Most secret realms are realm specific, meaning individuals of higher realm are denied entry, while individuals of lower realm will face challenges beyond their capability. Some realms adapt to those entering them, like training grounds of various orders as well as the most famous secret realm - The Sage’s Realm.

  — Excerpt from The Secrets of the Secret Realms

  Day 243, 10:40 AM

  “Greetings, honorable guildmaster.” I bowed to the empty doorway just as Barb entered the room.

  “Don’t you ‘greetings’ me, you ingrate. Whose kid is this? Who are you trying to coddle now? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bigger ass-kisser than you.” The guildmaster was as pleasant as ever, and I responded in kind.

  “Do you want another spar, Old Man?” My threat came naturally, despite going through the same conversation for the fifth time, and as expected, it flustered the shitty guildmaster.

  “Very well.” He pretended I had said nothing and focused on Newstar. “I will proctor the examination test myself and throw out the sobbing child with incinerated hopes and dreams.”

  “Newstar,” I turned towards the person who actually mattered, “have fun taking the test and remember the way he is acting now. You have someone who appreciates you as a person, willing to teach you right here, even though he might offer you greater monetary benefits. Such as paying you instead of taking your money.”

  With that joke, I left the guild-house. I had two and a half hours to kill, and I couldn’t go to the adventurers’ guild where Lady Frostgrave awaited in ambush. Those two and a half hours looked fine on paper, but there had to be a but.

  If I arrived on time and went with Newstar to the adventurers’ guild, Lady Frostgrave would ignore him. And if I left Newstar to his own device, he would wander around town and get his purse cut, and then he would waste the rest of the day with the guards who had no intention of helping a no-name provincial kid.

  So, my plan was simple. I went to the alchemists’ guild, brewed a batch of healing potions, and some two hours later, I returned to the scribes’ guild, leaving a note to Dolorna, telling Newt to head straight for the adventurers’ guild. That way, Lady Frostgrave would have enough time to pay attention to him, and Newt wouldn’t disappear on me over nonsense.

  With everything set, I brewed two more batches and headed for the adventurers’ guild, where the same play awaited yet again, leading to a finale or yet another rehearsal.

  As I entered the common room, the air turned icy, and the clerk went pale with shock. Newstar turned around immediately, the beads of sweat freezing on his forehead, while the few remaining patrons similarly faced the freezing of their perspiration, wisely choosing not to move.

  “Are you Dandelion, once called Blackfist the Brigand, the former townlord of Hailstown?”

  Always the same words, which made it easier to play through the conversation.

  “Greetings, I am Dandelion, and I was once called by the titles you just mentioned. May I have the pleasure of knowing who is asking about me?” I was completely calm and fearless, not even a bit of unease in my soul. The repeated experience made most of the mageknight valiant’s interrogation a routine.

  “I am Iceflow Frostgrave. Three moons ago, three rogues assaulted my granddaughter in the streets, and you fended them off all by yourself.”

  I think there were five, ma’am, I just killed two so quickly she hadn’t seen them. But that line was fruitless and led to her asking for more details, which was certainly something I didn’t desire. She wouldn’t have found anything, but it would needlessly strain the conversation.

  Instead, I played it cool. “I help lots of people. Beautiful women, especially, are my weakness.”

  She glared at me.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “That is not empty bravado. You genuinely don’t fear me,” she said, perplexed.

  “Why would I fear a senior knight of a chivalric order, whose descendant I saved in passing? Not to mention we are sitting in an establishment sponsored by the imperial family itself?”

  She loosened her hold over the frost in the room, staring at me as if I were an exotic animal of some sort.

  “Did you cooperate with the attackers to get some benefits out of me?”

  “No, I am not and was not related in any way with those who wished to harm you, your organization or your family.”

  Lady Frostgrave frowned, then went for the baited question. “Did you pay them, or hire someone else to hire helpers?”

  “I did not. Nor did I in any way instigate the matter or make it happen. I recognized the uniform and believed I would get some reward for saving an initiate of the illustrious Everfrost Order.”

  “Lie to me,” she commanded.

  “I would never lie to you,” I said, and got rewarded by her melodious laugh.

  “You really are sharp,” she said, and I smiled back, but remained silent. My innocent flirt misfired the one time I tried it.

  She stared at me, and what had to come, came.

  “You are not Dandelion Blackfist.” The ice once more solidified into implements of murder, and I feigned nervousness. Well, not entirely. I was nervous about what would happen if she delivered me to the heresy hunters, so my worry was genuine, but for the wrong reasons.

  “I assure you I am the person you are looking for and not a fraud or a face thief. If you are referring to me lacking the aura of the metal-attributed mana, I have reforged my realm and started again. Coincidentally, I even have a witness who can confirm it in this very room.” Newstar nodded at the counter, and I kept talking. “If you wish to discuss my realm further, Lady Valiant, we should continue the discussion in private.”

  While the ice darts stopped swimming around the room, they remained trained at me.

  “Look, I am no threat to you, and I have done you a favor out of the goodness of my heart, maybe expecting a small reward. I could have just let your granddaughter bleed to death in a dark alley in which nobody should really go into, even if it saves five minutes when going places. All I wish is to have a talk and an amicable relationship from which both sides will benefit.”

  The murder bled out of the air, and Lady Frostgrave relaxed as her icicles disappeared. “I have rented a suite at the Noble Dragon. We can go there.”

  “At least treat me to dinner. I am not that easy,” I fired the tried-and-true line with a smirk, shocking the room.

  “I have killed people for smaller slights.” She growled the obligatory threat, with no success.

  “You are a noble woman. You would not stoop so low, especially since I have not insulted you in any way. As a benefactor of your family, I believe treating me to a meal before we discuss other matters is quite fitting and conforms to tradition.”

  Lady Frostgrave did her best fish impersonation while everyone else stared, people exchanging glances, clearly wondering whether they were the only ones with dirty thoughts.

  Lady Frostgrave gathered her wits and glared at me. “In that case, I would formally like to invite you to join us for dinner tonight.”

  “I gratefully accept your invitation, honorable Lady Valiant.” I bowed, then things went off script, and Blunt grabbed hold of my tongue for the first time in a long while. “My friend, Newstar Salamandra, is young and talented, his morals outstanding, his pockets empty.”

  Lady Frostgrave chuckled, apparently amused by my outburst as Blunt added those three final words.

  “That was more honest than I expected, given the way you were avoiding my questions.” She looked at Newstar and nodded with approval as the frosty atmosphere thawed completely. “Your friend has a bright future ahead of him, and it would be a pleasure to get to know him better.”

  Well, that’s new. She actually knew I was dodging some answers in some way. It made sense that she wasn’t an idiot, considering her realm, position, and age.

  Lady Frostgrave motioned us to follow, and like every time we went to the Noble Dragon, she led the way, while her wards walked behind us, all four of them glaring at the back of my head with such intensity, my hair should’ve frozen. Newstar also contributed to the dark looks, apparently dissatisfied I had called him broke.

  The journey was made in silence, and once we arrived at the Noble Dragon, I opened the door and held it for everyone. Newstar’s scowl deepened, and I just flashed him an apologetic grin before he entered past me.

  A delectable aroma saturated the air, and Newstar made a faux pas. His stomach growled, and the youth’s face went crimson with embarrassment. We all ignored it, save for Lady Frostgrave’s youngest ward, who turned around and snickered.

  “Snowflake, go to your room.” Lady Frostgrave’s voice was as hard as steel. That was the second time Snowflake had made the mistake, and both times her snicker infuriated her master. “He is a descendant of an honorable senior. His fate might be yours or that of your descendants, heaven forbid.”

  Snowflake obeyed, unshed tears welling in the corners of her eyes as she took the stairs up. The incident was unfortunate, and I wasn’t certain it would happen for the second time, since it seemed random. If I do another loop, I should treat Newstar to more meat skewers.