Chapter 442 (2/2)

Viessa thrust her hands forward Darkout like a swar

She stared at her hands, disbelieving, and thrust the happened The mana didn’t respond to her at all

Melzri sued at rew so heavy that she stu the floor hard enough to crack stone

“Stop this at once,” Viessa breathed, the h her channels and veins But she couldn’t form it into a spell

Melzri balled her fists “What are you doing?”

I felt myself smile It was cold and cruel, the kind of expression that would have frightened me if I’d seen it on another face And then I told her I explained what I was doing…and what I was going to do

It was not without a sense of self-satisfaction that I watched thele to understand, but it wasn’t until both fully realized the situation that I knew I had the sto my eyes, I took control of all the mana Viessa had just released and turned it back on her, driving it into her veins, scouring her channels and bo her core I heard her knees strike the stone as a choked screah the combat hall

“You bitch—”

Melzri’s voice cut off with a gust as her body slareat I knew her bones were crushi+ng the meat of her body

There was no difference between the mana in my body and that in theirs, or in the atacy, my ability to control rated, I no longer required that mymanipulated From this new perspective, even the idea of purified mana seemed inconsequential I didn’t need to wash the mana and make it mine in order to control it

I already controlled it all

The Scythes were helpless against me Even these shadowy Wraiths I’d heard about would be hopeless against ic if I could wipe away their spells before they formed, pull their bodies apart from the inside with their oer, starve therona wasn’t a threat to ed you to be so subservient,’ Tessia’s annoying voice suddenly chihts ‘He knehat you’d become, or hoped at least, and he doesn’t allow anyone else to be truly powerful So he taught you to be obedient’

I claain to s I couldn’t control

“U voice trailed off suggestively

I openedin pain to ht I released the pressure of theMelzri, but I kept theira spell

Tessia kept talking ‘He’s got this pro over your head, and Nico to threaten if you ever get out of line He doesn’t care about you or love you He probably doesn’t even intend to let you control this power Why would he when he can just override your h she could interrupt hts, she couldn’t affect round, I brushed aside a lock of silver hair “Get up, you two I want to understand just how far rin Caeluh the the sensation of all thatupward, I shot through the cold air, ainst my skin, until I burst up into clear sky

Below me, clouds rolled away as far as the eye could see in every direction

I liked it up there It was peaceful Separate Training withwhat h repetition, only to think with a clear enough vision, and keeping a clear head was a lot easier to do in the open air than buried beneath the fortress

The clouds began to swirl in playful patterns Stea into spheres of water that floated around and caught the light The clouds lightened fro down, I lay atop the clouds, restingmy ankles as I stared up at the blue expanse above

“Tessia,” I said, entle breeze

No response caht sharply, unable to suppressto call for her twice

‘This power play doesn’t suit either of us,’ she answered after a few seconds ‘We both know the only reason you’re calling for ives you a false sense of control You’ve done it, you’ve achieved Integration, you’ve tossed the Scythes around like they’re ragdolls, yet you can’t do anything about me, and that eats away at you’

I closed my eyes, rolled over, and sank down into the clouds I held a picture in hout —if it even could work—but when I opened er surrounded by cool wind and fluffy clouds but was standing on soft green grass beneath the spreading liround and ently

Tessia Eralith was standing not far away Her silvery braid hung over her bare shoulder, an eown draped off her lithe frame

I looked down at myself I was shorter than her, a bit stockier My hair was plain brown and boring, chopped off around my shoulders like it’d been hacked apart with sheers

I let out a deep breath to steady ross…like a violation This is better”

“A violation…yeah, I think I know exactly what you h with a vague sense of irritation “You know, after I learned through you that Arthur was reincarnated, so much made sense His intellect, his wisdom, his maturity It seems foolish, now that I think about it, that I tried so hard to chase after hiry at ht I was a year older…but it turns out he was thirty years older”

She laughed, and I scowled

“Why should I care?”

“Because I thought you’d be the same, that you’d be…different I was confused at first But then I realized—”

“Yeah, you’ve said all this before”

“So, are you ready to listen?”

I kept careful watch on the elderwood guardian, which rithing around the outskirts of the clearing I had created for our conversation “You can see in ht and desire is an open book to you So you tellover her shoulder, her eyes on the ground “It’s not about you talking tohonest with yourself After everything you’ve learned, you’re still fighting this war Why help Agrona get what he wants? Do you really trust him to send you back to your old life after all this?” She looked up, her gaze burning into mine “And is it really worth it?”

I rubbedmy back on her “What do you want me to say? I’ in fairy stories? Fine Whatever I’s and more, Tessia Maybe I am a bad person But I’ve come too far, done”—I choked up, sed heavily, then continued—“things, killed people, and that can’t just be for nothing It can’t all have been for fucking nothing”

Tessia was quiet for long enough that I turned around, wondering if she was still there She was And as she stood there and watchedon round if it o horona to rule over the ashes”

“And if you’re stuck here in the ashes with us?” she asked

“Then at least there won’t be anyone left to judge me,” I said slowly, suddenly very tired

Before she could answer, I sweptaway and openingflashed and thunder boomed

I sank beneath the clouds and into heavy rain, letting the coldness of it soothe e that the flush ofdown my face aren’t tears, either

“Cecilia!”

I flinched, not having noticed the approachingin a cocoon of wind conjured from his staff, pulled up twenty feet away, his face shi+elded against the wind and rain by a hand “Are you all right? This storm came up out of nowhere!”

I stared at hihts to click into place As soon as they did, the rain stopped The clouds ht, cold afternoon sun, Taegrin Caelu up from the mountains beneath us

An unco around us and leaving us both dry in rona called for all the Scythes and…you The others have already arrived He’s expecting us immediately”

As he turned away, I blurted out, “A course, Nico flew closer, his worried frown deepening further “What’s this about?”

“Nothing,” I blurted “Never”

I sped ahead, plunging doard the fortress, flying at speed around the sprawling exterior to Agrona’s private wing and landing on one of his many balconies

A wall of noise hitof booted feet, the call and response of barked commands, the rush of channeled es were arrayed in formation in the courtyard Banners fro where soldiers from Etril stood separately froht by the Scythe of that Dolass balcony doors were closed, locked, and warded, but the mana unfolded at ust of wind to push the doors open

Beyond was a coe fireplace, and Agrona was leaning against a low bar He was dressed forht the light and twinkled like stars as he turned to look at me He looked just as he always had, ever since I’d known hihtly, I couldn’t help but think soed, but I couldn’t put er on how, exactly, and had to wonder if I was just iht, I’ed

Nico eased into the roo off hirona said with a too-wide s for us to enter

I was surprised to see Melzri and Viessa already present, seated unco the roo in front of the fire with his back to

More surprising was the presence of the retainers The sickly Bivrae hunkered in the shadohile the statuesque Echeron lingered near Dragoth, trying and failing to hide his nervousness Mawar hovered near the s and stared out at the Basilisk Fang Mountains, the cool light painting her changeable skin an almost translucent palein Alacrya, I thought I understood a little bit of how Agrona athered together Anywhere else in the world, they would have been a for force, but here, now…they see

I felt Tessia’s disappoint up from within

What?

‘Do you suppose this is how the researchers felt toward you as they poked and prodded you? Under such high authority,at the Scythes…as an asset, soldiers to be tolerated perhaps, but not respected’

I sed hard, carefully keeping hty Scythes and their fearsorona said, his ar only our lost little lamb, Seris, and her faithful hound Her presence would have been a wondrous gift, but alas…”

Dragoth had turned when Agrona started speaking, and he blanched at this comment Beside him, Echeron stared at his own feet

“Still, don’t be too hard on Dragoth” Agrona flashed us a wide grin “You’ve all suffered your share of defeats and failures—of erona s father He pushed his kick back and forth, his heels occasionally knocking against the wood

“But we, all of us, so” He knocked his knuckles against the bartop a couple tiather dirt for long enough The Seris situation will come to a close in due ti up right now”

The Scythes and retainers exchanged uncertain glances, but no one dared interrupt Agrona, especially when he was giving off the pretense of a good ons’ presence in Dicathen hting,” he continued “While Dragoth will continue to pursue Seris in the Relictombs, the rest of you will put our house back in order I expect, before our efforts in that depart his head out as well, and when he does, I want you to capture or kill hiful look

“What are you going to be doing?” I asked, frustrated by this flippantGrey Grey had already defeated a squad of Agrona’s asura killers I knew Agrona didn’t expect any of these Scythes to actually beat Grey

Agrona cocked his head to the side, jangling the ornas stopped swinging “Why do you ask, Cecil dear?”

I sed heavily, souess htness “I…just rona’s s his canines, and he slid off the bar, standing tall His shadow seened weakness, that cautious old dragon has been satisfied to let the situation on this world linger, allowing row h, thanks to our ard reincarnated friend, Arthur, Kezess has opened the way between Dicathen and Epheotus Now, as you end this silly civil war and hunt Arthur Leywin, I will be…preparing to take full advantage of Kezess’s rona’s face like he’d taken off a erous “In my own pretense of weakness, some of you have allowed yourselves to beco with my patience It is time to prove yourselves worthy of both”

The rooer even breathing Ti

Agrona’s eyes traveled slowly across each of us in turn “The Legacy will focus pri hi me his core Make use of the Scythes as you see fit to ensure that this is done”

He turned and swept fro silence