The guard, who claimed his name was Liam, whispered another incantation and steered them towards a stone pavement leading to a large pair of oak doors. Large trees stood where mist once swirled. Ivelis and her cousin followed the guard, easily making their way through the darkness.

Another gift of their kind. One of vision, where they could see through darkness or movements fast as light.

However, Thael and his mortal eyes struggled to keep up. A snicker threatened to slip from her mouth when he tripped on a thick root but she managed to keep her act steady. Gianne was quick to grab his elbow and hauled him upright. He nearly crashed again, this time into their backs as they reached the end of the rocky path.

Four pairs of eyes moved to the large doors.

Other than ancient scribblings carved, a bunch of golden words could be seen on the stone doorway. She noticed those words were the only thing in the common tongue, bold letters which proclaimed whose domain they were in. The thing was twice the size of Thael who was already almost a half foot taller than her. Ivelis felt like a dwarf in front of it. Her eyes travelled to the rare gems and precious metals embedded onto the large door.

Unlike the last time she had been here, only a turbid glow seemed to pour out even with ridiculous amounts of shiny items. Ivelis remembered the light almost blinded her when she first arrived and it was still daylight then.

“Thank you.”

The thanks she uttered to Liam seemed as if she was already bored of him but internally, her heart had probably skipped more than one beat, if it were possible. The guard started walking back into the mysterious fog.

Her stare was pinned at his back until he had completely disappeared. She looked to the door once more and a series of memories flashed through her head.

The woman dropped her gaze to some small steps laid just before the entrance and then brought it back up.

So many assholes in one place.

“I’ll give you the honour of opening the doors.”

Ivelis turned to her cousin.

“Oh, shut up. Just admit that you don’t want to soil your pants,” Gianne snorted. Ivelis rolled her eyes in amusement as her cousin walked up the stony steps. She placed her palm on the surface and pushed. However, the door did not budge. She tried the other one which ended with the same result. Her cousin laughed awkwardly and shifted into a comfortable stance to push both sides. Even when Thael lent his strength, the door remained shut.

The both of them panted as Ivelis leaned against a tree, picking her nails patiently.

“Why aren’t you helping?” Thael asked, exasperated. She gave him an incredulous look. Gianne whipped her head towards her and laughed slightly.

“Like she’ll do any better.”

“Doubting me? Interesting. If I manage to do it, you will be cleaning anything I tell you to. And I mean, anything.”

“Deal,” Gianne grinned.

Her cousin stepped down and gave a mocking gesture of welcome as she took a few steps up the stairs. The man followed Gianne with a frowned look upon his face. Ivelis could practically hear the gears turning in his head as he tried to figure how a person was going to open a door that even two can’t. Especially a person with her magic drained. When her palm had hit the round door handle, she stared at it and said, “You really should have learned.” With a mischievous chortle, she pulled it.

The door creaked as it steadily swung open.

Light and heat poured from the gap just big enough to fit her. An appeased sigh was all she offered as she stepped further into a hallway, the delicious warmth hugging her even more. She turned to see two faces with different emotions, one was surprised and the other was regretting. “Well, unless you want to freeze outside tonight, I suggest getting in because there’s a meeting that requires my presence tomorrow. Sleeping in a bed is better than on a rock.”

The two of them silently treaded on her heels and groaned audibly when they closed the door. They caught up to her quickly then started to move in a leisurely pace.

“Warmth, finally. How long have we been travelling? My back and legs feel like a thousand horses trampled on them.”

Thael and her both couldn’t help but agree with her cousin’s statement. It has been hours since they've started their journey and hardly ever did they stop to rest, only a few times when someone had to relieve themselves.

He hummed an agreement as he walked with them, deeply astonished by the hallway. The carpet laid on the floor had writings that matched stories sewn into tapestries that hung from the entrance until the end of the hallway, several paintings sat between each of them. They were all the same sizes, no bigger than her body but each masterpiece held a significant difference that even without the labels one would know. She couldn’t blame him, it was beautiful.

Her cousin drew her brows together and asked, “This seems rather new to you. Surely you’ve been here before?” Thael shook his head and even Ivelis was surprised. He defended the court on several occasions when her cousin had started talking about them along the way to the palace. For someone so respectful of the court’s business, the man was quite oblivious about those he served.

“I’ve been dispatched on several missions for The Grand Court but oddly enough, this is my first time in their domain. These paintings are magnificent. I've never met them but it's not about the person in it, but the work itself. Whoever painted these must have done the High Seaters justice because... They’re breathtaking.” He continued looking around. Fascination seemed to have taken over him.

For some unknown reason, she found herself saying, “Some of these were Gianne’s. It took her hours to even get one face right.” Ivelis smiled at the memory.

“Were?” Thael questioned.

Her eyes darkened. “Yes, were. After she finished all, if I remember correctly 5 pieces, The Grand Court only threw her a few bags of gold and jewelry then took her rights over them. She never bothered trying to take them back.”

“Why not?”

When she didn’t bother to answer, Gianne thrusted out a finger, “See the marks carved on the wall?”

“The ones surrounding them?”

Her cousin snapped her fingers,“Exactly. Those are powerful spells casted by one of the Vision Sisters, a blind witch called Ultrid. It’s to stop people from stealing the artworks. ”

Thael drew in breath.

Before he even began, Gianne had already figured what he wanted to ask and decided to spare his effort, “She’s a Mage of Honour, a court’s highest authority of power. Each court must have one or else they’re not recognized as a court. In this one, Sister Ultrid occupies that seat. It’s been like that for more than a century. They live long, you know?” She winked, uttering the last words with a hushed but satirical voice.

He gently bobbed his head.

Ivelis remembered the first time she had met with the witch. Her sixteen-year-old self almost emptied her stomach when she saw a woman with silver thread stitched onto her eye sockets holding out an arm for a handshake. Not once did it ever cross her mind that three years later she would be dealing with her circle of company again. The witch was beautiful even with the sewn eyes.

Nevertheless, everyone knew the being was deadly just as much as she was lovely. She has heard very few stories from those who survived the end of her wrath. A rare experience for most of the time, they never live to tell the tale.

A clamorous scream rang loudly in her ears as the-

Ivelis blinked the scene away.

“I heard she used both her and the court member’s blood to paint them red. How she got the spiteful pigs to agree, I don’t know. What I do know is if any unauthorised person tries to even touch the painting, a paralysed body awaits them.”

“And then they’ll get healed, only to get tortured in the dungeons,” Ivelis breathed.

Her face revealed nothing but the nostalgic tone suggested different things.

Silence fell upon them as they were nearing another entrance. Apparently, the corridor led to a large space where staircases, some more doors and hallways awaited them. A servant appeared not long after to which she also greeted not so gently, who then escorted them to their room. When they arrived at the chamber prepared for them, the servant apologised as soon as he saw that they were only two beds.

“Apologies, milady. The Masters did not inform us of a third and… male guest. I will prepare anoth-”

“No need. Just make your choice, do you want your mouth or your eyes shut? Permanently.”

He understood the message even without looking at her face and bowed before leaving. Thael laughed.

“You love to threaten people, don’t you?”

She shrugged.

Ivelis shut the door but made no move to lie down or sit. Instead, she leaned against it with crossed arms while muttering numbers. Gianne only sighed as she plopped down on a bed, as if she was used to that particular behaviour. Thael found his way to a seat near the fireplace, stretching his limbs with a low sigh. He opened his mouth but she held a hand up, and slowly curled her fingers until only the index finger remained straight. Ivelis moved it to her lips, silencing him.

He dipped his chin, baffled but still obeyed.

With a tone lower than the fire crackling, she continued her little countdown. 30 seconds had passed and when the last number left her lips, there was a single knock on the door. Ivelis was already whirling by then, so fast he couldn’t catch up. She whipped open the door and said, “Ah.”

The servant from earlier could be seen standing with his mouth hung open, agaped. On one hand, there was a note while the other was still in the air. Most likely ready to knock again. A second late, but she caught him anyway.

She arched her brow, “I thought you chose something else?”

He sank to his knees, “Milady-”

Unwilling to hear whatever excuse he had to offer, Ivelis snatched the parchment then proceeded to slam the door in his face. Her ears had heard them all before. The cunning lies they were trained to stutter out if they were ever caught in their “errands”. She scoffed when she read the note.

“Looks like our little friend let it slip that we brought an extra guest. I honestly don’t know whether I should feel flattered or threatened that the Primed wrote this himself.”

Thael tilted his head in confusion.

“The leader of the members in this court,” her cousin offered.

She handed the note to Gianne before deciding to lay on an unoccupied bed. Her cousin then began to read loudly, “Dear Miss Ecawil, it has been brought to my attention that you have an unexpected guest brought along. I deeply apologise for the lack of accommodation you might have found. I assure you that we will see to it that his needs be attended to accordingly. Sincerely, Mag-Zule.”

She crumpled up the paper.

“So, in conclusion, he’s just asking how Thael is still alive and somehow convinced you to allow him to follow you here. Adding some assurance that they’ll gladly kill him for you. Did I get anything wrong?”

She met the green eyes with a confirming nod then turned to Thael.

“Wished you were here for tea now, hm?”

He grinned, “It’s never too late for tea.”