Even so, without confirming if White Lily indeed formed a new contract with a human, it would be impossible for Layla to draw that mage out.
'No... Maybe not.'
A burst of inspiration flashed through Layla as her gaze swept toward the Ravenpass.
Going back almost an hour ago, when she appeared in Ravenpass, she single-handedly dealt with Euan's soldiers without alarming the latter and Malek.
It had not been easy because Kyran left a mark on them, preventing Layla from using her Soul Chain. A mark created by Void magic would have been impossible for Layla to crack in her current state. However, for some unknown reason, the mark's influence had weakened, making it possible for her to crack it.
After that, she used these soldiers to attack from the inside and by the time Euan, Malek, and the rest of the Conclave council members with them realized something was amiss, Layla already summoned the Macabre Glacier and bound their movements.
What happened next had been easy. She controlled the Macabre Glacier and took every last one of the Regis Clan she found. Alas, she realized that most of the Regis Family members were not there and those she took were either retired mages or inexperienced.
Nevertheless, Layla was not worried. She already knew the Regis Special Force went back to the Regis Estate. Rantz was there, and the number of soldiers and mages he could mobilize was more than enough to deal with them. And when she returned, it would be easy for her to use the Macabre Glacier and take them.
But Layla felt something was missing, and the burst of inspiration she had right now affirmed what it was.
Among the Regis clan members she had taken, she did not find a single one from Caelan's family.
Obviously, for the Regis Family to birth a new Void Master meant Caelan's family survived and they joined the Regis Clan. And after so many years, one of them married into the Regis family.
But Layla did not see anyone from Caelan's family.
Most important of all, Layla did not see her.
That was right. Her-- the only person likely to have the qualifications to form a contract with White Lily. The current Spirit Child, Rin Ada!
A smile tugged at the corner of Layla's lips as she looked at White Lily.
"I see," she muttered.
Although Layla's voice was not loud, White Lily heard her loud and clear.
Because of this, she stopped her attack and looked at Layla cautiously.
"You really found a new human contractor," Layla stopped and said with a smile that did not meet her eyes.
White Lily did not react. But inwardly her heart was instantly gripped with fear.
The way Layla said those words did not appear to gauge or taunt her. It sounded more as if Layla was stating what she already knew as true.
'And she doesn't seem to be referring to Kyran,' White Lily thought, her whole body turning cold.
Layla's assumption was correct.
? White Lily had indeed formed a contract with Rin. At first, White Lily did not want to risk it because there had been no case in the past where a Spirit who already formed a contract with a human succeeded in forming a new one.
It was different from how Lumi became Silas's contract spirit. Because Lumi and her former contractor agreed to transfer her contract to Silas.
To simplify it, Lumi's contract was extended after Silas took over as her new contractor.
But forming an entirely new contract was different.
Nevertheless, Rin insisted, pointing out she was not an ordinary human- she is the Spirit Child.
With this in mind, White Lily agreed and they successfully formed a new contract.
However, White Lily's level was far above Rin's. Which was why, the latter could barely keep up with the former. For this reason, White Lily had to ensure Rin's safety and had her stay in the Montgomeray Family's secret residence in Starhorn.
'It does not matter if she knows,' White Lily thought, putting on a taunting smile. Then she said to Layla, "You probably think you can use my contractor against me. But before that, think about your situation."
Layla's smile twitched slightly. White Lily had a point. Knowing who the latter's new contracted mage was made no difference in her current situation. Unless she found where Rin was, she could not use her against White Lily.
Apart from this, the people she were expecting to assist her had been stopped by the new Human plane's Sovereign.
This was one of the things Haylee failed at. It was her own hubris that made her believe she had everything under her control. Which was why, when she discovered Kyran had already gathered his own force, not to mention, he led her on for pretending to be Tyr, the realization was too much for her to bear and she broke down. To be fair, Layla was grateful as much as she was annoyed at how things turned out. After all, if Haylee did not break down, Layla would not have succeeded in taking over. Though the former was just an essence, her will was something the latter had to applaud.
Putting on a gentle smile, Layla replied to White Lily's taunt, "Don't worry. I am well aware of my situation. But do you really think having you keep the fort is enough? I have a number of Grand Masters and a few Magus on my side. I also have three Archmagus, and a top Legendary. What about your side?"
White Lily kept a straight face but inwardly she was worried about the very thing Layla had pointed.
They had a few Magus on their side- two Courtenay Magus, Celine, Hugh, Euan, Malek... but where were they now?
The two Magus from the Courtenay Family was out on a mission when Kyran took over. For this reason, they had no idea of the current situation of the family. Eoin and Ernst could not contact them either, so they were considered MIA.
Celine, on the other hand, was in the Montgomeray Family's secret residence, acting as Rin's protector. Initially, she was supposed to stay in the Tower of Conclave and provide assistance since her Sound magic leaned more towards support rather than offense. But ultimately, she was sent to the Montgomeray Family since they did not have a Magus.
As for Hugh, he barely held on from Osric's attack. In the end, he, along with the Conclave council members that stayed behind and the remaining forces stationed in the Tower of Conclave were forced to retreat inside the safety of the tower's defensive array. From White Lily's last update, Hugh suffered some internal injuries.
Then there was Euan. Frankly, White Lily did not know what happened to him. Seeing the infamous Macabre Glacier hovering above Ravenpass, she was not optimistic about his status.
Apart from Magus level mages, there were actually a few hidden Archmagus among Kyran's people. But at the moment, their whereabouts were also unknown.
"It is a shame that I can no longer ask for the Sovereigns to assist me, but with or without their help, I still hold the advantage," Layla continued to taunt White Lily. She then looked in the direction of the hole, which was slowly closing up and added, "That new Sovereign... He is one of your trump cards, am I right?"
She paused and gasped exaggeratedly while primly covering her mouth, "Oh, right. I stand corrected. He is 'supposed to be' one of your trump cards, is he not?"
Her smile widened before continuing, "Unfortunately, with his new identity, he can no longer be considered as one."
White Lily narrowed her eyes. She knew Layla was only trying to agitate her. That was why instead of reacting to her tauntings, White Lily chose to attack!
The white lilies in the surroundings whirled and shot out concentrated energy beams at Layla again.
Seeing White Lily's reaction to her words, Layla laughed in amusement while avoiding the beams.
However, though she might appear to be enjoying taunting White Lily, truth be told, she knew her words were all empty talk.
Yes, her side had far more Grand Masters and Magus level mages that were still waiting to be dispatched. But if they were talking about mages above a Magus, Layla knew Kyran had the advantage.
This was because she had not considered the mages of the Regis Special Forces.
Layla knew well how perverse they were. Even if their mage level were a level or two lower than their opponent, they could keep up with them. Because of this, Layla could not rely on the information they had about the Regis Clan. As a matter of fact, Aron, might have already advanced to an Archmagus without their knowledge. Even if that was not the case and he was only a Magus, being a Regis meant he could fight and not be at a disadvantage against an Archmagus.
The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel