She couldn’t believe she had spent so much time locked in her room and in the library, studying and honing her skills, when she could have lived like this, following the wind from the very beginning.

She sensed someone approaching and let out a sigh. Peace never lasts very long, as they say, Selen thought when she saw the duke climbing the hill. He had been strangely silent during their journey, but she already knew it was only the calm before the storm.

“We need to talk,” he said upon arriving.

“I’m listening.”

Two awkward minutes of silence followed, during which the duke looked at her as if trying to decipher the course of her thoughts.

“I thought that above all we were travel partners, so why doesn’t my opinion matter when it comes to accepting help from that complete stranger?” he finally asked.

“It’s not just a matter of opinion. We need his help.”

“Explain to me why someone else wouldn’t do the job. There are many people in this city who might be able to help us better. As far as I know, we’re not even sure that man is truly on our side.”

“My question is why bother looking for someone else and risk getting spotted when we already have him?”

The duke remained silent, and Selen truly couldn’t understand what was going on in his mind. She had always had trouble deciphering people’s expressions and emotions.

“In any case, if he isn’t our ally, it’s still better to keep an eye on him. You saw it yourself—he’s no ordinary man,” Selen continued.

Just as she was about to walk past him and effectively end the conversation, he grabbed her arm. The wind blew a strand of Selen’s black hair—its two-toned color once again visible—across the duke’s face as she turned toward him.

“There’s something else, isn’t there? You checked Rose’s location this morning, and you seemed more troubled than anything.”

So he had guessed, Selen thought.

“We’ll talk about it when we reach Puerto Rosa and you’ve calmed down.”

The duke tightened his grip on her arm to the point where Selen was certain it would leave a bruise.

“If it concerns my sister, then I want to know immediately.”

“Whether I tell you now or later won’t change anything, but know that the best thing for us is to have someone who knows the region well so we can act quickly.”

“If something has happened to her, tell me. I’d rather know now than—”

“Her location still appears on the map. She’s alive…”

The duke stared into her eyes for a long minute, as if he didn’t know whether he could believe her or not. He finally released her arm and walked away without a word.

“It’s tense between you two, I see.”

Selen turned her head toward a nearby tree and noticed Noah leaning against it.

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t spy on my conversations in the future,” Selen told him.

“I was just coming to offer my company when I happened to overhear your exchange. Nothing intentional,” he replied, raising both hands.

Selen didn’t believe him, of course.

“We should get back on the road,” Selen said as she walked away.

An hour later they arrived in Puerto Rosa. They decided to stop at an inn and settled in a private lounge to discuss the next steps.

“I understand that you want his help, but for what comes next I’d prefer that it be just the two of us discussing it,” the duke said to Selen.

Selen glanced at Noah. He smiled at her.

“Very well. I’ll be back in about two hours. I imagine that by then you’ll realize you need my help.”

Selen wanted to ask him what he meant by that, but he immediately left, followed by the man who accompanied him.

The duke pulled out his own map and spread it out on the table before them.

“I’m listening now. Where is Rose?”

Selen swallowed with difficulty. She didn’t know how the duke would react.

“She’s here,” she said, pointing to a spot on the map.

The duke violently grabbed her hand before throwing her a look filled with doubt and anger.

“You said she was alive!” he shouted, beside himself.

“She is. Otherwise the spell wouldn’t work anymore.”

“How can a living person be in the middle of the sea?”

“Maybe she’s on a ship, but I don’t know.”

Selen sighed.

“Listen. Let’s gather information about this place because since yesterday her location hasn’t moved from that point, which may suggest that it’s the final destination of the heretics.”

The duke ran a hand angrily through his hair.

“If I end up discovering that you’ve been lying to me from the start, believe me, no power and no place will be able to protect you,” he said while looking straight into her eyes.

They left the inn, and the smell of the sea and the cries of seagulls in the distance welcomed them again. The city was very lively, and the noise of merchants mingled with that of children running and laughing through the streets. They reached the port and headed toward some men sitting nearby.

“Excuse me, gentlemen. We would like some information about a place,” the duke told them.

So he could be polite when he needed to, Selen thought.

One of the men laughed and cast a lewd glance at Selen.

“I don’t know about you, but the pretty brunette there—I can help her in several ways,” the man replied, bursting into laughter along with his friends.

“Well, since it’s like that…” the duke said as he took something out of his cape.

For a few seconds Selen feared it would be a sword. She relaxed when she saw the two gold coins he held in his hand. A real fortune for common folk.

“Whoever gives me useful information can have these two coins,” he said with a crooked smile.

The power of money worked spectacularly on the three men. They even went as far as to apologize to Selen for their poor manners.

“Ask us whatever you want,” they said in unison.

The duke took out his map and pointed to the spot Selen had shown him.

“We’d like to know what is located here.”

One of the sailors looked at him in horror while the other two began reciting prayers.

“It’s a cursed place. You shouldn’t try to find out what’s there,” one of the men replied.

“Why would that place be cursed?” the duke asked.

Selen knew sailors were naturally superstitious people, but weren’t they taking it a bit too far? One of them had even taken out a statue of the saint and was clutching it tightly. If it were up to her, she would have snatched it and thrown it into the sea.

“If you give us the coins, we’ll tell you.”

“You’ll get them, but tell us everything you know.”

The sailor glanced around before urging them to come closer.

“You’re lucky you ran into us, because if it had been someone else, it might’ve ended badly. That place is known by every sailor who sails in the empire’s waters as somewhere to avoid. Every ship that tried to get there faster and took the shortcut through that area instead of making the detour like everyone else never made it to port.”

The two other sailors nodded to support their friend’s words.

“How long has this story been around?” the duke asked.

“For a very long time. At least, I’ve known it since I was a kid. Many people here have lost friends or relatives because of that place, which is why it’s a sensitive subject—especially when it’s brought up by strangers.”

“Does anyone know what’s there?” Selen asked.

The sailor looked at her as if she were simple-minded.

“Of course not. I told you it’s a cursed place. The rare survivors who jumped into the water say the same thing.”

“You know survivors?” the duke asked.

The sailor shrugged.

“Most of them went mad or are already dead. If any are left, I don’t know.”

“Do you think someone would agree to take us there if we paid them a large sum?” the duke asked.

The sailor let out a sarcastic laugh.

“You rich people think everything can be bought, but in your opinion, how much is a person’s life worth?”

Selen and the duke returned to the inn with their morale at rock bottom. They had approached several people who owned boats, and despite all the money the duke was willing to offer, they refused instantly. When they entered the private lounge they had rented, they found Noah sitting on a chair with a chessboard in front of him.

“So, how was your little stroll?” Noah asked.

“You shut up,” the duke replied.

Selen suddenly remembered the words Noah had spoken before leaving. He had known they would fail—but how? What did he know about their objective? Who was he? So many questions spun in Selen’s mind.

“You knew,” Selen said, standing in front of Noah.

He placed the chess piece he had been twirling in his hand onto the table.

“In a way,” Noah replied.

“Who are you?” Selen asked.

She was ready to kill him here and now if the answer he gave did not satisfy her.

“I’m like this piece,” he said, pointing to the chess piece he had just placed down. “The pawn is the only piece on the chessboard that can become something else entirely. Whenever it has the chance, it can transform and become whoever it wants.”

“What does that mean?” Selen asked.

“It means that an hour ago I was nothing more than the unwanted companion of your journey, and tonight I am the only person capable of helping you. That’s what it means.”

“Speak if you don’t want to die,” the duke said, already drawing his sword.

For the first time Selen agreed with him. If necessary, she would get rid of this snake right here. Noah’s condescending little smile was starting to irritate her. He seemed to know even their most secret motivations.

“Why resort to violence right away? Didn’t we have an agreement? My help in exchange for dinner, wasn’t it?” he asked with a smile.