Chapter 4358: One-Sided Rivalry (part 2) |
By then, the Master was done working on his academy lessons, the development projects for the Essagor Region, and his schemes as the Master.
"I’m sorry for being out all day, but with Spring approaching, the academy is throwing paperwork at me like rice at a wedding." He sounded casual, but he hadn’t missed the tension in the air. "How was your day?"
"Amazing!" Filia said. "Now that the triplets and Fenrir have magical beasts as well, we have enough people to organize real tourneys instead of always playing in the same two teams."
"Ely and Ral are growing up quickly, Dad." Frey said. "You should visit them more often, or they won’t remember you growing up."
"I know, and I’m sorry, son." Vastor would have loved spending more time with Lith’s children, and not only as a family friend.
The Master was also an evolved human and was certain that by studying the budding Indech life force of the babies, he would uncover a method to advance his own evolution.
"What about you, Zin? Did you have a good time with your sister?" The children were as happy and carefree as he expected them to be.
His wife was the troubled one.
"I had a great time, but also the opportunity to think about our future." Zinya put her cutlery down on her plate, taking a deep breath. "Do you know that Lith Awakened his parents and sister?"
"Elina, Raaz, and Rena didn’t want to feel helpless anymore, so they asked him to Awaken them." Zinya nodded. "Senton too is an Awakened now, but he and Rena decided they won’t develop their cores past the green.
"Just enough to use dimensional magic. Everything else will have to wait until their kids grow up."
"It’s a reasonable choice, although a bit rushed." Vastor cleared his throat, knowing where that conversation would lead.
"If you ask me, they should have done it sooner." The Master clenched his knee from below the table, waiting for the blow to land. "There is nothing to lose from Awakening and much to gain.
"I don’t know why it took me so long to realize it, and there’s no point in dwelling on it any longer. I’m sorry, kids. You were right, and I was wrong. I should have allowed your father to Awaken you the first time you asked."
"Can we really Awaken, Mom?" Filia and Frey said in unison. "Will we train with our friends?"
"Yes, and maybe in the future." Zinya shrugged. "Aran and Leria had years to practice while I kept you at the starting line. If you want to catch up with them, you’ll have to work hard.
"Yet don’t forget that you are still children and we don’t know if you’ll like practicing magic. Please, take it easy and don’t rush things. Everyone has their path in life, and magic doesn’t need to be yours. Do you understand what I’m saying?"
"Yes, Mom." Filia and Frey nodded.
"What about you, Zin? Wouldn’t that make you feel left out?" Vastor asked even though he already knew the answer.
"No, Zogar, because I want you to Awaken me as well." There was a hardness in her gaze and a finality in her voice that the Master knew all too well.
He had seen those eyes in his mirror for decades and heard that tone whenever he spoke. They were the telltale signs of someone who was deeply disappointed in themselves.
Someone who would do anything to change the bad hand fate had dealt them. Even if that meant taking the wrong path and doing things they would forever regret.
"If that’s what you want, we can do it right after dinner." Vastor didn’t question her decision, knowing it would be a stab at Zinya’s already wounded pride.
She loved her nephews and niece, yet every time she visited them, it was a painful reminder of what life had denied her. Elina Awakening meant that not only Kamila, but also Elina would remain young and beautiful as Zinya aged.
The invisible and one-sided score that Zinya kept with the Verhens had reached the breaking point, and there was no turning back. If he tried to stop her now, she would live it as an attempt to harm her children’s future.
’I’m not worried about Frey and Filia. Tezka is always by their side, and they love and respect him enough to take his advice to heart. Zinya, instead, is filled with this desire to prove something to herself and me.
’If she thinks I’m trying to hold her back, she might not listen to me and do something stupid.’ He thought. ’I’ll talk to her in private later, once she’s calmed down a bit.’
"Thank you, Zogar!" Zinya jumped out of her seat to hug him, quickly followed by the children. "I promise that I will follow your instructions to the letter. Please, keep an eye on us all. I don’t want anything bad to happen."
Filia and Frey didn’t need to be told the risks that Awakening entailed because Zinya had listed them countless times in the hope that her children would relent pestering her about letting them study magic.
"Remember your words, because I sure will." The Master embraced his family and had a Rememberer record that moment. "Now let’s finish our dinner. You’re going to need a lot of energy to Awaken."
Tezka sat at the table as well, but the moment the children turned their backs on him, he frowned. He was as worried about Zinya as Vastor, but that wasn’t all. It would be months before a deep red core like her could hurt others, and years before Zinya’s magic could hurt her.
The entire Organization had plenty of time to make the necessary preparations to ensure that nothing bad would happen to Zinya.
The Black Throne, instead, was a matter of extreme urgency.
The Organization needed to get its hands on the cursed tower before the Dead King, the Kingdom, or any other faction already aware of his return. The Black Throne’s outdated design and cursed nature were irrelevant to the Organization’s plans.
It was still a mage tower, and the perfect test subject for Bytra. The Fourth Ruler of the Flames’ compassion didn’t extend to someone with the Black Throne’s track record, and his alliance with the Upyrs only proved he had no desire or will to change his ways.
Bytra wouldn’t lose a single night’s sleep even if she had to dismantle the cursed tower brick by brick. Once she uncovered the Black Throne’s secrets, the Organization would have everything they needed to craft as many mage towers as needed.
***
Jiera continent, Maneka Region, inside the Black Throne, a few hours earlier.
"You’re lucky I was close, apprentice, and for more than one reason." The cursed tower had never left his mana geyser, waiting for Jorl to return with his prize. "You may have escaped the Suneater’s clutches, but you still carry a much more insidious enemy inside you.
"Your Vurdalak side has devoured part of your Griffon life force, and there is no way to reverse the process."
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