Unaware of what was happening outside—although he could guess Irelia and the others were fighting—Faen continued to focus as much of his energy as possible on Syndra's dream within the Dreaming Pool.
While thinking, Faen followed the young Syndra back to her home.
The moment Faen pushed open the door, he saw Syndra's older brother, his face beaten black and blue. Upon noticing Faen's arrival, the boy, who previously had the guts to confront Faen, now looked terrified. Hiding behind his mother, he pointed at Faen and shouted, "He's the one who hit me! It's him! He's back! It must be because of Syndra!"
Hearing her brother's words, a dark shadow flashed across Syndra's eyes. Beside the boy, Syndra's mother didn't erupt in anger upon hearing her son. Instead, she sighed and cast a hesitant look at Faen. Realizing Faen didn't look as violent as her son described, she asked, "Sir, I can somewhat guess the reason why you taught Evard a lesson, so why have you come here now?"
Hearing Syndra's mother, Faen nodded. He confirmed in his heart that the reason Syndra's parents had such a contradictory and twisted attitude toward her wasn't simply because they hated her. There were deeper underlying causes.
With this thought, Faen voiced his question: "You appear to be a reasonable person. You should know that when someone makes a mistake by bullying another, claiming that 'both sides are at fault' is essentially protecting the abuser. Little Syndra might be easily distracted, but she is not a malicious child. So why do you always treat her with such cold prejudice?"
Syndra never expected Faen to ask her mother such a question. Hearing it, she couldn't help but freeze for a moment. But then, she nervously looked at her mother, because she had wanted to know the answer to this question for a long time. It was just that before, the young Syndra either didn't know how to express these thoughts, or simply didn't dare to ask her mother...
Now that someone had asked for her, Syndra instinctively looked at her mother, then at Faen. Hearing Faen's words, Syndra's mother remained silent, seeming to recall or ponder something. In contrast, noticing Syndra's gaze, Faen returned a gentle look and reached out to rub her hair, signaling her not to be too nervous.
This made Syndra, who had never felt protected before, feel a trace of warmth, and she lowered her head, unsure of what to do.
During this process, whether it was an illusion or not, Faen heard a barely audible click of the tongue, as if someone was feeling dissatisfied and disgusted by this. Realizing something, Faen looked at Syndra, whose eyes were filled with naive confusion and bewilderment, and began to rub her hair even more gently.
After a moment of silence, Syndra's mother said with some helplessness, "Actually, I know that sometimes what I do is wrong. But I don't know why, whenever I get close to Syndra and she makes a mistake, even if I initially want to comfort her gently, I end up getting angry accompanied by an inexplicable feeling."
Saying this, she paused, a look of surprise appearing in her eyes, and added, "Strange, why does it feel like today... I don't have that weird feeling?"
Hearing her words, Faen nodded thoughtfully and said, "If that's the case, then the problem might lie with Syndra."
Hearing this, Syndra's mother said nothing, but a layer of panic and unease covered Syndra's face. She seemed terrified that Faen, like all the others, would blame everything on her.
But just as Syndra was feeling anxious and desperate, as traces of darkness began to seep outward through the cracks in her heart, Faen's hand landed on her head once again.
This made Syndra subconsciously look up again.
Meeting Syndra's gaze, Faen looked at her mother and said, "Syndra possesses immense potential within her. The origin of this power is hidden deep inside her; it is a part of the Spirit of Ionia itself. However, influenced by the ancient past, it was forced to separate and slumber within Syndra."
Faen's explanation caught the attention of both Syndra and her mother. Under their gazes, Faen unhurriedly explained some of the origins and history of this dark power. Of course, considering their limited worldly knowledge, Faen didn't explicitly state that the power sleeping within Syndra was the massive accumulation of Ionia's negative emotions. He simply let them know that Syndra harbored a formidable power, and without proper guidance, even the leaking aura of it could make people feel uncomfortable.
Listening to Faen's explanation, a look of sudden realization appeared on Syndra's face, mixed with a faint sense of excitement and relief. Before this, Syndra had always believed she was hated by everyone because there was something wrong with her. But now, it seemed that wasn't the case... it was just a powerful force inside her acting up.
Beside her, having understood this, Syndra's mother nodded continuously as if enlightened, muttering, "So that's it, so that's it... So it's because of this. I was wondering why I always felt so strange whenever I got close to Syndra..."
Saying this, Syndra's mother looked at Faen, her eyes full of pleading as she asked, "Sir, do you have a way to make Syndra return to normal?"
Hearing her words, Faen smiled slightly and said, "In fact, that is exactly why I am here."
As he spoke, Faen extended his right hand, offering a handshake. Although she didn't know why Faen made such a sudden request, Syndra's mother still reached out and touched the Mark of the Twin Dragons on the back of his hand.