(Jacob, 16)

Sleek, elegant, and expertly carved from a mild brown wood, the crossbow and its bolts rest on my desk. Someone attempted to assassinate me earlier using this. Ordinarily, such a feat would be impossible – the Royal Guard would notice them because of their range.

Unfortunately, this particular crossbow seems to have been carved with enchantments better than most. Its firing range stretches more than three hundred yards – something only our best-made bows can manage, and crossbows never shoot as far as a bow.

Someone designed this crossbow for assassinations, not monster-killing. Judging by the handiwork, I would say it is Varilan. Our chief appraiser of items agreed, and gave me more information.

Picking up the paper she made, I examine it. Information regarding the wood, the metal, the string, and every other part of the crossbow. What enchantments could be discerned from it. All resources available within Varil.

That leaves us with two possibilities.

First, the assassin was Varilan, and is part of one of the factions wishing to see my family fall. Ever since the reveal that Lina and I are Magi, attempts on us have increased. Despite a god having stated quite clearly that we worked for gods, we are still seen as heretics for having fought the heavens, resulting in more people wanting us dead than before.

Second, the assassin was not Varilan, but used a Varilan tool, possibly forcing someone to carve it. If not, then the craftsman who made it created it for them, but still acts against my family.

Unfortunately, this assassin killed himself when he realized that not only did he fail, but he had his target, his targets two guards, and his target's friend coming at him even faster than the Royal Guard members were. Because of that, an interrogation failed.

Based on the report, he used a poison native to Varil – but from a different region as the resources used for the bow. Despite them from being in different regions, all components and the poison come from our southern side.

My thoughts first travel to Casper, who is doing well as of the report I received two days ago. His mother is alive and well thanks to Jason and Sage Elena and their healing powers and knowledge.

Then my thoughts travel to the conflicts of the Southern Conclave. They have only grown worse according to our intelligence, despite the winter cold. We are still dealing with increased bandits in the southern regions bordering the Southern Conclave, but they have decreased ever since our increased amount of Royal Guards and the hunters hired out by the guilds down there.

From there, my thoughts travel to Professor Jaelvra. She still has not reported in, meaning we can expect her to still not be present for this semester. Most professors would not retain their job with an event like this, but Lady Jaelvra is among the best in her field, even if eccentric. Fewer than her can expertly teach our young men and women how to handle monsters.

Sighing, I set the report down and examine the bow again. An item of beauty, even if one as deadly as it looks.

Assassins grow more bold by the day, it seems. More bold, and more resourceful. As I adjust and adapt, so too will the assassins and parties wishing me dead. Even with the immortality of the Magi, I do not wish to be killed.

Recovering from that might not be pleasant.

Thinking about dying causes me to think about Jason and his near-death at the hands of a god. Or paws, rather. Still recovering, with another month or two, minimum, before he is back to how he was. Sage Alyssa revealed earlier that she discovered yesterday Jason's condition is, indeed, worse than he has led us to believe.

Not only is he incapable of using most high magics, his physical abilities are not where they should be. Sage Michael returned briefly to help Jason train his body some, as there are few within Varil who could fight him on equal terms in an ordinary match, and he completely defeated my friend.

She said that Jason had protested the training at first, and only admitted to his weaker physical abilities after his papa defeated him with ease. Because he has not changed much of what he does while recovering, no one realized that Jason could not still fight as normal.

Usually, he uses magic, which means physical skills are not displayed as much.

It seems Jason also spent two hours vomiting after the training session, another reveal of his condition and how bad he is.

Letting out another sigh, I think about Niko and Lina. Those two are bordering on violating the codes nobility and royalty should not violate, but Papa will not say something yet. They display far too much physical affection to each other, especially in public spaces.

Were our family not targeted so much by assassins and attempted overthrows, I would not worry as much. Niko and Lina are not set to inherit thrones, so some leeway must be allowed for them. With the factions against my family growing stronger and more bold as the days pass, they will try to use everything they can as a weapon against us, no matter how small. The codes must be followed.

Thinking about Lina and Niko, naturally, causes me to think about Tasha. I wish she were here right now, even if we were seated the appropriate distance apart. Her presence comforts me when I am feeling as depressed as I am right now. Even if we would have my guards and her guards present, it would still bring to me a serene feeling I do not possess right now.

Pushing those thoughts from my mind, I think about the Jakor Duchy and the region to the north. They made their move firmly stating that Duke Jakor is our enemy, and the region north of it, never ruled by a lord, has been taken over by Michael xan Victor, now declaring himself Michael Harie, and his region the Harie Kingdom, with the Jakor Duchy as part of it.

They have offered Vel assistance in fighting us. One positive on this is that Niko's attack on Sar has prevented Sar from joining the alliance. Weakened by his slaughter and the death of their royal family, they are in no condition to help. At the moment, the northern kingdoms are taking over what territory of it they can. For the time being, we can expect no assistance from them to our enemies.

Our intelligence network has revealed that Nelem will also assistance Vel and Harie in fighting us, as will the nations between them and the eastern mountains.

This bit of news, I have not yet given to Papa, though I am grateful the Inter-Kingdom University Tournament is taking place in Iveko this year. While there is a small neutral zone between Nelem and Iveko, the host kingdom for the tournament prefers to stay out of wars involving its neighbors when it hosts the tournaments.

In preparation for the tournament, we already have soldiers in Iveko, preparing the quarters the fifty-eight students will be staying in. All nations participating have soldiers and mages already present, doing the same while also ensuring the tournament fields are not set up to advantage any individual nation.

Smartly, Iveko will not want to attack or declare war on one of its neighbors while they have soldiers present. They will most likely wait until after the tournament to join the war, if they join it at all.

At a glance, it seems as if nothing pleasant is occurring at the moment, especially with the current overthrow attempt. But there are some bright sides to every mountain.

Picking up another paper, I chuckle. In two weeks, Sageson Magical Technologies wishes to perform another exhibition displaying new magical technology they have created and will be putting into the market for sale.

With their new method of production, not only have they created many more jobs, but have increased their company's ability to create items in a way better-able to keep up with demand. Assembly-line production, a method brought to us by Jason from his life as Lucas. He says it revolutionized Earth's industries. Quality might drop as a result of the quicker production, but it makes items more affordable for the common man.

Then there is the Varilan Food Exhibition which occurs a week after the requested exhibition date. I cannot help but feel Jason requested this date intentionally. Commoners have been saving up their funds for the Varilan Food Exhibition.

That means they will have plenty of money to spend on new goods from Sageson Magical Technologies, and if they repeat what they did with the last one, their products will enter into the market in the week leading up to the food exhibition, with the bigger goods being released on the day of it.

Naturally, that means plenty of people, common and noble alike, will be at the shops rather than the exhibition, giving Jason plenty of time to start sampling foods without a big crowd. He requests it out of greed, but a greed for food rather than money.

The Varilan Food Exhibition lasts four days, and universities and academies alike take off for the Sorday and Monday of it. Chefs from all around Varil come to display their cooking, using the finest ingredients they can. With winter upon us and spring still more than a month away from it, the weather is perfect for transporting ingredients across the nation, especially with cold storage units such as what Sageson Magical Technologies has created.

For four days, citizens from all around Varil will peruse the foods available, sampling them and buying them. The biggest sales are those who make alcohol or candy, things which last a long time and can be produced in advanced, then sold at the exhibition.

This year promises to be quite the event as well. I set down Jason's request and pick up one of the entry forms for the food exhibition. Jason himself has not applied to enter, but Sage Elena has. If we publicize that she will be there as a chef, it will increase turnout of those in the surrounding areas.

We do reserve a few stalls for cases such as this – last-minute entry requests from high-profile chefs. If they do not fill up, we select at random chefs who applied and have made it out here to fill the stalls. Even if the exhibition hall is full, plenty of restaurants will put on their best food, and streets and markets will fill with chefs, so most of those who enter but are not accepted arrive in Varilsy anyway.

I decide to suggest to Papa to sign off on both applications. Varil can use the extra fun and brightness these two events will bring in this time of turmoil and impending war. We cannot act as if it terrifies us, as it does not.

After deciding that, I stand and stretch. Due to the scale of things, Papa will need to sign them rather than me. Now, I have stuff to do. Time to stop dawdling and deal with the overthrow attempt.

Exiting my office, I make my way out of the building, where Royal Guards are fighting against warriors and mages using enchanted items on-par or exceeding the guards'. Someone put a lot of effort into designing those without us becoming aware of it, but the Royal Guards are proving their stations.

Grabbing the hilt of my sword, I smile a little. No one has noticed me yet, but they will in a moment. The usurpers chose a night thick with clouds, increasing the darkness, and destroyed the light crystals illuminating the palace grounds.

Near-total darkness, with minimal light magics to see by.

Well, only until now. I draw my sword, causing the palace grounds to fill with light. Jason authorized Niko to return our Sacred Swords and Magus Swords at the end of training today.

With everyone else blinded by the brilliance of Griffin's Claw, I enhance myself using the Magus Layered Enhancement Technique, then begin moving. It takes only a few seconds for me to kill the enemies here, even as they recover from the flash.

Something is not right. I was monitoring everything with my scanning spell, yet there are far more of attackers here than I detected. They are concealing themselves from the scanning spell? Jason and Sage Samuel have assured us no one should be able to who would come after us due to the complexity of the spell not being something an ordinary mage could discover.

How did the fight progress further than what I had noticed? How are they hiding themselves from me?

As I think about this, I make my way to the Violet Building, where Papa's chambers are located as well as our throne room. There is no time to stand and think, so I move and think, passing by deceased guards.

The doors to Papa's chambers are destroyed, blasted off the walls. I charge into Papa's rooms, and with another flash of light from my sword, I blind everyone else present, then kill the rather large group of would-be usurpers, not even noticing until I finish that not all were actually fighters.

Dropping my sword, I rush to Papa's side. He was stabbed before I reached here. How did they make it to his chamber without my scanning spell noticing things? There was plenty of time!

"Papa!" I put my hands over the wound and attempt to apply holy magic, only to find it rejected. "Papa! William, help me!"

William, the mage of Papa's personal pair of guards, steps next to me and attempts to heal Papa as well. Our holy magic is not sticking, though, so William starts treating Papa's injury. He, too, is injured, as is David.

How did this happen? I was keeping track of all of the fighting! How did they make it past me so easily? Where is Wolf Alpha?

A sound alerts me to movement not picked up by my scanning spell, and I turn just in time to find my Sacred Sword being thrust towards me. Even if only I can truly use it, it can still stab. With its material, even my shields will break, but I raise them anyway.

"DEUS EX MACHINA!" A squeaky voice exclaims.

Though I have no idea what that means, I do know immediately what the little thing that attacks the sword and knocks it aside is: Wolf Alpha.

"Hiya!"

Wolf Alpha, a black wolf stuffie golem, it seems, starts attacking the non-fighter I thought I had slain, no restraint shown. I retrieve my sword, feeling it hum with annoyance at someone other than me using it. I clean off the blade and sheathe it, then return to Papa's side, doing my best to assist William with treating Papa.

As the non-fighter-turned fighter is taken out, I notice people coming through the door in my scanning spell and turn. No one is there, though. What is going on with my scanning spell?

"You noticed it, too?" William asks, and I look at him. "Somehow, they are causing a delay in the scanning spells. We failed to notice in time."

"Why will Papa's wounds not heal?" I ask. "He is not going to die, is he?"

"I do not know," William answers as the grey glow of a gate appears. "The wound is bad, and I do not know what happened. There are only a few things which can cause holy magic to fail."

"Such as this," a familiar voice says, and I turn to find Jason and Sage Elena now in the room, having stepped through the gate.

Jason is holding a dagger, which I briefly recognize as having been in the hand of one of the men fighting David. In a panic, I look at the knight, who has fallen to the floor, his breathing shallow.

"Mama Elena," Jason says. "Take Uncle Zach and Sir David to Moltriossa, tell her they've been infected with lerinar. The regenerative properties there will help them to recover."

"The guardian of the healing sanctuary will likely kill me," Sage Elena says.

"Wolf Alpha," Jason says. "A token, please."

A storage space ring appears, and a mithril token falls out of it. Before I can identify its design, Jason has grabbed it and given it to Sage Elena.

"She will grant you temporary permission to enter if you have this," Jason hands it to her. "It will return to Wolf Alpha as soon as you enter the sanctuary, but she will know you had it on you. She'll know I sent you, and will acknowledge. Now hurry, lerinar completely halts all healing, which means that we cannot save them."

Jason has a pained look on his face, and not from the physical kind. It tells me everything I need to know.

"That'll teach you to trick my senses!" Wolf Alpha kicks the man who had attempted to kill me with Griffin's Claw.

Sage Elena works with William to take Papa and David through a gate she manifests, and Jason gives me an apologetic look.

"You made that dagger, did you not?" I ask.

"Yes," he admits. "As Nolan. I attempted to track it down, but my powers are not what they used to be."

"What is lerinar?" I ask. "A curse?"

"Sort of," he answers. "I refined a god's blood and used it to create the dagger. Lerinar is a mix of god's blood and curse magics, and the intent behind the dagger was to deliver long-lasting injuries to gods. In a human, it completely halts any healing. The sanctuary will help deal with it, while Moltriossa should be able to lift the curse with some effort."

"Nolan made it after the war?" I ask.

"Yes," he answers. "It was given to the guardian of a certain shrine for a certain god. One I have not checked in on, having not remembered they existed until the memory came back when I saw the dagger.'

"A certain god?" I ask.

"Don't worry," he smiles at me. "It can't get free that easily. Either the guardians corrupted, or the dagger was stolen. The knife was intended to be used in case the god began to emerge, and we'd know if it had begun to."

"Papa will be okay?" I ask.

"Yes," he nods. "Though he might need a few weeks to recover from this."

"Jason," I say. "What is happening with my scanning spell? It reads things which are not present, and does not read things which are?"

Jason sighs, and I know immediately that Nolan is likely responsible for that as well.

"Towards the end of my time as Nolan," Jason walks over to the man who attacked me, and I recognize him now as a noble. "I figured out how to create something."

Jason pulls an amulet from around the neck of the man, hanging from a godsteel chain. He holds it up so that I can see it. An amulet of godsteel, diamonds, and orange topazes, it resembles an hourglass resting within a leviathan eating its own tail.

"They seem to have," Jason says. "Figured out how to use it, at least partially. The hourglass causes magic to suffer a time delay. In other words, what your scanning spell is detecting is what already moved. Leave it up long enough, and you'll notice yourself entering here. Even with the spell ended, the effect remains until magic recognizes the point at which the artifact stopped working.

"Before you ask," he says. "The artifact does not effect everyone, and it has a limit to its range."

"So that thing," I point at it. "Is the reason they managed to make it so far?"

"Yes," he nods. "Without it, you would have noticed everything as it happened, not with a several-minute delay."

I turn off my scanning spell. All of the ghost effects in it disturbs me. Taking a deep breath, I fix my gaze on Jason's.

"We need to check on Lina," I tell him.

"She's safe," Wolf Alpha tells me. "I went after her as soon as I noticed a discrepancy and ensured she was protected. Then, I came to rescue you after alerting Boss and Sage Elena of the situation."

"I had Tiger Alpha open a gate to Wolf Alpha," Jason tells me. "And now we're here. Based on my scanning spell, the fighting has already ended."

"Mine was saying it was still going," I say.

"Mine was not affected by the time delay," Jason says. "The effect was over before I entered, meaning my magic was not touched by the time delay. As you were already affected by it, you have to wait until it ends for your magic to no longer recognize the time delay."

"Why did Nolan even make that?" I ask.

"You know me," Jason shrugs. "I'd been wanting to do time magics for awhile. The artifact was the closest I ever came, and that was after seven hundred years of research. The actual goal was to create an artifact which would halt time."

I sigh, rubbing my temples. That is exactly like Nolan, so I cannot be too mad, even if it resulted in injury to Papa.

"Where was it?" I ask.

"I'm not sure," he shrugs. "But I know it's not something I would have left somewhere light."

"What does that mean?" I ask.

"It means," he says. "A god is free, one I do not know. One who does not like humans, either. They will have given it to a human in order to cause chaos and strife."

"How sure of this are you?"

"Something like this," Jason taps the amulet. "Would have been sealed pretty heavily before we ascended out of our mortal forms. Even if I don't remember what I did with it, I do know that. A god would have needed to break that seal."

He sighs.

"Once I'm back at full," he says. "I will need to do a more thorough check and rack my memories to find out where it was and what gods I have missed. For now, I am going to seal these up somewhere safe, to ensure they aren't abused again."

"Okay," I say, then turn to face the Royal Guards who are entering my Papa's chamber. "Guards! Papa has been wounded badly during the fighting, and has been taken by Sage Elena somewhere he can recover safely! Until then, I am acting in his place as King of Varil."

"Yes, Your Highness!" They bow in unison.

"Ensure this chamber is cleaned," I say. "Duke Amier was killed in this fighting, after attempting to kill me upon arrival, so we can assume he was at the head of this attack. Treat his body as you would a traitorous noble!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Jacob," Jason tells me. "Come sunrise, I will have an additional protector for you, to ensure your safety right now."

I give Wolf Alpha a pointed look.

"Any preference in design?" He asks.

I am not sure if it is the stress of the situation, the worry over Papa, or just Jason being Jason, but I snort at his question.

"How about a lion?" I ask.

"I can do that," he says. "A fierce, noble, and proud creature."

"Thank you," I say. "I will ensure a note is sent to the university in case of your absence or tardiness as a result."

"If you are already doing that," Jason says. "Mind making the note clearing me for the day? I want to reexamine the defenses with Mama Alyssa. They should not have managed to enter into the palace so easily, even with a time delay. Wolf Alpha noticed them far too late for it to have been just that."

"I will do that," I tell him as the guards begin working on dealing with the bodies. "The note will excuse you for an indefinite period of time, so that this can be dealt with appropriately."

"Thank you," he dips his head. "Your sister is coming."

I turn and wait for Lina to arrive, and she rushes to me, dressed still in her nightclothes. Without a moment's wait, she wraps her arms around me and cries into my shoulder.

"I checked your chambers," she says. "And you were not there, Jacob! I was so worried they had taken you! Where is Papa? With all these bodies in here, but no him, where did he go?"

"He needed to be taken somewhere to recover," I tell her. "Until he returns, I am acting King of Varil. Jason had Papa taken to Moltriossa, the god who guards the healing sanctuary, so rest assured that he is in fine hand."

Lina nods, then steps back.

"Why were you not in your chambers?" She asks. "There were so many bodies in there, and your guards were missing."

"There you are!"

There my guards are.

"Hello," I dip my head to them. "I hear you did excellently against those intending to kill me. Good job. Be advised that your duties have become even more severe now, as Papa has been wounded badly and needs treatment elsewhere. Until his return, I am acting King of Varil."

"Yes, sir!" They respond.

"Jacob," Jason says. "Would you mind writing a note for Eden as well? I know he is just a friend, but you could use an additional guard trained in the group."

"I will do so," I tell him.

"Thank you," he says, then holds up the pair of artifacts. "Then I will secure these and get to work making Lion Alpha. May the King and Queen of the Gods look over you."

A grey gate forms, and Jason steps through. At first, I am confused, but then I realized that Wolf Alpha must have opened it.

Tonight will be quite long.

(Jason, 16)

"Are they okay?" Tiger Alpha asks.

"Yeah," I answer, patting him on the head. "They're okay. I have Wolf Alpha watching them closely until I finish making Lion Alpha and send him there."

"Okay," Tiger Alpha nuzzles against my hand, and I return to working. "What about Uncle Zach? You had me make a gate there, but told me to stay."

Mama Elena has already returned, but I wanted to visit Moltriossa myself. She has Uncle Zach and David in a light sleep, and said it might take her a few days, but she can undo the lerinar. That's a relief, as I wasn't sure if she actually knew how to or not, and it's not something that can be explained with words.

Curse this damn injury and curse of a god's hostility. Were it not affecting me, I could cure Uncle Zach and David in an instant. I know the exact counter to it, but it requires using magics I can't use at the moment because of these damn injuries.

Lately, everything is making me feel weak. My magic is restricted, my body cannot move as it should be able to, and I'm reduced to mostly just creating enchantments as I recover. Staying up all night is going to set my recovery back, too, but this takes priority over my own health.

Jacob would actually die if someone stabbed him in the heart or beheaded him, and recovery would be painful. Alex has learned that the hard way, and I want to avoid any more Magi suffering a death before they are grey in magical power.

So I'm going to sacrifice more of my recovery to create Lion Alpha, then to check the enchantments with Mama Alyssa. She's already gone to the palace to begin examining for how they managed to enter in such high numbers, we already verified the front gates were not their main method of entry.

I've already woken Eden, and had him go with Mama Alyssa. My cousins need all the protection they can take right now, but there is still only so much we can do. It's unlikely someone else will try tonight, because the palace has at least twice as many Royal Guards in it as it did before the attack.

At least twice as many living Royal Guards.

Taking a deep breath, I return to finishing the enchantments and updates to the core. Clear your mind, Dragon, and focus on the task ahead of you. Let nothing else distract you from your work.