Danger always creeps up when you least expect it. Right after a deceptive calm. You barely have time to think before everything starts up again...
“Get ready to jump,” one of the kind fishermen suddenly said, his friendly smile replaced by tightly pressed lips as we neared the shore.
“But why? Take us to the dock, and I’ll reward you generously,” I said, staring at the man in a faded light shirt that suited his tanned frame far better than the finest silks ever suited the dukes I knew.
“Ah, Duchess. I’m a simple man, but I know full well that no one’s gonna pay me if there’s no one left to do it,” the fisherman tilted his head slightly toward the nearest dock.
After his words, I peered intently at the shore. At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, at least not to someone seeing this place for the first time. Just a beach and a once flower-covered coastal area, beyond which lay the main road leading straight to the royal garden surrounding the castle. But something felt… off. At least, that’s how I sensed it. Though my eyes saw only a picturesque scene of still water and lush green land.
“Do you know something?” Darten leaned toward the fisherman, his voice tinged with concern. He hadn’t noticed anything either, but he knew the first round of the crown games couldn’t possibly go this smoothly—if you could even call our trials smooth.
“Like I said, I’m a simple man…”
“We’ll double the reward,” I interjected immediately, catching the subtext in his words from the sly smile on his face.
It was just three words, but the man seemed to transform. He became an entirely different person. Before, he was just a middle-aged guy with sun-bleached hair and the tanned skin of an ordinary fisherman. Now, a predatory, almost pirate-like glint flashed in his eyes, straight out of old legends about the inhabitants of nearby kingdoms. It was clear he was already scheming a way out for us.
“Jump into the water in two minutes when I sharply turn the boat to the left. Right now, they can’t see you, but soon you’ll be in their line of sight. Be careful—judging by your pursuers, they’re not as simple as I am. I may have lost my own powers long ago, but my sense for magic remains. And I can feel it radiating from them.”
“But we’re not exactly powerless either,” Darten cut in right away.
I had my doubts too. After all, a fair distance separated us from the shore, yet this fisherman somehow sensed the magic of those far away, despite our own presence right beside him.
“The Duchess might not be, but I wouldn’t say the same about you,” the fisherman smirked at Darten, shifting his gaze back to the shore. “They’ll be waiting for you at the dock and take those little gems of yours.”
Darten and I exchanged a glance. We hadn’t mentioned a word about why we ended up in this lake. Yet in a split second, he’d pinpointed the most valuable thing we carried. Or rather, the only valuable thing, since neither of us had gold or jewelry. Just the precious bracelets on my wrists, which I’d already promised as payment. Though… we were on the same boat. And in our conversation with Darten, we’d mentioned the gems at least twice. Plus, we hadn’t exactly hidden them from prying eyes...
“Better to approach from the forest side and make your way quietly to the castle. By the way, I’ll be rooting for you,” the fisherman added, noticing that I’d finally figured out how he knew about the gems.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, surprised yet again, since we definitely hadn’t mentioned the crown games or our rivals.
“You know exactly what I mean, Duchess,” the fisherman winked, grinning and revealing a chipped tooth. “The games are mostly held in this area, so I’ve seen plenty of contestants… And unlike the others, you’ve got a real shot at winning.”
“But why?”
“People are judged by their appearance at first, but it’s who they prove themselves to be that really matters. And you, my future queen, are the most worthy of that title.”
I looked at the fisherman with gratitude but didn’t know how to respond. It felt like spending so much time on the water had driven him a little crazy. When had I ever shown I was worthy of being a ruler? We’d been on this boat for barely two hours, and he already thought he knew my destiny…
Though back in my own duchy, I’d often heard similar sentiments. Back then, I hadn’t even had a chance to speak before people started whispering around me, some even saying outright that I was a strong contender to win the crown games. But I didn’t understand it then, and I didn’t understand it now. According to the fisherman, my rivals had a much stronger magical aura. Isn’t the best supposed to be chosen? Why did everyone almost unanimously call me worthy if I didn’t feel I was?
“Jump!” the fisherman barked suddenly, jerking the boat so sharply that I lost my balance and tumbled overboard.
Once again, water enveloped me, cutting me off from the outside world. The cold gripped every tiny cell in my body almost instantly, but it released me just as quickly. It was the warmest season, after all. If the games had started just three months earlier, I don’t know how I would’ve made it through this stage.
I slowly flailed my arms and legs, trying to remember how to swim. It felt like the fishermen had just pulled me from this same lake, yet the panic of not getting enough air clouded my thoughts. Still, I had to pull myself together quickly to avoid swallowing water. My feet brushed against a small rock. I balanced myself, pushed off it, and broke the surface, scanning for the Velarian while watching the boat with the fishermen drift away.
“You okay?” Darten surfaced a little after me, but his voice was the first to ask the question.
“Well, definitely not worse than before,” I tried to force a smile, though I was too focused on staying afloat to really manage it. The countless cuts and bruises weren’t making life any easier either. At least it wasn’t the ocean… “And you?”
“What about me? Did you hear what the fisherman said? Maybe I should just withdraw my candidacy altogether,” he said, the playful tone in his voice sounding a bit too forced this time. Did that mean he agreed with him?
“But it’s not about the magic in your veins—it’s about who you are!” I nearly shouted, desperate for him not to lose heart…
“Then why do you doubt yourself?” Darten smiled, veering a little more to the left as he swam determinedly toward the spot the fisherman had suggested for reaching the shore.
“I… I don’t know.”
“Exactly. Neither do I. But no one’s canceling the fun and adventure,” he said. Though I could only see his curly hair, still damp and dipping below the waterline, I felt the same spark he did. Especially when he added, “So promise me you’ll fight to the very end and won’t push me away or refuse my help anymore.”
“I promise! And you—promise you won’t go easy on me. We’re equals, and neither of us should give in to the other.”
“What are you talking about? Who’s been going easy on who?” Darten tried to sound serious, but it didn’t hide the mischief in his tone.
“You think I didn’t notice how you slipped me your number during the draw? You got way better living conditions,” I reminded him, recalling how, as soon as we arrived at the castle, everyone was handed different cards.
Each card represented a little house, all located close to one another. We’d even seen them on the way—beautiful and each unique in its own way. They probably even adapted to their owners. But there were also blank cards, meaning we’d have to come up with or build our own shelter. I’d drawn one of those. Or so I thought, until Darten ran past me, and suddenly I was holding a card with a full-fledged house on it. I even thought I’d imagined it at first. But I quickly figured out what had happened.
“Well, I’ll just take advantage of it. You’ll invite me in, right?” Darten winked slyly, turning his face toward me.
“Ugh, you…” I smiled, knowing I wouldn’t say no. I had an extra room anyway, so I could easily afford to let him stay.
“Then I’ll move in tonight!”