The night flew by in the blink of an eye. Jim stared at the alarm clock in disbelief - his time before the scheduled rematch just kept shrinking. It was still unbelievable, yet…
Perhaps, it would be his last day. The teen watched the pile of letters he had written to everyone. Yes, he would need to deliver those, and… Most likely, it would be best to say something too. Hadn't all of them deserved at least that?
Jim checked on his mom before heading out. Fast asleep - as he had expected. At least she had taken off her glasses this time. The teen felt a pang of bizarre mixture of hurt and guilt - perhaps, it would be the last time he witnessed this scene. Who would take care of Barbara when he was gone?
No, of course, Toby would never leave his best friend's mother alone, and Douxie, most likely, would keep his protection barrier, but would that be enough?
The teen nearly got late to school because of his heavy thoughts. Tobes didn't join him - he was at home when Jim went there. Nana told him that her grandson had left early. The Trollhunter assumed that his best friend probably hadn't even returned. He could easily imagine the gingerhead brainstorming together with Douxie in the hope of finding some way to save Jim from his untimely demise.
The guess got confirmed later when he saw Toby, tired and yawning during the classes. Apparently, he hadn't slept at all too.
It would be so logical to talk to his bro, yet the lanky teen hesitated. It was as if starting the conversation would have cemented the horrifying reality. That was the point of no return, for sure…
So, instead, Jim switched to another goal he had. If it was his last day alive, shouldn't he at least have made sure that no regrets were left? No, of course, he would never be able to resolve everything, like his mom's well-being or the entire deal regarding the world's safety. But at the very minimum, couldn't the teen get closure regarding his feelings? Just confess to the Latina in question and listen to her response, no matter which one it would be.
Surprisingly, Jim didn't see Claire around during school hours. No, of course, they had no shared classes that day, but shouldn't he have caught at least a glimpse of the girl during the recess or something? Well, perhaps, the teen's luck had simply hit the lowest level possible, refusing to give him some slack.
Though, Jim knew where he could find his crush for sure. The Latina would never skip the rehearsal for Romeo and Juliet, unlike him.
Or, at least, he thought so.
Steve's loud and arrogant voice was impossible to miss. No, of course, the lanky teen knew that the ultimate bully had somehow managed to secure the spot of his double for the part of Romeo - it was one of those minor bad news he had managed to shove aside so far.
However, now it only added to the already kindling fire of frustration. That should have been Jim's part, not the arrogant jock's. He wished he was on that stage, together with Claire, and…
A quick glimpse forced the teen to forget about all the problems altogether - simply because the scene he had witnessed, made no sense at all. No, of course, Steve was too pompous and self-centered to be a good Romeo, however, his Juliet definitely didn't help as she spat her lines with barely concealed annoyance and rolled her eyes every five seconds.
Claire could always forget her own feelings for the sake of play - but the point was that the lead actress today wasn't her, it was Mary.
"What's going on?" a shocked remark left Jim's lips unwittingly. Surprisingly, he got a response at once.
"An utter and complete trainwreck," Eli commented grimly, coming from behind. "Do you see that as well? They have no chemistry. At all. And I think Mary will strangle Steve if he continues trying to dominate the stage…"
Jim couldn't help nodding. Somehow, that felt like a totally plausible scenario.
"But why Mary is Juliet to start with?" he asked, interrupting his classmate's incoherent mumbling about 'total disaster'. "Wasn't that Claire's role?"
Not even in his wildest dream, the lanky teen could imagine his crush stepping down from being Juliet in their school play.
Eli looked at him as if he had grown a second head:
"You must be joking… Though, I guess, with your sporadic attendance, you have no idea…"
"About?" Jim raised his eyebrows. Sure thing, he hadn't come to that many rehearsals, but he could never imagine that there was some fact he hadn't been aware of.
"Well," the bespectacled teen shrugged. "I bet you know that Ms. Janeth is irritated because of your lack of commitment… That's why she accepted Steve as a double even if he missed the initial try-outs…"
"I still fail to see any connection," Jim interrupted him impatiently. He had to see Claire, so what was the point of wasting time if she wasn't around?
"But there's the connection!" Eli exclaimed. "Ms. Janeth said she'd find a double for anyone who kept skipping! And it's the second time for Claire already!"
"Wait, Claire's skipping?"
"Personally, I believe she has a good reason for not coming today," the bespectacled boy sighed. "Because Claire was the one to propose Romeo and Juliet as this year's school play. She's the most invested in it. I think she got sick or something - she skipped today's classes as well…"
"I see," Jim felt his heart drop. Apparently, the Destiny itself was against his confession or something. Probably he should have asked Toby to deliver his letter to the Latina after Draal would turn him into a pancake.
He turned around to leave, ignoring Eli's not-that-confident attempt to stop him, and…
"Hey, would you mind not running away?" Mary blocked Jim's escape route. When and how did she manage to appear?
The boy obeyed, even if he'd rather be somewhere else at the moment.
Mary Wang was one of the people he had always avoided, like the plague. Some might have assumed it was because of the girl's personality, but the actual reason lay elsewhere.
To be fair, Jim found Mary likable enough. No, the problem was that she was one of the people from his pre-school, meaning…
Yes, she couldn't miss that part when he had been rampaging during his early childhood. What if the Asian girl or someone else would have brought that one up?
Perhaps, it was an irrational and totally uncalled fear, but it wasn't as if the lanky teen could shrug it off. Even if Toby had ensured him that he had no problems with his best friend having 'anger issues'.
"You have a nerve, skipping rehearsals like it's nothing, Romeo," Mary scowled but switched to a mischievous smile at once. "If you want to impress Claire, you need to show her more of your breath-taking performances…"
It took some seconds before Jim managed to process her words entirely and the realization made him forget about his own fears and Draal.
Mary, one of Claire's best friends, was evidently aware of his crush.
"Was it that obvious?" he asked, already horrified by the possible answer.
"Please," the girl snorted. "It's more difficult to find someone who hasn't noticed you drooling over Claire! Even Steve knows - and he isn't the sharpest tool in the shed!"
No, of course, Jim suspected there was a possibility, but… If basically everyone had known already, would that mean that his crush had been aware as well?
"Good for you, that C-bomb's shockingly oblivious when it comes to this stuff," Mary grinned like a Cheshire cat, obviously enjoying the boy's reaction. "Seriously, you guys are so cute that it hurts! It's fun to watch it, however, I think someone needs to move forward here… But first, do something with that self-centered jerk who apparently genuinely believes that our school play is called Romeo and His Ego! Some ass-kicking is long overdue!"
The lanky teen winced. Sure thing, now he knew that he could stop if needed, but somehow another fight with Steve wasn't that exciting perspective.
Partially, because…
Steve had lost already - and the raging monster inside Jim's mind wasn't interested in a rematch with someone inferior.
That wasn't a pleasant realization, so he tried his best to ignore it.
No, sure thing, the main reason was that the boy simply preferred a peaceful approach.
"Can we avoid ass-kicking?" he asked carefully, not that sure about Mary's reaction.
"Come on, Lake," the girl rolled her eyes. "Do you know what figuratively means? Just appear more often - everyone here knows that you're better than Steve, even Ms. Janeth! He's your double because there wasn't anyone else!"
Mary was right. Steve had managed to secure his current role only because of Jim's own negligence. Hadn't Ms. Janeth warned him before? The boy felt slightly ashamed - perhaps, if there had been a second chance, he could have acted differently…
Yeah, sure thing… Who did he try to fool again? There wouldn't be any second chances, not with Draal planning to obliterate the unworthy Trollhunter!
But of course, the Asian girl couldn't possibly know all of that.
"Just promise me one thing," she continued after getting no response. "Next time, when Claire recovers, I want to see you by her side on this stage, not that self-centered prick! Deal?"
How could Jim promise anything when his own future seemed rather grim?
"Well…" he muttered, not sure what to say without provoking his nosy classmate.
"Don't give me that crap, mister," she interrupted with a huff. "You appear next time - or else I'll make sure that your social life will hit the lowest level of the abyss until graduation! And never doubt my skill or resources - I absolutely can make that scenario real, got it?"
Mary looked so comically intimidating that Jim couldn't help chuckling at that.
"Chin up, Jimmy-Jam, we'll do it!" she smiled back at him.
Apparently, he'd already received some odd nickname from her. Somehow, it felt so good that not everyone from his past was scared of him.
Still…
"Mary," the teen looked at her seriously. "Can you help me with something?"
He had no opportunity to talk to Claire for the last time, but perhaps, someone could deliver his letter to her.
"It depends," Mary drawled, looking at the boy with some unreadable expression.
"Can you give this to Claire?" Jim handed her the envelope. The Asian girl had seemed supportive and understanding so far, so why would she refuse?
Yet…
"I'm not your errand girl, Jim Lake," Mary frowned and gave the letter back. "Do it yourself. Why don't visit her today? She'll find it nice. Then you can deliver this… Wait, no, better tell her whatever you've written there!"
"But…"
"No 'buts'," the girl groaned and ran away before Jim managed to find any argument to convince her…
Stricklander had always appreciated the thorough planning. Well, in that regard, he had never been that different from other higher-ups in the Janus Order, however, he also possessed a quality most of his fellow schemers lacked. After all, Walter knew how to adjust his plan on the spot without getting lost.
Initially, he thought about trying to re-establish the link he had with Young Atlas as the boy apparently kept drifting away as the time passed. However, when the man entered the staff room in the morning, he realized at once that it wouldn't be that easy anymore.
"Let me introduce Ms. Anne Shen to you," the principal seemed elated, for whatever reason. Probably, the cunning vixen had already managed to charm him - Strickler wouldn't be that surprised.
"Ms. Shen will be joining us as a school counselor…"
The end of the introduction was probably the worst possible outcome. Walter would prefer Shen in some teaching position instead as that one would limit her in picking non-studies-related topics. As a counselor, though… Yes, she would be basically free to interrogate anyone she would find suspicious. And unfortunately, with his slipping grades, Jim Lake would more than likely end at the very top of that list.
Someone was already trying to whisk away Stricklander's biggest trump card.
"Nice to meet you, Ms. Shen," he said aloud when it was his turn to introduce himself. "I'm Walter Strickler, feel free to ask me anything…"
He finished it with his best fake smile - as if he would ever demonstrate the annoyance openly!
"Looking forward to working with you," the female's smile was as bright as his, and obviously not a genuine one too. It was just a pretense game two hypocrites played - and not even one other teacher present had caught that nuance…
Walter half-expected Shen to avoid him afterward, so her barging into his office was slightly surprising. Though, unlike some other Janus Order members, she was keener on using intricate strategies. Someone else might have fallen for those, but Strickler was great in that kind of mind game as well.
"Let me get straight to the point, Stricklander," the female smiled cordially. "I propose the alliance. There's no reason for rivalry - our goals are the same, in the end. We both dream about the rise for our Order…"
No wonder everyone considered Shen good at reading others - she knew what buttons to push. Walter would admit her proficiency. Unfortunately for the vixen, he hadn't been born yesterday to fall for her fake sincerity.
The female cared about power and influence only, and the fate of her brethren never bothered her in the slightest.
"As much as I appreciate your assistance, I prefer to work alone," he smirked, catching a glimpse of irritation in her expression.
Someone else would probably try to comb the entire student body, but apparently, Shen suspected Strickler of covering for his Trollhunter student. Well, if she had misunderstood, it was her own problem. Walter wasn't that benevolent to correct her.
"Isn't it tiresome to monitor the boy all the time?"
Another attempt to break his defenses. This one was obviously less thought-out. So, apparently, Shen had bet everything on her first try when she had appealed to Walter's goals. That was surprisingly reckless.
Did everyone at the Order actually believe that Stricklander would trust everyone sharing his goals?
"I find it amusing," the History teacher shrugged. "Besides, who said I was the one monitoring him?"
If Shen's attack crumbled so easily, wouldn't it be the right time to strike back and throw some fake leads for her? He could easily bluff his way through the entire standstill. And well, it wouldn't harm anyone if the woman thought he had more resources than she knew.
She had taken the bait - Strickler could say it easily from her body language. Apparently, at the moment, she tried to remember every single changeling loyal to the current Head of the Order.
She would look for them inside the school - and well, any distraction was good when it came to winning more time…
'I'm sorry, Jimbo, we brainstormed together with Douxie, Zoe, and Archie for the entire night, but there's nothing you can use to give you an upper hand against Draal…'
Jim recalled his best friend's guilty expression and winced. Tobes had no reason to feel that way - it wasn't his problem to start with. He hadn't been the one to pick up the mysterious amulet or offend the angry troll warrior. So why was he so invested in saving the hapless Trollhunter?
Especially when Jim himself was deadset on fighting Draal fair and square.
Fair and square? Yeah, sure thing - weren't they in different weight categories to start with? Wouldn't it be different from a pro-boxer beating a scrawny kid only recently picking up boxing?
The teen sighed and entered his house. Some time ago, he considered following Mary's suggestion and visiting Claire, but…
It was still too much.
Even if it was probably his last chance to catch a glimpse of his crush. Perhaps, Jim could ask Toby to deliver his letter… Or Douxie - wasn't Claire his apprentice or something?
"Hi, kiddo," his mom's greeting broke his reverie at once. Barbara was sitting on the couch, some papers scattered before her.
"Hi, mom," Jim smiled at her. It was slightly odd - he could swear that the woman should have had a day shift and returned by dinnertime. Though, with all the recent stress and too many events, was it that weird to confuse less important stuff?
"I didn't know you were home," the teen continued. "A free day?"
Barbara shook her head:
"Alas, no. Night shift this time - will head out after dinner… It's so hectic there recently," she frowned, obviously remembering something unpleasant.
"Again?" Jim raised his eyebrows. "I think you haven't spent a night at home for a while…"
Much like him, actually. Not that long ago, he had felt so relieved that his mother's night shifts gave him more space for his supernatural-related activities.
This secret life of his had already cracked the familial bond they had. Though… Yeah, with the teen dying, there wouldn't be any reason to keep with lies…
"It'll end soon, I promise," Barbara's following phrase nearly made him jump as it was uncannily in line with his thinking, but he immediately realized that it was just a response to the question he had asked aloud.
The woman stood up, picking her papers. Jim tried to help her, but Barbara stopped him hastily:
"No need…"
"Okay," Jim drawled, rather shocked when his mom nearly snatched some list from his hand. He could swear he saw some names there, but probably it wasn't anything important.
"Is it work-related?" he asked instead.
"Kinda," Barbara chuckled nervously.
Somehow, the atmosphere was too awkward, too strained. Jim blamed himself - after all, he was the one hiding his supernatural-related duty, not to mention the high possibility of this night being his last one. He had planned to cook an amazing dinner for his mom - as a farewell gift, but now, with her being present?
It was nearly impossible not to break down and just confess everything, and…
He wasn't a small kid anymore. He had to stay strong, even with doom hanging right above his head.
"I think I'll cook something delicious for us," Jim forced the brightest smile possible, taking a step towards the kitchen. Sure thing, he was horrible when it came to escaping attempts, but he simply couldn't stay in the same room.
Why were farewells so challenging again?
Cooking had always been his escapism activity and the perfect way to relieve the stress. Perhaps, it could help even in the current situation. Besides, the teen wanted to hide the letter for his mom somewhere - and inside a cookbook looked fitting.
"Can I help?" Barbara followed her son, ruining his plans altogether.
"Well…" Jim chuckled, not that sure what to say. Luckily enough, his mother misinterpreted that one.
"Oh, come on, mister! I know I'm a total disaster, but is it so hopeless? Maybe I just keep ruining everything simply because no one ever bothered teaching me how to do things right!" she huffed and then added quietly: "Just show me how, Jim, - even someone like me wants to make everything better…"
Somehow, Barbara sounded nearly desperate. It was as if she genuinely pleaded for an answer to some life-changing matter.
'Is it still about cooking?' the thought was random and came out of nowhere, yet the teen never dared to ask it aloud. Most likely, he was simply overthinking. The incoming death battles were no good for the mental state.
Jim couldn't help smiling as he watched his mom taking a knife and approaching an onion lying on a cutting board as if it was some enemy to slay. With that approach, she would be way better in actual swordplay than using a cooking utensil.
"Maybe the problem is that you try too hard," the teen guessed. Perhaps, he could actually teach Barbara, but his time was apparently too limited and kept shrinking.
"Well, my father's taught me to put everything I have into everything I do," she shrugged but clumsily attempted to cut with less force.
Jim looked at the woman in bewilderment:
"It's the first time you've mentioned Grandpa…"
Even saying that 'grandpa' aloud felt so bizarre. Barbara's parents had always been an oddly ignored topic in their household. No, of course, the teen knew they existed somewhere, but his mother had never talked about them.
When he had been smaller, Jim had kept pestering her with questions about other relatives as he had been annoyed and upset to have only his mom and no other family. Yet the woman had managed to get away with a joke every single time.
As he had grown a bit, the boy had assumed that it was simply an unpleasant topic, perhaps, on the same level as the matter with his father, so he had stopped asking.
He half-expected yet another joke to wave it off, yet…
"Jim, how would you feel about meeting your grandfather?" the question was quiet, and Jim could swear he heard some guilty undertones in that one.
"No idea."
That was a surprisingly honest response. On the one hand, the teen had always wondered about his roots, however… It was impossible not to notice that Barbara had kept silent about her relatives for a reason.
"I mean, we've lived perfectly so far, and if you have difficulties communicating with him, you shouldn't force yourself for my sake," Jim added hastily. Probably, he could word it better, but at the moment, he had no time to think about it. The whole matter really came out of nowhere.
And apparently, nothing the boy had known made any sense right now.
"Jim, I'm sorry."
It was the first time he saw his mother that guilty and sad. Why did she apologize to start with? If anything, Jim shouldn't have pointed out the matter with his mysterious grandfather and…
"My silence's caused too much misunderstanding," Barbara sighed. "There was no falling-out between my family and me… Just…"
She fell silent, evidently trying to pick the right words to explain everything.
"I ran away from my responsibility," the confession was nearly inaudible yet full of some bizarre determination. "It was a mistake, and I need to correct it before it's too late… Don't worry about your Grandpa, though," she suddenly smiled, ruffling her son's hair. "He cares about our family. There's no way he won't like you!"
The teen nodded, even if it was his turn to feel guilty. Barbara dreamed about a proper family reunion in the near future, but…
That wouldn't happen. Not with Draal eager to restore his pride or whatever his problem was.
He should have confessed everything. His mother had the right to know that her dear boy could possibly never return home.
There were so many things Jim wished to tell Barbara.
About how much she had always meant to him.
About his gratitude for all her hard work in raising him alone, without his deadbeat father involved.
About her being the true hero and inspiration for him.
Yet, instead of that, he forced yet another fake smile, spewing only more deceptive words:
"Maybe I should cook dinner for Grandpa then. What's his favorite dish?"
Douxie couldn't help feeling guilty that his nightly brainstorming to help Jim in his fight had led nowhere. Every time he closed his eyes, he recalled Toby's desperate expression.
But what could he have done?
No, of course, the wizard-in-training knew more than enough spells that could work against a troll. The point was that the situation wasn't the one where he could use those. In an actual death battle, Douxie could work as a team together with the young Trollhunter, but this was the formal challenge with no external help allowed.
And any additional power-up hit the wall because the Daylight was already the result of an amalgamation of the best knowledge about trollslaying the human side possessed. Going above that one? Yeah, you needed to be a genius of at least Merlin's level.
Zoe had left for her shift at Hex Tech, but she promised to return after it. Perhaps, she could also ask some of her co-workers about other kinds of magic. Hedge witches were a separate branch of magic users, after all, so they could possibly have found some different solution for dealing with trolls or something.
"Any luck?" the young man asked his familiar, who was flipping through an impressively thick grimoire. Archie shook his head silently.
"Fuzzbuckets, why there are three hundred spells for fixing a bed hair but not even one to strengthen someone else?" Douxie threw away another useless book. Once again, he wondered if Merlin could find something working. Or maybe invent something on the spot.
Nine centuries ago, his master had always been there to fix whatever the mess the hapless apprentice had ended in.
No, he couldn't always depend on miraculous solutions to each and every one of his problems. Perhaps, the wizard-in-training could improvise a bit. To think out of the box.
Some way to help Jim without being cheating would be…
"Someone's coming," Archie's ears perked at the faint sound.
"A customer?" Douxie inquired, hiding the books.
"Doesn't seem like that," the cat tensed, leaping to the higher spot. The young man wanted to ask about that odd behavior when the magical alarm runes went on, flashing red for a split second.
A changeling.
Of course, Douxie knew that the entire chaos their team had caused at the museum would have consequences. If anything, he had had his cover blown with his direct involvement. And with that, the hope for guerilla tactics vanished into thin air.
Was it so surprising that the Janus Order started to check every suspicious location that might have connected to genuine wizardry? Most likely, the Hex Tech was under investigation as well - that community had never hidden its true nature. GDT Arcane Books, on the other hand…
Yes, the owner was cautious to an extreme, so, perhaps, the young man could get away with feigning some ignorance or…
They entered. Three people, not just a lone visitor.
Police - that fact alone had already raised the stakes tenfold. They could investigate and interrogate in that case, and who knew where it would lead.
No, sure thing, GDT Arcane Books had a peerless cover to keep its secrets safe. However, that one worked against regular people only. Unfortunately, changelings often had at least minimal gasp of magic, if not more.
Douxie was so tensed that he had missed introductions. The only thing he got was that the police were supposedly investigating the case of illegal drugs distribution and had a search warrant.
So, it wasn't just a random occurrence and dumb coincidence. The Janus Order had discovered the bookstore's connection to the supernatural world. Though luckily, they had no idea about Douxie's identity - otherwise, Merlin's apprentice would have needed to perform yet another escape from the authorities.
With that in mind, there was still some space for improvisation, however…
The magical alarm had warned about a changeling entering, but that one was never good at discerning numbers. All the policemen could be shapeshifting trolls - or only one of them.
Ironically, the wizard-in-training would rather have all of them as enemies - sure thing, it would mean a more complicated and exhausting battle, but at least there wouldn't be any innocents around to become collateral damage or life shield for changelings to use. Any other option meant potential hostages - the members of Janus Order fancied dirty tactics in the end. Somehow, Douxie had a hunch that at least one of the policemen was a human. But who?
A nervous youngster?
A dark-skinned man who seemed bored to the death?
A leader, seemingly invested in the investigation? That one seemed the most likely changeling, but the young man couldn't say for sure.
He should have found a way to distinguish humans from shapeshifting trolls. A gaggletack would be just perfect - alas, he didn't have one at the moment.
There had to be something else, like…
The youngest policeman sneezed loudly and complained:
"It's too dusty here, may I wait outside? My allergy is killing me!"
That was it, something that effortlessly told humans apart from inhuman. Changelings' nature was twisted to fit flesh form, but some things still remained.
Like purple blood. Or inability to mimic physical ailments and human diseases.
And the supposed allergy was a good enough proof of innocence.
"Come on, Wilkins, just let the lad go," the dark-skinned man drawled. "We can deal with everything without him…"
It was just perfect - only two were left, and…
Douxie's eyes met Archie's determined gaze. The familiar was perching on a bookcase, and the young man could swear the cat-dragon had a plan.
Well, they had been a team for centuries - there was no need for discussions. Whatever Archie had thought about, the wizard-in-training was ready to act accordingly.
The feline leaped down, landing right on the lazy policeman's head and scratching him furiously.
Color of his blood! Of course, Archie would have never forgotten that little trivia.
"Take away that damned thing from my subordinate!" Wilkins hissed, glaring at Douxie. "Or I'll count it as an assault!"
"Sure, just wait for a second," the young man raised his hands and approached the other policeman carefully. "I'm so sorry, my cat's nervous around strangers, and…"
"Maybe you should take it to your work them," the dark-skinned man spat, trying to rip Archie away from his face.
The familiar definitely had tried his best, leaving deep scratches and drawing enough blood, and…
Red!
They had the answer they needed now. Wilkins was the only changeling.
"Oh, I'm so sorry," Douxie smiled apologetically. "Interminus nocti sluumberso!"
That was the strategy - putting the innocent to sleep while dealing with the enemy.
He even partially succeeded in catching the changeling by surprise - at least, Merlin's apprentice had managed to turn around and take a battle stance before the shapeshifter attacked him.
Apparently, Wilkins hadn't expected the twist - most likely, his partners had been his actual shield.
Now everything would depend on his actual battle prowess. The changeling's true form suggested agility and speed - most Janus Order members were exactly like that. Perhaps, it had something to do with their vile codex. Or maybe they were able to snatch mostly whelps from certain tribes.
"Wait, sorcerer, I think you've misunderstood something," the troll smirked. "No need for a conflict…"
It was a blatant lie. The reason for it still remained a mystery though. Douxie wondered if it was possible to capture and interrogate the intruder.
"A changeling barging in can be interpreted only one way," he stated coldly. "My master won't be happy…"
It was a bluff, an attempt to make Wilkins think there was a more powerful wizard behind the bookstore. Surprisingly, the troll had seemingly believed that one.
"No need for paranoia, boy," he forced another fake smile, taking a step back. "I'm sure your master will tell you the same… Believe me, it's just human stuff. Fake leads are the norm nowadays. Or maybe your master actually sells some weird drugs, you know…"
The sixth sense screamed to Douxie that the changeling was lying. He should have at least suspected GDT Arcane Books of connections to the magic world. But right now, the troll attempted to fish out the wizard-in-training's allegiances.
And that made no sense altogether. Hadn't the enemy come because of the recent fight at the museum?
"Douxie, look out!" Archie's warning broke the young man's reverie at once.
He definitely got careless when he had fallen for the changeling's deception. Of course, Wilkins was never interested in idle talk. No, of course, he was simply waiting for an opening, using the first opportunity to throw a knife at the wizard-in-training.
It could have probably worked with someone less experienced. However, Douxie reacted at once, using telekinesis to deflect the attack and send the blade back. The enemy exploded, covering everything in a thick layer of dust.
"Ugh, I hate that," Archie complained.
"Yeah, a lot of cleaning to do," Merlin's apprentice groaned, watching the snoring policeman on the floor. Wiping dust was the least of his problems at the moment. Covering the fact that they had basically killed a policeman… Yep, that was the major headache.
"And what are we going to do with that guy outside?" the cat inquired, reminding me about another problem they had…