Page 88 of A Tower of Half-Truths

Fifty-Three

As Alain sat in Kazamin’s library—not at the University, but in his home—he considered how this space was unlike any wizard’s library he’d ever come across.

The room was roughly the size of Alain’s sitting room, and it contained just as many books.

But this library had always been clean, orderly.

Never had Alain found a single tome stacked on the floor or strewn about the furniture haphazardly.

Alain wondered if Kazamin had actually read every book in his collection.

Judging by the plethora of uncracked spines, he doubted it.

But Alain had no room to judge. After all, his own library was also filled with unread books whose only purpose seemed to be collecting dust.

Kazamin groaned as he lowered himself into the leather armchair directly across from Alain.

He and Kazamin had last met only a month ago, yet the dean seemed to have aged several years during that time.

He appeared smaller, thinner than Alain remembered.

But he couldn’t let the old man’s frailty deter him from his plan.

“Well, Aventus, I believe congratulations are in order. Finding a way into the Innominate Temple was no easy feat.”

“Thank you, sir, though it was far from a solitary effort.”

“Humble as ever,” he said, smiling warmly. “So, what brings you here today? Safiya said you wanted to talk about something important, unrelated to your recent accomplishments.”

“Er, right…”

Alain averted his gaze as he picked at a loose stitch in the leather.

It was strange how he was more nervous for this than he’d been for his follow-up presentation.

But yesterday’s meeting with the High Council had been perfunctory, little more than an extension of the informal meeting they’d held outside Aganast’s tower.

Mavery had opted to stay home. Firstly, because she hadn’t mastered Dauphinian overnight.

Secondly, to avoid stoking Lythandus’s ire again, amusing as that would have been.

But Alain had managed without her. He’d glided through the presentation with ease and, fifteen minutes later, the Sensing spell was approved for peer review and his rank was secure once more.

Compared to what he was about to do, he’d rather repeat the presentation ten times over.

He took a deep breath before looking Kazamin in the eye.

“I wish to resign from the University, effective immediately.”

Kazamin’s eyes widened. “Resign? Whatever for?”

“You’ve read my teaching evaluations over these past eight years. Teaching has never been my passion, and it couldn’t be more obvious to my students—and my fellow professors. Recent events have made me realize that I ought to forge my own path, outside the University’s towers.”

Alain should have felt relief for finally telling Kazamin what he ought to have said years ago. Instead, he felt only dread as his supervisor—his mentor, his friend—gave him a look of utter shock.

But then that look turned into a wide, almost patronizing smile.

“I understand your hesitancy, Aventus. I, too, went through a similar phase early in my career, when I believed myself the worst professor to ever walk the face of Perrun. But you are talented, passionate, dedicated. Above all else, you are still young. I have faith that you will—”

“There’s more to it, sir.” He braced himself, hating that it had come to this, but he needed to get everything out in the open. “I’ve violated the Covenants by having romantic relations with my assistant. Therefore, I’m no longer fit to be a professor.”

Kazamin sighed. “Well, yes. Obviously.”

“Obviously, I should no longer be a professor?”

“Obviously, you have been having an affair with your assistant.” He chuckled at what Alain could only assume was a look of bafflement mixed with horror. “My boy, though my mind may not be as sharp as it once was, my eyes remain as keen as ever.

“I’ve known since you first brought that woman into my office. You looked at her the same way I looked at Safiya during the early days of our courtship.” He shook his head. “I had only hoped you wouldn’t be foolish enough to confess to it.”

Alain could do nothing but stare at Kazamin, mouth agape. His head reeled, though this really should have come as no surprise. Ever since Mavery entered his life, he could scarcely remember feeling more content. His mother had known it, as had Declan.

“If anyone asks, I’ll forget this conversation ever happened,” Kazamin said. “Having a faulty memory does have its upsides.”

“But…” Alain shook his head. “Perhaps I misunderstood, but are you saying you won’t report me to the High Council for this?”

“What you and your assistant do in private is of no consequence to me. So long as it remains private, I see no reason to report you. Far be it from me to let a minor slip-up get in the way of your career.”

Alain continued to gawk. He’d just confessed to something that ought to serve as grounds for being fired—if not stripped of his rank—and Kazamin had called it “a minor slip-up.” Even Declan, the student body’s most beloved professor, had received a more severe punishment.

Alain glanced at the portrait hanging above the hearth.

Seated next to Kazamin was a graceful Nilandoren woman, Safiya Fel’Shara, his wife and long-time assistant.

Of course, Alain should have known Kazamin would be understanding.

But Kazamin had been Dean for nearly fifty years, and he’d been married to Safiya decades before the covenant banning such a union went into effect.

Never would Alain have equated their circumstances.

“As for your resignation, I cannot accept it.”

Alain looked to Kazamin again. “But I followed the Covenants. I gave you plenty of notice—”

“And the Covenants state that a dean reserves the right to deny any resignation that would place undue hardship upon his department. Thanks to the latest budget cuts, the Gardemancy Department is in the midst of a hiring freeze. Had you not been on sabbatical for the past year, you would have known that.” Kazamin’s words carried with them an abnormal bitterness.

“Speaking of which,” he continued, “I will not be allowing any sabbaticals for the upcoming term. Should you decide to take another unauthorized leave of absence, I will report you to the High Council. But we both know you would not do anything so unwise. Marya knows the Gardemancy Department cannot afford any more upheavals…”

“ ‘Upheavals,’ sir?”

Kazamin muttered something in Maroban as he shook his head. “Nothing to concern yourself with. Put it from your mind for now.”

He struggled to hoist himself from his armchair. Alain rose to his feet, offered Kazamin a hand that was shooed away. Kazamin managed to get out of the chair on his own. He grabbed his cane, hobbled across the library, and opened the door for Alain.

“Take my advice and enjoy your summer holiday. Read for pleasure, travel, do something that isn’t related to scholarship.

Given what you’ve just achieved with the Innominate Temple, no one will begrudge you for taking a few months off.

Do that, and I fully believe you’ll have a change of heart come autumn. ”

Alain opened his mouth, yet he was unable to find the words to argue with Kazamin further. He simply nodded.

All the way home, he dreaded how he would break this news to Mavery.

Since returning to Leyport two days ago, she’d dived head-first into the role of his assistant and had spent most of her time formulating ideas for what to do with Aganast’s tower.

In fact, Alain suspected her bargaining for the tower had been for her own benefit as much as it had been for his.

When he entered the apartment, he found her amid a pile of biographies.

She turned to the door with The Definitive Biography of Seringoth I in hand—a tome that could double as a blunt weapon.

Seeing her spring green eyes meet his, being on the receiving end of that slightly crooked yet stunning smile…

Both were enough to make him fall in love with her all over again.

“As you can probably tell, I’ve been thinking of the library,” she said.

He blinked, pulling himself from his musings. “Er, what library?”

“Yours. More specifically, my idea of moving your books to Aganast’s tower. Gods know you’ve long outgrown this space.”

He laughed. “I won’t argue with that.”

“And then I got to thinking…” She put the book aside and pulled herself to her feet. “Why not do more than simply house your books there? Why not allow anyone to come visit and read your books as they please?”

Alain scratched his chin. “I’ve never heard of a wizard opening up their private library to just anyone.”

“Then why not be the first?” She stepped forward, took his hands in hers.

“If there’s one thing I remember from my six weeks of Introduction to Arcanist Studies, it’s that a wizard’s private library isn’t like the universities’ libraries.

Your own book collection isn’t beholden to any arcanists.

We can ensure Aganast’s books, along with anything else we discover, will never again become lost to time—or people like Arcanist Tristan, for that matter. ”

“Not to mention, we’d be giving back something to the people of Archstone, now that we’ve deprived them of their main tourist attraction,” Alain said. “But I doubt the High Council will be pleased once they catch wind of what we’re planning.”

Mavery shrugged. “Probably not, but we should still try.”

“I’m not disagreeing with you. In fact, I quite like this idea.” As he began to raise their joined hands, he remembered his conversation with Kazamin. He winced. “There’s but one problem: I’ll still be at the University for the foreseeable future. Kazamin wouldn’t accept my resignation.”

“Did you tell him about us?”

“Not only was he understanding, we have his blessing to carry on in private.”

She gaped at him. “You’re joking.”

He shook his head. “I should have suspected he’d say that, considering he’s married to his own assistant—”

“He’s married to his what!? Why didn’t you mention that before?”

Alain shrugged. “He’s a dean, I’m only a professor. There are different standards for—”

“Godsdamned hypocrites,” Mavery muttered, “the lot of them…”

He led her to the sofa, where he relayed everything else Kazamin had told him. As always, Mavery clung to every word, adding an incredulous scoff or interjection—sometimes with a sprinkling of expletives—in just the right places. He concluded with a frustrated groan as he rubbed his temples.

“What are we going to do?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Even if the High Council doesn’t give us Aganast’s tower, I can’t see how I’ll manage teaching and research and—”

“Not that. I mean, what are we going to do about us? I know Kazamin said we can court in secret, but I can’t say that’s what I want.”

“That’s not what I want, either.”

She frowned. “Then maybe I should—”

“You’re not resigning,” Alain said at once, though he silently chided himself for not doing the most sensible thing. On top of everything else, how could he possibly handle a secret courtship with his assistant?

Unless…she wasn’t his assistant.

“Going back to the library idea,” he said, “you were wrong about one thing.”

“And what’s what?”

“Should we open a library, I will be beholden to one arcanist.”

Mavery raised a brow; he answered it with a coy smile.

“I’ll need an arcanist to manage all these books and ensure they don’t get pilfered. Ideally, I’ll need someone who can think like a thief. Someone who is intimately familiar with my collection.” He leaned in closer, his gaze lowered to her lips. “Someone whose company I find most desirable.”

She smiled back. “Those are some very specific qualifications. Do you have anyone in mind?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.” He raised her hand to his mouth, brushed his lips across her knuckles. “Mavery Culwich, would you do me the honor of being my arcanist?”

She leaned forward and kissed him forcefully, as though it had been weeks, not mere hours, since their last. This had become a common occurrence over these past days.

I don’t need your magic… I only need you.

A small part of him still believed he didn’t deserve this woman.

Perhaps someday that small part of him would realize its beliefs were false.

He pulled back slightly. “Just to be clear, was that a ‘yes’?”

Mavery rolled her eyes. “Oh, come here.”

The next moments were a blur. He distinctly remembered her straddling his lap, removing her blouse, placing her mouth to his neck.

And then they were back to falling into bed, and into each other.

As he buried himself in her, he reveled in her blissful sighs and flushed cheeks.

Her fingers gripped his shoulders while her legs wrapped around his lower back.

Her gasps urged him to take her faster, deeper.

They alternated between pushing and pulling, exploring each other’s bodies as they’d done many times over these past days.

Yet, each time had always led to new discoveries.

Each time had been just as thrilling, just as perfect, as the one before it.

As she quavered beneath him, around him, all he could think of was how he wanted nothing more than to have a lifetime’s worth of perfect moments like this.

But as they lay face to face, basking in the afterglow, the thoughts that had lain dormant began to reawaken. His mind soon became a swarm of ideas, questions, anxieties. They created such a din of noise, he could hear everything and nothing all at once.

Mavery’s fingers brushed his cheek, then his temple, as she pushed a lock of hair from his face.

He closed his eyes with a sigh, thankful for her touch.

This, he could focus on without any effort at all.

Her touch grounded him enough to remember that, while there would be no shortage of work in the months ahead, there would be time to worry about that later.

For once in his life, he had all the time in the world.