The palace

A sharp jolt of our carriage woke me up.

I looked around and saw that we were still riding on the way to the palace.

"I was wondering when you'd wake up". A voice said to me and I looked up to see Zoe smiling at me.

I rubbed my eyes to be sure I was seeing clearly, when did Zoe start talking to me? And when did she start smiling too?

"How long was I gone?" I asked her, yawning.

"I don't know, I just woke up not too long ago". She replied with a smirk.

"Why then did you.." I started to say but I kept quiet and just sighed.

Beside me, Emily was still fast asleep. I looked at, she looked peaceful as she rested blissfully.

Baamm!

Our carriage hit another stone jolting us again, Emily woke up this time.

"What's going on?" She asked in a groggy voice.

"We're in front of the palace". Zoe replied.

"We are?" I asked at the same time as Emily, Zoe nodded.

I looked out and truly, we were just a few meters away from the palace.

The stony castle rose fro the city like a relic, a momento of a dominant empire, I stared at it in awe.

A loud bell signaled our arrival at the palace. I stared as we passed through the open gates, everywhere I looked there were symbols, reminding anyone who walked the cobblestone streets of the power that reigned in the empire.

The flags, gray flags with the image of golden sun in the center were mounted on the top of every column. Zoe saw me staring at them and said.

"The sun is a symbol of the emperor, he is called the golden emperor because of the way he shines".

I looked back at her and nodded, it was one of the things that had changed ever since the fight, Zoe had been warmer to me and she even engaged in small talk with me.

The smell of food, both spoiled and fresh filled the air, along with filth, horses and musty people and i winced and pinched my nose shut.

Emily saw this and chuckled. "What are you going to do, avoid breathing till we leave the palace?"

She was right, what good would pinching my nose do, I had to get used to the foul smell. I let go of my nose and winced as the smell hit me again.

"You'll get used to it". Zoe promised and I nodded.

The palace was getting busier as a lot of mages arrived and there was traffic congestion so the carriages crawled along.

I tried to find Aaron and Liam's carriages amidst the commotion but I was unable to, they had been swallowed by the sea of carriages.

I stared at the people in the castle, there was a diverse range of people walking around. From bearded and beardless peddlers to servant girls carrying armfuls of hatboxes, every body seemed busy. A few of them paused to watch the proceeding of carriages with interest, I'm sure they heard of us already, all the mages in the empire, here in the castle to save them from the beast monsters.

A young man who looked just a little older than me walked past our carriage, he was dressed in a purple cape and a brooch was lined over his left breast. He had a handsome face and he smiled as he was walked by slowly. Beside him was another equally handsome man who was slightly shorter than him, this man's face was rugged and he kept his face in a stern frown.

"That's the crown Prince, and the captain of the guard". Emily explained to me.

I nodded and watched as the two of them walked with confidence through the throng of people. Young women rallied around them, giggling and waving, the prince smile back and waved while the captain kept his face passive.

We soon entered the marketplace proper and the crowd here was even greater, several merchants and traders sat at stalls, before them sat boxes and bowls of tunics, gowns, tapestry and different sparkling jewelry that I had to admit looked expensive.

"Ooohh". Zoe coed as we passed the jewelry and I smirked.

Women…

We soon arrived at a clearing and the carriage slowly came to a stop.

"We're here". Emily said and climbed out of the carriage, I followed suit, carefully holding my bag in my hand.

As soon as my feet touched the ground, the system came to life.

[You have a new quest]

[Quest: finger Zoe before day ends]

[Reward: New skill, vortex]

[Failure to complete mission: penalty]

What?!