Chapter 162. Calliope's Goodbye

The sun swept over the flower patterns carved into the floor of the courtyard in the Valtorian palace. The white pillars that circled the open ground gleamed even brighter as the rays swept over them, and the air was perfumed by the floral scents of the crystal flowers that sat in large ceramic pots around the courtyard. Maids walked in and out, carrying baskets of laundry and trays, doing their daily duties around the palace.

Calliope lay in a black hammock that hung between two pillars; the gentle breeze rocked her from side to side, strands of her black, neck-length hair dancing in the wind as she whetted her dagger with a dark blue rock. The scraping sound of her blade grinding against the small rock echoed loudly, her azurite eyes sparkling gorgeously in the sunlight.

She moved the blade away from the rock and placed it directly under the sun, squinting as she watched its silver face gleam.

“Calliope,” Alethea’s voice sounded from her right. Her irises moved