27

Being bombastic comes so naturally to you that distracting people with flourishes of magic whenever they started to raise a suspicious eyebrow was the easiest thing in the world. You're particularly proud of the ever-increasing shroud of darkness you cast around Verity whenever she set foot in a town.

Once Verity's corpse had been thrown into the portal—that is to say, once you'd flung an illusion at it in front of a spellbound audience—your journey was at its end. The real Verity disappeared as she'd promised, even before the rest of you left to receive your rewards, with a very brief word of goodbye.

She lingered to do only one thing: to present you with a large blue stone you'd often seen her wearing around her neck on a chain. It was an inheritance from her ancestors, an artifact called the Demonsight Stone. Its powers let her sense the presence of magic, which was particularly useful for noticing mages who might have been able to reveal your deception. She said she had no interest in clinging to any remnants of her old life, particularly not an heirloom from her former family, so she pressed it into your hand as she left.