"Milady, I was wondering when you would arrive," a voice grunted behind me just as I stooped to admire a brilliantly red rose. I wheeled around, head craned upwards to meet Josef's eyes. Only to see that it was Lord Himmel. I rubbed my eyes.
                          
"Not too bad, eh?" Lord Himmel's mouth quirked up in a grin—Josef's grin. "You're not the only one who can weave illusions, you know?"
                          
I took his appearance in. Average height, fair hair, aristocratic features, nobleman's clothing. He looked exactly like Lord Himmel.
                          
"Josef?" I said.
                          
"Not so loud." His eyes darted about, watching for unseen ears. "Can't exactly let anyone see my real appearance, can I?"
                          
"I suppose not." My shoulders sagged in relief. I should have known that he would use such a simple and effective trick beforehand. "You could have woven the illusion the other day, instead of having me exhaust myself."
                          
"It takes time for me to prepare a spell. Besides, like you said, it made for excellent practice."
                          
I suppressed a huff of irritation. Josef just chuckled.
                          
He then walked past me, slowly, deliberately. I caught up with him I no time. To the outsider's eye, we might look like the lord and his lady taking a stroll in the gardens, chatting away amiably. If the outsider observed closer, however, he might have noticed that the lord's gait was far too stiff to belong to a true nobleman. "Anyway, I have a plan."
                          
"So I've noticed," I said dryly.
                          
"Listen very carefully, Lady Klaudia," he continued. "It will be tricky to pull off, but there is a good chance that it will succeed..."
                          
******
                          
The carriage was not the one which had been used to ferry me when I'd travelled from Hamelin to Heidelberg. It was Lord Himmel's personal carriage: the interior was plush and befitting for a lord, while the exterior was elaborately engraved with stories of the saints, all gilded with gold. The crest of House Himmel—a shield with a serpent curled up in the middle of it—sat proudly on both doors, inducing awe and envy from anyone who saw it.
                          
So far, the journey from Heidelberg to Starkfurt was not unlike my very first time on a carriage. Riding for at least five hours straight, stopping for a break, then more riding, and camping for the night. Now that Lord Himmel was with us and I had magic of my own, I was slightly more assured of the fact that monsters would be less likely to attack us. We cast protection wards every morning before we began another day of travelling.
                          
Of course, we still couldn't avoid a few monsters on the way. But the driver, Franz had an Affinity for communicating with animals. Lord Himmel had told me that when the carriage had suddenly picked up speed when a gryphon had been sighted. Thus, he was able to outmanoeuvre the dangers, or simply urge the horses on and cast spells to keep them going.
                          
Meanwhile, inside the carriage itself, Lord Himmel was surprisingly good company. At first I assumed I had to force myself to be amiable with him, but the laughter that bubbled at the edge of my lips was genuine. Every day, I tried to remind myself that this was the Pied Piper, the man who had caused the fall of our lands in the first place. Yet I couldn't. Perhaps it was because he had a whole century's worth of learning how to gain the affections of others, but still...
                          
Being in Lord Himmel's presence for nearly the whole day did little to ease the gnawing anxiety in my stomach, but—to my dismay—I found myself looking forward to our conversations. The situation definitely wouldn't make it any easier for me to execute Josef's plan.
                          
Now silence filled the carriage. I propped my chin with a hand, gazing outwards. We had just entered the borders of Starkfurt, leaving the wastelands behind. According to Lord Himmel, the city was nestled between two chains of mountains, sheltered from all sides, a formidable natural fortress against the outside world. Even if monsters dared to infiltrate the city, they'd be spotted and gutted by the scouts posted on the peaks of each trail.