Sercy stood unmoving as she listened to Niayd's steady breathing that deepened, a sign that he fell asleep.

She double-checked his consciousness then put a seal on his mind that prevented him from waking up unless she released it.

Ever since the moment she laid her eyes on him, something kept bugging her. There was something different about him that seemed extremely familiar to her, but she could not put her finger on it. He even smelled appealing to her. Stooping in front of him she felt his pulse, then started to examine his face then neck. She sniffed him trying to figure out why he smelled so good to her but she had no idea. A puzzled look overcame her face as she sat next to him deep in thought. Removing the knife from her hair, she used it to prick his finger sniffing at the blood that drained from it.

~His blood is not normal, definitely not human. He is only at the Qi condensation realm in cultivation. Yet his mind was so strong that he resisted being knocked out by Count. What is he?~Sercy sat next to him staring at his face, a confused but curious look in her eyes. 

She took his pricked finger then sucked on the blood.

Niyad's breath hitched and Sercy froze in horror. She dropped his finger as if it had burned her then moved away in a flash. "Why do you pretend to sleep?"

"I was asleep, then you kept touching me all over, I imagined it would've been embarrassing for both of us if I were to wake up while you were doing that."

Sercy glared at him, annoyance evident in her eyes. "You vermin, when did I touch you all over? What are you?"

Niyad stared at her, a confused look on his face. "Human?" He said almost as if he were curious too.

"Bullshit." 

"I think so too, but that's what my mom said so I just accept it." Niyad said with a light shrug.

"So you also don't know what you are. But you suspect you're not human?"

Niyad paused a bit. His mother had warned him countless times not to give voice to his suspicions. 

"Yes. I realized I was different from a very young age. I was stronger, I looked different, I healed quickly. But my mother denied all my claims and told me never to suggest that I'm different in front of anyone because it's never good to be the subject of one's curiosity."

~The truth.~

Sercy nodded in acceptance. Niyad's finger that was pricked had already healed but he rested it in an awkward position as if scornful.

Sercy's eyes drifted to it for a moment then she awkwardly cleared her throat. "Your blood doesn't taste nor smell human so I assure you that you're not."

Niyad nodded in acknowledgment before his eyes turned into orbs.

"Why do you know how human blood tastes?"

"Why are you so brazen to think you can ask me any question you please?"

Niyad paused briefly before replying, "If you wanted to kill me, you would have much sooner."

"I'm known to spontaneously kill people at times. Depending on my mood." Sercy tilted her head to the left doing her best impersonation of Count. A creepy smile tugged at the corner of her lips but then she realized he wouldn't be able to see it because of her veil.

"Fine, I won't ask you anything else," Niyad said. He wasn't scared of her but he wouldn't push his luck.

"How old are you kid?" Sercy asked.

Niyad's lip twitched a bit, as he fought to not show his annoyance. ~You can ask questions but I can't?~

"17."

~A lie~

"You've been honest all along but why did you suddenly decide to lie about your age?"

Niyad's eyes sharpened a bit when she said this. 

"You're able to tell if I'm lying?" 

"Yes, and I'm fond of honesty, that could be one reason you're not dead yet."

"I'm 15."

Sercy nodded in thought, her eyes examining his body once more. He looks way older than he is and he's way beyond his years in mental maturity. 

"Your mother mentioned that you had no talent in cultivation. What are some of the issues you face when trying to cultivate?"

"M-My mother!? You know my mother?" 

"Yes, she said you were stupid and that I should please bring you home."

Niyad ignored the obvious insult and nodded profusely as if in relief. "She's alright then! I was worried that she'd try to enter the forest to rescue me. Haha!" He laughed and his body visibly relaxed. 

"If you were worried why didn't you ask me to help you find her?"

"As you said before, as a captive I'm not in the place to ask questions. Especially personal favors."

Sercy stared at the boy in front of her. She was a bit confused about his character.

Suddenly remembering Sercy's question Niyad continued. "Oh yes, about cultivation, whenever I try to guide Qi through my veins, I follow the directions in the Qi condensation manuals I've seen, but I can't help feeling that at certain points I'm guiding the Qi out of my veins and into my blood which then causes a serious backlash."

Sercy nodded in response. 

The screams that once flooded the Forest died down a few minutes ago which made the silence a bit eerie. Normally a bit of blood would draw beasts from their nests and cause them to run rampant but none were moving about and that made Niyad feel weird. He wanted to ask why but he decided against doing so. 

Sercy broke the silence, "Do you know your way back to the village?" 

Niyad nodded in response. 

-"Go on back, your mother is worried."

"You said you were hired by Blenheim, aren't you coming back to the village as well?" 

Sercy turned to face him. "I came here to pay back what Blenheim owed. I'm not done until some heads from the South Kingdom roll." 

When she said this, Count appeared next to her. He gave Niyad a mischievous wink over Sercy's shoulder then waved his arm. Space began to twist then both of them disappeared. 

Niyad sat there in a daze.

~Teleportation? Doesn't this mean that they're above the Tyrant realm in cultivation level!? 

Just who are they?~