The study smelled of ink, wax, and faint resin smoke. Lea sat at the desk, sleeves rolled up, quill moving with quick precision across parchment. The Lexicon of Maledictions y open beside her, its cramped diagrams glowing faintly under her touch.

  "Hex of Fever...", she whispered, finishing the spiral, pressing her palm against it. The talisman pulsed green, then stilled. She stacked it neatly with the others.

  Her scars ached, but she ignored the burn.

  Another sigil took shape. Insomnia. Then Paranoia. Then Misfortune. It was unsettling how naturally the symbols flowed under her hand, as if the Corruption etched into her skin was guiding her quill.

  By midday, a respectable pile sat before her. Fifteen talismans, each thrumming faintly with power. She leaned back, exhaling through her nose.

  This shouldn't feel this easy. Draw and pour in my spite for the world's madness... her gaze flicked to her wrist, the bck ridges of her scars, "I should be proud... but I know why it works."

  The door creaked.

  "Impressive.", Auger said, cane tapping lightly against the doorframe. His eyes moved from the pile of talismans to her steady, ink-stained fingers, "Most Pathstriders manage two before they colpse. You've made enough to outfit a militia."

  Lea sat straighter, pushing hair from her face with ink-smudged fingertips.

  "Efficient.", she said simply, "That's all."

  Auger stepped into the room, smirking, "Efficient, yes. Though I suspect you're underselling yourself."

  She huffed, crossing her arms, "You sound like you're fishing for me to brag."

  His grin widened, "Would you, if I were?"

  For the first time, Lea's composure cracked. She puffed her cheeks slightly, half a gre, half pouting, "Maybe, but I won't. So there."

  Auger chuckled, shaking his head, "Childish, for someone so eager to carve curses into paper."

  "Don't call me childish.", Lea muttered, flicking one of the talismans toward him, "Or I'll Hex you with insomnia."

  He caught it neatly between two fingers, raising a brow, "Careful, that would make me spend the entire night teaching you twice as much tomorrow."

  Lea groaned, slumping back into her chair, "Ugh… you're insufferable."

  "Practical.", Auger corrected smoothly, tucking the talisman back onto the desk. His expression softened, though his eyes were sharp, "Keep going, Lea. You're doing well. Just… don't forget to rest."

  Lea rested her chin in her palm, side-eying him with a tiny smirk, "If you end up snoring tonight, don't thank me."

  Auger leaned over the desk, cane tucked under his arm as he examined the neat stack of glowing parchment. His smirk curved wider.

  "Not bad.", he said, tapping one of the talismans with his cane tip, "In fact, I'd say they're good enough to sell."

  Lea blinked, "Sell?"

  He nodded, "Of course. Ryteline nobles love talismans. They'll pay fifty Pounds apiece if you wink while handing it to them. But since I provided the seastone dust, let's call it… ten Pounds each."

  Her mouth fell open, "Ten? That's robbery!"

  "Correction.", Auger countered, a mock-serious glint in his eye, "That's discounted patronage. You wouldn't even be making these without my resources. I'd say I'm being generous."

  Lea scowled, hugging one of the piles protectively, "Generous would be thirty."

  Auger chuckled, clearly entertained, "Twenty-five, perhaps, if I wanted to swindle myself."

  "You're a noble", she shot back, cheeks puffing slightly, "Aren't you supposed to overpay people, not underpay them?"

  "Only when appearances matter.", he leaned closer, lowering his voice, "And between us, appearances don't."

  Lea groaned, dragging her hands down her face, "I can't believe I'm haggling with a demigod."

  "Count Maxwell.", Auger corrected smoothly, grin widening.

  She gred at him, then at the talismans. In the end, her practical side betrayed her stubborn pride. One hundred talismans exchanged hands.

  He slid a heavy pouch of coin across the table, "A thousand Pounds. A fair start to your savings account."

  Lea quickly pulled aside a small pile before he could pocket everything, "I'm keeping one of each type. For myself."

  "Of course.", he said without hesitation, almost as though he had expected it, "Never let your apprentice sell all her toys."

  Lea stuffed her talismans into her satchel, muttering, "They're not toys, they are curses."

  Auger's smirk softened into something almost approving, "Yup, curses, they're weapons. And now, you've just learned the most important lesson of all."

  Lea looked at him warily. "And that is?"

  He jingled the pouch, the coins clinking like ughter.

  "Every weapon has a market price."

  Lea groaned again, burying her face in her arms.

  =0=0=

  The study was warm with the faint glow of candlelight, shadows swaying across shelves stacked with centuries of knowledge.

  Lea sat curled into a velvet armchair much too rge for her, half-lost in the weight of The Count of Monte Cristo. Her lips moved faintly with the words as she turned the page.

  "That's too cruel…", her brows knitted, voice low, "Hah… but serves them right though…"

  Across the room, Auger leaned back in his carved wooden chair, cane propped against the armrest, a leather-bound tome banced in one hand. He turned a page with deliberate slowness, his posture rexed, though his sharp eyes flicked toward Lea now and then, amused at her mutterings.

  The quiet between them was almost domestic, broken only by the scratching of pages turning. Until—

  The door creaked open.

  "Count Maxwell.", the courier bowed deeply, voice crisp but nervous, "Her Highness, Princess Dawn of Ryteline, has arrived at the manor and requests an audience."

  Lea's head jerked up at the word princess. Her eyes went wide, and the heavy book slipped slightly in her grip.

  "A… princess?", she whispered, blinking rapidly, knuckles tightening around the cover as though she might hide behind it.

  Auger shut his tome with a measured thump, the sound echoing in the chamber. He pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh, his expression unreadable.

  "…Of course she has."

  Lea leaned forward, voice hushed, "She's actually here? Why would a princess come here of all pces?"

  Auger gnced at her over his hand, one brow arching. His mouth curved into the faintest smirk, "Try not to gape too much, Miss Lea."

  Lea's face heated immediately. She pressed the book to her chest, gring at him with an almost childish pout, "I—I wasn't gaping!"

  The courier shifted uneasily in the doorway, darting gnces between them, "Shall I prepare the reception hall, my lord?"

  Auger tapped his cane once against the floor, the sound sharp.

  "No. Bring her to the study. If Princess Dawn is still dressed from the campaign, she won't care for the ceremony."

  Lea's heart skipped as she realized she was about to meet real royalty. She smoothed down her tunic reflexively, then stopped halfway, realizing it was pointless.

  "She won't care for ceremony… but she'll notice if I look out of pce…"

  "Rex." Auger chuckled under his breath, eyes glinting, "Dawn has seen worse sights than a girl with ink stains on her hands."

  Lea looked down at her fingers and quickly hid them under the book, scowling at him.

  "That's not funny."

  "On the contrary," Auger replied, tone dry, "it's amusing."

  The courier bowed again, hurrying off to fetch the princess. The study fell into tense silence. Lea sat stiffly, the weight of her book suddenly forgotten, while Auger leaned back once more, as calm as if nothing were happening at all.

  ...

  The courier's voice carried clearly through the study door.

  "Her Highness, Princess Dawn Ryteline."

  The door swung open, and Dawn strode inside with the confidence of someone who had long since abandoned ceremony. Her equestrian coat was dusted with grime, brass fastenings catching the mplight; her boots were still damp with mud. A pair of sleek steampunk goggles rested across her forehead, pushing back strands of auburn hair.

  "Count Maxwell.", Dawn greeted, offering Auger a brisk nod.

  Auger rose from his seat, Excalibur tapping the floor lightly, "Princess Dawn, our presence brightens this dreary chamber."

  Dawn's eyes swept across the study, nding not on the shelves or the courier but on Lea.

  Their gazes locked, and recognition spread in their eyes.

  Then Dawn's stern expression softened into something warmer, "…So it's you."

  Lea set her book down, straightening a little, the corner of her lips tugging upward, "Uh... I greet Princess Dawn."

  The courier blinked, clearly caught off guard by their familiarity, and quickly got away, as if he wasn't paid enough for this. Auger only chuckled to himself.

  "Ah, of course.", he said smoothly, gesturing between them with his cane, "Two of Lady Keter's Argonauts, finally under my roof at the same time. I must admit, it saves me the trouble of pying host twice over."

  Dawn stepped further into the room, unbuttoning her gloves, "So, this is where you've been, Dantes."

  Lea smirked faintly, tapping her finger against the cover of 'The Count of Monte Cristo', "Well... I did become Auger's Companion; I'm stuck with him."

  Their shared look carried understanding, the kind that came from walking the same impossible path under the same enigmatic guide.

  "Well then...", Auger said with a wry smile, settling back into his chair, "Why don't the Argonauts sit, and save me from feeling like the only relic in this room?"

  Dawn rolled her eyes, but her grin betrayed her amusement. Lea chuckled softly, tension nowhere to be found, only the strange comfort of allies reunited under Lady Keter's banner.