Once Asher had finished his conversation with the High Prince, Donvath asked him to hand the sending stone back to Bordan and wait a moment before heading out. The truthseeker spent a brief minute listening to Donvath without saying a word, before thanking him for his time and finally putting the artifact away.

  “The High Prince asked me to inform you that as of now, you are being given the status of ‘national asset,’” Bordan explained, crossing his arms and looking none too pleased about what he was saying. “It’s a unique title we rarely give out to people, but so long as you have it, you are exempt from certain laws in the eyes of the truthseekers, and every member of the program will be made aware of such. Once you meet with the High Prince in the capital, you will be provided with details of precisely what this status entails. Normally, that would come with a writ you will be able to show people that explains your new status, but he mentioned he is planning to do something rather different for you. While I don’t know how your unique designation will work, I should also warn you that if you attempt to flaunt this power, the full might of the truthseekers will be brought to bear to take you down. It is something that has only happened twice in the entire history of our kingdom, and I encourage you to read up about the historical events to deter you from getting any ideas.”

  “I’m just glad to know you’ll no longer be trying to cleave me in half every time I turn around,” Asher admitted, wondering how on earth he got to this point. He’d certainly never predicted his time spent as an assassin going after other assassins would result in him being invited to meet with the High Prince, or being given what was essentially a rolling, royal pardon.

  It sounded like only a select few people would ever even know about it of course, but that was fine with him. He didn’t really have much to fear from regular people anyway.

  “For now,” Bordan said bluntly, looking like he very much wished he could still just cut him in half and be done with all this. “I’ll admit I’m not pleased by this turn of events, but as is only natural, I will obey the High Prince’s decrees.”

  “So why is he getting this status in the first place?” Clare asked, looking quizzically between him and Bordan. “Does this have something to do with how he managed to kill Loratta in the first place, regardless of her Slime element? You still never explained that to me.”

  “Until you graduate from your apprenticeship, there are certain levels of clearance still above you,” was all Bordan said, shaking his head as Clare began whining and trying to pester him to tell her. Turning to look at him, Bordan continued. “Unless you have any other business with us, would you mind taking your leave? I prefer going to sleep and waking up early whenever possible.”

  “Oh, sure,” he said, realizing if he wanted he could simply walk out the door without having to slip into the astral and run like he normally did. “Uh… thanks for letting me use your sending stone.”

  “Please, don’t mention it,” Bordan said, the hard expression on his face telling him the truthseeker truly meant that. Grabbing his still-complaining apprentice by the collar, Bordan dragged her back into the other room, leaving Asher standing in the truthseekers’ manor entirely alone.

  What a strange turn of events, he thought, looking around. He briefly contemplated sticking around and trying to take advantage of being in Bordan’s home without the man trying to kill him, before he thought better of it. Getting a pass from being hunted down by the nation’s truthseekers was more than he could have ever hoped for. Doing anything to put that at jeopardy was probably not the smartest idea.

  Instead, Asher decided to do just as Bordan asked. Focusing on his mark on Samantha, the world shifted around him, and he suddenly found himself once more back in their tavern in Poltar. Samantha and Brian were both sleeping soundly in their beds, and Asher couldn’t help but smile at their peaceful faces. Utilizing Astral Dip to get ready for bed himself without waking either of them up, Asher slipped under the covers beside Samantha, and his smile only grew as she rolled over to nestle up against him without waking up. It didn’t take him long to follow her into the realm of slumber, and for what had to be the hundredth time, he promised himself he’d continue doing whatever it took to protect the two of them.

  Come morning, Asher braced himself for his explanation of what he’d learned from Donvath and the tough sell of trying to convince Samantha to allow Brian to potentially join the truthseeker program as an auxiliary member. He waited for Brian to run downstairs for an early breakfast before taking the plunge.

  Yet to his surprise, the conversation didn’t go at all how he’d expected.

  “You spoke with the High Prince personally?” Samantha repeated after he finished talking, pushing herself further up in bed as she stared at him. Whatever sleep had been left in her eyes had vanished the moment Asher began his explanation. “Are you serious?”

  “Bordan doesn’t really strike me as the type for practical jokes, so yeah, I’m pretty serious,” he nodded. “Not to mention Donvath sounded identical to the man I spoke with through Sefta’s sending stone.” Asher felt as though Samantha wasn’t focusing on the more important part of the conversation, before realizing he’d basically just nonchalantly told her he’d called up the president and had a pleasant chat with them. He supposed even after everything they’d been through, shock like that might take a moment to get passed. “I know it’s crazy that we spoke, but more importantly, he wants to put Brian in the truthseeker program. Even as an auxiliary member, I know it’s a tall ask-”

  “Asher, I think your own experiences have swayed your view of the truthseekers somewhat,” Samantha snorted, stopping him with a raised hand. “Just like every kid dreams of having the Lightning element at some point or another, they also dream of becoming a truthseeker. Realms, you literally played thieves versus seekers with Brian just the other day. It’s probably the most popular kids’ game we have.”

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  “But they’re basically indoctrinated into becoming tools of the kingdom,” Asher argued, before remembering he was trying to convince Samantha this was a good idea, not persuade her otherwise.

  “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to protect one’s home,” Samantha said gently, laying a hand on his cheek. “I now know thanks to everything you told me about Bordan and meeting Audrey myself that the truthseekers aren’t quite the heroes I always thought they were, and just like the rest of us, they’re far from perfect. But they still do whatever they can to protect the kingdom. You said once she realized you guys stood no chance at winning, Audrey sacrificed herself to give you a chance to escape the greater demon, right?”

  “She did,” he admitted with a sigh. “Sorry, I guess I didn’t realize I was the one more concerned about putting Brian into the truthseeker program between the two of us.”

  “From what you told me, I don’t think there’s any chance of Brian ending up like the truthseekers anyway,” she reassured him. “For one, they’re not going to be trying to give him one of their weird origin elements. Not to mention you were told we’d be able to regularly visit him, something they’ve never done for any of their program members before. If at any point it starts to look like he’s getting brainwashed or not having a very good time, we’ll get him out of there. You certainly don’t have to worry about fighting me on that.”

  “Yeah… Yeah, that makes sense,” he nodded, realizing that Samantha had already thought through the whole idea while he was stuck harping on his general dislike of the truthseekers. “Well. I suppose at this point, it’s all up to Brian.”

  “We might as well go ask him then,” Samantha said, giving him a tender kiss before stretching and finally getting out of bed. “...Though I have an inkling of how this conversation is going to go.”

  Once they were dressed and ready for the day, the two of them headed down into the tavern proper to grab some breakfast. Brian was already halfway through his, and he waved as they joined him at the table.

  “Took you guys long enough!” he complained in between bites of his buttered roll. “I want to go check out more of the city!”

  “I’ll join you in a few minutes,” Samantha smiled, wetting her hand with Fountain and trying to press down some of Brian’s crazy bed-head, much to his annoyance. “But before that, Asher and I need to run something by you really quick. It’s about the end of our caravan journey.”

  “Oh…” Brian muttered, giving up on his attempts at fending Samantha off as he lowered his eyes to the table. “...Am I no longer going to the royal guard academy?”

  His heart breaking at the sight of Brian so dejected, Asher dove straight into the heart of the matter. “You were invited to enter the truthseeker program. As an auxiliary member.” By the High Prince himself, Asher had to stop himself from adding. Keeping that last part a secret probably wasn’t the worst idea for now.

  Brian blinked, rubbing a finger in his ear as he stared at Asher, as if he didn’t quite understand what he was hearing. “...What?”

  “Long story short, you were invited to enter the truthseeker program, though as a special member,” Asher tried to explain. “They’re willing to train you and help you get whatever origin element you want. You probably won’t become a full-fledged truthseeker, but you’d most likely be able to become some sort of ‘junior truthseeker’ or something by the end of it, if that’s what you want. Samantha and I would still be able to visit you every so often as well. It’s even safer than the royal guard academy, so there’s no chance of demons or assassins or anything getting to you within the program. If you’re interested, we’ll head to the capital after passing through Abingdon and drop you off there. What do you think?”

  Brian’s half-eaten roll fell to the table as he seemed to forget how his hands worked for a moment. The twelve-year-old’s jaw was fully open, and he turned to look at Samantha, as if confirming Asher wasn’t playing some cruel joke on him.

  “Like Asher said, we’d still be able to visit you,” Samantha smiled, almost managing to hide her nervousness behind all her excitement for her brother. “What do you think, Brian? Want to become a truthseeker?”

  “Yes!” he literally shouted, leaping out of his chair and practically vibrating with excitement at the thought of becoming something akin to a truthseeker one day. “Are you kidding?! That’s the coolest thing ever! I can’t wait!”

  “I kinda figured that would be your reaction,” Samantha giggled, waving her apologies toward the other morning patrons that were still rubbing the sleep out of their eyes. “Asher said they would put together a personalized training program for you to help you get whatever element you want. Think you finally have it picked out yet?”

  “Yes!” Brian said, nodding rapidly as he took his seat again and tore into his bun once more. “I want the Bow element! One hundred percent!”

  “Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Samantha chided Brian as Asher leaned forward.

  “Are you sure about your choice? I know you love archery, but the truthseekers might be able to help you get a truly unique element if you work hard enough,” Asher pointed out.

  “I’m sure,” Brian nodded, after swallowing his mouthful of bread under Samantha’s narrow gaze. “Your elements are super cool, but I don’t need anything fancy. I love my bow, and I want to become the best archer in the entire world.”

  “Then this is about the best first step we could ask for,” Samantha admitted, clearly glad the conversation had gone so well, even if she’d already suspected as much. “Well then, I suppose that settles it.”

  “Yep,” Asher agreed, reaching across the table and taking her hand in his own, earning a warm smile from the hunter. “We ride with Brant all the way to the capital and enlist Brian in the truthseeker program.”

  Discord