บท 52: Chapter 52
Khai kept glancing over his shoulder to ensure their safety as he led Ana back to her room. After closing the door behind them, he drained a bottle of water while watching her excitedly jump onto her bed with the large tome in hand.
She eagerly flipped through the pages and finally found the missing chapters. She let out a soft gasp as she began reading. Khai approached her, looking over her shoulder to read the book himself.
"This... this is dark magic!" she whispered, her eyes quickly scanning the page. She anxiously flipped through the pages, her eyes growing wider with each new piece of information.
Without taking her eyes off the book, she began to recite what she was reading. "Khai, look! These chapters talk about dark magic. There's also information on blood magic. It says that blood magic comes from harnessing the energy of a corrupted soul. Who would ever use something like this...?"
"Ana," Khai interrupted her, his tone serious.
"To channel energy from the souls of corrupted creatures… do those creatures need to be imprisoned? No only corrupted Healers can channel that energy, but I didn't know there were corrupted Healers." She seemed too engrossed in the book to hear him.
"Ana!" He called again, his voice louder this time.
She heard him and tore her eyes from the book, now turning to face him. "And there's a whole chapter dedicated to how elemental dark magic is a bal..." Her words trailed off when she saw the anger in his gaze.
"This is dangerous magic. Not only is it impossible to practice this, it is also treason to learn and spread such information."
Ana blinked, her expression child-like as she looked back at him.
He gently took her tome away from her and placed it on bed. Holding her hands in his, he spoke to her with a grave expression. "You will not and cannot repeat what you read just now to anyone Ana. You will also never attempt to practice it. Dark magic is known to have unimaginable side effects. Our ancestors have lost their sanity and spirits when they practiced it. Promise me that you will stay away from this and never speak of it again."
"But, the information says…"
"No Ana." He interrupted. "I want you to trust me and I'm placing my trust in you. I will return this book before dawn and you will never bring this up again." There was a finality in his tone as he spoke.
"Can I at least finish reading it?" Her voice was meek as she peered up at him.
Khai regarded her cautiously, before reluctantly handing her the book. Now that she knew where the forbidden section was, he did not want her going there by herself to quench her remaining curiosity. He watched her like a hawk and she quickly read through the pages. After flipping over the last page, she slowly shut the book and handed it to him. Her innocent eyes were filled with amazement as she thought about the content that she read.
"I don't want you talking about this. Not to Meghan, not to George, not even to me. Can you please promise me this?" He was already regretting giving her access to this book. He cursed himself for acting carelessly. He should have vetted the book himself rather than blindly handing it to her.
"I promise. I'm sorry I got carried away. I will never repeat this information again." Ana's words were sincere. Despite always going above and beyond to keep her happy, Khai had never asked anything of her before. Even this time, his request was purely with the intention of protecting her from danger. Ana resolved not to worry him further by disobeying his warnings.
He placed the book on her bedside table and tugged her hand to lay down on the pillow. Drawing her tightly against his chest, he heaved a sigh as she wrapped her arm around his waist.
Thoughts of forbidden magic swirled in Ana's head before exhaustion took over, finally pushing her to sleep.
The following morning, Ana awoke to find the tome no longer on her bedside table, where Khai had placed it the night before. She assumed that he had returned the book to the library before dawn, just like he mentioned. She turned to face him, careful not to wake him as she felt his slow breaths on the top of her head. He was deeply asleep next to her, likely worn out from the demands of the week and from dealing with the book last night.
She gingerly slipped out from under his arm and tip toed into the bathroom, trying her best not to make a squeak. As she stood under the shower, her thoughts wandered back to the content of the forbidden chapters.
Blood magic was truly a dangerous skill to master. There were details of healing practices gone terribly wrong, killing or permanently damaging Wahrens as Healers attempted to use blood magic to draw poison out of their injuries or heal internal bleeding. Blood magic also caused the highest amount of corrupted mana to pool within humans, turning them into the most powerful undead creatures after they passed away. She shuddered at the thought of such a practice, understanding the dangers of such information in the wrong hands.
Dark magic however, was not as terrible as it was touted to be. In fact, it was one of the most powerful forms of all elemental magic, similar to magic drawn from light. High healers of antiquity mastered dark magic and used it in their first war against the rogue army.
While her fingers pruned, her thoughts still lingered on the subject as she wrapped a towel around her and made her way out of the bathroom, assuming that Khai would still be deep asleep.
A burning gaze fixated on her as she was about to enter her closet. She spun around to find Khai, now fully awake, sitting up on her bed, his eyes unwavering on her as if she were a mirage that would disappear if he dared to blink.
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