The Invite

Chapter 7

The room fell silent.

Completely silent.

The Second Master's nose suddenly started bleeding.

The Third Master froze.

"What happened?" I asked.

Neither answered.

For a moment, both of them looked somewhere else.

Not here.

Not now.

Somewhere far away.

Ten Thousand Years Ago

A woman sat beneath a silver tree.

Three young boys sat beside her.

One with blue eyes.

One with red eyes.

One with green eyes.

Their mother smiled softly.

Then she sang.

"I am the one who cleanses me of my father's sins."

Again.

And again.

Every day.

The same song.

The same line.

Until the day she sacrificed herself for her children.

Present Day

The Second Master wiped the blood from his nose.

The Third Master looked stunned.

Neither spoke.

Finally, the Second Master whispered:

"That was Mother's song."

I blinked.

"What?"

The Third Master stared at me.

"You shouldn't know that line."

"Neither should I know half the things happening in this castle."

Silence.

Fair point.

"Could she really be drawing memories?" the Third Master asked.

"Impossible," said the Second Master.

"I've seen stranger things here."

Both Masters looked at me.

"Can someone please explain why every conversation becomes more confusing?"

The Second Master suddenly grabbed my hand.

I jumped.

"HEY!"

The glowing scars on his arm began fading.

We all froze.

The Third Master's eyes widened.

"Did you see that?"

The Second Master nodded slowly.

The scar had become lighter.

I pulled my hand back.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

The Second Master grinned.

"Oh, this is interesting."

"No."

"Very interesting."

"No."

"Extremely interesting."

"NO."

The Third Master stepped forward.

"Try again."

Before I could argue, he gently took my hand.

The moment our skin touched...

Another glowing scar dimmed.

The room went silent.

Again.

Why was everybody always silent around me?

The Second Master laughed.

"Well."

"Well what?"

"You might be able to heal us."

I stared.

Then laughed.

Then realized nobody else was laughing.

"Oh."

Three hours later...

I was sitting in my room.

Trying to process everything.

Failed.

Completely failed.

I gave up.

A hot shower sounded much easier.

After dressing, I noticed something strange.

My necklace.

It wasn't where I left it.

I frowned.

I clearly remembered placing it on the table.

Now it sat on the windowsill.

I checked the room.

The bed.

The wardrobe.

The desk.

Nothing was disturbed.

Only the necklace.

A chill ran down my spine.

"Who entered my room?"

No answer.

I picked up the necklace.

The gemstone briefly glowed.

Just for a second.

Then it stopped.

"Wonderful."

Another mystery.

Exactly what I needed.

Soon afterward, my maid arrived.

"Miss Zilla."

"What now?"

"The General Council begins shortly."

I sighed.

"Do they pay salaries?"

"No."

"Then I'm already disappointed."

The council hall was enormous.

Rows of nobles filled the room.

Everywhere I looked, people were staring.

Whispering.

Judging.

Existing.

Very annoyingly.

I sat down.

Three hours passed.

Three.

Entire.

Hours.

Family contracts.

Family protection.

Family wealth.

Family politics.

More contracts.

More politics.

More talking.

I nearly fell asleep.

Finally, I understood.

The Masters protected powerful families.

In exchange, those families renewed ancient agreements.

Generation after generation.

For centuries.

Maybe longer.

"So basically," I whispered to my maid, "they are magical security providers."

The maid nearly choked.

"Miss Zilla!"

"What?"

"You can't say that."

"I just did."

Then I felt it.

Someone was staring.

Again.

Why was everyone always staring?

I turned.

A noblewoman sat several rows away.

She was looking directly at me.

Not normal looking.

Frozen looking.

Shocked looking.

She suddenly stood.

The entire hall became quiet.

The woman took one step.

Then another.

Then another.

Until she stood before me.

I looked around.

"Uh..."

The woman trembled.

Her eyes filled with tears.

"What is happening?"

Nobody answered.

Then the woman bowed.

Completely bowed.

To me.

The entire hall gasped.

I nearly fell out of my chair.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

The woman raised her head.

Her voice shook.

"It really exists."

"What exists?"

"The bloodline."

Everyone was staring now.

Great.

Exactly what I wanted.

Attention.

The woman lowered her head again.

"Please forgive me."

I blinked.

"Forgive you for what?"

"I didn't know."

"Didn't know what?"

She looked like she was about to cry.

I turned toward the Masters.

"Can somebody tell me what is happening?"

The Second Master looked unusually serious.

The Third Master looked equally shocked.

Neither spoke.

I pointed at the noblewoman.

"Why is she apologizing?"

Silence.

I pointed at myself.

"Why is she bowing to me?"

More silence.

I leaned back in my chair.

"Most importantly..."

The entire hall waited.

I folded my arms.

"Will any of this increase my salary?"

The silence somehow became even wors