"You are not from the same place, and you never have been!"
Silas's words kept Ino awake all night - every time she closed her eyes, these words would ring in her ears.
This sentence seemed like a poisonous thorn, piercing deeply into Ino's heart, making her panic and tossing and turning.
The little girl wanted to tell herself that all these were the nonsense of that despicable mage, they were all imaginary without real evidence, and they were all complete lies.
But unfortunately, she couldn't convince herself so easily.
Even... recalling Lux's attitude towards her before, she felt even more panicked.
Could it be that Miss Lux is so close to me because she is also a mage?
how could this be!
No, no, no, Miss Lux cannot be an evil demon-possessor like me!
She is so radiant!
She is obviously the most dazzling light in my dark life!
Despicable Silas must have deceived himself!
But... if we think according to what Silas said, Ino couldn't find any evidence to refute it.
Lying on the thin mat in the cage, Ino's head seemed to be full of paste.
She didn't know if what Silas said was true or false.
I don't know what I should do if it is true, how to face Lux.
She didn't even know whether she should ask Lux for confirmation - if she didn't ask for confirmation, she would have trouble sleeping and eating; if she asked for confirmation, the result might also make her sleepless and eating.
In this way, while tossing and turning, she fell into a daze until it was almost dawn - when Lux came to visit her the next morning, the circles under her eyes were so dark that it was frightening.
"What's wrong with you?" Lux was quite surprised when she looked at Ino with panda eyes, "Is this... you haven't rested?"
"I-I did not sleep too well." Ino hesitated for a moment, and finally nodded, "I was a little uneasy."
"Uneasy?" Lux blinked, "Is it because of that book? I remember it was an epic story. It shouldn't keep you up all night..."
"It's not because of the book, Miss Lux." Ino shook her head and relaxed a little, "It's because of you."
"Me?" Lux's eyes widened in shock, "I...what happened?"
"Miss Lux." Ino finally gritted his teeth and asked the question, "Are you also a mage?"
Lux was stunned.
This extremely sudden question even caused her brain to go blank for a moment.
She never expected that Ino would ask this question!
What made her even more confused was that she didn't know how to answer this question at all.
Telling hurtful truths?
Or is it a false cover-up?
"Karya, what should I do?"
……………………
"Follow your inner choice, Lux." Kalya, who is usually all-powerful, did not give a best-of-both-worlds answer this time. "This is a problem you will face sooner or later, and it is also a choice you must make."
Problems that must be faced sooner or later...
A choice must be made...
Lux blinked, looking at Ino with pleading and longing in her eyes, she finally took a deep breath.
"...Yes, I am." Turning back to confirm that there were no demon hunters around, Lux nodded gently, "I am a mage. I have confirmed this since I was nine years old."
While speaking, Lux held Ino's hand again, and in her palm, a group of jumping light danced like an elf.
Ino's mouth opened in shock.
She never expected that Lux was actually a mage.
What made her even more unbelievable was that Lux admitted this so frankly without any attempt to hide it.
"You too -" Ino murmured, "Why are you willing to tell me..."
"You asked me to prove that you are willing to believe me." Lux thought everything through and gave the answer with a smile, "And I - I am also willing to believe you."
"The penitent's magic weapon?" Ino pointed to Lux's sword, "Really?"
"You also know this?" Lux raised her eyebrows in surprise, "This is what my aunt found for me. It can curb the riot of magic in my body."
"It's really like this!" Ino's expression instantly became extremely complicated. She was a little disappointed, a little thankful, and a little relieved, "This is actually true."
"It's always been the case." Lux nodded, and then smiled again, "We are the same kind of people."
A kind of person?
No, it's not!
"I didn't mean that!" Ino subconsciously ducked back and shook his head frequently, "You are a respected lady, I am just a farm girl..."
It was obvious that Ino was trying to say nice things, trying to defend Lux, trying to show that Lux was not a shameful demon-conqueror.
But this sentence stung Lacus inexplicably.
Dear lady, farm girl!
In the past period of time, Lux often came here to visit the prison. Although there was a cold magic stone railing between her and Ino, she never felt that there was anything between them - they could share each other.
stories and emotions, and feel each other’s happiness and sadness.
But at this moment, as Ino said these words "Dear young lady, farm girl", Lux felt that an invisible barrier was forming between them, almost separating them into two worlds.
!
This barrier was so thick that Lux felt a little suffocated. At this moment, she was somewhat discouraged.
Kalya said nothing.
In other words, Kalya thinks that he should not speak now.
He was waiting for Lux, waiting for Lux to make a choice.
It is to put down Ino's hand, acknowledge the existence of this barrier, and become a noble within this barrier...
Or simply pick up the hammer, destroy this barrier, and smash everything that should not exist!
Come on, Lux, make your choice!
And Lux didn't let Kalya wait too long.
After smoothly outlining several runic circuits on the railings of the Forbidden Demon Stone, Lux held Ino again.
This time, she didn't speak, but Ino heard her voice.
"We are just a kind of people - people who use magic to protect their families even if they mistakenly think it is evil."
"???"
"After listening to so many stories from you, now you also want to listen to my story - all of this started with my uncle's departure..."
"..."
"..."
Through magical communication, Lux finally told Ino her story.
During this process, Ino bit her lip hard, without saying a word, and just held Lux's hand tightly - if it weren't for Lux's long-term training, I'm afraid it would have hurt by this time.
"I once thought about not telling you all this." Lux's tone was slow but firm, "But as I looked into my heart, I realized that when I looked at you, sometimes it was as if I was looking at you.
another me."
Ino was completely shocked.
She never thought that Lux would have an experience so close to her own!
Even in a sense, Lux was "coerced" by Kalya - it's just that Kalya was not Cordora, and she didn't ask Lax to do bad things, but just urged her to learn magic.
Realizing this, Ino was finally relieved. She took a long breath, then gently let go of Lux's hand, and finally a smile appeared on her face.
Although the light in her life has long been tainted with the aura of magic, it is still so dazzling even in the darkest abyss.