Emily bit back a scream, gritting her teeth in agony. Her arm throbbed painfully with every passing second, and she could taste the sll of charred flesh in the air.
Slowly rising to his feet, rlin's eyes glowed an ethereal silver.
He stared at the marks in her hands for a few monts, then slowly turned in a slow circle.
"This... "
Victoria threw him a questioning glance.
" Is there anything that you can do?"
She'd already scanned the room with her psionic ability, but her psionic waves picked up nothing.
And yet—
The mark on the girl's hand was undoubtedly caused by sothing or soone. For the briefest of monts, she'd felt it.
rlin returned her gaze for a few monts,s then shook his head.
" Not now. No. Whoever our mysterious guest was, he has already left. He has already accomplished what he'd set out to do. "
Victoria's brows furrowed in confusion.
"And what had he set out to do ?"
rlin smirked, pointing to the mark on Emily's arm.
"He was delivering a ssage."
Marcus spared Gregory a glance, which the headmaster calmly returned.
After a few monts, Marcus turned his attention to the sobbing girl on the floor.
He strode forward with his intricately carved cane, lightly tapping the ground.
He stopped, staring down at her. Seeing her like that stirred a deep sense of resentnt within him.
For a mont,nt her image overlapped with that of his missing daughter.
He refused to think even for a mont that she'd died. She was his blood.
A Snow.
He'd already heard about rlin's test, and while he detested it, he had to admit that the Great Houses were no better due to the grueling tests they put their heirs through.
And unfortunately, there was simply no better way.
That was the world that they lived in.
It did not favour the weak.
It was kill or be killed.
"Reassuring her after she was hard in our midst would be pointless. Besides..."
His gaze road around the room.
The headmaster's office was supposed to be one of the safest places at the academy, yet sothing had breached it and with ease at that.
That alone told him they weren't dealing with an ordinary Talented or even an assassin.
"Raven is alive..."
For a few monts, Marcus froze, doubting his own sensitive sense of hearing.
"What did you say?"
Emily rose to her feet.
"Raven is alive. Morgan told to tell you that she's alive. And safe. And not worry."
For a few monts, Marcus stared at her silently.
rlin's gaze drifted between the two of them, his eyes glinting with curiosity.
" And who are those supposed to be, Gregory?"
rlin's voice resounded inside Gregory's mind.
"Missing kids. Scions of the Great House,s to be precise."
rlin smiled, nodding subtly.
"This day just keeps on getting more and more interesting. "
After a few monts, Marcus seed to regain his voice.
"Tell . From the beginning."
His tone was gentle but brooked no denial.
Emily slowly narrated everything that had happened from the point she'd blacked out and ended up in the Realm of Dreams.
rlin's eyes widened slightly at the ntion of it, his deanor shifting slightly.
" And how do you know this is all true and not just any other ordinary dream?"
" Because of this..."
Emily pointed to the mark on her hand and found that it had disappeared.
"She's telling the truth."
Every head in the room turned to where rlin sat.
He'd carelessly draped his arms on the sides of the sofa and leaned back, staring listlessly at the ceiling.
rlin threw a furtive glance at Marcus.
" You already know she is. I know all about how you maestros are moving truth electors, at least when it cos to the rest of us."
rlin sat up straight in his seat.
" But if that's not enough, then my word should suffice. I've seen a similar mark before. This Raven and Morgan are probably in the domain of the Wielder of that mark. And if they're guests, there's hardly anything that could harm them. Except their host, of course," he said with a snide smile.
Marcus looked like a man whose shoulders a burden had been lifted.
" Well, judging by the looks on your faces, this appears to be welco news. I think I should—"
"You're still coming with us, Lord rlin," Victoria interjected.
" Not to ntion the fact that your soon to be apprentice hint yet been appraised of the situation. It's the least you can do considering all the havoc that you've wrought."
rlin quietly cursed, plopping back down in his seat.
"Well, this certainly sucks. This is what I get for popping my head back into the world. Co to think of it, why did I offer to take her on...boredom...damn it..."
Emily had recovered and was seated next to Victoria.
"Well then, I guess it can't be helped, " rlin said.
Leaning forward, Emily pierced with a chilling gaze.
'What would you think about becoming my apprentice?"
At the mont, all the gazes in the room turned to her.
"She's definitely going to refuse, " rlin actually thought.
'After all, won are such emotional creatures. Who would want a stranger who beat them as their master? That would be preposterous."
Emily stared at him for a few monts in silence, then studied the other occupants in the room.
After a lengthy consideration, she audibly sighed.
"I'll do it..."
rlin laughed.
" See, there now that, that's settled, I'll get...going?"
His eyes narrowed. After a few monts, he spoke.
"You're actually serious about this?"
Emily nodded.
"With all due respect, sir, while I don't like you, I think I can learn a lot from you."
rlin grinned.
" I knew it. I like this one. I'm never wrong about talent when I see it. Now that that's out of the way. I'll get going—"
"There's still the matter of Ophelia..." Thrain stated.
rlin froze like a man caught between a rock and a hard place.
After a while, he sighed.
"Fine...let's get this over with."
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