CHAPTER 21: SCHOLARSHIPS P5
~21.5~
*****
“Lady Luma, if you would be willing to share a certain secret, you may very well improve demihuman relations much more quickly.”
Luma sighed. She knew what Liliana meant, but she still didn’t want to reveal it. In truth, Luma was born a demihuman and had been using advanced illusion magic to pose as a human for most of her life. “I... don’t know about that. I’m afraid it may cause problems. There would be trust issues and I don’t think the beast peoples would accept it.”
“Perhaps, but I’m sure Miss Lestia would be willing to keep a secret if it’s only revealed to her.”
“Well...”
Before Luma could even consider it, her sword transformed and introduced herself. “Greetings, Miss Lestia, I am Lux Caliburn. I am a living weapon and partner of my sister, Luma. Please forgive Luma’s hesitance. I’ve been trying to convince her thousands of years to come clean, and I’m quite tired of the argument.”
“Lux, don’t!” Luma cried, but Lux had already dispelled the illusion magic on herself.
“We are of the Black Tribe, born roughly two hundred thousand years ago.”
Lestia’s eyes widened. “You are the lost twins... the myth is true?”
Lux glanced at Luma with an annoyed frown. “Yes, we are those twins.” Luma sighed and dispelled her illusion magic, revealing the same cat ears and tail that Lux had.
Lestia was taken aback. She belonged to the Black Tribe as well and had mixed feelings. “The legendary Sword Saint is a black cat...”
“Yes,” Luma said. She hesitated with every word. She had her own misgivings about being a cat person. “Lux and I left the tribe when we were teenagers.”
“I...” Lestia was hesitant to believe it, but seeing it in person convinced her. “I would like some time to think about it.”
Kye nodded. “Of course. This is no small choice. Please take all the time you need to consider your options.”
“Thank you, Lady Kye.” Lestia smiled and something came to mind. “Lady Luma, if I may, I’d like to have a condition on my end.”
Luma blinked, unsure of what she could want. “Uh, well, okay. What do you want?”
“Would you return to our village?” She met Luma’s eyes, her own pleading for what she asked. “At least to visit. It’s not exactly a village now, it’s a full-fledged city.”
“I-I see.” Luma frowned, not wanting to remember a certain detail. “I don’t know... I have kept up with the tribe’s advancements, but I... I don’t think I’d be welcome. They believe we died a long time ago.”
“Please, Lady Luma,” Lestia pleaded. “The librarian is the oldest person in our nation, and she claims to have met you.”
Must be Luma’s mother.
Kye placed a hand on Luma’s shoulder and nodded at her. “You should do it. I think you have a lot to gain out of it.”
“I’ll... think about it.” Luma then quietly reapplied her illusion magic and prompted Lux to do the same, who reluctantly agreed and also returned to her weapon form. Lestia nodded and smiled.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“Oh, and just in case...” Kye handed her a magic bracelet enchanted with an emergency teleportation spell. “Any time you are in trouble, use this. It will transport you to the nearest Church of Elysium cathedral by default, but you can choose other destinations.” She showed Lestia how to adjust the destination. “It will respond to your mana so that you can teleport with no physical interaction, such as if someone bound your hands, but it will not transport you unless you intend to be transported.”
Kye also added Lestia to a system group that can contact her directly whenever they want. Lestia nodded and said, “Thank you, Lady Kye. I will give it sincere consideration, and I very much appreciate being offered this opportunity. I’ll message you once I’ve had some time to think. A few days, maybe.”
“If you need anything in the meantime, feel free to contact me.”
“Or me,” Luma added.
“Or me,” Alethea added, finally speaking for the first time, earning a raised eyebrow from Kye, Luma, and Liliana. Aliana didn’t as much as blink in response. “What?”
“Nothing, you’ve just been really quiet.”
The pink girl shrugged. “Eh, you were talking shop. I didn’t want to interrupt unless I had something meaningful to add. You know how I am.”
“Fair point.”
Kye smiled at her lover and received one in return.
So far, so good. Lestia is gifted, and I would love to see her grow. She is smart and I’m sure she’ll do well at the Slayer Academy. She mentioned a little brother during some small talk earlier. I wonder if he’s gifted, too.
*****
Next on the list was the slave girl. The man had taken her quite far from the Tall Tree since the incident the previous night, but Kye’s tracking magic led her right to him. They were in an inn almost a day away by carriage.
“Hi, we’re looking for a human man traveling with a dog girl,” Kye said to the innkeeper. “Would you mind pointing us in the right direction?” It was really a curtesy. Kye knew exactly where the man was.
“It’s not our way to sell out patrons, young lady,” the old woman answered. “I’m afraid I-”
“Would you please reconsider?” Luma asked. She pulled her cloak back a bit to show the woman a glimpse of her uniform.
Her eyes widened. “Y-yes, absolu-lutely. R-room 3.”
“Thank you.”
Luma nodded at them, and they went upstairs to the rooms. Before they ever entered the inn, Kye was already subtly tracking the mana of every person within a hundred-foot radius. She could feel every step the man made as he tried to pull the girl and escape through the window. The other four accompanying Kye were using short-range mana tracking, too. Kye glanced at Aliana and the girl vanished.
As Luma reached for the doorknob, they heard a loud thump. Aliana kicked the man back into the room and he fell on his butt. Kye stood over the man and sighed. “Did you really think you could hide from us?”
“H-how? I paid good money to get that spell removed!”
Kye sighed. “My date grabbed your face and lifted you off the ground... and you were completely helpless. Where’s the logic? We are clearly not your average... nevermind. We’re not even here for you.” Kye glanced at the dog girl. “Hello, again!”
“Huh?” the man jumped up, but was quickly knocked back to the floor by Liliana.
“Stay down. I’m not as forgiving as my lady.”
Kye bent down and looked the man in the eyes. “Sell her to me.”
“Hell no.”
Liliana pinned him to the floor with her foot buried in his back.
Kye gave him an evil smile. “Wanna change your mind?”
“No!”
“How would you like to take another trip into the sky?”
“Oh,” Alethea interjected. “Yeah... I actually took him to space...”
“Ah.” Kye turned back to him, her evil smile showing him no kindness. “Either way. Sell her to me. She’s too good for a dumbass like you.”
“No!”
“Okay, well you can keep saying no, but here...” she handed him the sack of coins. “Take this and leave. I’m not giving you a choice.” She gestured at Luma. “That’s the Sword Saint. She’s my friend. Go on, ask her for proof if you don’t believe me.”
The man could no longer respond, shocked into silence. It finally set it just how out of his league they were. He picked up the money and left without another word.
Kye breathed a little easier and looked at the dog girl. “I apologize for forcing this. I don’t like slavery. I’d rather see you freed and still choose not to come with us than to stay with that man.”
The girl shook her head and meekly replied, “Thank you.”
“Mind if we talk for a bit? I’ve got an offer for you. I’d say life-changing, but I think we’ve already crossed that line.”
*****
Revision: 2024-8-2