My eyes widened as Ren's body shimmered with light, the glow spreading until his form began to fade. Bit by bit, he turned translucent, then fully invisible.
I reached out to him instinctively. Then my fingers brushed against something warm and soft.
"Hey! What the heck, bro?" Ren's voice yelped, breaking the silence.
I yanked my hand back with a grimace. "Ew! That was your nose?!"
"What did you expect? You're the one poking me!"
I wiped my fingers on my sleeve with exaggerated disgust, ignoring his protests. Despite the odd start, my curiosity won out. "So… this is LIGHT magic?"
Ren's disembodied voice replied smugly, "Sort of. It's actually a modified version. The base spell is Light Veil, which is supposed to make your body glow faintly. But I combined it with FORCE magic to manipulate light particles around me, bending them into a transparent field. Pretty cool, huh?"
"So cool you had to give it a fancy name?" I deadpanned.
He laughed. "Yup! I call it Translucent Veil. When paired with soundproofing magic, it's perfect for sneaking around unnoticed."
I tilted my head. "But how can you use LIGHT magic suddenly? Your EMBLEM is FORCE."
There was a pause before Ren sighed audibly. "Yeah… about that."
The shimmer of his magic faded, and his body reappeared. To my shock, he began unbuttoning his shirt.
"H-Hey! What are you doing?!" I stammered, clamping a hand over my eyes.
"Relax! I just want to show you something!" Ren replied, his voice exasperated.
Peeking through my fingers, I noticed a white emblem tattooed on his chest, shaped like a glowing cross.
"Wait. Is that… a LIGHT EMBLEM?"
Ren nodded, rebuttoning his shirt.
Hold on! Does this mean this boy already awakened his second EMBLEM?
"When did this happen?" I asked, lowering my hand.
"Last week," he admitted casually.
My eyes narrowed. "That's impossible! Your FORCE magic is still at a basic level. No one awakens a second EMBLEM this quickly!"
"Beats me," he said with a shrug. "I was meditating and practicing my mana flow when my chest suddenly felt warm… like something inside me was igniting. And then, when I looked, this EMBLEM was just… there."
I stared at him, astonished. Awakening a second EMBLEM was considered a rare feat, often the mark of a prodigy… or a freak. Even the original William, as the male lead from Twilight's Chronicle, hadn't managed it. And Ren, the boy who spent most of his time joking around, had figured out magic applications I couldn't even imagine.
But I refused to stroke his ego. He was unbearable enough as it was. If I praised him, he'd get a big head!
"Does Master Ix or Sir Owen know about this?"
Ren shook his head. "Nope. You're the first person I've told."
"Huh? Why keep it a secret?"
He rolled his eyes. "Because if they find out, they'll double my training! And I don't want anyone to know about my camouflage spell. Do you realize how much trouble I'd get in if they knew?"
My gaze fell on a crumpled candy wrapper on the floor. A realization struck me like lightning.
"Don't tell me… You've already used that spell to steal from the palace kitchens!"
Ren froze, his face suddenly very still.
"I knew it!" I exclaimed, pointing at the wrapper accusingly.
I shuddered at the thought of what else this boy could do with his magic. After all, while he might look like a kid, his soul was that of a grown man!
"W-Wait! It's not what it looks like!"
"Not what it looks like?!" I conjured a small flame in my palm, leaning closer with mock menace. "William Renfield Lazarro, if I find out you've been sneaking into places you shouldn't, I'll—"
"I swear I haven't done anything creepy!" Ren blurted, waving his arms in panic. "Besides, my mana capacity is way too low to sustain the spell for long. I've only managed five minutes at best!"
"Is that why you've been dragging me into extra training sessions lately? So you can extend the duration of your camouflage spell?" I asked menacingly, glaring at him.
"N-No! Stop looking at me like I'm a pervert!"
"Hmm…" I let the flame flicker out, still eyeing him suspiciously. "Fine. But I'm watching you, Ren. One wrong move, and you're toast."
"Noted," he muttered, slumping in defeat.
Satisfied, I straightened up. Well… Despite his antics, Ren's abilities could be incredibly useful.
***
For the next few days, we used Ren's Translucent Veil to spy on Shilien. Carefully, we followed her through the palace, watching who she met and what she did.
To my surprise, we found nothing immediately incriminating. Shilien spent most of her time with Chrisola, playing with her in the gardens, reading books together, and teaching her the manners of a noble lady. Her soft-spoken demeanor with my sister was a far cry from the cold, cruel woman I had grown up with.
"Ugh… Snap out of it, Chrisola! That wicked woman is only pretending to be kind," I muttered one afternoon as we watched them from the shadows of the hedge maze.
"Are you sure about that?" Ren asked, his voice thoughtful.
I glared at him. "Of course, I'm sure! That snake is manipulating my sister to turn her against me!"
Ren frowned, scratching the back of his head. "Maybe… but what if she's changed? People in this world don't always follow the same path as their novel counterparts, right? Maybe she really does care about Chrisola?"
"Tsk. Naive as always," I scoffed. "You haven't experienced her wrath. You didn't grow up under her thumb, enduring her punishments. Anna can vouch for me. She has seen how often Shilien would hit me. And it wasn't just physical. Shilien taught me curses and dark magic before I even understood what they were. Trust me, she's a monster."
Ren fell silent, but I caught a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
"What's the plan, then?" he asked after a long pause.
I smirked. "If we can't prove her guilt yet, we'll play along with her game."
His brows rose. "You mean… pretend everything's fine?"
"Exactly. Let her think she's winning... For now." I clenched my fists, my voice cold with resolve. "But when the time comes, I'll make sure her mask falls… just like she made mine!"