After training with Mary, Vladislav walked down the hill with her.
When they reached the mansion, Vladislav told Mary that he was going to skip dinner and train with his darkness affinity instead.
Mary nodded, agreeing, but warned him to eat something before going to sleep.
He smiled, nodded, and said goodbye.
Moving through the mansion's halls, he was surprisingly smooth despite his arms still aching from drawing his katana.
He exited the mansion and headed toward the library across the grounds.
For some reason, the library looked creepier at night—maybe because of its black walls.
He stepped inside.
Tall bookshelves loomed as usual, and at the far end, the reception area caught his eye. Lady Umbra was seated there, feet on the counter, eyes closed.
She seemed asleep.
He approached silently, glancing at her. Even asleep, she looked stunning. Her shiny violet bob-cut hair gleamed under the moonlight. Her pale skin shimmered, and her long, natural violet eyelashes cast shadows over her red lips—perfectly balanced, neither too big nor too small.
And then there was her scar on the left cheek, running from eyebrow to cheekbone.
For most women, a facial scar was a nightmare—ruining their features, their chances of being courted. But Lady Umbra was different. Her scar seemed to accentuate her beauty, a perfect flaw on a perfect sculpture.
And… why was she wearing pajamas? Did she sleep in the library?
Vladislav's eyes wandered over her pink pajamas, which hugged her curves. Damn.
He closed his eyes, mentally scolding himself. Stop looking before she wakes up.
But he couldn't.
Damn it! Uncle Mikhail and his weird books were to blame!
His gaze trailed from her legs to her waist—and then he froze. Their eyes met.
Amethyst, slit pupils staring directly at him.
Sweat ran down his back. Ah, it's over. I'm dead. Goodbye, Athelstan.
A fake tear rolled down his cheek as he resigned himself to his fate.
"You like what you see?" Lady Umbra asked mischievously.
He cleared his throat, averting his gaze. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yeah, right. You sure don't know."
"So, what brings you here? Shouldn't you be eating dinner right now?"
Phew. Thankfully, she is not angry at me.
"I decided to skip dinner. I want to train on my darkness element," he explained. "Grandma told me you're the only darkness user in the family, so I came to ask for help."
"When did she tell you that?"
"A week ago…"
"Hmph. Took you long enough. I was even waiting after seeing that you'd awakened esoteric darkness," she pouted.
"I'm sorry. I was focusing on lightning first, but then I realized it would be better to work on two elements at once so I'd have only one to focus on later," he said, scratching the back of his head.
"Hahaha, don't mind my teasing. I'm just joking."
Vladislav shook his head inwardly
"So, what do you want to know about darkness?"
"Everything about it, if possible. Please teach me, Lady Umbra." He bowed respectfully.
"Of course, Little Vlad. It will be my pleasure to teach you—and please, stop bowing," she waved dismissively.
"A young master bowing to a mere librarian would look odd."
Just a librarian, my ass.
"Tell me, what do you know about elemental darkness?"
Vladislav thought for a moment before answering. "Darkness is the ruler of shadows. It's above the shadow element, because shadow depends on light, while darkness exists independently. Shadow is created; darkness simply exists in nature, like fire, water, wind, or earth."
"Excellent. That is why shadow users can only hold their own against darkness users at lower ranks. As ranks rise, survival requires cunning, terrain advantage, or clever strategy."
"Now, that's elemental darkness. Let's move on to your affinity: esoteric darkness."
"First of all… what does 'esoteric' mean?"
"It refers to something understood only by a small, specialized group. In your case, it means mystical, secret knowledge—obscure, hidden power."
"Esoteric darkness is rare and little-known. Few have wielded it, and most never reached old age, making it incredibly uncommon."
Vladislav swallowed. Does that mean my fate is sealed?
Lady Umbra raised a hand. "Hey, I'm not trying to scare you."
You already have, he thought.
"The few who wielded this affinity died because they stepped into the unknown. They had no guidance, no knowledge of its dangers. However—"
"There was someone who went further than anyone else, uncovering more of its mysteries: your ancestor, the founder of the Schatten family."
Vladislav's eyes widened. "No way."
"Yes. It's true, and only the most trusted people in the family know. That's how I know."
"So… you're really someone important, not just a librarian. Now that clears my doubts," he nodded.
"Me? Nah, I'm just an old friend of your grandparents," she said with a wave. "Your ancestor reached the sovereign rank with esoteric darkness alone—a great feat, because no one else ever surpassed rank 6."
Sounds dangerous, he thought.
"That's how unknown and dangerous this affinity is. But you are different. You'll have my guidance and help. Some things, however, I can only teach theoretically, since my darkness is elemental, not esoteric."
"I understand, Lady Umbra," Vladislav nodded.
"Good. Esoteric darkness is the same as elemental darkness, yet different. It performs all elemental functions but adds unique abilities. Elemental darkness is direct, physical, combat-oriented. Esoteric darkness includes all basics but is deeper, more abstract—it overlaps with normal darkness yet surpasses it."
"Think of it this way: esoteric darkness is the father; elemental darkness is the son. The son is weaker, naturally."
"Esoteric darkness combines darkness with metaphysical insight. It manipulates consciousness, perception, and the fringes of existence. It can even control death, though you don't need to know that yet."
"It's versatile, unstable, dangerous, and tied to higher mysteries, like the void."
"Void?"
"The void is absolute nothingness—no matter, energy, light, sound, or information. Just nothing. That's what your esoteric darkness controls, and as you rise in rank, it evolves into the void."
"Void isn't just darkness or emptiness—it's the negation of existence itself. Despite its danger, esoteric darkness is overpowered if mastered. You can manipulate or unmake shadows, nullify energy, sound, thought…"
"At higher ranks, you could engulf a battlefield in darkness even during broad daylight, creating zones where only your magic works. It's that powerful," she explained, letting him absorb the information.
Vladislav felt a shiver of awe and fear. If I dominate and master this affinity, I will be unstoppable, but it is too powerful… there has to be a weakness, Vladislav thought, stroking his chin with his right hand.
"Lady Umbra, what are its weaknesses? Surely it has some, maybe light," he asked, thinking of Athelstan's esoteric light.
"Another excellent question. Yes, but not exactly."
She removed her legs from the counter and straightened up her posture in the chair.
"People assume darkness is weak to light. They're not wrong: light and darkness oppose each other. But esoteric darkness is only weak against esoteric light—and only if the light user is higher in rank. Otherwise, the darkness user prevails."
She conjured two spheres: a small darkness sphere in her left hand and a slightly larger light sphere in her right. When they touched, the sphere of darkness dissipated.
"At higher ranks, esoteric darkness dominates. If two users of equal rank fight, the darkness user wins—unless they make a tactical mistake, which is impossible," she laughed.
"Hehe, so Athelstan won't defeat me—unless he plays it smart." Vladislav smiled.
"True—but he has esoteric time affinity, which is tricky in combat. Manipulating time makes him a formidable opponent who can change the outcome of a fight."
"Well, enough talk. Let's start your lesson," she said, clapping her hands.