The m, Helios awoke to the familiar sound of loud knog and Lea’s voice calling his hrough the cottage door. He sighed, rubbing his forehead in frustration. He’d been clear with Lea and Isa yesterday—there was no point in them ing bao pce for “friendship” between them. Apparently, his words had failed to get through. He could feel Malefit’s presence before he saw her; she emerged from the guest room, her dark eyes narrowed, a look of pure irritation on her face.

  “Is this… disturbance a regur occurrence here?” she asked, her voice dripping with disdain. Helios could tell she had likely spent most of the night iing the cottage’s colle of books, artifacts, and tris. It wasn’t his —he’d check ter to make sure she hadn’t left any hexes or curses on Merlin’s belongings—but right now, his focus was on quieting the ruckus at the door.

  “I apologize for the noise,” Helios muttered, but Malefit raised a gloved hand, cutting him off. With a flick of her wrist, a small green fme began f above her palm, crag with dark energy. Her eyes glinted with impatience.

  “Allow me to elimihe cause of this nuisance,” she offered smoothly, her tone as sinister as the flickering green fire.

  Helios stepped forward swiftly, ing his hand arouo extinguish the fme. “I’ll deal with it,” he insisted, voice calm but firm.

  She pulled her hand away, though her narrowed gaze warned him that her patience was wearing thin. “Very well,” she ceded, a faint smirk tugging at the er of her mouth. “But make haste. If you prove incapable, I will ha myself.”

  With a curt nod, Helios crossed the room and opehe door, preparing himself for whatever excuse Lea would throw his way. Outside, Lea stood alone, a determined look in his eyes. Helios sed the area, noting Isa’s absence.

  “Did Isa try to stop you from ing here?” Helios asked, a hint of weariness in his voice.

  Lea crossed his arms, a stubbrin on his face. “Yeah, he tried. But I wasn’t about to just leave a friend hanging. Not after yesterday.”

  Helios’s expression turned cold, his eyes hard as steel. “We’re not friends,” he said sharply, watg as Lea’s grin faltered, his face falling slightly at the icy tone.

  “What?” Lea stammered, looking taken aback.

  Helios let out a humorless chuckle, his voice as cutting as a bde. “Rather than wasting your time ing over here, you should be fog on your training. Practig yic. You’ll more than you realize soon enough.”

  Lea blinked, his face a mixture of fusion and hurt, but Helios tinued, his gaze unwavering. “ime you think about ing here, know that it won’t be a pleasant experience.” With a flick of his wrist, Helios summoned a gust of wind, sending it straight at Lea, who stumbled ba surprise before the force lifted him off his feet.

  Lea flew back a good te, nding hard on the ground with a groan. Helios watched, unyielding, as Lea struggled to sit up, the hurt in his eyes evident even from a distance. Helios didn’t allow himself to feel any sympathy. He’d made his decision. Any attat, any so-called friendship, would only be a detriment.

  Lea’s voice was faint but ced with saddness as he pushed himself up, casting o look at Helios before turning to leave. Helios held his ground, watg until Lea’s figure disappeared dowh, refusing to let any trace ret surface.

  As he closed the door, he turo find Malefit watg him, a hint of amusement flickering in her dark eyes. She crossed her arms, tilting her head as if appraising him.

  “A well-handled dismissal,” she said, the slightest edge of mockery ione. “I expected something far softer from you. But perhaps I was mistaken.”

  Helios met her gaze with a steady gre. “I told you I could ha.”

  Malefit’s smile was cool, almost approving. “Indeed. You showed no weakness or sympathies. Admirable… though I suspect that boy will return again, defiant in his misguided sense of loyalty. ime do finish the job.”

  Helios shrugged, trying to push aside the sting of her words, whily served to remind him of Kurai’s warnings. “If he es back, I’ll ensure he doesn’t make it to the door,” he replied, his voice calm and resolute.

  “Good,” she murmured, satisfied. She turned away, moving to the shelves, her fingers idly trailing over Merlin’s colle of tomes as if they were insignifit tris. “Perhaps your resolve is not as weak as I suspected. Remember, boy—if you are to walk the path of darkness, there is no room for seality or attats. They are s that bind, dragging you down.”

  Her words were ones he had heard tless times from Kurai, but hearing them from someone else, especially someone like Malefit, made them resonate deeper, solidifying the harsh truth he’d chosen to accept. He nodded, more to himself than to her, steeling his resolve once more.

  “Uood,” he replied, his tone devoid of any warmth.

  Malefit looked at him, her eyes searg, perhaps for any hint of doubt. Finding none, she ined her head, a faint smile toug her lips. “Good. Then we are of the same mind.” She walked back to her makeshift quarters, her dark form vanishing into the shadows of the cottage as she disappeared down the hallway.

  Helios stood alone in the silence, feeling the weight of his as settle over him. The house seemed colder, as if Malefit’s presence had seeped into its very walls, draining the warmth from it. But he pushed down ; he had no pce for it.

  As he turo his own room, Kurai’s voice filled his mind once more, dripping with satisfa. “A fine performance, Helios. Cutting off that bond so effectively. I must say, I almost believed you.”

  Helios ched his fists, his jaw tight as he responded. “Why almost? I’ve taken heed of your words.”

  Kurai’s chuckle was cold and unfeeling, a dark echo in the recesses of his mind. “Really? Hardly. If you had you would have dohe most effit thing a a scar on the boy. A small push will hardly be enough to stop him.”

  As he ehe house Malefit emerged from the hallway, her dark form a stark trast against the dim light of the cottage. Her pierg gaze found Helios, and her lips curled in a faint smile, though there was no warmth behind it.

  “It is time, Helios,” she intoned, her voice low and anding. “Time to uphold my end of our bargain.” She studied him for a moment, the silehick with her assessment. “What would you like to learn first?”

  Helios didn’t hesitate. “The basics,” he replied, knowing that a solid foundation was essential. “Everything builds from there, doesn’t it?”

  Malefit’s expression turned almost bored, but her eyes glimmered with faint approval. “Very well, the basics,” she repeated, a touch of sarcasm ione as if the basics were trivial to her. “We will start with charms and hexes, a starting point suited for ohout experien true dark magic.