Chapter Twenty-One

At dawn, Juliette rouses Lore for a sudden detour: instead of returning to the Citadel, Bastian is taking them to Courdigne, where Severin Bellegarde remains under house arrest. The rationale is to consult Severin about Kirythean spy attacks. Lore notes Bastian’s tremor and flashes of gold in his eyes, signs of Apollius’s pressure.

In the foyer, Alie arrives with a trunk and insists on accompanying them, citing concern for Courdigne’s neglected management and her eventual inheritance. Bastian, momentarily pained and fearful, allows it and chooses to ride ahead, leaving Lore and Alie to share a carriage.

During the journey, Alie recalls her mother’s exile to Courdigne and Severin’s cruelty. Lore reciprocates by revealing she is the Night Priestess’s daughter and has channeled Mortem since birth. Alie, startled, asks if this underpins Lore’s engagement; Lore admits the magic compatibility and her complicated feelings for both Bastian and Gabe. Alie suggests love may not require an impossible choice.

They arrive at grim, light-eating Courdigne. Bastian rides through the gate first, tense and impatient, his eyes flashing gold. As twilight deepens, Lore steadies a nervous Alie, and Bastian offers Lore a strained courtesy, acknowledging recent difficulties without addressing them.

At the imposing, sun-spiked doorway, the long-neglected hinges creak open to reveal Severin Bellegarde himself. His cool greeting closes the chapter, setting the stage for a fraught confrontation within his dark estate.