The man holds his sword in his right arm, dangling it from his waist and quietly observes the magician in front of him. Figuring out how to save his son without any harm to him.
A few minutes pass as the moon continues to illuminate the frontier between the two people, beginning the performance.
The man dashed towards her and positioned his sword in front of him horizontally to stab right through woman abdominal.
The woman casted the same circular shield in a hurry.
Soon when the man closed the distance between each other in an instant, he slashed the shield. Although the shield didn't break, another slash would appear.
The second slash continued with a series of heavy blows that weakened the shield as each hit went by.
'At this rate, the shield would-'
By the fifteenth slash, the shield shattered
"Tch."
The women were soon forced to go on the offense with the baby still in her arm.
Two magic circles appeared behind her, letting out a dark mist as it formed into a lance. After a second of it being casted, she threw both lance with precision towards the man direction.
He put both his hands on his sword and positioned it in front of him. The sword was soon covered in the same black and blue mist from the bedroom. He dashed towards the women once more, while dodging one of the lances thrown at him.
The women moved her free hand and directed the lance that passed him towards his back. The man soon felt the impending danger and faced the magic head on. One strike, and the lance was destroyed.
The women dashed back and began to run to the opposite direction of the man.
"Is running all, you can do!?"
His body was soon engulfed by the blue and black mist and dashed towards her again, but this time it was faster.
She continues to cast the same lance magic towards the man while running, keeping the baby in her arms tightly in her chest to protect him.
But despite throwing multiple amounts of magic towards him, he dodged and deflected them with ease, and soon closed the distance they had.
The man put all the mist that was surrounding his body all into the sword. Once he was writing to reach her, he positioned his sword to slash her neck.
'Crap, how can I avoid that!?'
She saw the baby in her arm, an idea came up.
The women faced the man that was about to slash her and put the baby in front of the man.
The man eyes widened as he saw his child in from him. To stop the momentum of the sword that was about to slash the child diagonally, he stopped his movements abruptly using all his strength.
He managed to stop his own attack but was unable to do anything for a split second due to the rebound of overexerting his muscles.
'An opening!'
The women suddenly put up a shield while she hugged the baby in her arms with all her might as if not trying to injure him.
A small magic circle appeared between the two people, soon a bright light followed by a small explosion occurred. The women rebound due to the explosion and her shield colliding, she widened the distance between the men during the explosion and waited for the smoke to clear.
She kept looking in front of her as the smoke still lingered in the room. Once the smoke begins to vanish. The man was standing there. Black dust remained from the explosion. His left arm was injured and covered with blood, but the rest of his body remained unchanged.
She looked at the surroundings. It was only filled with dust, but no damage was caused.
The women widened her eyes as she saw the amount of damage she barely caused to the man.
It seemed like he used one of his hands to shield the attack so that the surroundings were not damaged.
The man who was looking at the floor suddenly glared at her with bloodshot eyes.
"... I should've known that you would use my own son as a shield... Every single one of y'all are the same!"
He positions his sword in front of him, holding it with both hands. A Black-blue aura emits from the sword once again, but this time much fierce. The man waits for the women action, and see the perfect chance to strike her down without putting his child in danger
The women begin to position herself to expect the attack from the sword.
But even if she uses all her intellect to predict the attack, there's no guarantee that she will avoid the attack, much less deflect it.
If she goes near him, her neck will get sliced to prevent injury towards the baby. If he gets near her, he will sever her limb carrying the baby, followed by a second slash towards her neck. If she tries to stop his attack using magic, he will dash towards her while she tries to chant her magic and strangle her to death. If she tries to run away, he will dash towards her and sever her head immediately.
'There's no way to survive this...'
The man stares at the women in front of him with no emotions, only bloodlust.
"You black Mages are all the same... You use others as if it's natural..."
He gripped the sword with anger.
"Truly displeasing. I should've suspected you the moment I saw you. Now I must bear the consequences of endangering my family and people."
The women begin to shiver at the sight of aura being ejected at the sword. She saw it when he got angry earlier, but this time is with the intent to kill her.
'I won't survive this, will I?'
The woman with no name begins to accept her fate, but she still notices that she has the mana child on her arm.
She stares at the baby and realizes what she must do.
'... I can't give up yet. Even if I die, I need to guarantee her safety!'
She looks at the man again despite him still emitting his aura in his sword. She looks at him with sadness and places her hand near the child's face. And begins to chant the same thing she has done since earlier.
Once again, her hand begins to emit a black mist.
The man's face turned infuriated.
The pressure that almost made the women pass out drastically skyrocketed into dangerous level that can potentially kill an innocent civilian from shock.
Yet the women didn't stop.
She still looked directly to the enraged man with a sad expression despite what she's about to do with the baby.
She turns her gaze from the man to the baby while still having her hand near his face.
"Black magic... The concept itself has many meanings. They can raise the dead, call for the devils, and contract evil spirits. And..."
She places her hand even closer to the baby's face. A painful reaction can be seen in the baby's face. His face turning white while he starts squirming for the pain to go away.
The pressure keeps increasing, the red eyes that stares at the women, continues to bloodshot as if she's dead is she were to do anything.
But that didn't stop the women from continuing what she's doing.
"... and it can inflict curses..."
She places the hand even closer to the baby's face.
"Such curses are able to immediately kill someone in exchange for a price. The necessary mana is increasingly large that even high-ranking mage cannot cast it easily. If they have a stronger mana pool than the caster, the chances of the magic being resisted increases. The requirements are needy, but the effects are useful."
The women close her eyes as she speaks her mind out one last time as to accept her death.
"You mentioned that all black mages are the same... well it is not like I wanted to be a black mage... I was just a child in the street like any other abandoned child. Just me and her... Then he came and picked us up. I thought we were finally seeing hope... but I was naive. Now I must pay the consequences with my life."
She slowly opened her eyes and finally decided to conclude this battle.
"The spell that I was talking about earlier is the same one I'm about to use. I will die either way, so I'll make sure to take the target with me at least..."
'At least she'll be freed...'
"No!"
The man dashed towards her. When she saw the men getting closer, she immediately puts her hand in the baby's face.
'The last requirement to activate this spell is direct contact with the target. If all requirements are fulfilled, the magic will begin.'
The black mist begins to cover the entire baby. The man trying to dash towards the women while the women trying to get away from him.
The baby begins crying due to the pain being implemented into his body. A reaction suddenly starts to happen in the body of the newborn.
'All the requirements have been confirmed. I just must drag this battle out until the infant dies from the-'
A light starts shimmering from the baby's body. A light blue flash that can blind one's eye, then suddenly a light blue ring wave expanded throughout the whole corridor.
'It failed?!'
The women that were running away suddenly stopped midway in the hallway.
Her face mortified as if she had lost all hope. She put the baby that she was hugging with all her might in front of her in the open.
The once in pain child is now sleeping soundly with no worries.
Her pupil dilated as she saw the baby still alive and breathing soundly.
"... How did it fail?! I'm sure that all requirements were fulfilled. I even borrowed the necessary mana... was his mana pool greater than mine?!"
The man got closer as he was about to stab her with no hesitation.
"... no... I can't fail here. Not until we're finally free..."
The man that was far behind is finally at hand reach of the women who suddenly stopped moving. He pointed the tip of the sword towards her back and stabbed right through her heart."
The women coughed up blood while still holding the baby in disbelief. Thankfully, the baby didn't receive any injuries as the attack managed to avoid the positioned baby.
The man pulled out his sword from the back for the lady to die of blood loss. He walks pass her and stands right in front of the dismayed women.
No emotions. No reaction except the blood in her clothes and in her mouth. There was no agitation at all that she had shown except grief for her plans being fouled.
She fell to her knees due to sudden blood loss. Her skin turning pale, but still not showing any remorse towards the man who did it.
The man slightly leans towards the women and carefully grabbed the sleeping baby from her arm. He carefully puts the child into his left forearm.
He checks the condition of his child. After confirming that there is no external injury, he faces the women once again. He sheathes the sword with his right hand once again and positions it near the neck of the already dying women.
"Who sent you?"
The women didn't respond for a minute. After a while of silent, she lifted her head up and looked at the man. She spoked the identity of the man who sent her to accomplish the mission. Upon hearing the name, the man gritted his teeth. His eyes bloodshot with rage.
He tightened his grip to not swing his sword out of rage.
He closed his eyes and began breathing in and out to calm his anger. He opens his eyes once again and stares at the women with no remorse.
"... What's your name?"
The women look down at the floor before answering the sudden question.
"I have no name."
The men look at the women with discontent.
"Where are the other magicians who were sent with you?"
The question wonders what happened to all the purple working on this large estate of the Grand Duke. The answer was magic. The same magic cast on the child and Lady was spread to everyone in the estate.
"Both of the large-scale magic that you have casted is impossible for a Magician of your caliber."
The women didn't answer.
The men closed his eyes. Silence only fills the room as the women refuses to answer.
Time is running out. The women complexions seemed to have gotten worse as she was about to perish.
The man opened his eyes once more to give the last question. For someone who refused to answer his questions, and even tried to kill his only child, he couldn't help but wonder why she followed through this plan. She reminds him of his own pathetic past. Someone who lost all reason of existence.
"... Did someone forced you to do this?"
The women flinched towards the question. Did she do this out of her own free will? If she did, for what reason? If she didn't, then should she still suffer the consequences of death?
The women looked down, trembling as she didn't know how to answer his question.
"... I don't know... I did this to save us, but if I didn't do it, we would've suffered... I did this out of my own choice but at the same time I didn't... I wanted to save her... I never wanted to kill people... I never wanted to become the person I am now..."
She looks up the man once again, but this time with an expression showing her true sadness within her.
"I just wanted to be free!"
She knows that showing sadness won't escape her fate of death. But it wasn't for some measly reason...
"... I see."
The man removes the sword from her neck, positioning the sword diagonally on top of her and looked at her with the same cold expression since the beginning.
"I pity you... You must've had your reasons, but that doesn't excuse your actions."
He grips the sword tightly. The same black-blue aura starts to appear in the sword. But rather than emitting fear and anger, this time the aura emits a calming and peaceful sensation. Rather than it is going haywire and spreading pressure to its surroundings. It looked like the scene of the night sky that makes one person calm, yet sad.
Behind the man was a window of the still looming night sky with the full moon. The aura and the scenery created a complimentary background scenery, with the beautiful man in front of it being the main object of awe. Hair that was black. Eyes as red as ruby, and a cold but alluring face. The view that can be called a painting of death.
As his eyes shimmer with the ruby red color, he finally finishes all preparations on what's he going to do.
"I cannot forgive you and the person behind this incident. But at least I'll give you a painless death."
The sword that was on top of her slashed through her body. From the left shoulder all the way to the right pelvis.
A fast and swift full slash that is impossible to imitate unless the person has experienced many battles.
The man turns his back and walks away from the women with the sleeping child still in his arms.
She begins to fall on her back. Then a black and blue spark of light begins to emit from her body. It began on her legs. As the light spread, part of her body began to disappear with the blue and black particles.
As she followed where the light was going, she began to see the night sky. Still falling to her back but still able to see through the window.
The light particles and the scenery once again complemented each other. The particles around her soon went through the window and spread around the sky. The night glowed with aesthetic colors all around. Just like the stars in the sky.
"... Beautiful..."
Half her torso has already disappeared, but despite losing her body, she wasn't in pain.
'It feels like I'm finally free...'
Once the light reached her neck, she closed her eyes and shed a tear.
"... Sister... I'm sorry, but it seems like I'll be going first..."
Half her face was covered in light. She opened her eyes and saw a figure ahead.
A beautiful girl with pink hair and white skin that looked in her teens. Her eyes were not visible, yet you can see the happiness from her face regardless. A simple white dress, and small flowers in her hair that seemed to have been put on someone.
The sister she wanted to be free with must live in this cruel world alone.
She looked at the moon once more. She closes her eyes. A tear ran down her face, but she smiled through the sadness.
"Let my souls guide you to peace... and hope no more suffering befalls you..."
The light filled all her face.
And she dissolved into the night sky, the white moon that shined through the window to only show the broken glasses of the once living girl on the floor.
She's finally free...
A room that was filled with toys and items for a child. A light blue, with a mixture of white, crib in a corner that looked luxurious, yet comfortable, with a hanging ceiling decoration filled with cute and adorable items for the baby to look at.
The man entered from the door and walked slowly and quietly towards the direction of the crib.
Once he was in front of the crib, he looked down towards the baby that was in his arms. Still sleeping peacefully and quietly
You wouldn't have thought that he almost got killed by an assassin.
He gently caresses the infant's hair for a few seconds before stopping.
"What a failure of a person I am..."
The identity of the one who sent the assassin is known but not yet disclosed. The same person who keeps on sending assassins to the duke's wife in the past, now aims for the baby for an uncertain reason.
"First my wife, now my child..."
He puts the child on the crib gently, once he confirms his child's wellbeing, he closes his eyes. He clenches his hand tightly while looking down on the floor with his eyes still closed.
"... I have failed as father already... My son was in danger, yet I wasn't able to do much..."
He stares at the ceiling with a sad expression on his face.
"My wife and everyone working here were all put to sleep without my knowledge..."
He began to facepalm his forehead while covering his eyes.
"... I'm still weak... If I can't prevent the same incident that happened to my parents, then what's the use of having this power?"
He looked at the sleeping baby in the crib. Infant hair as white as her mother. Pale skin, his left eye hazel brown, taken from her mother again while the right being white due to the mana's blessing.
The complete imitation of his lover was portrayed on this young child.
The man smiled sentimentally to his child.
"I'll make sure to do anything within my power to protect you and your mother from any danger."
The man walks towards the door and leaves the room silently. He begins to walk towards the direction of all the servants and his wife that were passed out due to the magic. Once he finishes, he will peruse the other magicians that were conspiring with the incident and capture them alive to interrogate.
After stopping in the middle of the corridor, he looked at the window, outside was filled with blue and black particles that blend with the night.
He stares at the night sky with a discontented face as he recalls the event that recently happened.
He stares at his left hand that was still injured and covered in blood.
"... This is quite... unpleasant..."
He looks away from the disdained injury that recalls the moment, and soon he continues to walk towards his destination.
Forgetting of the women who he just killed, to not worry his wife and all the servants who are residing here of the threat. Everyone will forget this uneventful night.
But not him. He will use this opportunity to improve in protecting the one he cherishes and those loyal to him. He won't let such a situation as this happen again.
The night sky begins to be filled with the early sunset that shows the morning.
A new day comes forth out of their misery that took place in this mansion.
"-llo...?"
A voice keeps repeating in my head. Saying the same thing over and over, but what exactly is it...? My head feels numb, I can't move my body as I want it.
Ah yes... I'm an infant right now...
The situation still feels unfamiliar to me... Who knew that the process of transmigration and reincarnation will occur to me after death.
I opened my eyes. Once again, I'm in an unfamiliar room. A stuffed bear next to me while there's a hanging ceiling decoration on top of me. A room for a baby it seemed.
I turned my head towards the side and looked at the toy bear.
I gently try to touch it. Unknowingly, I then grabbed it and began hugging it.
'...is soft...'
Being able to touch the toy bear with such sensation means this is not a dream.
Did I really die...?
I looked up at the ceiling decorations. A star in the middle, another in the side that looked like a fairy, and another one that looks like a half-crescent moon.
Weird, I just dreamed about the moon before, and many beautiful and shiny particles floating and dispersing into the night sky. It was beautiful. I wanted to show my siblings such a beautiful scene.
Siblings...
I keep wondering... What are my siblings doing now? Are they sad that I passed away? Are they missing me while I'm in this world?
I have so many questions, yet no answers that I can look up into.
So, this is sadness...
A tear begins to run down the face of the infant. No sound was made as the infant continued to cry. He already cried once, but this time he knew why for.
"Crying while ignoring me, huh? Isn't that quite displeasing."
The same voice that repeated on my head earlier is talking again. But where is the voice coming from? I don't see anyone here?
"Trying to find me? Sadly, for you I don't have a body right now."
Suddenly a light blue flame flew in front of me. Just like a fire, but without the generation of heat.
I'm not sure... but for some reason my hand begins to reach out for the flame. Is it a baby's instinct to touch everything they see?
As my hand got closer to the flame, it suddenly flew farther away from me.
"Woah. Courageous, aren't you? What would've happened if I was a real fire? Hmm?"
The baby suddenly smiles and begins to laugh heartily towards the flame.
"... seems like you're still not assimilated into the body..."
Assimilated? So, did I possess someone's body?
My heart shook on the fact that I took someone's life...
The flame in front of me seemed like he knew what I was thinking about.
"Don't worry. It is not what you think. You're currently the true owner of this body, so no life was forsaken."
True owner. What does he mean? Does he know the reason why I'm in this state?
Soon, voices can be heard in the corridor near the door.
"Seems like I don't have enough time to talk about your situation. Maybe next time I'll be able to explain things to you once you fully assimilate."
The blue flame suddenly disappeared, leaving behind some sort of light fragments. My body responded by trying to capture the light with my bare hands. But they only pass through them and soon dissolved along with the wind. Shortly after, two people entered the room. The male and female that I first saw when I entered this body.
They walked towards me, hand in hand. The woman looked nervous as she kept getting closer, while the men next to her kept reassuring her.
They finally reached where I was. They saw me still hugging the bear from before. The women looked at me with admiration before smiling so gracefully.
I was surprised. That's an emotion I've never seen directed towards me other than my siblings.
'Weird... Why am I getting warm?'
The baby smiled brightly while trying to reach his small, subtle hand towards the women.
The women were surprised for a bit. She then gently placed her hand near the baby. The baby reached out his left hand grabbed her pinky while laughing.
The baby looked at his hand and saw a small bracelet in his wrist, a small continuous chain made of gold with a clear blue sapphire gem conjoining both chains end.
The women laughed with the baby. The man smiling behind them from the laughter of the ones he loved.
The women place her other hand gently in the baby's head. She silently stopped laughing but continued to smile towards the baby.
"... Lysander... Oh how grateful I am that you are here with us..."
... What?
My name is... Lysander?