But suddenly, everything was clear. Traveling the empire, using this power to restore the cursed, bringing hope and life to those who thought it was lost. Learning about magic in its entirety—not just the Alchemy I’d seen all my life. Knowing what I was meant to do, where I was meant to be.
How could I refuse this? How could Inotsee this through to the end, after what we’d all been through to get here? I had the chance to right the wrongs of my uncle. To use this magic forgood.
Determination settled in my chest. Even the power I temporarily held seemed to rest, knowing it would soon find its way home.
“I have to do this, Rissa. Iwantto do this. For myself and for those who have suffered because of Gayl’s greed.” My voice was steady and my mind was certain for the first time since I’d woken up. “No more. This ends now, and I’m the only one who can do it.”
A grin worked its way onto her lips as she studied me. “Then I guess,” she said slowly, “you need to start packing.”
81
Rose
Thirty-three. That’s how many cursed Veridians dwelled inside the palace walls.
By the end of the week, I had woken every single one.
Children, aged men and women, mothers, fathers. Servants and lords, previous advisors to the throne, members of Gayl’s council. Nobody had been safe from the curse when it chose to strike.
I watched a woman reunite with her lover after ten years. An elderly man meet his eighteen-year-old granddaughter for the first time. A child talk with her younger brother who was now several years older than her. Story after story, memory after memory. With every single person, that stolen magic inside of me became less and less erratic. Less painful. Less urgent. Still there, but somehow, it felt…content. Overwhelming emotion crowded me on all sides, with bone-crunching hugs and shouts of relief and more tears than I could count.
Andhope.
Rissa and Leo had filled me in on what they, the council, and the province governors had been doing during the almost two weeks I’d been trapped in my mind. What we were giving these people was so much more than just their magic back.We were giving themhope. To no longer live with the prospect of the curse hanging over them, to not have to worry about their power being based on some ridiculous tournament, to one day be unafraid of crossing their own borders.
The road ahead wouldn’t be easy, of course. Plenty of people would be angry, would push back on the direction of leadership. And it would take time—as would my mission.
But it wasexhilarating, being a part of it. Being a part ofchange.
Rissa had stepped into a role of power in the empire so effortlessly it was as if she was meant for it. After confirming her heritage, the council and governors had elected to name her interim empress while they sorted through affairs. It wasn’t unanimous, but enough of them seemed to realize what strength she brought to the table. Within days, she’d organized my journey with the governors, ensuring my safe passage through each province and lining up people to escort me in their regions.
Time was moving faster than I could process. My excitement grew as I thought of the months and months I’d spend exploring new places, something I never thought I’d get to do in my entire life.
With that excitement, however, came a hint of fear. Fear of being away from everything I’d ever known, from my family, from the comfort of my isolated shop. Fear of how I’d be perceived in this new world.
Fear of saying goodbye.
I was leaving Veridia City tomorrow. Ragnar and Morgana had taken turns accompanying me throughout the capital over the last week and a half, visiting all the infirmaries, all the healer’s clinics, and all the sickbays on the small island. There weren’t as many people here who had fallen prey to the curse as in the provinces, but there were still a couple hundred that needed to be awoken. We’d been up from dawn to dusk traveling and meeting with families. I’d talked to more people in the last ten days than in two decades. Leo, Rissa, and the others had been just as busy working with Gayl’s council and the governors on restructuring what theywanted the leadership to look like, and the twins had been spending as much time as they could with their newly restored mother.
I’d barely had more than an hour alone with Leo. It was strange how much I could miss someone I’d only known a handful of weeks. How little by little he’d chipped away at my shell until he was suddenly buried inside my heart. Every scowl, every smirk, every hushed word had spread like seeds, taking root so deeply there was no chance of me ever pulling him out.
Not that I wanted to. I couldn’tbeginto imagine life without him. But…I didn’t know what the next months or evenyearslooked like. We had no idea how long my task across the empire would take. We could be completely different people by the time it was over.
I didn’t know how to say goodbye to him. I didn’t know how toleavehim.
So…in true Rose fashion, I avoided it. It hadn’t been too difficult; we were both exhausted and pulled in so many different directions, there wasn’t much time for ourselves. And of course, I would have never wanted to take him away from his mother. Any spare moment the two of us had together was also shared with Rissa or Lark or Chaz or my family, limiting the conversation I knew we’d have to have.
But I was good at putting off painful moments.
My eyes drooped as I tucked my last pouch of herbs into my travel bag, buttoning the clasp and placing it beside my bedroom door. I desperately needed sleep before heading off on the first leg of my journey in the morning. The ship Rissa had secured my passage on was leaving for the southern province of Tenebra at eight o’clock sharp. Ragnar had offered to go with me for this first part while Morgana and Beau headed back to Feywood. I’d argued that they needed to stick together, but my aunt and uncle were nothing if not persistent.
A knock sounded on my door. I stifled a yawn as I pulled it open, almost stumbling when I saw who waited on the other side.
“Did you think you could leave without saying goodbye?” Leo asked. He leaned on the doorframe with his arms crossed and his tail flicking the floor. Always a sign of agitation, even when his features remained impassive.
My cheeks flushed. “No, that’s not—I was going to say goodbye,” I said quickly. “We’ve both just been so busy.”
He raised an eyebrow.
