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Alaric showed up at Adele’s residence at the staff lodge, and to say she was shocked at his appearance would be an understatement.

After the fire incident at his apartment, Alaric had managed to dress up—half-hoping, half-believing—that if he just left the house, maybe the disasters would stop. He thought he’d be safe outside.

Except the universe had other plans.

The moment he stepped outside, a flock of birds decided he was their personal toilet. And not just one or two, but an entire sky-squadron bombed him, and him alone. Of course, nearby students had caught the whole unbelievable scene, and it was probably trending on Moonfeed by now.

Unfortunately for Alaric, while he was trying to take cover from the aerial bombing, he disturbed a wasps’ nest. The little monsters chased him down with vengeance in their buzzing souls, and a few even managed to sting him. Successfully.

Ouch. It hurts.

Then, as if choreographed by the devil himself, Alaric slipped on a banana peel —because why the hell not? — and fell straight into a puddle of actual shit. Wolf shit, to be precise. Some idiot must have shifted and relieved themselves like a savage.

God, it stunk.

That was when Alaric knew he needed to see Adele.

On his way to the staff lodge, the sprinklers activated without warning and sprayed him clean. Well, at least it washed the shit off his face.

And now, here he was. Drenched like a church rat dragged from the depths of some subterranean pit, breathless and wild-eyed, after summarizing his entire cursed day to Adele in a single breath.

Adele blinked at him, her mouth slightly ajar. "Wow. That is quite a lot to process." She opened the door wider, trying to usher him in. "Come inside then. You need to wash up and—"

But Alaric shook his head violently, his expression alarmed and frantic.

"Haven’t you learned anything from the story I just told you?!" he burst out. "I’m cursed! And the longer I stay here, the higher the chances that your whole house might be destroyed very soon. I’m a walking disaster right now!"

As if to prove his point, the bulb above loosened from its holder and crashed down, missing his head by literal inches.

Adele jumped, startled, her eyes darting from the shattered glass to Alaric’s dead-serious expression. She looked back up at him, finally believing him.

"Okay. You’re not cursed, Alaric," she said carefully, walking him toward the living room. "You’ve been hexed."

"Hexed?" Alaric repeated, stunned.

"You and Roman going through some weird-ass experiences within less than a day apart? I think our neighborhood not-so-friendly witch might be at it again." She looked at him carefully. "Alaric Storm, can you remember the people you’ve been in contact with over the last twenty-four hours?"

Alaric shook his head, trying to think. He has been with so many people he could not exactly remember.... No way!

His eyes widened in realization.

"Oh fuck... I think I know who our witch is," he said with an ominous voice, his eyes already glinting with vengeance.

"You know?" Adele looked surprised.

"Lila Meadows!" he slapped his thigh. "I should’ve known. She fed me something and I don’t remember anything after that. Plus, she was all up in Roman’s business yesterday. Close enough to pull something on him too."

Adele raised a hand. "Okay, hold up, Lightning Prince. We’re gonna need more solid evidence before we accuse someone of witchcraft. We don’t want to go down the same road history took. But for now, let’s focus on breaking the hex."

"You can remove it?" Alaric asked hopefully.

"Yes and no. It depends on how long the hex is meant to last. Let’s hope our dear little witch was kind enough to make it temporary. But to be safe, we’re taking the rest of the day off."

"Rest of the day off?" Alaric asked in confusion.

Adele explained, "Hexes take effect in the waking world. That’s why no matter what you do, the misfortunes keep happening.

You can’t outrun it. So in one word, I need to put you to sleep, Alaric Storm.

While you’re asleep, you’re caught between the living and the dead.

The hex doesn’t have full access to you there.

" She added immediately, "Kind of. Let’s hope it wasn’t actually designed that way as well. "

But Alaric didn’t care, not when there was a chance to cure him of this misfortune. "What are you waiting for then? Please, help me. Put me to sleep."

Sure, he had things to do, but they could all go to hell for now. He’d been through enough already. Right now, his only priority was breaking this curse and reclaiming his sanity. Finn could handle things in his absence.

"Wait here then," Adele said, narrowing her eyes at him. "And do not move, no matter what happens. Hopefully, the hex isn’t strong enough to stop me from helping you."

And with that, she turned and disappeared into the next room.

Alaric Storm sat as still as a rock, half obeying Adele’s instructions and half bracing himself for whatever new disaster might come his way. His entire body was tense, like a wound-up string ready to snap.

He had never been a religious person, not even as a creature who technically existed beyond the bounds of normal myth. But sitting there—drenched, humiliated, and one disaster away from full breakdown—he found himself remembering the way Griffin used to pray.

So Alaric did it, not in a loud or dramatic way. Just a simple, sincere plea whispered in the back of his mind.

"Please. Just help me. Forgive me. Have mercy this once."

The sound of footsteps stirred him from his internal bargaining and he opened his eyes with relief as Adele reentered.

"Lucky you," she said, holding a filled syringe in hand. "The gods must be on your side."

Alaric didn’t even argue. He was just too tired for it. So Adele leaned forward and injected the medicine immediately.

"Don’t fight it," she said, standing to dispose of the syringe. "It won’t be long now. You’ll be asleep."

She left.

Alaric relaxed into the couch, letting his body sink deeper into the cushions. His vision began to double, eyelids growing heavier with each blink. Everything felt far away now, like he was slipping underwater.

But just before the darkness pulled him completely under, he saw her. That tour girl. What was her name again? His brain was a fog, his thoughts sluggish and sticky.

She knelt down in front of him, her eyes filled with guilt and fear. It made his heart stutter. What was wrong?

"Adele says my dreams are visions," she whispered with a trembling voice. "But what do I do, Alaric? I think... I think I saw you die in my dream."

His eyes flew open wide, adrenaline jolting through his system. Alaric tried to speak, to reach for her, but it was too late.

Darkness wrapped its fingers around him and claimed him.