Nyx's silhouette gracefully weaved through the milling crowd like a spectre, the hood of her torn, weathered mantle pulled up just enough to hide her hair but not her face.

Though her appearance was somewhat unique and out of place amongst the brightly clothed youths and their families, her bedraggled, blindfolded figure waving a slender walking stick across the ground in front of her, most would merely spare her a glance before losing interest and looking away.

For the few that had taken note of her attractive features or snow white skin, after seeing the state of her clothes and believing that she was blind, they quickly shook their heads in disappointment and returned to their own, more pressing, matters.

While being blind in the current age wasn't a death sentence, the fact that a woman didn't have an escort and was in dire straights judging by the cloak that covered her petite frame, caused those with ulterior motives to immediately dismissed the notion.

They had judged that the blind girl's situation, whatever it may be, was not something they wanted to be involved with no matter how pretty her face, especially during such a significant event, and quickly discarded any thoughts they had about her.

Nyx's could help but internally chuckle as she watched yet another young man turn away after his initial gaze of interest turned despondent, relishing in the fact that she was somewhat, after much trial and error, able to hide in plain sight.

However, it was only a momentary, distracting thought as Nyx turned her head to the side, her sight only slightly impaired by the blindfold that masked her eye's glow, and checked the every changing surroundings around her.

After quickly calculating her route, Nyx adjusted her course avoiding a large group that appeared to be from the Welshmar Republic before moving towards a few heavily clothed people that appeared to have travelled from a much warmer climate.

As she walked, Nyx's lips revealed a warm, charming smile, causing a few to double take before behaving like those that had seen her earlier.

At first, this was just a guise, another trick she had learnt. Yet after having obtained confirmation about the mysterious man, who judging from the rumours not only had a link to Nyx's past but had only sought the Heaven Twilight sect's protection a few days after Nyx's name and deeds committed at the Republic's capital had shaken the fourth continent.

The fact that she had a lead, after so much time and effort, left Nyx in an almost euphoric state as she resisted the urge to hum and skip.

A behaviour that she had come to enjoy as she traversed the vast expanse known as the Tibel Forest, which ran through the entirety of the Welshmar Republic and into a couple of its neighbouring kingdoms, on foot.

Suddenly, an overexcited youth, wearing a thick green robe with silver embroidery, abruptly span and dashed away from his friends, excited to share the news of his acceptance to the Heaven Twilight sect with his family standing nearby.

The moment the boy started to turn, Nyx had already locked onto him as a potential threat.

Her senses, now extremely acute compared to an average human, took note of the boy's heartbeat, stance and even the look in his eyes as she quickly scanned his hands and sides, looking for any weapons, concealed or otherwise.

As this was happening Nyx couldn't help but subconsciously, almost indiscernible to the naked eye, flinch as the grip on her staff tightened while her other hand rose, seemingly to scratch her cheek, in a defensive manner.

After the amount of time it would take one to blink, Nyx had already evaluated that the boy wasn't a threat and relaxed her muscles. The smile on her face having not faltered or changed for an instant, as if she had never registered the impending collision.

Yet, just as the youth was about to slam into her, Nyx's body shook slightly, her aversion to being touched without permission having grown into somewhat of a problem during her isolation and overthrowing her reason for a split second.

However, even though her body subconsciously moved, Nyx still had enough sense not to reveal herself. As such, she merely tapped her foot on the ground slightly, pushing herself back.

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Though she hadn't moved far, only half an inch or so, it was enough to stop the two from touching, enabling Nyx to release a small, concentrated blast of dark essence in the small gap.

The amount of energy expended was tiny, to the point that any expert watching with both their eyes and spirit sense would find it hard to notice, even if it the explosion wasn't hidden between their bodies, yet it was enough to make the boy feel as if he had crashed into something heavy, causing him to stumble slightly.

However, as Nyx released the dark essence, her aura, something she had more difficulty restraining since her core had gained layers, momentarily escaped her control and rippled outwards.

It had only reached a few feet by the time she had managed to retract it, yet the boy had clearly felt it as his face paled due to the sudden pressure that descended upon his soul.

Irritated that she had lost control, even if it was for a moment, Nyx's body staggered to the side, seemingly on the verge of losing balance as she waved her free arm about as if she were trying to steady herself.

Standing nearby, in the direction the boy had been attempting to run, a middle-aged woman had seen the collision and had quickly extended her arm, intending to grab hold of Nyx's flailing body before it crashed to the ground.

Seeing this, Nyx having one eye on the direction she was travelling so nothing would surprise her, the walking stick in her hand quickly moved, a little two quick and accurate if someone was carefully observing, and with what looked like desperate, last-second attempt, managed to stabilise her body.

"Be careful you fool," bellowed the woman as her eyes locked onto the shocked boy, snapping him from his daze, his back drenched in cold sweat.

While the surrounding crowd was reasonably noisy, the woman's yell silenced those nearby, causing them to turn their heads to see what was going on.

Seeing this through her blindfold, Nyx released a barrage of silent profanities at the woman and boy while making a mental note of her mistake and promising that she would reflect about the situation later and work out what she could have done differently.

Even though she believed that she had not blown her cover or drawn any expert's attention, Nyx's body immediately flinched at the woman's yell before starting to shake and stammer as if the rebuke had been aimed at her. From bitter experience, she knew that the smallest inconsistency, especially if it went against what a person believed to be normal or right, would instantly draw suspicion. "I'm s...sorry. I... I didn't mean to. I'll be more careful next time."

Yet, against how she appeared on the surface, a scared, weak blind girl who would instantly apologise, even if she wasn't at fault, Nyx was already mapping out the best escape route. Her mind was even subconsciously thinking about what measures she would need to take to slow down her pursuers if the worst case scenario happened.

After hearing the tearful, almost pitiful voice of Nyx, who's already small statue had shrunk further as she slouched, her free hand trying to pull down the tip of her hood as if she wanted to hide her face out of embarrassment and shame, the woman's angry scowl softened before disappearing completely. "I wasn't shouting at you girl, I'm talking to my idiot of a nephew who ran into you."

"I'm sorry about that," said the green-robed boy absentmindedly, still slightly confused from the sudden bust of Nyx's aura and wondering why his heart refused to calm. It had only been for a moment, too quick for him to feel any sense of terror or fear, but he had felt like he was stood before a monstrous entity, one that was about to devour him down to the last bone.

Taking a few steps forward, he held his hand out to shake Nyx's as a sign of good will.

"She's blind you daft dolt," growled the woman, her red dress seeming to match her fiery temperament, as she rolled her eyes. "How in the seven hells did you pass the exam with a rotten brain like yours?"

"Aunty, you already know?" Forgetting about his blunder and not taking any notice of the insult directed at him, the boy's face cramped in disappointment.

He had been dying to see the looks on his families face when he broke the news to them, having only stopped to tell his friends, who were about to take the test themselves.

"Of course I know, you have been shouting about it for over twenty minutes and we are just standing right here." The woman, who seemed like the boy's aunt couldn't help but sigh as she shook her head and indicated the other people standing behind her, a few showing signs of being related, causing them to chuckle lightheartedly at the boy's antics. "Anyway, aren't you forgetting something?"

"Oh." The boy turned back towards where Nyx had been standing moments ago but found that he could no longer see any trace of her.

The woman looked around as well, her face forming into a frown before shrugging. "Probably run off scared, poor thing. Before you leave with the others tomorrow, I want you to find that girl and apologise properly. It might be just a small bump for you, but for a blind girl who was braving this noisy, crowded place, it was probably terrifying."

The boy was about to open his mouth in protest yet the woman's glare stopped him. "Adam, this isn't a request. While it might not look like it, for that girl to be wandering around the sect recruitment grounds mean's she either has some sort of background or she cultivates. And even my guess is wrong, you will merely gain some extra karma to counterbalance all the stupid stuff you get up too."

"Yes, Aunt," sighed the boy, his shoulders drooping as he turned around, only to see his friends, the ones that he had been proudly boasting to before, sniggering at his misfortune.