Saved By The Mad Duke
Chapter 127: Eye Of The Storm

Chapter 127: Eye Of The Storm

Ahspid watched as his student kept scribbling something in her notebook, his patience running dangerously thin.

Ever since the ritual with the fire witch ended, Aideen was allowed to have some rest from using her powers and was offered to occupy herself with the castle’s paperwork instead. Although the mage understood the need for such a "vacation," he still could not help but feel somewhat restless himself.

’I cannot tell whether I am simply being impatient or strangely desperate. Perhaps my curiosity still stems from my subtle protectiveness... If I find out the full range of her powers, I will definitely know what I am dealing with, and that will help me understand how I can protect her from the Holy Church and the Royal Family itself.’

As he fixed his purple eyes on the princess’s lips, which were moving along with the words she was reading, the man released a long sigh, then suddenly rose to his feet, walked up to her, and closed her notebook, placing his hand on top of it as he declared,

"Enough is enough, My Lady! Get your coat and meet me outside the castle; we are going back to practicing magic today!"

"Oh?"

Aideen arched her elegant eyebrows, but Ahspid had no time for answers. Instead, he resolutely marched out of the reading room, gesturing for the woman to follow him right away, which she did as if charmed by the rapid motions of his commanding hand.

Once they finally found themselves outside the castle’s walls, the mage brought his white horse and said, his voice serious with a blend of unexpected mystery,

"Do you mind riding a horse with me, Your Highness?"

The princess was bewildered once again.

"We have to ride a horse? Where are we going?"

"Hmm..." Ahspid ran his long fingers through his flowing purple hair, taking a moment to think over his response before finally offering her some enlightenment, "My disguising magic should be enough to allow you to practice outside. I want to see if you... if you are able to use the ability called ’eye of the storm.’"

"Eye of the storm? What does that ability entail?"

Aideen raised her curious eyebrows again, the mention of that bizarre ability made her feel a new rush of excitement. The man explained,

"In short, this ability allows you to control the weather. And if I were to say more... It is a very rare magic ability, unique even, granting its wielder unparalleled control over natural phenomena and disasters. With a mere glance, they can calm raging storms or unleash devastating cyclones. Masters of this power are both feared and revered for their ability to manipulate the very elements themselves.

"As a descendant of Utar, you are most likely able to control everything related to cold, but who knows... Perhaps Navia’s blood still runs rather strong in you, My Lady. We must find out."

The princess was hesitant with her response. On one hand, she, too, was incredibly curious about her own abilities and how far she could push them. After all, the more she knew about herself, the more helpful she could be to others. On the other hand... Her reckless adventures always ended up endangering her well-being and, most importantly, worrying her husband.

"I am not sure we should do this, Ahspid... If something dangerous were to happen to us again, His Grace might resort to some drastic measures; you, too, could suffer the consequences this time."

The mage recalled a painful blow that landed on his face not so long ago; his hand involuntarily reached up to his lower jaw once again, his features wincing.

Nevertheless, this time, he was convinced that nothing bad would happen. This time, he believed he was prepared for everything.

"Don’t worry, My Lady. We will stop at the slightest sight of danger, I promise you that. This time, your life will be guarded by me."

Although still reluctant, Aideen wanted to trust her teacher’s words. Thus, offering him a confirming nod, she finally surrendered,

"Very well. Let’s do it, Ahspid. Let’s see if I indeed possess such a unique magical talent."

"Marvelous."

With Ahspid’s help, the princess mounted his white horse, and as he positioned himself behind her surprisingly skillfully, they departed right away, moving rather far from the castle’s territory.

We have gone quite far... I have to use more of my mana to get a picture of our surroundings... What is this place anyway?’

As the horse slowed down, its legs sinking into the snow, Aideen focused her magical vision to try and see what was around them.

The light blue outline of her mana painted a serene picture of tall heaps of snow that surrounded a small, dead garden at the entrance of what looked like an abandoned village with no more than a dozen wooden houses.

The mage jumped off his horse and placed his hands on Aideen’s waist, helping her to dismount as well. Noticing the bright glimmer of curiosity in her eyes, he took a brief look around, then sighed, and said,

"This is one of the villages that belongs to the northern fiefdom, your fiefdom, to be exact. This was my very first sanctuary when I came to The North."

The lady discerned a slight note of sadness in Ahspid’s voice and could not help but feel a subtle pang of melancholy inside her heart. She remembered the mage’s story told by Tillian, and a spark of curiosity ignited within her once again, prompting her to finally inquire,

"Ahspid... Why did you come here in the first place? What was so horrible about the Capital that you considered this to be a better home?"

The mage stood quiet for some time, his bright eyes slowly gliding over the dark walls of the abandoned houses. Then, he simply shook his head and started walking, gesturing for the lady to follow him again.

"There is no point in talking about it. We have come here to test your abilities, after all. Here, we will start."

He stopped again and pointed his finger at the frozen, round body of water right below his feet, his reddish lips stretching into a grin. Aideen stood right next to him and looked ahead, her eyes widening,

"A lake?"