Crown

Soren POV

After Ghost's revelations, my thoughts are confused. I can feel the admiration that Victor is developing for the Lycan, but I want to keep my distance from him.

Even though I know how important he is, I still refuse to have an intimate relationship with him. Ghost is one of my subordinates that I'm forced to put up with at the moment. I know Victor isn't happy with my actions, but I can't change my feelings overnight.

I found the wizard in her wing inside the castle, she had a space all to herself, which included some bedrooms, living rooms, and even a small forge that Victor had set up for her. I can feel the sensation of worms on my skin getting more intense, nothing I can't bear.

"Soren, you finally decided to pay me a visit." Ishtar teased me.

I gave a low chuckle and got serious.

"Did Ghost really drain himself to create some neutral energy?" I asked the wizard.

"Yes, I'm impressed with him. At no point did Ghost want to be anything other than helpful." Ishtar spoke and walked over to one of the shelves and picked up a crystal vial, inside which was a bluish liquid mixed with silver dots as if it were trapped in the moonlight.

"I'm grateful for everything he's done, but I'm not comfortable with this situation." I blurted out, picking up the bottle.

"You have to get used to the consequences of your actions." Ishtar turned back to the small cauldron.

"Ayla is sleeping on the throne that belongs to her," I said, still staring at the vial.

"I felt the difference in her aura, but it's nothing too disturbing, so I didn't even check, I knew you'd have everything under control," Ishtar replied and started stirring the cauldron, and I smelled a faint scent of silver.

"What do you think about what happened?" I asked, looking up at her.

"That was very risky." Ishtar stopped and looked at me intensely. "That it could have killed her, the amount of energy you put into Ayla's body was too great."

"Our spiritual parts were telling us what to do," I spoke defensively.

I would never let my mate die because of that.

"I think you need to choose carefully who will be marked next. Also, beware of outside influences on your link. It's still weak and can be manipulated." Ishtar warned me.

This rattled not only me but Strïth too.

"You took that risk when you decided to split the link. You know that... Surely you were the first to understand the gravity and what steps had to be taken to make the link indestructible." Ishtar scolded me.

"Do you think they might try something during the wedding?" I asked worriedly, squeezing the vial in my hand.

"If there are any Necromancers, surely, if they can corrupt your bond, they'll take advantage of anything, even if it's that risky," Ishtar replied and took a deep breath. "There's not much we can do, except wait and fight it, if it happens."

"Isn't there anything we can do? Like the bracelet?" I said.

"It's riskier because it could set Ayla's evolution back." Ishtar moved away and went to another shelf, which had some soul stones. "I discovered two soul stones being created from the underground where you faced the Necromancer, and these stones have some of that power."

She pointed to two golden boxes.

"They're here, I want Victor to come and help me create small amulets to place around the Castle, these amulets would be to warn you if there are any Necromancers around, or during the wedding." Ishtar turned to me.

"I understand, I'll talk to him, but Hermaði has just woken up, it's best to wait a few days for him to recover better." I agreed but explained my mate's situation.

"I agree..." Ishtar then smiled. "Besides, I've found a perfect date to hold the ceremony and the wedding. According to the astronomical and astrological predictions, some planets will align and there will be a divine aura."

Ishtar moved away, went over to the table and took out a small notebook from the drawer.

"I've written down everything I've collected and observed. Make the most of this date, because I'm sure others will want to do the same." Ishtar explained.

I held the notebook and nodded, there was a lot we needed to do, but the first thing was to adjust Ayla's crown.

"Thank you, Ishtar." I thanked her.

"You're welcome," Ishtar said.

I turned my back and left the wizard's wing. I walked towards the forge that had created Ayla's crown, her box should already be there, I'm sure Victor had taken it there and when I entered the forge, the crown box was indeed under the anvil.

I left the notebook on the table near the entrance and walked over to the anvil and took a deep breath, opening the box and seeing Ayla's crown. It was cracked in several places and the stones had no color, they were gray.

This object, which once had a majestic life, was now nothing more than something changing. I sighed and took care to take the crown out of the box and place it on the anvil. As I did so, I saw several runes light up as the forge began to illuminate and come to life.

I can feel the runes at my feet connecting to my essence as various objects begin to float around me.

"Item with a 10% chance of repair." A robotic voice echoed. "Do you wish to proceed with the repair attempt?"

"Yes," I spoke aloud. "I have a new ingredient that must be used."

I then opened the vial with the Lunar and Lycan essence and poured it over the crown. Several other runes appeared, analyzing the new component.

"Chance of repair increased to 50%." The forge warned me.

This certainly gave me hope, so I set to work and saw a shadow appear in front of me, on the other side of the anvil, a mixture of shadows and light.

Strïth's projection indicates that we are working in harmony to repair this very important object. With each passing minute, I feel my energy being drained more and more, but it's worth it because I can see the crown stones coming back to life.

The feeling I get is that I'm redeeming myself, apart from the fact that I'm using all the frustration of the situation to distribute with each new hammering, with each new stone I manage to recover, and at the end of several hours of work, I've finally finished, and I'm very proud of my creation.

The crown was different from its first version, but now it's certainly even more imposing and suits Ayla even more and what my mate is becoming.

Even the box that holds this important object has changed, now with details in blue, red, blood, gold, metallic red, and green, all colors beautifully inlaid in the embroidery threads.

I smiled and stretched, Strïth's shadow had disappeared. I put the crown away and then left the box in the safe inside the forge. I know the place will protect this creation, just as it did with the various weapons Victor created.

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