Back in Creedom
King Kai sat slouched in his throne, his chin resting on a closed fist, eyes darting restlessly to the hourglass placed beside him. The sands trickled slowly, mockingly. He had waited all night. Still, no sign of the mage. Only silence, thick and maddening.
"She promised to pay off my kingdom's debts," King Kai muttered, his voice low with disbelief, fingers tightening around the letter.
He pulled at his hair, frustration crackling beneath his skin. A fortnight, just a fortnight until the full moon. Until the Hivites arrived for blood or gold. And he had neither.
"Stupid mage!" he spat, slamming his palm against the armrest.
A sudden snort echoed across the chamber. Dry. Amused.
Kai froze. His head snapped toward the shadows near the door.
About damn time.
Looking toward the voice, King Kai's tired eyes landed on a cloaked figure stepping into the throne room. The mage's presence seemed to shift the air, calm yet laced with something colder. Behind him, two grim-faced men followed, hauling a medium-sized chest between them. Its iron corners were dulled with age, but the polished Hittites seal pressed into its front gleamed with unsettling clarity.
Kai sat up straighter on his throne, heart pounding faintly beneath his robes. For a moment, he said nothing, his gaze flickered between the mage's hooded face and the chest, as if trying to judge which held more danger.
"From Her Majesty," the mage said, stopping a few paces away. His voice was smooth but distant. "A promise kept. The debt... erased."
The men set the chest down with a muted thud.
King Kai rose slowly, circling the chest. "So it's true," he murmured. "She's actually doing this…"
The mage tilted his head slightly. "Queen Dalia keeps her word. She asked only for your discretion, and a moment of your patience."
Kai hesitated, then looked toward the flickering torchlight above. "Tell me… is this aid a rope around my neck—or a bridge?"
The mage's lips curled just slightly. "That depends, Your Majesty. On how you walk it."
***
Sapphire woke slowly, the morning light filtering softly through the window. As she stirred, a sharp jolt of pain surged in her neck, making her wince. The memory of the night before rushed in like a storm.
She sat up carefully, fingers grazing the sore spot. It still throbbed. She exhaled shakily and pushed the thoughts aside, already reaching for her work cloak. She had duties to tend to.
Just as she stepped toward the door, Eugene appeared silently in the doorway, his expression firm yet unreadable.
"Milady, the Lord said you are to take a day off."
She blinked. "A day off? But… I have work to do."
Eugene shook his head. "You need rest."
She hesitated, her fingers tightening around the cloak. "What am I supposed to do all day?"
"Sit," he said dryly. "And do nothing."
She gave him a narrowed look.
"That sounds worse than rest."
After a beat, he sighed in defeat, pointing at a box
"Fine. If it must be, you may help arrange the Lord's parchments in his study."
Sapphire smiled faintly, thankful for something to distract her from the ache in her neck, and the thoughts clawing at her mind.
"Fine. But only because I don't want to be bored."
Eugene nodded approvingly as they both made their way to the study room
Sapphire stepped into the study, holding the stack of parchments tightly. Eugene was right beside her, quietly instructing where to place each document.
"Put these with the tax records. The letters go on the top shelf," Eugene whispered.
Typhon sat at his desk, eyes fixed on the scroll before him, his expression unreadable. He didn't even glance up as they entered.
Sapphire's heart pounded. She swallowed hard, feeling the weight of his silence like a wall between them.
She moved carefully, placing the parchments where Eugene directed, stealing nervous glances at Typhon, hoping for any sign of acknowledgment. But he remained absorbed in his work, indifferent.
Eugene gave her a quick, reassuring nod. "Just keep going. Don't mind him."
Sapphire nodded, her cheeks flushed with a mix of embarrassment and frustration, feeling invisible in the same room as him.
The silence in the study was dense, broken only by the scratch of Typhon's quill and the faint rustle of parchment. Sapphire moved quietly, stacking scrolls and letters where Eugene had told her earlier, but her eyes kept flickering to the figure seated at the desk.
He hadn't looked at her once.
Fine, she thought. Two can play that game.
She reached for another pile, feigning composure, but her hands trembled slightly. Then—
"I told you to rest," Typhon's voice cut through the air.
She gasped, nearly dropping the scroll. "I—I'm better," she muttered, not meeting his gaze. "I needed something to do."
A pause.
"Your neck," he said finally. "How is it?"
She froze. Her fingers found the edge of the desk for support. "It hurts," she said, softer than she intended. "But that's not what's bothering me."
He looked up now, and their eyes locked.
"What happened with that man… he didn't act like someone mourning. He acted like a mad man ."
Typhon's jaw tensed. "Humans act strangely in loss."
"That wasn't strange," she snapped, eyes flashing. "That was dangerous. He was dangerous. And he knew it."
A flicker of something passed through Typhon's eyes, Restraint?
Sapphire stepped closer, voice lower now. " The deceased!! She gave me a necklace. Her Families heirloom. She asked for time to pay. And now she's dead."
She waited for an answer, anything, but he only stared at her, impassive.
"Say something," she whispered.
He stood slowly, gaze darkening. "You shouldn't concern yourself with corpses."
She blinked at him, stunned. "Is that what she is to you? A corpse?"
His eyes glinted. "Would you rather I lie?"
Her breath caught, not from fear, but from how cold he suddenly felt.
"…I just want justice for the dead"
He turned from her leaving her to her thoughts.
"Some truths weigh more than your shoulders can bear."