There were very few things that Erica disliked more than paperwork. Really, the only thing more boring than sitting behind her desk, reading and signing papers, was listening to the hags on the Sorceress Council reprimand her for mistreating her Knights.

I shouldn't have to do all this. I should have several dozen servants to delegate such mundane and unimportant tasks to. Why do I have to do this by myself?

A sigh pa.s.sed through her luscious red lips. Even with several n.o.bles overseeing a good portion of the day to day affairs, she still had her fair share of work to do. It wasn't just a matter of logistics. There were all manner of reports that needed to be carefully read over and signed; complaints that had been filed, service reports, maintenance reports, lists of various imports and exports, taxations and numerous legislative procedures... so much work to read over, and she had to personally doc.u.ment and sign each one.

Sometimes, I hate being a Sorceress.

While reading a report about the rise in orichalc.u.m prices, the door to her office burst open.

Feeling a touch irritated, she looked up, her eye twitching sporadically. The twitching grew more fierce when she saw how her door had been nearly blown off its hinges. It seemed that some people had never heard of common courtesy before. Honestly, people should know better than to just barge in before knocking. How rude.

"Erica!" Caspian stomped into the room, his feet pounding on the floor as he marched over to her desk and slammed his hands on the wooden surface. "What's the meaning of this?!"

Despite her annoyance, Erica found herself amused. "What's the meaning of what?"

"Don't screw with me! You know d.a.m.n well what!"

"No, I do not, so why don't you enlighten me?"

"Why am I one-hundred floors below your room?!"

"Oh, my." Erica placed two fingers against her lips, smiling. "You wish to know why you and I are so separated? Could it be that you're so taken in with me that you feel this inexplicable need to be closer to me?"

"What?" Caspian blinked, right before his face lit up in flames. "No! That's not it at all! How am I supposed to do my job and protect you if I'm one-hundred floors below you?"

"Fu fu fu, look at you, taking your job so seriously. That is just too cute." Caspian gritted his teeth as Erica presented him with her most wicked smile. She lifted her right hand to her face, grabbing a single lock of raven hair and artfully twirling between her delicate fingers. "Just because this tower is large, does not mean it has many rooms, Caspie."

"Stop calling me that," Caspian wailed in anger and frustration.

"Despite Dorehan Tower having five-hundred floors, a good deal of those floors are empty, consisting only of a series of lobbies and stairways that ascend to higher levels. The bottom one-hundred floors are where the staff lives, and that is also where the kitchens are located. The next fifty floors is the library. After that you have mostly empty s.p.a.ce until you reach the top fifty floors, which contains a training hall for Derek, along with my study, my bedroom, and a meeting room where the Sorceress Council used to convene, back when this place had been their seat of power over two-hundred years ago."

She stared at the young man, whose face remained a rictus of anger. His glare didn't lessen, if anything, it looked even more potent than ever.

"I'm sure you've noticed, but of the top one-hundred levels, there are only three bedrooms. Yours, which is at the bottom; mine, which is near the top and connected to this study, and Derek's, which is less of a bedroom and more of a small s.p.a.ce with a cot connected to the training hall. Even then, your bedroom was an extension that I added several decades ago and not an actual part of the tower itself."

Leaning back in her chair, Erica crossed her arms under her bust, watching in amus.e.m.e.nt as Caspian struggled to keep his eyes on her face.

Men are far too easy.

"So you see, Caspie, there simply isn't any other place for me to put you."

The young man twitched at hearing the nickname she knew he despised. His lips were drawn into a thin line, hands clenching and unclenching. He shuddered once, the vibrations traveling from the crown of his head down to his boots. It was, in all honesty, one of the most entertaining sights she'd seen in a long time.

This boy is simply adorable. I've never met a young man who gets so easily riled and embarra.s.sed since... for awhile.

She really did have too much fun teasing the boy, but in her defense, Caspian greatly reminded her of another man she had known so very long ago.

"Look, would you just let me do my job?"

"How can I protect you if you won't even let me get close to you?"

"I think I liked you better when you weren't so narcissistic."

"I promise, no matter what happens, I will always be here for you, now and forever."

Liar, Erica thought to herself, the bitterness buried deep within touching her heart for just the barest of moments, before it was ruthlessly shoved back into the deepest recesses of her soul. She didn't want to think about the past. He was gone, had been gone for over five-hundred years, and none of the Spirits she used had the ability to bring him back.

"Fine," the word was ground out in a growl. Caspian's lips peeled back into a feral snarl. "It's not like I actually care about what happens to you. But I don't want you to come crying to me when an elven a.s.sa.s.sin sneaks in and stabs you in your sleep."

When the door slammed behind the young man after he stormed out, Erica leaned back in her chair and sighed.

"Well, that could have gone better."