"The Chrysmaws Case, A Khendric and Topper Short Story"

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From multi-award-winning author Christer Lende comes a gripping short story featuring your favorite beast hunters, Khendric and Topper, as they race against time, cryptic riddles, and treacherous deals from the past. Trapped in a cursed manor, magically barred from leaving, Khendric and Topper find themselves at the mercy of a powerful entity that thrives on deception. To survive, they must unravel the secrets behind its rules—one wrong move means enslavement, or worse. But other powerful forces are at play in the manor too. A hooded stranger with a cane and a monocle offers Khendric a mystical, time-altering coin and cryptic knowledge of their predicament before vanishing beyond the invisible barrier. Outsmarted and forced to choose between saving Topper or the love of his life, Darlaene, Khendric flips the coin in desperation—hurtling back in time to the moment he first received it. With each flip, their chances dwindle. Every deal is laced with deadly loopholes. Every riddle conceals a cruel trick. Their only hope is to outwit the master of deception before the final gamble seals their fate forever. Can they free Topper from the clutches of the creature and break Darlaene’s binding contract before their mystical coin runs out?