Sei freezes. “Oh. Shit.”
Kazia is long gone, leaving Sei alone with the ruined experiment. Should Sei nobly wait for the consequences? Or should he and Osric sneak out now, before they get caught?
Footsteps outside the door render Sei’s moral dilemma obsolete. “What is going on in there?”
A man in a brown coat sweeps into the laboratory and stops short at the sight of Sei and the broken instrument. Lord Radovan—at least, Sei assumes this is Radovan—has normal brown and silver hair. But his eyes are as purple as any Draskoran’s, glaring behind his gold spectacles.
Purple eyes or no, he gives off the same strict, intellectual air as the guildmasters. Sei braces himself for a scolding. Osric pads closer, seemingly calm but always watching.
Except Radovan’s glare softens. “Lord Sei. Forgive my surprise.”
“I’m so sorry, my lord. I didn’t intend to break your experiment.” Sei’s hands twist behind his back. “I’m not lord of anything either. I’m just Sei.”
“Then allow me to introduce myself as just Radovan.” Surveying the room, Radovan approaches. “Was Prince Kazia here?”
Perhaps Sei isn’t in trouble after all. But he doesn’t want to antagonize the third prince either. “Yes, he was. But I’m the one who touched whatever this is.”
Radovan picks up one of the metal twigs. “Did His Highness tell you to touch it?”
“The accident was my responsibility,” Sei says, compromising between truth and tact.
Radovan picks up another twig. “Enough said, Just Sei. This is hardly the first time Prince Kazia has wreaked havoc in my laboratory. But this mischief isn’t a disaster. Look.”
He touches one twig to the other, and magic sparks white between them. Together, they rise from Radovan’s hand. All the other fallen leaves and twigs float up and coalesce around the center, until the intricate tangle again spins above its plate.
“Oh, wow,” Sei breathes.
“This is a mere trinket, but thank you.” Radovan straightens his cuffs. “See, all better. So long as Sir Osric remains off the counters.”
Sei is indignant on Osric’s behalf. Osric is a fellcat, not an unruly animal. But when Sei glances back, Osric looks away, studiously observing anything else in the room.
“What brings you to my laboratory?” Radovan asks. “I didn’t expect to meet you here.”
“Osric said this was one of the most interesting places in Ostomar,” Sei answers. “I can leave if you’re busy, but if you have a moment, I’d love to know what you’re working on.”
Sei would ask no matter what, because he was raised to be polite. Plus, the more people he tries to befriend in Draskora, the better the odds that some of them will actually be friendly. But it so happens heisinterested in this laboratory, just like Osric knew he would be.
“I can spare a moment.” Radovan adjusts his spectacles. “I’m working on a number of things, but this trinket is a test of magical magnetism. Separate halves form a single enchantment, so the pieces resonate with each other to produce different effects.”
His cadence reminds Sei of the instructors at the Porcelain Guild. “Fascinating. What’s your project goal? I’m guessing this trinket isn’t the finished product.”
“Clever. The nobles are always impressed with the pretty floating things, but I have more practical aims.” Radovan gestures like he’s leading a lecture. “Small-object teleportation. Imagine if I could put a message scroll in an enchanted box, right here in Ostomar. Then seconds later, someone in Parsk could open the matching box and retrieve the scroll.”
Sei doesn’t know where Parsk is, but it must be far away. “That sounds incredible.”
“Don’t get too excited,” Radovan says, though he sounds pleased. “It’s only incredible if it works—which it decidedly hasn’t yet.”
Sei’s laugh is genuine. But his next question dies on his lips when the door slams open.
Marek Dire fills the doorway, anger clear on his face.
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CHAPTER EIGHT
Marek
“There you are, Sei.” Marek does his best to repress his frustration. He’s used to hiding problems from outsiders. Dragon corps business stays in the dragon corps. Family business stays in the family. “Apologies, Radovan, but I need to retrieve my betrothed.”
