Chapter 27: My mistake
In the Nightmoon family mansion...
Dusk was done examining his incomplete concoction. After Dawn left he was able to focus much more on the task and finished it faster than he expected. He used his magic to recreate the poison with mana and coated it on one of his knives. He would have tested if the recreated poison worked, but that would mean experimenting on himself again. He was too mentally exhausted for that. Currently, he was lying down on his soft bed while thinking.
'[In-depth inspection] is good but I think I need something more to speed up the process of learning how to recreate.' Dusk thought as he rubbed his chin.
His hidden skill was definitely useful but even with that, his magic requires a large amount of preparation before use. Although he enjoyed the process, he felt the process was a bit too slow.
'The Goddess mentioned before that a skill can often evolve into an improved version if you train it long enough... Perhaps I'll have to do just that.' Dusk started contemplating if there was any other method besides evolving his skill. After all, he had already been using the skill every day for hours and hours. So he had no idea when and if, the skill would evolve.
'There's also the second part of my magic...[Total-Destruction]. I haven't even unlocked it due to my low level. I'm curious as to how it will work. But with how I'm progressing, it will probably take a long ti-'
"Young master? May I enter?" the familiar voice of a young man interrupted Dusk's thoughts.
"Yes, you can enter Magnus," Dusk replied as he sat up on his bed.
The young man with cyan hair tied in a ponytail entered the room in his black butter attire. He was holding a tray with two cups of fine tea on top. The light aroma of the freshly served cups of tea filled the room slowly, while Magnus put the cups down on my desk. Thankfully, I had cleaned up and organized my desk this time after my work was done.
"It may have been presumptuous of me but I brought the two of you te- Hmm?" Magnus stopped speaking and looked around the room as if searching for something or someone.
"Has Miss Dawn already left, young master?" Magnus asked Dusk with a frown.
"Ah...now that you mention it, I think she did leave quite some time ago," Dusk replied while trying to remember when Dawn left.
"That's.....strange. Mr. Lucius came along with a few guests to the manor in the afternoon to speak with Lord Nightmoon. He mentioned at the time that after he was done, he'd be taking Miss Dawn with him back home..." Magnus's frown increased in intensity.
This time Dusk had a feeling something might be amiss. He tried recalling the time during Dawn's departure and her exact words.
["Hey, Dusk! I'll be going out to play for a bit! I'll come back later" Dusk recalled her getting off the sofa as she said that.
"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead." To which he gave a short reply and waved his hand dismissively.]
'She mentioned she'd come back later....and yet it's already evening. Did she just go back home?' Dusk pondered in his mind. But he dismissed that possibility. Lucius always leaves his residence with Dawn because, besides him and his daughter, no one lives there. As the caring father he is, he would never leave his 8-year-old daughter alone in the house. This is why Dawn would always arrive at the Nightmoon Mansion whenever Lucius did. Dawn also isn't the type of person to want to remain in the house alone when her father isn't there.
'Lucius assumed that Dawn is in the Mansion. Meaning, she didn't return home before he left. For her to return home after he left, would probably be impossible too. Because Lucius likely locked up before coming here since Dawn wasn't with him. That means there's a high chance that....she's still outside.' Dusk started his attempt at solving the mystery behind Dawn's disappearance.
Meanwhile, Magnus was trying to get his attention but he was just too focused to notice it.
'But why would she still be outside? It's already evening. If I recall right she left at around noon. According to Magnus, that's even before Lucius arrived. She said she went out to play but that seems unlikely considering how late it is...' Dusk pondered even more.
Then he tried recalling Dawn's actions before leaving, again.
["Oh! Do you need this fruit to finish your medicine?" Dawn asked Dusk with a curious expression. At the time Dusk was staring intensely at the picture of a fruit called, Nixantus.
"You could say that," Dusk had replied, confirming Dawn's deductions.
"Hmm...." after that, Dawn fell into deep thought.
She was thinking about something for some time before she left, saying she would go out to play.]
'Did she....go out to get the fruit? Hmm, but that seems unlikely since I can't find any reasonable motive for it...' Dusk was about to dismiss the possibility but then he recalled another important clue to the missing puzzle.
[ "Hey, Dusk! What are you doing?" Dawn interrupted me just when I was going to test the venom on myself.
"I created some medicine for myself. I'm going to apply it on me now." I lied and took one of my knives which I coated with venom to make a small cut on my finger.
"Eh?! Why are you cutting yourself?!" Dawn exclaimed when she saw what I did.
"The medicine needs to flow through my blood. I have stiff muscles from not moving much. So I'm using this to fix it."
That's why I keep telling you to come and play outside with me! You always just stay in your room!" Dawn who believed my words complained.]
'She thinks...I'm sick. So she went to get the fruit so that I could cure myself? No, that's a bit far-fetched...' Dusk wanted to think it wasn't possible but he knew the kind of person Dawn Brightsun was. A hopeless kid that caused inconveniences by being too kind. She was too kind for her own good. Dusk's expression turned sour as the possibility he wanted to dismiss had become a quite likely scenario.
As he realized the seriousness of the situation, he quickly got up from his head and tore a piece of paper in which he started writing something. The location where Dawn might be is Darkmoon Grove. Dusk didn't know if Dawn knew the path to that forest or if she even knew where the forest could be found, but he thought right now it was best to assume that she knew both and prepare for the worst.
"Young master? Is there something wrong? Is it about Miss Dawn?" Magnus's words finally started to enter Dusk's ears.
"Magnus, take this paper. Do NOT read the contents right now. However, If I don't come back within 20 minutes, then read its contents and try to follow the instructions I wrote on it." Dusk handed over a folded piece of paper. Magnus took it in hand with a very confused expression.
"Young master, you're going somewhere? Is Miss Dawn in some sort of danger?!" Magnus looked at me with a serious expression.
"I'm heading out to find out. I'll explain things later!" Dusk replied and jumped out of his window.
"Young master?!" Magnus panicked and quickly ran to check Dusk's condition. He was horrified to see that Dusk was falling from the window that was around 7 and a half meters(25 feet) apart from the earth.
But just before he landed his feet were enveloped in a light blue aura that seemed to soften the impact he felt on the ground. Right after that with a burst of what can only be mana, he sprinted north of the Nightmoon territory with inhuman speed as faint after images were left behind where he was but a moment ago.
Witnessing all this Magnus's brain stopped functioning.
"He.....can do that?" is all he could mutter as Dusk had already vanished from sight.
In the meantime, Dusk was busy thinking about many different scenarios. Even if he reached Darkmoon Grove, there was no guarantee he would find Dawn anytime soon. The forest had a wide area and it would take a whole night or more to search thoroughly even with his abilities. Not to mention there was a chance that Dawn was already dead considering how dangerous the forest was.
But her death would be very problematic for Dusk. Firstly, he owed a debt to Lucius for providing him with silver. Secondly, it's possible the connection between the Nightmoon family and the Brightsun family would sour, which means he wouldn't be able to ask Lucius for information or favors anymore. Thirdly, It was most likely Dusk's lie about being sick that spurred Dawn to take such dangerous actions. Though it's true her overloading kindness was also partially at fault for trying to help him despite him not asking. But Dusk believes he should have predicted this scenario and prevented it as Dawn was still very much a child.
And last but not least, it would be a shame for Dawn to die. After all, it was amusing to tease her.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone