Rethinking the Plan
I was not fucking climbing that again.
I turned on my heel and walked toward the nearest door. The lacertian standing guard adjusted their spear and opened their mouth, probably to tell me to surrender, but I spoke first. “I’m Wilde’s boyfriend, I forgot my underwear here last night, I’m just gonna grab it and go.”
The lacertian blinked at me. “Who would believe that?”
Fuck, of course it couldn’t work a second time.
“By order of the Lord of Grimnight—”
I ducked beneath their spear and punched them in the groin, cutting off their sentences. The spear dropped to the ground so they could clutch their bruised bits. They wheezed out the last few, unintelligible words as they collapsed to their knees.
I picked the spear up and tossed it into the woods, so they’d have to chase after it once they recovered, then hurried inside.
A loud commotion had drawn most of the guards away, clearing a path for me right to the main stairs. The guard that should have been standing at the bottom was several feet away, craning his neck to see over a crowd.
I slipped past him and up the stairs, racing all the way to the top. When I saw the minion guarding the second flight, the one with the wistful expression, I pointed down the stairs and shouted, “Fight!”
He didn’t think to question my presence. Just clutched his halberd tightly and raced down the stairs.
The main flight of stairs was much easier to navigate, and I reached the third floor in half the time.
The orc at the end startled at my sudden appearance, but I already knew how to handle him. “Wilde’s boyfriend, forgot my underwear in the study, thanks, bye!” I threw the door open and slammed it shut before he could recover from his confusion.
Cyril hadn’t put his cloak back on and now Aunt Franny and another woman crowded around the desk.
“Trey, the ring!” Aunt Franny said, waving her hand through the air. “Put the ring on, quick!”
I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out one of the black rings from the envelope. “What will it—”
“Hurry, hurry, before he resets time again.”
I shoved it onto my ring finger.
Nothing happened.
Aunt Franny’s shoulders relaxed, and she approached to hug me again, murmuring my name as she squeezed me tightly. When she pulled away, her expression pinched with worry. “Is Delilah alright?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “She was a cat last time I saw her.”
She sighed. “Then I hope he keeps her safe.”
“What’s going on? Why are you here? Who are they?” I asked, gesturing toward the strangers in the room.
“Cyril Bowers,” the man introduced again, stepping forward to shake my hand. He gestured to the other woman with a fond smile. “And this is my wife—”
She grasped my hand in both of hers. “Lucy Merriweather.”
I blinked. “The writer?”
“The very same! We don’t have much time to explain.” She looked thoughtful for a second before saying, “Or perhaps we have all the time in the world. Time is a little uncertain right now. The most important thing to know is that you need to keep this ring on. It’ll stop you from being affected by the magic.”
I looked down at the black band on my hand and thought of its twin in my pocket. “What is it?”
“Anti-magic crystal,” Cyril explained. “Harvested from a void cave. It’s what we use to imprison mages, but it can also block magical effects.”
“Like time restarting.”
