Chapter 53 THE FORBIDDEN TRUTH
Xyra felt her face flush, feeling like it was on fire. She wasn't sure if the heat was from the water or from embarrassment, but she knew she didn't like this. That wasn't a question she had been expecting to get asked, especially by Astrid. What had she possibly done to make her think such a thing?
"N-no," she answered, swallowing hard to try and stop her words from shaking when she spoke again. "Of course not. I barely know him."
"But you've been acting weird," Astrid pointed out, being very direct. "You always scowl at me when I'm with him, you seem to worry about him a lot, and that night when he broke his arm, you helped him walk. I had just assumed that you liked him and were ignoring me because you were jealous."
Xyra opened her mouth to argue with the idea, but she quickly shut it. Nothing she said would help her deny the fact that she really had been jealous. She had wanted to be the one to help Magnus, to take care of him. He had hurt himself because of her, and it was the only way she knew how to repay him. There was nothing else she could do. Besides, she enjoyed attention, no matter what kind. Astrid drew a lot of it away from her.
"I don't like him, okay?" she said a bit slowly. "He's just a friend."
"Okay," Astrid responded meekly, not planning on bringing the topic up again.
"What about you?" The dragon looked puzzled. "Do you like him?" She said nothing at first, but her eyes slowly dimmed, a sad smile crossing her face.
"I don't think I can."
"Why not?"
"… He's suffering, isn't he," she said, having no question regarding her voice. "He must have lost something important…"
"H–how did you know?" Xyra was shocked to say the least. Magnus hadn't mentioned anything about his past to the dragon. She and Darren were the only people who knew, and not by Magnus's choice. He hadn't said a word about it, not once. He was trying to keep his past a mystery.
"I can see it," Astrid answered slowly. "His eyes don't hide anything. He's a horrible liar too. Just by looking at him, I can see that he's had it hard. He seems really desperate too." She sighed a bit and closed her eyes, relaxing into the water. "It must be hard…he looks so burdened."
Xyra didn't say anything about that. She just leaned back against the rocks, letting the hot water send tingles through her body. She kept her mind working though, thinking about what Astrid had just said. Maybe there was more to Magnus than he let on. Maybe he was keeping even more secrets. Didn't he understand that he wasn't alone anymore? He had companions, people who actually cared about him. He didn't need to keep to himself anymore. Someday, Magnus, I'll make you tell me the whole truth. When the time comes… I can help lighten that burden.
As the girls relaxed in the hot springs, Magnus and Darren were being led through the dragon king's house. Darren was helping Xerxes explain things to Magnus even though the king didn't need the help at all. Darren simply liked talking, making it seem like he knew something that the sorcerer didn't. That kind of thing doesn't happen often. Magnus knew a lot about next to everything. However, dragons and the Andagon Valley were two things that the sorcerer didn't know much about.
"Darren," began Xerxes as they stopped near a large room. "Could you go prepare some rooms for our guests? I wish to speak with Magnus alone."
"Alright," the hunter replied as he turned and ran down the hall, leaving the two of them alone.
"Come this way," said Xerxes as he opened the huge doors that led into the next room. It was a bit dark when they first entered, the light through a single window being all that illuminated the area. There were two torches at the entry though. Xerxes raised his hand to one, and a small flame appeared by his palm, lighting the torch. He went around the room, lighting each one as Magnus just watched. That was one more thing he hadn't known about dragons. They were creatures of fire though, so it kind of made sense. It was the only form of magic they knew.
Xerxes walked to the center of the room and then motioned for Magnus to come in from the doorway. The sorcerer did so without a word, walking slowly. He wasn't sure if he trusted the dragon lord just yet. Sorcerers weren't well liked by the dragon race since they were one of the only types of humans that could slay their kind, the other being a professional slayer. He began to pray that the dragon he had killed during the tournament hadn't belonged to this particular tribe, or he would be in trouble.
"You can relax," Xerxes told the boy with a smile. "I mean you no harm." The tone of his voice was sincere, so Magnus allowed himself to relax. "There are some things I would like to discuss with you."
"I will tell you whatever you want to know," Magnus assured him, "but you have to promise to answer some of my questions too."
"Fair enough." He liked this boy's attitude. He was serious and level-headed, but he was gentle as well. "First I'd like to know…if Coleman is really your last name."
"Yes." He hadn't hesitated at all with answering.
"I see. I was curious since the report we heard stated that the entire family had been killed. They found all three bodies."
"The third hadn't been a member of the family." Magnus's eyes dimmed quite a bit, the memory being a hard one for him. "It was a woman's…her name was Meredith."
"Was she a friend of yours?"
"Yes…" His voice was so sad and his eyes so distraught that Xerxes wasn't going to press the matter. Something about that whole situation was unsettling though. He had been given a false report. He couldn't remember who had made it, but they had lied to him for a reason. Someone didn't want anybody knowing that one member had survived.
"You're a powerful sorcerer, aren't you?" he stated suddenly, drawing Magnus's eyes back to his. The sorcerer seemed a little shocked at that statement.
"How did you…?"
"You have a slight accent to your voice. It's rather regal, and that's probably because of your upbringing, but the accent is definitely a sign of your power. One of the hardest things in sorcery is memorizing and properly pronouncing spells. The chants are all in so many different ancient languages that it takes a lot of talent and a lot of patience to learn them."
"I'm not that great though."
"You're too modest. I can see it in your eyes. You're enjoying the praise. You don't have to pretend around me. I can see right through you, so there's no point in even trying."
Magnus was about to say something to that, but instead he closed his mouth. He wasn't about to say anything that could get him in trouble. However, if the dragon king could really see just what he felt and how he thought, then there was no point in trying to hide anything. If he wanted to say something, it was better to just say it. He'd find out eventually anyway.
"Can I ask you to do something?" Xerxes asked suddenly. "It's a simple request."
"Sure."
"Please remove that headband."
Magnus's eyes widened severely at the request. He just stared at the man before him, his eyes wide. This dragon wasn't joking. There was a serious, rather stern look on his face. He really wanted him to do this. Does he know? Damn…he has to, otherwise he wouldn't make such a stupid request.
With a sigh, the sorcerer reached up with his left arm. He placed his hand behind his head and pulled at the tie in the back. Eventually he managed to get it undone, and he allowed the material to fall from his forehead. His expression fell a bit, but he kept his eyes locked with the dragon's.
Xerxes was just staring at him, at the thing his headband had been hiding. There, stationed in the middle of his forehead, was a scar. It was in the shape of an "X." It wasn't a huge scar, but it was indeed noticeable. It was blood-red, as if it had never healed from the second he received it.
"I knew it," he stated, taking a deep breath, a small smile on his face, but it was a sad one. "It's rare to see a scar on a sorcerer. I'm sure you've tried healing it countless times." Magnus just nodded to verify the statement. "Who gave it to you?"
"… I don't know."
Xerxes looked at the boy seriously, analyzing his response. However, after staring for a few moments, he could do nothing but believe him. Magnus seemed just as puzzled by the scar as he was. It truly was a troubling thing. Sorcerers weren't supposed to be able to scar. They could just heal whatever injury was dealt to them. This one had simply stopped bleeding. It hadn't healed at all.
"Why do you hide it?"
"I have my reasons."
"… Fair enough." He smiled brightly, no longer wanting to talk about this matter. It was something that the boy wasn't comfortable with. The sorcerer was a mystery and wanted to keep it that way. "Now I'll answer your questions."
"I just have one."
"Then by all means, ask it."
"… Do you know anything about the Lazufeer talismans?"
Xerxes's eyes widened in shock for the first time in a long time. It was hard for anyone, especially a human, to send him into a state like this. His eyes quickly began to look over the boy, but the sorcerer was being completely serious. This was no joke. He was collecting the talismans.
"So you're actually attempting to gain Lazufeer's power," he said, his voice very airy and heavy with surprise. "The last time I heard those words was six years ago" Tell me, why do you want them?"
"To kill a demon."
"Which one?" For the first time today, Xerxes was demanding a response. His eyes were harsh. He needed an answer. Whatever the boy said would determine whether he told him anything.
"Raheem."
That one name sent his mind reeling. That was the only name that could rival his in fame. There were three names in the entire world that just about everyone knew. They were his, Albus, and Raheem. He was the most powerful dragon, Albus was the strongest human, and Raheem was a demon lord. They were the most powerful men on the entire planet, representing the three races that inhabited it. However, Raheem wasn't just a demon.
"You should give up," Xerxes stated, folding his hands behind his back. "You can't win."
"And why not?"
"Because Raheem isn't just a demon." His voice was so low, full of detest. However, there was a pinch of fear there. Out of the three superpowers, Raheem was the strongest, hands down. Only someone who was completely insane and reckless would take him on. He obviously didn't know Magnus very well though.
"What do you mean?" Magnus asked skeptically. From what he could recall from his encounter with that human-looking monster, Raheem had been in every way a demon.
"Even with all twelve talismans, it may very well be impossible to win."
"And why is that?" The sorcerer's voice was rising. He appeared to be getting frustrated. He wasn't used to being told he couldn't do something. He was told hundreds of times not to, but never had anyone used that word on him so seriously. There wasn't a single response that Xerxes could give him to deter him from his path. Nothing could change his mind.
"Because…" the dragon began, a grim look on his face. "… He's a demi-god."