Chapter 70 — Fire (2)
"The fire is bigger than I thought..." Cynthia mumbled, glancing at Lucian, who stood at a distance, talking to his knights.
She didn’t expect Lucian to agree so quickly to her suggestion of letting her use her powers to stop the fire from spreading.
She had read in the magic books Edric had given that fire created by magic wasn’t always easy to extinguish, as it contained another person’s mana fragments.
"Whenever I read those books, I feel like I never existed in my past life," she chuckled, looking at the burning trees. "I didn’t even know what mana fragments were..."
Mana fragments came from the mana core, which made magical spells more effective compared to natural elements. To nullify or stop the magic, a person needed to use a fragment of their own mana core, and often the most effective way to stop it was to kill the caster—something Cynthia couldn’t afford to do. She would be seen as a vile woman, unworthy of being a grand duchess, a figure meant to protect others.
But... isn’t the person who created the fire much worse? Not only that, no one even knows who is behind it! Useless...
Cynthia muttered softly, extending her hands from one another and creating a flickering white light between her palms. The attention of the knights standing with Lucian, along with his gaze, shifted her way once they noticed the brightness flickering behind them.
Feeling the piercing stares at her, Cynthia felt a cold sweat run down her face. She never knew casting a spell would make her so nervous. She gulped and threw a wave of water onto the fire. However, the result wasn’t what the crowd had anticipated. The flames grew larger as if the water had only fueled the chaos.
"What have you done?!" Lucian shouted, frowning at her.
"I..." Cynthia wanted to explain herself—that she was as shocked as everyone else. Yet, when she turned to look at the knights, their expressions only showed anger, making her reluctant to explain. It felt futile; no one cared. It didn’t matter whether she was at fault or not; they would blame her regardless.
"Your Highness," she spoke in a low voice.