Ersia: Raven Dawn

Viena's body feels hot, and now it's shivering. Telepathy undoubtedly scared her. Randia felt sorry for her and decided to use his magic. He waved his hand, and the tears that were splattered on Viena's face gathered at the tip of his forefinger before he threw it to the ground.

"Certainly, that was not a pleasant experience for you. Nonetheless, at least now you have a good understanding of Alana, the white magic. Many requirements must be met to be able to utilize them properly."

The red-eyed girl wipes her face with her hands and puts on a tough act. She stares sternly at Randia even though there are still remnants of snot and a little smear of blood in her nose. Seeing her pretending, Randia used his cloak to clean Viena's the rest of her face properly.

"Maybe we should just stop here."

"What?! No! We're not done yet! What about Yarna, the black magic?!

"I don't need to show you that one."

"Huh? Why?!"

"Because that is what you did."

Viena is taken aback, and Randia has been looking forward to her reaction. There are some questions that need to be answered, not only for the man but also for the little girl.

"What? What do you mean?"

"I mean what I said. Where did you learn such dangerous magic?"

"I-I didn't!"

"Then, how do you get that strange power?"

At first, she was reluctant. However, remembering how the pain in her stomach grows increasingly severe each day, Viena decides to tell Randia about her power. After all, last night was nothing more than her luck saving her from another sleepless night.

"I . . . don't really understand either. I was sick on the day after I buried Mama. It was strange though. Because I have never fallen ill for as long as I remember. Only hunger can lie my back down on the ground."

"But, that night, I was feeling parched as if I was dying, and my body was so limp 'till I could barely lift a finger. I even coughed up a lot just for trying to reach out for a glass of water right beside me."

"Since I had no one to rely on, I thought that was the time that I would finally kick the bucket . . . But instead, something really weird happened."

Viena plays with her fingers, looking unsure about what to say before taking another deep breath to continue her storytelling.

"When I closed my eyes, it was all darker than usual. Then, I saw myself sleeping like I was someone else. I-It feels so bizarre I can't even explain it properly. I'm sorry if it's hard to understand."

On the contrary, Randia got a hint of what might have happened to Viena, as well as the genesis of her peculiar magic.

"I was sad back then, so I was trying to reach out for my hand. Holding it tight, like what I would've wanted someone to do for me ... Kinda lame, right? Hehe," said Viena miserably.

"Anyway, when I opened my eyes, the glass was already in my hand. That was the first time I found out that I have the power to move objects as I will. Although I kind of went to sleep for a moment when I did so."

Upon hearing Viena's explanation, there were still questions that stayed unanswered. It was not of a matter of honesty in those red eyes, but rather the little girl's understanding of herself that is limited. Thus, Randia keeps searching for the truth through words.

"Can you do anything else other than move objects?"

"Huh? Do you mean sneaking and stealing food? Yes, I can do that also."

Randia sprayed a jug worth of water on Viena's face by using his magic.

"Wha-! Blegh! What was that for?!"

"I'm being serious."

"So do I, you dunderhead! Hmph!" Viena smacked Randia's thigh.

The man couldn't understand. Moving an object from one place to another in such a short range was not supposed to be a big deal. Then, why are the drawbacks of Viena's magic so harmful? Surely, there is more than meets the eye.

"You wonder how I found out about the pain in your stomach, don't you?"

"Huh? O-Oh yeah. I almost forgot. I was going to ask you exactly that."

"It's because of my eyes. I can see things that most people cannot. That includes the color of magic and its flow around me."

There's nothing Randia can do to convince her of his words, but surely, Viena doesn't need one. The thing that he said and done is enough to prove that he is no common man. He is anything but ordinary.

"As for moving objects . . . ."

Randia pointed his hand towards his laundry that lies far away and pulled one of the clothes to him. The wet cloth flew to his hand and Viena was stunned.

"I can do exactly the same without any problem. Without having to sleep."

"Wow! Does your stomach not hurt?"

"No. That's because it basically falls into one of many categories of Mera. But yours, Viena, yours are Yarna."

"Eh? But why?"

The man keeps silent because he doesn't know the answer. The one thing he knows is that the magic has a terrible impact on Viena's body. Hence, that is the subject that he will put all of his attention to. Anything else is secondary.

"Can you lay down, Viena?"

Viena didn't understand but she nodded and did what Randia said anyway. She lies on her back on the ground watching Randia sitting next to her. At a glance, nothing seems to be wrong with her. That is until Randia pulled up a bit of her blouse and exposed her skin up to her belly button.

"What the-?! W-W-What the hell are you doing?!!!"

Viena immediately sat back and pulled her blouse back down. Her face is red as a cherry and her heart races like it never did.

"Huh?"

"You! Disgusting asshole! Pervert! Stay away from me!"

"Mind your words, stop acting stupid, and stay still. I'm about to explain your pain."

"B-But I'm a girl!"

"No, you aren't. You are a brat. Now get down."

Viena is seriously hesitant, but eventually, she goes back to lying on the ground. As Randia lifts her blouse, she blushes even more and she covers her face. That was until Randia started to poke an area slightly below her navel.

"Ugh! Ack!"

Viena is screaming in pain at the slightest touch. It was at this moment that Randia knew that his fear was becoming a reality. The drawback of Yarna has injured Viena deeply.

"How long have you been using your power?"

"I think it's almost two years by now?"

"Two years? Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Randia couldn't believe what he just heard. Normally, people would have died in less than a year as a side effect of performing an unrefined technique of Yarna, or they would wish to because of the pain. This case of her is undoubtedly an anomaly, and Randia has no knowledge of what might be the cause.

"It has affected not only the path of your Anima but also your physical organ. I hate to say this, but this is not looking good. It's worse than I thought."

"B-But I slept well last night! I-It can't be that bad, right? Ran?"

The look on Viena's welling-up face makes Randia's chest skip a beat. He feels something old that he had forgotten. Something precious, and something resented. Something longed for, and something cursed upon. The little girl noticed the extreme change in Randia's expression. It's as if he was in more terrible pain than her. The look of fear and craving, conflicted and twisted like nothing she had ever seen.

"Ran? What's wrong?"

Viena's question pulled Randia back to reality after it gave his heart a powerful wrench. It's a simple gesture that he hasn't heard for a long time. Long since he lost all that cherishes him.

"Shut up and stay still."

After a long pause, the momentary marvel of Randia's demeanor vanished without a trace, and the cold indifferent stare returned as he pushed Viena's head back to the ground with a push of his finger to the forehead.

"Are you going to help me?"

"It depends on you, yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"The thing that I'm going to do to you . . . it's going to be hard. Whether we can work to make it better is not all up to me, but also you."