After distributing the freshly cooked fritters, Lanni joined Jahree, and they both savored the flavorsome treats. “You’re going to make us fat with all these good treats on top of the meals,” he teased, biting into the crispy exterior of a fritter. Lanni chuckled in response. “Not all the mid-shift snacks are sweets. Besides, you’re going to need the extra energy once Samar starts running the training sessions.” “Samar?” he inquired, his curiosity piqued by the mention of the name. “The elf you sparred with today,” she explained. “He requested to be paired with you for training. It seems someone from your previous command must have said some-thing about you. He’s currently stationed at the magistrate’s house and oversees all the combat training in Chervil. Given that most noble houses here don’t have the space for their own training grounds, they coordinate and divide their protective forces into three combined groups. Every year, they shuffle these groups to vary the training experience. Samar has a reputation for being quite rigorous in his training routines.” “That sounds ideal,” he replied with a sense of relief. “We need to be challenged. This town seems too peaceful, almost too quiet, and there’s little sign of trouble. It’s a good environment for the civilians, but it’s a concern for us — without regular challenges, we risk becoming soft.” Lanni gave him a sidelong glance as if assessing his current state of readiness. “We wouldn’t want that, would we?” she said, a playful note in her voice. Her comment and the mischievous glint in her eye made Jahree blush. He won-dered if she was flirting with him or if he was simply reading too much into her words because of his growing attraction to her. The ambiguity of the moment left him unsure, but he couldn’t ignore the faint warmth that had spread across his cheeks. “Samar’s curiosity about your resistance to magic is evident; he’s likely going to request some tests to understand it better,” Lanni elaborated. “Papa Tey already took me to the mage’s college for that sort of testing,” Jahree reassured her. “I have no doubt he did. To save time, I’ll advise Samar to use scrying to consult with the college’s records. However, he’s also mentioned the possibility of bringing in one or two specialists,” Lanni added thoughtfully. “Specialists? Are there experts on individuals who are immune to magic? Are there more people like me?” Jahree asked, intrigued by the thought that she might not be the only one with such an immunity. “The person who Samar wants to contact is a specialist in a wide range of magical phenomena. While rare, it’s certainly possible that there are others with magic-resistant abilities—we’re just not aware of them. It was not until I was fourteen that I encountered another unreadable,” Lanni shared from her own experiences. Intrigued, Jahree questioned, “You’re an unreadable? What exactly does that mean? How is it different from being normal?” Lanni explained, “Not much different than being normal. I just have to have a stronger healer if you can’t see the injury, for a cut or a burn, if they’re strong enough to heal it then there’s usually no problem, “What’s it like to be immune to magic? Jahree considered the question and replied, “It has its moments, especially to see reactions like Samar’s during a skirmish. They quickly learn that while their spells may not affect me directly, indirect methods can still pose a threat. If someone uses magic to hurl stones at me, the rock’s impact will still cause harm.” “What about manifestations like fireballs or lightning?” Lanni asked. He nodded in response, confirming the possibility. “Probably. They discussed it at the college but didn’t want to run tests and risk burning or injuring me.” “Does healing work?” she asked. “It does indeed,” he replied with a nod, “but I was fortunate to have been treated by a very powerful healer. I don’t know about weak ones.” “Was it by any chance Midta?” she inquired, her eyes bright with recognition. “How did you know?” he asked, surprised by her accurate guess. “He does work in most of the foster homes in the southern region,” she explained. “I’ll have to recommend him to Samar as well.” Chuckling at her initiative, Jahree asked, “Are you the unofficial specialist around here?” “No, I’m just incurably curious. I had an aunt who was the queen of gossip in her days. I suppose some of that has rubbed off on me.” He gave her a sideways glance, “So, don’t tell you about the wild nights off I had at my last command that Captain Trema doesn’t know about?” She burst into laughter. “Nah, I wouldn’t repeat it. I just like knowing. Besides, I’d bet he knows more about it than you realize.” “I certainly hope not,” he admitted, feeling his cheeks warm with a blush. Her laughter filled the air again. “Now you’ve piqued my curiosity even more.” “Let’s just say it involved the company of one or two ladies, an unfortunate en-counter with a rain barrel, an excessive amount of Vodka, and… let’s leave it at that, shall we?” She laughed heartily in return. “Okay. Thanks to the shades, I can’t even remem-ber my worst night. I’ve been told it involves a lot of yelling from us in several locations. They were trying to track us down to confine us but we kept moving. I never did find my underclothes.” “The shades don’t reach this far north, do they?” Jahree asked. “Fortunately, no,” Lanni responded with a measure of relief. Jahree grinned at her, his eyes glinting with a mischievous sparkle. “Too bad, though.” “Excuse me?” Lanni was taken aback, her cheeks flushing with a delicate shade of pink that contrasted against her pale skin. “The shades are always interesting, no matter who you’re with,” he explained, shrugging his shoulders lightly. “Do they affect you at all?” She was genuinely curious, tilting her head slightly as she studied his nonchalant demeanor. “Not the way it affects mages or dragons. Samar mentioned that you’re a mage,” he said, a curious tone edging into his voice as he returned her inquisitive gaze. “I am,” she confirmed with a nod. She raised her hand, and with a subtle incanta-tion, she conjured a simple light spell—a small orb of luminescence that hovered above her palm. It emitted a gentle glow, ideal for making out the immediate surroundings in the dark but subtle enough not to attract any unwanted attention from afar. She then turned her attention to him, the orb of light floating closer to his face. “That’s going to go out unless you’re a strong mage,” he warned, his eyes reflect-ing the light but his expression skeptical. “It didn’t go out, but it’s not illuminating your face either,” she observed, her brow furrowing in mild confusion. “Really?” He sounded half amused, half intrigued. “See for yourself.” She reached into her pocket and retrieved a small silver disk, offering it to him. He held the disk up to his face, his reflection faintly visible alongside the hovering spark. Curiously, his visage did not seem any more illuminated by the prox-imity of the glowing spell than the rest of his surroundings. “But charms work on you?” she questioned, as she took the disk back and pocket-ed it once more. “Only sometimes. The transport charm Captain Trema used worked on me, but there have been other charms that don’t seem to take effect,” he explained, scratching his chin thoughtfully. “I wonder if it depends on the type of magic, whether it’s wielded by mortals or immortals, or if its efficacy was influenced by augmentation. Tey is an augmenter, capable of enhancing magic; Sai isn’t,” she mused aloud, pondering the complexities of magical interactions and the mysterious immunity that seemed to manifest in him at times. Her curiosity about the phenomenon was clear, sparking a new topic for them to discuss under the starlit northern sky. “Are you certain you aren’t the specialist?” Jahree asked, looking a bit puzzled. “Yeah, I’m sure. Her name is Chapado. She’s an immortal. Her existence revolves around nothing but the relentless pursuit of knowledge through study and research,” Lanni said with a tone of reverence for the legendary expert. Jahree felt relieved. He thought Lanni’s interest in him was just because of his unique reaction to magic. But it seemed that their conversations held more depth, and he genuinely enjoyed their ex-changes. As they patrolled together during Jahree’s shift, Lanni’s presence was comforting amid the solitude of his duties. While she was open to discussing various topics, including her current life and interests, Lanni didn’t talk about her past. Jahree felt a connection in their silence; his own past was a topic he avoided discussing. It held too many shadows. He couldn’t help but wonder if the darkness of her history rivaled his. Despite the unan-swered questions between them, Jahree couldn’t deny the light her company brought to his routine. Trema was the one to relieve Jahree. “Any issues during your watch?” he asked, looking around carefully. “Nothing to report. The night was quiet, except for Lanni following me around,” Jahree replied, adding a hint of humor. Raising an eyebrow in mild surprise, Trema asked, “Is she bothering you?” “Not at all. She was just keeping me company. I think she sleeps less than Shan and I combined,” Jahree said. “Ah, her uncle has that same odd trait. Seems to run in the family,” Trema re-marked, then added with concern, “But Jahree, you need your rest. Make sure you get some sleep before you go spending more time with her.” “I know,” Jahree said with a smile, assuring Trema, “and sleep is exactly what I’m going to do as soon as I eat.” With that, he nodded and headed off to the mess hall, now thinking about breakfast. #fantasy, #magic, #dragons, #hiddenlands