NIGHT - I. Rin (best large ereader txt) 📗

about you, when you suddenly disappeared from Margo’s house.”

 

“I had a reason, Prince,” said Lica and stared at Swein.

 

He did not look away. So they looked at each other for a long time. She could not understand what now prevails in her heart for Swein - love or hatred?!

 

“Stop it!” the Prince Night said loudly. “We do not have time for sorting your relationships out now. Swein, show us the way to Margo!”

 

The Goblins’ King nodded and silently turned his horse. He rode along the Sleepy Lake and Prince with the girl followed him. Edward caught up with Lica and remarked:

 

“We are lucky! Swein has found a new enchanted path that will lead us straight into the mountains. And the cave of the sorcerer is at hand.”

 

“Brilliant! Frankly, I’m awfully tired these days, especially the trip into the Well of Oppression.”

 

“But why did you go there? Didn’t the Lord stop you?”

 

“On the contrary, he insisted that I followed him. The fact is that there is Hell Valley in the Well.”

 

“Oh yes, I remember this place!” the Prince smiled. “It’s the most wonderful place in the whole of the Underworld. There you can meet the Viatores.”

“Do you know about them?” Angelica amazed.

 

“Of course! After all, I have spent a lot of time in the Well... Unfortunately; the Viatores do not contact with the restless souls.”

“And neither do they with heartless creatures, like the Prince of Vampires,” said Lica. “That is why the Prince insisted on my presence there.”

“Are you saying you have talked to the Viatore?” the Prince Night surprised.

Swein heard Edward and Angelica’s conversation and slightly slowed his horse.

“I tried to persuade them to help us.”

 

“I have also heard about the Viatores,” chimed in the Goblins’ King. “They said to watch the play between good and evil and never interfere.”

“That’s true,” Lica agreed. “But I managed to convince one of them that now the superiority on the side of the evil. He promised to come to the battlefield and balance our forces.”

“Wow!” even more astonished the Prince. “I just admire your intelligence and courage!”

He approached Lica and kissed her hand again. At this time, a thick fog enveloped the riders.

“We are in the enchanted path,” said Swein.

 

For some time they were riding in silence. Soon the fog got dissipating and the riders came to the mountains.

“Excellent!” Edward exclaimed. “It looks like the path has not changed its direction yet, and we are exactly where we need.”

 

“Yes,” the Goblins’ King nodded. “We only need to go down and around this mountain.”

He dismounted and took the horse by the bridle.

 

“Angelica, get down!” Swein grinned. “You cannot ride here.”

 

Edward and Lica got down from horses and also walked leading their horses. The slope was quite steep. Horses were neighing and setting their hooves against. Here and there small stones were rolling down. Finally, the Goblins’ King showed them out to a narrow footpath. They were going much easier now and the animals calmed down a bit. Our heroes were rounded the mountain and came straight to the cave of the sorcerer.

 

Accident

 

 

“Hooray!” Angelica exclaimed. “I’m so glad that we have come at last! Actually, I’d rather have some hot tea now... and sit in an armchair. I’m so tired of horses, mountains and all this stuff.”

 

“Shall I help you!” Edward gave her his hand. “I think Margo has already known that we came.”

 

It was so; at the entrance Elsa has been waiting for them, she rushed to meet them and embrace the girl.

 

“You’re alive,” she continuously repeated. “I am so happy for you! I thought you wouldn’t come back from the vampires!”

 

The witch came out to them. She also held her arms out and pressed her to heart.

 

“You’re  devil’s  own  luck,  my  dear!”  she  said  smiling.

 

“Welcome back! Well, let’s go! Dinner is ready!” Margo said to all.

 

“I need to go to the bathroom; can you wait me for five min-utes, please?” the girl asked the witch. “Only watch the men to stay here with you until I come out.”

 

“Okay,” the witch laughed. “Why is that or it has already happened before?”

 

“Just in case...” Angelica jumped the line.

 

She quickly had a bath. Then went to the hall and joined them.

 

“So, tell me!” the hostess of the cave asked our heroes. “If the Prince of Vampires has agreed to help you?”

“Yes, he has promised,” Prince Edward answered. “But we have some problems! Could you tell, Angelica?”

“I and the Prince of Vampires went down into the Well of Oppression,” Lica started her story, “and have found that in order to overcome the evil; we need to find the sorcerer who will agree to seal the entrance to the underworld with his soul. Moreover, he must be a pagan sorcerer and be able to control the four elements...”

 

“And the Prince agrees to join us only if we find this sorcer-er,” added Swein.

“That’s why we came to you, dear Margo! Because who, if not you must know all the sorcerers and witches!” Edward finished.

 

Margo was staring at the ceiling in silence. Then she rose and began walking thoughtfully across the room. Finally, she said:

“I must leave you for a short time. While you may finish your dinner!”

The witch came out of the hall; Angelica, Swein and Edward continued eating. Elsa was an excellent cook. And Lica had never seen so many delicious dishes before.

At dinner, the girl was quietly watching the Prince and the King. Edward was smiling and open, but Swein avoided eye contact with Lica and did not even try to start talking to her. Angelica felt guilty.

 

“It was my fault,” mentally she blamed herself. “If I hadn’t left the stiletto, Swein would not have found it and blackmailed me later. He was just scared that I would meet the Prince Edward so easily, that is why he had decided to pick up the knife from me. And at night I came to his room myself! I seduced him! I must be owned he was at his best...”

 

In the end the girl so much rubbed herself in that she decided to talk to the Goblins’ King and say sorry. Meanwhile Prince Night raised his glass of wine and said:

“I have a toast!”

 

He looked at Lica and said:

 

“My dear Angelica! I want to raise my glass to you! To your wit, beauty and courage! I am happy that fate has given me chance to meet with you and I will never forget the ball, when I first kissed you!”

 

Swein choked over when he heard that, apologized and quickly left the room. Lica took wine with Edward and drank a couple of wonderful tots.

 

“Edward,” she said after a pause. “I’m also very glad that I have met you. Thank fate that I have known about the Kingdom of Night! For all the adventures and events that have happened to me here, and I hope will happen in future!”

 

The Prince rose from the table, came to the girl and impulsively kissed her.

 

“Angelica, if you knew how much I missed you! Every day, every moment, I was thinking about you. I have wanted to talk to you about our future...” he said passionately.

 

Lica slipped from the table, dodging Prince Edward. “Prince,” she murmured, “in my mind it is not the best time to discuss our future! First, we are not alone, and secondly, we have more important thing right now- we have to win the evil! And after that we will be able to talk about the future.”

 

“Well, I see...” the Prince Night said.

 

At that moment the witch came into the hall.

 

“Where is Swein?” she asked. “I have left you for a while and you are not together. Or didn’t you like my dinner?”

 

“We did!” exclaimed Lica. “Elsa, you have surpassed your-self! I had never eaten such delicious dishes before!”

 

“Dinner was very good,” praised her Edward. “Swein had choked a little and apparently decided to walk.”

 

“In any case, I need you all here now!”

 

“Then I’ll go and look for Swein!” the Prince said.

 

“No, Edward, I must talk to you. And, Angelica, could you find the Goblins’ King, please!”

 

She nodded and, with a sigh of relief, left the hall.

 

In the first room she met Elsa.

 

“Elsa, the witch asked me to find the Goblins’ King. Have you seen him?”

 

“Yes, I have! He swept past me and ran out of the cave. He looked shot and killed! Is anything wrong?”

 

“I don’t know,” answered the girl. “I’ll find the King and ask him!”

 

“Shall I go with you?”

 

“No, thank you! I know this place very well!”

 

And Angelica resolutely left the cave. It was a beautiful night. The sky was cloudless. The full moon lit up all around, and the stars were jolly twinkling.

 

Lica looked around, but couldn’t see Swein anywhere. She went to the tree where their horses were, and found that the Goblins’ King’s horse wasn’t there.

 

Without hesitation, she untied her horse, leaped into the saddle and rode toward the city of goblins. She raced down the road like a wind.

 

After some time she saw Swein’s damaged crypt in front. Suddenly the girl’s horse lifted its face, sniffed and whinnied. And soon another neighing was heard afar.

 

“So that’s the man my horse always reacts!” Lica grinned, remembering her horse was neighing when she and the Vampires’ Prince were approaching the King of Goblins last time. “My horse can feel the horse of Swein!”

 

And the girl turned to the ruins of the crypt. From afar Lica noticed his horse tied to the fence. Angelica jumped to the ground and tied her horse there.

 

Lica gently passed under the archway into the tumble - down tomb. Gently jumping from stone to stone, she finally made her way into the room. When she was here last time, she did not notice all this chaos. Now she could see that the tomb remained almost untouched. Only a big slab had crushed the coffin where the King’s body had been before. However, Angelica was more surprised see-ing that the wall with the portrait of a young man wasn’t harmed at all. Painted Swein was looking at her with his big mysterious eyes. Lica was admiring his beauty.

 

“Are you admiring the mess that you have done here?” sud-denly she heard a familiar voice behind her.

 

When the girl’s eyes adjusted to the darkness a little, and only then could she see the Goblins’ King, sitting on a large stone opposite the wreck.

 

“How did you find me?” he asked coldly.

 

“Intuition!” said Lica. “Honestly, I wanted to talk to you, Swein! I must apologize for my behavior last time.”

 

“Oh, quit playing games!” the Goblins’ King exclaimed irritably.

 

He shook his head and leaned against the wall.

 

“I do not know how I could fall into your trap! From the beginning it was clear who you were!”

 

Angelica flushed with indignation.

 

“Well who am I?” she said angrily.

 

“You are? Courtesan!” said the Goblins’ King pointedly. “You kissed Edward, and me, and perhaps, with the Prince of Vampires! Or maybe you’ve slept with him last night? I’m sorry for Edward! He cannot see your ‘true colours’!”

 

He stood up and walked slowly to Lica, smiling maliciously.

 

Blood rushed to the girl’s head.

 

“Ah, the ‘true colours’,” choking with indignation, she said, “ah, ‘courtesan’!”

 

She stepped forward and fetched a slap across his face.

 

Wicked spark flashed in Swein’s eyes.

 

“Never, you will never do it again!” he said sharply. “If