The Farlier family manor's dining hall was a grand but hollow space, its high ceilings adorned with chandeliers that cast a soft, golden glow over polished oak tables and velvet drapes.
The air carried the faint scent of lavender from Lira's garden with an undercut of sharp tang of spilled wine from a shattered glass on the floor. Crystal shards glinted in the light, a prelude to the storm brewing between Leylin and Lira.
Leylin stood near the table, his green robe pristine and his grey hair tied back. His grey eyes with a reddish hue were calm but distant despite the chaos, as if not even present there.
"You bastard! You are not even listening to me!" Lira roared, her brunette hair loose and wild, her dark eyes blazing with fury as she gripped a delicate porcelain vase, her heart a tangle of hurt and rage while her mind unraveling with years of pent-up pain.
"Ahhhh!"
With a scream, Lira hurled the vase at Leylin, "You're a disgrace!"
Leylin's hand snapped up as he slapped the vase mid-air, shattering it into a spray of white fragments that rained onto the floor, his heart unmoved, the chandelier's light flickering as the air trembled, Lira's official Magus aura flaring provoked by Leylin's indifference.
Her voice cracked sounding thick with anguish, "You're an irresponsible father, a cold husband, an arrogant, selfish man abandoning us!" Her heart shattered with each word while her hands trembling and her beauty twisted by despair.
She lunged forward, she knew she can't do anything to Leylin so she started smashing through the oak-paneled wall, her fist splintered the wood with a deafening crack, her heart pouring rage into every blow, her mind blind with grief, the chandelier rattling above.
She grabbed a chair, crushing it into kindling with a single heave, her voice a broken sob, "I gave you everything!"
The marble floor buckled under her next punch, tiles shattering, dust rising, her heart a furnace of pain, her mind lost in the wreckage of their life, the dining hall a battlefield of her torment.
Leylin sidestepped each outburst, his movements were fluid as debris were piling around him, the lavender scent drowned by the dust, his grey eyes tracking her with a detached patience.
Lira's rampage slowed down after smashing everything before her, she crouched with her breath hitching.
She collapsed to her knees, tears streaming down her face, her voice barely a whisper, "Why can't you care?"
Her heart broke as her mind flooded with the loneliness of her life—a princess sheltered by her Grandfather, the legendary Rank 2 Magus, she has no parents, no siblings, only servants who feared her, step-siblings and cousins who envied her.
In all her life she only knew experiments and meditation, and even her seemingly perfect marriage to the handsome and brilliant Leylin was a failure, her one shot at any connection in this life was crumbling despite her every effort.
Lira's heart ached for a bond that never grew, her mind drowning in the futility, the chandelier's light dimmed as if mourning her defeat.
Though an official Magus, Lira lacked the ruthless edge of a seasoned Magi. Her sheltered upbringing left her raw, vulnerable, and her heart still chasing love where Leylin offered none, her mind grappling with the man she could never reach.
Leylin watched her cry silently, waiting as the dust settled around them and the air heavy with her sobs. He stepped forward, his voice low, "Enough."
His aura surged and a crushing wave of semi-converted elemental power, dark and fiery, pressed into Lira like a physical weight, the dining hall's air warping, the room trembling.
Leylin had full control of the world around him, he was wielding a strength powerful enough to snap her out of despair as his sharp eyes locked on hers.
"You!?" Lira gasped, her mind reeling as the pressure pinned her, her voice trembling with awe and confusion, "How? How are you this strong?"
Her dark eyes searched his, her heart stunned while her mind was racing as she estimated Leylin's power rivaling a semi-converted Magus, a veteran with 50% essence conversion, yet he'd only been a Magus for five years, his growth defying logic, the dining hall's air thick with his aura, the debris around them still, as if bowing to his might, her tears slowing and her mind grappling with the man she barely knew, her heart torn between fear and wonder.
Leylin stepped closer, his aura easing and seizing the moment he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a rare embrace, his warmth a shock against her trembling frame, his voice soft, "Where's Delphini?"
Lira's heart was lurching at his touch, while her mind spun with the unfamiliar comfort, the dining hall's wreckage a stark contrast to his sudden gentleness, her tears soaking his robe and her body leaning into him despite herself.
Lira's voice was a shaky whisper, "She's with the servants in the garden."
Her heart clung to the moment, her mind wary as her anger faded but a gnawing despair lingered when she embraced the fragile bridge between them, her heart yearning for more while her mind doubting it would last.
Leylin nodded, "I have to go, Lira. To reach my full potential—for me, for you, for Delphini. It's the only way."
"In the Abyssal bone forest, despite Chairman help even you aren't guaranteed to get your hands on the Rank 2 meditation technique you're practicing. Breaking through to Rank 2 in this place is nearly impossible. Our family would be puppets, exploited forever under this academy's banner. Our genius deserves better than that."
His voice softened, a rare warmth creeping in, "I'm going to the Light Magi region, the heart of the South Coast. The answers to my future, our future is there."
Hearing the resolve in his voice, Lira's heart stirred as her mind wrestling with his words, hope flickered in her mind. Yes, the reason a part of her wants a normal family life is because she doesn't see a clear path ahead, but if Leylin can? No, he most definitely would achieve his goals.
Leylin pulled back, his voice earnest, "Trust me, Lira. Convince Siley to let me go. I've already fulfilled my deal creating the branding system for the Branded Swordsman. We have earned this opportunity."
Leylin caressed her beautiful face wiping the tear stain, his grey eyes holding her dark eyes, as he leaned in to kiss her rosy lips.
Lira's heart wavered her mind clouded by his warmth, so rare since their nights spent conceiving Delphini, her body still tingling from his kiss, her confusion a weight she couldn't shake while her trust teetered.
"Why there?" Lira's voice was hesitant as she separated from his lips.
"It has to do with Dorotte." Leylin replied.
"Dorotte? Leylin you told me he died, but you never elaborated. Does it have something to do with that?"
Leylin's voice was low, measured, "Yes, as you know last year Dorotte wanted to explore a ruin. He invited me, but since I hadn't finished my research, and Chairmen wouldn't let me go, I turned him down. Plus, I wasn't sure of Dorotte's odds, there were just too many variables for my liking."
"Disappointed by my reply, Dorotte teamed up with his mentor, a retired Magus on his last legs. They went to ruin together. It eventually ended in their deaths, but they uncovered something—a secret even the Academy's top echelons don't know."
Lira's voice was breathless, "What is it?" Her heart raced as her mind hooked. Leylin is someone who never cares for nonsense or gossip, Dorotte must have revealed some secret.
Leylin's voice dropped, intense, "The ruin led to a subterranean inheritance which activated during their exploration. Dorotte and his mentor found a secret in that place— a secret plane is about to open in the South Coast. It's a part of the ancient subterranean world, packed with lost knowledge, artifacts, herbs, resources and following this earth shaking discovery, a war is coming between Light and Dark Magus who would vie for these resources."
"Dorotte sent me the information through a special transmission that we created. Soon after his demise, I told Siley and asked to volunteer as a spy in the Light Magi camp for the war. That's why I need to go, an opportunity would soon emerge. I am sure we aren't the only ones who are aware of this secret but we must play our cards right and capitalize on the opportunity before us."
"But grandfather didn't agree?"
"He's been hesitant, but he doesn't have a reason to hold me and after you express your wishes to let me go, he can only agree."
"Are you sure about this? It can be very dangerous."
"It doesn't matter, I must go. My best bet is Light Magus, unlike Dark Magus their inheritance is more complete and the politics is less complicated. The Light Magi organization has more unity and an extended supply of research materials, and essentially everything a Magi needs. If I can get my hands on more Rank 2 spell models I can create an innate spell, although not perfect it would allow me enough strength to carve a path for our future and acquire a considerable part of the resources. For you, our future and our daughter. Do you understand, my love?"
"Yes, I'll talk to Grandfather."