DOTD Chapter 8

 

 

He waited for my permission before turning his head to make sure I was dressed properly out of the corner of his eye.

 

I found myself laughing at his cautious demeanor. I would never have expected such an innocent reaction from my friends.

 

Adrian would have been in his office, Sion would have wanted to make fun of me, and Louis would have lifted me himself.

 

Yzmel shrugged his shoulders and fixed his gaze on me. 

 

Before I could ask why he was looking at me with a questioning expression, he spoke.

 

“More than that, you still haven’t answered my question: where did you get this magical item that contains Adrian’s power?”

 

Evan stiffened slightly at the mention of Adrian’s name. I looked away, pretending not to notice, and fiddled with my earring.

 

Do I really need to tell him the truth?

 

There’s nothing I couldn’t say, but right now, Adrian was just one of the main protagonists of the war.

 

Whether the mages of the Tower participate in the war matters more than anyone could imagine.

 

He’s the one who decides that.

 

For Evan, he’s the enemy to fight.

 

“None of Adrian’s magic items have ever appeared in a magic auction, let alone a personal trade.”

 

“…Just by chance.”

 

“You expect me to believe you got it by accident?”

 

Yzmel’s brow furrowed.

 

The corners of his mouth pulled up in a forced, harmless smile, but he blinked at me without changing his expression, as if to say, ‘Just answer him.’

 

“Answer me. Come on.”

 

I don’t think he’s going to back down unless he gets an answer.

 

“Only if you give me a reason why I should tell you.”

 

“Do you know how things are in the Land of Gold these days?”

 

I asked, trying to buy time, and he answered without hesitation. It was an unexpected answer.

 

“How is it?”

 

“Mages from the Tower have been running amok in the name of war, terrorizing the once-rich city of Avantha.”

 

My mouth dropped open like a dumbfounded fool.

 

He hadn’t meant to, but he’d brought up my weakest point, the war.

 

“What could the powerless do to stop the wizards? They were looted, enslaved, and attacked.”

 

I didn’t want to know. I want to tell him he should stop talking because I’m going to tell him where the earrings came from.

 

What the hell has Adrian been up to that the wizards are like this?

 

“Even the Master of the Tower disappeared without a trace, suddenly.”

 

What? Disappeared? What does that mean?

 

“Why? Where?”

 

“I don’t know, because he’s not very talkative. All I know is that he’s been wanting to find someone for a while.”

 

“…”

 

“For now, anything that has to do with him is a clue. So tell me now, where did you get that?”

 

“I mean…”

 

So, this won’t help us find Adrian, and I’m in a bad mood to say that, because I’m tired of answering the question.

 

And why should I feel guilty of Adrian’s dereliction of duty, which I guess I couldn’t help but feel, since I’m the one who caused the war, but it’s unfair.

 

I sighed and answered, “He gave it to me.”

 

“Who?”

 

I glanced back at Evan, his heavier wall-eye lodged in my earlobe where the earring was, and I didn’t think it would come off.

 

As if to avoid touching it, I deliberately covered my earring.

 

“…Adrian.”

 

Oh, I had no idea.

 

🦋

 

Bella’s condition, with no heartbeat, surprised everyone.

 

When Evan and Rowan first saw her lying on the ground, they thought they’d found a dead body.

 

That was until the monster attack knocked them out.

 

“…Evan, wake up, Evan!”

 

Rowan’s urgent cry brought Evan’s breathing to a halt.

 

“Bella’s alive. Calm down.”

 

The trembling in his eyes and hands had been so violently shaking with the anxiety that something was not right with Bella slowed.

 

“I’m sorry. I just freaked out a little…”

 

The misunderstanding was confirmed by Yzmel, the man who had helped them travel to the village.

 

“Her heart isn’t beating.”

 

After checking Bella over, Yzmel rightly concluded that she was dead.

 

Evan waved him off and vehemently denied it.

 

“I mean, we know it’s weird, but…”

 

Evan started to explain but then realized that he didn’t know anything about her condition either, and laughed embarrassed.

 

Watching him do so, he suddenly placed a hand on Bella’s body and closed his eyes.

 

“I see.”

 

Yzmel said, opening his eyes after a few moments.

 

Evan’s eyes widened.

 

“So you know how Bella ended up in this state?”

 

Yzmel nodded, looking pensive.

 

“Roughly.”

 

“Why?”

 

Evan demanded an explanation from Yzmel, and Rowan looked curious, even as he feigned disinterest.

 

“How did she get this abnormality…”

 

Yzmel pointed a finger at Bella’s earlobe.

 

“See these?”

 

“Earrings?”

 

Rowan’s question came out in his words.

 

“It’s a magical item. It’s what caused her heart to stop, but I thought it was black magic, forbidden to be cast on humans…”

 

Yzmel closed his eyes again, and this time he brought his hand up to the earring.

 

“Mmm.”

 

But soon his hand was thrown back by a strong force.

 

With a crunching sound, a powerful spark of mana shot out from the earring.

 

Eyes widening in mild surprise, Yzmel wrapped his hand around it and stepped back.

 

“This mana…”

 

Yzmel started to add, then shut his mouth. It seemed unnecessary to reveal the owner of the mana detected in the item.

 

“…I’m pretty sure I didn’t create it myself.”

 

He stated something that was true, but not the whole truth.

 

Evan’s face turned a rare shade of anger.

 

“Who would do this to…”

 

He muttered in a low voice.

 

The expressions on the faces of Yzmel and Rowan grew grave as well.

 

They were silent for a moment, each thinking of something else.

 

But none of them could have guessed that the taboo black magic was saving Bella’s life.

 

🦋

 

Silence enveloped the three of us at the mention of the name.

 

I clamped my mouth shut and thought about what I’d just said.

 

What a name, Adrian. I hadn’t called my friend by his name in a long time.

 

Yzmel’s brow furrowed in disbelief, and Evan’s gaze locked on mine in disbelief before his face contorted in anger.

 

I was stunned by the change, but didn’t let it show.

 

What could I read on his face? Anger, sadness, and compassion?

 

It was a more intense reaction than the first time Yzmel had mentioned Adrian’s name.

 

“…”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Yzmel asked in an almost questioning tone. As if he’d just been told something ridiculous. But I told him the truth.

 

“Literally.”

 

“Tell me more.”

 

“It was a long time ago. It won’t help you find Adrian.”

 

“Not if what you’re saying is true.”

 

“It’s true.”

 

“How do you know that?”

 

“Don’t you just not want to believe it?”

 

“Prove it!”

 

Yzmel jumped to his feet, raising his voice.

 

I glanced up, following his gaze, then glanced at Evan, who remained stiff. 

 

How the hell am I supposed to prove this?

 

“If I tell you, will you even believe me?”

 

“I’ll listen.”

 

“How do you know if what I’m saying is true or not…”

 

“That’s for me to judge.”

 

Yzmel said, cutting me off. What a cheeky brat. So confident.

 

I clicked my tongue and said the first thing that came to mind.

 

“You said Adrian was looking for someone. Maybe he left to find her.”

 

“Don’t talk back.”

 

Despite his outward appearance of a petulant child, Adrian was a powerful wizard. In the mage world, skill equals rank.

 

But now I’m a mage with mana to match Adrian’s. Though I’m still not entirely comfortable with it.

 

“Yzmel. Don’t be upset, sit down.”

 

“Then stop upsetting me and answer my questions.”

 

“Why are you so angry, you need to learn to control your emotions.”

 

Adrian was the kind of person who could curse to his face and not change his expression, but a student was different from his teacher.

 

The only time he ever got angry was when I jumped to my death.

 

And that’s when I realized why people who don’t get angry are scary when they do.

 

I swallowed hard, pressing down on the words I wanted to say, even though they were choking me up with the desire to make fun of the kid for being a brat.