Magi's Path (Aether's Revival Book 3) by Daniel Schinhofen (best black authors .TXT) 📗

Gregory cleared his throat. “Yes, it is bad. It also means that Yuki has nothing left in reserve.” With a small smile, he flipped over his three facedown cards. “Krogga didn’t forget what Buldoun had done to them. They knew they couldn’t win, but it was enough for them to cripple their foe at the right moment.”

Yukiko stared at his cards. “That’ll break my lines and kill my magi.” She looked up. “You just gave the empire the field. Why? She’ll wipe you off the field in the next two turns.”

“Because I’ll pull back after this,” Gregory said. “I played as I believed Krogga would really fight. They know that their zealots can handle magi, but against the equipment of Buldoun, they lack recourse. So, I cripple you here, and in another few years, they can return to press the empire again.”

Yukiko’s brow furrowed. Chewing her bottom lip, she appeared thoughtful as she looked over the board before placing a card from her hand onto the field. “Turtle defense.”

Gregory nodded before laying his next card down. “Zealots’ fervor. They will fight to the last.” He played another card. “Main force retreats back into their territory.”

Jenn’s smile was growing as she played two cards of her own. “Since they turtled, that leaves them vulnerable to the earth magi reinforcement. Earthquake and break through. That should break the defensive bonus from your turtle.”

Yukiko did the math in her head and sighed. “Let’s play the turn out, but I believe my broken army will be retreating from the field when it ends. I shouldn’t have let you move your camp forward last turn.”

“Nope,” Jenn agreed. “If you had stopped me, it would’ve changed my plans. You would have decimated me, if not for Greg. Let’s see what happens.”

~*~*~

They finished putting the pieces away and headed to their rooms. Jenn was grinning the entire time, having been the victor of their game.

“Thanks for the assistance, Greg,” Jenn said when they reached their rooms. “The empire couldn’t have done it without you.”

“If I’d been fielding anyone other than Krogga, I would have left the field after Yuki dismantled my army previously,” Gregory replied. “If she’d pushed for one more turn, I never would have been there.”

Yukiko nodded. “Yes, but the cost wasn’t worth it at the time. Buldoun always comes down to cost. If they had any idea what it would cost them in the end, the trade-off for removing you entirely would have been worth it.”

“I want to check with a scrivener to get more books on other countries’ tactics,” Jenn said. “I’m sure there’s a book of advanced tactics like there is for the empire side of things.”

“That’s a good idea,” Gregory agreed. “Maybe Dia can point us at the local scrivener.”

“That’s for tomorrow,” Yukiko said. “Jenn, you did a good job.” She stepped over and kissed Jenn’s cheek. “But next time, I will hold the field.”

Jenn’s face was warm, and she gave Yukiko a smirk. “I don’t know... if winning gets me a kiss, I’ll have to try even harder to win again.”

“That’s a good point,” Yukiko said, stepping back to stand beside Gregory. “She did win, Greg.”

Gregory blinked. He watched as Jenn’s face reddened more as the implication sunk in, and his own face was feeling as hot as hers. “Okay.” Swallowing, he stepped into Jenn’s personal space and bent his head forward enough to brush her cheek with his lips. He stepped back quickly, not looking at Jenn. “Uh... good win.”

Jenn’s face was almost glowing red. “Thank you. I… good night.” She quickly darted into her room and shut the door.

Yukiko gave the door a sad smile before taking Gregory’s hand in hers. “Come on, dear one. We should retire.”

Gregory let her tow him into the bedroom. “Yuki, was that too much?” he asked the moment their door closed.

Yukiko gave him a smile and stood in front of him. “No, she just didn’t know what to do or say. She might be our fierce fighter, but she’s also a timid girl when it comes to you. She’s even more uncertain than I was.”

Gregory stared into Yukiko’s cyan eyes. “Are you sure about this, Yuki?”

Her eyes searched his for a few heartbeats. “Yes. I know it’ll be difficult for all of us, but I feel that in the end, we’ll be better for it.”

Gregory leaned forward and kissed her softly. Yukiko pressed into him, returning the kiss. The moment grew, and Gregory swept Yukiko into his arms and carried her to the bed. While he was still uncertain about Jenn and what might happen, he knew he loved Yukiko and would give her anything. Right now, he wanted to shower her with love.

~*~*~

Yukiko murmured happily as she kissed his chest. “There’s something that I need to do, dear one.”

Gregory felt lethargic. “Oh?”

“My family’s secret,” Yukiko said.

That helped Gregory shake off some of his drowsiness. “Why your father can face down grandmasters?”

“Yes. I’m sorry it’s taken me this long, but we’ve just not had the time before now.”

“It’s fine, dearest,” Gregory said, kissing her head. “Go ahead.”

“We don’t know how far back it goes, but it’s from my father’s line... the ability to steel one’s will against the aura of another. We know it can work up to grandmasters, but we’re not sure if it goes beyond that.”

“That alone is amazing,” Gregory said.

“The cost is variable, but for those without aether, it affects their health. That’s why Father became sickly. This time was worse than it was before I was born, according to my mother. It’s also why I was able to appear so strong against the masters when we spoke to them. I felt my aether diminish during those moments, so I knew it was taxing that instead of my