Chapter 54: Resolving Rivalry - Valeria

“I got what you needed,” says Alaric, handing me a jar of powdered devil’s tongue.

“Thank you,” I say, putting my jacket on the table and proceeding to load the powder into the grenades, securing them and placing them on top of my jacket.

“You look ready for battle,” he comments.

“Like riding a bike,” I say apathetically as I check everything is secure.

“I don’t see anything to use on a mutolupus or nagata,” he notices.

“If I show up carrying weapons that can hurt them, they’ll see me as a threat and won’t help me. I need them to listen to me.”

“I think one look at you is enough to see you as a threat. You’re covered in weapons.”

I place my hands on the table and glare at him, “Then I will surrender them if they ask. Your job is to get me there, not worry about my safety.”

“Isolde wouldn’t want you getting hurt for her,” he says sincerely, but his words only make me angrier.

“New rule. For the time we are stuck together, you are forbidden to say her name. If I so much as hear