The specially made sealed door slid open, revealing a passage before Ran Bei'er.
This was her seventh day trapped here. Aside from the initial interrogation, no one had co to pay attention to her or make contact since. Just when she thought she might be confined for a long ti, she was suddenly inford that soone was coming to see her.
Who could it be, Ran Bei'er wondered, then stood up and walked towards the passage.
The light gray passage was lined with special branding circuits that not only strengthened the structure but also created a field that forbade the congregation of magic power, causing the abilities of transcendent beings to drastically decline, preventing easy escape.
After arriving at the end of the passage, the already opened white room awaited. Ran Bei'er took her designated seat, and the wall in front of her, originally like a silver mirror, instantly turned transparent to reveal the scene opposite her. It was a black-haired girl sitting in a chair, dressed in a teal gown, her hands resting on the armrests, poised and gracious, lacking any of the usual restraint and timidity.
The bright light from above shone down, hitting the strands of hair on the girl's forehead and casting shadows around her eyes, obscuring the details of the face beneath the shadows.
At this mont, as Ran Bei'er sat inside, she felt as if their positions of power had instantaneously reversed, starkly different from that night.
Regarding Tilan, Ran Bei'er had done her research, knew much about her – not only the accidental death of her sister, the successive departures of her parents, but also her performance in middle school, and more. However, the events of that night and what followed had shattered many of her preconceived notions. Now, she looked at the girl before her as if she were a bundle of fog, filled with uncertainty and mystery.
"Is it Tilan?" she ventured to ask.
"Yes," ca the familiar voice from across, though it was sowhat colder, which made Ran Bei'er even more nervous. She didn't know how the other would deal with her. Although her actions weren't severe enough to rit heavy punishnt, she was quite aware of the influence of power in legal judgnts – she wasn't as naïve as the average person.
"Can you tell about your plan and intentions at that ti?" the girl opposite her asked again.
Over the next half-hour, Ran Bei'er detailed her thought process in coming up with the idea, the invitation she extended along the way, and the ritual prepared in the basent.
"What would have happened if the ritual had succeeded?"
"If it had succeeded, you would slowly transform, becoming slightly more somnolent, then cease to age, frozen at your current stage. You'd beco exceptionally skilled with the Blood Pupil Sequence but especially repulsed by the Radiant Feather Sequence; your blood would also beco different from that of ordinary people..." Ran Bei'er recounted her own thoughts at the ti.
"What about the downsides and regrets?" the girl asked again.
"As for downsides, let's see... probably that your perception of ti would beco different from that of ordinary people, hearing would beco more acute, disliking overly noisy places, and then also needing long periods of sleep at regular intervals. Actually, it's really not bad, Tilan, I didn't have any truly ill intentions," Ran Bei'er said, sowhat pleadingly now.
The black-haired girl sitting in the shadows of the chair did not respond, but just quietly observed her. Black hair, black eyes, so serene, yet seeming to pierce through ti itself, seeing Ran Bei'er's past and the true thoughts hidden beneath the façade.
Songstresses are not witches, but sotis they are more frightening than witches. — A slang expression circulated secretly within the Federation
"What did you an by 'test' that you ntioned before?" Tilan brought up Ran Bei'er's unfinished topic from that night.
"That, well, I was indeed hesitating at the ti because it seed like Tilan really needed help. So I thought, if you could withstand my attacks three tis, then you'd have passed the test," she explained.
"Ran Bei'er is a Blood Pupil Sequence 6, right? But a rather special Blood Pupil Sequence 6." With the enhancent of her bloodline, Ran Bei'er's actual strength was close to Sequence 7, which was why Tilan had been unable to react in ti; her speed was too fast.
"That's how it is," Ran Bei'er nodded, aware that she had been sowhat bullying at the ti. She turned her face away slightly, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"If you are willing to help over the next ten years, how can you guarantee you're not deceiving ?"
"This…" Ran Bei'er was at a montary loss for words. She couldn't just say she'd swear an oath; that seemingly wouldn't convince anyone.
"I can swear an oath in front of witnesses from other special bloodline families."
She thought of a sowhat credible thod. Families with special bloodlines, like hers, were actually not rare within the federation, but they mostly kept a low profile. However, being of the sa kind, they needed to help each other from ti to ti, so they valued reputation and word of mouth.
"This might be useful, but it's still hard to ensure," the black-haired girl shook her head. Though still young, she didn't believe that an oath alone could bind soone.
"Perhaps we need to sign a contract under the witness of the federation. Rest assured, this contract won't be easily voided."
"If you break the agreent, or if I die unexpectedly, countless inspectors within the federation will search for your trace, and quite a few ancient forces will hunt you down."
The girl didn't explain why there would be such severe consequences, but her tone was so firm and certain that it involuntarily made Ran Bei'er believe that if she dared to defy, such consequences would indeed occur.
The black-haired girl sitting in the shadows, her voice seed to have a magic power, making people unconsciously believe her.
The room fell silent for a long while, before Ran Bei'er finally raised her head and nodded solemnly.
"I agree, it was already agreed upon after all."
Subsequently, the previously transparent screen in front of her turned back into a silver mirror, isolating everything outside. In the end, Ran Bei'er could finally see clearly those eyes under the shadows—like black smoky quartz, clear and tranquil, which dissipated much of the unease in her heart.
Although the girl didn't respond, she had received the answer she wanted.
After another two weeks, Ran Bei'er left her place of detainnt and regained her freedom. Upon returning to Edith Academy, she told her classmates that she had taken a month off for a trip. To such an excuse, her classmates didn't find it surprising, as it was not uncommon for students to do such things.
So students were even big stars, and it was common for them not to attend school for two or three months due to filming and participating in variety shows. However, they would still study the school's curriculum remotely, not falling too far behind. The class had grown accustod to students not always being present.
Over ti, her classmates noticed that Ran Bei'er had changed a bit, but they couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was. She just seed to no longer be as lazy and casual as before, now a bit more serious. She would occasionally follow behind the black-haired girl, participating in gatherings and outings.
Of course, the first to notice this was Tilan's best friend at Edith Academy, Deloris.
When exactly had Tilan gotten to know Ran Bei'er well, and should she also invite her to her ho to hang out?
From ti to ti, she would entertain such thoughts.
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