บท 39: Space
Aiden patted Aiden's shoulder, signaling him to take his hand out of Old Fe's mouth. Lucien can't help but raise an eyebrow at the little protagonist. Could it be.. he knew Old Fe's identity?
How? Since when?
Lucien tried not to ponder it too much. This is the little protagonist. Of course, with his protagonist's halo, he can figure out everything. However, does this mean he already knew Lucien wanted to be an Alchemist?
Nah. It can't be.
Old Fe looked at the both of them, alarmed. Vigilance and anxiety were evident in his eyes. Lucien wrote in the paper once more.
"Lily is possessed. It was the demon spirit I fought back in the church."
Old Fe's mouth dropped. He was frozen in shock in his seat. Disbelief suffused his expression. Then again, he had hidden himself from the outside demon world for such a long time it was difficult for him to discern who was possessed and who was not.
His expression hardened and he responded.
"How did you know?"
Lucien did not write back. He was waiting for Old Fe to act. But what was Old Fe supposed to do? Lucien is staring down at him, expecting him to do something. Minutes passed and Old Fe did nothing. Lucien pointed to the formulas written on the table. There was no impatience in his eyes, only silent instruction. He wants to say a word but he can't say it, so he looks for other means. One that will give a hint that they know Old Fe's identity and tell him what he was supposed to do in this current situation.
Old Fe looked deep into the young man's eyes. Somehow, he had the impression the young man wasn't the simple child who had appeared on his doorstep the day before.
There was maturity and calmness in his eyes that definitely wasn't present in any child his age. The little one also has the aggression that is so unusual among children that sometimes it puzzles Old Fe. Where did these two polar brothers come from?
Old Fe did not say anything but pulled out a pill from his drawers. He squeezed it between his fingers. Lucien watched as the pill burst into powder and, suddenly, the surroundings changed. The white wall in the office was gone, replaced by a landscape of greenery and clear blue sky.
At their right, standing out of place in this nature-sque view, is the small cabin.
As they got nearer, they found out it was bigger than St. Louis Church and the entire area was divided into three sections. The brewing room, where vials and potions were made. There's a large fat jar that's been steaming and bubbling gooey colors. The next room is the tools room, where most of the exorcism tools that were taken from the smith himself are stored in order for the Alchemist to channel light magic on them. And the last room, was that a library? Lucien is not sure. But the small area contains tightly squeezed shelves and book spines.
Right inside of the cabin, Old Fe makes them stop. He snapped his fingers and a round wooden table with three chairs suddenly appeared.
"Sit." Old Fe said as teacups appeared at the table and a jar full of warm milk was poured into Lucien's and Aiden's cups.
They have different drinks than Old Fe. A steaming small kettle poured a fresh jasmine tea into his cup. He sipped it with a satisfied expression.
"What do you think?" Old Fe tried to start. He opened his arms to indicate he was referring to the cabin.
"Good." Lucien briefly answered. This is not the first time he's seen an Alchemist's private space. When Alchemists reach the Grand Master Level, they can create a small space for themselves by bending the light magic and creating a crack in the hole. This hole was widened, which resulted in a personal space for storing things.
How big the space is shows how strong the owner is. Lucien estimated Old Fe to be among the best there is. No wonder he survived the attack.
"Why don't you start telling me how you know who I am?" There's a tone of suspicion in his voice. Old Fe figured it was time to stop acting like a kind old man he was.
"Did you come here to find me?" Old Fe is staring deep into Lucien's eyes.
Lucien's eyes glint in surprise at the flash of purple in Old Fe's eyes. There's an undescribable feeling that stems from his chest. He can't resist but want to tell Old Fe everything. His heart starts beating hard. Unrestlessness erupted in his stomach. What is this? His eyes became hazy and he felt like collapsing.
Aiden is looking at him with concern.
"Lucien?" Aiden's voice sounded alarmed.
"Lucien, what's wrong with you?" Aiden shook his shoulders.
Lucien's head was muddled and his vision swirled. He couldn't keep sitting upright. In his daze, he saw little Aiden's worried eyes staring down at him. But he can't see his face clearly. There's a white fog swirling around them, making his vision blurry.
If what he was feeling was a regular bad feeling, he should have thought the white smoke was an illussion. But he was not feeling well all of a sudden. And it happened right after Old Fe brought them in. This is bad. They are on Old Fe's turf. He did this to them. If Old Fe really wants to, he can kill them with a snap of his fingers. Lucien tried to shake off the uneasiness by pulling Aiden closer.
Aiden is immune to situations that caused dizziness and hallucinations to the victims. Might be because of his magic affinity or his protagonist halo, but no magic ever works on him. In particular, demon magic. Lucien only meant to pull Aiden and push him to Old Fe. Old Fe has the key out of here. If Aiden was flung into him by surprise, then maybe he would release his hold to block the exit and send Aiden back to reality accidentally.
Lucien is determined to take that chance. What he did not expect was that the system would speak in his head.
[Potion Intrusion Detected]
[The host is strongly advised to activate the protagonist's affection level in order to control the potion intrusion in the host's body.]
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