Chapter 28 — An Unexpected Realization

Ria lowered the cloak’s hood to reveal her hair arrangement once the carriage was safely away from view of the students milling around the academy gates.

The blue summer dress Leon had picked out for her those months ago was probably casual enough to be safe, but meeting a Novidus at the gate with her hair done up as it was—fancier than most brides at their weddings!—would surely cause even more trouble than she already had.

She wasn’t sure what reaction she wanted from Hulle, but the twisted faint smirk that played across his lips wasn’t it. A huff escaped her as she turned toward the passing shops and ran her fingers through Ranger’s odd-feeling fur as she pouted.

Why had she even bothered dressing up? Did she really want him to notice her in some way other than just her value to the team?

“A tel`etia, a traditional flower and hair arrangement signaling an Elven maiden’s entry into the spring of adulthood. While not quite an announcement of seeking a lifemate…” Hulle teased and trailed off suggestively.

Ria snapped her gaze back to her senior Order member and caught his eyes twinkling with mirth.

“I have no doubt a certain elf is enjoying her well-executed joke immensely at the moment,” he confirmed.

Dammit! It really had been a trick after all! Was everything an opportunity for a joke to that elf girl?!

Angry at herself for choosing to trust rather than listen to her instincts, Ria reached up to yank the flowers out, but Hulle moved quickly and caught her wrist before any damage could be done.

“A beautiful sight is still beautiful. I’m not unappreciative of your effort, and it may afford us better service.”

Ria blinked at Hulle’s words and action, and she didn’t resist as he slid his grip from her wrist to gently grasp her fingers and slowly lowered her hand away from the flowers.

Just when he seemed about to return to his seat, the carriage wheel dropped into a small dip, and the carriage swayed enough that Hulle had to catch his balance on her seat’s backrest, just past her shoulder, bringing the beautiful face and blonde hair of his inches from her own as he was forced to lean close—close enough that she could smell a cold more bracing than any frostmint leaf directly from his exhaled breath.

Even with Hulle’s everpresent glasses, their eyes met, and he didn’t look away.

Ria’s mind raced. This was like a development from a romance novel!

The rapid beating of her heart left her barely daring to breathe, and she parted her lips to receive his—should another jostle of the carriage bring them together.

“Ahem,” came the throat clearing from the chaperone, and the moment was broken.

Ria felt disappointment and relief as Hulle drew back with a slight smirk, his fingers no longer touching hers. Her complicated feelings warred with the intense embarrassment at having been watched the whole time.

The well-dressed old man sitting on Hulle’s side of the carriage made a long-suffering sigh and reminded, “As you well know, Young Master Hulle, even if you are not currently in favor with your grandfather or the House, without an agreement with the young lady’s House approved by your grandfather, I have been told to restrict your indulgences to prevent further dishonor to your name and to head off any actions that go against House interests.”

“And that’s how it is,” Hulle told Ria with a chuckle and a gesture in the chaperone’s direction while nonchalantly easing back into his own seat, seemingly unaffected by having been so close to her.

Ria took a deep breath and pressed a hand to her stomach to settle herself. She had felt safe and a bit excited when practicing her newfound charms on Leon, but even though Hulle and Leon were the same age, it wasn’t the same at all! Somehow, when it came to the confident and beautiful boy seated across from her, she didn’t dare risk encouraging him! Her heart might explode—or worse, it might not, and then what?!

Eyeing him warily, she glanced down to make sure what could be seen through her knit shawl wasn’t too provocative… Unfortunately, his gaze followed hers, and she felt the heat of further embarrassment color her face.

Hulle couldn’t hold it in any longer, and he laughed freely until he had to wipe the corners of his eyes.

“It’s not us noble boys you need to worry about, Ria,” the noble boy finally managed as his laughter slowed to trembling snorts and chortles. “Hardly any noble boy would risk the punishment they would incur from their family for engaging in an unapproved romance or courting when the value of their bloodline is at stake. The commoner boys, on the other hand, you should be very careful around. They are free to sow their oats as they will, you could say…”

Jax’s attempts at flirting with her friends came to mind. Though she accepted the logic and was thankful for Hulle’s well-intended warning, Ria was still feeling grumpy from the wild swings of her emotions and having been so thoroughly laughed at.

“I admit I’m finding the limited time for this outing unfortunate. Spending the better part of a Divinesday afternoon together, leisurely enjoying the city’s best entertainment would surely be amusing,” the usually cold and calculating older boy said with a surprisingly boyish smile.

Ria was taken aback. She wanted to be angry at being considered for her amusement value, but she doubted that more than a few close friends had seen such an open and guileless expression on the boy—it reminded her of Faris, and Ria felt her pulse quicken in a different way than before.

Maybe such an afternoon would be enjoyable even if he was sure to tease her. But before she could volunteer that—excepting for Lady Asara’s weekly tea party—she did have free time this Divinesday, the carriage began to slow.

“We’re here,” Hulle announced and his usual expressionless face had returned. “I’d say that I think you’ll find this shop interesting, but perhaps my initial assumptions are in need of some revising...”

The shop the carriage stopped in front of caused Ria’s eyebrows to raise at first glance. Worn and broken goods were displayed in the windows. The shop’s storefront looked too fancy for a junk store, and she couldn’t imagine a noble from one of the Greater Houses having an interest in used goods.

Her eyes were drawn to the fancy wood shingle swaying in the gentle breeze of early evening.

The Cartographer’s Society

Mapmakers…?

The name tickled a memory, something from one of her history lessons…

Explorers!

“Artifacts!” she breathed out with excitement.

As Ria realized the significance of the items on display, she rushed to the side of the carriage to lean over the railing and see the items on display better.

“Maybe this will be amusing after all,” Hulle mused.

Ranger woofed a question.

“Artifacts are powerful relics, er… lost items, found in the ruins left behind by ancient civilizations,” Ria answered as Ranger rested his paws on the railing so he could also see.

“Ria, before we go in, I want you to try something.”

Ria glanced over Hulle’s way. “Okay?”

“Take out a gold coin and see how it responds to your innate energy,” Hulle instructed.

Though feeling impatient to see the inside of the shop, Ria made a gold coin appear. She had handled them plenty of times before, and wasn’t sure how this time would be any different. If she really did have a gold affinity, shouldn’t she feel attracted to gold or something?

Shrugging, she pushed a bit of energy into the gold. The gold received her energy easily enough, easier than silver. But that was to be expected and not anything special. Maybe they were wrong about her affinity being related to gold?

“If I’m right about your affinity, after we finish today’s shopping, learning metal manipulation from Wendra who has a silver affinity would be to your advantage,” Hulle encouraged her. “I didn’t mention it yesterday because Iselyn’s situation was a higher priority; she needs new spells. Whereas your combat style is already well established and functionally useful. We mainly need to work on your speed, power, efficiency to better compare with more experienced competitors.”

Though her current task from him didn’t seem to be bearing any fruit, Ria felt a surge of pride at what sounded like a compliment from her third-year senior. “I was thinking of asking Orlisi to help me better use my ‘Seed’.”

“I won’t discourage it, but don’t expect much progress,” Hulle cautioned. “The demi-human ‘Ways’ and ‘Paths’ can take decades to show even modest results. Though for the elves, with the luxury of centuries to spend, the results can be impressive. Farenthil Hall is a strong contender every year, even though they are a nature-focused Order and don’t specialize in combat.”

The elves of Farenthill Hall. Even Ria had heard about them, the famed caretakers of the academy’s Grand Conservatory and the Grand Magical Gardens. Both were national treasures. The Order members even played a role in maintaining the Reserve. Joining the Order of Farenthil Hall was one of the known ways to become a Warden of the Reserve.

“Any luck?” Hulle prompted, motioning at the coin still in her hand.

Ria shook her head. “No. It just feels like a gold coin with my energy in it.”

If Hulle was disappointed, he didn’t show it, but he did hum thoughtfully as he considered her. “With the recent progress you have made toward unlocking your bloodline, I was hopeful there would be some changes. Have you noticed any changes in your energy recently?”

Progress? Was it really that noticeable?

But his expectation might not be wrong, there was at least one change. The smell of molten metal she could call up now when angry… What if she pushed that into the gold coin?

“Um… there might be something,” Ria mentioned hesitantly.

“Oh? Show me,” Hulle immediately replied.

Had his mood perked up at the possibility, maybe? Was she getting better at reading his expressions?

Hulle’s approval or disappointment aside, Ria did want to find out more about that strange magic of hers, but could she really use it here in the middle of the street? With people milling around?

“An instructor called it dangerous magic, and Ranger warned me when I tried it at home…” Ria cautioned, and Ranger confirmed his opinion with a concerned bark and nod.

“No need to worry about that. The carriage is warded.” Hulle waved away her concern and turned to the old man. “Verenzio?”

With a roll of his eyes, the old man placed his hand against an inscription on the inside of the carriage. “Booke, do your best to keep the horses calm.”

“Ah, right,” the driver replied and hopped down to mouth placating nothings to the two horses while patting their muzzles and getting a good grip on their bridles.

As the old man poured a surprising amount of energy into the enchantment, a powerful restrictive constraint sprang up into existence around the structure of the carriage and a fair distance above the railings, as if forming an enclosure.

“It is ready, Young Master.”

“Excellently done, Verenzio,” Hulle complemented and motioned for her to proceed.

Having just restored her good mood, Ria wasn’t particularly eager to revisit her recent traumas, but Hulle had already pointed out that their time was limited.

Sitting back down, she closed her eyes and prepared herself. She cycled through the events in her life that gave her cause to be angry—her abandonment, the loss of her family, the quickslime, Amilee’s trial, Ravini and the others who died during the siege of Vorshan’s Hills, Ranger and Jarrel almost dying to the barbarian chieftain, and now the pettiness of her fellow students. Maybe because her emotions were already running high, the molten energy came to her easier than when she had raged after being attacked.

A worried reminder from Ranger brought her back to her senses in time to prevent her from unleashing the stirring power against her surroundings. The smell of molten metal filled the inside of the carriage’s bounded space, and Ria opened her eyes to find a calm Hulle with a defensive ice magic readied. The chaperone looked less calm about the situation.

Feeling satisfaction at the reaction her new magic had induced, a cruel smile graced Ria’s lips. Would Ophesia’s followers dare face her if they knew of this power.

But that was not the task before her at the moment. She turned her attention to the coin in her hand and filled it with her fury. The difference from her usual energy was immediate. The metal in the coin resonated. Something about the resonance with the gold felt… incomplete, but when she pushed harder, pushing more and more of the molten energy into the coin, the insufficiency lessened until the gold felt more right and the properties of the coin began to transform, the metal visibly darkening as it gained the weight of time.

As the transformation progressed, a tipping point was crested. The resonance suddenly changed and the metal coin seemed to lose its fixed shape, flowing like sluggish liquid to pool in the curve of her palm.

“Young Master, I would humbly ask that you refrain from encouraging others into criminal acts such as destroying Crystellian currency,” the old man accompanying them groaned out in disapproval.

Ria froze, then tried several times to return the coin back to its former shape, but having lost her grip on her anger, the molten energy still inside the blob of gold soon stopped listening to her and the metal resolidified.

Hulle laughed and shook his head, a calculating smile with a hint of both malice and triumph forming. “You worry too much, Verenzio. I’m sure she’ll have it back in recently minted condition by this time next week.”

Though pleased that her senior was impressed, Ria wasn’t sure she shared his confidence. The molten energy, though hers, was difficult to shape, and she wasn’t sure how consistently she’d be able to maintain her control over it—the unresponsive but energy-filled coin still in her hand, a clear example. And manipulating metal… even if the magic itself was powerful, she wasn’t sure what that meant for her combat effectiveness.

There were other things to wrap her head around as well. The talk of her having a metal affinity and a rare bloodline had felt more aspirational and abstract—something she thought would just improve her power and make gaining attunements easier—but the reality of an affinity was something much more concrete, tangible, tactile. It was so different from how she connected with fire, earth, and shadow energy as to be difficult to believe, and yet the misshapen coin in her hand was proof enough that it was real.

If this was what having a bloodline meant… then she had seriously underestimated the advantages that a bloodline and a true affinity gave.

Ria held up the coin and let her senses explore the energy contained inside. When the resonance was happening, she had come closer to grasping the required energy transformation. Hopefully Hulle was right, and Wendra could help her tease out that final piece she was missing.

Ranger’s woof pulled her from her dazed thoughts. The others had already stepped down from the carriage and were waiting for her.

Reminded of why she was here, Ria felt her excitement building again, and she hurried down to join them. Had the scheming third-year really found a relic in this shop that would help with her bloodline and her affinity? Ria couldn’t keep the smile off her face as Hulle led them inside.