novelraw Chapter 106 : The Weight of a Secret
Chapter 106 : The Weight of a Secret
(Rooga POV)
Dinner had ended, and the house was quiet except for the soft crackle of the hearth.
Father had already gone to his study, and only the sound of Riaz snoring from the next room filled the silence.
I sat at the table with Mother and Lyra, retelling what happened that afternoon — how Crome and I went to the stream, the frogs that weren’t big enough to ride, and the strange buzzing we heard beneath the roots.
They listened with half-smiles at first.
But when I said the word corruption, the air in the room changed.
“It crawled out of the water,” I said, tracing the movement on the table with my finger. “Its body was cracked and steaming. It felt wrong — like it didn’t belong.”
The laughter faded from Lyra’s face.
Mother went completely still, her spoon hovering midair.
I blinked. “What’s wrong?”
Neither of them answered.
The silence pressed against my ears until I could hear my own heartbeat.
Then Lyra leaned forward slightly, her voice calm but sharp. “Where is it now?”
I looked up. “I killed it. With magic.”
The spoon clattered from Mother’s hand, hitting the bowl. Her eyes widened. “You what?”
“I used Violent Spark. It wasn’t strong, but it worked.”
Her voice trembled, half disbelief, half panic. “And this boy—Crome? He saw you?”
I nodded slowly. “Yes, but Mother, I can trust him.”
She stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. “It’s not him I’m worried about, Rooga.”
Her voice was rising, brittle but sharp. “It’s the people around him. You don’t understand how fast rumors spread. People pay money for information—especially about magic.”
Her words struck like stones, each one heavier than the last.
I hadn’t thought about that. To me, it was just a spell, something small.
But to her… it was danger.
She stepped closer, lowering her voice but not her tone. “You can’t just show people your power. Not everyone is kind. Some will smile at you, then sell what they know.”
I tried to answer, but Lyra spoke before I could.
“Oh, Selene,” she said softly, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. “He’s just a kid. Let him brag a little. Every child wants to show off when they’ve done something brave.”
Mother turned sharply, her expression tight. “This isn’t a game, Lyra.”
“I know,” Lyra replied evenly. “But the more you scare him, the more secretive he’ll become. Better to let him feel proud for now — it’s a harmless story, and the boy he saved won’t talk. He knows gratitude.”
Stolen story; please report.
The two women locked eyes across the table, tension humming like a drawn string.
Then, finally, Mother exhaled, sitting back down. “Fine.”
But her hands were still trembling slightly as she folded them in her lap.
I looked between them, unsure what to say. The warmth from earlier felt distant now, swallowed by something heavier — something I didn’t understand yet.
Lyra gave me a small smile, trying to lighten the air. “You did well, Rooga. Next time, maybe use less lightning. You’ll scare the trees.”
I smiled weakly. “Yes, Aunt Lyra.”
Mother didn’t speak again. She just stared into the fire, her thoughts far away.
And for the first time, I wondered if my magic — the thing that felt so natural, so mine — was something the world would always fear.
(Lyra POV)
The house was silent except for the crackle of the dying fire.
Selene and I sat across from each other in the common room — the table between us littered with half-finished tea and folded maps of the borderland.
Rooga had long gone to sleep, though his words from earlier still lingered in the air like static. A corrupted insect… I killed it with magic.
Selene stared into her cup, her expression unreadable. Then, suddenly, she muttered, “Aunt Lyra. Has a nice ring to it.”
I looked up sharply. “Shut up, Selene.”
She smirked. “It’s Lady Selene to you, Lyra. But well… we’re past that point now, aren’t we?”
I rolled my eyes. “Barely.”
She leaned back, smiling faintly. “At first I thought you were just another maid — loud, stubborn, always underfoot. But now… you’re someone else. Like a friend.”
She paused, then added quietly, “Maybe more than that. Like a sister.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “If I’m your sister, then stop snapping at me every time Rooga breathes wrong.”
Selene pouted. “It’s called motherly instinct.”
“Mm-hmm. Keep yelling at him like that and you’ll age twice as fast. In a few days I’ll look younger than you.”
She gasped dramatically. “Blasphemy.”
We both laughed, the sound low and tired but genuine.
It was the kind of laughter that comes after fear — the kind that feels like healing, if only for a moment.
Then the laughter faded, and the room fell quiet again.
Selene spoke first, her tone dropping low. “No one’s close enough to hear us now.”
I nodded, glancing toward the window. The forest outside was still — too still. “Then let’s talk. The expedition’s last report worries me.”
She leaned forward. “They found movement again?”
I met her eyes. “Yes. It seems the corruption beasts are being pushed out of the forest.”
Selene frowned. “Pushed out?”
“That’s what it looks like. The scouts near the boundary said the creatures aren’t migrating — they’re fleeing.”
Her brow furrowed deeper. “I never thought they’d leave their nest. Corrupted beasts never retreat, only spread. Why aren’t they going deeper inside?”
I stared into the fire for a long moment before answering. “Because something’s already there.”
She froze. “Inside the corrupted forest?”
I nodded. “Something more dangerous than us.”
The fire cracked loudly between us, sparks leaping up the chimney.
Selene’s hands clenched around her cup. “Then we’ve been pushing the corruption toward it, haven’t we?”
“Yes,” I said quietly. “And whatever’s inside… it’s strong enough that even the corruption flees from it.”
Her eyes darkened. “Does Darius know?”
“Not yet,” I replied. “I’ll tell him when we’re sure. No need to stir the entire house before dawn.”
She exhaled, looking away. “You think it’s connected to Rooga’s magic?”
I didn’t answer right away.
The thought had already crossed my mind — the strange surge of power, the perfect mastery, the way even the mana around him felt alive.
Finally, I said, “I hope not.”
We sat there until the fire burned low, listening to the night hum softly beyond the walls.
Selene leaned back, whispering, “A sister, huh?”
I smirked. “Only because no one else can stand you.”
She smiled faintly. “You might regret saying that one day.”
“Maybe,” I said, standing and stretching. “But until then, let’s make sure this house stays standing. For him.”
She nodded, her eyes glinting in the dim light.
As I turned toward the door, I heard her whisper to herself — too soft for anyone else to hear.
“Something more dangerous than us… then what in the world are we really fighting?”
The wind outside answered with a low sigh through the trees.