“Are you crazy?” Ash’s exasperated voice cut through the dead silence. Henry’s eyes were wide and several others had gasped. Everyone was staring at the mage in shock. “Do you have any idea what you’re saying?”

  With a face filled with defiance, the second mage lifted his chin and bore his glare into Ash. “I know exactly what I’m saying.”

  “No, I don’t think you do,” Cyrus said with a cold, disapproving frown. “A mage duel is not some back-alley bar fight over whose side is better in a sporting event. The amount of magic energy expended can easily injure those without magic ability.”

  “There are also documented cases where excessive surges of magic energy cause a backlash around the surrounding area,” Soraya added from her seat, in an icy voice. “Several of those well documented cases involve deaths, especially of babies and young children whose small bodies can’t handle the immense pressure.”

  The horrific case seemed to snap the entire restaurant out of their stunned silence. Hateful glares were sent towards the second mage, making him almost take a half step back.

  Ash’s face was twisted with disgust as he shook his head. “I refuse.”

  Henry heard a few people release the breaths they were holding.

  Mage duels were rare, but messy ordeals. It was as much a battle of ability and magic power as it was a battle of egos.

  When one mage challenged another, the other party had to agree. A location for the fight would be selected. In rural or lesser populated areas, mages would have their duel in a remote location with two or three witnesses. They would try to have their battle as far away from villages and towns as possible, as the stronger a mage, the more damage they could do.

  In urban areas, especially in places like Dareisol, which had numerous large cities, they were held in massive gladiatorial arenas that had layers upon layers of magic barriers meant to absorb excess magic before it was released into the crowd or spilled over into the surrounding city.

  In a way, urban duels were preferred as without those magic barriers out in the open, surrounding forests, mountains, and farmland could be razed, not to mention hurt anyone or anything living close enough to the battle that was unprepared to take a hit of magic.

  It was almost more dangerous for spectators and bystanders than it was for the mages, though there had been cases of mages fighting to the death, or at least near it.

  The ultimate goal was to have the opposing mage surrender and admit their inferiority.

  The entire debacle was to prove who was the better mage, after all. However, it was as if pride was a core value for mages, and they would not surrender unless absolutely forced to, let alone admit their inferiority. Some mages would rather die than surrender.

  Which didn’t make any sense, as if one died, that still meant that they were beaten by the other party and thus, lost the duel. At least with surrender, one would survive. One could live on and learn, and improve themselves.

  What’s the point of honor if you’re going to die so pathetically for your pride? He remembered Nera verbally destroying his first martial arts instructor when he was a child. You want a noble death? Die so others may live.

  Henry looked at his brother’s serious profile. He would bet his entire net worth that Ash could fight all the mages in Dareisol’s capital, at the same time, and win.

  He looked over to the two mages. He curled his lip and sneered. Who do you think you are?

  “You refuse?” The second mage let out a mocking laugh. He gave Ash a provoking look, arrogance coating his demeanor. “You sounded so confident earlier and now you’re afraid?”

  “I’m not afraid,” Ash replied, his shoulders relaxing. “This is a fairly large town, not far from the capital, but it doesn’t have a proper arena with barriers that will keep others safe. There are also farms as far as the eye can see. Having a battle in the open can ruin a farm, as well as injure people or worse.”

  The tall mage he’d pushed down earlier pushed himself up and began dusting off his purple robes. He shot Ash a challenging look of his own. “Those are just excuses.” He spat out his words.

  Ash narrowed his eyes. “Fine. Then they’re excuses.” He shrugged and tossed his arms up half-heartedly. “I still refuse.” He adjusted his seat next to the table and sat down.

  This was the silent signal for Henry and the others to return to their business, and ignore the two lunatics.

  Ash reached for the bowl of freshly pan-fried chips and began contentedly crunching. Their table tried their best to return to normal despite the two mages standing just a few steps away, watching them like predators.

  Henry took a sip of his beer.

  The tall mage’s jaw had dropped while the shorter one’s brows had shot up, almost touching the rim of his purple pointed hat. They stood in place, appearing as if they were at a loss for words.

  It seemed that they didn’t expect Ash to bluntly reject them.

  The second mage’s mouth flopped open and closed twice before he shook himself out of his stupor. He took a step forward as he scowled hatefully at Ash for Ash’s blase reaction.

  “Have you no pride as a mage?” he almost yelled above the murmurs of the restaurant. Ash didn’t look at him and continued to bit down on a chip, appearing to enjoy the sound of the crunch.

  “Of course, I do. Ask my brother,” Ash said. “He’ll be the first to tell you I’m not just proud, but arrogant.”

  Henry cocked his head in acknowledgement and then nodded. “He does say his genius is often terrifying.”

  “See?” Ash pointed at Henry with a chip before turning his head to look at the mages. “I’m not lacking in pride.”

  “But you won’t accept my challenge?” the second mage asked.

  Ash let out a heavy scoff of aversion. He tossed a half-eaten chip on his plate and looked at the mage with unimpressed eyes. “Why would I waste my time beating you into submission when my fire-roasted meat roll will be coming out of that kitchen soon?” He waved his hands towards the swinging double doors that led to the kitchen in the back of the room.

  “Beating me?” The second mage’s voice shot up into a near screech.

  “Perhaps you do live up to the arrogance when you speak like that,” the first mage said with disgust. “However, it only shows that you’re incapable of an actual fight!”

  “It’s one thing to create magic products, and even understand their complexities, but a mage duel is different.” As the second mage spoke, Henry wasn’t sure if he was trying to coax Ash into agreeing or trying to promote the mage duel to the other diners. “A mage duel is about power!”

  Ash returned to his chips. After putting the last of a chip into his mouth and taking long, drawn out chews, he finally spoke. He turned his head back to the mages to meet their hateful glares. “I have power.”

  It was a simple, and true, statement, but the other two mages laughed. They clutched their stomachs and leaned against each other, exaggerating their guffaws as if doing so would insult Ash.

  “Did you not see what he did at the manor?” Cyrus’ low voice spoke up once more. One hand was a fist on the table and his jaw was tight, restraining himself. “You two were there for months and could not figure out how to leave. Guillermo walked back and forth once, and a moment later he was able to release us.”

  “Aside from recognizing his ability, don’t you think you’re being ungrateful?” Farin asked, crossing her legs, and leaning back against her chair to look at the mages incredulously. “He saved your life.”

  “We were not in any danger!” The tall mage replied at once, but Farin rolled her eyes.

  “Yes, yes...no danger at all. You were nice and safe inside the painting, weren’t you?” she asked with a contemptuous smile. Nima and Soraya both muffled their snickering when she said it. Even Henry cracked a grin behind his beer.

  The tall mage’s face reddened once more. “It was only a matter of time before we understood the mechanics of it and escaped!”

  “You know that we were there with you, right?” Jasper lowered his cup and stared at them. “All you kept saying was that the Magic Tower would send someone for you, and in case you have already forgotten, no. They did not. The Adventurer’s Guild took over.”

  The second mage let out a bitter laugh. “Yes, the Adventurer’s Guild! And who did they send? You and this mage who couldn’t figure it out, either!” He pointed a finger at Cyrus, who didn’t bother to look at him.

  “I was unable to figure it out, but at least I am not delusional enough to think I can overpower the mage who did.”

  Another series of ‘oohs’ came from the surrounding diners. At this point, everyone had slowed their eating and drinking, instead focusing their attention to the ridiculous scene unfolding before them.

  “If he’s as strong as you say he is, then he should accept my challenge!” The second mage would not relent, and at this point, Henry was becoming annoyed. He glanced towards the kitchen doors. Their main dishes hadn’t arrived yet and he wanted to enjoy it.

  Ash took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. “You are serious in issuing me a challenge?”

  The mage lifted his chin. “Not only you, but this man, as well.”

  A cold glint flashed through Ash’s mercurial eyes. The gentle swatches of color seemed to darken before he pushed his chair back. It scraped against the wood floor before he rose from his seat to face the two mages.

  “You two are willing to have a mage’s duel in an area unsuitable for one, costing economic damage to the surrounding area, injury, and possibly death, to bystanders close enough to the vicinity of the battle, just to prove to some random teenager with magic that you, a forty-three-year-old mage with at least, what? One? Two decades at the Magic Tower? That you’re superior?” Ash let out a scoff and shook his head. “Are you chewing wormseed?”

  Henry grimaced. Wormseed was a plant seed, specifically a type of fleshy nut, which was hallucinogenic when chewed briefly, but the longer one chewed, the more it suppressed a person’s ability to feel their body, leaving the user in a dream-like situation where they could easily harm themselves. He heard it was one of the more addictive unprocessed drugs.

  “How dare you-”

  “I should ask you that, since you’re obviously not in the right state of mind!” The two mages hollered one after the other.

  “Not in the right state of mind?” Ash scowled. “I’m not the madman willing to risk the livelihoods, not to mention lives, of innocent people just to boost my own ego! I’m not going to hurt people who have nothing to do with me just to show I’m better than you. Unlike you, I’m not a raging sociopath!”

  Several people nodded, accepting Ash’s explanation and refusal to hurt others for his ego. The only people Ash was willing to hurt for his ego was the Magic Tower, and even then, it wouldn’t have gotten to where they were now if they had not tried to steal from and ruin Ash.

  “Then, are you saying you are willing to surrender before the duel even begins?” The tall mage looked almost ecstatic at the idea.

  Jasper squinted at them as if they were idiots with no awareness of what was happening “Do you not have any idea what surrendering even means? There is no duel to surrender in.”

  “Fine! Then let it be known that Guillermo von Sails is a coward of a mage!” The red-faced second mage threw his arms in the air and turned on his heel, his purple robes swaying behind him.

  “You can refuse the Magic Tower all you want,” the taller one said as he sent one last scathing glare at Ash. “They wouldn’t take someone with your character, anyway.”

  He turned around and Ash laughed.

  “Yeah, I couldn’t agree with you more,” he said as he returned to his seat. “People with good characters don’t join the Magic Tower.”

  Henry caught the mage stumbling before exiting the restaurant. He smirked, but looked towards his brother. “You know, now they’ll do their best to ruin the reputation of Guillermo von Sails.”

  “Tch.” Ash clicked his tongue. “They can do whatever they want. I don’t have time to deal with their desperate need for validation.”

  The doors to the kitchen swung open and two servers came out with large trays topped with several dishes. Asal told the servers who had what and as the main courses were placed in front of them, she spoke up.

  “You know, there is an arena in Soljek where magic duels take place,” Asal said.

  Ash scrunched his face and shook his head. “The arena isn’t cheap. Mages just can’t wander in and demand a time slot for a duel.”

  “Duels can last a matter of seconds,” Cyrus told them. “Or days. Basically, until one duelist surrenders, loses consciousness and collapses, or dies.”

  Farin shook her head. “You mages are so severe.”

  “For mages, strength and ability are the most important,” Cyrus replied. “Though fairly rare, mage duels do happen more than you think.”

  “Are mages really that arrogant that they’d fight to the death to prove they’re better than another mage?” Nima asked, looking from Cyrus to Ash and back.

  “It depends,” Cyrus answered truthfully. “For most mages I’ve met, no. Exerting so much energy in a battle for ego is a waste of magic energy and time.”

  “That being said,” Ash said, turning to Nima. “Magic Tower mages are encouraged to challenge unaffiliated, independent mages as a way to...keep them in line.”

  Nima frowned. “How is such an organization so popular?”

  “It has influence, resources, and wealth that translate into power,” Cyrus said. “There is no other magic organization in the world that can do what they do.”

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  “Yet.” Henry looked towards his brother. Ash had both hands around his meat wrap and had bitten into it. He was happily chewing with some sauce and meat juice in the corners of his mouth.

  He slowed his chewing and looked at his brother. He swallowed hard and nodded. “Right. Yet!”

  Cyrus looked at him curiously. “You know of another magic organization?”

  “Yes...and no,” Ash replied. “I know of one...but it’s one I’m creating.”

  Soraya craned her neck. “I know you hate the Magic Tower, but are you sure you want to spend all that time and energy fighting against it? The Magic Tower is centuries old. It’s well established with an impressive network, and has done many beneficial things, despite their greed...and arrogance...and all-around corruption.”

  Ash nodded. “As long as they’re the dominant magic organization, they will continue to suppress all unaffiliated mages, steal hard work and research, and produce inferior products that need to be recalled because they blew up in someone’s house.”

  “No one should go through what my brother and Cyrus went through with the products they developed that were stolen and counterfeited,” Henry said. He looked at Cyrus. “And no one should die because a magic tool was unaffordable.”

  Cyrus’ eyes reddened and nodded. “I was so angry and frustrated after their suppression...I ended up getting into adventuring.” He lifted his head and gave them a painful, but thoughtful smile. “I don’t regret doing so.”

  “You shouldn’t,” Ash said with a hint of arrogance in his voice once more. “Because adventuring led you to me.” He reached into his inner pocket and took out a small metal card with embossed and debossed words and logo. He placed it on the table and slid it across to Cyrus.

  Cyrus leaned forward and moved his hand over the card. He lifted it up and made out the text. “Moonflower?”

  Ash nodded. “A magic product research and development workshop and company,” he said. “I’d like to recruit you.”

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  Cyrus told them that he would think about it. Ash didn’t seem at all bothered or disappointed by this. Henry thought it was fair. Moonflower was headquartered in Carthage Harbor, whereas Cyrus and his party were from the bottom tip of East Iveria, across the Smiya Sea.

  The long way across the Smiya Sea.

  Cyrus was in his thirties and unmarried, as he’d spent most of his life adventuring with his close friends and cousins. Jasper revealed that Cyrus’ family was looking for someone for him to marry and settle down with.

  Once he did so, it would be difficult to uproot to move to Carthage Harbor. Communication over that distance, even with messenger hawks that flew long distances, would still be delayed. During the research and development stages, quick and constant collaboration amongst peers was necessary.

  For that to go smoothly and in a timely manner, it was best that everyone was in one location.

  Though Cyrus had yet to accept or even hinted at accepting Ash’s offer to join Moonflower, it didn’t stop the two from discussing the suture pen. Ash had even taken out some paper to draw some changes he and Hana had thought about.

  “I’ve never seen him so excited,” Asal said as she rode behind with Henry and Soraya. “Cyrus used to be quite creative when we were children. He’d often try to figure out ways to make our lives easier using his magic. Not many mages are born in our area of the world. He could’ve left to seek better opportunities when he was a teen, but no. He saw a need for things and began tinkering.”

  “Why did he stop and start adventuring?” Henry asked.

  Asal sighed. “Why else? The Magic Tower threatened to sue him if he continued to work on the suture pen. Just to fight such a threat would be costly.”

  “And I assume that after having his magic tool stolen, he was disappointed and did not want to continue working so hard for fear of having more of his hard work stolen,” Soraya said.

  Asal nodded. “That’s exactly what happened. He instead became our party’s mage.” She let out a low breath and looked ahead of them. “The world lost a valuable mage.”

  “He’s not dead yet,” Soraya chuckled with a grin. “You said so yourself; you’ve never seen him so lively.”

  “Ash’s partner is a brilliant young woman with a mind built for developing products. Together with Ash, they make a formidable team. Cyrus would be an excellent addition to Moonflower,” Henry added. “And it’s clear that Cyrus also holds the same values when it comes to magic products.”

  “I won’t influence his decision, but I will support whatever decision he comes to,” Asal replied. “Although, I think Moonflower would be a good opportunity for him to go back to what he’s meant for. Who knows how many others have been crushed by the Magic Tower and do not have such a chance.”

  Henry watched his brother from a distance. Ash was excited, making hand gestures as he spoke to Cyrus. The corners of Ash’s lips curled up. That was how Ash talked to Hana when they were deep into developing products.

  The entire journey from morning to late afternoon, when they reached the northwestern gate to Soljek, the capital of the Dareisol Empire, Ash and Cyrus were talking about various tools that had promise.

  Asal and her party headed to the city’s Adventurer’s Guild to see if there were any small quests they could pick up while they were in the city. It was common for wealthy citizens and nobles to post what Henry would consider minor requests that wouldn’t take long, but would pay well.

  After they went through the checkpoint, the group parted ways, with Ash and Henry telling them to send a message to the apartment their family rented before they left so they could see them off.

  “Snake, Scarab, and Sons is expecting you, so don’t be too late when checking in!” Ash said. He waved and watched them go in the opposite direction of where they were going. He let out a reluctant sigh. “That was the most riveting conversation I’ve had on a journey thus far.”

  “Oh, are you saying we are not good conversationalists?” A familiar voice spoke behind them, and both Henry and Ash turned around. Their faces lit up as a woman walked towards them, still wearing a veil, but now in a casual central Dareisol dress.

  Behind her was an intricately carved wooden carriage decorated with serpents and drawn by four massive black horses with white points. Their little sister was hugging Soraya after just having climbed down from the carriage.

  “Momma.”

  “Auntie.” The two young men closed the distance between them to greet her.

  “I heard you earned a decent amount on this last quest,” Nera said after releasing Ash from her welcoming embrace.

  “I think it’s sufficient. Actually, Aunt Soraya did most of the work,” Ash replied.

  Soraya snorted. “Perhaps on the manor itself, but not the people. You’re the one who rescued the trapped workers and mages.”

  Ash’s grin was lopsided as he touched his bag strapped across his chest. “Yes, but I got an even better payment.”

  Effie gasped. “Better than money?”

  “You know what’s better than money, Effie?” Ash asked as they watched her slide down their aunt’s arms before rushing to hug them. “A product that makes you even more money.”

  Effie gasped as her eyes dilated. “Like a gold mine?”

  Ash grinned and scooped her up for a hug. “Something like that.”

  “What about you?” Henry asked, reaching out to lift her from Ash’s arms. “How was your journey?”

  “Good!” Effie said. “When we got here, we visited the shop to see the sample rooms for the inn we’re going to build here.”

  “What did you think?” Henry asked.

  Effie knit her brows together. “While I like the idea that each inn should reflect the local style, as a way to both properly represent the area and show off local wood craft and metal work in the architecture and furniture, I still want them to be somewhat cohesive despite the different locations,” she replied. She moved her hands in front of her. “I want people to look at the interior of the inn and know that it’s Snake, Scarab, and Sons. I want them to feel that familiarity and expect a certain level of comfort and quality from our brand.”

  Both brothers nodded. “Then, what do you propose we do?” Ash asked. “We’ve already started on several inns and we’re targeting our big city locations soon.”

  “I want to keep the layouts of the rooms the same, as well as small details in the furniture and decorations,” Effie replied. “I considered having them be the same colors, but the colors should fit within the locality. I don’t want a high desert theme in a tropical inn.”

  Soraya chuckled and looked at Nera. “She’s certainly your daughter.”

  Nera stood up a bit straighter and grinned. “Effie has good vision.”

  “I also talked to my friends here and they had some ideas,” Effie continued, still sitting in Henry’s arms. “Local meals should be a must, but there should be consistent choices, such as tea, coffees, and pastries that are constant across all inns. At the very least, our teas should be constant!”

  “Effie, the inns are connected to the tea shop,” Henry replied in a dull voice. “Guests can go down for tea as long as the shop is open.”

  “But we should give them free tea in their rooms!”

  “Where did you get this idea?” Ash asked.

  “Max.”

  “Who’s Max?”

  “Maximilian,” Effie said. “He’s my age. He beat me at chess and I beat him in unarmed combat.” She paused and perked up. “But don’t worry, he’s fine. We were under supervision of the imperial guards!”

  At this, the brothers froze. “Imperial guards...Effie...is Max Prince Maximilian of Daran and Solj?”

  Effie nodded. “His great grandma is Granny Rina.”

  Henry squinted. “Dowager Empress Alexandrina?”

  “Shhh!” Effie’s little hands rose and covered her brother’s mouth. She looked out warily, worried she’d be heard. “You’re not supposed to say it out loud because she came to visit in secret!”

  “If you can call going through the city in an imperial carriage surrounded by a dozen imperial guards a secret....” Nera muttered under her breath. “She wanted to personally deliver an invitation.”

  “Invitation to what?” Henry asked.

  “The Solstice Festival ball in the middle of the month,” Nera told them. She looked at Henry in particular. “You and your brother need to get fitted for proper attire. I’ve been given some recommendations on reputable tailors.”

  Ash groaned. “Do we have to?”

  Soraya raised a brow. “It’s an imperial ball. You can’t show up in....” She trailed off and raised her arm, motioning towards his current attire and curled her lip with some disgust. “That.”

  Ash choked and looked down. “My clothes are clean-”

  “It is an imperial ball.” Henry shot him a silencing glare. “Don’t embarrass us.”

  Ash snorted and crossed his arms over his chest, turning his head away. “I could be wearing a sack and everyone will still say I’m handsome.”

  “Handsome, yes. Appropriate, no. Go with your brother tomorrow to get a proper suit,” Nera replied in a voice that told them the decision was final. Ash still grumbled, but agreed in a low voice.

  “Hehe....” Effie giggled and then patted Henry’s cheek. “Brother, you need to dress extra handsome for the ball!”

  A wide smile filled his face. “Oh? Why is that?”

  Effie giggled and glanced at her mother, conspiring. She then whispered into Henry’s ear. “Because Elka is coming!”

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  “She’ll probably be wearing green,” Henry said as they walked down the capital’s high street after dinner. Despite the late time, the sun was still only halfway down the horizon.

  “Yes, but what shade of green?” Ash asked. He paused in front of a store’s window and looked over the men’s suits on display on mannequins. They looked nice, but weren’t formal enough. Though he was too lazy to be fitted, he still understood that if the ball was important, which it was since the solstice was a big event in the empire, and they were going to be surrounded by Dareisol’s nobility, then they should dress to impress.

  After all, it was a good networking opportunity.

  Nera was walking ahead of them with Soraya talking about the shop in the city and the property currently next to it that they wanted to buy for the inn expansion. Urban lots were expensive, so they needed to be careful with their negotiations.

  It was their after-dinner walk, but Ash noticed his brother eyeing clothing stores and ateliers as they passed. He held back a smirk before leading their conversation on what they would wear for the ball. After all, “it’s a good idea to have something in mind as a base before wandering into a store,” he said.

  Thus, their window shopping began. Effie was holding their hands and followed their gazes, occasionally giving her own critique.

  “The shade of the color is important, Brother,” she said in a serious voice. “You don’t want to wear a cool shade when she’ll wear a warm shade of green.”

  “And how do you know she’ll wear a warm shade of green?” Henry asked with some amusement.

  Effie clicked her tongue. “Obviously, I have looked at her! Her hair is golden and omits a warm light while her skin has warm undertones, therefore, warmer, deeper shades of green will look better on her.” She gave Henry a disgusted look. “How do you even dress yourself on your own without color theory?”

  “Mom buys his clothes,” Ash replied.

  “Auntie buys all our clothes. They’re custom made!” Henry snapped. He made a movement to hit him and Ash flinched back.

  “All right, all right,” Ash raised his hands. “Let’s just focus on the subject at hand. You need to find dark green, or at least some dark green accents.”

  “And gold! Gold looks good,” Effie piped.

  Henry rolled his eyes. “I’m not buying jewelry just for one ball.”

  “What about gold accents on a dark green and black suit?” Effie suggested. She stopped in front of Henry and turned around to look at him. She squinted and rubbed her chin. “Hmm...yes...some leather detailing...a nice belt and shoes.”

  “How come you’re not trying to dress Ash?”

  Effie glanced at Ash, who gave her a bright smile, and then turned back to Henry. “Second Brother is so good looking; he’ll look good in whatever he wears.” Ash’s smile grew smug as he turned to Henry.

  Henry squinted at his siblings. “Are you saying I’m ugly?”

  Effie gasped and lifted her hand to her heart, like a stunned little old lady. “Brother, I said no such thing! You are very handsome, too!”

  “You sound insincere.”

  “I’m serious!” Effie stomped her foot once before raising her arms and throwing herself forward to hug Henry. “You’re handsome, that’s why the reservations at the cafe go up when you're working!”

  Ash turned his head away and bit his lips closed to keep from laughing, but a muffled guffaw couldn’t be suppressed. He didn’t dare look back at Henry or meet his scalding glare.

  Henry took a deep breath. “Effie, why don’t we find something for Ash?”

  “No!” Effie plopped her face against her brother’s hip. “You need the most help!”

  Ash’s shoulders were trembling. If Effie said any more, he wouldn’t be able to hold back his laughter.

  Henry’s face reddened and the corner of his eye twitched. “Why do you think I need the most help?”

  “Because!” Effie said as if desperate for him to understand. “You have to be the most handsome one there so Elka will fall in love with you!”

  Ash wiped some tears of mirth from the corners of his eyes, but despite his chuckling, hearing Effie’s reasoning was touching. He glanced at Henry and saw his brother’s face immediately soften.

  “Effie, you don’t have to work so hard for that,” Henry said as he knelt down to face her. He touched her head and met her big blue eyes. “I should be the one who worries about that. Besides, Elka should fall in love with me because of me. Not because of how I look in a suit.”

  Effie sniffled. “But the suit will help....”

  Henry took a deep breath and, as Ash expected, gave in. “All right, if you insist. I do want to look good not only to make a good impression, but for Elka. Tomorrow, we’ll look for some tailors and see if we can get some suits ready for the ball, okay?”

  Effie nodded and replied in a quiet voice. “Okay....”

  “Good girl.”

  “That will give me time to send my birds to find out what Elka is wearing from the Arelias estate.” A determined look filled her face. “If you two are matchies, then everyone will know you are a pair!”

  Henry sighed once more. Effie grabbed on to him as he stood up.

  “Thank you for your hard work, Effie,” Ash said with a grin. He ruffled her hair. “Do you want to dress up so we’re matchies?”

  “No, I’m matchies with Momma.” She narrowed her eyes. “Only me and Momma.”

  “Okay, fine....” Ash held up his hands. They continued their walk. “Looks like we’ll have a busy few days.”

  “That’s fine,” Henry replied. “Auntie is working, so we can take some time to watch Effie for her.”

  “By the way,” Effie said as she clung to Henry’s neck and lazily hung there, looking over his shoulder. “When is your mage duel?”

  Henry tensed and Ash’s head snapped up. His brows knit together. “What do you mean when is my mage duel? I don’t have a mage duel.”

  Effie scoffed. “Yes, you do! I saw the posters!”

  “What posters?” Both Ash and Henry spoke at once. Effie let out a frustrated groan. She released her brother’s neck and hopped down.

  “I knew you’d pretend you don’t have one....” she muttered to herself as she untied the flap of her space preservation bag. She stuck her little arm in and fished out a crinkled off-white paper with some black and terracotta ink print pressed into it. She handed it to Ash. “It says ‘soon’, but when is ‘soon’? Tomorrow?”

  Ash took the paper from his sister’s hand and pulled it open, using one hand over another to try to flatten the paper so they could read it. Almost at once, his mouth was agape.

  Henry cocked his head to the side and stepped closer to look.

  “Mage duel at the Soljek Gladiatorial Arena,” Henry read out loud. His eyes moved to Ash, who remained stunned at what he was seeing.

  “Why is my name on this?” he asked in an uneven voice as he looked down at ‘Guillermo von Sails’ written in black ink right beside the names of his competitors, Tiberius Bo and Nevin Gorantla, mages from the Magic Tower.

  “I’m more concerned that they also included Cyrus Amini as your partner in a two versus two duel,” Henry said.

  Ash shook his head. “No...no, I did not agree to this. I rejected the challenge!” He looked at Henry with wide eyes. “You were there!”

  “We were all there. And we heard you reject the challenge,” Henry said. He took the flier advertising the duel and held it up. “But someone said that you are going to fight two mages at the city’s gladiatorial arena. How did this happen?”

  “I don’t know! This is the first I heard of this!” Ash exclaimed. “We just arrived a few hours ago and went to eat dinner with Momma! Where would I have time to find out about this?”

  Henry looked at Effie and showed her flier. “Effie, where did you find this?”

  “In the plaza across from the palace,” she replied. “It mentioned you so I took it, but don’t worry, there are plenty more.”

  Ash’s eyes crinkled up. “Plenty...more?”

  “Uh-huh!” Effie nodded, her little buns bobbing up and down. “They’re pasted on walls and notice boards all over the city! I saw a bunch of them today.”

  Ash’s jaw dropped. “What the-”

  “These two clearly want to fight you,” Henry said, looking over the flier again as if to find some sort of answer on who posted them. “You and Cyrus.”

  Ash groaned. He ran a hand through his hair. “Cyrus doesn’t need to be involved either. Why did they include him?”

  Henry frowned. “The short mage challenged the both of you.”

  Now that he said it, Ash vaguely remembered the mage said ‘both’, even though most of the animosity was directed towards him. He shook his head.

  “No, Cyrus has nothing to do with this. I’m not going to let them drag him into their battle for an ego boost,” Ash said. Panic crossed his face. “I need to talk to Cyrus!”

  “Second Brother, what’s wrong?” Effie asked. Her head had turned from side to side, watching her brothers’ talking becoming increasingly worrisome. “Is Cyrus a weak mage? That’s okay, though.” She patted Ash’s arm to reassure him. “You can win this by yourself.”

  Ash gave his sister a look of annoyed disbelief. “Cyrus isn’t a weak mage. He’s much stronger than I thought he was. He’s even able to seal his strength so it’s difficult to sense. You have to be almost grand mage level to do that.” He shook his head. “But this isn’t about Cyrus’ abilities! Neither of us agreed to this duel! I don’t even know how news of a duel got here before we did!”

  Effie drew her head back and frowned. “Then, there’s no duel?”

  “There is no duel!” Ash and his brother both answered in firm voices that left no other option. Effie still scrunched her face and didn’t bother to hide her disappointment.

  “There’s no duel?” Nera’s voice came from down the street from where they came. She seemed to melt through the crowds without bumping into anyone while balancing three cones filled with bite-sized fried dough covered with a sugar glaze. Nera’s lips turned down a bit. “Well...that’s a bit disappointing.”

  “Disappointing?” Henry almost did a double take.

  “Of course,” Nera replied. “What mother doesn’t want to see her child utterly destroying their enemies?”

  will judge), with gentle hands and the heart of a fighter (She's killed a man. Multiple, actually.)