Chapter 38 - The Shadows (1) - 37

"So, Junior-kun, cause you're rank 1, that means that you're also Ashen right?"

"Yeah, so what's your point?"

"So you're a mixed blood."

"What are you getting at?" I said, feigning being defensive, acting like I knew nothing about what she was getting at.

"Do you ever feel frustrated?"

"Okay, let's stop there, I can already guess what you're going to propose, and it's very illegal. And why would you care anyways?"

"No, no, I only asked you to lend me your ear, so please listen to my story."

She looked at me with a pleading face, obviously a fake one though.

"Alright, I'm listening."

"So, there once was a little girl. For some reason, she had been cast away as a child, left to fend for herself on the streets. There, she was starved and beaten, until she grew to understand that she had to fight back, becoming one of the stray dogs in the back alleys fighting for every single meal, fighting for her survival."

"As she grew older, she realized that the reason for her abandonment was because she had both a black and white tattoo on her body, which for some reason that she couldn't understand, led her to be shunned by society."

"But, when she turned 10, she was taken in by a powerful man, who treated her as if she was his own daughter. He taught her all she knew, allowing her to become powerful, so that she could now take anything that she wanted for herself."

"With his help, she was able to obtain everything she ever wanted, and she now lives the best life possible, happily ever after. The end."

"Is that all? Isn't there also the part where, "The happy life is a fake lie. The girl is being used by the man to spy on another country." Or am I wrong?"

"Well, you're right, but the girl is happy after all."

"Is it true happiness?"

...

"I thought so. Well, I have no interest in this "story" of yours. After all, I was once a child like that too."

Hearing this, her eyes immediately turned cold as a murderous aura started surrounding her.

"Did you just say something?" She asked, in a sickly sweet voice.

"Hey, hey, tone it down, we're in the library, you don't want to face the backlash."

"I mean, you don't have to get that mad at me for insulting "dad". He's just an old man anyways."

Her murderous aura got 10 times stronger, but then, it was forcefully suppressed.

'The library is powerful, as always.' After all, the library was an artifact, one that hated violence, as the nature of it was a place for learning.

"Whoops my mistake, but seriously, the only reason I haven't reported you yet, Senpai, is because you were just like me."

"So calm the fuck down and let me explain."

I watched as she took a few deep breaths, before looking in surprise at the fact that she had stood up sometime in the past minute, but her legs were shaking now from the suppression, so she sat back down.

"Explain, now!"

Injecting my spiritual energy into my earrings, I summoned my sisters, but asked them to hide in the shadows for now.

"So, do you know about his children?"

"You mean, the two failed sisters and the boy that's been sent here too as a spy? If I remember correctly, he should... be going to the L this year." She slowed down the last part of her sentence.

"His name was Kurayami Akimitsu, and yours is also Akimitsu. Sigh, why did I never notice that before?"

"But then, why are you like this?"

"I told you, I've defected."

"You! The one child of his that actually has everything, betrayed him?!!!"

"You were his successor! Why would you do that?"

"And what about everything he's done for you? Are you just an ungrateful bastard!!!"

"Like what?" I replied.

"The only thing that he's done for me is ruin my life!"

"It was exactly because I was his successor that I never got to experience anything that a normal kid could. Just imagine doing the training that you did, but 10 times harder, and for every single day from when you were 5 to when you were 15!"

"It's no wonder I defected."

"Well, actually, it's not the real reason why I defected, but I can't tell you that, now can I?"

"So you're saying, the reason you defected was because the work was too hard, but that that wasn't the actual reason."

"Then how about this, tell me one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now?"

"Because you just can't."

"Oh yeah, now that you've reminded me, I guess I'll have to force you into a spiritual contract with me to stop you from spreading the information you just learned to the others."

"And how are you going to do that?" She asked, with a smirk on her face.

"Iris, Indira, please restrain and force her into a spiritual contract with me."

Immediately, two figures leapt out of the shadows, subduing Annalise in less than a second.

"W-what! How did you keep them? They're servants! It's impossible for them to betray dad!"

"Well, I made it possible."

With that, I quickly wrote up a contract while she could only sit there, staring at me with a murderous gaze.

As my sisters forced her hands to mine, then controlled her spiritual energy, like how I had done with Ryker, and forced Annalise into a spiritual contract with me, one that just stated that she wouldn't divulge any of the information that she learned today.

"Well, now that that's done, let's get along for the rest of our shift."

With an upbeat mood, I went back to reading my book.

...

I quickly arrived back in my dorm.

'Whew, phase 1 of the "Save Primrose" plan is a success."

You see, whilst I was making the spiritual contract, I had invaded Annalise with my antimagic, and had severed her connection to the Monarch.

So now, although it wouldn't be noticeable to her, she could think more freely for herself.

Obviously, her ideals wouldn't change right away, but, with time, my repeated influence during our shifts together and her growing sisterhood with Primrose might make it so that she betrays the Monarch just one time, which would open the gateway for multiple betrayals after that.

"Well, it was a good day after all."