The moment Kyran got out of the cube, the first thing he noticed was his weak connection with Zephyr. After which, thoughts of what might have happened to him and Cyneah filled his head.
The next thing Kyran did was sense the jade disc he gave Cyneah. He realized that it was actually moving further away at an unbelievable speed.
Something instantly snapped within Kyran at the thought that something terrible had happened to them. So when he located Cora’s location amidst the smoke, he immediately grabbed and pinned her on the wall, giving her no time to recover and assess the situation.
“H-How—!”
Kyran tightened his grip on Cora’s neck, cutting her midsentence.
“I asked you a question,” he said with a cold deep voice.
Because of the pain Cora suffered when the cube exploded, she failed to react when Kyran attacked. After getting pinned on the wall, it only intensified her annoyance instead of feeling helpless. In a fraction of a second, her annoyance escalated to hatred as the possible reason for Kyran’s escape from the cube crossed her mind.
How else could Kyran escape except for Muto and Sen’s defeat? Apart from this, seeing that he was the only one who appeared after the cube was destroyed meant the two were already dead.
The reason why the three of them decided to use the cube to capture Kyran was simple. The Grand Marshal ordered them to capture him alive while doing it ‘covertly.’ But Muto deemed it difficult based on Kyran’s abilities. Even if he was not that excellent, they knew that he would not just stand and let them capture him. If Kyran made a move and revealed his identity, it would be troublesome. Troublesome not because he possessed Void magic but because he was a Regis. Yes, they were more concerned about this fact than his forbidden magic.
Other people might think it weird. They should have been concerned about Kyran’s forbidden magic. It was not a low-risk type after all. It was the Void Magic that everyone feared. However, the three were realists. Since they knew little of the Void Magic, they would not rack their brains on dealing with it and instead focus on countering what they could. And that was Kyran’s, Regis Blessing.
Based on his profile, the chance of him acquiring the Regis Blessing was high. After all, he was the young master, the son of the next Patriarch.
When Kyran attacked Sen and managed to throw him for more than 10 meters, it confirmed their speculation. It was a good thing Cora and Sen had taken a Body Strengthening Pill and also cast a Physical Defense Enhancement before they made their move. As for Muto, since he had a first-hand experience fighting a Regis under the Regis Blessing, he was confident his best form would be enough to deal with him.
Of course, they still made enough preparation against Kyran’s magic. His information indicated that he was practically a harmless boy as long as you maintained a safe distance when fighting him. And if they kept him within Cora’s magic arrays and transported him inside the cube, it would be easy for Muto and Sen to deal with him. The cube also had rune writings that could absorb magic and physical attacks, so it would be futile if Kyran tried to escape by destroying the walls.
Everything was within their control.
And yet, the result was this.
With renewed hatred, Cora struggled under Kyran’s hold. She ignored the pain on her side. She did not even care, even when she was bleeding badly.
“Don’t think you’ve already—ACK!”
Kyran pulled her off the wall and then slammed her back the moment she had spoken. If she had answered his question, he would show mercy, but if she talked nonsense, he would act otherwise.
Cracks on the ravine’s wall multiplied, forming web-like cracks with Cora at the center. Bits and pieces of earth fell on the ground as if the wall was about to crumble.
“Where are they?”
Kyran asked again, his voice dropping further.
The coldness in his voice could easily make people tremble in fear. But to Cora, who was consumed by anger and the fact that Muto and Sen were already dead, she no longer felt fear.
Cora’s spread her arms and summoned several small knives, all of which were pointed at Kyran. Using her manipulation ability, she roused all the knives and attacked him.
Kyran remained emotionless from Cora’s sudden attack. A thin purple layer wrapped around his whole body in an instant. It was the Void Armor. When the knives that were supposed to stab him hit the armor, it sizzled and dissolved into nothingness.
“AAAAHHH!” Cora screamed out in pain as the skin around her neck started to sizzle under Kyran’s hold.
The Void Armor also covered Kyran’s hands, after all.
“Die!” Cora spat out in anger.
Her eyes were bloodshot while flesh and blood sizzled from her neck due to Kyran’s hold.
Knives appeared on her hands as she swung them toward Kyran’s face.
Kyran’s eyes narrowed. He lifted his right forearm to swat Cora’s right hand while he simply leaned back to avoid the other. A Void Dagger appeared in his right hand, and he deftly sliced off both her hands.
“AAAHHH!”
Heartwrenching screams filled the air as Cora’s cutoff hands bled out.
“Too loud.”
Snap!
Cora’s eyes widened as she stared at Kyran straight in the eye. Only then did she realize how his eyes were devoid of anything. It was as if Cora was looking at an endless abyss. If she had been a little sensible earlier and seen them, she might not act out her anger. Maybe then, Cora could find a way to use her Escape Talisman and report back to the Grand Marshal of their failure. She could have reported her discovery of a girl with the same face as the Princess. Not to mention, she also had the scent of the Royal Family.
Now, it was too late to regret. Because the last thing Cora saw was Kyran’s cold eyes before her consciousness drifted forever.
Kyran stared with emotionless eyes as Cora’s body slumped lifelessly. He did not let go of her at once. Instead, he glanced at her coat pocket and sliced it off, the pouch falling with a soft thud on the ground. Then he roused his magic, destroying her body.
He already learned his lesson of leaving the bodies of those he killed behind. This time, he would clean up his mess, leaving nothing behind.
Kyran closed his eyes to calm down. At the moment, he might appear cold and emotionless. But the truth, his mind, and his heart were a mess.
After sensing that Zephyr and Cyneah were in danger, Kyran realized how much he considered not just Zephyr as his people but also Cyneah.
It came as a shock.
Actually, no.
Kyran already knew of it but chose to ignore it because he was reluctant to take her under his wing. He already had a lot going on and even taking in Zephyr was risky. Kyran only did it because having Zephyr’s strength would help him. Still, Kyran only planned to keep Zephyr for three years and as his Sigil.
As for Cyneah, she had her circumstances which Kyran had no plan on meddling. He only needed her ability to heal his magic core. She might have reminded him of his adopted sister, but after seeing her again and realizing he was wrong about her age, he…
‘Damn it,’ Kyran cursed and gritted his teeth.
He took a deep breath and activated the Regis Blessing because he thought using the Regis Body Tempering Technique might not be enough to locate them fast.
Fortunately, he sensed that Zephyr was nearby. Unfortunately, he could not sense Cyneah. However, he did sense the jade disc, which was too far from where he was.
‘Find Zephyr first,’ Kyran decided since he was closer. He was also worried about Zephyr’s weakened state.
‘Zephyr,’ he spoke in his mind trying to connect with Zephyr.
When Zephyr did not reply, Kyran tried again.
Finally, after a few tries, he felt Zephyr’s connection stir, followed by a muffled reply.
[M-Master…]
Kyran turned around, having sensed that Zephyr was somewhere behind. He did not bother asking where he was and instead asked, ‘Tell me what you see, I’ll come get you.’
[C-Can’t see… anything.]
Kyran frowned, ‘What do you mean?’
[S-Stuck—can’t move.]
Kyran’s frown deepened. He pondered for a moment and asked, ‘Can’t you use your magic to break free?’
[No. T-There is no air.]
‘No air?’ Kyran wondered to himself while observing the surroundings.
Zephyr already told him about his magic. Although he already guessed it back at the ruins.
Kyran picked up the pouch on the ground before jumping across the river. Then he walked along the side before the ravine while sensing his connection with Zephyr.
Remembering how the loud woman could perform spatial manipulation, Kyran somehow guessed where Zephyr might be.
After walking for a few meters, Kyran stopped in front of a huge boulder. Here, his connection with Zephyr had gotten stronger.
“Zephyr, can you hear me?” Kyran asked out loud.
There was a few seconds of silence before Zephyr spoke in his mind.
[I-I can’t speak. But I heard you, Master.]
Kyran clenched his fist. Just as he had guessed, that damnable woman had transported Zephyr inside a solid object. In this case, it was inside a boulder. Since air could not pass through objects, Zephyr had no way of using his magic.
Zephyr could generate his magic in his real form but not in human form.
Thinking about what that damnable woman did to Zephyr made Kyran regret not making her suffer enough. She dared to trap his Sigil inside a boulder. If Zephyr were a regular human, he would have been dead by now.
‘Brace yourself,’ Kyran told Zephyr.
[Yes.]
Kyran clenched his right hand and only used less than 5% of the Regis Blessing before hitting the boulder. If he had used his left, he was unsure if he could control his strength.
Cracks formed around where his fist landed and soon started to crumble. Kyran jumped back to avoid the crumbling stones. After a few seconds, he finally saw Zephyr fall from the middle.
Zephyr still looked weak, so Kyran jumped again while avoiding the stones and grabbed him. Then they jumped down the ravine.
Zephyr fell on his knees, coughing and gasping for air.
Kyran took out a healing pill and gave it to him, “Take this.”
Zephyr looked at the pill and frowned.
“Don’t give me that look. We still have to look for Cyneah,” Kyran scolded him. He knew of Zephyr’s adverse in taking pills or potions made by humans.
“Fine,” Zephyr grumbled and took the pill. He glared at it as if it was his worse enemy before popping it inside his mouth.
“Argh, human medicines are the worse.” He complained while making gagging sounds.
Kyran only shook his head at him before walking down the riverside.
Seeing where Kyran was going, Zephyr frowned as he stood up.
“Where are you going?”
“I can’t sense her nearby. But I sense my jade disc down the river,” Kyran replied without looking back.
“S-She did not fall and got swept down the river, did she?” Zephyr asked, feeling guilty for failing to keep her safe.
She was his master’s woman! How would he redeem himself for his mistake?
“Master! I’m sorry for not keeping your woman safe,” Zephyr apologized while catching up to him.
Kyran’s brow twitched. He ignored him and instead picked up his pace.
Zephyr misunderstood Kyran’s action and thought he was trying to control his growing anger. He wanted to say something but decided against it. What else could he say? He messed up big time. Though what happened was out of his control, he could not deny that he failed to accomplish such a simple task. No, it was not a simple task because that was his master’s woman!
“I’ll go ahead and check,” Zephyr finally said and roused his magic to fly.
Kyran looked up and watched him go. He did not stop him because, indeed, it was faster for him to scout above.
Unfortunately, Kyran had no ability to fly. He then remembered the three from the army could also fly and wondered if he could learn it. If he could, it would be very helpful.
After a few minutes, Zephyr returned, his face pale while holding a bundle of wet clothes.
Kyran’s blood immediately run cold as he recognized the clothes. He also sensed his jade disc from there.