VALAERIE

Chapter 3

"It's been two days since she visited Valyria, and now Cassian is helping her select decent clothes for her mother and Lady Beth. Some preserved dresses in Valyria are still beautiful and wearable.

She cleanses each piece before placing it in her compartment, ensuring everything is sterile and organized. Valaerie even double-cleanses the jewelry because people outside Valyria are not immune to any infections it may carry.

Cassian, crawling next to her with dresses in his mouth, is the same size as Balerion. The beast now assists her in picking out dresses and jewelry. Valaerie chuckles at the sight of the creature covered in clothes she has chosen.

"Thank you, Cassian. I'm sure Mother would treasure everything," Valaerie smiles, checking each piece of clothing. They are all stunning. She then picks up a necklace—a Valyrian Steel Chain Necklace with a Black Amethyst Pendant.

Cassian makes a noise beside her, as if affirming that the necklace is beautiful. "It's stunning, isn't it? Mother would have liked it," Valaerie mutters while admiring the necklace.

Valaerie takes out her book—a spell book. Her body is infused with magic, having absorbed every power that Valyria contains during the time she slept underwater.

Skimming through the pages, Valaerie searches for a spell to imbue into the necklace. "Let's see... What will be the perfect spell for it?" Valaerie whispers, and Meraxes, the Goddess of Sky, emerges beside her.

"What are you doing?" the Goddess asked.

"I'm looking for a protection spell that I could put inside this necklace for Mother," Valaerie responded, and the Goddess nodded.

"How about a locator spell, a protection spell, and a magic of recognition?" the Goddess suggested, and Valaerie pouted because she hadn't thought of that sooner.

The locator spell tracks down the individual wearing the necklace, the protection spell defends them from harm, curses, or magic, unless the caster is more powerful. And the Magic of Recognition is especially potent.

"The Magic of Recognition ensures that once someone wears the necklace, everyone in Valyria will recognize them as an ally or friend of mine, so they won't be harmed," Valaerie explained.

Valaerie cast the spell, catching the attention of everyone in Valyria. The gods and goddesses allowed her to do as she pleased because they knew she was wise enough to handle anything.

"Seriously, she managed Valyria—what more can she do?" Valaerie thought as she packed her belongings. She missed her mother and needed to visit her sister Rhaella.

_

Valaerie visited her sister, but noticed she had changed; Rhaella had become a religious fanatic, which caused headaches for Valaerie.

Valaerie made her sister pledge not to say anything to anyone, and Rhaella swore. Throughout their conversation, Rhaella did nothing but preach about the Faith of the Seven, claiming they had rescued her sister... and so on.

Valaerie nodded along, unwilling to risk anything, so she went with the flow. Before departing, Valaerie gave her sister a bracelet—not made of Valyrian Steel, as Rhaella didn't know about Valaerie's time in Valyria; it was simply a dragon-shaped bracelet.

All Rhaella understood was that someone had saved her sister and taken her to safety, where she had remained until fully healed. Rhaella believed everything Valaerie told her and cherished the bracelet.

Before leaving, Valaerie kissed her sister on the forehead. "Take care."

_

Alysanne was becoming increasingly bothered by Valaerie's absence, growing paranoid, but Rhaena advised her sister not to panic.