Release Schedule: Once per week.
With no recollection of her past or even her own name, our heroine has merely been existing since waking in a place known as the Obsidian Terraces. Uncertain how to fend for herself or earn coin, she turned to protec...
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Shui placed a steaming cup of tea in front of me while I stared blankly at the table. It felt too early to be awake, yet it was precisely the time I was meant to be having breakfast. My body ached from the exertion against the Blighted from the previous night.
"What are our plans for today?" I inquired, glancing toward Shui when he sat across from me. He looked much more awake than I felt.
"We should see to your training, then perhaps review what you recall of how the world works for talents such as us," Shui offered with a smile. "You must have some knowledge, even if perhaps latent, otherwise you wouldn't be able to control your abilities. You seem quite lucky in this regard, my lady."
"Ah, and you were going to tell me more about Yahui." I tilted my head in consideration.
"Yes...you wanted to know more of his arts and their effect on his well-being, yes?" Shui frowned, his gaze dropping slightly while he thought. When he met my eyes again, he looked determined. "My lady, I must ask that you do not attempt to pull him away from the darkness. There is no need to 'rescue' him."
"You misunderstand," I began, shaking my head, "I have no interest in 'rescuing' him. I'm curious as to how he became such a pure son of darkness. Furthermore, it seems prudent to learn more about the man who seems intent on keeping me confined to the palace."
"His Imperial Majesty was not born into nobility, nor to darkness." Shui swirled his tea cup in one hand. "Quite the contrary. His parents were peasants, and they were all light dragons. When Yahui was a child, a war broke out and the kingdom ruling this territory slew everyone in his village to make an example, and under the pretense of being 'guided by the gods of light' to commit this massacre.
"His Imperial Majesty barely survived. He swore vengeance and gave in to darkness that day. He felt that if light would commit such crimes against innocents, he wanted no affiliation with it. Thankfully for him, he had talent for dark arts. Far greater talent than he had for light."
"A massacre..." I shook my head slowly. "In the name of light? When do people's massacres or conquests ever come at the order of someone of the light? They're just looking for false justification for their greed."
"His Imperial Majesty never got his revenge against the ones who killed his village, as the culprits were humans," Shui continued with a small sigh. "However, once he had grown enough and made allies while studying with his teacher, he wiped out the human kingdom and sent every remaining citizen to the surface. He claimed the emptied kingdom as his own and razed it to rebuild. As time passed and tensions throughout the continent grew, he took it upon himself to unite the nations.
"In a way, His Imperial Majesty is 'holier' than most disciples of light we have encountered. However, the same would be true if comparing him to disciples of darkness. His aptitude is unique. The sect he founded was with the hopes of nurturing and guiding those who share his affinity, so they are not harmed or corrupted by the arts they wield."
