Cliff stepped fast, still with his right hand dragging the sword. The sound of the blade tip scraping against the ground was a sign of his footsteps getting closer to where Rowan was.

Since Niki's death, Cliff knows Rowan no longer lives in the Castle. Now he lives in a modest two-story house near the forbidden forest. That's where Cliff is now headed. Regardless of the body's condition, he was already exhausted because he had previously used too much of the natural strength he had stolen. ...