You follow your companions into the pawn shop, and as you enter, a chair scrapes against the floor. The scarred man behind the counter looks about to jump over it to reach you—instead, he speaks in a whisper.

"You're alive. You made it. I—"

How does he know you faced Death and survived?

He takes a step back and his posture relaxes. "I apologize, that must have scared you."

His eyes lock with yours. "My dreams... they stopped. I thought something had happened to you."

▪

Malec proudly carries two scars on his body. The one that splits his face in half is the oldest—the result of an accident, he says. The one on his arm is a complicated floral design that has been burned and etched on his skin by himself.

He came back to Carolise to inherit his parents' business, but that is not where his heart or dreams lie: they both seem to gravitate towards you and your abyssal eyes. 

Malec is happy to stay a friend and show you a softer side of humanity, but if you share his interest in beautiful art you'll see how intense he can be as a lover.