"So, Skiv, I guess this will be your first time making poison for the greater good," Azul said with a small smile.

He asked Skiv to participate in making the poison so the kid could become more confident.

Luckily, he had already asked Roxanna to build a special hut in the settlement, one used for making medicine and poison, so they could work more comfortably.

"For what?" Skiv asked eagerly. His eyes sparkled softly, as if he had just heard that Azul was about to give him the sweetest candy.

"Are we going to war?!" he asked again, this time even more excited than before.

Azul’s smile stiffened for a second because he didn’t expect the kid to be this excited about war.

"Maybe," he said. "But let’s hope it doesn’t get too big. For now, we just need to focus on making a strong poison to protect our people. Do you want to do it with me?"

Skiv nodded quickly. "I do! I want to!"

Meanwhile, outside the small, simple lab, Roxanna stood with Luan. Making a deadly poison was no small thing, so it made sense that Luan should talk to her about it, even if it was a bit late.

"You didn’t come home all night just to look for poisonous plants?" Roxanna narrowed her eyes when she found out he had only returned at sunrise. "Alone?"

Luan pressed his lips together, suddenly feeling nervous when he had to face his wife.

It was a bit strange, though.

He had never been afraid of dangerous beasts or even demon nests, but when it came to facing his upset wife, his mind just... stopped working.

Though calling Roxanna an "angry wife" didn’t feel quite right either. When she was mad, she looked more like a small, puffed-up squirrel than anything truly scary.

"I couldn’t help it," Luan said at last. He shifted his gaze slightly to the side so he wouldn’t have to look directly at her. "When I heard that Cyrus was hurt by those eagles, I couldn’t calm my mind."

"But that doesn’t mean you can wander alone in the forest at night, Luan," Roxanna said firmly.

Then, just a moment later, her expression softened. Her voice turned gentle instead of sharp. "What if something had happened to you too?"

Luan didn’t answer right away. For a moment, he just stood there, his eyes lowered, as if he didn’t know what to say.

"Nothing will happen to me," Luan said in a low voice. "I’m quite strong."

"So is Cyrus, and he still got hurt," Roxanna replied.

She let out a tired sigh and stepped closer to him. "Listen, I’m not mad because I don’t believe in your strength. I’m just worried. At the very least, if you want to go somewhere dangerous for a long time, you have to tell me... or take one of us with you."

[If Luan gets hurt too, I’m not sure my heart can handle it,] Roxanna admitted silently.

Luan looked at her, slightly stunned.

"Alright," he said quietly. "I’ll tell you next time."

Roxanna held his gaze for a moment, as if trying to make sure he really meant it.

"You should," she said, though her voice was much gentler now. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

For a second, neither of them spoke.

Then, without thinking too much, Luan reached out and gently pulled her into his arms.

Roxanna froze for a brief moment, surprised, but she didn’t push him away.

"I’m sorry," he murmured.

Her hands slowly lifted, resting lightly against his chest.

"It’s alright," she whispered. "Just don’t do it again."

Inside the hut, another loud clang echoed out. "Azul! It’s smoking again!" Skiv’s voice rang out in panic.

Roxanna blinked, then let out a small sigh. "We should probably check on them."

Luan let out a low laugh. "Yeah, we should."

===

The process of making the poison was quite fast once the basic knowledge of how to make it was already known.

Luckily, Aelin had left her notebook in Vixeria, so Skiv and Azul were able to find some information about poisons she had never taught them before.

But since they were not very skilled at reading yet, Roxanna had to stay with them.

"Actually, what are we making?" Roxanna asked as Azul finished extracting the poisonous plants and turned them into a transparent gel.

"Most of the time, bird tribes use arrows to attack their enemies," Azul explained. "Because they have sharp eyesight, they can also hide in high places without fearing the height."

"And some of them use poison on the tip of their arrows." Azul placed the transparent gel into a clay pot, then sealed it. "Last night, they used a paralyzing poison on their arrows against Cyrus."

Roxanna held her breath for a moment, remembering how Cyrus couldn’t move at all while the arrow was still stuck in his body.

"So that’s why we’re going to do the same," Azul said with a small smile. "But this poison will make them suffer even more."

Roxanna frowned slightly at his words. "We’re going that far?" she asked.

Azul didn’t answer right away. He simply looked at the sealed pot in his hands, his expression calm, but there was something colder behind his eyes.

"They attacked first," he said softly. "And they didn’t hold back."

"But still, we need your permission to use it," Luan, who had been standing in the corner of the room, finally said. "You’re the leader of this tribe, so you’re the one who has to decide whether we should use this poison or not."

Roxanna fell silent. She looked at the sealed clay pot, then remembered how much Cyrus had suffered last night. More than that, the pain the Sky Tribe had inflicted on him was even worse than what this poison would cause.

"I give you permission," Roxanna said at last. "You can use this poison against our enemy."

She looked at Luan and Azul in turn. "Just be careful."

Luan was the first to nod. "Of course. We’ll be fine."

A moment later, Roxanna asked again, "But how are we going to use this poison if we don’t know where the Sky Tribe is?"

Luan smiled. "Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. I have a friend who can track them quickly."

Roxanna tilted her head. "Who?"

Instead of answering her question, he just smiled and said, "That’s not important. What matters is that we can find the Sky Tribe before they try to take Cyrus again."

[Once again, he’s being secretive,] Roxanna thought. [But I guess, as long as they’re fine, I don’t have to worry too much.]

"Alright, just let me know if something happens," Roxanna said.

That night, Azul and Skiv refined more poison, probably until they filled ten clay pots.

Since Luan wanted to help them, Roxanna returned to the hut by herself. Near the window, she saw Cyrus sitting there, his eyes fixed on the sky, as if making sure that no eagles would suddenly appear.

To be honest, he had been in that position since morning, and it started to worry her.

"Cyrus!" Roxanna suddenly popped up from under the window, startling him. "What are you looking at?"

Cyrus flinched for a second, but the moment he saw it was her, his expression softened into a smile. "Nothing," he said gently. "I just like looking at the sky."

Roxanna was sure that wasn’t the only reason, but she didn’t want to stress him too much, so she let it go. Instead, she hid her thoughts and lifted a small bunch of colorful flowers she had picked on her way back.

"For you!" she said with a bright smile.

Cyrus blinked, clearly caught off guard. "For me?" he asked softly.

Roxanna nodded, stepping closer to him. "Yeah. I saw them on the way back and thought they looked nice."

She gently placed the flowers into his hands.

For a moment, Cyrus just stared at them, as if he didn’t quite know what to do. "They’re beautiful," he said at last. "Thank you."

[I hope those flowers can make him feel a little better,] Roxanna thought. [Maybe I should also cook something warm and delicious for him.]

"Wife," Cyrus suddenly called out, making her stop thinking for a moment.

"Yes?"

"I think I should go somewhere," he said.

Roxanna frowned. "Go where?" she asked. "I can go with you."

He gave a faint smile. "You can’t," he said. "The Sky Tribe are persistent people. Once they know their target, they won’t let me go easily."

"Sooner or later, they will come here and cause trouble."

The moment Roxanna understood what he meant, she immediately said, "No! I forbid you to leave!"

Before Cyrus could say anything else, she spoke again, "Luan and Azul are making poison to fight the Sky Tribe, so you don’t have to worry! If they come here, then we will protect you!"

Cyrus’ eyes trembled. "I don’t want any of you to get hurt."

Roxanna clenched her fists. "And you think leaving alone is better?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly. "Do you think I’ll just stand here and let you go?"

Cyrus didn’t answer.

That silence only made her chest tighten even more.

"You’re not going," she said firmly. "I won’t let you."