Chapter 96: The Disguise
Inside the dark, broken building, heavy debris of shattered rocks and crumbling rubble covered the floor. The remaining wooden furniture was severely cracked and broken beyond repair. The entire infrastructure of the building was decaying, and the chilling atmospheric air could be clearly felt blowing in from the open, ruined structure of the broken ceiling.
Deep inside the building, safely tucked into a quiet corner of the room, a warm sparkle of light could be seen. At the very center of the room, a small bonfire crackled to life, providing the only comforting source of heat and light throughout the entirely dark place. A silver-haired boy lay peacefully on the floor directly in front of the burning fire.
The warm, gentle light of the fire fell over his sleeping face, preventing him from feeling the cold of the ruined city. A thick, pitch-black cloak covered his chest entirely, acting as a blanket to keep his resting body perfectly warm.
A quiet figure sat on the floor just beside him. The person turned their glowing violet eyes to look down at him. The soft, steady rhythm of his breathing could be heard clearly in the quiet, isolated room. The mysterious figure was solely focused on watching him sleep, while gently clutching a beautiful, glowing violet pendant resting around their neck.
Suddenly, the bright light radiating from the magical pendant dimmed significantly, as if the magic charged inside it had completely exhausted its limits.
The figure didn’t even react or panic at the failing pendant. Instead, the person simply maintained a calm, composed demeanor.
Without warning, the person’s body started to shine with a brilliant violet light. The glow illuminated the whole ruined room, pushing the darkness away as the beautiful violet light spread out everywhere.
When the light faded, instead of a young boy with short black hair and violet eyes, a completely different person could be seen sitting in his place.
A beautiful girl could be seen sitting on the ground with elegant, quiet grace. Her striking eyes remained solely fixed upon Alen’s sleeping face, never looking away for even a second. Her long, raven-black hair flowed smoothly down her back, perfectly framing her delicate, flawless pale skin. Her mesmerizing amethyst eyes held a cold, unfathomable depth to them. She sat there quietly, not moving a single inch. Her figure was elegant and fit, making her look exactly like a highly educated noble girl.
"I am so glad he did not wake up and see the real me... It would have been quite a difficult scene to explain," she whispered softly to herself.
She let out a sigh, gently shook her head, and carefully tucked a loose strand of her silky black hair behind her ear.
Her intense focus never wavered from the sleeping boy, not even for a brief moment.
"Umm... This is all entirely because of me. If I hadn’t judged the situation so wrong, he would have been perfectly alright right now..."
She held herself accountable for his current injured state. She brought her knees tight against her chest and rested her delicate chin on her hands.
"It seems he will probably hate me now too... Well, I suppose I truly deserve it..."
Her voice was incredibly soft as she clenched her pale hands into tight, delicate fists. Her amethyst eyes trembled slightly in the firelight. It wasn’t out of fear, and it wasn’t out of sadness either; it was simply out of a sense of resignation.
He was just going to become another person she would need to avoid from now on. Not because she thought he was going to actively try to hurt her, but simply because she felt so guilty that she couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes.
"I am going to apologize to him first thing after he wakes up... He is definitely going to be angry with me, for sure..."
As a gentle breeze of cold air blew in from the open ceiling of the ruined building, the thick cloak slid down just a little bit. His plain white skin and well-toned muscles could be seen clearly in the firelight. However, her gaze was not focused on his abs. Instead, she looked up at his chest, staring at the large, diagonal scar on his chest. The remaining wound had successfully healed, but the faint mark still remained. The silver light she had used to attack him was powerful enough to cut through any magical defense.
She knew she could have easily split massive boulders with the overwhelming amount of power she had used to cut him. Fortunately, he had dodged just in time. If he hadn’t reacted so quickly, his body would have definitely been split in half before she could have realized her mistake.
She stood up slowly and stepped closer to him. She knelt down on the ground right beside his head. Leaning forward, her gentle hands reached out toward his scar. She could still sense the dangerous, lingering residue of her own silver mana near the wound. She carefully poured her pure mana into the scar to completely cleanse the affected area, ensuring that he would not be affected by any leftover magical energy.
She looked down at him as he breathed slowly and rhythmically. Then, she carefully pulled the heavy cloak back up to cover his body again.
As he continued to sleep uncomfortably on the hard floor, she stepped nearer. She gently lifted his head and placed it softly onto her own lap, letting him rest comfortably. His strained expression visibly softened in his sleep, indicating that he felt much more comfortable now.
She gently stroked his silver hair as he slept peacefully. Then, she imbued her own pure mana into the violet pendant resting on her chest, slowly charging the artifact once again. The cooldown period had successfully passed, meaning she could reuse her disguise once more if needed.
"Sigh... It is a relief that the effect of the pendant exhausted itself while he was asleep, or my real, true identity could have been completely revealed to him..."
"Your identity is already revealed..."
She instantly stopped stroking his hair as she suddenly heard a high-pitched child’s voice echoing in the quiet room. She quickly looked around the dark ruins to see who it was, but there was absolutely no one visible in the shadows. Her soft expression suddenly turned freezing cold and completely devoid of any welcoming emotions.
"Who is it? Show yourself! Are you the real ghost?" she demanded sharply.
Suddenly, right out of thin air, a small girl materialized. She landed gracefully on the dusty ground and looked up at the girl with a mocking, tiny smile. The newcomer’s bright crimson eyes sparkled with deep amusement, and her silky black hair settled gently after she dropped down. She wore a beautiful, elegant black dress paired with a tiny black cloak perfectly tailored to her small size. Her face was completely flawless and soft, making her look incredibly cute. She looked exactly like an innocent, small four-year-old girl.
"I am going to tell him everything," Little Ravena declared with a massive, mischievous grin.
