"rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrt"
They all stare at Katarina's artifact as it continues to shake quite rapidly on the table.
Familiar as they are with that [SmartPhone]'s capabilities, none of them actually knows how to use it properly. Katarina was very reserved when it came to that device and did not let almost everyone use it. She would let them look into its contents with her, but it would always be her that is using it nonetheless. She would also always keep it in her person.
This is the first time they are seeing it away from Katarina. Needless to say, no one of them knows what to do with, especially now that it just started acting erratically on its own.
Scratch that. One of them actually has an idea.
The younger Ascart picks up the artifact, slides something on its screen, and then puts the device at her ear.
"Miss Anne?" They all hear her speak to the artifact followed by a mumbling noise from the artifact itself. They all remain silent in courtesy.
"Yes, Lady Katarina is here... No, she can't... Yes, it's rather bad, brother improvised an icepack for her..." Sophia then looks at everyone and asks "Miss Anne is asking if anyone noticed Lady Katarina using her magic lately?"
They all shake their head.
"None of us think so... we haven't had any practical exams... Back to the dorm?... You're welcome. See you there." After that, she took the device away from her ear and put it back on the table.
"Miss Anne asked that we bring Katarina back to her room right away."
"You talked with Anne through that?" Keith asked, to which Sophia only nodded in response.
"Well, Lady Katarina did mention that the device has way better communication function than the [Mimeo Card]." Alan followed.
"I know there is a magical device that was capable of doing the same, although that requires the users to be in very high and windy places. It is powered by wind magic." Nicol added.
"You all can wonder about that later, we have to go!" Mary erupted. "I'll ask for carriage prepared. Bring Lady Katarina right away!" She lifts her dress and runs out of the room. Alan does not say anything and simply goes after his fiance.
With Katarina currently unconscious, she has to be carried towards the carriage. Keith and Gerald, with the same thing in mind, look at each other and then toward their sister/fiance then quickly try to be the one to do the job.
Tried... For some reason. Both of them fell on the floor as their knees buckled when they tried to stand. They share the same reaction too, both were surprised about what just happened.
This left the eldest of the Ascart siblings to do the task. Nicol lifted the sleeping lady into his arms and carried her out of the room.
"Hey!"
"Nicol?!"
The third prince and the Claes heir protested but they were ignored. Nicol left along with Maria beside him, keeping the ice pack on Katarina's head. Sophia beelined to the table first and pocketed the phone before following her brother.
"You two, what took you so long?!" Mary yelled from inside the carriage as she saw Keith and Gerald finally arrive.
"Where Katarina?" Gerald asked upon entering the carriage followed by Keith. They sat on the same side facing Mary and Alan. With everyone onboard, Alan signals the driver to get moving.
"They already went ahead on a separate carriage along with Lord Nicol, Lady Sophia, and Miss Maria."
"I'm surprised you did not go with them," Keith commented.
"Not that I wanted to be left here, but I'll just cramp the carriage if I go with them." She explains "Maria of course knows better when it comes to healing. Sophia was able to use the [SmartPhone] and is talking with Miss Anee, and as much as I want to be the one carrying Lady Katarina, Lord Nicol can do it better. " She cusses. " I'm more surprised that it isn't you too that is doing that."
"Yeah..." Gerald agrees. "We wonder about that too."
Since the Academy was not that far from the dormitory itself, it didn't take them long for Nicol, Sophia, and Maria to get there. The carriage stops at the front and Nicol carries Katarina out of the carriage and on the way towards her room.
"Lord Nicol!" They heard the voice of Katarina's maid calling for them. They stop and look for the origin of the voice and they find it coming from the sky above them. There they saw Anne descending towards them with Silvers carrying her in his arms, gently stopping a foot in the air before hitting the ground. As they finally lands, Anne jumps away from Silvers and rushes to her mistress's side.
"Please follow me." She requested, but it's more of an order by its tone, though no one is complaining. She leads the group to Katarina's room. There, she takes her mistress from Nicol's arm and requests/orders everyone to wait in the living space. She then takes her mistress to the bedroom on her own and shuts the door.
It doesn't take long before Keith arrives.
"Where's my sister!?" Keith asked right away upon entering the room and not seeing her sibling with everyone. He was shortly followed by the royal twins and the marchioness.
"Miss Anne took her inside." Nicol points to the bedroom door.
Keith nods to him and moves his way towards the said room. The door, however, is being blocked by Silver's arm, which is currently standing beside the doorway. "Wha-"
"You wanna help Miss Sherry change your sister's clothes?" Silvers interrupts him before he can say anything.
Silver's words were so effective that the Claes heir quickly steps away from the door. "No, I- a... I didn't..." He stutters. His face went aflame upon realizing what he just tried to do.
"Oh my! Master Keith!" Mary commented.
"Have you not thought of why everyone is here waiting?" Gerald added.
Despite what the two had said, they were a little glad that Keith had arrived first as they may have done the same if they were in his place.
The newcomers take a seat for themselves except for the Claes's heir who is still standing and facing the corner, trying to hide his fluster.
Soon enough, they heard the bedroom door open with Anne stepping out of the room. "I've finished changing her, though I need to get more ice for the ice pack."
"Sure!" "I'll help" Both Alan and Mary stand to help.
"May I see the patient first?" Silvers asked.
"I...uh... sure." Anne acknowledges and leads Silvers into the room. Silvers beacons Maria to come too.
"Miss Campbell, if you may?"
"Of course!" She quickly stands and rushes in.
As for everyone else, they nod at each other and go into the room as well.
It's just been a little more than a week yet here they all are again, standing around Katarina who is currently sleeping in her bed.
"Could you at least not crowd her? She needs some space." Silvers complains and shakes his head. Everyone complies and steps away but they remain inside the room. Silvers proceeds to check her up. His glasses glow as he keenly stares at Katarina before going for the pulse on her hand. Then just like the last time, a screen appears on the side showing her silhouette and her vitals.
"I want to ask again, Has anyone noticed her using magic since the incident last week? In the school, in the field, or anywhere."
They all shake their head. One specific blonde starts to sweat profusely.
"Milady hasn't been going much to her field lately. She only checks them for a short while in the morning but she has not done anything magic-related." The maid added.
"I am seeing traces of prolonged magic activity in her. Her body is not accustomed to it, hence the fever." He turns away from Katarina and looks at them. "So let me ask again, has no one noticed her using magic, any magic at all?!" His voice brings pressure despite its calm tone.
"I-..I did." Maria admits, raising her shaking hands slowly and everyone turns on her.
"Kindly describe when and what magic you have seen her use, and pray to tell why you have to wait until the question was asked thrice before speaking up?"
Despite stutteringeveryfew words, Miss Campbell began to explain how she couldsee traces of black magic in people, and that there was a violet magic that had been surrounding Katarina often for a while now.
"And you just kept this to yourself?" Mary barks. "Lady Katarina could have been in danger the whole time and you decided to remain silent?"
The rest of the group shared the sentiment.
"I was scared!" Maria retorted.
"Of dark magic?" Mary replied.
"Of all of you!" Maria countered "Just recently when I tried to... c-confront Raphael about the same issue, I ended up being abducted for a couple of days. He was my very first friend here in the academy. The first one has not been harsh to me for being a commoner, instead has welcomed me and treated me fairly. It has never occurred to me that it was just a ruse.
S-since the incident, t-that violet magic has not left Katarina. What's more, every one of you has traces of dark magic on your person!"
Everyone's eyes widened in shock and few even let out a gasp, except for Silvers who just raised an eyebrow but acknowledged the blonde girl's outburst with a nod.
"How do I know that they would not do the same as Raphael when I came to them? How can I be sure that your smiles were nothing but just bait to make me lower my guard?
I can't tell to the teachers, I do not know what they would do to Lady Katarina, or what if they were involved as well. " She then turns specifically at Silver's and points her finger at him. "I thought that I could bring this up to you, but you are the most suspicious of all! This all just started to happen since you came! For all we know, you could have orchestrated the whole thing, harming and saving Lady Katarina so that you'd make yourself look like a hero to her and Miss Anne!
That is why I kept it to myself, I can'ttell it to anyone. So instead, I decided to just watch over her vigilantly until I figured out what to do. The magic doesn'tappear to be causing any harm to her before, only until now..." She finished explaining, retreated to her seat, and panted to catch back her breath.
The gang looks very offended but neither can deny that the light mage has a point, especially after everything that just happened.
"Fair enough," Silvers just shrugged in response. He then turns his attention back to the feverish lady on the bed and produces two strips of white leather from nowhere. It briefly glowed with his magic which turns its color to blue. He then puts one of them on Katarina's forehead in exchange for the makeshift icepack and gives the other to Anne. "That should work just like the icepack, if not better. It uses magic directly to cool so you do not have to worry about the drips when the ice melts. It will turn back to white once its magic is spent so replace it with the other one when it happens. The used strips can be re-used. Just wash and apply ice magic to them again." He instructs the maid for which she nods in acknowledgement. He then turns towards the fourth prince and his fiance who is still glaring at the lightmage. "Lady Hunt, Prince Alan, you both can do ice magic, right? Can I trust you to help Miss Sherry replenish the magic on those strips?"
"Yes! Of course!" Mary agreed instantly.
"Sure, we can do that." Followed by Alan.
"Thank you, your higness, Lady Hunt" Anne bowed and thanked the two.
"Miss Campbell, another question if I may." He turns his attention back to the light mage. "Since we're in a mood now of letting truths out. I want to know what happened during this incident... Specifically, to the souls possessing this friend that you mentioned."
"How do you-..." This time, it was Maria's turn to be surprised.
"I will explain afterward, for now, we must know what exactly happened, especially from your perspective since your magic should have shown you something more than anyone present." He extends his hand to her which she rejects. Instead, she stands up from her seat and hides behind her chair.
"Miss Maria, please! If there's something more we should have known, please tell us." Anne pleaded.
Keith and Gerald step forward to say what is on their mind too. Sensing that those would only be outbursts as well, Silvers sends them a side glare which freezes the two on their spots. They choke on their words before they can even state them.
"Your suspicion of us is valid and I'm not going to withhold you for that. However, you will be-" He looks at the gang and their faces and finds nothing but fierce expression "or perhaps already being held in similar regard. You just withhold critical information that could have put her in danger. Do you honestly think that you are the only one that truly cares about her?"
"No!, I-ah.. It ain't like that!"
"Scratch that, we're getting away from what's important. I'll let you guys and gals settle this on your leisure for later." He waves his hand to dismiss the question. "Miss Campbell, there's one last thing that I need before I can lay out our options to save Lady Claes here. So please, just answer the question..."
"... Sirius's mind was not transferred at all. Also for some reason I acquired dark magic, so I figured that I could use it for revenge..." Sirius stated his tale and motivation. "... So do you think yourself of such a saint? That you can save me like the others you called friends? That would stop my revenge just because of your pettywords?!"
The violent gust of dark magic dissipates, but Maria can see clearly that the magic from Sirius is erupting even further. But instead of blasting everyone, it was now focused around him, blazing like a dark fire. The sphere of magic around Katarina vanishes as well, instead, she is now covered by a translucent violet magic, protecting her from the Sirius flame.
"Sister!" Keith Yelled.
"I'll be fine," Katarina replied as she continued to walk closer to Sirius, who was starting to back away slowly as she got closer to him.
"I know I can't save you, I am no saint, nor that I am the heroine. " Katarina stated. A huge rock collapses from the cave's ceiling right above Katarina, but before it can even fall onto her, a violet whip-like tendril shoots up from the ground behind her and intercepts the rock, splitting it into two. Both of the rocks fall dangerously close beside her yet she doesn't either budge or shake. Just as that rock falls to the ground, the tendril simply returns to the shadow from which it came. "I'm just a villainess of this story, just like you. There is no way I could have saved anyone." Sirius trips and falls into the ground and Katarina stops right in front of him. "I can't save you from your suffering. It is too late for that. But..." She extends her hand to him "But I can stay by your side, just like what they did for me. I can stay by your side and hear you out when you are sad, hurt, or feeling alone, and stay with you until you become better. " She then knelt grabs his cheeks. "So you don't have to cry by yourself...Raphael."
"My...name..." Sirius finally drops the sword and slowly reaches for Katarina's hands that are holding his face. Tears started to leak from his eyes and the fire around them was extinguished.
For a while, the situation went calm. For a short while only, that is.
Dark magic erupted from Raphael once again in the form of black mist. "No! I remember everything now." He stands up and walks a few more steps backward, away from Katarina. "This is not what my mother wants! Her last words are not for me to avenge her!" He then swats the mist that's enveloping him "Just who are you?!" He shouts at the shadow.
"TRAITOR!" A mysterious voice erupted from the Shadows. From there, Maria notices a silhouette of a man floating in front of Sirius. She was surprised, but seeing only her expresses a reaction, she doubts that the others can perceive it as well and It seems the man was only visible to her and Sirius. "You could have taken all of them as hostage! You dare to step away now?"
"You're the one that killed my mother! You have been manipulating me all this time!"
"I am only helping you on your wish!"
"It was never about revenge! My wish...my mother's wish is for me to find happiness!"
"As if I would allow you, betrayer!" The phantom shouted in rage. He then points his hands at Sirius and Katarina who was then engulfed by a tornado of dark magic.
"It'll be alright." Maria hears Katarina's declaration sounding like a clear bell among all the chaos. A blinding violet light then erupts from the center of the tornado and this time, she was sure that everyone was seeing it as well. The dark wind dissipates as the violet magic softens and after a moment they then find Katarina sitting on a rock and kissing Sirius on the forehead who currently kneeling on the ground and embracing her by the waist. Gerald, Mary, and Keith immediately went after them. The rest join shortly after.
But not Maria. For her, the craziness has yet to end.
Hidden from everyone's eyes, the intruder who is standing from the sidelines forms a ball of dark magic and tries to attack Katarina and Sirius again. This, however, fails as well as another violet tendril emerges from Katarina's shadow and protects them, swatting the dark ball to nothingness.
He tries to prepare for another attack but his casting is interrupted by another tendril that was shot from the ground, piercing him cleanly through his chest. It then proceeds to coil around him before smashing him down to the wall and then to the floor. From there, more tendrils emerge and they all latch to every part of him. All of it then starts to drag him back from where they all came from, the faint shadow behind Katarina herself.
The scene appears to be exclusive to Maria as no one from the room appears to be noticing it.
"WHAT IS THIS?! THIS CANNOT BE! NOOOO-" The phantom turns to her. It howls and begs as it tries desperately to escape, clawing the ground with its remaining free hand only for it to be latched and bound by another tendril.
Soon enough, all of his struggles ended abruptly as he finally sank into nothingness.
The image in the holographic screen fades. Silvers let go of Maria's hand and the screen that has shown her memories vanishes. They just finished watching her recollection through a screen instead of simply being told which made everyone's eyes widen and has horrified look on their face. They cannot believe that such horror has occurred right close to them without them even noticing.
Silvers takes a single step back. A chair was conjured from nothingness behind him which he let himself fall onto. He then proceeds to pinch the bridge of his nose and massage his temples. "Not that I am surprised, but this is more complicated than I am hoping for." He stated with a sigh.
While the occasions where they get to interact with this stranger can easily be counted on the fingers of one hand, never they have seen him troubled. Silvers were mostly calm and often playful but always composed. Whether they would admit it or not, his words back when Katarina was cursed to sleep greatly contributed to keeping them away from despair. Seeing him with that expression, in addition to the horrific scenario they have witnessed from Maria's memory surely puts everyone on alarm.
Yet everyone remains silent and waits for him to explain.
Silvers has noticed everyone's restlessness, especially the lady he was courting.
He has to rectify that.
Straightening his back and regaining his composure, he claps his hands to get everyone's attention (Not that they are attention was on anything else but him at the moment, but more like to snap them out of their alarmed state.) "Before any of you overthinks, I will specify now that Lady Claes here is not in any mortal danger." He reassures them.
Some of them get to finally catch their breath.
"Your reaction shows otherwise." Gerald pointed. He is one of those few who are still on their nerves.
"Yes, my apologies for getting you on your toes. It's just... as I said, it's complicated." He reiterated.
"Please explain." Gerald pleads.
"Do I really have to spell it out?" Silves asked. He was met with a collective nod from everyone.
Silvers leaned back on his chair and took a deep breath. "Let's see.." The room was then encapsulated by darkness once more just like the last time. However, Maria became wary of the strange phenomenon that just happened. She was not with them the last time unlike everyone else who had already seen the room-sealing spell that Silvers just used.
Seeing that everyone barely pays attention to the sudden shift of the room's ambiance, she figures that there must be a reason for it which she will definitely find out later.
"...Point one. Lady Claes was able to not just tamper with a curse that should have put her to sleep for eternity but also break out of it on her own.
Point two. She was able to protect herself against Sirius's dark magic assault, albeit unknowingly which were both terrifying if not impressive. Those tendrils look like a concentrated form of her magic and she was able to manifest them, which I tell you, is not an easy thing. Not only that, what do you think has happened to that shadow thing that possessed that Raphael friend of yours? "
"He's not our friend!" mutters Mary, though they decide not to pay attention to her answer.
"It got dragged and absorbed in the darkness behind Lady Katarina," Sophia answered.
"I believe it was Lady Katarina's shadow." Nicol followed his sister.
"Not to scare you further but that phantom has just been, devoured by Lady Claes's magic." He then turns to the sole light mage in the room "Miss Campbell, why have you not used your light magic to cure Lady Claes's fever? "
"I tried, but she reacted badly when I did. It's like she was getting hurt badly even from the subtlest touch of my magic." She answered with a sorry tone.
"Are you sure it ain't just a fluke? How many times have you tried?"
"Only one!" She yelled softly as if raising her voice would prove her words better "I don't want to hurt her, so I am not risking it." She then sees him leaning forward to her and extends his hands towards her face. She closes her eyes waiting for a hit to come (like those that she saw him do to Katarina when her crush was being too pesky for him.) She was expecting a flick on the forehead at best or a chop on the head at worst, but instead, she then felt a nice sensation of her hair being ruffled.
"Smart!" She hears him praise her as she opens her eyes and he is indeed ruffling her hair. "I know not just a few light mages, that through excessive confidence, have made their patient's condition worse, believing that their magic could solve every ailment." shortly after, he withdraws his hand and retreats to his seat. "Should you have done the same, well... let's just all be glad that you didn't. Good girl." He praises her once more.
Getting praise for that felt odd to her, especially since what she did was a simple commonsense. Even so, she won't deny that she feels a little proud of hearing praise from him. She would still prefer if those come from Katarina though. Also, not only that she could still feel the warmth of his hands on her head but she could also sense that her hair was messed up by it. She starts to brush it up with her hands for an impromptu fix.
"Anyways, that is our point three." He raises three fingers "Any guesses where are this going to?"
"Sister..."
"Lady Katarina..."
"Katarina..."
"That cannot be it!" Keith opposed the unspoken conclusion "My sister has earth magic! She can't be a dark mage!"
"Lord Keith, let's say I threw this fireball at Prince Gerald here." He produced a small ball of fire the size of an egg. "or this frost ball to Prince Alan there," The ball that was previously made of fire solidified into a blue crystal and is now emitting a cold mist. "What do you think would happen?"
"They would depend on themselves?"
"How well do you think they will fare?"
"Very well, it's their magical elem-" He stops himself, finally getting the point.
"How would Lady Katarina have dark magic if she had earth magic? It's impossible for anyone to have more than one type of magic. " Maria pointed "I saw her using earth magic, even though she can only make a small earth bump."
"You saw me using two different magic elements just now and you are asking that?"
"But that's you! There is literally no one else, not even in any records of history that I've found in the school has any mention of any other people that can use multiple elements. " She added "And the magic you are using, there's no record of anything like it as well. It was way beyond what humans are capable of. I'm starting to think that you are not a human at all."
"Miss Campbell, dear, that is exactly why you are getting abducted." He warns her but he is also chuckling.
"You said to let truths out!" She countered.
"Aight! But let's save that topic for later." He reaches for her head to pet it again but she dodges this time. She just finished fixing it up... barely. "Still, you should really be wary of what you are saying. On the other hand, you have a fair point, just not the one we need right now. The dark magic is there and she used it to save and protect herself on multiple occasions. I believe that it is hers unless you could raise a better point."
"Could she be possessed like Raphael?" Mary then recalled Raphael's speech about how he had his dark magic. It was when he was possessed by theones who had performed the ritual on him.
"If you meant that you suspect that the shadow man may possess her, it's very unlikely. That phantom has been... well. Let's just say that it's already digested. Her magic has consumed the phantom and empowers its own. Whoever that man is, his soul is reduced to nothing now. There will not be even an afterlife for him." He chuckled darkly. "So, no. She's not possessed by that phantom that has possessed 'Raphael'. Unless..." He then leans close towards the Claes family heir, looking at him face to face. "Keith Claes, " His tone was serious and commanding. " has your family done anything like what happened to Raphael's?" Silvers forwards the inquiry to the Claes heir.
"Of course not!" He denied it, returning Silvers's gaze without flinching.
"Figures," Silvers retreated " besides. I would have noticed it right away if this were a case of possession. More the reason why I'm sure this dark magic is really hers."
The group went silent again. No one raises another idea since they basically knew nothing about dark magic. Hell, they didn't even know it existed until a week ago.
"So what are we going to do now? How are we going to help Milady?" Anne decides to enter the conversation and lead back to the most pressing matter.
"We have to deal with the fever first. The strips I gave you will just help with the symptoms, but I think I have a fix for this, at least temporarily." He leaves his seat and goes back to the side of the bed. "Miss Sherry, Prince Gerald, and to whom else that is a concern, my apologies in advance for the... intrusion." Before they can even ask, he puts his hands on Katarina's chest, a little below her neck.
Of course, they don't like what he just did. Gerald's and Keith's hands twitch as they want to stop and take his hand away from Katarina. Others just look at him furiously. The latter includes Anne.
As his hand glows in color matching his name, they see Katarina's body stiffen. She then opens her eyes and throws a punch at Siver's face.
"SEPHIROTH!"Katarina shouted.
Her fist made a whistling noise and moved at a speed that some of the eyes present weren't even able to see. The attack, however, was easily caught by Silvers's other hand, making a loud and heavy thud, or perhaps even a small thunderclap. There was even a small shockwave that came with it.
"I will defeat y-you..." Katarina said groggily. She passes out again afterward and sleeps like nothing has happened.
While the punch did not cause any harm to Silvers, it surely left a mark on everyone's mind, especially on a certain prince who was actively working to improve his chances with his fiance. It was a punch, not a girly slap and he barely saw her hands move. He instantly set a reminder for himself to be mindful of where to put his hands as he would not want to be on the receiving end of that punch. Would he be able to catch it like what Silvers did? That question would be included in those he does not want to know the answer to.
"What did you you just do?" Anne questions stoically to her apparent suitor who is currently touching a different girl (her own mistress, no less) inappropriately right at the very front of her.
"Suppressing her magic back to dormancy." He answered. Shortly enough, the light on his hand vanishes. In Maria's eyes, the same happens to the violet magic surrounding Katarina. He then withdraws his hands afterward once it is done. "That should revert it to at least what it used to be before this incident. She should be good by tomorrow morning, but keep an eye on her still, okay?"
Anne still has her eyebrows raised but nods at him nonetheless.
"That's it?" asked Alan "You could have done that earlier. Why are you hassling us for those questions?"
"First, I don't go around and touch someone's chest unless there's an absolute reason to. Second, it's not 'IT' yet. As I said, I just suppressed it, it's still there. This whole fiasco of her getting ill like this would surely happen again later unless this has been dealt with a permanent solution. "
"So what do we need to do?" Asked Nicol.
"I'd hate to ask you this but since you were the most leveled-headed upon everyone here, I needed you to take everyone out of the room except Lord Claes and Miss Sherry."
"But why?"
"I have to discuss with them about Lady Claes's health and state. I'm not sure how your physicians work, but such details are usually kept within the family."
"I'm her fiance! I should be informed as well."
"I'd consider that after you get married, now get out. All of you..."
"We are not LEAVING!" Mary insists, smashing her fan into her hand in anger. They all nod and agreement. Silvers roll his eyes.
"Lord Claes, you are the immediate family member present, what do you say?"
Keith looks at everyone who is also looking at him with dedication. "They can stay..." He approves. "The more of us know, the more of us can help." He explained. Silvers looked at Anne and she also nodded. Silvers just huffs at their answer
"Suit yourself then." He takes a deep breath and walks towards one of the sides of the room where he can see everyone. "Let's start with the diagnostic.
First, Miss Campbell, you are right about the violet magic you are seeing around her, it is indeed dark magic but you are also right that it isn't harming Lady Claes. In fact, it's quite the opposite.
When I first met Lady Claes, she told me that she only had pitiful earth magic, I highly doubt that she is lying about it hence I came to believe that she is simply not aware that she has dark magic at all.
Despite being dormant, her dark magic automatically activates on its own to protect her. That is why Raphael's curse didn't work well on her as her dark magic tampered with it for her liking. From Maria's recollection, it protected her from every harm during your excursion in that basement/cave hideout and whatnot.
However... " He raises a finger " It's also because of those that her dark magic finally woken up from dormancy and it is working in synch with her will which she is not even aware of. Now, before you say that it's not dark magic since it's not like that 'Raphael' guy uses, it is because her magic works way differently, especially since it appears that it's naturally hers, unlike 'Raphael' who got his dark magic through possession.
Also, dark magic is usually invisible to any of you except Lady Campbell here, unless in extreme cases like the ones you had faced.
Anyhow, she has been using her magic lately to enhance her traits. A good example of this is the punch she just threw at me a while ago. It was as strong as a kick of a mule. It's not humanly possible for a lady like her to do that regardless of how choices for hobbies. Hell, that punch was even stronger than the ones from some adventurers I know.
Oh! And perhaps this could be another example as well..." He snapped his finger and a screen then appeared in front of him showing an image of a bulletin board displaying the results of the exam and the ranking of the students. Of course, they see their name in the top ten list but what surprises them is seeing Katarina's name among them. She was even in a higher rank than some of them. "Miss Sherry told me that Lady Katarina slept way late last night studying for the exams. The traces of magic were mostly concentrated in her head so she probably used her magic to boost her intelligence... which she is not used to so a fever broke... " He concluded his denouement.
Anne is doing her best to prevent herself from doing a facepalm. The resounding sound of slaps in the room however meant that some of her mistress's friends already failed.
They moved out of Katarina's room upon Anne's request so that Katarina could be left alone to rest. Silvers was the last one to leave the room along with Anne, but as soon as he exited the bedroom and entered the living room, the darkness of the bedroom came along with him.
"Why is the room suddenly becoming dark?" Maria finally gets to ask.
"Right! You're not here the last time. Don't mind it dear, it's just a seal so that no one from the outside of this walls can peak or eavesdrop." Silvers quickly answered.
Once everyone is settled, Silvers proceeds right away to continue his speech. "Where was I?... Right! Legally, we have to inform the ministry right away. If I am an actual physician, I would be obligated to do so, but since I am not. I'm washing my hands clean of that responsibility." Silvers explains while specifically eying at the royal twin.
"Also, her parents must know about this, Have the duke and the duchess been informed of the last incident?" He turns to Anne and Keith.
"Not yet, I was supposed to inform them in the letter that I gave you to deliver" Anne replies.
"That won't be enough. This concerns her daughter's wellbeing, they'll surely want to be informed in person, rather than in a letter. It'll be better if one of you would come with me to explain the situation to them. "He then turns specifically to the maid"Miss Sherry?"
"I'm sorry but I have to stay beside Milady and take care of her." She expertly dodges the invitation with a proper excuse.
Silvers nods and turns towards the closest relative, Keith who instantly turns pale and tries to look around for help but they all avoid his gaze.
"Is it really that bad? Are your parents tyrants or something?"
"You don't understand, if Mother knows that sister gets involved in this, she will definitely chew us out! And that is just Mother, I can't even predict how Father would react about all of this. He is more lenient than Mother but he would definitely do something. At worst, they would pull Katarina out of the academy and have her homeschooled for the rest of her education. "
"Good, so itwon't be difficult to convince them to."
"WAIT!" Mary Interrupts "You will convince them to pull Lady Katarina out of school?"
"That would be too much. Wouldn't it? I would understand perhaps having more staff to keep a closer eye on her but that?" Followed Nicol.
"Sister will definitely won'tlike that!" Complained Keith.
"She won't or you guys won't?" Silvers countered. The group felt a lump in their throat and was unable to answer.
Fortunately for them, a certain maid steps in to answer for them.
"Sir Silvers, Milady is not the type to be secluded or contained. Despite all this trouble, I believe Master Keith is right, milady would not appreciate it if she had to leave the academy." Anne reasoned. "Though if I may ask, what does it have to do with the issue? If it's a matter of her safety, I'm sure we can make some improvements with ourselves to better take care of mistress."
"Yeah, but how about your safety?" He retorted "Yours, theirs... pretty much everyone around her."
"Why? If you are pertaining that my sister is athreat, I'm sure she would never harm anyone! Even with Dark Magic"
"Intentionally, you are right, Even I doubt that she would try to hurt anyone. However... " He turns to the sole light mage in the room. "Didn't Miss Campbell say that every one of you has a trace of dark magic in them?"
They reluctantly nod.
"Thank you." He turns back to Keith "Again, her magic activates passively even without her intention to do so. " He then looks at Gerald and Keith " Just recently, she used a draining spell on both of you and Prince Gerald... oh and Lord Ascart there as well..."
They then hear a gasp from the people that just mentioned.
'So that is why they have traces of Lady Katarina's dark magic on them! How could she have not noticed it right then?'She thought. Anyhow, now is a good time to flush the dark magic out of them.
"A draining spell?" Nicol Asked.
"It's more of a curse that allows her to siphon energy from those that she has cursed if they are nearby." He then turns to Anne. She too would have been affected if not for the glasses which have a passive effect that wards curses off. He keeps it to himself as he finds no reason to bring it up.
Gerald and Keith look upon each other, eyes wide in the realization of what they had suddenly collapsed on their knees back in the council room. They do wonder however why it didn't happen to Nicol or everyone else.
Nicol just nodded at Silvers's explanation.
"I doubt that she did it on purpose, but it happened nevertheless. Her magic is acting passively. Until she can actively control them, she is a hazard to everyone else."
"Didn't you say that you have turned her dark magic off when you touch her... uhh.." Alan stuttered at the last part. Silvers signals him not to say any further.
"Not 'turned off', its 'suppressed'. I put it back to dormancy but it could activate again, and when that happens. Who knows what kind of scenario we will find her in?"
"Since you can suppress it, it means it can be kept at bay. Is there some way to permanently stop it?" Sophia inquired "Do you have a Fuinjutsu or something?"
Silvers raised an eyebrow at the snow-haired Ascart. The group looked at her wondering what she just said well.
"I do and It's one of the options. The catch, however, was quite stiff "
"Wait!" Maria interrupts "What a Fyuind-yutsu in the first place?" Maria asked.
"It means 'sealing technique' or a spell for locking things away."
"So what does it need to lock her dark magic permanently?" Gerald prompts them to continue.
"First and foremost, it's safe, I promise you that she won't be harmed at all in the process. Unfortunately, ... her memories would be locked away as well. She would forget everything that has happened in the last eight to nine years if my estimates are correct."
The news has garnered bewildered reactions from everyone in the room. They all ponder about the stated repercussions of sealing Katarina's dark magic away. She would lose almost a decade of memories. Every experience, feeling, and moment they have shared with her would vanish to the point before she even knows any of them.
Maria could only imagine how bad is it for the other. Among everyone in the group, she alone has the least memory of Katarina as they have known each other for only several months as of now. Despite this, all of those moments were precious to hear regardless of how short they were. What more for everyone else who has about ten times more than her? It's true that it would even be the playing field for her if everyone's progress reset to zero, but unlike everyone here who is either a high nobility or even royalty, she is a commoner and it would be difficult for her to even approach Katarina, She also imagines a scene where she approaches Katarina but she does not recognize her. This terrifies her as well.
"You're right, we can't have that." Gerald is the first one to agree. "If that happens, I doubt she would still be the Katarina that we know."
"You think she would change?" Alan asked his twin.
"I'm afraid that she wouldn't." He answers solemnly "I know Katarina far longer than anyone among her-"
"" Anne interrupted, raising an eyebrow to the prince.
"Excluding Miss Anne, of course..." He corrects himself "When I first met Katarina, she was the typical spoiled noble child of her station. Harsh, opportunistic, I'm sure you know the picture. Then one day, she had an incident... I'm not exactly sure of what is what but it was after that is when Katarina started to become the one we know of. Those were eight years ago." The third prince explains.
Those who are not familiar with the story look at Anne which she nodded in response for confirmation.
"If Katarina loses her memories from to last nine years, I'm afraid that she won't be 'Katarina' anymore."
They all silently agree.
"Sir Silvers, let's cut to the chase." Gerald took a deep breath to get himself together." What exactly are our options?" He asks. As much as he hates to admit it. It's Silvers here that holds all the cards that are available to them. He remembers Maria's outburst from earlier which she suspected was all orchestrated by the masked companion which he neither confirms nor denies. Gerald swears that he will look into it later even if he has to do it himself. (Even now, his agents are unable to find anything more about their new 'friend' and they have already digging for months) and he would do everything in his power to make him suffer if their assumptions about him were true. But for now, they don't have anything but Silvers.
"First, and most obvious is the bring her to the ministry. It is a law actually, and harboring a dark mage from the ministry is an act of treason. It's quite ironic that we have two royalties here who were actually aboard and already doing it. You two know that this could worsen your chance of the throne?"
The royal twins nod silently.
"I'm afraid to ask but would it really be that bad if the Ministry would know about Lady Katarina? I know the ministry would take custody of her like Sir Raphael's but how bad exactly is it?" Ask Maria.
Silvers is about to answer but he is overtaken by Gerald. "Very Bad... When I learned about dark magic's existence, I tried to do some digging about it. The information about them was well hidden but I learned that this country extremely despises Dark Mages. Even though the details were not revealed to the public, most of those who have relatively high positions were aware of it. It is also among the responsibilities of the crown to completely neutralize or subjugate any and all dark mages."
"But... Duke Claes is a very powerful duke, surely the ministry cannot do that Lady Katarina?"
"The ministry is under the total control of the crown. Regardless of who her parents are, they would be obligated to surrender Katarina to the ministry. The pressure is even more severe for them as they may also lose their title. The royalty would also be in the same predicament." Gerald added.
"More or less a century ago, a princess was also discovered to have dark magic. She spent her life locked in one of the ministry's rooms shackled with anti-magic cuffs. Then one day, she just vanishes. The ministry says that she escaped but there were also rumors that it was just a cover-up and the princess actually committed suicide. Whichever is true, the fact is that she was never found again." Silvers shared a short tale.
The ladies were horrified while the men cursed silently.
"What's the other option?"
"I'll teach her how to properly control her magic. Plain in simple." He even gave them a thumbs-up. "If she can master her magic, she can then hide it properly and continue to live like a normal citizen. There are still risks of course, but it's way less than just letting her on her own.
Unfortunately, it's not something we can do here in the capital. If so, we might as well bring her to the ministry ourselves. Also, the training would not be a typical one. Once we start, she is to be kept away from everyone, especially those who cannot protect themselves from dark magic, at least until she masters the basics. That is why I am in favor of taking her out of this school. I only hope that her parents would get along with the idea though." Silvers concluded.
"Sir Silvers...Do we have to...choose now?" Anne approaches Silvers and hands him a cup of tea. She also gives everyone else the room but none of them has ever touched their drink. They had been holed in this room since afternoon and it was already quite dark outside yet everyone was still here, pondering what to do.
"Not necessarily..." He accepts the cup and thanks her for the tea. "Especially, since we've yet to know Lady Claes's stand on this."
"La-lady Claes... You meant Milady?"
"Yes!" He confirms "It's her magic and her life so it's only fair that she gets to decide how to go with it... right?"