Chapter 3

The eleventh cycle.

I didn't return home. At 2 PM, I went straight to the secluded greenhouse where my mentor lived.

The air was filled with the smoke of burning sage and the fresh scent of herbs—normally soothing, but right now, it felt like venomous snakes crawling into my pores. My mentor had his back to me, carefully pruning a pot of withered winter roses with a pair of scissors.

Snip.

The crisp snip cut through the quiet courtyard, sounding especially abrupt.

"Since you've figured it out, why did you come back?" My mentor didn't turn around, his voice as…