Upon being teleported into Hemingway's courtyard, Melinda knew that she was doomed. The terrible feeling of despair engulfed her heart like a thick, unrelenting fog, blinding her to the rest of the world. Looking at his house, she saw that it was the perfect lair - plain and unassuming. It consisted of one floor painted aquamarine and a small poppy garden, surrounded by a white picket fence, possessing a white front door and little square-shaped white windows and a plain brick roof with a chimney that was lit even though no voices could be heard from the inside of the house.
It was quite the neat trick. The few people who passed by took a singular glance at the house before turning away, the same as if it were any other, not seeming to notice Hemingway or Melinda. She turned around to face him as he held her hands tight, tied up by an unbreakable rope made of magic, her eyebrow raised in confusion, and that's when he shrugged and began to explain everything:
"So, as you can see, there's magic everywhere," he said, using his right hand to show her the surroundings and reveal a giant purple shield surrounding the house and his left hand to restrain her. "For example, this is an invisibility shield. Knowing you, you might be familiar with it, but I wouldn't be surprised if you aren't. There's just so much that you don't know. Still, there's more than enough time for you to become familiar with it all. Anyway, it's one of the many reasons no one has ever discovered me. It's active at all times. And it's really hard to break, too. See-"
To prove his point, he tapped the shield several times, at which it refused to budge. After that, he used his fist, but it only glowed and reverberated for a couple of seconds. Then, he proceeded to use a crowbar, and only then did it break. Melinda was impressed by the efficiency of the spell.
After stopping for a moment to admire the spell, she was forced to go inside. She held her breath as he led her towards the front door, right into hell's heart, that formidable place where all sorts of tortures and misfortune surely awaited her, where her life could be ruined or even ended. But, just as she set foot on the doormat, she remembered something.
"What is it that I don't know, Hemingway?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "I know quite many things. The only thing I don't know is why you've brought me here."
He chuckled darkly. "Yes, I'm aware that you know a lot, but you shouldn't be so arrogant as to think that there's nothing new for you to learn. As we all know, as long as we are alive, we never stop learning, no matter how skilled or brilliant we may be. I admire your life's work, I truly do - that's why I've brought you here in the first place - but sometimes your attitude really annoys me. There's time for me to correct that, though. Now get in there already! You know I've got no time to waste."
She despised his condescension with everything in her and wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face - to kill him, even - but she had a feeling that her attempt to do so would be fruitless. Still, she shot her shot.
The opportunity to do so was readily available. For a full minute, he was fumbling with the doorknob because one of his minions had locked the door out of paranoia, and he also had to wait for the minion in question to come down and unlock the door, after which they argued for a while.
She kept a dagger hidden in her pocket just in case, as she often tended to do. Granted, she usually used it against low-level thieves and bandits, but at the moment, it seemed like a sign from Fate itself.
As the blade glistened coldly amidst the rising sun, she looked at it with determination, gripping it tightly as she prepared to strike the final blow. Taking a deep breath, she aimed precisely at his back, covered by a long dark blue robe that would clash beautifully with the blood, time appearing to have stopped during her high-octane attack. Her veins burned with intensity, her mind readying itself for the avalanche of joy that was sure to come after that one move. Without hesitation, she aimed right below his head and-
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Divine Ascension (Wattys 2024)
FantasyEver since she was young, Melinda Grey knew she had a great destiny waiting for her. As a magical prodigy the likes of which the grand country of Obscuria had rarely seen, she had spent years and years training among those like her to preserve its g...
