People filled the entire TVM's reception hall. They were hoping to see the show, and Camilla was clearly eager to give them some entertainment. I wasn't too delighted with the fact that it was going to happen at my expense. Camilla was standing in the center of the hall getting everyone's attention. I walked closer towards her.
“Good morning, Ms. Artois. I don't know the reason why you are trying to be rude to me, but I suggest you stop doing it right now,” I relayed in a composed way, “Excuse me, I need to get to my office,” I put a professional smile on my face, trying to pass her by.
She grabbed me by my shoulder, piercing her nails into my skin.
“You are not getting away that easily, you dirty home wrecker!” she yelled loudly enough for everyone to hear.
All the bystanders started pointing their fingers at me, whispering and snickering. It was clear that after the recent rumors about me, no one would doubt Camilla's
I felt like I had dodged a bullet. I got into the elevator and pressed the last floor button. My body trembled and I panted as if I had run a marathon. No matter how much power I possessed, I was using only human strength to transmit it. My endurance might have gotten better after a few months of practice, but it was only natural to feel exhausted after using such overwhelming power.I got off to the highest floor and walked through the corridor swaying on my feet. I seriously hoped that Samil would be in his office. I kept squeezing the phone in my hand. Somehow I felt that I had to give the list of names to Samil as fast as possible. Finally, I got to Emma's desk.“Emma… is Sa… I mean, the CEO inside?” I asked, muttering.“No. He is at a meeting. If it's urgent, why don't you text him?” she pointed at the phone I was holding.“Fine…” I mumbled, feeling dizzy.I stood in front of Emma's desk
Samil kept staring at me, clenching his fist. The seal on his palm was glowing in bloody light, revealing the level of his fury.“How did you get this?” he asked.“I told you before, I compelled Camilla to tell the names of all the people working for them inside the Sirio Corporation and for the Bordas alone,” I answered, uncertain what he meant with his question.“But… how did she tell you all the names?! How could she even know them all, not to mention memorize them! Her?!”“She didn't have to,” I smirked, “All she had to do was to see the list of the names, or meet those people once. It was written in her memory, even though she would never recall it herself, my spell can drag this information out of her despite her knowing it consciously,” I explained boastfully.He burst out into malicious laughter, then pulled out his phone and picked someone's number, glancing at me.&
My heart throbbed loudly, I could feel its pulse in my ears. I looked deep into Samil's eyes.“W-what do you mean by staying by your side?” I asked hesitantly.“I mean that I am able to trust you. You are strong enough to keep up with me, and you are useful,” he chuckled.“Ha…” I sighed, annoyed, “So, what now? Will you give me your secretary's position again?! Or maybe, I should become your second secretary from now on?!” I hissed.I drank all that was left in my wine glass, and stood up from the table.“I lost my appetite,” I squeezed through my teeth and turned around to walk out of the kitchen.“Wait!” he grabbed my hand, “You know that I'm not good at talking about feelings and stuff… but somehow, I'm more at ease when you are around…”He grabbed my other hand as well and pulled me close to him.“When I cannot see
After I finished my work, I suddenly realized that I was supposed to be heading towards Samil's apartment. I wasn't too eager to see Samil's face. That was not how I imagined the day after our first night together. It felt awkward and upsetting. I went outside the TVM's headquarters and started walking. I didn't know how far I walked, but I found myself in the park. Natural surroundings quickly helped me put my mind at ease, for a bit at least.I was walking through the green lanes thinking about what I should do now. I needed to talk to someone, someone who could understand me as a woman and me as a witch. I had one possible choice. I called Grandma.As soon as she answered the phone, she put Kira on the speaker, so they could both listen to the news. I told them briefly about my quarrel with Camilla, and how I got the list of spies working for Artois. I finally said that I slept with Samil, but that I couldn't even name that thing we had, a real relationship.
“Mr. Borda… are you sure that you want to do this? You have already given my Grandma a mansion. I have paid me a lot for the pain medicine… I don't think I deserve more from you…” I explained feverishly.The Chairman chuckled, looking confidently into my eyes.“Kass, you are our family's savior. If it wasn't for the fact that I want you to become Samil's wife, I would like to adopt you. I even discussed this case briefly with Amara,” he stated as if the things that he was saying were completely obvious.I stared at him in disbelieve. He seemed to absolutely disregard the fact that his precious grandson was still engaged to Camilla Artois. Even if I had Arlo Borda's full support, Samil's decision stayed the same. Furthermore, it was dangerous. Mr. Borda's support put me in the spotlight, and I certainly didn't want to become a target for both Camilla and Victor Artois. Not to mention, I couldn't even imagine Samil's un
I stood there looking at the Chairman with my mouth opened. My mind went blank, and it took me a while to comprehend what his words meant. I felt like I was locked inside a bubble, because suddenly I couldn't even hear the surrounding commotion properly. I gazed at everyone else. They were clearly arguing about the Chairman's decision. I could sense that looking at their angry faces and furious gestures. I smiled wryly, observing the indignation in the eyes of all three of them. I could also see how Mr. Borda laughed at their hateful words. Suddenly, my bubble burst with the roaring sound of Samil's voice. “She's incompetent! She is merely a talentless producer of a show that's not even aired properly, but put on an online platform, and you want to put her on the board?! You want someone like her to decide who is in charge of the company that our family has built for decades?!” he fumed pointing at me. The Chairman walked towards him and slapped his face. His
I kept staring at Samil in disbelieve. I used to dream of hearing the exact words he said, but at that moment I hesitated.“Why…? Why would you want to do it now?” I asked still processing what had happened.“You said it yourself that it is a curse. Why would I want a curse on my body?” he smiled.“The seal really is a curse, but it is also a powerful tool. It protects you from witchcraft, and gives you strength…”“But it can also take you away from me, and I don't want that,” Samil interrupted my explanation, “Besides, if you stay by my side you can protect me from other witches' magic, right? As for the strength, I workout every day. I believe their won't be anything wrong with my strength even without that seal,” he smirked.I gazed at him cautiously.“Are you sure…? You are still healthy, you could live for years before making this decision,” I c
We spent the rest of the road in silence. I guessed neither of us knew how to react or what else to say. Soon after, we arrived at the mansion's main entrance. Only then did I could see how greatly the possession suffered after the attack that happened during the last ritual. I got out of the car and started looking around anxiously. Perhaps I was paranoid, but I kept wondering what were the chances for any of those people from before to find out about our plans for that night.“Relax,” Samil grabbed my hand, “There is an army of people guarding us from a distance. If they spot anyone on the road, they will immediately intervene,” he claimed confidently.I sighed knowing Samil wasn't a person who would take unnecessary risks, but my overwhelming restlessness didn't disappear just because of his words.We walked inside through the corridor leading to the hall where the energy core was. On our way, we had to walk through pieces of the wall
Samil had never left my side on our way home, whether it was while we were on the ship or flying in the Bordas private jet. He kept asking me if I was ok. He did it so often that I started to find his concern over my health annoying. He wasn't the one that had been bothersome during our trip. Chris, Elijah and all the other men from Samil's army were coming one by one to apologize for trying to burn me at the stake. Although, I kept repeating that it wasn't their fault since they were controlled by magic, but recalling everything they had done while being compelled wasn't exactly helpful in recovery from their moral hangover… Despite the fact that I knew that it was all over and that I and everyone was safe, those horrifying moments were coming back each time I closed my eyes. Once I tried to get some sleep, I woke up screaming, but then Samil would hold me in his arms and tell me that there was nothing that could ever threaten us anymore. The warmth of his body was soothing
Suddenly, I heard nothing but crackling fire from the light of the torch. I hesitantly opened my eyes. Samil threw his torch at the bottom of the pile, yet it barely touched the wooden branches. The pile didn't start to burn. All it caused was a bit of smoke that was coming from one side of the pile. My heart was pounding frantically while my tears kept falling down my cheeks."Samil…" I mumbled, looking into his eyes.He raised his head and gazed at me. His expression was slightly different from before. It wasn't as blank as if his consciousness started to resurface again…"I love you…" I called softly, praying that it would be different this time, that my calling would finally reach him.He stared at me in silence, then slowly turned his head to look around. At that moment, he stopped resembling a mere puppet. It was like one of his strings had been cut. I could see him clenching his teeth. I gasped, desperately hoping that his reac
Ezzura had cast a spell that filled the entire island, including the irresilient to her magic Samil. She compelled everyone. Now, they were all her own army that obeyed her unconditionally…I guessed, she clearly wanted to torture my heart before she would burn my body, doing everything she could to break me. She picked a beach as a place where I should be burned at the stake, and she told Samil to take me there. I didn't have any strength left to resist. He tossed me over one shoulder like a bag of sand, and then he carried me out of the witches' castle. I tried calling his name, but he didn't react at all, as if he had become an empty shell that once had been someone who loved me…"I have to admit that your magic is extraordinary," Ezzura chuckled while walking to the beach. "Can you see how easily I had changed everyone into my puppets? Your magic in this life is even stronger than the one you had as Immara."She kept glancing cheerfully, admiri
For a few seconds, I was unable to open my eyes. I heard a continuous, high-pitched sound in my ears. It covered all the other sounds I could hear, and disturbed my focus. Finally, I forced my eyelids to open. My vision was slowly coming back… I was lying on the floor in the middle of the witches' courtroom, trying to comprehend what had just happened. I nervously lifted my upped body to sit and look around. When I did, I gulped. All the witches from the group of the eldest were dead. Their bodies were lying motionless on the ground. Some were covered in blood, some looked like they were electrocuted. It was a massacre, and I was sitting in the middle of it… Suddenly, I saw Ezzura nonchalantly walking around the hall, gloating over the victory. I flinched, then I clenched my teeth. My previous visions, Immara's memories, the feeling of betrayal, they all came back and filled every inch of my body. I instantly raised my hands in order to attack her, but… nothi
"W-what?" I murmured nervously, gazing at Sister.She avoided my stare. She must have known from the beginning that I was the incarnation of her younger sister, the one she told me about. Now, the fact that she claimed that she didn't remember her name and told me to call her "Sister" made me grit my teeth. Why couldn't she tell me?! Even if she wasn't certain if I remember my past life, couldn't she tell me that I look exactly like her late sister?! I felt confused and betrayed, and the most disturbing fact was that I had never recalled having an older sister in the memories of my past life…"Oh… I can see that she didn't tell you, did she?" Shelta chuckled coldly. "She had been told to gain your trust and kill you, but once she had learnt that you were sisters, she disobeyed the orders. She even decided to trick us to save your life, but you had to die even after you had lost your powers…"My head started to spin. I glanced at Sister. I co
There was a road outside the forest. It led straight to the witches' castle. It looked like a fortress. It had high stone walls around it, and an enormous iron gate at the front. Samil walked at the front. Sister and I were right behind him, and the rest of the soldiers marched in formation, moving towards the gate while constantly fighting off the witches. Finally, we forced the witches to run back to their castle. They ran to the gates, banging on them and desperately crying to those in charge to open the entrance. Yet Mahala and the rest of the witches in charge were deaf to their pleading voices. They would rather let them die at those gates than open them. I gave Sister a signal, nodding my head, and we hit those witches with our magic, making them fall into a coma."Chris, get the explosive to blast those gates," Samil ordered."Understood," Chris replied, then abruptly turned around to get the bombs ready."Wait!" I called out, "There's no need for that.
It was dawning when Sister finished her story. We managed to drink three bottles of wine, but certainly we didn't have to worry about getting drunk or having a hangover. Lack of sleep couldn't bother us either. That was the upper side of being a witch.After the whole night of talking, we used a few spells to improve our looks. Then I made us breakfast, and we were ready to work on making the cor inane for Samil's men. Chris showed up after 10 AM and brought the clothes and other things for Sister. Then his men delivered thousands of crystals, some for the amulets and some to make a powder that can be used on bullets. There was a lot of work ahead of me and Sister.For the first time, I was glad that Samil wasn't around. I felt more at ease then. I didn't have to worry about my boyfriend's peculiar behavior. I wasn't sure if he'd act the same way the next time he and Sister met, but I'd rather not think about it at the time...Sister was friendly towards everyon
I was exhausted from too much thinking. I was anxious, but I had to pretend that everything was all right in front of Sister. I didn't want her to jeopardize our alliance right before that big fight. It was something I couldn't afford. I wished Sister goodnight while wearing a perfect smile. I saw her casually lying in bed and closing her eyes. I wished I could fall asleep as peaceful as she did.I tossed and turned in bed, hearing my pounding heart. I was terrified. If Sister's magic wasn't effected by the power of the seal, it could mean that her abilities were far beyond mine. It could mean that Sister's magic was great enough to defeat the demonic power within the seal, and as far as I was concerned, no witch had ever done it. How could I consider myself as a witch from the prophecy then?I wasn't that arrogant to think of myself as the most powerful witch in the world. I had never craved for power. I just wanted to feel confident about winning, and now I was becom
Samil took Sister and me to my apartment. While driving, he turned out to be surprisingly considerate towards Sister and even sent someone to get clothes, shoes, and other basic stuff for her to accommodate comfortably in her new environment. Perhaps I should be glad that he was helpful, but I couldn't help it. It just bothered me more and more. I tried not to show it, yet keeping a smile on my face was no longer possible. Unlike me, Samil was… smiling. He was smiling towards Sister. I had noticed it a few times, and it instantly brought chills to my spine. He'd never been so submissive to me, and now, Sister said a single word, and he immediately made a phone call to get her what she wanted!I felt completely left out in a conversation while we were in the car. If I had been an outsider, I would have thought that she was Samil's girlfriend, not me. I didn't like it in the slightest. I kept telling myself that there were more important things to handle, things concerni