Legacy of the Dark Sage

'The problem is the composition of that guy's poison,' Kyran thought, still dodging the poison needles and moving out of the concentrated poison attack. He was trying to figure out the composition of Dilitrio's poison so he could change it. This move applied the concept he had learned from Ambros. However, Kyran had too little knowledge of Poison magic, unlike Ambros's Earth magic.

This made Kyran wonder why he never asked Avrum to teach him about Poison magic.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, he pushed it aside because it would only distract him. Besides, Kyran did not ask about Poison magic because he was uninterested. Instead, he just believed that the corrosive aspect of Poison was very similar to the Void, if not more potent, and felt it would be redundant to learn about it.

Moreover, Kyran could learn how to poison others using Alchemy, so he did not need to learn Poison magic separately.

Confronted with a mage wielding Poison magic, Kyran's perspective on it shifted drastically. His extensive knowledge of Alchemy, including its poison branch, suddenly seemed inadequate against a mage who could wield Poison as innate magic.

Meanwhile, Dilitrio's patience was wearing thin as Kyran continued to evade his attacks. He was baffled by the resilience of Kyran's armor against his poison. In fact, he was more perplexed by Kyran's ability to mold armor, a feat he shouldn't have been able to accomplish without using his magic or the natural magic energies around him.

With the restrictions Dilitrio's Area magic posed against Kyran's use of magic, the latter should have given up the match. But a few minutes after the Area magic's completion, Kyran resisted and even used magic.

Even more frustrating for Dilitrio was how Kyran's magic signature changed.

No.

Wait.

Dilitrio paused as another thought crossed his mind.

Rather than thinking that Kyran's magic signature had changed, Dilitrio should change how he perceives the sudden change.

By then, Kyran's Light attacks had ended, and the situation in the arena was revealed to the audience once more.

"You...!" Dilitrio suddenly stopped attacking and pointed accusingly at Kyran. "It's not that your magic signature has changed. You initially have two types of magic signature because you have two innate magic!"

When Dilitrio shouted his suspicion, a heavy atmosphere befell the dome.

Following this, Eissen raised his hand and announced, "Fifteen minutes is up. Since there is no visible gap between the two participants, the match concluded with a draw."

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"No, wait—!"

Before Dilitrio could say anything more, two pillars of light enveloped him and Kyran, teleporting them back to their respective waiting room.

"..."

The audience remained in a state of tense silence.

It was quite obvious that the last match of the day left them with such a bitter taste, especially right after Dilitrio shouted accusingly at Kyran.

The problem was they could not say the match had ended because of it since the time limit had indeed passed.

After what seemed to be a long, grueling silence, Aillos stood from his seat and addressed the audience.

"The Spar Matches will resume tomorrow at the same time. To those who want to send a spar request, I will allow it until midnight. After that, I will no longer accept any requests. Dismiss."

Aillos left right after he said his piece, without even bothering to address the questioning look all patriarchs and second-in-command were sending him.

Only after Aillos had left did the audience burst into discussion. As for those who watched the matches remotely, they, too, started contacting their peers to discuss what Dilitrio said just before the spar ended.

Eissen and the rest of the aides also left the dome as if to give their silent approval that the others could continue their discussion without them.

As for the patriarchs and their seconds-in-command, some of them ordered their tribe members in the audience to return to their quarters so they could continue their discussions there.

The remaining few, mainly those whose talent sparred against Kyran that day, went to their tribe talent's waiting room.

Some tried to ask Patriarch Vish or Deputy Visha to meet with Dilitrio. However, the two refused and entered Dilitrio's room without saying anything more.

There were also a couple of tribes that requested to meet with Kyran. Unfortunately, none of them knew which waiting room he was staying in. In the end, they gave up and decided to request a more formal meeting by asking Lord Aillos's consent. They knew the latter would likely refuse. But at least, by asking him, they would show their sincerity in getting to know the new Dragon Lord.

Now, it might appear that everyone was overreacting to Dilitrio's remark. Though it was true that a mage having two innate magic was rare, it was not uncommon. However, the real cause behind everyone's reaction was that Kyran's innate magic was one of the Ancient magic.

It should be noted that a mage with two innate magic would typically have both complementing each other. A few cases would have them being the opposite, but ultimately, they all were from the same 'type' of magic.

There was never a case where a mage could wield a unique type of magic and an elemental one. Both magic should be the same type: Unique with unique and elemental with elemental.

What about Ancient Magic?

There was only one conclusion.

If Dilitrio's remark were true, Kyran's second innate magic would also be the same type as his innate magic— Ancient Magic.

This truth, if proven correct, changes everything.

"You understand that your remark has caused quite a stir in the clan?" Vish asked with a grim expression while looking at Dilitrio.

Vish and Visha, along with the other three representatives from their tribe, were inside Dilitrio's waiting room. They could not leave the dome yet because the dragons outside were still in an uproar about the latter's remark during the match.

"..."

Dilitrio sat on the sofa, his head lowered and his brows furrowed. He did not dare say anything to their patriarch unless the latter told him to.

Vish sat on the sofa opposite Dilitrio while Visha and the other three stood behind him. They also wore grim expressions while looking at Dilitrio.

"You can speak."

"I'm sorry," Dilitrio blurt out as soon as he was allowed to speak. "I did not mean to cause a commotion. But I was so frustrated then, and when the realization of that possibility hit me, I just... could not stop myself."

Vish sighed heavily as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. He looked at Dilitrio closely and asked slowly, "Then tell me at least this... are you sure about the new Dragon Lord's magic signature changing midway?"

Dilitrio looked at him in frustration, "Yes! Patriarch, you know why I am considered a talent among the current generation of our tribe. It is because I can freely adjust the composition of my Poison magic according to the situation.

"Since I know the Draconic magic's signature, I have used it and adjusted my poison so that the target of my attack could not wield it properly. Of course, it might not be the same with dragons whose level is higher than mine, but at least it will stop them from utilizing them well.

"But Kyran is not using Draconic magic. That claw-like manifestation he did in his hands... while it looked like a move that applied Draconic magic, it was different. I am sure of it because I did not sense the Draconic magic signature."

"That young Dragon Lord is very good at concealing his aura and presence," Visha pointed. "The adjustment you made to your poison magic might not affect him much, and he can still use Draconic magic. Then he concealed his magic signature, knowing you could detect and even recognize it to confuse you. You cannot ignore this possibility, too."

"I know, Deputy Visha," Dilitrio replied, shaking his head vigorously. "But he is not concealing his magic signature. You know how hard it is to hide your magic signature by relying on your capability alone. Unless you have a relic or magic item that can do that, it is nearly impossible to conceal your signature in such a short time."

"You said it yourself. He might have a relic that can hide his magic signature."

One of the other three representatives behind Vish pointed.

The one to reply to the representative was Vish. He shook his head and said, "If the young Dragon Lord has a relic or magic item like that, then Dilitrio should not have been able to detect a different magic signature."

"Isn't he proficient in Array? He has been summoning those array formations around him. He might have used Array instead to hide his magic signature and only targeted his Draconic's magic signature. As for the different magic signature that Dilitrio sensed, the young Dragon Lord could have created a new array and used that to summon magic with a different signature."

Another representative supplied her opinion.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

However, Dilitrio continued to shake his head and denied the latter's claim by saying, "I was able to follow most of the arrays he used, and none of them has that effect. Besides, no matter how good he is at Array, he should not be able to create a new one without the correct materials.

He adjusted the existing array formulas on his clothes, but it was not enough for him to create such a highly advanced formula that could conceal one's magic signature and create a different one."

The representative fell silent as she thought Dilitrio made a point.

"Putting aside the matter of him using Array," Vish interrupted. "Let me ask you again, how sure are you that the magic signature is different? And if you still answer the same, then do you recognize it?"

Dilitrio did not answer immediately because he knew he had to take responsibility for it.

Ultimately, he resolved himself and replied, "I am sure his magic signature changed, Patriarch. However, to answer your second question... I'm sorry. But I don't recognize it. However, whatever it is... it has an oppressive feeling only present to Ancient magic."