Neither Seyari nor I were in a mood to talk about our wedding the next morning. I’d given serious thought to her points during the night: I did want guests, and some kind of ceremony. And I’d n...
2023-08-05 02:12:58 +0000 UTC
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Somewhere south of Astrye
The demon that was once Lorelei felt the collar around her neck, running a talon over its rune-etched surface. Even when she came back to t...
2023-08-02 03:06:47 +0000 UTC
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“Issa, I can’t believe I have to tell you to hold still!” Ssiina groused.
“I am!” I protested. Nice as the clothes and makeup were, I really wanted to go jump into a pond or wrap my...
2023-08-02 02:56:42 +0000 UTC
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Here's that rewrite I promised, and despite the title, it only changes a single plot-significant event. Affected chapters (and chapter 124 even though I think there's only typo fixes) are attached....
2023-07-30 21:13:46 +0000 UTC
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A/N: If you've missed it on my discord, there's a revision incoming, primarily targeted at Chapters 119-120 and 125-126. Expect it by the end of the weekend, in the form o...
2023-07-29 02:15:33 +0000 UTC
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I woke up in my bed in Phaeliisthia’s estate, feeling like I’d just missed whatever my dream was about. I was certain I’d had one, but I just… couldn’t think of it.
For a deliciousl...
2023-07-28 01:00:56 +0000 UTC
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Walking through the castle, Nelys leading, I realized just how labyrinthine the place was. The stone walls seemed to be in good shape, but most of the rest of the place was empty. The litt...
2023-07-26 01:39:18 +0000 UTC
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Ssiina saw a familiar golden flash from down below, and she rushed to the edge of the damaged viewing box where Kyrae was standing. In the background, a chorus of shouts approached as the aftermath...
2023-07-25 02:25:22 +0000 UTC
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I looked at the two lupaels in the doorway a little closer. The woman resembled Brynna strongly enough that she had to be family, and I wondered if they were here because I punched the cas...
2023-07-22 02:04:44 +0000 UTC
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As the play continued on, I found myself drawn to the spectacle below out of boredom. The stone amphitheater was packed, from the stage up to the level of the garden, and into the stands. Are U...
2023-07-21 01:16:30 +0000 UTC
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Seyari and the others reached the farms on the outskirts of Astrye just in time to see Zarenna flying toward the castle. A blazing dot of crimson against a pale gray sky, she engaged whatever force...
2023-07-19 01:50:27 +0000 UTC
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A/N: I am moving the Sunday chapter to Mondays. To be fair, a lot of that is having to get up and drive for 3 hours at 4AM every Sunday for the past two months, but even if that's mostly o...
2023-07-18 02:43:42 +0000 UTC
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Stumbling through the main hall, I realized quickly that I had no idea where to go. Aside from the demon I’d just killed who’d been waiting inside, the castle’s entry hall was empty.
Un...
2023-07-15 03:34:00 +0000 UTC
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A/N: A part 3? Yeah, this one was going to be veeery long if I didn't break it like this.
Unlike the main market, the side market had a busy, hurried air of impermanence abo...
2023-07-14 01:00:27 +0000 UTC
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My flight was interrupted moments after I approached the wall. In the snowy, barren courtyard, arrayed to defend the main gate, was a motley group of demon cult forces, fronted by lesser demons. I ...
2023-07-12 00:55:16 +0000 UTC
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“Humans have a saying in their language that likens a treacherous political forum to a ‘pit of snakes.’ Often, I wonder if the origin of that phrase lies within our Empire.”
2023-07-11 01:19:33 +0000 UTC
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I expected to see auras through the powder kicked up by my landing: demons or corrupt inquisition here to harry me. Instead, I saw an empty field lying fallow under snow. Dismissing my wings, I che...
2023-07-08 01:21:55 +0000 UTC
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Once I finished dressing myself, I looked down and checked that my sleeves were even and everything was in place. I paused. For a moment, what I was seeing seemed unreal.
Just as I was no lon...
2023-07-07 01:49:11 +0000 UTC
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After an all-too-short morning with my friends and family, we continued on the road south.
This path took us past where my friends had battled. The road and hillside were scorched and torn, a...
2023-07-05 01:55:19 +0000 UTC
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“Danger is better at seeking us out than we are at seeking it.”
—Uru Farlight, Archaeologist, Anthropologist, and Delver of Lost...
2023-07-04 02:22:26 +0000 UTC
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A/N: Do I owe you all a pdf for V2? I do! Have also been secretly formatting for an epub for you fine folks? I have. Did me getting sick make me miss my semi-secret posting day for it? Yes...
2023-07-01 02:00:17 +0000 UTC
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The night was calm, but it wasn’t still. A gentle breeze blew in from across the surface of the estate’s glass-like tarn, lending a slight chill to the summer night. Hinssa’s family estate wa...
2023-06-30 00:51:49 +0000 UTC
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Our meeting with Aunt Ssyii lasted long enough that the shafts of light from up high near the dome angled up the sides of the room, painting the columns with faintly orange light.
We talked m...
2023-06-23 00:56:51 +0000 UTC
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Seyari’s voice broke the long silence. “We should leave—take Zarenna elsewhere to recover.”
“They would track us,” Kartania said, a hard edge to her voice. “We will camp here—...
2023-06-21 02:39:30 +0000 UTC
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“…and after the garden, I’ll show you our wing of the Palace, Sister! Maybe not today, but soon! You and Kyrae can pick between a few rooms, but I think I know the one you’ll want....
2023-06-20 01:03:21 +0000 UTC
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When I came to, the world was silent and dark. I felt exhausted; mana exhausted as well. Trying to break Lorelei’s binding was the last thing I could remember, but I struggled to put tog...
2023-06-17 00:54:55 +0000 UTC
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Phaeliisthia tipped under us, and Sire Tyaniis slid out of the saddle first, leading Ssiina by the hand out into the plaza in front of the Emerald Palace. Chin and posture high, pointedly ignoring ...
2023-06-16 00:41:39 +0000 UTC
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Seyari spotted the demon first. We were near the top of the pass, the trees around us short and the snow deep. They’d seen us before we saw them. Up on a ridge ahead of us, a blur of motion was t...
2023-06-14 03:14:33 +0000 UTC
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Cold. Absolute, bone-chilling, no-fun cold.
“H-how are we colder when w-we’re closer to the s-sun?!” I shouted over the wind.
“The air is thinner here. Less to heat.”...
2023-06-12 03:00:07 +0000 UTC
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“Behind us,” Taava hissed, her ears twitching. “Someone’s runnin’ our way.”
“Human?” Seyari asked immediately.
“They’ve got two legs. S’all I know.”
“We...
2023-06-10 01:56:50 +0000 UTC
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