Summer received a note from Leon with her dinner. After reading it, she set it down and glanced at Lily. The young maid fluttered about the room, humming under her breath.

"Who delivered the note?" Summer asked.

Fluffing one of Summer's pillows, Lily glanced over her shoulder at Summer. The lights of the lantern cast golden highlights in her dark hair. "Oh, a servant from his wing, my lady."

"So... not Logan?" Summer asked and braced for Lily's reaction.

Setting the pillow down, Lily turned her nose up in the air and swirled around to walk to the closet, her skirt swishing around her legs. "No. Not Logan. And I don't care if it was him."

She disappeared into the closet. Summer chewed on the juicy piece of meat. Hmm. Maybe Lily was already over her one sided infatuation. Good for her.

Lily emerged with Summer's night dress and laid it across the bed, smoothing the soft white material.

"And he's not all that great, you know," Lily said, obviously not done with the subject yet. "I was just young and easily impressed."

Summer didn't point out that only days ago Lily had been head over heels in love with the valet. Summer just hummed her agreement, and Lily continued.

"There are many men who are more handsome than he is, certainly more who are kinder." She brushed her hands together. "Well, but I'm not going to be chasing around anyone, my lady. I'll wait for the perfect person."

She paused, straightened and padded closer. "May I ask you a question my lady?"

"Of course," Summer asked, licking the rest of the sauce off her fork. The cook was an absolute genius. How could he make something so sweet and savory at the same time?

"Have you ever been in love?" Lily asked. "I mean, I thought I was in love with Logan. But it was rather easy to just dismiss him after the way he'd acted. So I guess that is not love? What is love anyway?"

Summer blinked. She hadn't expected the deep question. And she had no idea how to respond. "I... don't know, Lily. I've never been in love."

The only love Summer knew was love for Rose and her son, love for Boyd who'd raised her and... that was it. She set her fork down, suddenly aware of the gaping emptiness in her chest.

How pathetic her life had been. She had had so little in her life, she never questioned it. She was twenty three summers, almost twenty four, and yet her life was so lacking in human connections.

"Never?" Lily widened her eyes. "Oh, I didn't mean to sound shocked. I just- it's just-"

Summer laughed. "It's okay, Lily. I'm not offended. It is simply the truth. Unfortunately, I'm not the most qualified person to discuss these matters with you. My input will be lacking. But if you have a question on how to skin a rabbit or how to fell an opponent twice your size with one blow, I would be most delighted to help."

Lily giggled. "I suppose those are more useful skills."

Summer smiled, but she wasn't so sure. Of course, being capable in those areas was useful, but people need human contact more than anything. She had been lucky to have had Rose and Boyd, otherwise, she would have gone insane long ago.

Maybe, just maybe, it was time for Summer to open her eyes and heart to things other than survival. She almost snorted at her thoughts. Right now, the only thing she should be worried about was the artifact's reaction to her.

Lily shifted, her hands crunching her apron and letting go, her eyes bright. She was almost vibrating with the need to speak.

"What is it, Lily?"

"Oh, I have a question but it might be rude," she said.

"Go ahead. If it's rude, I'll rap you on the forehead."

Lily giggled again. "I was wondering... what about his highness? I mean, even though he's not beautiful in the way some men are, he's quite handsome and he's- well, he's a prince."

Lily's eyes turned wide and sparkling at the word 'prince'. She was so adorable.

"I guess the rumors are wild among the castle staff as well," Summer said.

Lily stammered. Summer chuckled. "It's okay. Unfortunately, there's no budding romance between Leon and me. We're just good friends."

"Oh, but you can't be sure. Maybe something might happen in the future?" Lily looked like she really wanted something to happen between Leon and Summer.

Summer raised her eyebrow. "Lily, my dear, can you really see me as a princess?"

"Yes!" Lily replied without missing a beat, her eyes flashing. "You would make a fantastic princess. You're honorable and smart and beautiful and strong, and his highness would be lucky indeed to have you by his side!"

Summer blinked, taken aback by the passionate words. Lily flushed a deep scarlet. She cleared her throat and scowled. "Sorry, I got carried away. But I don't like seeing people I love putting themselves down!" She said, stomping one dainty foot on the carpet.

Awe. Summer's heart squeezed, her chest growing warm. She reached over and clasped Lily's hand. "Thank you, Lily. I appreciate it."

Lily glowed. Forgoing any more romance discussions, Lily turned the conversation toward the approaching assembly and the opening ball. Apparently, a seamstress would be paying Summer a visit for the opening ball dress. Summer didn't know what to think about that, she was, however, thrilled at the prospect of dressing like a 'princess' as Lily had termed it.

Too soon, Lily bid her goodnight, and cleared the table and left with a perk in her step.

Turning her attention to the note, Summer ignored the laid out night dress on her bed and sat down in wait for Leon.

He'd instructed her to wait for him and Ida an hour after supper. Summer busied herself with cleaning the blades she'd used in the fight earlier. The dried blood looked darker under lantern light. Summer's stomach twisted. She had taken another life today. More than one. The fact that she couldn't remember exactly how many made her blood chill. Was she getting used to it?

The scent of clove oil and the repetitive wiping motion soothed her heart. The blade soon glimmered clean under the light, and Summer wished her hands could be as easy to clean of blood.

The knock on the door came right on time. Summer opened the door. Ida and Leon stood outside in black cloaks, blending with the dark hallway behind them. Summer let them in and closed the door.

"Why the secrecy?" She asked.

"We're going to the library," Ida said. Summer frowned. She had already been to the library a few times. The place was open to everyone in the castle, so she didn't understand why they had to do it in secret. Ida explained. "Not that one. We're going to the Royal Archives. It's off limits except to authorized individuals. And you're not authorized."

"Even with the blessing of the second prince of the kingdom?" Summer asked.

Leon's dark eyes twinkled. "Even so. The only people with the authority to grant access are my brother and my mother. And I'd rather not have them aware of your visit."

"Because?"

"Because they're going to start asking questions, and I'm too busy to explain everything," Leon said.

"He's also scared of his mother's reaction," Ida added with a grin.

Leon growled under his breath. "Fine. That too."

Summer smothered a chuckle. "You're afraid of your mother?"

"If you knew my mother, you wouldn't find it odd."

"I second that," Ida said.

Now Summer was curious about the queen dowager.

"So, you're going to try and sneak there," Leon said, fishing a white bundle out of his pocket. "Which is why I brought this."

He unwrapped the white cloth, revealing the artifact. The bluish metal glinted, and the orange lantern light gave the usually white gemstone a golden hue.

"I waited until Robbins left the castle before taking it out," Leon said, handing her the medallion. "I don't want anyone to know about it. Not yet."

Summer hefted the artifact. The metal was cold at first touch, but grew warmer the longer she held it. And it wasn't just from her body heat. Yet it was nothing like the burning heat that had stung her hand earlier today.

"I want you to try and use it," Leon said.

Summer made a face. "I don't know how."

"Try. I know you're able to sneak past the guards to the library even without it. But I want you to try using it if you can."

Summer closed her hand around the medallion. "I'll do my best."

She donned her cloak and the three of them left her room, slinking through the castle, through corridors and staircases very rarely used.

A guard rotation walked down the hallway towards them. Summer blended into Leon's shadow and tightened her hand around the artifact. How should she do this? Earlier today, it had simply happened. She focused, trying to picture herself dematerializing. The medallion's warmth did not increase.

"Did it work?" she whispered.

Ida glanced her way. "Nope."

Summer groaned. She would just use the old fashioned way to disappear. Which was child's play with Leon's imposing frame next to her. His dark cloak offered enough leverage for her to use. Creeping behind Leon, she drew her hood down further. The guards' steps fell quiet. They stood to the side when they recognized Leon and put their fists to their hearts.

"Your highness, Captain Ida," their leader greeted.

"As you were," Leon said, walking past them. I slipped to his side and glanced behind me. The guards were walking away in the opposite direction. Good. They noticed nothing.

"I guess the artifact is redundant at this point," Leon said, glancing her way.

"It's dark, you're so big and the cloak helps. Also, the guards wouldn't expect the prince of the kingdom to be smuggling people into uncharted territories, so their guard is down."

Summer threw the medallion in tfhe air, caught it and with a flick of her wrist, made it disappear. She showed them her empty hands. Ida blew a low whistle.

Leon narrowed his eyes. The calculative glint in them reminded her so much of Ari's, she smiled.

"You wouldn't be interested in a counseling position, would you?"

Summer snorted. "If you think your high and mighty guards are going to take remarks from someone like me, you're more delusional than I thought."

"Hey, we're not all bad," Ida said. They turned another long hallway. The pale stone walls looked rough in these parts of the castle, almost older.

Summer sighed. "I know. Sorry for generalizing. I know people like Wolfe, Blake and Al are not fair representatives of all the guards. But you can't deny that being part of the elite can make people rather stuffy. I don't think they'll be enthused to take pointers from a former thief with no official education."

There was no bitterness behind her words, just simple facts. Another guard rotation crossed their path, and Summer blended into the shadows again.

"Maybe forcing them to see that you, a former thief and a person with no formal education, have so much to teach them, can knock them down a few notches," Leon offered.

Summer hummed. She doubted that. They kept their peace until they were well past the guards and down another hallway. They were in part of the castle Summer usually wouldn't venture to, where the lanterns were few and far in between and the shadows grew thicker and darker, offering more blind spots for her to fade out.

Double doors loomed at the end of the corridor. Ida whispered, "those doors are the entrance."

Summer eyed the closed double doors. A guard stood on either side of it, the golden buttons of their green jackets winked under the lantern light.

"Is Ida going in with us?" Summer asked.

"No, I'm not authorized."

"Good. A distraction will be nice, Ida. A squeal."

Ida glared at her. "A squeal?"

"Yes."

"What should I do?" Leon murmured while Ida grumbled under her breath.

"Be big and imposing and angry," Summer said. Angry Leon was enough of a threat that the guards would focus on him.

Leon planted a murderous scowl on his face. Summer stayed behind him as he strode forward. His shoulders seemed bigger, his stride angrier. Summer smiled and lurked in his shadow.

Ida stopped before they reached the guards and stood against the wall. Leon kept his stride. Summer squeezed her fist around the Gift Medallion. Now would be a good time for it to work.

Nothing. Oh well. Leon stopped. Summer made a gesture with her hand when one of the guards bowed his head and opened the door.

Ida squealed, attracting the guards' attention. Leon strode forward, Summer slipped in his shadow. She made it inside the library, found darkness behind the door and peeked through the gaps. The guards were still looking at Ida.

"What's wrong, Ida?" Leon, standing at the entrance, asked, looking over his shoulder.

Ida cleared her throat. "I apologize, your highness. Just a spider."

Summer put her hand over her mouth. Ida would kill her for this. The guard closed the door behind Leon. Leon dropped the scowl and grinned.

"Ida will kill you for this," he whispered. Great minds think alike. Summer grinned back.

Summer faced the room. The space was so big you could use a horse to run its length. Shelves lined the walls and rows of bookcases stretched deep into the room, so deep Summer could see nothing but darkness beyond. Summer looked up. And up. And up. So far above the ground that an eagle could easily fly around, a glass dome sparkled under the dim moonlight, swirling with shades of blue and green. The reflection of the glass made the stone walls above look as if they were made of water.

If the moon had been full and high in the sky, the reflection of the colored glass would swallow the entire library. That would be a magical sight.

As it was, the colorful light stopped high above the shelves, and only two lanterns illuminated the pale stone walls on Summer's left and right, otherwise the place swelled with darkness.

Leon moved over to a desk standing alone at the corner. An empty brown chair sat behind it, a few old books stacked on its stained, wooden surface next to a gloomy lantern. Leon made quick work of lighting up the lantern and they braved the dark rows of forbidden knowledge.

The smell of old books tickled Summer's nose. Warm and woodsy and sometimes sweet, it awakened memories of Boyd's book saddle. It was always the first thing he opened whenever he came to visit, and Summer looked forward to it every time.

"What are we looking for?" Summer asked in a whisper, as if afraid her loud voice might wake up the ghosts of the writers lurking within the pages of their books.

"Anything relating to the artifact," Leon said, the lantern in his hand carving deep shadows on his face.

"Wouldn't Robbins have had access to it?" Summer asked. Leon made a face. She had been meaning to ask this. "Why don't you want him to know about the artifact and me?"

"I don't know."

Summer stopped and gave him a long look. He sighed, hefting the lantern higher. "I truly do not know. I'm simply not yet comfortable sharing that truth with anyone, not just Robbins. I've learned to listen to my instincts."

"Not even your brother, the king?" Summer asked.

"Not even him." He hesitated. "Especially not him. At least not yet. I trust my brother, but he's the king, his priority is the good of the kingdom. I cannot guarantee that will not clash with your safety until I know for sure what your exact link to the artifact is."

Summer cocked her head aside. "What about you? I thought your first loyalty is to the kingdom as well."

Leon blinked. He seemed taken aback by her words. "I guess... my sense of responsibility as a royal is not as strong as I thought it was. Come along. We've no time to waste."

She let him change the subject and followed after him, scanning the book spines they walked past. She couldn't read the titles unless she stopped to get a closer look, and they didn't have the luxury to do that at the moment. But their spines ranged from worn out, erased titles to gleaming new leather. Hundreds of books. Thousands. More.

"How do we find what we're looking for? This place is a maze."

"It's in the Antics section," he said. "I know the place well enough. Victor and I used to spend a great deal of time here with our mother when we were young."

A small smile teased his lips. "I thought you didn't like your mother."

"I love my mother," Leon said. "She's just... grown more fussy and less flexible as she aged. Especially after my father passed out. It's as if she took all his hardness into herself, wanting to be more than she is." He shook his head, and light caressed his black hair at the motion. "Her heart is in the right place, but even I know that's no excuse for some of the things she says."

Summer hummed. "Well, it would be a lie to say that I can't wait to meet your mother."

Leon chuckled. "Indeed. That makes two of us."

Leon was clearly familiar with the layout of the place. He turned and wound through rows of bookcases. In the depths of the library where even the light of the lantern cowered before the darkness, he finally stopped.

Leon moved the lantern across a shelf, squinting his eyes. "Here they are."

Summer stood on her tiptoes, but the row was too high for her. She held the lantern while Leon picked several books off the shelf. They settled on the floor, the books and the lanterns between them.

"Here, you look through these," Leon pushed half the stack her way.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Summer asked. The leather flap of the first book felt rough and patchy under her fingertips. The title read: A Brief History of Blessed Bloodlines.

The book was thicker than her arm. How was that Brief?

"Whatever you think might help," Leon said. "I have no idea what we're dealing with, exactly. For starters, why the artifact reacts to you and no one else. What, exactly, causes it to react that way. Maybe the exact conditions for it to activate? Things of that nature."

Summer gingerly flipped through the yellowing, frayed pages, until she reached the table of elements at the end. She inched closer to the lantern and began scanning for anything of interest.

Minutes trickled by. The heat of the lantern warmed her face. Sweat pooled along the back of her neck. All the information in the book sounded like fantasy. Even though she knew, from recent experience, that the artifact worked and that there was more to the world than what met the eye, she still found it difficult to understand views that believed some people were better than others simply by virtue of blood, that they were favored by this stupid piece of metal. It seemed unfair for everyday people.

An entry about bloodline ranking gave her pause. Hmm. So there was favoritism even within the blessed bloodlines as well. Certain combinations of it guaranteed strong offspring, whatever that meant. Summer remembered Leon talking about how marriages within the royal families were all based on Blessed Bloodlines.

As she had noted to Lily earlier, Summer had no fanciful notions about love and romance, but if she was to get married one day, she would much rather not do it because her blood was a good fit for breeding more favorable offspring. It made her feel like a broodmare.

She glanced up at Leon. When he talked about Ria, his late wife, there was nothing but affection and respect in his voice. So maybe even if the start of a relationship was based on bloodline theories, the relationship itself didn't have to be so... austere.

Summer focused on the book at hand. All she gleaned from it was that some bloodlines were more susceptible to being amplified by the artifact, thus the ranking.

It would've been an interesting read if she had more time. But it didn't seem to hold anything more useful for them at the moment. She was about to abandon the book when another entry piqued her interest. It was a story about the supposed origins of the Blessed Bloodlines.

"It began in the end.

The Old World was one of arrogance and greed, where humans believed themselves gods, plundering the earth for its treasures with no thoughts of consequence and venturing into the heavens for more.

The Old World plunged into a reign of darkness, collapsing civilizations and perishing entire nations.

No one knows how it started. Perhaps greed and pride, the ultimate stimulus for human actions, were the reason. Perhaps it was a mistake. But records of the Old World speak of massive scale, human-made firestorms raging destruction through the earth. They spoke of fire blooms and smoke mushrooms erupting everywhere."

Summer cocked her head. She had a feeling these blooms and mushrooms weren't meant literally. She continued reading.

"A Fog of Death blackened the skies, swallowed the sun and plunged the world into an endless, dry winter. The green forests and life-rich landscape turned into a frozen, barred land.

Crops withered and livestock expired. Humans who did not die in the firestorms died of hunger, then of illnesses born in the fog of death.

The earth's surface was no longer viable, and the handful of survivors retreated deep within the earth.

They bred and lived for generations underground. But the damage from the Fog of Death had altered their bodies. And with every new generation, only the strongest survived; the weaker, deformed members of their lines succumbing to death.

The survivors became part of the earth's heart, their altered bodies growing affinities to precious gems and gleaming metals, becoming more than their ancestors were, becoming more than humans. They were Blessed by God to survive.

After millennia, the Blessed descendants ventured outside, realizing the Old World their ancestors spoke of was no more. In its stead was a new world with blue skies and clear waters. But its people fought within themselves, tribes that sought to subjugate each other. It reminded the Blessed of the stories their ancestors told, stories of destructive wars caused by greed and pride.

The Blessed did not want to witness the end of this beautiful world as well, so they intervened, revealing powers that made them more than human. Powers the likes of which people in our New World had never witnessed. Power to bring armies to their knees, extract treasures from the depth of the earth with a flick of a finger, and so much more.

These powers mesmerized the quarreling tribes, and they each chose a Blessed human as their leader. Under the Blessed's guidance and power, the wars ceased and- "

"Look at this," Leon said, snapping her attention.

She moved to sit next to him. The book opened on the ground was bigger and older-looking than the others. She had the impression that its pages would disintegrate to dust at the touch of her fingers.

Leon pointed to a rough sketch. Summer leaned closer. "It looks like the medallion, only bigger, and more square."

"It's the medallion, the reason it looks bigger is because this is composed of two parts," Leon explained. "The one in your pocket and another part where it should be lodged. It says here that they need to be put together for the medallion to work."

Summer frowned. "But... it worked for me, did it not?"

"Indeed," Leon murmured, a frown digging deeper shadows in his face. He turned the page. "It also says that the artifact must be carved into a person's heart to work."

Summer raised her brows. "I hope you're speaking figuratively."

"No." He turned the page, showing a sketch of a person on a table with wings growing out of its chest. Summer leaned closer. No, those weren't wings. Those were the person's ribcage opened up like a damned book. Summer made a face. Inside the cavity of the ribcage, the medallion was set against the lump of what Summer assumed was a heart.

"I know we said we should find more information, but... I'd really rather not try this, if you don't mind, your highness."

Leon's lips curved. "Too bad. I was thinking of making use of my new knife."

"Very funny," Summer deadpanned. She held two fingers. "So the artifact needs another part, and to also be put directly into the heart of a person from a Blessed bloodline to work?"

"That's what this book says," Leon said. "I found a few iterations of the same two conditions in another book. But so far, this is what we have."

"It doesn't help much," Summer murmured.

"It does not. We need to comb through all these books. Unfortunately, they cannot leave this place so-"

The creaking of the door echoed like an ominous tune in the corners of the library.

Summer and Leon shot to their feet. Leon looked at her, Summer nodded and faded into the shadows.

Leon picked up the lantern and ventured out to meet whoever had entered. After a few seconds, she heard his voice loud and clear, a warning meant for her ears.

"Your majesty, what are you doing here?"

Summer almost cursed. The King was here.

--- ---- ---

Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed the new chapter!

How's your fasting going?

Don't forget to vote and comment! and if you notice any mistakes, please let me know. I appreciate it!

Much love <3 <3 <3

M.B.