Chapter 49: Adam Cer Forett Shadow
As the dust settled and the echoes of the battle faded, Devon turned to Mystic's side, his senses on high alert.
He knew that no matter how powerful he was, he wouldn't be able to protect himself while defending Mystic if the archer decided to target them too.
The speed and interval shots of the two arrows that had solved his problems like it was a joke were something he couldn't deal with.
However, as the mystery became as heavy as a ton of cement bags on his shoulders, two figures showed up behind a tree and walked towards him.
With a single glance, he recognized them. Yet, he didn't let his guard down, quite the contrary.
As William approached him with a large smile on his lips while carrying Valtus on his shoulder, and Ciel, following him from behind, Devon manifested a sword and braced himself to face them.
'If I act too friendly with them, it will cause me trouble in the future.' He said to himself, blatantly showing his murderous intent through his eyes.
At this reaction, William stopped five meters away from Devon.
He first threw his bow to the ground, then put Valtus down before raising both his arms, showing his good intentions.
"Don't worry, I have no intention of biting you." He said before smiling once more.
But Devon didn't listen to him.
Seeing this, William looked at Ciel.
At his gesture, Ciel also tries her luck. "You remember me, right? I am an ally of your master. This man is our...
It is only when he sees Ciel step forward while saying these words with a forced smile on her lips that he lowers his sword without bothering to listen to her further.
'System, can you tell me when she will wake up?'
[...]
'Sigh, you don't answer useless questions, huh? Is she okay at least?'
[...]
Now aware that he's not going to get anything concrete from his system, he leans towards Mystic before picking up her sword and putting it back in its sheath around Mystic's waist.
"What do we do now, Captain William?" Ciel asks for her superior's instructions while giving Devon's actions a curious look.
"Huh?" William who also seems too focused on Devon woke up when he heard Ciel calling him.
"Well, we have no choice but to go back to heal Valtus."
His decision made Ciel sigh in relief.
"And what about that girl? Doesn't she need healing too?"
"No, she just pushed her energy too hard. She just needs to rest to replenish her energy."
Hearing William confirm his doubts, Devon didn't waste any time. He carried Mystic on his back before staring at William.
The latter frowns while smiling contradictorily.
Devon didn't need to be in his mind to guess what he was thinking. But he was willing to take the risk instead of letting Mystic be carried by strangers.
William and Ciel also seemed to have realized his intentions.
Thus, William put his bow back in his grimoire before carrying Valtus on his shoulder a second time.
"Let's not waste any time."
With these words, the three began to walk back to the camp.
After half an hour, the squad arrived at the camp.
Devon did not follow William's instructions but directly brought Mystic to her tent.
His relief was not to come across anyone who knew Mystic.
Perhaps because of his explorations last night that exhausted him, Noha was sleeping under Mystic's tent, on his cushion.
Devon laid Mystic down on her cushion before covering her with a blanket.
'Sigh, even after so much effort, I don't feel the slightest bit tired, I never imagined that I could envy those who sleep.' He muttered to himself before sitting on his stool staring at Mystic with all types of questions in his mind.
'What is the origin of that power she showed? And above all, why are we both using this unhealthy energy? What will be the consequences if this comes to be known to others?'
Despite not having the slightest answer to all these questions, Devon was unable to think otherwise. After five minutes of intense thought, he looked towards the exit, seeing Mystic's tent welcoming two uninvited guests.
When William entered the tent accompanied by Ciel, the two looked at the blanket on Mystic in bewilderment.
But the hostility in Devon's eyes discouraged the two from moving any further.
"Captain William, are beasts supposed to be this intelligent?"
"...Who knows?" William answers with a disturbed look.
He then frowns as his eyes scan Devon from head to toe with an almost frightening curiosity.
"One thing is for sure, this is the first time I've seen such a creature." He adds as if he was unconsciously speaking his thoughts out loud.
Although his voice was quite low, Ciel heard him. "You mean this beast is not a Nightwalker?"
"A Nightwalker? Nah, that's another creature."
"Huh?"
Seeing Ciel exclaim in surprise, her eyes filled with curiosity, William frowned at her while putting on a stern expression.
"Forget what I just said and don't even think about digging further out of curiosity, it's for your good."
"..."
However, the gleam in Ciel's eyes was as if rekindled by his warning.
With a single glance, he could tell that Ciel had no intention of listening to him.
That said, although annoyed by her stubbornness, William no longer tried to dissuade her, lest she would get even more curious.
He then looked at Mystic lying behind Devon with a solemn look. 'That girl, ...it seems that the absurd rumors about the savagery of this clan are not completely false.' He mumbled before putting his trembling hands in his pockets.
Even though Devon saw his actions, he was unable to label them as fear or anxiety.
After checking, William went out of the tent, perhaps to report to his superiors.
Ciel didn't last either, especially with Devon constantly staring at her.
Right after they left, Devon picked up his book on the history of the continent and resumed reading while waiting for Mystic to wake up.
…
..
.
After another half hour, while he was fully absorbed in his book, he noticed Mystic waking up from her unconscious state.
'She's recovering faster than I expected.' He mumbled as he met Mystic's eyes.
The latter then looked away and inspected herself in a dull silence.
After a minute of long silence, she sighed.
Without saying a word, Devon glanced at her before going back to reading.
"You're not going to ask me how I became this monster?" She asked in a somewhat low and hoarse voice due to her weakened state.
"[...]"
Seeing Devon silent, she turned her head towards him just to meet his gaze.
"You wanted to know why I didn't--
"[This is not the time to talk about that, rest first. We'll talk about it when you--
Devon stopped halfway through his sentence when he saw her shaking her head.
"No, it's now or never."
Hearing her and seeing the determined glare she was giving him, Devon first looked behind him to make sure that Noha was still asleep.
After making sure of that,
"[That lame, your stubbornness.]" He didn't try to dissuade her anymore, although he could see her bad condition on her still-pale face and dry lips.
"Just now when we were in the forest, I had the scare of my life for the second time. Do you know? The scariest beings are not the monsters, but those who are obsessed with power to the point of losing their minds.
I know a lot since my clan only swears by strength. I am one of the countless victims of this obsession of theirs." She stops to catch her breath.
But Devon could see her eyes getting colder and sad as he stared at her. However, he didn't interrupt her again.
Afterward, Mystic picked up where she left off.
"As you can probably guess, the mark on my forehead has nothing to do with my clan's power, but with my mother who was not human, but one of these creatures that we have been fighting for several centuries now."
"[...]" Devon's eyes widen slightly after hearing him say that outright!
Although he had a bad feeling, he did his best to keep his head on his shoulders.
"Even if no one has told me the truth yet, I guessed it over the years, and thanks to the books I had read in the clan's library about the invaders called Mystics.
Some texts indicate there are individuals with powers similar to mine. This is how I discovered the origin of the mark on my forehead.
Besides, my father was famous for his ability to kill his enemies with simple eye contact. Even though I barely had any memories of him, time seemed to rid me of them.
But thanks to his fame in the clan, I learned a lot about his skills. He is endowed with special eyes that help him trap his enemies in an illusion that strikes realism.
It is said that he could subdue an entire city in an illusory world only created and maintained by the powers of his pupils. In addition, he could force an entire clan to massacre itself without lifting a finger."
"[...]"
'Why do I have the impression that his father was more monstrous than the patriarch?' The more he thought about it, the more convincing it seemed to him.
In Devon's mind, the most powerful was not the patriarch, but the man he had met in the gate.
However, hearing the tales of such a legend was somewhat hard to swallow, even for him who met a transcendent monster.
But the hardest part is learning that someone in this world has been able to kill such a monster who bore Adam's name.
"You're probably wondering why I'm telling you so much about my father, but know that it's not to brag about him. Even if I've never seen him use his powers, I have the impression that you resemble him."
"[I'm not your father.]" Devon answers instantly to avoid any kind of future misunderstandings.
"TSS~, I'm not referring to that; I'm talking about your abilities. Honestly, I don't feel any particular attachment to him, and you already know that.
I'm bringing this up because you possess skills that resemble his. Your ability to read other people's minds and share your thoughts with others—aren't those similar to mental powers? That's a domain in which Adam is famous.
Just like him, I know that one day, you will know how to use these formidable powers, I share this information with you just to give you something to think about. I know that I wouldn't be good at it, but you, perhaps—I have a deep conviction of it."
"[Why? Aren't you... his daughter? I'm sure that you are the most qualified to inherit his power than a random guy like--
"I inherited more from my mother than from my father, this mark and the power that I just showed you earlier are more than enough proof.
For some reason, even though I've never met my mother, nor know what she should look like, I feel like I see her every time I stare in a mirror or use my skills. These things are like raw instincts, we feel them every time, all the time."
Unexpectedly, Mystic fell into a deep silence after giving this brief account.
Devon looked at her back in bewilderment, not knowing what to think or say.
Deep down, he wasn't even sure of Mystic's current emotions.
After a minute of silence, he sighed.
"[Do you hate your parents for what they did?]"
"...I don't know. I only have broken memories of my childhood with my father, so I can't say if he was a good person or not. Truly, I don't care about his personality.
My mother should probably have felt tainted when she had me. The Mystics hate us as much as we hate them. So it's easy to guess what she felt when she had me as her daughter at the cost of rape?"
"[...Is that why you hate your clan, blood, and this power you inherited from her?]"
"..."
Seeing her silence, Devon felt sorry for her.
"[I'm grateful to them anyway.]"
Hearing Devon, she turned her head towards him with eyes filled with confusion as if she looked at an idiot.
"[Yes, I am grateful to them. Whether it was intentional or not, they still gave me a second chance at life. Without you, I don't think I could live a second time.]"
"...TSS~, we can say that you're not good at comforting someone."
"[I'm doing my best here. Sigh, anyway, what I mean by that is that no matter how much you resent, don't let those negative feelings get the better of you. Good often has the unfortunate tendency to hide in evil and inversely, I speak by experience.]"