Chapter 42 - Chapter 41

She darted her eyes around panic beginning to set in, Isolde's breath hitched as she spotted a familiar glint of black metal tucked away on a high shelf, half-hidden behind a row of dusty tomes. Her heart leapt with a mix of relief and trepidation. She approached the shelf, her steps cautious and measured, as if the very air around her was charged with an unseen energy. But would it be out in the open like this? She wondered if this were a trap or if one of the senior mages was overly trusting. Isolde reached up on her tiptoes, stretching to grasp the black box. As her fingers closed around the cool metal, a sudden surge of dark energy coursed through her body, sending a shock of pain through her very core.