Chapter 89
The mountain, meanwhile, had decided it wasn't finished collapsing.
Another section of rock gave way somewhere deeper inside the ruined mine, sending a distant, jarring rumble echoing through the cavern. Rhaevan immediately looked toward the sound.
"We should leave."
"I was hoping you'd say that."
His gaze drifted toward the destroyed laboratory. Rhaevan salvaged the weapon from the rubble while I stayed nearby, balancing the chest awkwardly in my arms.
Muffin sat beside me.
Or rather... he sat directly on my foot. Apparently, this was where he had decided to reside permanently now.
I looked down. "You know you can sit literally anywhere else."
He blinked. Didn't move.
"I appreciate the emotional support..."
I carefully tried to slide my foot away. He immediately shuffled forward and sat on it again.
"...You're doing this on purpose."
Muffin yawned. Definitely on purpose.
I glanced at Rhaevan, who was handling the Solithium weapon as it rested inside a thick blue magical barrier floating beside him. Even damaged, the thing radiated an intensely uncomfortable aura.
He noticed me staring. "I've sealed it."
"So it won't explode again?"
"It shouldn't."
"...'Shouldn't' is an unsettling choice of word."
"It won't."
"That's significantly better."
He dismissed the barrier for a moment, allowing the weapon to float neatly into a reinforced leather case he had found among the laboratory remains. The moment it disappeared inside, he resealed the case with several layers of magic. Only then did he seem remotely satisfied.
"We need to bring this back."
"I have absolutely no objections." He glanced at the chest in my arms. "...And apparently that, too."
"I earned this one."
"I wasn't arguing."
Satisfied that nothing else in the collapsing mine was worth retrieving, he stepped toward me and extended his arm. "Ready?"
I looked at his arm. Then at the chest. Then at Muffin.
"...We have a slight logistical problem."
His eyes followed mine. They landed on the silver fox, who immediately looked up at him. Then-quite deliberately-Muffin lowered his ears. His enormous silver eyes somehow became even larger. He tilted his head once. Twice.
"..."
Rhaevan stared. Muffin blinked innocently.
"No."
Muffin took three tiny steps toward him before sitting neatly at his boots, his tail sweeping slowly across the ground. Then he looked up again with what could only be described as professionally executed puppy eyes.
I gasped. "Did you see that?"
"I did."
"He's asking."
Muffin let out the smallest, saddest little whine. I clutched the chest protectively.
"Rhaevan. Look at him. He's homeless."
"He is a magical beast."
"He's tiny."
"He was the size of a house an hour ago."
"Details."
Rhaevan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Cassiane..."
"He already chose me."
Muffin, sensing victory was near, quietly trotted over and leaned against my leg. I looked up at Rhaevan with what I hoped were equally convincing puppy eyes. "...Please?"
He looked at me. Then at Muffin. Then back at me. A long, defeated sigh escaped him. "...Fine."
"Really?"
"We'll take him."
I grinned so widely my cheeks hurt. "You hear that, Muffin? Congratulations."
Muffin wagged his tail exactly once before hopping into my free arm as though he'd expected this outcome from the very beginning, closing his eyes like the picture of absolute innocence.
Rhaevan simply shook his head. "I've never seen a Fox manipulate people."
"He isn't manipulating us."
He raised an eyebrow. "He has excellent negotiation skills."
"I see."
I managed to wedge the chest into my satchel while securely holding Muffin in my arms. "Now I'm ready."
Rhaevan stepped closer, and I hooked my arm around his. The light gathered around us, the ruined mine disappeared, and the world folded in on itself once again.
A heartbeat later, we were standing outside Benedict's little cottage.
The first thing I noticed was Benedict.
The second thing I noticed was that he appeared to be watering a dead plant. Utterly, undeniably, profoundly deceased.
The poor thing looked like it had accepted its fate several weeks ago. Benedict stood over it with a watering can in one hand.
"There you go," he said encouragingly. "Drink up."
The plant remained unmoved.
"I know you're upset with me."
Silence.
"You've been gloomy ever since winter."
The plant continued being a dead twig.
I glanced sideways at Rhaevan. "...Should we come back later?"
"I believe we're witnessing one of his experiments."
"I'm witnessing a funeral."
Before either of us could announce ourselves, Benedict sighed. "You know, if you insist on remaining dead, I can't help-"
He turned around. His eyes landed on me, then Rhaevan, then our dirt-covered clothes and singed sleeves. Finally, his gaze dropped to the tiny silver fox curled comfortably against my shoulder.
His eyes widened. "Oh, my..."
He hurried toward us so quickly I worried he might trip over his own sandals. "Oh, my, oh, my..."
He stopped directly in front of Muffin and bent down until they were eye level. "Where did you come from?"
Muffin blinked once. Benedict cautiously reached out a hand. Muffin sniffed it, then rubbed his tiny head against Benedict's fingers.
"Oh..." The old mage's face softened into the biggest smile I'd ever seen. "What a beautiful Moon Fox."
"A what?"
Benedict scratched beneath Muffin's chin. "I haven't seen one of these magnificent creatures in over forty years. They are exceedingly rare."
He continued absentmindedly petting Muffin.
"Moon Foxes rarely approach humans. They're creatures deeply attuned to magic, gentle by nature, impossibly intelligent... and said to bring extraordinary fortune to those they choose. They usually act as guardians to whatever treasure they are assigned to protect."
Oh. That certainly explained why he was guarding the mine.
"Speaking of which...we found..." I tapped the satchel lightly, "...this."
And Rhaevan gently removed the leather case from within his cloak. "...And something else."
The smile instantly disappeared from Benedict's face. His gaze lingered on the leather case, then on our exhausted expressions. Finally, he stepped aside and swung the cottage door open.
"I think..." He smiled gently, though his eyes were serious. "...we should continue this conversation inside."