Unfortunately, I'm an Evil Villainess

Chapter 124 - Gears of Fate (III)

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'My dearest Cathy,

How have you been? I hope they are not discomforting you, or I shall reduce the Tower to rubble and sweep you away to the castle you deserve. They are keeping me from visiting you, and it irks me terribly, especially since there is nothing I can do. In case you couldn't tell, I miss you, darling.

...

I hope you have kept my proposal in mind and I look forward to your answer, for I am confident it is one that will bring both of us the joy of our lives.

Yours truly,

Damian'

The sign-off bugged Damian, like a persistent little voice in his head. 'All my love' was reserved for his sweet sister, and would simply be untrue towards any other, but he yearned for something more eloquent to properly express his passion. He knew it was not actually that deep, but his words danced on the parchment, their inky forms taunting him.

'Catherine, Catherine, Catherine...' they whispered.

'Valentina, Valentina, Valentina!' they chanted.

"What in the world...? Did you write her a whole manuscript, Damian?"

It took Damian a moment to register his roommate's voice. He shook his head and chuckled. "You wouldn't understand, Kyle. It's the testament of my affections. Girls love it."

"Sure, but at that point, it looks more like a literature assignment," Kyle snorted. "I suppose this is nicer than you bringing them over, but can you at least leave a path for me?"

Damian turned, prepared to rebuke his friend on the importance of an artist's creative freedom, but the sight before him took his voice away. The common room of the spacious flat, provided by the Royal Institute for Magic Research to double as a workshop and shared between him and Kyle, had sheets of paper with his writing littered all over the entire floor. Sunlight streamed through the window, and birds chirped outside.

"I shall clean up when I'm done," he announced shamelessly.

It was not the first time he had gotten carried away without noticing with no recollection afterwards, but it seemed to be happening more often nowadays. Had he really written all that? He picked up a piece and tried to read it, but the letters refused to stay still, and the birds were too loud, the sun too bright.

"What's the time, by the way?"

To Damian's irritation, instead of answering, Kyle waded through the sea of paper to his desk, peering down at him.

"Time for you to get some rest. Gee, did you stay up the whole night again?" the sane mage sighed. "Forget it, I'll make you a cup of tea."

Damian was unceremoniously dragged from his work to the dining table. A wave of drowsiness suddenly swept him, and he laid his head down on the table while his friend made tea.

"I was justified this time, you know?" he whined. "They allowed that priest to visit her, but not me! The insolence! I'm sure she would've much preferred my company, and I bet I could sing prayers just as well."

'Of course I would,' Catherine cooed in his head. 'I can't wait to see you too.'

"Well, let's focus on what you can do," Kyle said, setting down a cup of tea in front of him. "I checked over your spell. I think it'll work, though you'll obviously have to tidy this into a more manageable form."

"Yes, yes," Damian said absent mindedly. Sneaking something into the Tower was challenging but attainable for a prodigal mage such as himself, if only getting something out was nearly as easy! He sipped the tea and it burnt his tongue, but he was too busy thinking to react. Kyle raised an eyebrow.