Legacy of the Dark Sage

Kyran could not help but smile at Cyneah's concern.

He already knew how much she wanted to prove her usefulness to them.

Her desire stemmed from her disability. Because of this, most people found her a liability. Even her relatives wanted to get rid of her.

Then again, was the uncle she mentioned before really her relative? Being around the Royal Family, and having a past thought about her identity resurfaced in his mind, Kyran started to doubt her origin. He was starting to believe she was not just a distant relative of the Royal Family, but could directly be related to the Crown Princess.

And if that was the case... well, it was not really a big deal to Kyran. He never cared about Cyneah's origin in the first place. But if she was really related to the Crown Princess, Kyran knew Cyneah would be in danger.

Because only one person could possess Soul Magic— to be precise, a Soul core, at one time.

This fact actually scared Kyran.

What would happen if Cyneah— who seemed to be using Soul magic but did not have a Soul core, and the Crown Princess— who inherited the previous Soul Emperor's will and might possess a Soul core, met?

A disturbing thought crossed Kyran's mind and he banished it at once.

No matter what, he would not let anything— or anyone, harm Cyneah. Kyran already considered her as one of his own. He would do everything in his power to keep her safe.

"It's not like that," Kyran assured Cyneah after a short pause.

He hesitated for a moment, before adding, "As you said, you sensed—," his brow twitched slightly recalling how Cyneah addressed Nolan, "—err, Nolan and yet you don't, because he is not really... real."

Cyneah's eyes widened slowly, her brows raised in surprise.

"You mean 'that' Uncle Nolan is an essence?"

This time, it was Kyran's turn to look at her with raised brows.

"You know about essences?" He asked.

"Yes, master taught me. Oh, and sometimes Zephy will teach me about magic," Cyneah answered with a nod.

Kyran's brow twitched as black lines appeared on his forehead.

Just what was his godmother and Zephyr teaching her?

"I see..."

"So that is how an essence looks like..." Cyneah muttered under her breath with a thoughtful expression.

Her words piqued Kyran's interest, and so he asked, "How different is it from a real one?"

Cyneah tilted her head to one side as she pondered for the right words to explain what she saw. "Hm... well, you know how I can see these lights, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, uncle Nolan's light is usually about this big—," she did a circular motion using her hands, drawing at least a two feet radius circle, "—and shines really brightly. But the uncle Nolan upstairs, only has about this size—," she made another circlular motion, drawing a six inches radius circle, "—like most humans, and it isn't as bright."

Her brow furrowed slightly before adding, "And there is a small symbol at the center, I don't recognize. At first, I thought uncle Nolan is cursed or something that's why his presence looks weak in my 'eyes.'"

'A symbol, huh... If I can see the way she does, I can determine if I am facing an essence or the real one,' Kyran thought. 'Then again, only those who managed to enter the Tower of Tribulation knows about it, and probably father and Nolan knows how to use one.'

However, the idea might be helpful to him in the future. Thinking of this, he made a mental note to himself to learn an alternative way to 'see' like Cyneah.

"That's a drastic change in size," Kyran remarked.

"Master said, an essence is made from a mage's soul," Cyneah replied. Her expression turned sober as she continued, "If... If the lights I see are a person's soul, maybe, the reason why the uncle upstair's light being small, means, that is the size uncle Nolan has to take out from his soul to make his essence."

"Did your master also tell you that?"

"No."

Cyneah fell silent.

Kyran studied her for a second and decided not dwell on the subject. He could sense her uneasiness and guessed, talking what she could 'see' was not exactly a good topic for discussion.

After all, Cyneah was blind.

Just as Kyran decided to change the subject, Cyneah suddenly said something that made him stop.

"Zephy said, my magic has been taken away from me. But that I can still use it... and its... Soul magic."

'That Zephyr...' Kyran scowled. It seemed he had to have a nice little talk with Zephyr when he returned.

"I heard Soul magic is forbidden magic," Cyneah continued. "This is why my uncle— my real uncle, abandoned me, right?"

Kyran fell silent. He did not know the circumstances around Cyneah that led her uncle to abandon her. To be honest, he was not interested to know her past because he initially did not want to take her with him.

But after what happened in the cave, and the events that followed, he was forced to reassess the situation. That time, he thought leaving her in a 'safe place' to live while still keeping tabs on her, was the best he could offer.

This changed after meeting Anette.

Kyran admitted that keeping Cyneah close, was the best course of action.

In any case, even though the probability of Cyneah being directly related to the Royal Family increased, Kyran did not regret agreeing to his godmother's decision in taking her in.

Come to think of it, it was then that Kyran became protective of Cyneah. It was also then that he hoped she would forget all the bad memories she had to endure.

He did not expect she would still be thinking of it.

Then again, it had only been almost a month— at least in real time, since they met. Maybe it was too soon for her to really forget or not feel troubled by her past.

"Was it Zephy who told you your magic is forbidden?" Kyran asked.

Cyneah shook her head, "No. I heard it from the people in the hospice."

"I see."

The hospice was disguised as a pub. It was not really a surprise to Kyran if such an information was being discussed in that place.

"Aren't you... afraid of me?" Cyneah suddenly asked, catching Kyran off guard.

"Afraid?" He repeated glancing at her sideways, "Why should I be afraid? You saved me."

Cyneah looked at him. Her line of sight was a little off but Kyran saw the confusion reflected in her mirror-like eyes.

"Saved you...? But it's you who saved me, Nar. And I can never repay you for that."

Kyran's brow furrowed slightly. Before he could say anything, she continued, "I don't think healing you is the same as saving you. Because all I did is help relieve any physical ailment you are feeling. But you... to me... you..."

She suddenly stopped, feeling her face burning. Not to mention, her heart felt as if it was about to burst from all the emotions she was feeling at the moment.

Cyneah looked away, trying to calm her heart.

She initially wanted to tell him that he was her saviour, because he saved her from despair.

In that cave, Cyneah was already resigned to her fate. Yes, she still clung to life, but knowing it was futile, she was only counting the time until she succumb to death.

Kyran's appearance, gave Cyneah hope.

It overwhelmed her with myriad of emotions the more she recalled all that happened. The incident where she and Zephyr escaped from a strange woman, her ending up wounded and on the verge of death once more, when Kyran found her, she realized then that she would never be able to repay him. More importantly, she realized how much she wanted to stay by his side.

That was why, she swore to herself that she would do everything to be useful to him. Because if she was not useful he might abandon her too.

Hearing Kyran say 'she' saved him, sounded wrong. It even scared her.

Cyneah did not want Kyran to think that healing him from time to time would even out how he saved her. Because if they end up even, he might stop asking for her help. If that happened, he might stop coming to the cottage. They would end up not 'seeing' each other again.

That thought scared her.

"Cy...neah?" Kyran called out to Cyneah, pausing at a weird moment.

Cyneah straightened her back and look at him again, "I-I j-just remembered... y-you still o-owe me f-for healing y-your magic core."

Kyran could not help but chuckle at her stammering. Obviously she wanted to change the subject again and he found it strange. But he did not mind. If it would take her mind off any bad memories, he was fine with it.

"Yeah, I do."

"I a-already know w-what I want. A-And I've been practicing... But... I'm not c-confident yet."

"Confident?" Kyran asked in confusion.

"Y-Yes. But I think I h-have to let you know w-what it is, i-in case you d-don't agree, I-I'll think of another request."

"Alright. What is it?"

Cyneah clenched her fists, resting on her lap. Then bracing her self, she said, "W-Will you let me see you?"

"..."

Kyran gaped stupidly at Cyneah.

Too bad she could not see how comically he looked at the moment, with his wide eyes and opened mouth.

"N-Nar? D-Did I ask for too much?" Cyneah asked when Kyran did not respond after a few seconds of awkward silence.

Kyran blinked twice before shaking his head, "N-No. S-Sorry, I—."

"So it's a yes?"

"Well... that's—."

"So it's a n-no."

"N-No. I mean," Kyran shook his head. He was caught off guard from her request. So much so that his mind had gone blank for a few seconds. "Are you sure that's what you want?"

Cyneah sighed in relief and smiled slightly, "Yes. You probably forget, but... you're the only one I can't see. At least, your light."

'Ah, right. Because of my Void magic...'

"So, I've been practicing my magic sense," Cyneah explained. "I think I'll be ready soon."

Kyran finally understood what she planned to do to 'see' him.

Using the magic energies in the surroundings, Cyneah could have them 'cover' him. By doing this, his image would take shape and she could 'see' him.

"So you're magic sense is already at that level?" Kyran asked in both surprise and respect.

Cyneah nodded, "Yes. But I still have a long way to go."

"Given you've only started learning about magic sense recently, that is already a huge progress."

Cyneah giggled and leaned back on the chair. She looked up, as if she could see the view before her and said, "I can only learn all this things because you saved me."

Kyran only looked at her profile and did not say anything.

But then...

[Alas... to think you have found her.]

Kyran stopped short as a voice spoke in his mind.

[My beloved Void Master, don't make the same mistake....]