The city was draped in ribbons, flags, even live flowers. People in the streets were laughing, talking, singing, dancing. They sat right on the stones, eating meat. It was hot, as if it had just come off the spit. They drank wine. A lot. A whole lot of wine.
Merchants and craftsmen set up tents, held fairs, sold everything imaginable. Some things were handmade, others brought from nearby castles. My eyes were overwhelmed. Things. Faces. The smells of food. Sharp, greasy.
They pulled me by the hands. Now into a dance, now toward the stalls. Offered me something salty, crispy. Laughed. Played around like children.
I had doubts when I agreed to go with them. I had promised not to cause any trouble. Technically, I hadn't—yet.
After another round of dancing, spinning first clockwise, then against it, I stopped. I signaled: pause. Kay and Lian didn't notice. They kept leaping across the stone square, laughing as if it would never end.
The heaviness left after saying goodbye to Blake was slowly fading. Here. In the noise. In the unnaturally alive crowd.
Something soft and fragrant landed on my head. A wreath.
Lily sat down beside me. Silently watched the others. Even if she seemed cold, her actions said otherwise. First the gift. Now the wreath.
"Can I ask you something?" I asked carefully.
"Go ahead," she replied lightly, as if all her coldness had evaporated.
"Do you know about marks?" I tried to speak calmly. They were still kids. I didn't know whether anyone had told them about it.
"The seal of love?" she clarified.
Something fluttered in my chest. Jealousy again?
"Yes," I tried to keep my emotions in check.
"Yes, we've already studied it. In about nine years we'll be able to receive it," she said just as calmly, without taking her eyes off Kay.
"Can you tell me about them? Everything you know." The anxiety wouldn't leave me.
"Many say it's a blessing of magic. Others believe it's a curse. Magic lives inside us. It becomes part of being. Even if it was placed into the body artificially."
She turned and slapped her palm against her chest, as if pointing to herself.
"As soon as magic enters, it fuses with us, with our feelings, with the body. That's why there's cleansing. Healing through the bed."
She spoke as if it were nothing unusual. And I blushed every time it came to this part.
"When we're happy or experiencing bliss, the magic gets stronger."
I'd heard that already, but didn't interrupt.
"A seal is a bit different. But it's also directly connected to feelings. When a person truly loves, with their whole heart, genuinely, the magic saturates and sends a mark. A symbol of that person. As if to show what they feel. That it's love."
She turned to me and looked carefully, without pressure.
"You're asking about Adel's mark, aren't you?"
"Yes," I admitted, slightly embarrassed. "I just want to understand how they work. And why is it a curse?"
That was the strangest part. Even the manual said that sometimes adults take the risk and remove the magical crystal. Because of love.
"When someone receives a seal toward another, like Adel… She received Blake's mark. The Moon. But he didn't. Which means it's one-sided love," Lily said seriously, almost like at an exam.
"And it's a curse because Adel can't touch anyone. In a romantic sense," she added almost offhandedly. "Even something like family. Or just a kiss. It's no longer possible for her. With anyone except Mister Blake."
I didn't understand right away.
"The seal doesn't allow it. Her body will reject it. Even if someone tries to force her—her body won't obey. She won't be able to. That's why they call it a curse.
Imagine: you fall in love. A seal appears. But he's with someone else. And you stay alone for the rest of your life."
"A seal lasts a lifetime?" I didn't hide my shock.
"Yes. It stays with us until the end of our days. Just like true love," Lily continued. Her voice was even, calm, as if she were reading straight from a textbook.
"And if the love is mutual, a double seal appears. Let's say, for example, if Mister Blake had a seal toward Adel too, then they both would have the Moon. Only intertwined with another symbol. With a cross, for instance."
She paused for a moment, carefully choosing her words.
"I don't know Miss Adel's symbol, that's just an example. But if there's only one symbol—it means the love is one-sided."
"So Blake doesn't have feelings for her?" I asked cautiously.
"Why not? Maybe he does. But probably not the kind that brings a seal," Lily smiled.
"So Adel can touch only Blake, and he…"
"Anyone," Lily cut in. "He officially declared that he doesn't have a seal."
"Officially?" I repeated, puzzled.
"Yeah. His personal Guardian at the front also manifested the Moon seal. There were rumors for a long time that he was planning to marry. Either the Guardian or Adel. But he denied it all. Said the war was the priority. And that only after it ended would he think about family matters."
I saw that Lily seemed to enjoy how I struggled to hide my nervousness whenever Blake was mentioned.
"How often do mutual seals appear?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
"In most cases, they're mutual. Very rarely, like with Mister Blake, they're one-sided," she laughed and then added, "Mister Blake, from what I've heard, shows a lot of interest in his Guardians. That's just rumors, of course. From the older ones."
"And how do you kids know so much about adult life?" I scolded her lightly, noticing how much she enjoyed my reaction.
"They tell us about seals from early childhood. So we can be careful with our feelings. So we learn to control them and choose wisely. The earliest seal appeared at seventeen. It was one-sided. Everyone blamed it on teenage impulsiveness. That's why they train us from a young age. To control infatuation."
She smirked again and nodded toward Kay.
"Which is something he clearly doesn't manage. Sometimes I think he'll be the first to end up with an unrequited seal."
Lily laughed. And her smile—open, bright, unguarded—hit straight to the core.
So sincere.
So honest.
So funny.
It was the first time I saw her so free.
Ada's thoughts about the festival floated up in my mind.
Even for a moment, we could feel that life still existed.
"What do you think, is the seal a gift or a curse?" I asked Lily.
I was looking at Kay, but the same question kept turning in my mind.
"I don't know. I'm not planning to fall in love. I want to devote myself to defending the farms. The ones outside the castles. They're under protection, yes, but not as strong as here. There are constant raids by dark mages out there. They need soldiers," she said calmly, as if she had already laid out her future on a neat shelf.
That didn't comfort me.
I understood that Blake had no seal toward Adel, but still.
She would always be closer to him.
Until I found the courage to speak about what had happened between us before.
I felt the weight of those thoughts again and decided to shake them off.
After all, it was a festival.
A rare one.
I wanted to forget, if only a little.
Lian ran up and tugged on my hand.
"Come on. Lily, grab Kay, I found a southern fruit. The one that rarely appears around here."
Lily called Kay. He hesitated, but followed her. And we all went with Lian.
We passed one vendor stall after another until he led us to a table.
There, on dark fabric, lay a bright orange fruit.
"Tangerines," he said. "They're nearly impossible to find now. Must cost a fortune."
"Here, take some, try them," the seller offered us slices on a small plate.
Without hesitation, I took one and bit into it.
The fruit was juicy, with a slight sourness and sweetness.
Invigorating. Alive in flavor.
"Oh, that's so good," I exclaimed.
Kay silently reached into his pocket for his last coins.
"No," I stopped him. "You don't need to give away your last. You've already treated me to so much today."
I closed his fingers over the coins, pressing his hand gently.
The wind brushed through my hair and around my waist.
Blake.
I turned instinctively and began searching for him with my eyes.
Through the crowd.
Among tall mages, broad-shouldered soldiers, ordinary people who looked like children next to them.
"We need to go," I said to the others.
"Did something happen?" Lian asked.
"Nothing serious. I just... I think it's time for me to head back. It's getting dark."
We'd been walking all day, and I hadn't even noticed how time flew.
Sunset was coming quickly.
Blake had probably finished all his duties by now.
And noticed I was missing.
"How much are they?" came a familiar military voice from behind.
By the kids' smiles, I knew right away it was him.
I turned around slowly.
I was prepared for an angry look.
But he was calm.
He wore a heavy black cloak with a hood, almost completely covering his face and body.
But he was standing so close that I still caught his gaze.
He was looking at the vendor and calmly paying for two piles of tangerines.
The first bag the vendor handed to the kids. The second to me.
I couldn't move.
Fear and shame pinned me in place.
Blake took my bag as if nothing had happened.
"You need to return. It's getting dark," he said quietly, as if continuing my own thoughts.
"Yes yes yes," the children chirped and pulled me along toward the inner walls.
His calmness was even more frightening.
Maybe because of the kids.
He probably didn't know yet that they had already figured out my secret.
The kids walked ahead, cheerfully discussing whom they'd share the tangerines with.
First on their list were their favorite professors, then they named students I didn't even know.
Blake walked beside me, on my right, just behind.
Almost like a guard, ready at any moment to grab me and hide me from the world.
As soon as we crossed the gates of the inner wall, I said goodbye to the kids.
Blake only nodded in silence at their cheerful thanks for the tangerines.
We headed toward the room.
For the first time, I desperately wished Adel would appear on the training grounds or somewhere along the way and call him off to some important business. Even for a minute. Even for a while.
That maddening calmness was terrifying.
Even his winds were unusually still.
Usually, when he was near, I could feel them around me. A light motion, a presence.
But now I felt nothing.
As soon as we crossed the threshold of the room, I turned.
And there it was.
The furious silver gaze of the High Mage.
"You promised," he said in his steady military tone, handing me the tangerines he had carried the whole way. "Do you even realize what I thought when I didn't find you in the inner courtyard? I searched the entire castle, the barracks, and the academy."
Each word he spoke was matched with a step.
He was closing in, pressing with every movement, cornering me against the wall.
"I said I wouldn't cause trouble," I blurted out, frightened.
"You don't understand. This could be dangerous," he finally raised his voice.
His face was filled with genuine concern.
"You said the walls are protected. That there's no dark force here. Or is that no longer true?" I tried to stay calm, steadying my voice, though inside I was trembling.
"For you, it could be dangerous. How can you not understand that?" he shouted.
"I was just lonely," I finally burst out. "I sit inside these four walls all the time. I'm so lonely. It's unbearable when you and Adel go off to events or whatever it is. When the others go to a festival. And me?"
Maybe it sounded childish, but it was the truth.
"You have Adel. You've never known this loneliness. She's always nearby. Or someone else. But I'm always alone."
My voice was rising.
"Loneliness eats me alive. I'm suffocating in that room."
"I told you already. Adel is my right hand. It's normal that she's with me. I am the High Mage."
"And I want someone to be with me too. Why is it allowed for you, and not for me? Maybe I want to find someone of my own. But how can I, if all I have is that room and books on magic I don't even have?"
I saw Blake's face darken.
Which meant an order was coming. No discussion.
"Right now, you can't trust anyone," he said firmly.
"Why?" I stared at him in disbelief, refusing to back down. "Or is it only you who gets to have affairs with your Guardians while I'm supposed to sit in that room and wait? Wait for what?"
His winds lifted me slightly so that our eyes were level.
"It's dangerous for you to leave not just the inner walls, but even this room," his voice was ominous.
"Why?" I protested.
...
And then I understood.
"You haven't figured out what's going on. Have you?"
I looked straight into his silver eyes. They were darkening.
"Eiron was a fake. So was Sunny. And you have no idea what's happening. Is that right?"
He said nothing, which meant I was right.
"We have to warn the others if this is dangerous," I blurted. He still didn't put me down.
"This activity began after your awakening. That's why we think..."
He didn't finish, but I already knew.
"It's aimed at me. Only me," I finished for him.
"Yes," Blake said calmly.
"Fine. I get it if they want to kill me. Because I'm the chosen one, as you say. But then why didn't Sunny do it? Why didn't the fake Eiron even try? Why drug me with an aphrodisiac? It makes no sense."
"We can't say anything for certain yet," he replied evenly. But I could feel it. He was hiding something.
"And so you locked me up. You think that'll save me?" I accused, refusing to stop. "What guarantees they won't get to me even in your room?"
"They won't. That's exactly why I'm asking you not to leave. At least until the priestess departs. After that, someone will arrive. He'll help."
He finally set me down on the floor and, with a familiar motion, ran his thumb across my lips. I pulled away sharply.
"Keeping it all secret, locking me in. It's not a solution."
"This isn't up for discussion," he said shortly. "If I have to, I'll do it by force."
A gust of wind wrapped around my waist.
It was a reminder that he could lift me and lock me away at any moment.
There was nothing I could do.
"But right now, I'm asking nicely."
I brushed his winds away.
And saw a flicker of surprise on his face.
"You can't hide me and keep me caged forever.
Better to face the danger than keep trembling in a cell."
I turned and walked into my room.
Didn't give him a chance to reply.
But I took the tangerines with me.
Let at least something remain.