'This place again.'
Lieren lay on his back. The world above and below were the epitome of darkness, the zenith of the abyss. His surroundings were an inky black, lacking depth or color. However, the boy, as crazy as it sounds, felt something in the darkness. It was alive, writhing—surviving.
There was something else here.
"Oh…you're back." A voice, casual yet regal, echoed infinitely in the darkness.
Suddenly, Lieren was standing up. Or maybe had been this entire time, who knows? All that he could think about was the man sitting casually on the throne-like chair in front of him.
Lieren blinked a few times, confused.
'Who…?'
The man held a regal air, subtly authoritative, but was not dominating. He closed the book in his hand shut with one hand, then glanced at Lieren. His gaze held a small amount of unhidden contempt.
The boy gulped. He was vulnerable here. Without Kronesta or his aegis around, he was nothing more than a boy, weak and frail, with sub-par physical, as well as being an Insig. He couldn't be any weaker if he tried, a fact Lieren is reminded of every single day.
Nevertheless, that doesn't mean that death would elude him, pity him, nor his personal tribulations.
The boy's body was tense, his weak muscles involuntarily contracting. The man's presence was overbearing, powerful yet comforting. It eased Lieren, installing hope and inspiration in him. However, another part of him, something unfamiliar, rejected this peace of mind, diluting it.
The man placed the book on his lap. He crossed his legs. With a deep sigh, the man said:
"Hello. I am the King that brought the world to ruin… and saved it."
Lieren froze, dumbfounded.
"…Huh?"
'Is he crazy?'
The man let out a deep, deep sigh and muttered under his breath:
"Hah~ This is the problem with kids these days." He complained in a whispery and annoyed voice.
As if forgetting the place they were currently in, the man's whisper echoed in the darkness. Lieren heard everything perfectly and grew embarrassed. As self-deprecating as he was, the boy still felt an intense wave of defeat whenever somebody made rude comments about or to him, no matter how far-off or true it was.
The man set both foot down on the inky black abyss, leaning forward. He peered into Lieren's with his own amethyst eyes.
At the same time, Lieren felt an intense wave of welcoming intent wash over him, spreading through unfamiliar channels in his body, and, despite starting in his head, the man's—King's intent spread to his appendages first, then stopped momentarily, circling back and into his head once more, peering deeper and eventually grazing his soul.
The moment Lieren's inner self, the core of his identity was tampered with a mysterious force, a much more mysterious force, one Lieren felt odd familiarity with, pushed the force out, expelling it out of his body in one quick burst of power.
For the first time, the man's face showed signs of expression, a hungry grin on his face and a gluttonous glint in his amethyst eyes.
"Very, VERY interesting." The man, his regal air turning predacious, said aloud. Wild appreciation tinged his voice.
Lieren gulped, his breaths coming out in uneven bursts.
What was that?, he asked, not to the man, but to himself. 'I didn't know I could do that. In the first place, did "I" even do that? I definitely couldn't do that before. Besides, I'm an Insig—a non-magic born. I shouldn't be able to cast or even sense spells, let alone dispel them. You'd need a high-level sorcerer, at the very least sixth level, for that! There's absolutely no way somebody like me can do something as crazy as that. There's just no way!'
The boy, confused and mystified by his own mysterious ability, clutched his head, feeling an intense headache as he desperately rejected his own power.
The man, on the other hand, picked up his book and flipped through it furiously. The pages moved on their own with, like leaves on a windy day. A few seconds passed, then the pages stopped, as if nothing happened, acting normally.
The man pointed on some text.
"There it is." His eyes scanned the runes, text, and glyphs instantly.
"Magic Resistance. The exceedingly rare and unique ability to resist spells, charms, and/or mana-influenced phenomena. This ability can manifest in various ways, though most of the already miniscule group of individuals with this ability exhibit the ability to create a temporary field of mana resistance.
"This is not to be mistaken the same as anti magic, an ability with similar aspects, but could be better likened to divine intervention or the spell Dispel Magic, a powerful spell for sixth level mages and above.
"This ability only applies to one type of magic and is thus restricted to only negating spells that fall into that category.
"The mental toll it takes for the caster to even cast, let alone maintain the ability is mind-boggling. Total mana control and efficient energy expenditure is a necessary trait to use this ability, at most times even demanding more than what it gives.
"It is unknown what category this ability falls into.
"This ability possesses a natural restriction to inflict unimaginable pain on the caster, and thus cannot be maintained over long durations, as the mental and physical burden it induces on the caster is enough that, upon a mere thirty seconds of activation: the caster begins to experience intense headaches and the horrifying sensation of what the casters considered as being stabbed, bitten, and cut apart repeatedly. Longer than thirty seconds and it begins to sap the caster's lifespan. And, if the Adorned is powerful or simply thick-headed enough to endure such agony: then the caster suffers cardiac arrest as a certainty upon a minute of activation. Or so it says…"
The intense headache began to subside as Lieren listened to the man's voice, calm and collected once more, with the predacious attitude mostly gone.
'Magic…resistance?'
"It would seem that you, annoyingly enough, possess Magic Resistance." The man closed his book, resting his palm on the leather cover.
"However, I do not believe this to be the regular Magic Resistance described in the book. I think it's something much stronger than that. From what I gathered, only exceedingly powerful and experienced mages born with this ability can use it. You may possess this ability intrinsically, but you're no master or veteran. You lack the insight to magic theory, proficiency of mana manipulation, and mastery over the basic applications of magic and use of spells. However, all of that still doesn't hold a candle to your ability's most mysterious aspect, or rather you yourself."
Liren swallowed, his nerves sensitive from stress. He felt like a balloon about to burst.
The man muttered clearly and slowly, making sure that Lieren understood every word that came out of his mouth.
"It's that, your entire life, you've been maintaining this ability active, never once turning it off."