Episode 5 – Calm before the storm (2/2)
”How did you obtain that?” Kiel asked quietly
”I know people” Elaru shrugged
”You are well prepared After yesterday, I assumed I was like an open book to you Could it be I am not that easy to read after all?” Kiel rose his eyes fro her facial expression The corner of histo prevent a s on his face
Confusion flashed across Elaru's face ”What? No You're not the easiest person to read However, the one signing the oath won't be you, but me”
Kiel's se, died miserably and it was replaced by a frown
That was… thoughtful… and yet… insulting
Kiel prided hi able to detect lies
”That won't be necessary I a lies” As soon as the words left his et the best of him
”Don't care I'noring his protest Kiel's eyes flashed with a chilling light
Elaru flicked her wrist in a fluid er spell - she was 'signing' the contract The latent spell placed on the parcher spell Kiel could feel a soft burst of lowed golden briefly before disappearing altogether The ink would return when the current contract expired, and the scroll could be used again
”Ask away” Elaru motioned him to ask as on his mind
Kiel wouldn't adlad that she was under the oath of truth A veil of calmness covered his face, he was able to relax now that he didn't need to catch traces of deceit
”Who are you really?” Kiel decided to not waste any ti around the bush
Her ansas not what he had expected, soet used to
”You should be more specific in your inquiries As I previously mentioned, I am Elaru Wayvin”
Kiel's eyes briefly narrowed before he continued his questioning ”Is that your real name?”
”Yes” Elaru nodded her head
Even if she was a part of a noble e family, that doesn't mean that she had to have their last name It would be easier to hide the relation if the name was not a lie - Kiel reasoned internally He should rephrase his question
”Which noble e fa his intertwined hands on the table
”I am an independent existence I am not under anyone's banner I control my own life” Elaru's eyes briefly flashed with an enize before it disappeared
She couldn't lie while under the contract, but it was hard to believe nonetheless How is it possible that a 'nobody' would possess Aethernea of Sight and enough money to buy a reusable Oath of Truth? This entire ti related to a noble e family
If Elaru was not a noble, could she be related to one of the non-noble fa?
”How can you afford all of your expensive equip quickly over the empty scroll in front of him
”Earned it doing quests” Elaru stated in a boredAfter seeing his narrowed eyes flickering with apparent doubt, she added – ”Perfectly legal quests I assure you”
”What kind of quests do you do?” If she was not fro out her occupation was the next best thing
”Well paying ones” Elaru smirked
The contract only made sure she couldn't lie It couldn't force her to answer questions she didn't want to answer
Kiel gave her a brief, e his tactic
”What is your end game?”
”You enda I arinned
She wants to live? What an auous answer Kiel understood that what she meant was not to ed for ain his life just as
”Did you have ated?”
”No What interested round report Purchasing your life story from an information broker would have been a waste of money and, possibly, invasion of privacy”
Kiel chuckled dryly ”If you had been concerned about invasion of privacy, you wouldn't have spied on hest point in Beyd for a week”
”I could have just as easily followed you around like a shadow instead of just watching froht it to be a bit too intrusive”
”I would have noticed an elibu trailing behind me!” Kiel's eyebroitched Was she serious?
She laughed out loud ”Mate, with ht in front of you!”
Was she trying to piss him off?!
Kiel took a silent, deep breath to calm down
Don't let her rile you up She is obviously teasing you He reasoned with himself
”How did you catch up with me yesterday?” He finally asked the question that was bothering him earlier He looked at her with expectation
She s in circles I just waited for you to stop running”
Huh?! - Her anticlimactic response made Kiel's eyebroitch He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose
She had ot what he wished to ask next
”And how did you knohen I stopped running? How did you keep an eye onin circles in the first place?” Kiel sneered, followed by his cold gaze
She pointed her fingers towards her eyes ”Divine sight mate, remember?”
Kiel glared at her She rolled her eyes and elaborated
”The body of every living creature lets outcreatures spreads through the forest like air, the only difference being that h solid matter However, every material has a specific es to pass through it and how much is retained inside” She paused briefly
”What I a to say is: I can see the mana retained in the objects which allowsas they are in e of vision Therefore, I just sat on a tree branch and let you run around I could see you clearly wherever you went because you reh for my Aethernea to pick you up”
Kiel's eyes widened in disbelief What a convenient ability! She could see the mana that his body let out, so she could effectively pinpoint his location Aethernea of Sight did not produce a two-dimensional picture, it built a three-dimensional model It was the ultimate Mana Sense!
What he could do with such an ability! He could tell if so hi that no one was around him
When Kiel noticed that he was clenching his fists, he quickly ht But then, he realized how futile that gesture really was She could see the h his fists She could probably tell that they were clenched no matter where he put them
”Is it possible to hide ht? Like how people can hide their presence fro detected by someone else's mana sense?” Kiel dreaded the answer
”Sorry ht There is a reason why the divine gifts are considered divine”
Darn! He couldn't hide from her or avoid her If she wanted to stalk him, she could find him anywhere
”How long is your range of vision?” In other words - how far away did he need to be to escape her sight?