's forehead was covered in fresh perspiration, her cheeks blushed red from the effort as she practically gulped down the air.

“Alright.” — I said, smiling towards Bella. — “I will teach you, if you keep my secret safe.”

“I promise.” — Bella said, with some effort, still being unable to catch her breath properly. Her tiredness, however, couldn’t hide the excitement and joy spreading through her spirit.

Then she jumped into my arms, giving me a joyful hug.

Aria watched the entire exchange, shaking her head in apparent disbelief. — “Now, there is two of them… What have I got myself into…” — She shook her head, but I couldn’t miss the subtle smile at the edge of her lips.

Then, as if lightning struck her, Aria’s expression froze. — “Come to think of it.” — She began her inquiry. — “Did that dwarf you sent flying also realize what you are?”

Oh, so that was it. I shook my head, patting Bella’s back as she cling to me. — “No… she was. Well, I don’t really get it, but she seemed to have a problem with me from the start. Then she practically jumped on me when I gave her my peace of mind.” — My expression contorted. — “I don’t really want to talk about that now…”

“I see…” — Aria accepted my answer. There was a few seconds of awkward silence, then she added. — “That vile woman won’t be bothering you for a while. She will be in the infirmary for a few weeks straight, then she will be sent for two months of patrol duty as a punishment for breach of conduct.” — She snorted at that.

“I know, that is the best they could do, and even that is likely because that Yonalda woman couldn’t contradict her other daughter’s words.” — She laughed drily. — “Dwarven culture is very lenient on internal matters of the same family. They have considered it as a simple quarrel, nothing more. After all, both of you are women, so what harm could have been done?”

I sighed. Honestly, I didn’t expect it any other way. — “So… What is my punishment for ruining the dining hall and attacking Jolga?” — I asked.

Aria blinked. — “What are you talking about? You have done nothing wrong, aside from defending yourself, well, at least not at that time. You are not punished.” — She paused for a second. — “I have been, however, requested to watch over you from now on. Which is convenient since I would do that either way, knowing what you are.” — She narrowed her eyes at me. — “You are my responsibility now. I will not live to see you sowing chaos as a blood mage under my watch, just because I let you live.”

I gulped. Tightening my arms around the snoozing Bella, who have fallen asleep in my arms. She is likely suffering from mana exhaustion. Poor girl, she must have been really eager to prove herself.

I looked back into Aria’s eyes and said with new determination. — “Fine. Watch me all you want. You won’t regret your decision, since I didn’t intend to use my powers to harm innocent people to begin with.”

Aria glared at me. — “I would rather you didn’t use that particular power at all.”

I looked back at her and nodded. — “I can promise that I won’t use it without good reason.”

She slowly closed her eyes, massaging the bridge of her nose. — “You are the cockiest blood mage I have ever encountered.” — She sighed. — “Fine.” — Her expression grow serious once more. — “But let me tell you this, if I find out that you lied to me, and are harming others behind my back.” — Her gaze narrowed, a cold glint of determination mirrored in those ice blue irises. A distant stare that offered me a silent promise, one that could not have been misinterpreted.

I gulped down my saliva, my throat feeling dry all of a sudden. The recent memory of the bitter touch of metal against my throat sending shivers upon shivers down my spine. My breathing hitched as I said.

“If… If I ever go down such a dark path. The knowledge that you would come to kill me is a surprisingly reassuring thought.” — I said those words. Feeling quite strange about the situation itself. I could swear that I have read those particular words in some manga or anime back in my previous life.

Still, their effect on Aria was quite powerful. The woman’s stony expression softened considerably, as she turned towards the door, looking away from me.

“You better not make me regret this, idiot girl.” — With that said she opened the door and left.