Chapter 21
Chapter 21
“I know,” Linda replied, not even finching.
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Craig and Rafael were both staring at her. Linda paused, then asked, “Why are you two looking at me like
that?”
“Linda, you just had a killing intent,” Craig said.
Linda sighed. “Come on, Craig, we’re good citizens who follow the rules.”
Craig raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
Linda replied, “No fighting or killing inside the city walls.”
Rafael snapped his fingers. “Then just drag them outside the city and finish the job.”
Laura and Craig nodded in agreement.
Linda shot them a look. “Honestly, you guys are acting more like Shadow Casters than I ever do.”
Craig grinned. “Don’t be mad, Linda. That guy’s just spouting nonsense. He didn’t learn his lesson from Arthur last time, so he’s back for more. I’ll tell Arthur when he gets back.”
Linda blinked in surprise. “Wait, this isn’t the first time?”
“Nope,” Craig grabbed four apples and handed one to each of them. “This is actually the third time. Every time we head down the mountain, we run into him.”
“But Laura doesn’t even know him,” she pointed out.
Laura looked innocent. “I’ve never seen him before.”
Rafael chimed in, “He mentioned the Farrell family just now.”
Craig waved it off. “That’s even more impossible. Laura has nothing to do with the Farrell family. Arthur found her as an abandoned baby and brought her back. She doesn’t have any family.”
Laura nodded.
Rafael looked confused. “Seriously, how come you all have such a tragic backstory? It’s like you’re all the main characters in some drama.”
Craig shot him a glare. “Are you trying to get a beating?”
After shaking off their pursuers, they headed to the dock to find Byron, planning to fill him in before returning to the First Unity Coven.
When Byron heard someone had been messing with Laura, he put down his stuff and said coldly, “Where are they?“Laura Farrell
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Seeing the sharp, murderous aura emanating from him, Craig and Laura didn’t even bat an eye, like this was just another day for them. Linda thought to herself, ‘Guess this is just business as usual for them.
Craig said, “Byron, Linda already taught them a lesson”
Byron’s brows knitted. “Next time this happens, let me handle it.”
“Sure thing.” Linda said breezily
Noticing it was getting late, Byron said, “Hang on a sec, I’ll head back with you guys”
None of them objected. He even grabbed a bowl of oatmeal for each of them from the stall next door. After wrapping up his last labor job, he joined the group and they all headed out together.
Sometimes, Linda finds herself wondering about it. She wondered, ‘With Byron’s skills, he doesn’t need to be stuck doing manual labor. He could be raking in Luster Shards if he wanted.
“Byron does this to look out for us,” Craig, explained. “These jobs are close to the Coven, and the hours are flexible. If he took missions like the other elders and had to travel, he wouldn’t be able to watch over us.”
“And don’t underestimate him,” Rafael chimed in. “He’s got a lot more going on than just this.”
“Trust me, he’s a total badass,” Craig added.
Well, except for the fact that he can’t cook.
Byron took the four of them back to First Unity Coven on his flying sword,
Laura flew with Craig,
Linda and Rafael got to ride with Byron, and this time, Rafael couldn’t stop thanking him.
Byron’s flying was so smooth, Rafael felt totally safe this time.
He actually didn’t puke this time.
‘Man, I’m seriously touched, he thought.
Byron glanced at the four of them. “Next time you go down the mountain, let the elders know. If you run into something you can’t handle, just send up a flare.”
“Craig, did you bring the signal flare?” he asked.
“Pretty sure I did… I think?” Craig replied, sounding a bit uncertain.
Byron glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. “You sure?”
“Yeah, I brought it,” Craig replied, straightening up and trying to sound confident.
Only then did Byron finally head off.
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But the look Byron shot him before leaving made Craig’s heart skip a beat.
“What was that look Byron just gave me?” he grumbled under his breath.
“The kind that says he’s about to slice you up,” Rafael snickered.
Craig didn’t hesitate to sock him in the arm.
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“What a bummer, running into that whole mess. We could’ve gone shopping for some new clothes,” Craig groaned.
Rafael shook his head. “No big deal. Just buy it at Mystic Exchange.”
“The Mystic Exchange is pricey, you brat! Don’t know the cost of living since you’re not the one keeping the household ledger?” Craig shot back.
Linda paused, a bit taken aback.
“There’s a Mystic Exchange already?” she asked.
Craig nodded and gestured at Rafael. “Yeah, but not many people know about it. You need a secret code to get in. This guy snuck us in.”
Rafael grinned and gave a mock bow: “Aw, stop hyping me up.”
Linda stared at him. “Can’t believe the Mystic Exchange’s been around this long already.”
That same day, Rafael showed Linda how to use her apprentice token to get into the Mystic Exchange.
He glanced at her token and said, “Honestly, the First Unity Coven token is way better. It’s got stronger resonance, and the array connection is way more reliable.”
“But there’s a catch, it makes you easy to trace,” he added.
Linda thought for a moment. ‘Aura lock?‘
“Are we in?” Linda asked.
“Yeah, just try sensing it with your astral,” Rafael replied.
She was instantly immersed in a vast Noospheric Lattice. Everything was pristine, but as she willed her thoughts, the scene around her began to shift.
Suddenly, it morphed into an ancient, atmospheric street.
Stalls lined both sides, and shadowy avatars wandered, but they were all just Astral Projections, identical and faceless, making it impossible to tell one from another.
They resembled NPCs from a virtual game world, each looking identical, as if copy–pasted.
Rafael told Linda, “This is the Mystic Exchange. You can trade all sorts of stuff here, such as items, skills,
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secret arts, whatever. You can buy or sell, it’s up to you.”
“As long as both sides agree, the deal goes through,” he added.
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Linda snapped out of the Noospheric Lattice and shot him a look. “Wait, did you set up this he Mystic Exchange?”
He looked like he’d seen a ghost, coughed awkwardly and said, “Linda, I know you look up to me, but I’m really not that much of a genius.”
“I didn’t make this. It has been around for years. It’s just that people only started noticing it recently. Not gonna lie, I did help make it famous.” Rafael chuckled, clearly proud of himself.
Linda got the picture. ‘He spread the word.‘
Rafael showed her how to get in, buy, and sell. “For small items, you can just use the Displacement Anchors and they’ll pop right into your hand. But if it’s something big or super valuable, they’ll send it through Mercury Post–Haste, just to keep things secure.”
“Got it,” Linda replied.
“Alright, that’s pretty much it. Just don’t hang around in there too long, or it’ll drain your astral,” Rafael warned.
She nodded. “Okay.”
As soon as Rafael left, Linda slipped back into the Mystic Exchange.
She scanned the street, eyeing all the stalls crammed with every kind of item dazzling. Some stuff was just up for sale with no seller around.
Linda pondered, ‘Back in my previous life, I only found out about the Mystic Exchange after I met Rafael. Who would’ve thought it had existed all along, and so early at that!‘
After thinking it over, Linda put up the Fortifying Bolus she’d made herself.
She also listed a bit of Mystic Silver–Leaf and two Vellum of Safeguarding.
Her stall was pretty empty, but Linda felt content.
Mack had given her two days, and by the next day, Linda was already out front, turning the soil and planting Mystic Silver–Leaf. While she was working, Craig came over to learn how to grow it.
She taught him everything she knew.
But in the end, it turned out Linda’s Essence was just different. Craig followed her method exactly but couldn’t get the same results no matter what.
So he had to resign himself to help Laurence with Arcane Flora and Arcane Produce. But he eagerly offered to help weed Linda’s garden.
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“As long as you spared him a few stalks of Mystic Silver–Leaf later,” he made it sound casual.
Linda smiled and nodded.
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That night, Linda entered the Mystic Exchange again. No one had bought anything from her yet. Just as she was about to leave, she heard someone call out, “How much for the Vellum of Safeguarding?”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
