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Chapter 18
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The Demon Chapter 19
In the palace, I was greeted my Tom ripping me a new one for putting my life in danger—and my uncle doing the same for another reason. Dealing with the first one was simple. I just snorted and said that I wasn’t worth a dump if two gilded parrots could defeat me. Or would cockroaches stomp me to death with their tiny feet, too?The second one was harder. Uncle was majestic and imposing...and somehow reminded me of a gaudy fool in a village fair. Abigail was pressing her lips together with such force that I could see her teeth—a rat was a rat.“Alex, how could you do that!”I fluttered my eyelashes as convincingly as I could.What else would I do?I don’t know anything; I haven’t seen anything; I haven’t killed anyone!“Two dead bodies in one morning! Viscount Muerlath. Marquis Tiernen! By the way, Duke Tiernen is Her Majesty’s second cousin!”Oh hell, the rat had some nerve. Making her second cousin a duke? I had to get an execution list, pronto. And the executioners.I didn’t deign t
The Demon Chapter 20
The next three days were quiet. I introduced Tom to Rene, and they seemed to get on well, even if, from the sidelines, they somewhat reminded me of two huge cats, sniffing and observing each other. They hit it off and dragged me for a stroll—to a temple.Where else would three young, healthy guys go to have a taste of life in the capital? Only to the abode of the Bright Saint.Yet fate, apparently, was against showing our devotion. Along the way, we stumbled upon a brothel called Mistress Eliza’s, and Rene courteously invited us to have a look at that landmark. And there was a lot to look at there.As luck would have it, that part of my education had been mostly theoretical. It’s not like I could even think about intimacy while I was wearing my true face—very few women considered a tail and scales attractive. And when I learned to change shape, it was too late, as we got Rudolph’s letter...The only thing left to do was to pick up experience along the way. I did know the theory, howev
The Demon Chapter 21
The Sunday dinner at Morinar estate was much more of a success. Count Morinar accepted me as if I were his family—and not in that false manner I had gotten used to at court when they said one thing and meant something entirely different. No, he really had liked my grandfather. During his reign, the Morinar family had been in favor, and Henry Louis Morinar would love nothing more than to gain that influence back—the more, the better. He also wasn’t kissing my rear and kowtowing to me. He simply treated me like a friend of his son—told a few interesting stories, gave good advice, invited me to visit his house at any time.Meanwhile, Henry’s wife, a pretty-looking, plump blonde woman in her forties, took a shining to Tom and me. For some reason, she had decided that I was a poor orphan who never got any motherly affection and started to feed me and dote on me.If Martha had seen that, she’d probably have killed her right there. To consider her darling an orphan! Never. Still, I tried to
The Demon Chapter 22
“Alex, is that your work?”I gave Tommy an innocent look.“Why me? I’m a good guy!”“Because nobody else would dare to do that. Holy cow, throwing a dirty rag over a duke’s head and kicking him in the butt...”“Did he say that himself?”“No. But everybody else knows that already.”I snorted.“Tom, I am as innocent as a baby.”“Fine, that’s what I’ll tell them.”“Right.”We exchanged looks. Everything was clear. The less Tommy knew, the less they could harm him.As for Rene bringing us two bottles of almost century-old wine and inviting us to visit them at any time... Why not, really? It appeared that Richard had been severely injured.A promptly summoned mage healer, after examining the patient, told them that the duke had to spend at least half a year in bed—otherwise, he would never walk again.Richard was furious, Ruthina was weeping, and the royal couple was quite upset. Andre, however, behaved as if nothing had happened.I continued to live as an ordinary courtier. Nobody tried b
The Demon Chapter 23
Abigail’s cousin was called Count Torne. All decked out, that fop was sitting atop a stallion, whom I felt really bad for—carrying such an idiot probably wasn’t a dream come true.Armor made of hammered gold, outrageously expensive weapons, lots of jewelry—if a band of brigands caught this imbecile, they would be set for life. Even their grandchildren would be. In the meantime, I was getting by with two horses, one of which was carrying all of my meager possessions: a tent, food rations, a pot, a couple of bowls and cups, a flintstone, and a tinderbox, in a word, everything I needed to survive.We weren’t headed to the wilderness. There were people there. And really, Henry would have the time of his life with this dummy, driving him as hard as he could on mountain hikes. The count looked at me with surprise.“Your Highness? What about your cart?”A cart?“It will catch up to us later,” I decided to say.“Are we going?”“Yes. First, we’re to meet the regiment. It’s stationed in Tyrem.”
The Demon Chapter 24
I grinned, showing him my small sharp teeth. Human, at least so far. The colonel looked at me carefully, as if he had never seen a human. Or maybe he really hadn’t, at least one such as myself.“What are you suggesting, Alex?”“You’re going to do your job. I’ll go with you and learn. Then I leave for the capital, alive, and you remain here—”“And go back to the prison.”“Not necessarily. Could we discuss that? Yes, just not here. They’ve found a house for me. I suggest we talk over there.”Farne stared at me, and I looked back. Usually, people believed me because I wasn’t lying, and I believed people because I knew when they told me the truth. This was another case. He believed me because he had nothing else to believe. A desperate ally? Good enough. It would only make him care more about the opportunity I gave him.Two hours later, the three of us settled in. I, Colonel Farne, and Count Torne. We laid the count’s half-dead body onto the bed and poured another dose of moonshine into h
The Demon Chapter 25
Compared to the previous day, the mayor seemed to have more brass, but I quickly put an end to that. The secretary flew into the corner and hit the wall with such force that I heard his spine crack.The mayor tried to greet me with a smile but froze in place as soon as my saber cut the table in two in one swing. Just like a petrify spell.“If in two hours, the regiment doesn’t receive rations, tents, uniforms, and horses, you may consider yourself hung.”“Your Highness!”I pulled out a scroll given by my uncle to Count Torne. Everything its bearer did was assumed to be done for the good of the country.“I’m going to leave this room, show this scroll to the guards, and order them to hang the entire town council on the gates. At most, my uncle may give me a slap on the wrist, as I’m his only nephew. Go look for necromancers on the other side and try complaining about me.”“Y...your—”“My Highness, and My Highness is waiting! Go on, chop-chop!”I spoke the last word while almost hissing,
The Demon Chapter 26
Tyen Claymore cursed quietly. Saliah’s weeping had woken him, which meant that he wouldn’t get any more sleep before morning. He did feel bad for the girl, but he felt much worse for his own self. At least she wouldn’t get killed, maybe just used, but his prospects were much grimmer.That had been some truly epic bad luck: riding through the mountains, accompanying the baron’s children to the capital—and getting ambushed by bandits, of all things. What could a harmless scholar of ancient languages do with bandits? Die. He could die. They hadn’t let him, though. The bandits had knocked the dagger from his hands and knocked him out with a blow to the head. He had regained consciousness in the cave, inside a cell with enough space for a pig, not a human.Anyway, judging by the smell, they really had kept a pig there, until it had died in terrible agony. The scumbags were fair, in a way. They had offered to spare everyone’s life in exchange for a ransom, informing Baron Avris about his ch
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“How do you know about the charm spells?”“How could I not! Innis, do you know that your mother had an elder brother?”Innis grew pale.“Y-yes. But he’s...”“Disappeared without a trace. Why would Sidon Andago need him?”I caught the girl so she wouldn’t faint.“Tell me more, you corpse!”That tone finally made him pay attention. The ghost looked at me once more, I released my power, and it was his turn to become pale—or, rather, translucent.“By the Bright! You—”“Yep. Me. And if you don’t answer me right now, I will burn your chicken coop to the ground!”The spirit sighed and began telling his story. He was also a necromancer, who, by a cruel twist of fate, had become a healer.If you make a drawback your advantage, you can heal with the power intended to destroy, that was true.I had never been taught that, but the Andago family seemed no stranger to experimentation.Anyway, Tidann had died like he was supposed to. But during his lifetime, he had conducted trials in that same labor
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I was barely moving my lips, but she definitely heard me, as she ran her hand over her hair and all of a sudden, broke down in tears. It had been a while since I had felt myself that stupid.Still, Martha didn’t cry for long. She raised her head high.“Alex, boy, yer alive!”And there was so much love and happiness in her voice. She didn’t care about herself at all, the main thing was my safety.I couldn’t help but blurt out, from the bottom of my heart, “Mother…”Truly, the mother is not the one who gave birth.“I was so scared for you. After we spoke, I ran off here, yer snake led me. Everything’s quiet, but the ghosts are all afraid. Lots of templars in the palace, all tip-toeing ‘round yer wifey. Methinks, ‘twas the bitched viper who started all this, mark me word!”“Mother, but where’s Tommy? Rene?”“Tommy’s on the lam, he’s taking his wife to Rick. Rene and his pa high-tailed, too. Probably hiding somewhere, ‘lest they lose their knobs in the heat.”“Did somebody get—”“Yep. The
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During dinner, I felt like I was the main course.The local residents questioned me about everything, starting from silk prices in Tevarr to my family, from weather to the royal palace.I squirmed like I was in a hot pan, trying to avoid telling too much. I was pretty good at that.By the end of dinner, Amorta graced me with a smile and a suggestive look from her thin eyelashes, while Sidon thawed out and started to tell me his hunting stories. If they had been true, all the beasts in Radenor wouldn’t be enough for him.I listened to them, nodded, and was finally rewarded with seeing the heir: Sidon’s complete copy. He had Amorta’s ears, but was the spitting image of his father otherwise.Maybe that was why he cherished the child so much. Innis was way too smart, sharp, and independent, not to mention, entirely Andago in her appearance.Blood couldn’t be locked away. I had to coo for a bit, while discreetly collecting a few stray hairs from the baby’s clothes.Let’s see if he’s truly
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Summoning Ak-kvir was easy.He appeared almost right away and sniffed the air.“You again, necromancer?”“Do you object?”“Do you have the payment?”I sneered viciously.“I’ll figure something out.”“Get comfortable, then.”I sat down on his back, and Ak-kvir darted off straight ahead. Eight hours to the town?Dear Innis, just twenty minutes...and that’s taking into account that the demon had grown very lazy.We passed the town wall in a few rough leaps.Good thing that Ak-kvir’s claws were saber-sharp and could pierce any stone three feet deep. And finally, I was left standing in a narrow street. Monsignors bandits, come on.I can’t believe nobody wants these easy pickings!Yeah, that was rhetorical.Five minutes later, a three-man group stumbled upon me.They were so delighted that it was even funny.“Oh, look who’s come to visit!”“A noble boy, bless his heart!”“You there, stand and deliver!”They tried to surround me; how naive. Did they want me to speak?Like dark lightning, I d
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Tommy was blissfully sleeping inside his house with Henrietta nestled against his shoulder, snuffling and smiling in her sleep. But when an ice-cold wave came over them, both had to rise up, their peace disturbed.That wind was something they could never hide or shield themselves from; it was a death wind, and it brought cold from the grave, making him feel as if he were in a coffin.Even dead men could wake up after feeling something like that...and sometimes, they did.“What!”The darkness in the room grew thicker and took on Martha’s shape, smiling with her mouth full of shark teeth.“It’s me, Tom. Martha.”Instantly, Tommy was relieved. He had seen that many times before.No big deal, Alex had pulled stunts much worse than that. When you live with necromancers, do as necromancers do.“What’s wrong?”“Treason. Take your wife and hide, I will warn the Morinars, so...try to get to Torrin. You are the most vulnerable of us all.”“How’s Alex?”“Alive.”Tommy breathed out.“Good. But wh
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I had two options: either promptly summon Ak-kvir and get to the capital, wherein I would clean up the mess, but the schemers would have time to get away, that was as clear as day.The other option...Fine, you’ve gotten rid of the rightful king.Now what?Oops.Well, you can sit on the throne of Radenor, you would even stay there...for like twenty seconds. After that, prepare a dust tray and a broom. No need for a coffin, the remains could be poured over a flowerbed in the palace garden. If I held off my return, I would get the chance to reveal the plotters.But what about my family?Well, that was a moot question. If I were a plotter, I would first kill the king—me—and then, if everything worked out well, switch to his entourage.Yet, I suspected that no templars had survived. Generally, I was a nice guy, but they had managed to really piss me off. I still had some time before they would attack Martha, Tommy, Rene, Dariola... Although, why would they attack Dariola?Her child was th
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Surprised, Innis stared at the demon who had appeared in her pentagram. He wasn’t quite what she had expected. Visually, he seemed a proper demon: claws, scales, and a tail.But should he really be all bloody and unconscious?Grandpa’s diary never said anything like that. Too bad I couldn’t find any other notes.But...what am I to do with it? Try to call him? Shake him awake?No, reaching inside the pentagram was forbidden.What if I poke him with a stick? He can’t just lie there in my tower, can he?I have enough problems on my plate without a dead demon!**I was in agony. Every bit of my body that was still there was emanating with pain, even my tail. “Demon, are you alive? Demon! Damn you, you’re a rascal, not a demon!”It was clearly a girl’s voice. She seemed young and quite upset. She had a throaty contralto, clear and singsong, like hot chocolate.I definitely wasn’t in a temple.Where then?I focused and tried to prop myself on my elbows, then open my eyes.Yeah, they had gi
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After Martha told me that my wife was likely with child, I wasn’t even surprised or worried.She isn’t saying anything to me?There could be lots of reasons!Maybe she didn’t know so herself or wanted to make sure. What was there to discuss? I just had to charge the court healer with a task.Alas, I was wrong, and I had to pay for that mistake sooner than I had expected. Two days later, I found myself on the way to a small town called Livaren.I was still traveling around the country so the officials I had appointed would stay on edge. When the king shows up on your doorstep and demands an answer...or just shows up...it can really shake you up.Bad news came from Livaren.Somebody destroyed ten of my ghosts. I had to visit and figure out what was happening there. That was exactly what I did. I was used to nobody ever standing in my way. Have I already mentioned that sometimes, I can be a real idiot?The mayor, Baron Fagin, was cheerful. He had clearly screwed up. But considering that
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Princess Dariola.What did she look like?Not a beauty, or at least I didn’t think so. She was tall, half a head taller than me, and thin as a rail.She had blonde hair and blue, watery eyes, and her lips were so pale they seemed almost white. She did have nice hands, with long thin fingers, worthy of an artist or a musician.I also liked her voice: high-pitched, clear. She would probably sound great singing merry songs somewhere in a meadow, during summer.Alas, but during our introduction, I didn’t seem to attract her much, either. I guess she thought me too weak and fragile, and I had no wish to disprove her.So, I just kissed her hand.“Your Highness.”Just a neutral phrase. No “My princess” or “Welcome to my kingdom.”They made me an offer I could hardly refuse, and that was enough.Oh, I had divorced soon after getting crowned.The church granted me my request, even if they did try to negotiate. Your Majesty, of course, we’re ready to help you in any way you want, but we’ve gott
