Chapter 19: The Master’s Shadow

Naya couldn’t help but wonder if there had been some mistake. Yet, neither Leon nor Liuli seemed to have recognized the wrong person.

What an unexpected coincidence.

“So, she’s the benefactor who taught you swordsmanship?”

Ael gently patted Leon’s shoulder, a gesture of comfort.

“Seriously, an S-rank bounty bandit as your master? I… I don’t even know what to say. So, Liuli was tormented by Leon’s master for those ten years!”

Leon was at a loss for how to face Liuli. Would she think he was just like his master, jumping from one hell into another?

Liuli watched Leon with an unreadable expression. She was, as always, a girl who never showed her emotions.

“I cannot comprehend that Master is such a person.”

“How long has it been since you last saw your master?” Ael asked.

“Three years.”

“Liuli knew your master ten years ago. Just how many faces does this person have?”

In a fit of anger, Leon tore down the bounty poster. It bore no reward, functioning more as a warning than a true bounty.

“I’m going to find her and ask her myself.”

His expression remained grave throughout, the poster of his master clutched tightly in his hand.

***

Afterward, they returned to their home in Dawn City.

Finally, it was time to inquire about the Scroll of Light. Ael and Liuli sat facing each other across a table. Ael noticed Liuli’s palpable unease.

“You don’t need to be nervous. I just have a few questions.”

“Liuli is simply unaccustomed. Usually, when answering, she is either kneeling or suspended.”

Ael grew even more furious upon hearing this. She had initially thought Rothschild was the pervert, but it turned out Leon’s master was the true culprit? This was something her sense of justice absolutely could not tolerate.

“Don’t worry, Aio will get justice for you. Are you truly the last mage spoken of by the Church of Angels?”

“Liuli does possess a type of magic. If possessing magic makes one a mage, then yes, that is correct.”

“Could you show me your magic?”

“Of course.” Liuli softly uttered something, and the book materialized out of thin air above her palm once more!

“I didn’t mishear, did I? You just said ‘open,’ and the book appeared!?”

“Indeed, no incantation or anything else is needed.”

“This must be a magic book, right?” Ael said, a hint of wonder in her voice. “What kind of magic is recorded in it?”

“Nothing at all. It’s completely blank.” Liuli replied, her tone subdued.

Ael leaned closer, examining it intently. The pages were undeniably blank, and Ael couldn’t touch it; it seemed ethereal, belonging solely to Liuli.

If the magic merely conjured a book that could only be admired but neither read nor written, it would be utterly disappointing.

“Have you heard of the Scroll of Light? It’s the Holy Scripture of Light, which records Aio’s essence, stolen by mages a hundred years ago. Most of it has been recovered by the order, but the final fragment is still missing.”

“Liuli has not heard of the Scroll of Light,” she answered. Ael felt another wave of disappointment.

Liuli hesitated. “Actually, mages understand certain laws better than mortals, perhaps what you refer to as God. I apologize, Liuli only knows this much.”

“Oh? You mean even mages acknowledge that God truly exists?”

Liuli offered no reply, perhaps even she didn’t know.

“Well, it seems the only way to discover the whereabouts of the Scroll of Light is to conquer Ilanto.”

***

Late that night,

Everyone had fallen asleep. Naya, having bathed and changed into her nightgown, gazed at her childlike face in the mirror. She still looked like she hadn’t grown up at all.

She was bothered by the familiar teasing about her being a ‘poison healer’ earlier that day. Despite having sworn not to be underestimated because of her appearance, it kept happening again and again.

‘I am Aio’s priestess. If only I could be more like Ael…’

Suddenly, a knock sounded at her door. Naya startled. The moment she opened it, Leon rushed inside.

“You’re still awake, aren’t you?”

“Yes… and you too, Leon?” Naya appeared flustered, her mind momentarily blank, wondering why Leon had suddenly burst into her room so late.

“Get dressed immediately and come with me!”

“What? Where are we going?”

“To find my master,” Leon declared, shouldering his sword. “I don’t want to involve Ael or Liuli in matters concerning my master. I intend to—resolve this myself.”