บท 34: Not Good Enough
Celine frowned.
Kyran wanted to talk about that right off the bat?
She contemplated on how she could relay President Callan's words. The priority right now was to convince Kyran that the Mercenary Hall was willing to help him.
Callan entrusted her to do this job because her magic was useful in negotiations.
After a short pause, Celine subtlety urged her magic and started to speak.
"Of course we will not let the army do as they please," she began.
'Hm?' Nolan felt a small magic fluctuation trying to infiltrate his veil. He recognized the magic signature and sneered while looking at Celine.
'This old hag really has some guts wanting to use charm to make the kid listen. Does she really think if she uses just a small amount of magic to her voice the kid will not notice? Oh well, at this point, I'm probably the only one who knows that the kid's magic is always active within his body and will react to anything that tries to influence it.' He thought and checked on Kyran.
As expected, a small frown appeared on Kyran's face. But whether he realized Celine's magic or not, he remained indifferent.
"I have spoken to the President of the Mercenary Hall and told him what you said. He was also not happy that the army was using us for their own scheme. Right at this moment, he is on his way to meet the Chairman and talk more about it," Celine said while trying to observe any change in Kyran's behavior.
Although his face was hidden in the shadows, she could still perceive any small change base on his aura.
"For now, he decided that we should act according to how the army expects."
At this point, Kyran shifted. He closed his eyes and started to rub his left temples.
[Tsk. Trying to play safe. Cowards.]
Nolan also commented.
When Celine saw Kyran moved but did not say anything, she smiled in her heart. If she managed to convince him, maybe the two of them could also start off new. She continued, "The President believed that if we exposed the army's scheme, they might end up openly admitting to everything. If they do, the public's opinion might pressure the Emperor himself to order the Regis Clan's execution. I'm sure you don't want that to happen."
She paused and waited for Kyran to digest this information. When after almost a minute he still did not make any movements, she finally felt something was wrong.
And it was only then that she perceived the sudden drop in the temperature around them.
"This..." Dante also felt the change in the air and immediately reached for the hilt of his greatsword.
"You know, the Regis Clan has around 20,000 disciples. If I include their family then maybe more than double that number. Then the Regis family count is around 500. That also includes the little ones," Kyran finally spoke.
Celine and Dante could not help but exchange glances. Both of them were unsure why Kyran suddenly said that.
"If the Emperor ordered their execution. Just how long would that take?" Kyran wondered out loud. He still had his eyes closed and was rubbing his temples as if trying to ease up a headache.
Nolan felt something was wrong as well, but he decided to observe for now.
"Hall Master," Kyran suddenly called Celine.
"Yes?" she immediately replied.
"How many mages are there in the Royal Army?"
"Mages...?" She was a little confused by his question. A part of her, however, felt she already knew where this conversation was headed. And she was starting to feel anxious. "The mage force covers at least 83% of the whole Royal Army. The remaining are combat specialists or ordinary personnel."
"How many is 83%?"
Celine frowned, unsure how to answer. She thought for a while and said, "Approximately 1.4 million."
Kyran took a deep breath, "That's a lot. I wonder if there's a way to gather all of them in one place. And if it happens, I wonder if I can wrap them all in one go with my magic."
Both Celine and Dante took a sharp breath.
What did Kyran mean? No, what he said was clear. But his intention... Was he seriously considering attacking and even wiping out the Royal Army?
Nolan's brow creased as he observed Kyran. He was not sure whether Kyran was still acting or being serious.
But because Kyran still had his eyes closed, Nolan was unable to confirm it.
"Now let me ask you. How many among those, are at least Master level and above?" Kyran asked once again.
"W-Well, based on our recent data, there are 18 active Master mages and above including the General Marshal."
"That's few and manageable."
'M-Manageable...?' Celine started to feel cold. She belatedly realized that indeed the temperature around them had dropped very low.
"I guess I had to deal with those people first. After all, if they are eliminated the threat to my clan will decrease."
[Oi, kid. Are you being serious? You're talking about those with higher magic attainments than you.]
Nolan could no longer remain silent and spoke to Kyran.
"Those people are the top Masters in the whole Empire!" Dante exclaimed. "Even as a joke, you should not say things like that!"
"Joke?" Kyran's voice deepened. "Of course, I suppose my words seem like a joke to you."
Finally, Kyran opened his eyes.
Both Celine and Dante took a step back after seeing that Kyran's eyes had completely turned reddish-purple.
"K-Kyran Regis, let's think sensibly. Right now, there is still no news about the Regis Clan. The President really believed that if we exposed the army's scheme and provoked them, then the whole Regis Clan will be in a more precarious situation," Celine hastily said and also urged her magic. This time, instead of trying to convince Kyran, she focused on calming him. "That's why he wants you to first focus on getting stronger. The Mercenary Hall is willing to provide you with resources and -.'
"Not good enough!" Kyran roared. Purple rings appeared and circled him. When these rings touched the guardrail around him, it was destroyed in an instant.
Fissures crackled around as his magic started to surge out.
Nolan frowned. This was the first time he had seen Kyran look murderous.
'So his reverse scale was not when his life was threatened, but when someone threatens the whole Regis Clan!' He realized, remembering that Kyran's mood turned for the worse when Celine talked about the possibility of the Regis Clan being executed.
So far, Nolan was only able to pacify Kyran's mood last night when he told him his clan's situation might be better than his. Now that another scenario was presented to him his mood took a turn once more.
Kyran stood up and jumped down from the deck.
Celine and Dante made an involuntary step back.
The purple rings circling around Kyran emitted a very condensed magic fluctuation that if it expanded, both Celine and Dante were not sure if they would be able to avoid it.
"I told you guys the truth about myself because I expect you to expose the army and put the whole empire in a state of unrest. This way the army will be occupied in placating all those groups that are just waiting for a chance for revenge. You understand which group I was talking about, right?" Kyran said as he started to walk toward Celine and Dante.
Realization dawned on Celine. She never expected that Kyran was really trying to create trouble for the army.
Nolan was equally shocked. Honestly, when he thought of letting Kyran get the help of the Mercenary Hall, Nolan only wanted to threaten the army by using the Conclave's influence and 'make the higher-ups who issued Kyran's bounty shit himself' in the process. By threatened, Nolan imagined that the Head of the Conclave would personally visit the Royal Army and demand why they would put the Mercenary Hall's mercenaries into harm's way by not telling them what they were really dealing with.
'But this kid...' Nolan shivered. Kyran's way of thinking really scared him!
"I-If that happens, there is a big chance that those groups will also target your clan." Celine tried to reason.
"Target my clan? Why do you think I kept on emphasizing who I am and what my magic is?" Kyran replied, the air around him fluctuated with every step he made. "Compared to the Royal Army, who are the Regis Clan? What can a mage with Void magic do?"
Celine gasped. Yes, if those groups found out he was a Regis and a Void mage at that, then they would definitely want to be in his good graces! Wasn't that the very reason why the Conclave council members did not fall out with the Regis Clan even when they decided to protect him?
"So you really plan on using them against the army?"
"Wrong. I am not going to use them. I am giving them a chance to find me," Kyran corrected her.
Nolan sneered. He understood what Kyran meant. 'Find him and make a deal with them on how to attack the army. Yep, this kid's way of thinking is really scary. He is not only creating trouble, but he also plans to gather his own 'force'.'
"O-Okay, I understand! I-I will tell the President about what you want. W-We will leave for now and come back after we talked to the Chairman," Celine hastily told him. She immediately gave a meaningful look at Dante.
Kyran sneered when the two turned and started to walk back to the entrance.
"Leave?"
A purple disc instantly appeared on his feet and wrapped him.
A fissure appeared in the middle of the entrance.
Both Celine and Dante stopped as they stared at the fissure in fright.
Soon the fissure grew to at least seven-foot high and four feet wide.
The air crackled and slowly Kyran walked out from the fissure.
"How!" Celine and Dante both exclaimed in fright.
"I just told you my plans. You think I'd let you leave?" Kyran asked his reddish-purple eyes glinted maliciously.
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