Page 79 of The Ruins of the Heartless Fae

Kolfinna faltered at those words. What did it matter to him? But it was a conversation, and it was better than the silence. The wind howled above their heads, sending a gust of sand against her face. “So I can be safe,” she answered truthfully, blinking away the grittiness that had gotten in her eyes. “I don’t want to keep running anymore. If I’m under Fen”—she cleared her throat—“CaptainAsulf, then I’ll be protected. I want to live a somewhat normal life.”

It’s what Katla wanted, she thought, but didn’t add.

Kolfinna’s fingers brushed the next set of runes and she broke them beneath her fingers. “And you? Why did you join the military? I heard you joined when you were twelve?”

“No,” he said. “I was actually thirteen.”

Extraordinary people with extraordinary abilities sometimes didn’t go through schooling and were placed straight into the military. Such was the case for Blár, who was the youngest person in Rosain’s history to become a black rank at age fifteen.Prior to Blár, Fenris Asulf had been the youngest black rank.

“I didn’t like my powers when I was a child,” he said. “I mean, what’s the use of ice when you live in a village where it’s winter all year long? Back then, I wished I had fire powers. My siblings used to tease me about my abilities.” He tipped his head back against the window frame to gaze at the cloudless sky, a wistful smile on his face. “The military noticed I was strong and asked my father if he would be willing to let me join them. My father asked me what I wanted, and I said yes. Not because I actually cared about being in the military, but money was tight and I figured I’d help out that way. They offered a pretty hefty sum, I’ll tell you that. That’s how I joined.”

“Do you regret it?”

He turned to her sharply. “Why do you ask?”

Kolfinna shrugged. “You were just a kid.”

He cracked his knuckles distractedly. “If I could go back, I’d never join. They’re all parasitic tapeworms. They’ll drain you dry and toss you aside like trash. I should’ve stayed home and enjoyed being a kid. Joining the military is a huge regret of mine.”

“Why don’t you just quit?”

“I can’t. I’m too far in.” He scoffed and tilted his head to look at her more levelly. “And besides, do you think they’ll let me live if I leave? I’m a national threat if I’m not on their side. If I’m not leashed up and behaving. They use me, but they’re also scared of me.”

“Who is ‘they’?”

“I can’t say.” He dusted flecks of sand off the front of his uniform. “The higher-ups, I guess. But I can’t really say.”

“Come on, we’re in the middle of a weird dimension. I doubt anyone will find out if you say anything.”

Blár gave her a long look, and his blue eyes flashed withsomething—a memory, maybe? “You’re better off not knowing all the specifics. Trust me.”

“But you’re a black rank. How can anyone boss you around?” Kolfinna had a hard time wrapping around her mind that Blár wasn’t the all-powerful person she had in mind. How could anyone defy him when he had such monstrous abilities? “You can defeat pretty much everyone in the country except for Fenris and Hilda Helgadottir.”

His nose crinkled as if she had shoved a lemon in his mouth. “You don’t think I can beat those two geezers? Hilda’s an old hag and Fenris hasn’t had a proper battle in years. I can easily wipe the floor with them.”

She snorted back a laugh. Such a typical Blár response. “Okay, sure, but my point stands.”

“Kolfinna, it’s not always about power,” he said. “I might be the most powerful in the country when it comes to my abilities, but I’m not powerful politically, and these assholes have too much on me for me to just up and quit. I can’t leave right now anyway. I’ve got too much to do.”

Kolfinna’s hand grazed another rune and she squeezed it with her mana; it instantly faded from the wall. “Is it true the military cages you up sometimes?”

He frowned. “No, why would they do that?”

“Because you’re”—she broke the next chain of runes with both hands; she lifted a hand from the grainy texture of the wooden wall splattered with sand, and waved it at him—“uncooperative.”

“The military wants to keep me on their side, so they would never do that.”Blár gave her a look like she had asked a strange question, even though it was a common rumor among the gossipers. “I’m not a dog.”

“So I’m guessing they don’t drug you either?”

“Who comes up with this stuff?” He cocked an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth lifting in an amused smirk. “Do people really think I’m a drugged puppet? Or a caged dog?”

“From the gossips, people don’t know anything about you. Other than that you’re powerful, scary, and uncontrollable.” She grabbed the next runes and shattered them easier than she had the others. Was it her imagination or was she getting better at this?

Her mind wandered to when Magni at the Royal Guard headquarters had told her Blár was a hunter. “Um … one of the rumors also says you’re a part of the Hunter’s Association.”

“I don’t have time for that, and there are a million reasons why I wouldn’t join them.”

That sparked her attention almost more than the unexpected relief that he wasn’t a hunter. “Oh? Like what?”

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