47 Departing Gift From You (1/2)
The old city's shadow stretched out across the island's virgin meadowlands. A dark azure seeped into the sky as the sun sunk away into the horizon. He looked back at the fading sunset and saw that a miniature sea of stars had arisen from the earth. Night had arrived.
An endless amount of tiny, sparkling motes of brilliance floated up into the air when the sky had finally gone dark. Each was of a different size, shape, and color; no two were equal in form. At a distance, it appeared as if the stars in the firmament had descended upon the city itself. It was a majestic, awe-inspiring sight that left him speechless.
Reed silently gazed at the sea of stars atop a decrepit building near the edge of the city, an abandoned district that had become uninhabitable long ago. The ancient district had once been home to many people — a thriving place filled with life — but now, it was nothing more than a forsaken ruin.
I t's abandoned for sure, but it'd be a bit of a stretch to call it a 'ruin', I guess. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please clickfor visiting.
Although the residential district had been abandoned, they had left its buildings and infrastructure completely intact. Vines climbed their way up the walls of the old buildings and strange moss that glowed covered dark alleyways and other small spaces across the district. Marigold, vanilla, and daisy flowers pressed themselves out of the neglected streets by the thousands. There were even a couple of tree seedlings amongst the flowers if one searched hard enough for them.
Reed took a sip of a hot chocolate beverage he'd bought not too long ago from a local cafe near the outskirts of the city on Bernard's recommendation. It tasted sweeter than love itself and had a subtle vanilla after note that Reed considered sublime.
He'd enjoyed the little date with Lu'um's mother and all but it had drained him mentally, hence his break of sorts in exile from civilization. Just him, his wonderful hot chocolate, and.... a sudden fluctuation in the surrounding Anima. Reed softly groaned.
”So this is where you were.... You really surprised me when I lost track of you.”
And there she goes... my peace and quiet have disappeared into the void again. Sigh.....
”What are you talking about? It's not like I was actively hiding from you or anything...”
Lu'um giggled as she walked over to Reed and said, ”Hmmm? Needed some alone time , Ka'an? I guess every young guy needs some private time for...” She'd gone quiet of all sudden.
Reed scoffed and said, ”Ha ha, I've never heard that joke before. Hilarious, Lu'um. I bet you think that—” He choked on his words when he felt that the surrounding Anima had suddenly grown cold and turbulent. When he turned around, Reed screamed internally.
Blades of azure light dangerously hovered above her like marionettes on strings.
”...I see now. So that's why you were so hard to find ; You were with that hag, weren't you? I can smell her disgusting stench on you.” Lu'um had an expression that seemed colder than a blizzard. Her eyes radiated something so intense that it couldn't be completely expressed with mere words.
Reed was nervous, but he still felt that she had said something inexcusable . He coldly replied, ”That was out of line, even if you're not on good terms with her, Lu'um. I know that I don't even have the slightest idea what caused the rift between the two of you, but she's still your mother.”
Lu'um gently smiled in response, but Reed could not find even the slightest hint of warmth within her expression. Reed felt goosebumps form on his arms when he saw that desolate, hollow smile and said, ”Y-You know what, let's just drop the subject altogether, okay?!” He immediately pulled back when he realized that he nearly dug his own grave.
A painful, awkward pause followed where the two did not speak. The dreadful silence felt like it'd last forever but Lu'um eventually calmed down and said, ”...I'm sorry that I lashed out at you, Ka'an. I just... can't stand her and sometimes I get—”
Reed hurriedly interrupted her and said, ”Hey, don't worry about it or anything, OK? I was in the wrong too; I shouldn't have said that. So let's call it square and leave it at that.” He waved his hands jokingly and said, ”You don't have to talk about it you don't want to, Lu'um. It's, um, cool...”
Another awkward pause followed after Reed interrupted her, but he quickly acted to salvage the conversation before it got worse than it already was. He gave her his hot chocolate as tribute and said, ”Oh, by the way... what did you mean when you said that you couldn't find me ?”
”My mother is one of the greatest Anima shapers of her generation and is especially proficient in Anima masking and subterfuge-related Anima skills.” Lu'um raised her right hand over Reed's head, much to his confusion.
”She put one of her veils on you and it masked your unique aura away from prying eyes. I couldn't see you anymore after she did that,” Lu'um said as she snatched something off Reed's head. A thin, almost invisibly transparent piece of cloth appeared in front of him like a magic trick.
Reed stared at the veil and said, ”That's... genuinely impressive. And terrifying, too. I never even felt that I had it on me.”
Lu'um conjured a soft flame from her hand and burnt the veil away until it was completely gone. ”She's extremely talented, incredibly beautiful, and an heiress to the most powerful family in the world.”
”Funnily enough, those same strengths mattered aught when you think about it. She, as incredible as she was, still lost in the end,” said Lu'um with a complicated expression.
”...”
Lu'um looked somewhat apprehensive as she gripped the hot chocolate, but eventually gathered her courage and said, ”If you don't mind me asking, can you tell me where you went with her?”
”Hm? She mostly took me around the city and showed me the sights. After that, she took me to this little restaurant called The Little House and we ate there before we separated.”
Lu'um eyes narrowed when she heard that and said, ”So that's what she did. She actually took you to see Uncle Bernard , huh? I haven't seen him in the longest... how was he ?” Her interest in Reed's story suddenly skyrocketed compared to before.
Reed nodded and said, ”Hm? He was healthy if that's what you're asking about. I won't lie; he was a little weird, but he wasn't a bad guy, I think. He even gifted me this awesome cloak , too. It was apparently part of an inheritance of mine, or so he said...” He twirled around and dramatically made a cool-looking pose like an action hero. Lu'um rolled her eyes at first but eventually tilted her head, deep in thought.
”A cloak? An inheritance left for you? Oh, for the love of....” Lu'um let out a miserable groan and softly muttered, ”So he was the one who stole the accursed thing during the chaos...”
She immediately reached out for the cloak and said, ” Take it off, Ka'an! What you're wearing is something you are not yet ready to accept! It is burdened with karma so heavy, even I fear it, do you understand? I do not know why Uncle Bernard and Mother allowed you to get it, but it is far too soon for you to possess it!”
Lu'um moved in a flash and grabbed the hem of the cloak to remove it off Reed faster than he could react, but something unexpected happened instead. A fearsome bolt of lightning shot out of the cloak and blasted Lu'um backward with enough momentum that she was thrown off of the building like a rag doll.
It was so unexpected and instantaneous that Reed even found it a bit comical despite the concern he had over her wellbeing. All he saw was her touching his cloak for but an instant before her shocking departure , so to speak. He even heard a cute yelp escape her lips when she was struck by the cloak.
Reed walked over the other end of the skyscraper and looked down at the edge of the building. A furious azure streak bolted up the side of the building and landed back atop the roof with a threatening boom.
When Reed noticed that Lu'um's frigid expression he hurriedly said, ”Hey, I didn't do that, alright? That was all on you, not me. In any case, it's my cloak , sweet-cheeks. Go find your own cloak because this one isn't for sale, even for you.”
Something odd happened after that; He noticed that the cloak had grown a little warmer after he had chastised Lu'um, of all things. An unexpected boon had been given to him.
”Listen, Ka'an, that isn't a simple cloak; I'm sure it now — Uncle Bernard gave you the Mantle of the Sky , the personal raiment of the previous Emperor! It is a tool of immense power created and enchanted by the Last Emperor during his prime! Lesser beings cannot control the dormant energies contained within it, much less the Muse that lives inside of it!”
Reed chortled and said, ” I seem to be doing just fine, though. I don't doubt you, but this cloak's been in a dusty room for an eternity from what I've seen. It might have even turned defective given how long it's been neglected.” He lazily inspected the cloak and said, ”Don't see any world-shattering powers coming from it. It is nice and warm, though. That's good enough in my book.”