Legacy of the Dark Sage

The talk Kyran had with Cyneah left him feeling a little upset. He already knew she would readily agree to anything he asked her. But hearing her tell him not to hesitate and take advantage of her did not sit well with him.

Cyneah was not a tool, and Kyran had no plans of taking advantage of her.

Yet, all he ever did was take advantage of her ability.

First was his magic core. Then whenever he needed to replenish his magic energy, she would gladly use her ability to help him even when she was exhausted.

Now, there was Hugh.

With a heavy sigh, Kyran looked at Cyneah, who had gone back to sleep after agreeing to heal Hugh. She did not even ask who the latter was and immediately agreed to meet and heal him.

Kyran wanted to repay her, but she never asked for anything other than to 'see' him.

Recalling Cyneah's request, Kyran finally made a decision. She intends to see him using magic sense, but he will find a way to return her eyes.

Zephyr said they were taken from her, and Kyran would get them back. It would not be easy, and Kyran was aware of it, but he would do it anyway.

But first, he needed to ask White Lily the truth of that day when a Spirit attacked the 'princess' because he needed to confirm something.

In any case, restoring Cyneah's sight would be one of the top things Kyran would do after saving his clan.

Kyran stood up and warped back to his room at the Courtenay land.

That evening, Kyran spent time sorting through all the information he had. He meticulously read through all the information on every faction (small, medium and large) he got from the Conclave, Byron and anything new his magic items came in contact with.

Based on everything Kyran gathered, apart from the factions he set his eyes on, most small and medium factions adopted a 'wait and see' attitude toward the recent changes made by the Royal Family. None of them were aware of the new power structure in the whole empire; thus, most believed it would only be a matter of time before one of the large factions— in particular the Templar Code and the Royal Army, would break the status quo and lead a rebellion.

While Kyran finalized the list of stops he would go to after assuming Nar's identity, he sensed his communication lit up. A sign someone sent him a coded message.

Kyran checked the message and discovered it was from Byron. As he scanned through its content, a smile appeared on his face.

The next day was a busy one. Four events were happening— two of which would happen simultaneously— and several matches lined up for the day.

The rules for the Alchemy competition remained the same, and it ended with the Royal Family and Conclave winning against the Montgomeray Family and the Lumley Family, respectively.

As for the Array Creation, it adopted the rules from yesterday, albeit the level of arrays was fixed.

The Conclave won their match against the Montgomeray Family. As for the match between the Royal Army and the Courtenay Family, surprisingly, the latter managed to draw with the former.

Finally, the Solo and Team competitions drew a lot of attention in the afternoon.

All four Function Halls were filled to the brim with spectators.

In particular, Function Hall 2, where the Conclave and the Courtenay Family Solo Competition would commence, was overly crowded. Almost every Courtenay family member went there to watch.

To ensure everyone could watch the match properly, the head committee opened the Dome Grand Hall and prepared a live feed showing the matches happening in all function halls.

Ten minutes before the start of the Solo Competition, Kyran, Styx, and the rest of the mercenaries entered the hall and sat on the bench reserved on their side.

Without looking at Kyran sitting to his right, Styx asked, "What do you think? Will they adopt the Solo Challenge?"

"Nope," Kyran replied at once. "I think we will all have a proper match."

"Hm," Styx nodded. "The Courtenay Family has been conservative in all their matches, so I see where you are coming from. But I still think they will ask for a change in the rules."

"Rather than a change in the rules, they will probably have their members choose who they want to fight."

Seated to Kyran's right, Rake looked at him, "What makes you say that?"

"Yesterday, someone already asked me for a match in today's competition."

Deo, who had been listening in on them and was seated to Rake's right, whistled while shaking his head. "It's really hard to be popular. I just hope not all of them will request to fight you."

Black lines appeared on Kyran's head, "I'll decline if that happens. I just competed in the Array Creation and didn't have the strength to fight two matches. To be honest, I don't think I'll last for more than five minutes in one match."

Sitting at the far right side of the bench, Tilda leaned forward and peered at Kyran.

"You do look like sh*t. Are you sure you're getting enough rest? You look far worse than our match with the Montgomeray Family," she remarked.

While studying Kyran's profile, Deo nodded and said, "I also think so."

Kyran looked at them from the corner of his eyes and, with a slight smile, said, "I'll be fine."

Before the three could say more, Styx cut them off by saying, "The fact he's still sitting with us is proof he has enough strength to fight in a match."

Then he looked at Kyran and added, "But you'll have to go last."

"Okay."

The announcer appeared, and all noise died down at once.

"Greetings to all! Without further ado, we will now commence with the Solo Competition!" She announced and hovered above the arena.

"The rules for today's competition are simple. The leaders of each team will draw lots. The side who drew the black orb will be the first team who can decide which among the members of the opposite side will fight."

Rake, Deo and Tilda all turned to look at Kyran after the announcer had spoken.

Once again, Kyran had been on point.

"At the end of each match, the loser team will be the one to pick the member among the opposite side who will fight next."

"Hm?" Tilda frowned, "Shouldn't it be the other way around? Since the winning team won, they should be the ones picking?"

"They already won. It will be unfair if they also choose for the next match. What if they choose the other side's weakest member and have their strongest fighter fight?" Deo told her. "This is to balance out the chances of both sides."

"I still think it's strange," Tilda grumbled.

"Please remember that you can only choose a member once. Well then, leaders of both side, please draw lots," the female announcer said and waved her hand. A golden box appeared on each side and flew toward the Conclave and the Courtenay corner.

Styx stood up from the Conclave corner and drew on the golden box. While a man with brushed-up blonde hair and olive green eyes in a light green robe drew on the golden box from the Courtenay's corner.

Styx and the man lifted their hand to show the announcer the orb they drew.

"The Courtenay Family drew the black orb and will be the first to pick the member who will fight from the Conclave's side," the female announcer said.

"We choose, Disciple Tyr to fight first," the man declared at once.

Deo, Rake and Tilda's expressions turned blank as they all looked at Kyran.

"Yep, popular alright. S*cks to be you."

"So much for going last on today's competition."

"Why does this scene feel like deja vu?"

Deo, Tilda and Rake commented, one after another.

"Disciple Tyr, please come on stage," the female announcer called for Kyran. Then she turned toward the Courtenay side. "Please choose your first player."

On the Conclave corner, Rake looked at Styx and smiled wryly. He could sense Styx had been raring to go. Unfortunately, they skipped him again and went after Kyran.

"They don't want you to fight first because they fear you," he remarked.

"Humph," Styx replied and sat down. "F*cking wusses."

"I think they are targetting Tyr for a reason," Deo replied. "He had been looking like sh*t so they probably think he's the weakest among us right now."

Styx shrugged, "That's why I said they are f*cking wusses. Aiming for the weakest member."

Kyran chuckled, "Doesn't matter. At least, I can rest after my match."

"Go show them we're not pushovers," Styx told him.

Kyran chuckled and stood up.

At the same time, Millie stood up from the Courtenay's side. She was smiling as she made her way to the arena.

The female announcer looked at Millie but did not say anything.

The timer overhead began its countdown as the two went into the arena.

"Thank you for accepting my request, Disciple Tyr," Millie said.

"Even if I don't agree, we'll end up fighting with this setting, don't you think?" Kyran replied meaningfully.

What he said was not without reason. Even if Millie did not make a scene yesterday, if their side ended up getting the black orb, there was still a chance they would get matched up.

Millie shook her head, "That may be true, but that will not be the case in your end, right? If your side drew the black orb, I'm sure you will end up fighting last. As for me, I'll definitely be picked as the first player because of my poor magic talent."

Kyran raised his brows but did not reply.

As soon as the timer turned 25:05, the female announcer lifted her hand and declared the start of the match.

"First match of the Solo Competition between the Conclave and the Courtenay Family start!"

Millie spread her arms at once, and several crushed materials appeared hovering around her. She took out a golden brush from her pouch and began writing array calculations in the air.

As she wrote in the air, the crushed materials responded and trailed along the lines her brush touched. Golden liquor also seeped out of the brush.

On the other hand, Kyran remained still. With narrowed eyes, he watched Millie draw her array calculation.

He noticed the pen she was using was a magic item that automatically ejected golden ink needed by Array Specialists to write formulas.

"Offense-type, Fire Pool Array!" Millie shouted and pushed the vertical array formation toward Kyran. The array lit up, and flames began to seep within.

Kyran lifted his right hand, and his wooden staff appeared in his hand. He applauded Millie for managing to create an array in less than twenty seconds. It was only a low-tier array, but in a battle, if an Array Specialist could create several low-tier arrays at this pace, they might be able to control the flow of the match.

However, this was only possible if they matched up against someone who was not good with Array.

The moment, Kyran summoned his staff, Millie made her next move. She raised her left hand, and another golden brush appeared. She took out more sets of crushed materials from her storage ring and began writing two array calculations simultaneously.

The crowd gasped at Millie's Array display. It was their first time witnessing someone perform on-the-spot dual array creation!