Chapter 96: A Phantom of Doubt
Ran tried not to dwell on what Mikel had said, but even hours later, it still bothered him. Lying flat on his bed, he turned his head toward the bed across the room.
Mikel was already asleep, lying on his side with his back facing Ran.
Now that I think about it, Mikel sleeps early. I didn’t expect that when I first met him.
Slowly, Ran peeled his gaze away from Mikel’s back and stared at the ceiling. No matter how he tried to push the thought aside, the idea that Mikel could somehow understand Gallos was deeply unsettling.
Everyone just casually let it slide that he held Eron’s glaive like it was nothing... he thought with a heavy sigh. And now, he also understands Gallos.
Ran was well aware that Gallos held a certain hostility toward Mikel—his Phantom made sure Ran was fully aware of it. Still, Ran had insisted to Gallos that Mikel might look a little rough around the edges, but he wasn’t a bad person. Besides, Ran had been picked on as a child.
Even before setting foot in the academy, kids his age used to tease him for having very weak spiritual energy and capacity. But Mikel didn’t. Maybe because Mikel himself didn’t have that much spiritual energy either—but still, he was different from the other young shamans.
Unless... he’s also a Phantom user.
Once again, Ran glanced quickly at Mikel’s back and sighed, shaking his head.
If he were, I would’ve known.
Phantom users couldn’t usually communicate with another wielder’s Phantom directly, but they could still sense and analyze each other’s Phantoms through behavior, energy signatures, and demeanor. There was a subtle but unmistakable trait shared among Phantom wielders. Mikel, however, gave off nothing like that.