Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 119158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Yeah, that was some damn creative bullshit, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from a government official. It wouldn’t make the king look good if the world had proof that one of his sons, along with a consort, was trying to kill his siblings. They were supposed to be a sweet, happy family, a model for all the Wolfrest citizens.
The idea made me snort.
The world didn’t want their leaders to be a model for them. They wanted entertainment to distract them from their lives. They wanted backstabbing intrigue, political plotting, and family scandals. And just maybe a happily ever after.
Mine was put on hold, though.
The days passed with me waking up in Nylian’s arms. After breakfast and some kisses, the elf prince ran off to spend most of the day with his brother, whom he was catching up on all our adventures. Orian had recovered from his poisoning and seemed more than ready to be done with bedrest. However, the healers and his queen mother were being extra cautious and keeping him stuck in his room for now.
I’d joined in on one of their story sessions but declined any more invites. This felt too much like a private twins moment, and I was more than happy to leave Nylian to the brother he’d come so very close to losing.
As a result, I was left to my own devices for most of the day, allowed to wander where I wanted through the palace. Not that I wasn’t aware that I was being watched by the servants, who would report back to the king and anyone else who didn’t know how to feel about me. Yes, I’d saved the prince, but I was also Prince Victor, a royal from a kingdom who hadn’t always been friendly with Wolfrest.
To lower everyone’s stress levels, I restricted my wandering to the gardens or the library. After days on the road, sleeping on the ground in forests, and running for my life, it was nice to just stretch out on a comfortable sofa and lose myself in a book. That was where Jasper found me.
“Adam! Adam!” the young wizard shouted, pulling me out of a history of Nylian’s great-great-great grandfather. I sat up as Jasper charged across the library and stopped in front of me with a spin. “What do you think? Do you like it? Isn’t it amazing?”
It took me a second to realize he wanted me to check out his new wizard robes—regal shades of green and gold with an Elrich gold dragon emblazoned right over his heart. And they fit perfectly, as if a tailor had fashioned them for him alone.
This made it official. Jasper was a wizard in training at the Wolfrest Wizard Academy in West Vale.
“They look stunning on you. Clearly, you were always meant to attend this school rather than any of the others,” I praised, as I set my book aside on a nearby table.
“Queen Yaereene oversaw them being made and demanded that I have five complete sets. Can you believe it? Five!” He thrust his hand in my face with all his fingers extended.
I chuckled and pushed his hand away. The royal family had taken good care of Jasper since he was the one who’d stolen the recipe books and made the antidote.
“Plus, she had a bunch of other everyday clothes made for me. Really high-quality stuff. My trunk for school is so full, I have to sit on it to close it.”
My heart squeezed to see his joy. The boy who’d watched the murder of his entire village by orcs, traveled with his mercenary sister as they scraped by, and dreamed of becoming a wizard while meeting up with mentors who couldn’t help him. He was on the right path at last.
“When will you be starting at the Academy?”
“Next week. I’ve been studying with Master Dexius and Mistress Loralei for the past several days, and they want me to stay here a little while longer so they can help me catch up with the rest of the students. But since I’ve begun working with them, I haven’t had a single spell explode in my face or go horribly wrong. They’re all going right!”
Which proved what I’d always suspected. Jasper was a talented wizard. It was only a matter of finding the right teacher to get through to him how he needed them to. They needed to teach to how his mind and skills worked. Not what worked for them.
Jasper plopped on the sofa next to me with a bounce and released a loud, heavy sigh. “I like it here. It’s so peaceful.”
“You mean because you’re getting three excellent meals a day, sleeping in an enormous soft bed, and have a wardrobe to rival the son of a duke?”
Jasper choked on a laugh and gave my shoulder a shove. “No! Well…I mean, that’s nice too, but I know that won’t last. I was thinking of being in Wolfrest and the people here. They slow down and take their time with everything. The focus isn’t so much on the finished product, but on the process.”