A Scent of Chaos | ONC 2024

Chapter Six

The Velux Emporium infirmary never saw many visitors. The worst injuries a perfumer managed were small cuts or bruises when gathering ingredients that didn't need a healer. However, it was vital when someone pushed themselves too far and their magic began to drain more than it was allowed.

The room wobbled as I adjusted to my surroundings, the fatigue greater than anything I had ever felt before, but it eventually settled.

The area was only small with a few beds lining one side and chairs in a neat row on the other. Curtains divided the spaces between the beds, but they were pushed back since I was the only person in the room. Cabinets and shelves lined the walls and were filled with medicines. Even perfumes with assisting healing properties could be found alongside them.

Sitting in a chair at my side, his head resting on the cot and his fingers fiddling with my own, was Corvin. His dark hair was dishevelled — knots forming in the silky strands — and dark circles were etched into the skin under his eyes. The Head Perfumer's sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the scar I thought I had seen the other day.

Instead of the jagged line or the frayed patch of skin that scars would usually be, this one was in the shape of a crown. The royal crest. Each edge of the insignia was neat without a mark out of place as if it had been branded and forcefully healed.

"What did they do to you?" I asked, my voice rough from the dryness that invaded my mouth. I had to resist the temptation to reach out and touch the scar. To make sure it was real and I hadn't imagined it.

"You're awake!" Corvin sat up suddenly, hitting his head against the cabinet above him with a force that I knew would leave a bruise and a headache. He hissed in pain, rubbing the spot furiously, but quickly turned his attention back to me. "How are you? Do you feel okay?"

"I'm drained but I'll manage. I'm just glad I'm not blue." Thankfully, my skin had returned to its normal brown shade and not a single firefly-shaped spot was in sight.

I wasn't sure of every detail that went into the healing process after someone had been drained of their energy through magic, but I knew only the skilled were capable of snapping someone's power back into order. Healers pushed their own energy into the patient, stabilising the magic until they were certain they wouldn't be drained anymore. Then, they would go through any injuries or side effects the person may have received and healed them accordingly.

Corvin breathed a sigh of relief, the tension that had been keeping his muscles hostage finally letting him relax. "That was... scary."

"I'm just making sure to keep you on your toes. I can't have the experience of working with me be too boring." I gave a small chuckle, adjusting my position to sit up in the infirmary bed I had been put in.

The joy that twisted his lips up into a slight smile faded as the cogs of his mind whirred. "That was stupidly dangerous, Elvira. And that says something coming from me of all people. You should have told me you were exhausted. We could have stopped for the day and focused on notes and planning instead."

"I know. I know." But did I really? That hadn't stopped me from making the mistake of pushing myself. It was all because I wanted the workshop and my title back. I wasn't going to make any progress toward it if I didn't take care of myself.

I was lucky that Corvin had been there. If I was alone, my skin would likely be a lot less brown and the drain might have done much more damage to my body. "Thank you for helping me."

"There's no need to thank me. It's the least anyone should do. It probably wouldn't have happened if I didn't ask you to help me anyway." His hands found a stray piece of thread from the seams of the bed sheets to focus on.