After having only slept a few hours, I was woken suddenly by Sylphie licking my ear. She had somehow managed to slitter her way up the table, and through all the books I had on it. I glared at her disapprovingly, but it seemed like she had taken a liking to mess with me. This was a relatively recent problem, she used to be so small just a few years ago, so she sticks to whatever surface I left her. But she had been growing quite a lot as of recently. If that continued at the same rate, I would start having troubles carrying her around for my examinations.

It was still raining, like it had for almost a week up to that point. I could hear the rumble of the water hitting the roofs and ground, the wind howling through the streets, and the occasional thunder roaring in the distance.That day was probably the worst it had gotten until then. That kind of climate was perfect for staying inside and keep on doing my research with a big cup of warm coffee. But I had more important plans. That day we would be visiting the Black Tower.

It was still pretty early, the sun still hadn’t risen. Not that I would have noticed through the thick dark clouds anyways. But the trip to Rosanne’s home would take quite some time considering the current situation, so I started to prepare at once. Had I not been too focused on my research, I might have contacted Sir Adrian to ask him to take me there. After we parted ways at the Academy, I had gone straight to the royal’s library and borrowed as many books as I could carry with me, and then locked myself in. I ate and slept properly, though, at least the bare minimum required.

I had a quick breakfast and I hurried up to the outside, wearing a magical-enhanced raincoat that I had received during one of our end of the year’s gift exchanges. Sylphie was coiled around my neck, peeking from under the hood of the raincoat. There was almost no one outside, except for those that passed through with hurried steps, and shop owners starting to set up their stores. Even with this climate, people still had to eat and buy stuff for their daily life. Many of the streets were now covered with tarps, creating some safe havens from the rain. Still, if this continued, it was only a matter of time before the cities and fields started to flood.

When I arrived at the piers, I noticed the situation was perhaps more dire than what I had originally imagined. The river in which the dock was built was already flooding, but the water was kept away from the city due to the use of magic barriers. Still, it didn’t seem like anyone was brave enough to go out in those conditions. At least I thought so until I saw a massive horned tortoise slowly making its way towards the exit, pulling behind it a cargo boat almost as big as the creature that was pulling it. On top of its shell there was something resembling a palanquin, where the tortoise’s driver sat.

I tried to call her attention, as she was the only realistic option I had. Thankfully the driver saw me and approached the pier in which I was standing. She was an older lady, maybe in her sixties or seventies, but she still looked quite youthful. Her hair was completely white, but her skin was darker than Rosanne’s. Not quite as much as that of the elf child I had seen at the Astral Observatory though. Her clothes were also a bit unusual, something resembling a wrap dress, pinkish white, with wide square sleeves, and a broad sash as a belt.

—Good morning, Sonny. Can I help you with anything? —she said with a gentle smile.

—Excuse me for calling you so suddenly, are you perhaps traveling downstream? I need to go to the Dragonroot’s estate —I told her— I’m a physician, my name is Maxwell Conrad.

I showed her my legal permit to practice medicine just to convince her I wasn't someone suspicious.

-—Oh my! Is there a medical emergency?

—Well, no. Not right now at least —I replied, averting my gaze from her eyes for an instant—. I’m the confidant of the head of the family, and she needs me for… emotional support.

—I see, I see —she said, a bit too gleefully—, jump up. I am indeed going downstream, towards the ocean, so I can get there, if you don’t mind moving a bit slowly.

—That’s fine, I still have some time. How could I pay you for the help?

-—Don’t worry about that. I actually appreciate the company, especially on days such as this.

—I can see why —I said as I climbed aboard the tortoise’s shell and into the palanquin.

Weirdly enough, it felt more spacious once I had gotten into it. In fact, it gave me the impression of being a one room, wall-less, palace. It even had a small kitchen in one corner, in which coffee was being brewed.

—You can hang your coat over there so that it dries a bit, and have a cup to warm yourself —the lady said as we started our voyage.

—I’m not from around this place, see —she said after a few minutes of awkward silence—, I only came here because a friend needed to move his merchandise, but this weird climate is making using rivers pretty hard, don’t you think? Thank the gods, Asimov is so heavy that not even this current can deter him. But even then, I think I have heard of that lady you are going to meet. The heir of the Dragonroot clan, Rosanne, was it? She is quite infamous, isn’t she?

—Ah, I suppose…

—Hmmm, what kind of person is she?

—What kind? I’m not sure I can say…

—Hahaha! I would imagine that’s the case —she abruptly said.

—Do you know her? —I asked, starting to get suspicious.

She smiled.

—No, I don’t think so. Though I might have met her in another life.

—In another life? —I asked, but she didn’t seem to have heard me.

I was starting to presume this woman hailed from beyond the Sindhus river. The decoration on her palanquin seemed to fit their style, and the idea of reincarnation was more popular there than in our region. The official stance of the church of Enki and of the minor cults was that souls traveled to the Underworld after death, where they could rest eternally. Only heroes of great deeds were allowed to traverse the land in a new body. In any case, if my suspicions were true, I would be very impressed by the domain of the lady over our language.

We kept chit chatting over nothing important during the rest of our journey, she was easy to talk to despite me never being much of a talker. Perhaps because she was someone who I didn’t know and probably will never see again, I might have said too much. I mentioned the curse of calliope, and the results of my research until that point. Well, in very broad terms anyways. And I made sure to keep Rosanne’s involvement and the existence of the Astral Observatory as a secret. I proposed it as a prediction made with medical data.

—Oh my, that sounds awful. And you only have a year to prevent it? —she said.

I was a bit taken back by how she seemed to just accept it.

—More or less.

She looked sad and troubled, but in just a moment, she drew a warm smile on her face.

—Do not lose hope, Sonny. I’m pretty sure she will be able to find a solution.

—Who? —I asked, genuinely confused— Rosanne?

She nodded. I was even more confused.

—What would make you think so?

—Well, she is a Dragonroot, the descendant of Lilith herself —the lady said with a grin—, though I can’t say I’m much of a believer in those myths. Call it a hunch, or maybe the universe is speaking through me. Or it might be that I think you already believe she can, otherwise you wouldn’t be going to visit her in the middle of this storm. In any case, as long as she has someone like you supporting her, I think everything will be alright.

—Someone like me? —I asked, but the lady pointed my attention away with her finger.

—We have arrived.

She guided her tortoise towards the pier, and I got off after I had put on my coat. The rain has become more like a mist at that point, making seeing where I should stand a bit difficult.

—That was quite an enjoyable trip, Sonny. I hope you have success in your endeavours, and may our paths cross again.

—May the gods guide you —I said, but with my attention centered on not accidentally stepping out of the pier and into the river.

It was not until I reached the shore that I could relax, and finally realize that I hadn’t asked the lady for her name. She was gone by that time, and I only saw myself surrounded by the rain, which was once again regaining strength.

I really hoped that I would meet that lady again, I needed to repay her for the favor. And for some reason I felt she and Rosanne would get along, maybe I could introduce them to each other. No, on a second thought, that’s a bit of a scary idea.

I made my way into the house through the backdoor. The attendants who were already working on making the breakfast, just greeted me and put another plate on the table like it was the most natural thing to do. I went to the study, and found Rosanne in a very peculiar position, she was still sitting on her chair, but her back was lying parallel to the ground. Violett was sitting on her stomach, and the maids seemed confused as to how to proceed.

—What are you even attempting to do? —I asked.

—N-nothing… —she said, turning around and getting up with the help of her attendants—, did you find the information about the curse of calliope?

—I did, but it is pretty vague. I’ll tell you during the trip.

—Trip? Where are we going?

She cowered a bit when I glared at her. It took her far too long to remember that was the date set for our visit to the Black Tower.

—IT IS TODAY??!!