Chronicles of the Overworld Book 1 — Nihal of the Land of the Wind Read Online Free PDF Page A

admission that she’d told Soana a pack of lies.
    In the end, she decided to accept. She’d promise, for the moment.
    She’d worry about revenge later on.

    Sennar arrived bearing herbs of all kinds.
    “I’ve gathered everything you needed, Soana. I hope now you’ll forgive me.”
    He was so surprised to see Nihal that he stopped mid-phrase, but after a moment’s confusion he said cheerily, “Hi there. Have you come for my head?”
    “No, Sennar. Nihal is here to become my student and to make peace with you. Right, Nihal?”
    Nihal fought back her disgust and prepared to make the biggest sacrifice of her life. She stood, looked Sennar directly in the eyes, and shook his hand forcefully. “No hard feelings. It was a fair battle.”
    And with this last sip, the bitter chalice has been drunk to the full
, she told herself.
    “Good. All the better. I’m going to go sort the herbs,” said Sennar, and he left the room with his harvest.
    Nihal took a deep breath and Soana smiled at her.
    “You did the right thing. Now you can tackle the trial.”
    A trial? Wasn’t that handshake
trial
enough? Nihal felt her resolve waver. Maybe this magic thing wasn’t worth so many blows to her pride.
    “We’ll talk about it when the time comes.”

    The sorceress herself prepared lunch. There was a small garden behind the house and some chickens pecking around the edges. Soana gathered some vegetables and made a soup. Nihal watched her as she sliced zucchini. Her aunt seemed ordinary enough, but then Soana went to the fireplace, stretched out a hand, and murmured a few strange words. The wood burst into flames.
    “Wow! Will I learn to do that?”
    “Maybe, Nihal. Perhaps.”
    They ate in silence. Soana seemed to feel at ease, but Sennar kept looking back and forth between the girl and the sorceress, and Nihal kept her face so low it almost touched her plate.
    It wasn’t until after they’d finished eating that the atmosphere warmed up a bit.
    Perhaps Soana understood that Sennar made Nihal feel uncomfortable; she sent him out to work on a spell. She and Nihal remained at opposite ends of the table. Nihal felt so awkward she would have liked to sink through the floor. But as the silence of early afternoon filled the house, Soana began to ask her questions. She seemed very interested in what her niece had to say.
    Nihal thought this might be the right time to ask about her mother. “What do you know about my mom?”
    “Not much. She was with us for such a short amount of time.”
    “Dad never talks about her.”
    Soana seemed not to have heard. It was like this every time she brought up her mother, but why?
    “It would be enough for me to know what she looked like.”
    “She was very young, much younger than your father, and very beautiful.” As she spoke, Soana’s eyes were focused on the forest rather than on Nihal. “You were just a few days old when she died.”
    “And this hair? These eyes? These stupid pointy ears?”
    “Very few people are born with the traits you share with your mother. One every thousand years, they say. You should consider yourself lucky.”
    Soana smiled. Nihal smiled back.

    They spent the rest of the afternoon talking about Soana and Livon’s childhood in Salazar. Nihal enjoyed herself, and although the sorceress kept a tight rein on her emotions, it was possible to read her feelings when her face colored with tenderness or mirth. In those moments, Nihal was able to see Soana’s resemblance to Livon.
    It was already dark when Sennar came back. Nihal and Soana had prepared supper together. When it came to handling swords, Nihal had no rival, but she was a disaster in the kitchen.
    At supper it was as if the understanding that had developed between aunt and niece dissolved. The sorceress spoke with Sennar about the magic arts, boring Nihal. Apparently, it was only in rare moments that Soana was willing to reveal herself to others.
    The level of discomfort peaked at bedtime.
    “You’ll