Byron wanted to hit himself. Talking about the treasure grove was still safe. But did he have to blurt out the treasure grove was connected to the Void Master? The man in black killed the people who ambushed them, which meant they were not on the same side, but his identity was still unknown. He could be an agent from another group planning to hinder their plans. And him blurting out the information about the treasure grove was practically sentencing himself and the Blue Lotus to death!
‘I’m sorry, boss. I failed you!’ He thought in frustration.
Kyran’s mind, on the other hand, was racing. This information confirmed a lot of things. First, since this guy could say this information without a problem, he was not bound by a Soul-binding oath confirming his position in the Blue Lotus. Second, if someone like him was here to handle the operation personally, it meant this was part of the illegal side of their business. Third, he referred to the Dark Sage as the ‘Void Master’, meaning the Blue Lotus was a fanatic. Fourth, as a Dark Sage fanatic, it seemed they had been researching many things about him. Last, this guy was an idiot he could use.
“That did not answer my question,” Kyran spoke after sorting his thoughts.
Byron blinked as he lowered his hand from his mouth. Did it not? But he answered it clearly.
“But you asked me what was in there,” he replied cautiously.
“‘Why do you have to hide your identity to excavate the stones?'” Kyran repeated patiently.
“As I said, we found a treasure grove inside and-hiiii!”
The knife on Kyran’s hand further pressed on Byron’s neck.
“I really don’t understand!”
Yes. This man was an idiot indeed.
“As far as I know, finding a grove connected to the Dark Sage doesn’t need anyone to hide their identity, especially the Blue Lotus.” Kyran started.
He kept a close watch on Byron’s expression.
As he expected, Byron’s eyes constricted when he called the Void Master ‘Dark Sage’, and his jaw clenched when he pointed out the Blue Lotus did not have to hide their identity.
“If you reported the ruins and told them about the grove, you have a better chance to negotiate with the Royal Family. Finding something connected to the Dark Sage can even be considered a meritorious deed.”
Byron’s eyes further constricted at the mention of the Dark Sage once again. His expression also turned colder.
Kyran smiled. This guy was easy to provoke just by using the Dark Sage’s name. It proved how deep his ‘devotion’ to the Void Master was.
“After all, that grove can provide more information about the Dark Sage. There might also be some information that can help the Royal Army’s Research Division have a breakthrough about the Dark Sage-.”
“ARGH! SHUT UP!”
Byron suddenly bolted and was about to tackle the man in black but.
Kyran deftly moved to the side and reached for Byron’s right arm, pushing and pinning him on the ground.
“AAARGH!”
Byron screamed in pain as his back sizzle from where Kyran’s knee touched.
“Oh, my bad,” Kyran said with a slight sneer and undid his Void Armor.
Byron was frightened out of his wits. It felt as if something had taken a chunk of skin off his back! What touched his back that could actually destroy his armor and also damaged his skin? Now, even if he wanted to escape, he could no longer use his armor’s ability because it was now broken. He struggled to break free but found that even though he was larger than the man in black, he could not move at all!
Kyran pressed his knife on Byron’s neck.
“You really do get angry when I call the Void Master the Dark Sage, huh.”
Byron turned still. The man’s words just now sounded as if he was testing him!
“Who are you?” Byron demanded as an idea crossed his mind. If he was right, he really subjected the whole Blue Lotus to death!
Kyran did not answer. Instead, he said, “You’re suffering from skin avulsion. If you don’t treat it now, it will get infected, and you’ll also lose a lot of blood.”
“Just kill me!” Byron shouted through gritted teeth. If he were correct about this man’s identity, getting killed now would not help the Blue Lotus, but at least he could atone for his sin.
Byron only regretted being a big mouth. He wished his boss and the others would survive.
“Don’t be in a hurry to die,” Kyran said, sensing Byron’s will to live had diminished.
“Submit to me, and I’ll let you live.”
“What?” Byron asked in confusion.
Submit to this man? Was he giving him a chance to live, and in turn, he would betray the Blue Lotus?
Despicable!
“I’d rather die!” Byron spat in anger.
“Are you sure? You haven’t heard my terms yet.”
“It doesn’t matter! I may have failed, but I’d never betray the Blue Lotus!”
“I never said anything about betraying the Blue Lotus. On the contrary, I want you to keep working there.”
“Isn’t it the same?”
“Look, I have an opportunity to kill you before you blurted things you’re not supposed to say. So the least you can do is understand why I haven’t killed you yet.”
Byron gritted his teeth. The pain in his back was excruciating and made it hard for him to think clearly. But he could still understand what this man was trying to say. And he hated that he made sense.
“Why should I listen to you?”
Kyran paused for a second before answering, “Well… because you’re a fan?”
“What?”
“Submit to me, then I’ll tell you.”
Byron closed his eyes. His breath had become labored due to the pain in his back. He recalled the things the man had said and done so far. All of these points led him to wonder what the man’s real purpose was. He initially thought that the man was part of the Royal Army’s Special Ops who might be out on a secret mission. But would a Special Ops tell their captive to submit? As far as he knew, the Special Ops were ruthless, and they would kill their target without hesitation.
“Look, I’m in a hurry. I’ll count to three. If you don’t agree, then I’ll kill you.”
“H-Huh?”
“One.”
“W-Wait!”
“Two.”
“You’re counting is way too fast!”
“Three-.”
“OKAY! OKAY! I AGREE! I SUBMIT!”
Black lines appeared on Byron’s head. One minute he seemed patient. The next, he was impatient.
Suddenly the pain in his back worsened, and he groaned, “Argh!”
Kyran sighed.
“If you agreed earlier, you wouldn’t have to get all worked up and aggravate your wound. Stay still.”
He returned his knife inside his pouch and took out an energy replenishing potion. After drinking, he returned the empty bottle to his pouch before he grabbed Byron’s head.
“What are you going to do?” Byron asked as he struggled to look at him.
“Shh.”
Kyra urged his Draconic core and pulled out the information about one of the non-combat Regis technique his father taught him when he was ten. Normally, this technique was used to tame beasts. But when Kyran asked his father if this only works with beasts, his father answered vaguely with: “As long as your target can be controlled, then it can be used.”
Kyran would use it on a human today. So far, his instincts told him it was possible. Most likely, his ancestor had done it before, and his Draconic core was telling him that.
‘Sigil!’
Kyran’s eyes glowed silver.
Two silver rings appeared on the ground with them in the center. A curled dragon appeared at the center and circled Kyran before resting its head on his hand, where he held Byron.
Silver and gold draconic writings appeared circling above the back of Kyran’s hand. It converged at the middle forming a new symbol that looked like two dragons with their heads resting on top of each other and fixed itself at the back of Kyran’s hand.
A similar symbol appeared on Byron’s forehead.
“AAAHHH!” He screamed as a hot searing pain penetrated his very mind.
“Ergh…” Kyran gritted his teeth and endured the burning sensation that seeped up his hand holding Byron’s head.
Draconic writings appeared on his arms.
Finally, after almost a quarter of an hour, the draconic writings faded, followed by the silver rings beneath them decreasing in size.
“Argh…” The symbol on Byron’s head disappeared, and he lost consciousness.
Kyran was breathing heavily as he let go of Byron’s head. Sweats trickled down the side of his face as he controlled his breathing.
After a few seconds, he stood up slowly. Due to exhaustion, he swayed a little. He steadied himself before moving to a nearby tree and sat on the ground.
“That was dangerous,” he said under his breath while wiping the sweat off his face.
‘If I didn’t drink an energy replenishing potion before I did that, I might’ve passed out from exhaustion. I didn’t know that used up a lot of magic energy.’
Kyran sat crossed-legged to feel his central core. When he drank a potion, it restored his magic energy to at least 12%. Now, it went down to almost 1%. He wasn’t sure how he knew the exact percentage of his magic energy, but his central core conveyed it well.
‘If I want to use the Sigil again, with full magic energy, I can use it nine times at most. But this is only true if there is no limit to how many I can tame as long as I have enough magic energy. I have to study it first. Anyway, this is only a trial. If this works, I can always find others to test it.’ Kyran thought as he looked at Byron.