Ki entered the Magister’s office early the next morning. She had a list of questions rattling in her head, but she needed to be careful to ask the right ones to avoid suspicion. She had tried to ask the voice from the previous night for advice before, but it appears that whoever spoke to her last night didn’t have time today.

Ki shielded her eyes as she entered the Magister’s office. Sunlight streamed through the windows filling the small office. A stark contrast to the dim-lit library she walked through to get here. After her eyes adjusted, she saw the bespectacled Magister sitting at his desk in front of a large stack of papers. Being the Magister of Soru, Jonna had a private office located at the end of the castle’s library. Jonnu was in his late sixties, pale and rotund from a life sitting around books. He spent the majority of his youth debating topics that the average person never even cared about. In recent years, it seemed he had noticed his decline in health and decided to reverse some of the damage he had done.

He peered up from his desk and upon noticing Ki, a lazy grin appeared. “Ah, Ki my dear. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Good morning Jonnu, I was hoping I could ask you a few questions,” Ki replied.

“Of course, my dear. Ask away.”

“Well, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve been thinking more about my family. You’ve served the Soru family as long as you’ve been a Magister, and I was hoping you could tell me more about my parents.” The Magister shifted in his seat, losing his grin for an instant before forcing it back. Ki noticed his unease at the request, but continued, “What were they like? What kind of people were they?”

“I see,” Jonnu said as he sat back in his chair and let out a deep sigh. “I didn’t know your mother very well, but your father was an extraordinary man. I arrived as the new magister when he was about as old as you are now. He and your uncle were rivals in everything. Being the younger of the two, your father worked twice as hard to keep up. It mattered more when they were growing, but after that was done they were equals. Your father was the greatest swordsman and watercrafter I have ever known. He was an excellent tactician as well, earning his first fleet at twenty-six. He was a great man, and I don’t think a day goes by where your uncle doesn’t wish he went in your father’s stead to fight the pirate armada.”

Ki was entranced by the retelling, but then reminded herself that he wasn’t actually her father. She had no connection to that man, but still hearing of his deeds had brought her joy. She frowned, looking at her feet. Tears formed and started to stream down her cheeks. It’s all lies, everything around her was fake.

Jonnu stood and shuffled around his desk, throwing his arms around Ki and a gentle embrace. “I’m sorry, Ki. It must be hard not having met them.”

Ki shuddered as the tears flowed. The shock of yesterday didn’t allow her to process everything. Her closest friends were her family, and the truth ripped that from her. Her relationships were built on a foundation of lies and now that the foundation is gone, the entirety of it collapses. She can’t take anything they say as genuine.

Ki took a deep breath and relaxed again. The stream of tears halted. “Thanks, Jonnu, I needed that.” The elderly man smiled and hobbled back around his desk. He strained with effort as he eased himself back into his chair.

Wiping her cheeks, Ki continued, “What about my mother though? You must know something about her as well.”

The Magister looked away briefly before replying, “I suppose you are old enough to hear this now.” Ki’s heart raced, was he going to tell her what she found out yesterday. That she wasn’t the niece of Duke Soru. Jonnu took a deep sigh and continued, “It was kept very hush, but being a Magister I was privy to some such information. Well, you see Ki, your father never married. Your mother was a commoner, and the Duke never approved of a union. Your mother and father were seeing each other before your father left, against your uncle’s wishes. When news of your father came back, your mother approached the Duke on the verge of childbirth. Your uncle did everything to keep you both alive but was only able to save you in the end. Your uncle was rife with grief at losing his brother and decided to name you as his niece, despite the political and social damage it initially caused. I’m sure the Duke would know more though.”

Ki hesitated, flushing before quickly replying, “Gon doesn’t like talking about the past.”

Jonnu nodded to himself. “I suppose that makes sense. No one in the upper district of Soru had ever met your mother, but I believe if you still want more information you could go to the Temple of Seml. All births and deaths in Soru are recorded there. One of their priests would have also delivered you. Who knows, they might still be practicing today and could help you find what you’re looking for.”

All births and deaths. It's a start. She wouldn’t be able to visit the temple until Volenden, but she’s now one step closer to the truth. Ki smiled at Jonnu. “I’ll do that. Thanks for all the help Jonnu, it means a lot.”

Jonnu made a sound of affirmation, sitting up a little more in his seat. “Anytime, Ki.” He adjusted his spectacles and began working through his papers again.

Ki left the small office and closed the door behind her again. As she turned around, a tall and thin man with jet black hair was standing in her path.

“You must be, Ki,” the lanky man said. “I’m your new Dominus, Tamoe Kantill.”

Ki stood frozen like a deer that heard a twig snap in the bushes, waiting for something to happen. Her heart thrummed in her chest, so loud she thought he could hear it.

Tamoe smiled, his green eyes dancing. He extended a hand toward Ki, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Ki borrowed upon the metal of her katana to calm her emotions. Extending her hand she met Tamoe in the eye and forced herself to reply. “I look forward to learning from you.”

If Tamoe was watercrafting he would be able to read her heartbeat to know that she was lying. Ki didn’t care though. She would much rather be learning from Emika. The two were siblings, but after hearing Tamoe and her uncle’s conversation yesterday, she could tell something was very different between the two.

His smile widened. “I hear you would meet Emika in the gardens to practice. I think that to continue to do so would be improper. We are training you to become a powerful warrior after all, not some botanist. I have commanded the Duke to prepare a proper training facility to be set up in the lower ward of the castle. I will expect you to be there at dawn. I need to gauge your capabilities as I fear I have a lot of work to do with you.”

Even with the metalcrafting dulling her emotions, Ki couldn’t help but sneer. She quickly dismissed it, but there was no doubt the Prince would have noticed. Tamoe stood there with the same unnerving smile.

Ki walked past him and headed through the library toward the exit. Looking over her shoulder, she saw him continuing to watch her as she left. Upon exiting the library she dropped the metalcraft. Her heart raced as she hurried away from her new Dominus.