Flames of Light and Shadow (1)
The crackling flames devoured the firewood, boldly displaying their crimson majesty. It was just a small campfire, nothing more. But the moment that fire rose within the Freya family grounds, the story changed entirely.
No matter how undignified or feeble the flame, once it bloomed on Freya land, it was always described as sacred energy.
Scratch. Scratch.
Rebecca Freya was sorting through documents while feeling the campfire's warmth gently raising the temperature of the surrounding space. She shot a sidelong glare at the old man who had been silently standing guard for a while now.
“Isn’t it about time you went back?”
“I am merely following the family head’s orders.”
“Ha! That family head of ours is really something else. No matter what, does it make sense to monitor my every single move?”
“Young miss. Please watch your words. He is the ruler of this place and your father.”
At the old man’s words, Rebecca let out a small, derisive snort and swept her hair back.
“Well. I’ve never once thought of that man as my father.”
“…Still, the fact that you carry the family head’s blood remains unchanged.”
“So what? I’m the girl who can’t even light a proper fire.”
The old man simply closed his mouth at Rebecca’s remark. After all, Rebecca Freya’s most fatal flaw was precisely her inability to properly ignite flames. Of course, if she couldn’t light them at all, the family would never have accepted her. But the person in question didn’t seem particularly bothered, wearing a relaxed, indifferent expression.
She lightly twirled the pen in her hand and looked at the Freya family crest at the top of the document.
“Since ancient times, the word ‘immortal’ has always preceded the name Freya. The Immortal Freyas… They say it started because the first family head could wield flames that would never go out. Honestly, it’s ridiculous. Flames that never extinguish? What is this, some kind of divine fire?”
“However, that is no falsehood.”
“I know. Anyone who saw what the first head left behind would never call it false. But still, doesn’t it seem strange that it’s still functioning properly after all this time? After this many years, wouldn’t you expect some kind of malfunction by now?”
“That cannot be. You are underestimating the family’s divine artifact far too much.”
Rebecca frowned slightly as she looked at the old man. In response to her gaze, he calmly read her thoughts and reminded her of reality once more.
“Since the divine artifact has made its choice, the young master will one day inherit and lead the Freya family. That is an undeniable truth. Not even the family head could change this decision.”
“Why is my little brother suddenly being brought up? How curious. I wasn’t even speaking with that intention.”
“It was this old man’s mistake.”
Damn old bastard. He still sees me as a thorn in his side.
How could a person remain so unchanged? Rebecca recalled the people who had treated her this way since the moment she first arrived here, and a smile formed on her face. No matter how much time passed, the thought of those who rejected her and always wanted to drive her out of this place kept the smile from fading.
“Ah, it’s time for my medicine, so could you leave now?”
“Young miss. As I have said many times, continuing to rely on that medicine will only harm the Freya family…”
“Even the family head didn’t stop me from taking it, so who are you to say anything? That’s enough. Just get out already. No one is allowed to be near me while I’m taking it.”
“…Understood.”
The old man nodded with clear reluctance on his face and left. Rebecca waited until the room had fallen completely silent and all traces of his presence had vanished, then pulled out a magic-infused scroll from her bosom and tore it apart without hesitation.
Rip.
The scroll split cleanly in two along her hands. The magic sealed within it activated immediately. Small droplets of water began to float up before her. They gathered together, growing larger, and soon the old man’s voice could be heard from beyond them.
Heh. Heh. Has the time already come?
“Yes. So please, come in.”
Crackle. Ziiiing.
At Rebecca’s words, the space before her began to distort, and an old man wearing a gray robe stepped out.
“Ugh. Crossing space is still difficult no matter how many times I do it.”
“I have been waiting for you.”
Rebecca politely rose from her seat and bowed deeply to the old man before her. Anyone who knew her usual self would have widened their eyes in shock at the sight. However, the old man accepted her greeting as if it were perfectly natural and slowly walked toward her.
“So, you’ve already used it all?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm… How was the effect?”
“The amount I can absorb has increased compared to before, but it’s still not enough.”
The old man seemed to ponder something for a moment at her reply, then pulled out a small bottle containing a red-glowing powder.
Tap.
“This was made by extracting the mana from the child we caught this time. Through previous experiments, we’ve amplified the emotional effect. The concentration is thicker than before, so the efficacy should be better.”
“Thank you as always.”
“There is no need for thanks when we are both obtaining what we desire. I will return now. It would not do to leave my seat for too long while things are still awkward between us. Contact me if you need anything.”
“Please go safely.”
The old man spoke those words and returned to where he had come from. Rebecca opened the lid of the bottle he had given her and poured about a third of the mysterious powder into the tea beside her before drinking it down in one go.
“Haa…”
The hot, hazy sensation that spread throughout her entire body. Feeling that indescribable, brain-squeezing sensation she still couldn’t get used to, Rebecca’s eyes grew slightly blurrier than before as she pulled out a single photograph.
“Puhuhu. That so-called father of mine really is something. Acting all clean and proper on the outside while secretly doing things like this all along. Well, thanks to him, I got the chance to obtain what I wanted. Should I be grateful?”
Rebecca used the small crimson flame flickering in her hand to slowly burn the photograph she was holding. The figure in the photo, gradually warping in the flames, was a nameless boy with the red eyes and hair that symbolized the Freya family.
“What day is it today again?”
“It’s the day where students duel each other to determine their ranking.”
“It’s just a light way to check each other’s skills.”
Of course, it would have some slight influence on the overall ability rankings later, so the Heavenly Demon’s words weren’t exactly wrong.
Your skills are so outstanding that there’s no need to worry at all.
Rather, we should be worrying about your opponents. Our masters seem to evaluate me ridiculously highly.
Naturally, I didn’t see much difference between myself and them. Objectively speaking, at this point in time, there were extremely few students who could possibly beat me.
I’d really like to fight that kid who uses ice.
I’m more drawn to the child who uses light as a weapon. She’s clearly the strongest among them, excluding her own disciple.
“Still, since we can’t choose who we fight, it’ll probably be difficult, right?”
At my words, the Heavenly Demon shook her head in denial. It seemed she was convinced that I would end up fighting them.
You don’t know what you’re talking about. Those with real strength inevitably end up fighting others of similar caliber. There’s no point in fighting weaklings.
Based on the skills we saw that day, there are probably about three people who could fight you, right? The ones just mentioned are likely Mir, Reglia, and Kena. When talking about the three strongest in our class, those three naturally come to mind first.
The main characters of this world, each handling light, ice, and fire respectively. If I really did end up fighting one of them like they said, who would I actually face?
“Still, I’d like to fight Mir.”
Mir was the one who used light, right?
Yeah. If you’re going to fight, you should at least face the strongest one.
Why Mir specifically? Because she is the protagonist of this world.
I had become the protagonist and moved many times before, but I had never actually fought against one. Plus, considering her class, I couldn’t help but hope I would get to face her.
Just thinking about that fight with that guy back then still makes my heart race.
The last battle I experienced before coming here. The day we both went all out for the top spot was one of those unforgettable memories.
Of course, Mir wasn’t that guy. But since they had the same class, maybe I could at least feel something similar.
I don’t particularly want to fight Kena or Reglia.
But hadn’t Kena taken an interest in me? For now there weren’t any major issues, but given his personality, he would definitely keep bothering me until I completely crushed him.
To meet Rebecca, I’ll have to fight him at least once anyway.
To meet Rebecca Freya, known as the stain on the Freya family, I would need to overwhelmingly defeat Kena. Only then would she take interest in me and secretly try to make contact.
I was originally planning to just leave it alone…
In that case, following the original flow, Rebecca would fall into ruin and Kena would seize the Freya family. But as I said before, I don’t particularly like the existence known as Kena Freya. While I place great importance on following the original story as much as possible, I still intend to intervene in Rebecca Freya’s matters.
I have to protect my favorite, after all.
By the way, my current favorite is the person right beside me.