Rune Mage [Fantasy/Adventure | Book 1 +2 | Complete]

Chapter 8: Mage Rummage

What a stubborn girl.

Rowan propped his chin on his hand, flicking through the archived file he'd requested a week ago. He knew there was something odd about Seiren Nithercott, and his instincts were right, as usual. Even without the dean gushing about her academic excellence, her being the daughter of Kristen Harred was bound to hold promise.

Mage Kristen Harred. Rowan had met her on a few occasions, but never worked with her, as she'd been dead for two years by the time he qualified. Her renown at a rune specialist was far and wide, as was her keen mind and kindness. King Pollin had declared it a national mourning day when the news of her murder was announced. Hundreds of state mages attended her burial – although her only surviving daughter was not present.

The murder was investigated by the military, aided by a few of the king's mages. Rowan and most of the state mages were not privy to any information, but he found out enough to guess why the daughter was such an oddity. The rune she'd drawn was taken from the research documents belonging to Kristen, a modified rune blending red and orange, which magnified the damage and firepower potential – research documents which had now become classified information. And he had no doubt the subtle rune on the crimson crystal around her neck was also taken from those documents, that bound Madeleine Harred's soul to a physical object. It was astounding a twelve-year-old girl, not yet even enrolled into mage school, could activate two such advanced runes.

And leave such a devastating result: her mother, burned to a crisp, identifiable only by dental records.

What was strange, however, was how Kristen, one of the most powerful mages of her generation, could be caught out by a rogue Hannan. Strange that he sought out Finberry of all the cities, so far from the Karman-Hannan border in the north. Strange that he breached the house without setting off any security runes. And strange there was no documentation as to his intentions. Was there such an agenda against Mage Harred that a solo man would sneak into her own home and massacre her family?

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Rowan jumped, grunting as his knee hit the bottom of the desk. His head snapped up.

A slender woman with thick blonde hair and a heart-shaped face leaned forward, grey eyes gleaming with intrigue and lips curling in amusement. Behind her, Dent and Tylene watched the scene unfold, but quickly returned to work after Rowan glared at them.

"Hello, Mage Rummage."

She snorted. "Oh please, I thought you'd dropped all those. It's been two years, Ro. And it's not like we just met."

"It's the way I've been brought up: to respect mages. Mages must be addressed by their titles at all times."

She rolled her eyes, batting her long lashes and swishing her hair dramatically. Rowan eyed the blonde curls that fell to the belt at her waist.

"I thought Mage Haigh gave you trouble last time for all that hair."

"Oh, Kommora? Yes, she did." Loren Rummage giggled. "She said if I don't do something about it, she'll chop it all off. I can just imagine, little grey old Kommora sneaking about with scissors behind my back."

"Mage Haigh isn't that old. She's just experienced."

"She's forty-five! I counted."

Loren sat on his table, squarely over some paperwork covered in Rowan's barely-legible scribbles, and turned his files around so that she could see. Rowan made no attempt to protest; once Loren wanted something, she would get it.

"Ah, so the rumours are true! You got the prodigy! Lucky-y-y." She whistled.

"No, not lucky. She's a handful."