While living peacefully with her beloved father, Lili Mause sees her life turned upside down. A man comes to fetch her to take her to the School of Bermuda, where she will learn magic. Lili proves to be a very talented witch and a truly extraordinar...
Once ready, the four friends joined their comrades in the grand hall.
The tables had been removed, except for the buffet table, which was still full. A few small tables with chairs were set up along the edges of the room, leaving the center completely empty for dancing. The room was decorated in blue, in honor of the first years' victory, while also being adorned for Halloween.
Everyone was dressed beautifully for the party. Some older students, guided by the librarian, Mr. Doan Namarié, who was also the non-magical twin brother of the headmistress, were busy playing music for the ball, and some were already dancing on the dance floor.
Lulis preferred to step aside and head towards the buffet. Eating was certainly his favorite activity, making one wonder how he managed to stay so slim. What he loved about Halloween was the licorice spiders, which were desperately trying to climb the walls of the jar where they were stored.
Lili let out a small mouse-like squeak, which fortunately went unnoticed, when someone suddenly tickled her ribs. It was Viktor, who laughed at his little prank before extending his hand to the girl.
"It would be a shame not to have fun tonight," he said with a smile, "are you coming to dance, Lili?"
The young girl happily accepted, leaving Izãdo and Ree to accompany the adult on the dance floor. Ree turned to her friend with a big smile.
"Don't even think about it," the prince growled, moving away from her to go sit down.
Disappointed, the blonde girl went to invite Khalil, the second-year half-dragon, who gladly accepted.
The evening was a resounding success for everyone.
Quiet comings and goings were made by small creatures to bring new dishes and replenish the buffets. They were about four feet tall, with unattractive faces, long ears, and long noses.
Lili recognized them, she had learned about them through her magic book. They were korrigans, beings of great kindness, but capable of unimaginable cruelty if anyone harmed their friends. They didn't take the time to linger at the party and left the room as soon as their work was done.
Lili stretched as the room slowly emptied. Gradually, some students went to bed, while others stayed to dance, determined not to go to sleep before fully enjoying the evening.
However, the teachers put an end to the party as soon as midnight struck, ensuring that classes would be suspended the next day, but that the students should still be in good shape.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
November 1st was just another day for Karel Mause. Once again, he was simply sitting on his couch, twirling a dagger in his hands. He had just returned home after looking for Lili, and in five days, young Martin had come knocking on his door a good ten times in vain. It showed how much he cared about Lili!
But Karel had no desire to speak to that insignificant child. All he wanted was to find his daughter and kill her. Grimacing with rage, he violently plunged his blade into the coffee table in front of him just as someone knocked on the door again. Probably that kid...
Enough was enough. Was he never going to give up? Karel got up and headed towards the door.
"You've been harassing me for days, you brat!" he growled. "I've had enough!"
But when he opened the door, intending to scare the little rascal, he came face to face with a man of his own height and build, with fiery red hair.
"Chad?" Karel exclaimed.
"Why is the great hunter Karel hiding in his house?"
"I'm not hiding..."
"You're being summoned to the clave. The alphas want to see you."
Karel stared at his counterpart. The clave was a council that governed all hunters, consisting of four individuals who were no longer able to fight, called "the alphas," but who had killed the most enemies. Karel far surpassed their record, but he was still in top form.
Without a word, he simply followed Chad Glennon, the alphas' messenger, to the black car parked just outside. As he entered the car, he caught sight of the blond child watching him, he had probably come to knock on his door again, but it was too late.
It took a few hours on the road to reach their destination. The journey was made in complete silence, as Karel knew that Chad didn't like to talk much.
The hunters knew each other but rarely communicated... It was an efficient way of working that Karel appreciated.
They finally arrived at a beautiful villa in the middle of the city. Chad accompanied Karel into the house, to an indoor swimming pool surrounded by a lush indoor garden. The messenger let him in but stayed outside, leaving him alone to face the four people sipping tea around a small white outdoor table. Karel knew them well, as he had visited these influential men several times before.
Alpha Jehel was a young boy of fifteen who looked twelve, yet had the appearance of a girl. His blond hair was cut in a bob just above his shoulders, and no one would have believed that such innocent blue eyes could belong to a fearsome hunter responsible for the deaths of over a hundred wizards. Seated in a wheelchair, a dreadful spell had rendered him unable to use his arms and legs.
Beside him, also seated in a wheelchair due to physical handicap, was a man in his sixties who still seemed fit despite the absence of his two legs. He was Alpha Niheel, the owner of the villa, which was made available to the clave by his great-grandfather.
His wife, Alpha Rathel, sipped her hot drink without a word. Her stern and withered face made one wonder if they were truly the same age. She had lost her sight in her last battle against wizards.
Finally, the last of them, Alpha Hethael, stood facing a large cage containing dozens of white parakeets. His right eye was scarred, and his left arm was missing. He appeared to be in his thirties, but his gray hair betrayed his true age. He was the one Karel knew best, as he was his own father.
The hunter cleared his throat to announce his presence, drawing the attention of the four leaders towards him.
"There you are, Karel."
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