"Isn't it a law of cause and effect?"
"Yes. If we think about it, most people have many desires, but not many can actually realise all of them, if any. Such is the reality, and likely for a reason. There are times when someone's desire could bring harm to themselves or others around them...disasters caused by greed and unchecked power."
Armand hesitantly nodded.
"But some of these people had such strong desires and willpower, they could sometimes bend reality to their will at any cost. If left unchecked, they could affect the principle of causality, which had governed this world from the very beginning. Therefore, 'Mizan' were born - people who were granted the ability to maintain equilibrium."
Armand took a sip. The tea was slightly astringent, with a deep, earthy aroma. "People? Not a person?"
"Mm..." Seraphine silently panicked. She had not planned to reveal the existence of the others, but she made a slip of the tongue and Armand, being annoyingly sharp, caught it. "Well, initially they worked together, but now it's only me. And Nyra, of course. How's the tea?"
"It's nice, thank you." He held the cup with both hands, welcoming its warmth. He knew that Seraphine tried to avoid answering his question. He decided to change the topic. "Is that steel fan your weapon of choice? It's beautiful, but quite unusual; most mages would prefer a staff. Although it seems that you're also using it to execute martial arts."
His observation was fair, as most mages in this era relied only on magic and short-range support from their teammates. Their physical prowess tended to be quite behind that of other professions in the industry, such as holy knights, mystics and rogues. However, since magicians were rare and a powerful force to beckon with, no one dared to complain if they lagged or slowed others down during a mission.
But at the same time, she was also secretly happy that Armand was conscious of her steel fan and martial arts. "...yes. I inherited them from my master."
"Your master? Is he well-known?" Armand tried to think about a strong mage who was also a martial artist and used a fan, but no one came to mind.
Not bothering to correct the gender, Seraphine finished the tea in her cup. "Well, not exactly. Anyway, I think we've rested enough. We should get going."
Armand nodded. Although unsatisfied with her answers, he felt that pushing her would lead nowhere. He handed back the now-empty cup to her.
"I have to say, I really like that side of you, Sir Armand," Holding his cup, Seraphine said innocently.
"...Pardon?" Startled, Armand stared at her wide-eyed.
"You know, pushy guys aren't popular." Standing up, she collected the tea container, the arcane ember, and the cups. Dusting off invisible debris from her clothes, she then walked towards the exit of the crevice and stopped. Glancing over her shoulder, she winked at the frozen Armand. "And I like that you're not. Shall we go?"
She stepped out of the crevice, leaving a stunned Armand behind.
******************
As they walked along the declining, narrow passage, Armand voiced a thought that everyone probably wondered when they first heard about the request.
"Do you think the children are still alive?"
"Hmm..."
Seraphine went silent for a moment, her steps slowing down. Thinking that he might have caused her to feel aggrieved, Armand was going to apologise for being pessimistic when she suddenly spoke up.
"Yes."
Armand raised his eyebrows. "Is that the ability of 'Mizan' too? How are you so sure?"
Instead of answering, Seraphine narrowed her left eye, and a flicker of pain crossed her face. If Armand had not paid full attention towards her, he would have missed it.
"Is using that power taking a toll on you, Miss Seraphine?"
She sighed and fixed her gaze on him. Somehow, this time, Armand thought she looked really serious. She studied him for a bit and sighed again before finally answering.
"Yes, using the 'Watcher's Eye' far from home - Mizan - is quite taxing."
"The Watcher's Eye?"
"Yes, have you heard of it?"
"It sounds very familiar..." Armand scrunched his temple in an effort to remember.
Seraphine touched her left eye lightly. "The Watcher's Eye allows me, as Mizan, to see the 'present'. Anyone, anywhere, as long as it is currently in the present time, and I have 'something' related to the things I'd like to see."
"...what a powerful ability. That basically means having an unlimited observation power in the world."
"It's not that grand. There are a few rules I still have to follow. But it does the job." Her voice then dropped. "...although it's incomplete."
Armand was about to speak when Seraphine suddenly put a finger to her mouth and stopped. It was a dead end. Or at least, it looked like one.
"Hm..."
Seraphine hovered her hand on the jagged surface of the rock wall.
"Illusion magic?" suggested Armand.
"Something similar. Not too difficult, though."
"..felfed." She murmured.
An ominous dark red magic circle suddenly appeared on the rock surface. After glancing at it, Seraphine casually touched an inner pattern on the circle and traced it backwards towards the outer part. In a matter of seconds, the red mana threads forming the magic circle started to disperse. When she finished tracing, the whole magic circle faded immediately.
Having been watching, Armand was silently impressed. It would usually take decades for a mage to learn how to disactivate a particular magic circle, yet Seraphine had done it seamlessly. Not to mention the complexity of a finely wrought magic circle, it was also highly dangerous to disactivate it in that manner, as one small misstep could backfire. Most mages would simply choose to damage or shatter it with a more powerful magic.
But in the next second, Armand understood why she chose the harder path. The moment the magic circle disappeared, faint sniffing and muffled cries could be heard from beyond the rock wall.