Chapter Thirteen – Threads of Curiosity
Morning light filtered through the curtains, scattering soft gold across the room.
Aveline sat cross-legged on her bed, eyes closed, her breathing calm and steady. The faint mark of the Lumivorn glowed dimly on her wrist.
Sylph floated nearby, holding a small mana stone almost the size of her hand.
> "Your focus is improving," she said.
"I can feel it more clearly now," Aveline replied without opening her eyes.
"Your bond?"
"Yeah. It's like a steady heartbeat at the edge of my mind."
The connection pulsed again — warm, ancient, calm.
When Aveline focused, she could faintly see images — not clear, but like memories seen through fog. A vast forest. Blue light. The silhouette of a creature resting near a crystal spring.
> "It's peaceful," she murmured.
Sylph tilted her head. "You sound like you're looking at a dream."
"Maybe I am. Or maybe it's showing me its world."
Her eyes opened slowly.
> [System Update: Synchronization 25%]
[Trait Unlocked – Spirit Sense: Limited perception of bonded entity's surroundings.]
Aveline smiled faintly. "So that's what it was."
---
Meanwhile, in the Library
Downstairs, Elias sat at the long reading table, surrounded by thick tomes.
He wasn't really reading. His eyes moved across the pages, but his mind was elsewhere — still replaying the mana pulse he'd sensed last night.
It hadn't been an illusion. He was sure of it.
He flipped open a notebook filled with neat, coded notes — sketches of mana readings and diagrams of the Caelthorn estate.
At the bottom of one page, he'd written a single line:
> Subject A – Displays false elemental signature. Possible concealment spell?
He tapped his pen against the table. "You're clever, Lady Aveline. But I'll find out what you're hiding."
A faint voice interrupted him. "Studying already, Master Elias?"
It was Duchess Selina, smiling gently as she entered.
Elias straightened immediately. "Yes, my lady. The Caelthorn archives are impressive. I couldn't resist."
"I'm glad you appreciate it," she said warmly. "Aveline will join you soon for her etiquette session."
"Of course," Elias replied smoothly, masking his true intentions behind a polite smile.
---
The Garden Connection
Aveline later met Elias in the garden as scheduled. They were supposed to practice basic mana channeling exercises — harmless ones meant to improve focus.
Elias handed her a small crystal sphere. "Try channeling your mana through this. It reacts differently for each element."
Aveline took it calmly. She'd already preloaded her system's false wind signature earlier that morning.
> [Illusion Core: Wind – Active.]
She breathed slowly, letting a faint stream of energy flow into the crystal.
The sphere glowed a soft green, swirling gently like a breeze.
Elias watched closely. "Perfect control," he said, tone casual but eyes sharp. "Most beginners oversaturate the focus point. You didn't."
Aveline smiled faintly. "I've always been good with precision."
He nodded. "So I see."
But while Elias observed her mana, Aveline observed him. His spells, his timing, the small flickers of curiosity he failed to hide — she saw everything.
> "He's analyzing you again," Sylph whispered.
"I know," Aveline replied in her mind. "Let him think he's getting somewhere."
---
Elias's Discovery
That evening, Elias returned to his guest room and pulled out a small, portable mana detector from his case. It was a compact crystal disk engraved with sensing runes.
He placed it by the window, calibrating it to track any unusual mana shifts within a mile radius.
At first, nothing.
Then — a pulse.
A faint, rhythmic signature.
Different from standard elemental energy — deeper, steadier, almost alive.
His eyes narrowed. "There it is again…"
He scribbled in his notebook:
> Ancient resonance detected near the forest perimeter. Possible link to Lady Caelthorn's chamber. Not elemental. Possibly spiritual.
Elias stood, looking out the window at the distant treeline.
> "You're hiding something powerful, aren't you?" he murmured.
---
Aveline's Experiment
At the same time, in her room, Aveline sat cross-legged on her bed again.
She'd felt Elias's probe faintly — a light tickle at the edge of her mana field.
> "He's scanning again," Sylph said.
"Let him," Aveline whispered.
She raised her hand, letting faint blue mana flicker between her fingers — pure Lumivorn energy, soft and fluid.
Then she split it — one half into her system, one into her body's own circuits.
The result was immediate.
> [Mana Flow Synchronization: 35%]
[Trait Strengthened – Circuit Harmony]
[Effect: Enhanced Mana Concealment +15%]
Her eyes brightened. "It worked."
Sylph clapped softly. "You're insane. You're literally mixing beast mana with human circuits."
"And yet," Aveline said with a faint grin, "it's working better than expected."
A faint whisper stirred in her mind — not in words, but in feeling. Calm, proud, approving. The Lumivorn.
> "Thank you," she said softly.
---
Late Night — The Watchers
Hours later, the mansion slept.
But not everyone was resting.
Elias stood by his window again, tracing runes into the air, watching faint readings blink across his detector.
In another wing, Aveline sat awake, sketching new rune patterns into her notebook while Sylph floated near the lamp.
Neither knew the other was awake.
Both were watching, waiting — testing limits in their own ways.
Out beyond the garden, in the forest, two glowing blue eyes opened — the Lumivorn watching silently, its aura spreading faintly across the trees.
---
Closing Scene
The night was calm, but under that calm, two minds were locked in quiet opposition.
Elias, searching for the truth.
Aveline, mastering her disguise.
And in the shadows, the bond between human and ancient creature grew stronger — something neither the capital nor its investigators were ready for.