Villain's Second Heart: Trapped in A Fantasy Novel (BL)-Chapter 113: January 2

"Then, tell me what you know. I’m not alone. I have strong allies, here to help," he explained. "If it’s someone you’re fighting against, we can fight with you."

Jan took a step away from him, moving into the small kitchen. She talked to him as she clanked around in there.

"There’s no need to be in such a hurry," she informed him as she started to take things out of the cabinet. "How about a nice drink? Do you still like hot chocolate?"

Hot chocolate sounded good right now, but Oberyn wasn’t exactly in a trusting mood. He didn’t think he could accept a drink from her.

"I can tell you’ve become a Magician, Oberyn. When did you arrive here? To the Earth, I mean!"

"A few months ago," he replied flatly.

"Take a seat, please. Get comfortable. There’s a blizzard moving in - we won’t be getting anywhere, not this late in the day."

He supposed there was no harm in at least sitting. He took a spot on the couch but kept his eyes pointed toward the kitchen. If she was planning a surprise attack, he’d be ready.

It was a tough situation for Oberyn. He wanted to trust her at her word - she’d given him little reason not to - but his fiery nature was burning at full force. He was worried, panicked - thinking only of Ezra.

He needed to confirm Ezra was safe, by any means necessary. There was nothing more important.

She peeked into the room, saw he was sitting, and smiled.

"I’ll be just a minute!" she chirped happily. "Oh, it’s so good to have you here, Oberyn. I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed having other Nephilim around..."

"I miss them too," Oberyn responded quietly. His mind drifted - friends, family...all the people he thought he’d never see again. But here was someone. A connection to his past. Why couldn’t he trust her?

Would he be this incredulous to Tiana, if he ever saw her again?

Jan returned to the room, handing him a steaming mug of hot chocolate. He didn’t want it, but he took it from her anyway. He may as well act like he trusted her.

And he questioned himself, too. Had she given him any reason not to trust her?

She returned to the room, a mug of her own in hand. She sat in the rocking chair across from him and took a hearty sip before looking at him and smiling.

"I never thought I’d see any of our family again, Oberyn. You have no idea," she chuckled. "How happy this makes me."

"I have a lot of questions," he said weakly. "A lot."

Jan nodded. "Oh, I’m sure you do. But now that we’ve found each other, we can take this one step at a time, hm?"

Her voice was so familiar, so friendly. It had been nearly ten years since he’d seen her, but it felt just like it always had. Like it was with Mom and Dad.

Ten years ago, he was told that Aunt Jan had to move away. He was only around nine years old then - didn’t understand the implication, and never asked for clarification. Now he knew.

"Sorry, I’m a little shaken up," he admitted, letting his guard down just a little. "When I ended up here, I figured I was being taken captive by whoever started this famine. And we were attacked..."

Jan’s eyes immediately narrowed into slits. "Attacked?" she repeated, her voice deepening. "By who? Where? At the farm?"

He nodded. "Three guys. They said they were supposed to attack anyone who ’found the doll.’"

Jan cursed under her breath. "Just as I thought. They’re hunting anyone who might be looking into the famine. Damned murderers. Haven’t they taken enough lives with this?"

"So they weren’t with you," he confirmed.

She looked at him in disbelief. "Oh, of course not! These men you speak of, they were meant to kill anyone before they could activate the doll. In other words, they were trying to stop you and I from meeting."

He nodded. That made sense - somewhat. It was hard to believe there were so many people of various groups connected to this famine. What was really going on here?

Without even realizing it, he took a sip of the hot chocolate. It was warm and deliciously rich. He felt it invigorate his body in a flash.

This better not be poisoned...

She smiled as he drank. "How is it?" she asked. He just nodded and laughed. It was good.

"A little extra chocolate in that one - just the way your mom used to make it."

He felt the knot in his stomach begin to unwind. She was right. It tasted familiar. Nostalgic. It connected to a part of him he thought he might never get to experience again - the joy of being with family. As he reminisced, he looked at Jan expectantly.

"This is a dangerous time to be in the northern country, Oberyn, but I’m glad you’re here. In truth, I’ve been at wits’ end as to how to solve this problem. This awful famine is caused by an Arcanic, not by a human. A magical device - ah, perhaps you’ve heard it referred to as an ’Apocalypse Engine."

She sighed, stirring her drink. "It’s one thing to stop the Harbinger, but undoing the damage? Another story entirely. We need a purification ritual for that."

She looked to him like she had something to say, but held back. He couldn’t read the timid expression in her eyes.

What did she want to say?

"You want to end this famine, don’t you?"

He nodded. "Of course. But I need to find my friends first. They’re out here, too. Without them, I don’t think there’s anything I can do. I need to make sure they’re safe."

His fingers trembled around the steaming mug.

’I need to know Ezra is safe,’ he thought. It consumed him.

"I’ll contact my friend, the Magician of Wood," Jan beamed. "She’s got surveillance all over the region while we try to snuff out the people responsible. Surely she’ll have seen something! I imagine your other allies were left behind at the farm."

Oberyn looked off to the side, at the fire. It was still burning voraciously, filling the cottage with warmth.

Jan cleared her throat.

"There might be a way to dispel the famine, but it isn’t without risk. Tell me, Oberyn. Are your wings still fully intact?"