The next lesson will be a brief dissection of the spell splash. I know you don’t use it often. But that is holding you back. Now, the most important thing is-

  Kennon shut off Tutor. It had been a long day. He had more than half the wood they would need. And he had gotten a new level in arcane magic.

  Arcane magic level 3 reached

  Mage armor unlocked

  Shield unlocked

  Force cage unlocked

  Dispel

  They were all really good spells. And unlike steel shields and armor they would grow as he put more mana in them. Also unlike steel he had to work to keep them in place. For now a steel shield was preferable. And dispel would be excellent if they fought a magic wielder. But only then.

  He did a lot. But Tutor never stopped. Kennon looked at Bev. she was deep into work on making him a proper cloak. She was no tailor. But a decent cloak wasn’t that hard.

  Despite that he could tell she was exhausted. Just like him. They needed to relax. At least for a few hours.

  An Idea formed. And Bev looked straight at him.

  “Now?” she said.

  “Now.” Kennon thought.

  He felt a rush of doubts flood her mind. Kennon and her both needed armor. She needed to make about a million nails. Lessons upon lessons.

  Kennon didn’t let her finish her worries. Instead he started to gallop as though he were on a donkey, neighed, and shouted, “Yee haw horsie!”

  He felt Bev’s tension disappear in an instant.

  “You mean donkey. That was an easy one.” Bev said.

  Kennon stopped making a full of himself and bowed.

  “Right in one, you do better.”

  He felt their bond narrow. He thoughts harder to sense. But he got an impression of him wearing the cloak she was making.

  She threw the half finished cloak over her shoulders, then started to cast a wind blade at nothing. All the while patting the sun tiger cloak.

  Clearly she wants me to say “cloak”. But what is she really thinking?

  He noticed how her mind kept going to her helmet. Halberd. Chest. She thought about how soft the tiger hide was. How nice her gambeson would be.

  “Gambeson.” he said.

  “How did you get that one?”

  “Your thoughts are like an open book. You do better now.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  They had played this game since they were children. Margie always told them it was so they could learn to surprise each other. Or keep some privacy. But Kennon always suspected its real goal was to help strengthen their bond. It certainly was the effect.

  After seeing what real strengthening was like he wasn’t sure how well the game would work. But it was always a good way to blow off stress.

  He tightened their bond while Bev worked to expand it.

  Chicken, pretend to be a rooster.

  For the next two and a half hours they played this game of reverse charades. At first they almost never could hide the target thought. The opposite of how it normally went. After an hour they could hide their thoughts again. But in the last half hour the results seemed to vary wildly. It seemed reading the others intentions was impossible, or they had success the instant the other came up with the target thought. Before any acting at all.

  It was Bev’s turn to hide a thought. Kennon worked to expand their bond. Then he felt a surge of emotions from her.

  Halberd, dagger, neck, eye, death, murder.

  He ran over to her and said, “stop the game.”

  She practically fell to her knees. Their bond was wide open. She was going to think of one of their weapons and pretend it was the other. And then.

  It seemed she thought about using the weapon. Against Margie’s killer.

  Her thoughts were a chaotic storm. Alternating between satisfaction, and regret. Death and life. Even hot and cold. Kennon couldn’t keep track of them. Neither could she apparently as she started to cry.

  He knew how she felt. And not just because of the bond.

  So much had happened. And would probably keep happening. But that didn’t matter right now.

  He opened up his mind as much as he could. And thought only one word.

  Peace.

  Bev had a great time. She really did. It was a shock to her when she wanted to send the idea of stabbing that murder, whoever he was in the eye. The thought felt wrong. But also right. Didn’t murderers deserve death? But who were they to decide that? But they couldn’t trust the government. The church would protect a secret like that.

  Her thoughts began to spiral. Kennon was at her side in a moment. She didn’t want to end the game like this. Even more guilt passed through her. Not only was she contemplating murder but she was doing it when Kennon wanted to relax.

  How could she, what could, why…

  Then, like a lighthouse in a storm a thought washed over her.

  Peace.

  It wasn’t an answer to her questions. It wasn’t supposed to be. It wasn’t a suggestion either, or a command. It was a life rope.

  She clinged to it like it was the only stable thing in existence.

  Time passed. The sun set. And Bev fell asleep in Kennon’s arms. Her eyes read with tears. His were as well.

  He laid her on her sleeping bag. Too tired to properly tuck her in.

  Then he laid on his own and let his mind wander.

  Bev’s anxiety spiral wasn’t just hers. He knew that the moment she latched on to his thought. They were both pouring all of their anxieties, and doubts into each other. It was normal for them. They couldn’t stop if they tried. One of them was bound to break under the weight at some point.

  Random chance placed that burden on Bev.

  Margie was dead. And they had choices to make. Kennon finally realized that thought in full force while helping Bev bear its weight.

  But there was no right choice. And even when they did make a choice it would likely take years to enact any plans for vengeance.

  And there would be vengeance. He was certain of it now. He had no idea what form it would take. Whether they snuck into her killer's bedroom and stabbed him, or got so powerful that they could force the government to arrest him. There would be vengeance.

  But at the moment. They didn’t even know who did the deed.

  No, these thoughts may be important. Something to keep in mind at all times. But there were no options now. So there could be no decisions now.

  Tomorrow they would start building a cabin. Somewhere more pleasant to sleep than a blanket on the ground.

  And they would never stop building. Be it armor, power, home, or allies, they would never stop. They would keep working. And when the day came, they would have plenty of options to choose from.

  Thank you for sharing my journey. To help me walk it I have a set up. It is 20 chapters ahead and releases at the same time as the Royal Road chapters.

  Remember every follow, review, and rating helps the story get more attention.