Kylina opened the main door of the Fang household, her hands no longer shook intensely, the fear in her heart had diminished, but it still plagued her heart.
She placed the spare key in its place, and slowly treaded towards her bedroom.
Although Kylina didn't turn around, she looked side to side with her eyes, as if to get a clue of who kept watch of her. Kylina didn't want to make it too obvious, for she didn't know what the mastermind would think if she tried to peer into their secrets.
Kylina, now in her humble abode, sat at the side of her bed, examining the events of today.
She was still confused as to why the sender had directed her towards that location, only for her to consume a sedative and sleep. In her mind, it made no sense.
"What did they have me doing?"
In her perspective, she slept and woke up in the same position, sitting at the same table, beside the magician.
Despite what the one who wrote the letter wanted from her, she thought that it would be too ugly. This could be seen in the threats they had left behind. Wouldn't any other person be able to accomplish this task under normal circumstances?
Kylina looked down, with a complex expression.
In her heart, a certain feeling grew—a thought that if she were to peer any further, the answer would be too ugly to bear with.
She shook her head, diverting her thoughts to somewhere else.
"At least no harm was done to me." Kylina convinced herself, looking at her arms and hands and sighing in relief.
Kylina got up, ready to change into her night attire.
With her nightgown and bonnet on, she succumbed to her humble bed.
Covering herself with the blanket and closing her eyes.
A few minutes passed, then she discovered something—she couldn't sleep.
Kylina tried to push past by closing her eyes once more, ultimately resulting in her being conscious.
All she could do now was gaze at the wooden ceiling, in solitude.
Even with seriousness of the cold night, the plague in her heart stopped her from the joys of sleep.
…
The sun rays were beginning to leave their mark, coming along the horizon, starting to dye the night sky into its opposite shade.
Kylina, throughout these hours, had mindlessly stared into the ceiling, her position unchanged.
She slowly and lazily averted her eyes to the window.
Although the only sleep she managed to get was the hour in that magician's abode, she didn't feel an ounce of tiredness.
She slowly got off her bed, and took on her maid uniform.
Once she put the nightgown into her closet, she headed towards her desk and took out a small handheld mirror.
Her flat expression, devoid of emotions, was seen, coupled with the fact that she started to form eye bags, she sighed at the sight, and put the mirror away.
She walked towards the door, reaching the handle and turning the door open.
In her vision, two figures appeared—Sarina and Lisa.
"Good morning and good timing, I was just about to knock, you lazy princess." Sarina smiled as she greeted her friend.
"Oh really?" Kylina replied back.
Noticing the slight peculiarity under Kylina's eyes, Sarina said with a worried tone, "Kylina, something wrong? Did you sleep well? I can see eye bags starting to form."
Lisa squinted in Kylina's direction: "Did somebody have a nightmare?"
Kylina tried to keep a strong fort in the presence of the two, saying, "Eh, it was just a slight nightmare, nothing too serious. Anyways, off to the Miss Matron no—Misha we go to."
With that said, she grabbed the hands of the two, onto the Matron's quarters.
In her mind, she added in trepidation, "It was a really terrifying nightmare that I wish for the two of you to never experience…"
"Somebody seems in an awfully great mood." Sarina exclaimed with a smile, as Kylina directed her with her hand.
Lisa slightly smiled: "Such things are contagious."
Kylina quickly looked back at the two, smiling, "Great mood is an understatement."
Seeing her two friends smile, and in good health, made Kylina extremely happy. She felt wronged and injustice. She was the one at the mercy of the mysterious presence that lurked around, but those feelings were overshadowed by the joy she felt at seeing Lisa and Sarina as their usual selves.
"If it means that I get to protect those smiles of you two, then I am willing to sacrifice myself for your sake. You two must live happily forever and ever." Kylina resolved herself internally.
For the sake of protecting them, she will comply with whatever demands the letter foretold. Even at the expense of her body and soul.
She didn't wish her fate on anybody.
Not a single person.
…
Sarina was satisfied with Kylina's demeanor.
After all, she had told Briego to let her consume a sedative. She knew that without it, Kylina's mental state would come to a complete collapse. With her plan in mind, she couldn't afford that later on. If Kylina figured out what happened later on, then Sarina wouldn't care by that point, for she was just a starting tool. For now, she needed to be useful in her tasks, with no abnormalities present.
Soon enough, she would have a passive flow of mana stones coming her way.
With her current status, she had no other way to gain mana stones, other than resorting to the world's oldest profession. Using the feeling of inferiority the mortals had, it was fairly easy to squeeze it and gain the most benefits. That is why she had instructed Briego, for Kylina to wear such a dress.
Even if the mortals cared whether she was a Spring clansman or not, she was a path to divert all those feelings they had borne for years. It was a fantasy tailored specifically for them in mind.
Sarina only had to provide simple threats and allude to the fact that she was a magician. The might of magicians had been deeply ingrained in the mortals' minds. Providing the fact that she could interfere with the matters in the house, seen in the poisoning incident, interfere with the maids themselves, and giving information about her family and friends cemented terror into Kylina's mind. Furthermore, leaving clues that would incriminate, facing the wrath of those she served made Kylina only obey her circumstances.
Kylina was just a pitiful, powerless girl in the maw of a tigress.
In the magical world, two phrases always reigned true: Power is might and might is right.
Without power, one would amount to nothing, ultimately being wronged and wrong. On the other hand, with power came might and with said might everything will turn right.
The righteous kingdoms throughout history have reigned with an iron fist. As long as a righteous excuse existed, corruption, war, genocide, and other atrocities were all permitted.
Who would stop them? Nobody.
In the depths of history, the Tampezine kingdom justified the destruction of the Palmarian kingdom in the name that they harbored demonic magicians. Uniting forces against them and ultimately slaughtering the King and its clan, then annexing their resources between them.
One must look at their history, to find that they had disputes over the same magic resource type. Competing for the same valuable objects for centuries. It wasn't until the Tampezine found a loophole and exploited it.
It didn't matter if they harbored demons or not, for the righteous path had agreed to their demise.
Those Palmarian's who survived the attack and spoke out about the wrongdoings of the righteous path, were deemed as heretics. Those who persisted until the end ultimately disappeared, meeting death's embrace.
With enough might, nobody would dare badmouth such entities, scared of their own demise.
Those that dared to go against them were labeled as demonic. Demonizing such people, getting the people's heart against them, to further develop their power and might to always make right.
Sarina, in her past life, had experienced this firsthand. Once she got a hold of the inheritance of the first Sovereign, under the eyes of the Lincoln kingdom. They pursued her with no end. Once they found out that Sarina was like a slippery rat, with no hope in catching her. They called the entire region to pursue Sarina claiming she had done despicable deeds—placing an alluring bounty to whoever can capture her. Thus mobilizing the entire region of Law Immortals.
Ultimately, Sarina perished fighting the Lincoln Kingdom and its forces.
But she didn't fault them. She knew very well what world she lived in.
She was too helpless and weak to do anything about it; it was the might of the Lincoln kingdom who had won.
And now, with her own fragment of illusionary might, she had subdued the mortal girl called Kylina.
She remembered a quote from the Heavenly Testament:
"In the pragmatic eyes of Heaven we are mere performers, forever stuck in the circumstances that the world presents us, that is why we are magicians!"
Once wronged and now the perpetrator, Sarina's pragmatic eyes directed at Kylina, as the three chatted on the way towards the Matron's rest place.
…
In a spacious room, a desk right behind a wide window that illuminated the place, as the curtains adorned the side. A substantial amount of papers could be seen stacked, as a broad-shouldered individual sat, as he looked at his son, who stood at the entrance of his office.
Mortez looked at Gent up and down.
"It came as a surprise to all of us that you were gifted with such a fissure. I thought our future was nothing but prosperous, but then…" His voice grew a little displeased mixed with some anger. "You were defeated by the young master of the Fang's? Hmph, do you not have any shame tasting defeat by one who wields an inferior fissure? Furthermore, succumbing to the Fang's young master taunts and receiving backlash. Do you have any excuse?"
"No father, the Fang's young master is just too devious I—." Gent stiffly replied, but was interrupted.
"Devious? That's a mere excuse that the weak use! Devious or not, with your might alone it should've been enough." Mortez exclaimed, furrowing his brows.
Some sweat accumulated on Gent's back.
"I seek forgiveness father, next time I'll show him the might of the Joto's." Gent said as he lowered his head.
"Hmph, you've always since young been focused on useless things, it's time for you to grow up and learn—to turn into a proper magician. Your sister has told me about the scene where the Fang youngsters had cornered you in public. Do you take the image of the family lightly? You–." Mortez cut his words out.
Gent scoffed in his mind. "Ever since I obtained a Diamond fissure, guaranteeing my ticket towards 3rd-circle, Father has been more mindful of the words he directs at me. What a hypocrite."
Mortez narrowed his eyes: "It's time for you to change and learn from your cousins, especially Gena. You will train every day from morning until daybreak, and attempt to break through the 1st-circle intermediate stage at once." Out of thin air, a pouch containing mana stones appeared in Mortez's hand. Throwing it towards Gent.
Gent caught it with his right hand.
"Here are twenty mana stones. It's my investment into your progress. I expect good things to come out of it. Don't make it a waste. You may leave now."
Gent lowered his head: "Thank you father, I will not disappoint."
He turned around and left the office.
His flat expression transformed into that of apprehension.
Gent went down the stairs, seeing the rooms of the inn, in the corridor a magician entering his room, and a mortal exiting his.
It was a typical scene of the people who rented out their rooms in their establishment.
Upon seeing the green-robed magician, the mortal lowered his head.
Gent didn't pay mind to the mortal, going down the stairs to the first floor. Along the path, he saw a familiar figure—an elderly woman.
Gent respectfully greeted her: "Good morning, esteemed aunt."
The elderly woman, who was going up the stairs, seemingly going to meet Mortez in his office, didn't say a word, just narrowing her eyes at the youth who was in front of her.
It was only after a few seconds that she noticed the bag in Gent's hand, saying back with an apathetic tone, "Seems the patriarch has put an effort into nurturing you."
Gent, with a light smile, said, "It seems so."
The blue-eyed elderly woman, with streaks of white in her brown hair, and dressed in a purple simple dress, with a white bodice, nodded with her narrowed eyes, continuing her way up the stairs.
Gent stood there for a few seconds, letting his aunt pass swiftly. This was courtesy one needed to show to their seniors.
Once she was a good distance away, Gent cursed her internally: "Damn bitch."
She was the mother of Gena, the supposed star of the Joto's. The all-so-great Gena had one flaw, and that was that she wasn't from the line of the patriarch.
Her mother, Teressa, had always kept an ambiguous relationship with Gent, perhaps hoping that such a useless descendant was to be discarded, and her daughter being the inheritor instead.
It wasn't until his Diamond fissure status was known that she had made things difficult for him. When he suffered backlash, it was her who stalled treatment for as long as she could.
"That snake of a woman was hoping for me to end up with my fissure damaged!" Gent couldn't help but think.
In fact, all the family members had started to treat him differently once his Diamond fissure was known—some for the better and some for the worse, like Teressa.
Some of his cousins started giving him mana stones without anything in return, when in the past they treated him with the cold shoulder. Gena now had started to show some animosity. His father now minded the words he spoke. His mother became ever more affectionate.
"Haha, what a bunch of hypocrites. Bunch of two-faced people. Now that I'm guaranteed a ticket towards the 3rd-circle, now they want to be close to me? How pathetic of them. Haha, the face Gena made is still so clear once she found out my fissure was superior to hers. I hope she enjoys being stuck in the 2nd-circle forever."
"This family is truly pitiful indeed. Now as somebody with the potential to stand above them and propel the family's status further, they want to treat me in their best interests? Don't make me scoff."
With the change of dynamic, the only one who remained the same was his sister—or what Gent called her—his father's eyes. Always foretelling the activities he would do to his father like a little helper. Even now, she had told Mortez about the scuffle in the proficiency test, and now the event at the courtyard, in front of the academy building.
Even though it was to his dislike, he could see the grace in it. Amidst the hypocrites, one stood out without wavering.
He shook his head in mockery and walked the cobblestone road, shimmering in the rays of the sun, directing himself towards the Joto household.