Chapter 100
The familiar sensation of teleportation lasted only a heartbeat. One moment, I was standing outside Benedict's cottage; the next, the world snapped back into existence.
I instinctively reached out to steady myself as solid ground returned beneath my feet.
"...I still don't like that," I muttered, shaking off the disorientation. "But... I think I've improved. Last time I nearly walked into a tree. This time I only questioned my existence for a second."
A faint smile touched Rhaevan's lips before he looked past me. "We're here."
I followed his gaze. The village was small-far smaller than the bustling towns we'd passed through before.
A handful of stone cottages lined a narrow dirt road, their slate roofs darkened by years of wind and rain.
Smoke curled lazily from chimneys, while villagers carried on with their morning as though the sudden appearance of two travellers in the town square was the most ordinary thing in the world.
Then, beyond the village, I saw them.
The mountains.
They dominated the northern horizon. Dark.
Jagged. Unlike any mountains I'd seen before.
The peaks rose like broken teeth against the sky, their black stone stripped almost completely bare.
Even from this distance, they looked wrong-not dangerous, exactly, but ancient, as though the land itself still remembered whatever had happened there.
I found myself staring. "...Those are the Ashen Crown?"
Rhaevan nodded. "Yes."
"They're... darker than I imagined."
"The stone was formed by volcanic fire. Even after centuries, little grows there."
I studied them in silence. For the first time since deciphering the clue, the journey felt real. It was no longer an ancient map spread across a table; it was waiting for us, somewhere inside those mountains.
"Can we teleport closer?" I asked hopefully.
Rhaevan looked at me. "No. I've never been to the search site. Long-distance teleportation requires familiarity with the destination."
"So... we walk from here."
I looked at the mountain range again. It still seemed impossibly far away. "How long to the foothills?"
He considered it. "A few hours. And to wherever the fragment actually is..." He looked toward the black peaks. "I don't know."
I nodded slowly.
Rhaevan turned toward the village. "We should eat before we leave."
I looked from him, to the mountains, and then to the inviting sign of a nearby inn. I smiled. "Now that's the best idea you've had all morning."
Without another word, we made our way down the quiet village street, the shadow of the Ashen Crown stretching silently across the land before us.
The village inn was pleasantly quiet. Only a handful of travellers occupied the dining hall, their conversations blending into the comforting sounds of crackling firewood and clinking cutlery.
We found an empty table near the window. I slid onto one side of the bench without much thought, and a moment later, Rhaevan sat opposite me.
I looked at him. Then at the empty tables scattered around us. Then back at him.
"...Well." I rested my chin on my hand. "This is progress."
A faint crease appeared between his brows. "I'm not sure I follow."
"When we left for Benedict's," I said, "you sat so far away from me that I briefly considered whether I'd unknowingly committed a crime."
He was silent for a moment. "I preferred some distance."
I gasped dramatically. "I knew it. You thought I was contagious."
His eyebrows rose. "I did no such thing."
"You looked at me like I might explode."
"...In my defence," he said calmly, "that was a genuine possibility."
I opened my mouth, closed it again, and conceded, "...That's actually fair."
He smiled at that.
The serving lady arrived before I could think of a suitable response, taking our order with a polite smile before disappearing toward the kitchen.
Silence settled between us. Rhaevan's gaze drifted toward the window, while mine wandered around the room before eventually finding its way back to him. He was unusually thoughtful.
After a long moment, he spoke. "Cassiane."
"Hm?"
"I'm sorry."
I blinked. "...For what?"
"For avoiding you." He lowered his gaze briefly. "I should have spoken to you. Instead... I chose distance."
I waited. He didn't continue.
Still rationing words, I see.
But this time, it felt different. Whatever reason had led him to that decision, he wasn't ready to share it. Not yet.
And somehow, I didn't need him to.
A slow smile spread across my face. "Well. I accept your apology."
A hint of relief flickered across his expression.
"...However. I reserve the right to remind you of it whenever it becomes convenient."
He blinked. "...Convenient?"
"Of course." I folded my arms. "For example... if you ever disagree with me, I'll simply say..." I adopted my best wounded expression. "'This from the man who thought I was contagious.'"
"I never thought you were contagious."
"I know. But it sounds much more dramatic."
A quiet breath escaped him. It took me a second to realise he'd laughed-just enough for the sound to reach me.
"You intend to hold this over me indefinitely."
"Absolutely. It's the consequences of your actions."
"I suppose I deserve that."
"You do."
The food arrived before either of us could say anything else. As the plates were set before us, I picked up my spoon and smiled to myself.
The apology hadn't answered every question. It hadn't erased the hurt of those few days.
But somehow, it had been enough. For now.
For a little while, the only conversation between us was the quiet clatter of cutlery against plates. The food was simple: fresh bread, stew, and roasted vegetables.
I tore off another piece of bread. "So..." I looked at Rhaevan. "Are we staying in this village tonight?"
He looked up. "We won't be staying in an inn, or a village."
I blinked. "...I'm sorry?" I gestured vaguely around the dining hall. "But... we're literally in one."
"We stop at inns for food, and freshening up," he said. "After that, we'll leave."
I frowned. "No comfortable beds? No roof?"
"No."
I sighed dramatically. "My enthusiasm has diminished considerably."
A faint smile crossed his face before his expression grew serious again. "Cassiane."
His tone alone told me this wasn't negotiable. "There are three reasons. First..." He lowered his voice. "We should assume the Veiled Thorn knows someone is searching for the Heartforge."
I nodded. "They may not know it's us."
"Not yet. But inns are where travellers are remembered." He glanced around the room. "Names. Faces. Questions."
"If someone begins asking whether a High Arcanist and a young woman passed through..."
"...an innkeeper is far more likely to remember than a merchant on the road." He paused. "So the fewer people who remember us, the better."
I took another spoonful of stew. "All right. I can live with that."
He continued. "Second... This is an expedition. When you travel, your destination changes every day. When you explore, you spend days searching the same place."
He picked up his cup. "Returning to civilization every evening would waste hours. The mountains won't reveal their secrets because we're tired."
I couldn't argue with that either. "And the third reason?"
His expression softened ever so slightly. He set the cup down. "The simplest one. Expeditions are lived from camp."
He spoke the words with the quiet certainty of experience.
"Have you been on many expeditions?"
He shrugged.
"Alone?"
"Mostly," he replied.
For just a moment, I pictured him crossing mountains, sleeping beneath unfamiliar skies, chasing mysteries that no one else even knew existed. Always alone. Somehow... the image didn't suit him nearly as well as I thought it would.
I smiled. "Well. I suppose you're stuck with company this time."
A corner of his mouth lifted. "So it would seem."
"I should warn you..." I reached for another piece of bread. "I talk in my sleep."
"I don't believe you."
"You shouldn't. I made it up."
He laughed. "I suspected as much."
I pointed at him. "See? This is exactly why you needed me on this expedition."
"Oh?"
"Someone has to ensure you occasionally smile."
He met my eyes. "I believe you've already succeeded."
For a brief moment... neither of us spoke. Then, without another word, we finished our meal.
Beyond the inn windows, the dark silhouette of the Ashen Crown waited patiently on the horizon. It wasn't going anywhere. Neither were we.
Not until we found what those mountains had been hiding for ages.