Chapter 153: WISHING LANTERN LAKE

CHAPTER 153

EMBER

I turned to walk away when Ragnar suddenly snatched my hand, stopping me in place. His fingers wrapped tight around mine, warm and a little damp. “Where are you going?” he asked, voice low.

I looked straight at him. “I’m going to look for Liana and grab some drinks. My head still feels hazy from the Skyglider Race. Everything is spinning a bit.”

Ragnar cleared his throat, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “I’ll go with you so you can find her.”

I laughed and punched his shoulder lightly, feeling the muscle tense under my knuckles. “Come on, dude. What am I? A Two year old kid? I can find Liana without you bodyguarding me.”

He sighed deeply, shoulders dropping. Beads of sweat shone on his forehead and upper lip. “I know, but we're outside the school wards. Michal said no students should walk alone except in pairs. I can’t leave you wandering around by yourself.”

I paused and studied his face closely. His eyes darted around and he kept wiping his palm on his pants.

Even during the race when I was panicking and gripping the wheel so hard my hands hurt, he had been laughing and relaxed. Now sweat rolled down his temple. My chest tightened with worry.

Why did he look so scared when everything seemed fine moments ago?

I crossed my arms. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

He shook his head quickly and pointed toward the teddy store. “Liana is at the teddy store. Hurry up and go to her because she’ll leave there in a minute.” Without another word, he launched into the air, wings beating hard and stirring dust around my feet.

I stared at his shrinking figure in the sky, heart beating faster. What’s wrong with him? Did he see another vision?

The thought made my stomach twist. I remembered Liana and gasped. I started running toward the shop, feet pounding on the ground, the smell of sweet candy and roasted meat heavy in the air.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck rose. I stopped abruptly, breathing hard. Something moved in my peripheral vision. I spun around fast. A figure in a black cloak slipped between people in the crowd. I blinked hard. It was gone. My mouth went dry. I could have sworn I saw it clearly. I scanned the crowd, neck straining, but nothing looked out of place.

“This is so weird,” I muttered under my breath, rubbing my arms against the sudden chill.

I turned around again and crashed straight into a hard chest. The impact jolted me. I looked up into two crimson eyes staring down at me. Rowan’s face showed a mix of amusement and shock, his eyebrows slightly raised.

He tilted his head. “What’s so weird?”

I rubbed my forehead where it had hit him, feeling the small ache. “Why the hell were you standing behind me like some kind of creep?”

Rowan smiled widely, his arms wrapping around me before I could step back. His body felt warm and solid against mine, the fabric of his shirt soft under my hands. “Oh, have we moved from asshole to creep now?”

I pushed against his chest, palms pressing hard, and raked my fingers through my hair. The cloaked figure kept flashing in my mind. This was the second time. I was sure I wasn’t seeing things. My pulse pounded in my ears.

Rowan’s smile faded a little. He kept one hand on my waist. “Are you okay?”

I shook my head, biting my lip. “Have you by any chance seen any cloaked figure moving in the shadows?”

His brow knitted with worry, and his hand tightened around my waist, fingers digging in slightly. “You saw one?”

I nodded, swallowing hard. “Twice. But they were gone before I could investigate further.” The memory made my skin crawl.

His grip stayed firm. “Where are you headed?”

My eyes moved to the shop ahead. “I was going to meet Liana, but I guess she won’t be there anymore. Ragnar told me she’ll leave in a minute and it’s already past that time.”

Rowan arched his eyebrows, jaw clenching visibly. “What were you doing with the harpy?”

I smirked, sensing the jealousy in his sharp tone. I tipped forward on my toes and whispered near his ear, feeling his breath hitch. “I was enjoying my life with him.”

He growled low in his throat, the sound rumbling against me. His arms tensed. “Don’t fuck with me now.”

I laughed, the sound bubbling out despite everything, and decided to poke more. “Do you know what I did before being with Ragnar?”

He shook his head, eyes narrowing. “You went Dragonback riding with Magnus.”

Surprise washed over my face. I pulled back slightly. “How did you know?”

He scoffed, his lip curling, and glared at me. “Because the mutt wouldn’t keep quiet about it. He came to babble about it with Lance and I happened to be with him, so I listened to everything.”

I laughed again and cupped his cheeks with both hands, feeling the heat in his skin. “Are you jealous?”

He snorted, but his eyes flicked away for a second. “No, I’m not jealous.”

I slowly wrapped my arms around his neck, brushing my lips against his. They felt warm and slightly rough. “I went Skyglider racing with Ragnar too. It was exhilarating.”

He hummed, but the sound was flat and his shoulders stiffened.

I noticed the change in his mood and released him, stepping back. “Are you okay?”

He shook his head, eyes darker now. “No.” He took my hand, his palm cool and grip strong. “I’m headed somewhere when I felt the bond and caught your scent.”

I let him pull me forward through the crowd. “Where?”

He didn’t answer right away, just kept walking with my hand in his. My mind raced with questions…about Ragnar’s worry, the cloaked figure, and whatever was bothering Rowan.

Rowan held my hand tightly as he led me away from the noisy festival. His grip felt steady but his steps were a bit slower than usual.

We walked east until the bright lights and loud voices faded behind us. The air turned cooler and carried a damp, fresh smell. Trees opened up to reveal a wide river glowing under hanging lanterns. Tents and small stalls stood along the bank like a secret carnival. Students and other people moved around, talking quietly.

He guided me inside a big tent. Warm light from the lamps touched my face and the smell of old paper mixed with river water. Many people and students sat at tables writing or stood near the sides.

Rowan stopped and turned to face me. His crimson eyes looked serious and his shoulders sat straight. “This is the most sacred and holiest part of the festival. It’s called Wishing Lantern Lake.”

I looked around slowly, taking everything in. “I didn’t know this was here.”

He nodded and cleared his throat before speaking. “Two students from Velmora Academy found this river many years back. They didn’t know what it was. At that time one of them was dying from a terrible sickness that had no cure at that time. That expedition had been like a get-together for the last time before the boy died. The girl randomly scooped the water in a cup and they were playing a game called WISHES. She wished he could be given a chance to live in this world with her. They played the game to the finish and both of them drank the water without knowing what it was. The boy complained about feeling some kind of change to his system after drinking the water but the girl called it an effect of a boy dying. When the day came for the boy to die, he didn’t die. It was so strange. When they checked him again, they saw he was healed. The disease was gone. The boy told the girl he started feeling strange after taking the water from the river. They realized the river grants wishes and that’s how this place was discovered.”

I listened carefully, my fingers still linked with his. The story made my chest feel heavy. I squeezed his hand. “Wow, this is really beautiful and romantic in its own way.”

Rowan gave a small nod, his thumb brushing over my knuckles. “Since then this river has been marked as a holy site. Students and people come from all over the kingdom to take the water and make a wish. But it’s been personalized because they found out the water was being abused. So now there are magical floating lanterns. You write your wish on a paper and put it in the lantern and release it into the sky. The lantern carries the wish up. For anyone who’s sick, they come with a medical report and authorization before the water from the river is taken.”

He paused and looked at me directly. His eyes softened a little. “I was coming here to make a wish. Will you make one too?”

I nodded, a nervous flutter moving through my stomach. We walked over to a wooden table. My fingers touched the smooth surface as I picked up a piece of paper and a lantern. The paper felt thin and the lantern was light in my hands.

“What am I going to wish for?”

Rowan stared down at his own paper, his jaw tightening. “It’s up to you to decide that.” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “I usually don’t frequent this place. I didn’t know about it until my mate died.”

He let out a sad chuckle, his shoulders dropping. His fingers gripped the paper harder. “I did come here the first year after they died and wished for their resurrection somehow even if I know it’s stupid. But I’ve been coming here since then to make wishes.”

I watched his face closely. Pain showed in the way his brows pulled together. My own throat felt tight as I thought about loss.

He continued, voice quieter. “Since then, I've been scared to lose people. Not just ordinary people, but people who mean a lot to me, who mean the world to me. And with this bond I’m with you, I fear losing control and hurting you.”

His words made my heart ache. I rubbed my thumb across his hand, feeling the coolness of his skin.

I took a deep breath and decided to open up too. “My greatest fear is being loved without truth and honesty and feeling betrayed. My parents did betray me all these years by keeping away what I am. Even when they died, they kept the truth away from me. I only found out in the worst way ever. I had been accusing myself of being the death of my parents, not knowing they signed away their death from the beginning. Now with the discovery of my lineage, I’m scared I won’t live up to the expectation people have for me.”

Rowan listened, his hand staying firm around mine. We both folded our papers and slid them into the lanterns. The paper made soft crinkling sounds.

We carried the lanterns to the river’s edge. Cool air rose from the water and lapped gently against the bank. We released them together. The lanterns drifted up slowly, their lights moving side by side into the dark sky.

I stared at them for a moment, then turned back to him. My fingers twisted together. “I’ve been wanting to ask you something.”

Rowan met my eyes, his arm brushing mine. “What’s that?”

I shifted on my feet, feeling the dirt under my shoes. “I recalled you saying you’re eighty years old. But if you’re this old, what are you doing participating in the academy as a student?”

A smile tugged at the corner of Rowan's mouth as he slipped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer. His arm felt solid and warm across my back. “I knew you'd ask me that eventually.”

“Then answer it.” I glared at him.

A low chuckle rumbled in his chest. “Vampires develop differently from humans. Our magical development follows a much longer cycle. A vampire at eighty is roughly the equivalent of a human at twenty.”

I blinked.

Rowan continued before I could interrupt.

“Most vampires don't begin formal magical training until much later than humans or shifters because our power evolves slowly over decades. And regardless of age, every magical being needs Velmora certification to hold certain positions, gain access to restricted resources, or be recognised by the Council. There aren't any exemptions based on species.”

The noise of the festival seemed to fade as I processed that.

“A vampire at eighty is the equivalent of a human at twenty?”

“Roughly.”

I stared at him. Then stared some more. “So you're basically twenty?

The smile slipped from Rowan's face. His nose wrinkled slightly, like I'd just said something personally offensive.

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “No.”

A laugh escaped me. “You are.”

His arm tightened around my shoulders as he looked down at me, disbelief flashing across his features. “Ember.”

“You're an eighty-year-old young adult.”

A groan rumbled from his chest. He tipped his head back toward the darkening sky before dragging a hand down his face. “That's not what I said.”

I smirked, “That's exactly what you said.”

“It is absolutely not what I said,” he protested.

I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. The irritated look he shot me only made it worse.

I grinned as his arm tightened around my shoulders in warning. “You're never going to live this down, are you?”

“Not a chance.”

Rowan muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like a threat while I laughed and leaned into his side.