Greg was sure that the healer had noticed the shame in his eyes and the fact that Greg could suddenly no longer meet her gaze. She, however, didn't comment on it. Instead, she continued to speak. "The sigil is based on the one I came up with trying to heal myself. That's why, for the past month, I've been trying to work backward from this new sigil to try and find a way to use it to shift its purpose from creating a new mana core and pathways to restoring those that have been badly damaged. Unfortunately for me, I keep hitting the same impediment, no matter what I try. It's a closed loop. The mana pathways that I set up are a closed system that doesn't allow for any spillover as this new sigil does. No matter what I try, I've so far been unable to merge the two systems into one coherent whole. Think of it like a string. My original mana core and pathways require that I tie both ends together to make a closed system. This new system requires that I bring both ends close to each other,

Much as it galled him, he knew that the fifth tier was as far as the two women before him expected him to go. Both were much older and more knowledgeable than he was when it came to the subject of magic. Still, he was certain right to the core of his being that he wouldn't stop at the fifth tier. Whatever it took, Greg would rise to the very top. "What stops me from learning the healing arts from you, without committing fully to the path of a healer? Greg asked. "I mean, why not just learn what I need to know to help you safely dissolve your mana core and pathways before resuming my path as an elemental mage?" He asked. "There are some small issues that mixing different schools might cause but nothing so major that it can't be dealt with," The healer replied. "However, should you choose to resume being a mage of the earth element, I would be powerless to help you the same way that I would if you were to remain a healer. Other than some general information that you can easily get from

It was in the privacy of her room that the first sign that something was off revealed itself. Shalia had been furiously plunging her index and mid-finger into her tight and wet love tunnel, imagining Bran pinning her against the wall, lifting one of her legs and fucking her like a wild animal, all the while, his eyes never leaving hers. His gaze boring into hers, marking her soul as his the same way he was marking her body. Just a few weeks prior, the image would have been enough to send her over the edge in a little over five minutes. Now, however, she had been at it for almost fifteen minutes and yet, her orgasm remained elusive. All of a sudden, without her intending for it, the image in her mind shifted. Suddenly, instead of the perfect face of Bran, Shalia was looking up at a plain wooden mask and the cold eyes of the scarred boy behind them. There was no passion in these new eyes like she'd imagined with Bran. His eyes, instead, were those of a predator that had marked their pre

Shalia couldn't help but frown at the crass language employed by the boy in asking the question. With the rules set in place by Roka, however, she wasn't allowed to snap at him for it. Unable to castigate him for his foul language, Shalia could only ignore the vulgarity and focus on the actual question itself. The more she thought about the question, however, the louder her silence sounded in her ears. True enough she was the child of her parents, but why was that even something to be proud of? It wasn't like she had in any way contributed to this state of things. She wasn't even alive at the time that they came together. And the fact that she was the result wasn't in any way under her control. She just happened to be born to parents who happened to be in charge in the little town they were in. She could have just as easily found herself as the daughter of commoners if her parents' situation was different. She was a cub standing in the shadow of its parents and thinking that it was gre

The merchant's face was pale as a sheet of paper as eyes moved from the dead bodyguard to Greg who was still sporting a chilling smile. While he was currently unarmed, both the merchant and his wife had seen just how quickly he'd summoned the bow and dispatched the bodyguard. His hands were empty but both the merchant and his wife couldn't help but feel like they had a nocked and drawn bow aimed right at their faces. At any point, the madman could easily summon the bow once more and end their lives. When the man spoke, the Merchant was both chilled and relieved at the same time.The relief came from the fact that the merchant had believed that the young mage was only here to kill. That he seemed to be looking for the position of bodyguard meant that at the very least, he wouldn't kill them. Why someone like him would be interested in the position of a bodyguard, the Merchant couldn't puzzle out. Still, it was a chance to come out of this alive.The reason the young mage's words chille