Reincarnated As The Villainess's Best Friend
Chapter 19: The Ring of Borain

Chapter 19: The Ring of Borain

Sneaking out of the academy grounds was the easy part.

The Academy had a small team of guards who patrolled the school at night to ensure the security of the nobles who lived in the dorms.

But I quickly learned that the male guard who patrolled the male’s dorm usually snuck off at night to the commoners dorm, where a third year girl was waiting for him.

As soon as he left, I made my way out of the dorm and leapt across the stone fence which surrounded the academy.

And now for the hard part.

Making my way back to Martha’s Inn.

It was a few miles away, and I had no carriage to take me there.

So, I began to walk.

I pulled my cloak over my head and wrapped it tightly around me. Though it was spring in Viridale, the night was eerily cold.

The moon was hidden behind the clouds, and the little light which seeped through gave me no visible aid.

Regardless, I made my way through the trees, until I finally came up to the road leading from the academy to the main town of Viridale.

Occasionally, I glanced left and right, to see if anyone was following me. Viridale was the largest and most populous city on the continent. But it was also filled with bandits, and not all of them were as reasonable as Dar, Brenn and Theo.

So, as a powerless noble walking alone at night, I had to be on alert.

Lucky for me, a carriage came passing by the road, with two men riding in the front.

I hid in the shadows of the trees, until they drove by. Then I quickly ran behind it and latched myself onto the back of the carriage.

"What was that?" I heard one of them ask.

"Stop trying to scare me, Rob," the other replied.

"No, I heard something bump the carriage."

"It’s just a stone. Finish up your tale, will ya?"

I sighed. If they had decided to check, it could have been a pretty bad situation.

*****

In no time, the carriage passed by Martha’s Inn. I jumped off stealthily and walked towards the dimly lit building.

With a slight nudge, I thrust the door open and found myself staring at Anna.

"Master Rin" she greeted with a smile, making an awkward curtsy. "You’re back."

It was nice to see her again, but I had other matters to attend to.

"I’m looking for one of my men. Same height, broody... long scar on his face?"

Anna quickly pointed to a corner of the room, and sure enough, Theo was there, nursing a hot brew of tea.

I walked over to his table and took a seat.

"Master Rin," he said, his face slightly stunned. "How...?"

"Don’t look so surprised," I cut him off. "I expected you to be back by now."

"You have more confidence in my skills than I do."

I smiled, briefly.

"Did you get it?"

Theo reached into his cloak and pulled out a small black box carved with intricate ornaments. "It wasn’t as easy as you said it’d be. I had to evade a thousand guards."

"Well, the King of Brannersport wasn’t really known to be generous."

"You told me it was a simple in-and-out. You could have given me a heads-up about the king’s guards."

"Pardon me for believing in your ability to improvise."

I took the box from Theo, casually admiring its design.

"What is it?" Theo asked.

"You didn’t open it?"

"You told me not to."

I did tell him that.

"In this box, lies the ring of Marcus Borain, the first Grand Mage of Westumberland. Moments before he died, he infused it with all his magic. At least that’s what the rumors say."

Theo remained silent, eyes locked on the box.

"Wearing it should give me back my magic. Perhaps make me even stronger."

In that moment, I marveled at the thought of gaining my powers back. With it, all my problems would finally be solved.

"I would have brought it to you at the dorm tomorrow," Theo said. "There was no need to come out here this late."

"I know. But circumstances have changed."

He leaned forward, his tone growing more serious.

"What happened?"

Casually, I pulled out the folded white note and placed it on the table.

"I received that threatening note two days ago. Just a few hours ago, I was attacked by someone who repeated the exact same words."

Theo picked up the note and stared at it in silence.

"What do you know about a female assassin with orange hair?" I asked.

"There are no female assassins in Frey’s Coven."

"What about other covens?"

"Frey’s Coven is the only assassin coven in Viridale. "

"What if there’s another one? More secretive?"

"Not possible. We would know."

"Well, whoever attacked me was fast, stealthy, and she knew exactly who I was."

"She knew you were a noble?"

"Not that," I sighed, then lowered my voice. "She knew I was reincarnated."

The alehouse grew quiet as we both fell into silence. Surprisingly, we were the only men around..

"I could track her down," Theo finally said. "But I’m going to need more information."

I placed a finger at my chin, trying to recall the fight. "Well, she was a bit shorter than me, but I couldn’t see her face. She wore a doll mask."

His head jerked up. "Doll mask?"

"Yes. What do you know?"

Theo paused for a while before he answered. "I’ve encountered bandits from the east, and they hide their faces with white doll masks."

"So you think she could be from the east?"

"Probably."

The information was a bit unhelpful. There were three major cities and many smaller shires in the east. But it was a good start to finding her.

I held up the small black box. At this point, it didn’t really matter. With my powers, I could easily find her and end her.

Carefully, I opened the box, revealing a small golden ring embedded with blood red rubies which glittered in the dim candlelight.

"Is it safe to wear that here?" Theo asked, his face growing distraught.

"Don’t worry."

"But it could be dangerous. To you."

I smiled. "I’ll be fine, Theo."

I placed the box on the table and gently lifted the ring with my left thumb and middle finger.

Suddenly, I was filled with a rush of excitement.

This was it. This was finally it.

After two weeks of being reincarnated, two weeks of being powerless, I was going to get my magic back.

With this, I could find the assassin after me and participate in the magic tournament.

I could finally protect Lucy.

I remembered the moment I died - how the entire world crumbled beneath me.

With this ring, I could finally save the world.

I slowly exhaled. Then in one deft move, I slipped the ring into my middle finger.