Page 135 of The Discount Damsel

“Never mind that.” She pulled her handkerchief from her apron pocket and handed it to him. He smudged the mist from his lenses. “You fed it the nautilus necklace. What does that mean?”

“Come on.” He led her over to the desk. Lifting Small Magicks, he read, “‘Each enchanted gift to a Tianzi Toad brings life to its eyes. When its belly is full, it will come alive and speak. Then, ask it your desire, and see your wish granted.’ It can break my curse!”

Millie didn’t want to dampen Bradley’s hopes much like a thunderstorm ruined an outdoor picnic, nor did she pull the book from his hands in order to translate the text herself, lest he assume she thought him incapable, so she ventured carefully, “Is ‘wish’ in Sino coupled with a xiao character or a da character?” A small wish might not be strong enough to break a curse as tricky as Bradley’s.

The apprentice grinned. “With a rehne character. That’s Sino for any wish.”

The princess hadn’t needed the explanation, but she wouldn’t rob him of his victory. “Jubilations,” Millie cheered, for surely that would’ve been Dirk’s response had he not vanished looking for the cat. Then: “Let’s be doubly sure. What else can we feed it?”

Bradley dashed to the clutter, tossing this and that aside. “There’s a shoe. A shoe made of glass. I found it when I was cleaning out your closet.”

“Glad I could be of assistance.”

The apprentice shot her a look only to be met with a mischievous grin. He couldn’t help smiling in return.

“Well don’t leave me in suspense.” She thwacked him in the shoulder. “Tell me what to look for!”

“Right! It’s in a red leather hatbox. I thought I put it over here.”

“Master Excelsior hid a shoe in a hatbox? You sorcerers make about as much sense as a tits on a bull.”

But she got rooting through the mountains of stuff just the same, gritting her teeth as her sore hands got battered and bruised. Oracle tiles carved from sea monster bones the size of her forearms, a brass spittoon, a globe of the world as big around as her arms made of onyx and gold inlay. Who kept a knight’s helmet up here when there was a whole room full of armor downstairs?

Her fingertips brushed against something that felt like pebbled lizard skin, and she shoved sailcloth out of the way to excavate the rest of a leather box. “Is this it?”

“Yes!”

Millie held the box as Bradley opened it and removed the glass slipper. Its magic would only transform his appearance if he placed the slipper on his foot, so he didn’t need to show it the same care as he had the necklace. The slipper shimmered like the finest crystal, scattering tiny rainbows across the princess’s cheeks.

With a flash of a nervous smile, he placed the slipper into the Tianzi Toad’s mouth, which had opened again. No sooner had he removed his hand than the lips smacked shut and the spark kindling in its garnet eyes intensified.

“How do we know when it’s had enough to grant you a wish?” she asked. “It’d be nice to have a gauge.”

Bradley thought a moment, reviewing the translation in his head. “Its eyes. They’ll glow brighter and brighter.”

It would be best to confirm this theory, just to be triply sure, but with what? He bit his lip, remembering Master Excelsior’s words: Do what you must with anything else you find to shed this curse, and good luck, dear boy. He hoped his master had meant that literally.

Bradley waded into the clutter and extended his senses to detect any magical artifacts buried beneath the mundane. After a moment, he retrieved a bird’s nest that had unicorn hair threaded through it and a crystal orb whose color changed according to the mood of whoever held it. He sensed something else, but it felt faint and faraway—he’d get Dirk to sniff it out. In the meantime, he offered his new finds to the toad, who greedily gulped them down. Its garnet eyes were definitely sparkling brighter now.

Thank you, Master.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” The princess pulled her skirts up and high-stepped out of the clutter like a crane amongst the marsh reeds. “I’m not swinging a cutlass or swimming or climbing ropes anytime soon. And searching for enchanted objects will be far more enjoyable than cleaning flour off the floor.”

“Y-you’re going to help me?”

“Yes, Mr. Donmarin. Do try and keep up. This place is massive and we only have limited time to find whatever you need to get your wish. Or did you want to do this alone?”

The princess had absolutely nothing to gain from helping him. In fact, the sooner he broke his curse, the sooner he and Dirk would depart not just the tower, but the princess, too. She might be forced to return to her castle and give up on her dream of becoming a pirate. And yet she was willing to help him . . . just because.

His voice was quiet. Awed. “Thank you.”

A shy quirk of her lips, a little nod. “Of course.”

Bradley freed himself of the clutter and hurried to beat Millie to the trapdoor so he could open it for her. It was the least he could do, especially with her bandaged hands. He was halfway there when the scent of chai reminded him that the princess had brought up a plate of teacakes for Dirk, which he had forgotten in his quest to find the cat. Tisane was one thing, but food left by the priceless books was something he could not abide.

“We’ll need Anti-Fainting Noshables, won’t we?” he asked her, retrieving the plate and the mug balanced on top. Coffee, tamed by a splash of cream, rippled inside. Bradley stopped short, staring.

“Is everything alright?” Millie asked. “There’s not a fly in there, is there?”