Free The Sartious Mage (The Rhythm of Rivalry) by B.T. Narro Page B

conspicuous.
    “Certainly…two baths?” the innkeeper asked hesitantly, giving Lisanda a curious tilt of his head. He clearly wanted her to bathe before she touched a bed or really anything in his inn.
    “Yes, in the same room, please,” I said, revealing my plan to keep Lisanda from escaping.
    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her jaw drop.
    “So I suppose you’ll be sharing a bed as well?” he asked.
    “If we could share a room with two beds, that would be ideal,” I told him.
    Earlier, I’d made the promise of her own bed, mostly because there was no reason to subject her to sharing one with me. With my darkness, I wasn’t the best person to sleep beside.
    But I couldn’t give her what she wanted in terms of a bath. Privacy was too risky. She could slip out a window or turn some object into a weapon and conceal it. Separate baths in the same room was the only option.
    The innkeeper nodded. “It’ll just be a moment.” He left us.
    “You’re a vile reprobate after all,” Lisanda said. “If you think I’ll undress in front of you, you’re wrong.”
    “There’s usually a clothing line strewn across the bathing room for drying clothes,” I explained. “We’ll hang the tarp on it with our baths on either side for some privacy.”
    “And what’s to stop you from simply walking over to my side?” She glared at me presumptuously.
    “Do you want another promise?” I shrugged. “What choice do you have, anyway?”
    “I could scream.”
    “You could.” I folded my arms. “And then we’ll be sleeping outside with no bath, no food, and no water, and oh yes! You’ll be gagged the whole night.”
    She growled and turned away from me. “I’ll take the promise, then.”
    With some relief, I said, “I promise to give you as much privacy as I can. I won’t make any attempt to see anything that…to look at you when…” I couldn’t figure out how to word it without sounding like a reprobate . “To see you naked,” I concluded.
    “Nor will you do anything disreputable in the bedroom.” She scrunched her nose.
    Disreputable. Surprised by the way she worded it, I smiled on accident. “I promise.”
    Her stare was so cold, my smile immediately soured. We remained silent until the innkeeper returned.
    “All set. Towels, soap, warm water, everything you need.”
    I paid him what he requested for the baths, meal, and bedroom. It was about half of what we had left.
    As tired and dirty as I was, we didn’t have the time for a long bath or a full night’s rest. I needed to be out of the city as soon as possible. For all I knew, guards had begun searching every building in The Nest. We had to hurry.

 
    Chapter 9: Bath
     
    With no arms, Lisanda needed my help taking off the tarp. It wasn’t easy undoing all the knots. I realized it would be faster to manipulate the Sartious Energy in my wand and around us to make a small razor. That way I could just cut the strips of rough cloth. But I didn’t have the fortitude required for the advanced spell, not without food or rest.
    Manipulating SE was similar to sprinting while trying to lift a mountain with your mind, both physically and mentally tiring at the same time, and that was just the start of the process. After grabbing hold of the energy, moving it was even more difficult.
    But worst of all was shaping it into something. Heavy concentration was needed to pack the SE against itself in order to create sturdy objects. And the more time it took to handle the SE, the longer it felt like sprinting.
    Many people didn’t have enough mental focus to control SE because they were too distracted by the physical toll of manipulating it. This was why mages skilled with the green energy were so rare.
    But I always had a knack of concentrating better when my body was in use. In fact, it was often hard for me to develop complex ideas otherwise. That’s why my best plans were created in the moment.
    Though in the case of Lisanda, I still had no clue how I was