Hrabina Pac grabbed a new teacup, replacing the one she broke. She poured a packet of sugar into it. The white stuff spiraled as it dissolved into the coffee.

  "Katow has an unusually high amount of spellcasters that make their presence known," Hrabina Pac explained. "Your school's nurse is one of them, a talented sorceress with knowledge of one spell. At least, as far as I know."

  There was still a hint of fear in her eyes, but the noblewoman's expression had turned dead serious overall.

  "Although I am aware that none of the sorcerers claim to have magical powers over rumors. So, there are likely a few that are hiding some of the spells they have," she said.

  Her gaze turned to me. After a moment of hesitation, Hrabina Pac spoke.

  "Are you hiding any spells, Dante?"

  "No," I said.

  "I am certain that Dante is not plotting against me," Janek spoke up. "I know what sort of man he is, and I would trust him with my life. Not with his life, but with mine."

  Well...he had a point, as much as I hated to admit it.

  "Besides, I would not bring someone I suspect of being my enemy here," Janek added.

  Hrabina Pac nodded a single time.

  "Then, I will continue. There are five known spellcasters in Katow, not counting those I already mentioned. They are: Erich von Klausawitz with one known spell, Pyotr Lange with two known spells, Maria Prokopiuk with one known spell, Stanis?awa Goski with one known spell, and of course..."

  The noblewoman shuddered.

  "...Baba Jaga."

  Janek placed a hand over his heart. He shivered.

  "That old witch. She knows six spells," the boy noted.

  "We know for a fact that she knows at least six spells. That alone would make her one of the most powerful sorcerers in the continent if not the world," Hrabina Pac said. "But one of the spells she knows stopped her from aging. She is hundreds of years old, a living legend in the most literal sense. Baba Yaga might know as many as eight or even ten spells."

  The noblewoman grimly stirred her tea.

  "And if Baba Yaga is the witch opposing your family, Janek, we should expect that her son will be involved too. He lives East of Katow, but Koshchei could easily come here. He knows at least three spells, possibly even four," she noted.

  I was horribly underwhelmed by the knowledge and power of this world's spellcasters. If a legendary witch the game devs named after someone from Slavic folklore knew six spells, it's no wonder everyone was impressed by my knowing two.

  Turning to Janek, I saw that he was shivering. I placed a hand on his shoulder.

  "Are you okay, Janek?" I asked.

  "I'm fine, Dante," he took a deep breath. "Thank you."

  Janek shook his head.

  "The idea of having to face Baba Yaga and her immortal son...does not sit well with me. I have seen the horrors of war, but there are things worse than that."

  I tried to give Janek a reassuring smile.

  "Baba Yaga might not age, but does she have a spell that can stop a musket shot?" I questioned.

  "Yes," Janek answered without hesitation.

  "Are you sure?"

  "If she did not, someone would have killed her already."

  "A spell that deflects projectiles is one of the spells we know Baba Yaga has," Hrabina Pac explained. "It uses wind magic, and her son knows a similar spell."

  Well, that plan just went out the window.

  "So, the sorcerer going after Janek's family could be any one of those five?" I pondered.

  "I am afraid so. Some are more likely than others, but all are suspects," Hrabina Pac responded, her green eyes turning yellow. "Or it could be a spellcaster who hid that they have magic."

  Janek stood up.

  "Thank you, Natalya. That is all the information I need for now," he said.

  "I am happy to help," she replied.

  "Are you sure?" I asked, standing up.

  Janek's gaze was serious.

  "Yes, I am. My family's agents can start investigating," he answered. "Let us go, Dante."

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  With that, the boy stepped out of the room. I followed him. As we walked towards the stairs, Janek breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Thank the gods, we got that much information," he said.

  "Were you worried that Hrabina Pac wouldn't have told us anything?" I wondered.

  "No," Janek shook his head. "Natalya is a friend of my family. She would have told us what she did regardless."

  Then, a sad expression crossed the boy's eyes.

  "It is unfortunate that some magic can cloud the mind," he added.

  Oh, shit.

  "Someone used magic on Hrabina Pac?" I asked.

  "Yes," Janek answered. "I could see the first signs of it."

  I realized what he was talking about as we started walking down the stairs.

  "Her eyes changed color."

  "Exactly. If we kept questioning her, she might have been damaged. Stopping was the only thing we could do," Janek said.

  His fists clenched.

  "If I can, I will make whoever is behind this pay," he stated.

  "Can I help?" I asked.

  "I will let you know when I need your help," Janek answered. "Just pretend you never met with her for now."

  "Okay."

  When we reached the bottom of the stairs, I saw that Augusta was sitting at her table. She gazed at the teacup in front of her, and a far more fragrant scent emanated from it than any of the others. Her eyes flickered up for a second, and Augusta saw me.

  "Dante, come over here," she waved.

  I walked to my girlfriend. Janek followed me.

  "What is it, Augusta?" I asked.

  "Did you notice that tea smells good?" she questioned.

  "Yes, I did."

  "I used my command of fire to make its smell stronger."

  That was interesting. I placed a hand on my chin and rubbed it.

  "It seems that your fire powers extend to heat in general, at least to an extent," I said.

  Augusta nodded a single time.

  "A small extent. I can't command a living thing to get warmer. I'd have to make a fire for that. At least, right now," she stated.

  I leaned over, looking at the teacup. Steam was rising from it, and it was halfway empty.

  "Augusta, did you drink the tea or is that evaporation?" I asked.

  A slight groan came from Janek behind me.

  "It's evaporation," Augusta answered.

  I heard him groan even louder.

  Then, Augusta grabbed the teacup and drank. She put it down.

  "This was good. I should have more soon," my girlfriend said.

  A soft smile crossed my face.

  "I'm glad you like tea, Augusta," I stated.

  Looking around, I saw that the various seats around my girlfriend were empty. Some of the tables that were further away from her were a bit crowded.

  When I gazed back at Augusta, she looked uncomfortable. My girlfriend raised her arm.

  "Waitress," she called out.

  The serving woman ran over.

  "Yes, Your Highness?"

  "I am done drinking tea," Augusta said. "How much will it cost?"

  "28 zlot," the serving woman stated.

  My girlfriend stood up, and the waitress cringed away. But all Augusta did was put 28 zlot on the table. She then walked out of the store with me and Janek swiftly following.

  Augusta stopped when we got outside and turned to Janek. While her expression seemed emotionless, I could see faint hints of frustration, discomfort, and guilt in it.

  "Janek, lead us to where we're going next," she said.

  "Very well, Your Highness," he replied.

  I then whispered into my friend's ear.

  "Walk a bit ahead of us. I want to talk to Augusta for a moment," I stated

  Janek gave me a slight salute and moved down the street. I followed him. Augusta did the same. She was a bit closer to him, but I grabbed her sleeve and pulled her back.

  "I'm sorry for ruining your tea time," I stated.

  "You didn't ruin it," Augusta replied without emotion. "I'd have noticed on my own quickly."

  "Do you want to talk about it?"

  Augusta reached up and patted my head.

  "Thank you, Dante, but you should talk more with Janek. This is supposed to be your time with him. We can speak after," she said.

  At that point, we had moved out of the main roads and onto sidestreets. They were narrow and winding, like a maze of passages leading through the various parts of the city. This would be a perfect place for a group of criminals to ambush someone if it were dark out.

  "Are you sure? If you need to talk, I'd be happy to do it now," I stated.

  "I can endure this, Dante. I have my whole life," Augusta replied, her normally stoic composure breaking. "And I deserve..."

  She shook her head.

  "No, I don't. You said it wasn't my fault. You were right...but I still feel horrible."

  "Punishing yourself won't help. It won't bring back the dead, and it won't give them justice," I pointed out.

  "I know."

  Augusta looked away.

  "Just promise me one thing," she said, her voice cracking a little bit.

  "What is that?" I asked.

  "That you'll spar with me today after you and Janek finish everything," Augusta answered. "Sparring with you calms me down."

  I patted my girlfriend's shoulder.

  "I promise, Augusta," I said, giving her a light kiss on the forehead.

  Hopefully, that would help reassure her.

  After that, the two of us walked closer to Janek. It was good timing. The streets were getting narrower. Certain house overhangs cloaked them in shadow. Worst of all, there were many sudden turns that could have easily resulted in us losing each other.

  I felt Augusta grab my hand as we passed below a large overhang. At that point, I wondered if she was trying to reassure me, seeing as she could handle anything in this city. Still, I squeezed Augusta's palm tight to let her know I appreciated the gesture.

  It wasn't just the light either. An acrid stench flowed into my nose, coming from garbage lying on the ground, combined with the smell of feces. I heard the clashing of blades in the distance. Shouting accompanied it. We definitely weren't in the good area of town.

  Up ahead, I saw smoke rising. I was ready to turn to Augusta and ask her to put out whatever fire it was when I heard Janek speak.

  "We are almost at the gunsmith's office," he said.

  "Why go to a gunsmith here?" I asked. "There are a lot of them in this city."

  "Yes, but this one is particularly talented. He is a genius, decades if not centuries ahead of our time."

  "Then, why does he live in the slums? If he's really a genius, shouldn't he have a mansion somewhere?"

  Janek shrugged.

  "The weapons he makes are so expensive that even most nobles do not want to buy them. They cost a lot to maintain, too. And he refuses to sell anything less than his best. He mostly lives off his son-in-law's income. This gunsmith was originally from a Northern kingdom, but he moved to Katow."

  Then, a sigh escaped from Janek's mouth.

  "I would not buy this gun myself normally. But we might fight more monsters. This calls for desperate measures," he said.

  Dammit. Janek wouldn't be fighting monsters if it weren't for me.

  "If you're getting it because of me, I could pay for it," I offered.

  "You could not," Janek replied. "And I already told you why I will not accept it from Princess Augusta."

  Well...I couldn't exactly talk him out of this.

  "What weapon are you getting?" I asked.

  "It is a marvel of clockwork engineering, a firearm that can hold 30 rounds and shoot them all before it needs to be reloaded. It is the only wheellock musket I would consider using over flintlocks as a weapon," Janek explained. "A repeating wheellock."

  By the gods, that was amazing! I had no idea the game's developers did this much research! They actually included a Kalthoff repeater! Almost no one knows about those weapons! And for a blacksmith to make one...he must be a truly extraordinary man. Hell, if this wasn't part of the game and just part of this world, that made it even more amazing.

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