Contents
Chapter 34
Overview
Rykaia escorts Maevyth to Zevander’s luxurious baths, where Maevyth confesses her village past and breaks over Aleysia’s fate. Zevander interrupts; they exchange apologies and an uneasy attraction surfaces. He observes Maevyth is inexplicably speaking Nyxterosi. After meeting the curt Magdah and glimpsing shadowy Deimosi, Maevyth chooses the dungeon over an upper room and is locked in.
Summary
Reeling from her earlier outburst at Zevander, Maevyth is taken by Rykaia from her cell to bathe in Zevander’s opulent chambers. As Rykaia prepares the bath, Maevyth reveals her outsider upbringing and the carriage accident that killed Lilleven after a heated exchange, prompting Rykaia’s blunt sympathy. Alone, Maevyth breaks down over Aleysia’s unknown fate before composing herself.
Zevander unexpectedly enters during her bath; both are flustered. Maevyth apologizes for her temper, and Zevander quietly apologizes for grabbing her throat. A tense attraction simmers. He insists on laundering her clothes and offers an upper-floor room, but Maevyth resists.
When she questions his term “Lunamiszka,” Zevander reveals she is speaking perfect Nyxterosi, while Vonkovyan is a dead language in his world—an unsettling clue he uses to justify keeping her door locked. Their barbed banter continues as he escorts her through the castle.
In the kitchens, Magdah accepts Maevyth’s clothes with open disdain, needling her about the wasted meal. On the way back, Maevyth spots shadows slipping into the walls; Zevander identifies them as Deimosi—lingering fears of the dead that embed if invited by prolonged attention.
Choosing company over isolation, Maevyth opts for the dungeon near Dolion rather than a locked upper room. Zevander confines her again, their final exchange mixing antagonism and charged curiosity, leaving Maevyth stewing in frustration over her confinement and feelings.
Who Appears
- MaevythProtagonist; bathes in Zevander’s rooms, confesses past, grieves Aleysia, clashes and connects with Zevander, insists on dungeon lodging.
- ZevanderWarlord-captor; walks in on Maevyth, apologizes, notes she speaks Nyxterosi, keeps her confined, reveals Deimosi fears, shows guarded attraction.
- RykaiaZevander’s sister; frees Maevyth for a bath, offers comfort, reacts coldly to Lilleven’s death, provides nightclothes.
- MagdahCastle cook; horned elder who disdains Maevyth, takes her clothes for laundering, pointedly references the thrown pottage.