“You’re finally calling me Ada.” She seemed pleased, as her cheeks flushed slightly. Her rouge appearance only strengthened when her stomach began rumbling from seeing the food piled on the dirty table. “Can I…?”

  “Of course,” Kurt began to usher her forward while keeping a close eye on her movements. There was a slight limp now when she walked. It was clear she wanted to keep some of her independence, but he was ready to jump in the moment she got too weak.

  “She’s the real Adelaide,” Cy whispered.

  “And not the Adelaide I saw.”

  “Her fate is a light pink again.”

  Kurt turned up his nose at the lack of meat. Despite this, he joined them without a word. Max and Cy had already learned about the abysmal quality and quantity of meat at the estate since Kurt’s bio dad couldn’t understand the importance of it. Apparently, he was more of an oat-man, and the oats for horses were far more important than chunks of meat for men. This disconnect was one of the reasons why Kurt invested so much in the inn. The chef there somewhat understood.

  “What are you whispering about?” Ada asked politely, before reaching for one of the stale buns. She didn’t even seem to acknowledge the stale crust, as she ripped off a piece.

  “I saw something odd-”

  “He thought he saw you,” Kurt’s openness was refreshing.

  “You saw Aldwin… Or whatever took his place,” Ada muttered before getting another bite. Max and Cy struggled to keep a neutral face from the swift response.

  “You think Max mistook Aldwin as you? What did he do? Dress in drag?” Kurt toyed with the idea.

  Ada ignored him and focused her attention on the other two. “It’s here. And it’ll be looking for you, Max… Have you ever thought about how Aldwin got those magic bones?”

  “He traded them for some stolen beans from Bernadette’s farm.”

  “He got it from the dealer, Martin.”

  Cy and Max quickly looked at each other with confidence from them putting their stories together, but it was Kurt who began poking holes in their theory. “Martin? He’s a scoundrel at best with nothing of real value. Why on earth would he trade anything for a few beans? And how would he get a hold of magic bones in the first place?”

  “I just heard it from someone,” Max gave a weak defence. He would’ve pushed the blame onto Farmer Jill, but he wasn’t sure if he was remembering the name correctly.

  Kurt began discretely offering some of the more palatable food to Ada by moving them closer while feigning interest. “I don’t want to alarm you. Magic is real. Magicians are real. But those magic bones probably weren’t-”

  “They were real. It is one of them. And it used the bones of the amnesiacs, who came before Max.” The three guys looked at her with disbelieving eyes, but her conviction stayed strong even though her voice wavered. “Think about it. How many amnesiacs have been strung up over the years? How many bodies are in shallow, unmarked graves in the woods? One of them must’ve been a magician at some point.”

  Max couldn’t refute her train of thought. A fair few must’ve had access to magic through selecting a story, but it still didn’t make complete sense to him. “Why?”

  Ada’s wide eyes focused on Cy. “So, you would be scared off.”

  “Why target me?” Cy asked, perplexed.

  Max didn’t have to think of an answer. “Because you’re the only one who can see through his disguises.” If the system hadn’t tipped him off that the fake Adelaide wasn’t Ada, then Max would’ve been fooled. “His name wasn’t on the crystal, right Kurt? I don’t know how he’s transforming, but his fate should still be readable for Cy.”

  Seeing Cy’s contemplative face, Kurt changed the subject. “Why do you keep calling him ‘it?’”

  Ada paused, as she carefully chewed her food. Her face showed she was trying to think deeply about something. “I think its real form might be a woman, but I’m not sure.”

  “What makes you say that?” Cy’s face showed there was deeper meaning behind his words.

  “Aldwin’s never been the cleverest.” All three of them nodded together in agreement. “But one day, when it was dropping off a delivery from Bernadette, it said something odd.”

  “What did he say?”

  “It complimented my brooch. What’s weirder was it knew it was called a ‘brooch’ and called it a nice shade of ‘vermilion.’” If Ada was telling the truth, then it definitely was odd. Aldwin was being nice? And he could remember the name of a piece of jewellery? And used a complex word instead of ‘red.’ The ideas were inconceivable. Not to mention, all of the unthinkable things happened at once? No wonder it had stood out to her. “Ever since then, there have been lots of small moments when Aldwin just got something he should know wrong.”

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  “Are you sure? He’s not the brightest.”

  Ada looked at Max, “Do you remember when he said it was years since he looked after donkeys?” Kurt immediately frowned in confusion while Max remained stone-faced. He genuinely couldn’t remember. “And you asked him if he was thinking about miniature horses?” Max had to shake his head in defeat. “Or the time he admitted to eating crickets?”

  “That is weird,” Kurt verified Ada’s suspicions even if Max still had trouble recalling. His mind was too focused on the amnesiac at the time. “When was the brooch incident?”

  Adelaide thought to herself for a couple of seconds. “After Max arrived,” she said with confidence. “Maybe a few days later?”

  The Aldwin Max knew was never the real one?

  There was still one major mystery that Ada could solve now. “What happened to you?” Max finally asked the question they all wanted to know the answer to, but none of them had been able to muster up the courage to say it. “Why did you leave the village?”

  Ada looked conflicted, as she steeled herself into giving him an answer. Unfortunately, she took so long that the man with the best moustache in this world intruded on their private conversation. The moustached man, who originally scouted the butcher’s boy, took a long time staring at the four having lunch before touching up his moustache while looking at Max. The moustache caused Max to marvel at the work of art again. Perhaps it was something to strive for in a more easy-going life. “You.”

  “Me?” Max pointed to himself in disbelief. A quick glance at Cy shaking his head reassured him the moustache man wasn’t Aldwin or anyone else of particular interest. There weren’t any prompts being pointed in his direction anymore, so why was he being singled out now? “Don’t you mean him?” He pointed over at Kurt.

  “His highness, Duke Landrut, wants to speak with you.”

  “ME?” Max repeated.

  “You.”

  “You know bio dad?”

  “I don’t think so…”

  Ada wiped the corners of her mouth before getting up gracefully. “You shouldn’t keep him waiting. May I go with you? I wish to give my thanks for his hospitality.” The moustached man hesitated before nodding.

  Cy made eye contact with the three others before Max clocked on, he was the only guest without a direct invitation to go. “Let’s go, Cy. It seems like his highness wants to see us.”

  “Only you.” The moustache man corrected before touching his facial hair once again.

  “He needs to come with me,” Max insisted.

  “You’re coming too, Cy.” Kurt commanded with enough authority that it caused the moustached man to sneer. “Cy’s a fantastic vet. It would be good for the horses to be checked out by him. Since its to do with the horses, we’ll need permission.” Cy nodded along with enthusiasm while a twinkle appeared in the stranger’s eye.

  “Then we shouldn’t dawdle. Come on.”

  At first, Max was a bit excited to finally meet Kurt’s bio dad. Then guilt began to kick in when he noticed Ada was still limping along, trying to keep up. Every offer of help from Kurt was met with rejection. It was only when they reached another set of tall stairs did Max offer his assistance.

  “Let me try on my own first.” Ada began climbing with pride, but after a few steps she clearly needed more help. “Thanks.”

  “It’s alright.” Max glanced behind him to see if Kurt was also coming to help but saw him and Cy deep in conversation. The whispering going back and forth was inaudible for him. Kurt briefly looked up at them. On the other hand, Cy stayed focused on the butcher’s boy. It was a bit irritating seeing them so engrossed in conversation. Why wasn’t Cy letting him in on their talk? Or at least indicate to him everything was alright?

  “… … …?”

  It took him a moment to realise Ada had talked. “Sorry, I wasn’t listening. What did you say?”

  “Are you alright?” Ada struggled to get the words out while softly panting.

  “I’m alright, just a little tired… I had a stressful morning.” After reaching the top of the stairs, Max waited with her for a few seconds, so she could catch her breath. Kurt and Cy didn’t stop. They followed the moustache closely. Since they were whispering so much, why shouldn’t Max? “We’re going towards the centre of the estate, where Kurt’s bio dad is. I don’t know what happened between you and Aldwin or how you got here, but there is a chance he might be hiding among-”

  With little strength she had, Ada pulled him back to be further away from the others. She whispered in a low voice, “It’ll be there, and it’ll be either trying to approach you or targeting Cy, Kurt, or I.” Ada slowed her steps even more to create more distance between them and the others. “It wanted you to know it had already completed its story.” Now, Max felt the strength fade from his legs. “It was a one-star. It recommended you do one-star stories from now on.”

  “… You know about the system?”

  “It told me.”

  “Why?” Why on earth would Aldwin tell Ada? It also meant he was enduring a penalty now. Max glanced up at Cy. If a five-star story completer got a penalty like Cy, then there was a chance it could be manageable. “Listen, you mustn’t tell others-”

  “I know.” Her words were heavy. “It explained to me what could happen if I told someone who wasn’t aware. That’s why it recommended only telling you.” Ada stumbled a little causing Max to come a little closer. “On the night the aliens showed up at the mayor’s house, it intimidated me into leaving the village. Exactly like how it tried to intimidate Cy by showing those bones.”

  Was that where Aldwin was going when Max hopped out of the mayor’s window? Maybe it was where he had been? The idea made Max uncomfortable. “Whatever he did-”

  “I fled. It followed you to Tsujuma but couldn’t get into the community because of their shield, so it went looking for me.”

  Max was aware there was a protective shield around the community. He noticed it on the first day. Was it really that powerful? Max never had to face it since Cy invited him in through Charon’s teleport and Elder Nova got him registered. “Why did he go looking for you?”

  “It needed a familiar face without magic to enter and lure you out.” Ada’s eyes were frantic when they met his before she looked at the backs of the others, who were now far away from them. “I was at the capital, so I was closer than the others back in the village. By the time it found me and forced me there, you were already gone-”

  “So now he’s forced you here.” Max connected the dots.

  “It wants to talk to you.”

  “… Should I listen to him?”

  Ada’s face looked conflicted before settling with a determined expression. “No, I don’t think you should.” The tension between them suddenly broke when she stopped in front of a window with newly fitted glass. “Ah, it’s snowing again.”

  Max allowed her to have a moment before warmly smiling. “Come on. Let’s catch up with the others.”