Varsili shook his head weakly. Apparently, he was reluctant to answer the question. "Nothing can reverse the effects. This potion lasts forever."
"Are you sure about that? We won't tell anyone about your secret if you tell us." Roy cracked his knuckles and smiled. "But if you don't…"
"One last chance, Varsili." Coral grinned. "I'm a mage. I know my way around the art of interrogation. You're tired of being a stone, so why don't I turn you into a frog next?"
"Please, no! I'll tell you everything!" Varsili shivered and relented. He licked his lips and, with a trembling voice, answered. "Wolfsbane, white myrtle, mandrake root… Ratio is five to one… Make a dose of that concoction and add in lover's tears. That's it. If one of them ingests this potion, they will fall asleep, and the love potion's effects will be lifted in a day."
Varsili shook his head and sighed. "According to my family records, once the love potion's effects are gone, the couple's eternal love will be tainted. The hatred and disgust that were suppressed will once again surface, but this time, they'll come back with a vengeance. The emotions will be strong enough to destroy their relationship. They'll turn from lovers to enemies to sworn nemeses. And there will be no way to rekindle their love, not even with the potion."
He looked at Roy and Coral again. Weakly, he said, "Breaking a couple up is a sin. Ponder the gravity of your actions long and hard before you go through with it."
"She put you in a living hell, and you're worried about her? Man, you're a saint." Roy was confused.
"You can take her life and I won't even blink an eye. I just don't want to see the potion fail." He muttered, "There's barely anyone who can make use of my family's potion. Most of the buyers' love is unrequited."
***
"Lover's tears. Ironic," Coral commented.
The potion kept the love between a couple alive, but once the effects were lifted, their love would be destroyed. A seemingly perfect relationship, gone the moment the potion was gone. That kind of relationship was worth nothing. At most, it was delaying the inevitable.
"Did you tell Ildiko how to lift the potion's effects?"
"She turned me into stone before I could even do it."
"Thank you for your help." Alright, I got what I wanted. She nodded and exchanged a look with the witcher. "Stay here. Food will come soon."
"I've told you everything I know, lady. I swear." Varsili and Sonia started getting worried. "Can't you let us go?"
"I would, but Kerack's castle is just nearby. The queen has eyes and ears everywhere. Where can you even go?" Coral smiled, but it was a threatening smile. "You know her most well-guarded secret. As long as you stay in Kerack, you're in mortal danger. And if you're caught this time, she won't show any mercy. She will kill you."
Sonia and Varsili huddled together. They knew they had no way to escape the queen all by themselves.
"Once I settle my score with the queen, I promise you may leave."
Varsili and Sonia nodded in resignation.
Before she closed the door, Coral looked back and looked through the crack. "You're a fugitive in Kerack now, Varsili. Why don't you sell me the formula for your potion? I'll pay you handsomely."
***
Coral led Roy to the laboratory and moved her hand deftly in the air. The elements shone, and an invisible hand whipped up a bag of dried herbs from the rack. Then it poured some of the contents into the mortar. The pestle, oven, and measuring cup danced in the air and seemed to work all by themselves.
"So how are you going to deal with her? Lift the love potion's effects?" Roy was watching the sorceress work on the potion. She was taking all the exact components Varsili spoke of for the love potion's antidote.
"You have no idea what she did to me, Roy. She cost me my job." She harrumphed and raised her chin, her eyes shining smugly. For a moment, she looked almost naive. "She must pay dearly for that." And then the smugness in her eyes was replaced by cold fury. "Or I will inflict unimaginable pain on her."
Roy shrugged. Never cross a woman. Especially not when that woman is a sorceress. "You want me to come with you?"
"No." She patted his cheek. "Just stay here and wait for my news."
"Okay, I guess."
***
On the castle's yard the warm sun shone. Ildiko was lying in a chair, basking in the sun. She was wearing a light gold dress that day. The dress had holes on the shoulder and arm sections, revealing Ildiko's perfect skin under the sunlight.
Her face was perfect, her skin white as snow, her lustrous golden hair tied in a braid. She looked just like a doll, and that doll loved the life she was having. She was a queen who wanted for nothing, and the man she loved was staying right beside her.
Sometimes, she could even use her privilege to punish the sanctimonious, arrogant Aretuza graduate. That bitch is old enough to be my grandmother's mother!
Ildiko gleaned great satisfaction from seeing her trip and fall, and that woman could do nothing about it. But once again, Lytta came to her again like an annoying fly that just wouldn’t die.
"My husband gave you a week to leave. You're early. I assume you've finished your business?" Her eyes were still closed. She didn't even deign to look at Lytta as if she were trying to insult her. "But he's still in his castle, talking to a guest from Kovir. It's a big business deal, you see. Maybe it'll take about two days. If you're done with your business, you may leave Kerack now."
"Thank you for your explanation, Your Highness." Coral hung her head low behind the queen like a faithful servant. "But I'm not here for the king. I'm here for you."
"I don't think we have anything to talk about, Lytta." Ildiko shook her head. "You're one of the older graduates of Aretuza and one of the most famous members of the brotherhood. You've been in the field of magic for more than eighty years. But I'm just a student who got expelled in my third year. I'm just a young lady in my twenties. I'm not as adept in magic as you are, and I don't think you're where to talk about magic."
She turned over and rested her chin on her hand, her eyes staring straight into Coral's equally blue eyes, and a smirk curled her lips. "Are you trying to apologize? Trying to gain my understanding? You want me to convince His Majesty to let you stay?" She let out a hearty laugh. "In your dreams, Lytta! As long as I am queen, you are not welcome in this kingdom!"
Lytta suddenly laughed as well, and her polite look earlier was replaced by an expression of confidence. "Very well, Ildiko. I'm not here to request an extension of stay. No longer will I be your punching bag. I'm here for compensation."
Ildiko froze, and she twirled her hair. "You are delusional. Did you get your mind addled?"
"On the contrary, I am very much sober." Coral winked at the queen. "You need to listen to my demands, because I know a little secret of yours. I know the king is under the spell of a witch's love potion."
Ildiko shot up from her chair like she was electrocuted, the smile on her face freezing. She was clutching her dress tightly, the joints on her fingers popping. But the shock only lasted for a moment, and she calmed down.
Coldly and calmly, she asked, "You dare slander a queen, Lytta? One word from me and I'll ruin your reputation. Nobody will take you in as their consultant. You will have no choice but to go into hiding and live your life in squalor. Forever!"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You see, I have two important guests who might want to see the king. What's their name… Ah yes, Sonia the servant and Varsili the herbalist." She stared straight at Varsili. "The poor souls you so mercifully turned into statues."
The queen narrowed her eyes, realization and regret striking her at the same time. I should have just killed them. Still, she fought back, "Do your worst. Who do you think the king will trust? The woman he loves, or a lying bitch and two equally deceitful peasants?"
Lytta grinned and went in for the kill. "Ah, but this love poison's antidote might clear his mind. Give him a chance to make a better judgment." She whipped out a gleaming test tube, and even the sun seemed to lose its luster compared to the liquid within.
***
"A likely story, but there's no antidote."
"But Varsili told me how to make this. Wanna know? Wolfsbane, white myrtle, mandrake root… Ratio is five to one… If that's still not convincing, you or the king can try this potion out and see if it works. You don't have to drink it, though. Skin contact is more than enough to lift the love potion's effects."
Ildiko was pale with fear, but Coral kept staring at her face. She mocked, "I have been in this field for eighty years. You know how easy it is to make an antidote. Wanna see how effective it is?" She kept instigating and pressing with an onslaught of words. "Varsili told me any couple that takes this antidote will become sworn enemies who will never fall in love with each other ever again."
Ildiko turned around, but her shoulders were shivering.
"Wanna try it out?" Lytta pretended to throw the antidote.
Ildiko remained silent and refused to dodge. But eventually, she snapped and roared, "Why do you always want to one up me? Just because you're a high and mighty sorceress? Just because you can gain status, power, and beauty whenever you want, you think that gives you the right to look down on 'failures' like me? You think you can play my relationship like it's a piece on your chess board? You think you can threaten me and get away with it?"
"Slow down, Your Highness. You came after me first," Coral raised her voice and slowly approached the queen until they were only inches apart. The queen's body was nothing compared to Coral's perfect curves. "I have the same question for you. Why do you keep humiliating me? Why do you try to exile me?"
***
Ildiko couldn't answer Coral's questions, and she eventually teared up. She turned around and snapped, "Because of him! He took me, ravaged me, and then he tried to abandon me! I gave him everything I had. I helped him ascend the throne. He promised me everything! Love, wealth, and status, but the moment he gained what he wanted, he cast me aside like a worn doll. And he set his sights on you! He desires your beauty! Beauty modified and maintained by magic! He wants to conquer you. Ask yourself, Lytta. If Viraxas wanted to marry you, would you refuse him?" She screeched, "Can you swear to the source of magic that you aren't the least bit interested in the position of queen?"
Coral fell silent. She was reminded of a certain handsome young witcher.
The queen shook her head and plopped back down onto her chair like a defeated lioness. She covered her face with both hands and whispered, "I had no choice. I'm just a poor, defenseless woman. The only way to keep him close to me is to exile all competition. It's double insurance. That's what I need to do to keep my hard-earned happiness. I won't reinstate you as consultant, Lytta. Not even if that's the last thing I do."
Coral shook her head. "You got one thing wrong, Your Highness. I told you I was leaving this place, but not before you compensate me for my losses. And don't you think love that's bound by nothing but a potion is finicky at best?"
Ildiko argued vehemently, "No, the potion is the best weapon against those cheating bastards! It's divine providence! All I need is for them to have even a sliver of regret, and that's it! They'll fall for the spell!"
Well, she's gone down the deep end. Just lost all interest in messing with her. No need to torment a sister, anyway. Besides, I'm nurturing a healthier relationship. It's a more perfect love than whatever she has. I'm happier than she is. Lytta didn't even bother to hide the pity in her eyes. "I wish you luck in your endeavor, Your Highness. Just give me enough to cover my losses, and I'll leave. I'll even deal with the potential danger to your relationship too. Ten years worth of remuneration is fine with me. Of course, I won't object if you'd like to give me more. I can swear by the source of magic's name if you don't trust me."
***
***
