The next morning, Lucy woke from sleep to the sound of Elrian's crying. Elrian was lying with his head on Lucy's table. Lucy slowly got up and shook him awake. The exhaustion from crying was visible in his eyes; she gripped his hand tightly.
"Look at my face, Elrian. The one and only word Mother told us with her last breath was 'do not cry.' We must keep that. I will take revenge on the one who killed Mother that is the promise I give. Promise me you will never cry for Mother again, Elrian."
He wiped away his tears with his hand and then gave his sister his promise.
They both washed their faces and went down the stairs. When their mother was there, her voice used to fill the whole house. Now it was empty. Although Lucy did not show her sorrow outwardly, it was swelling strongly within her heart. Since their mother was not there, they themselves had to prepare the food. Noticing that the water had run out, Lucy took Elrian along and went to the market.
Because it had not rained there for years, everyone had to go to a certain building to obtain clean water. From there, pure water was supplied to all the houses through a pipeline. The owner of that company carried an anima code marked with the symbol of "Charybdis". The legends said that this creature could produce pure water through its own body. Therefore, the one who bore that symbol was the owner of the company. He alone possessed such a supernatural energy. Thus, he began selling water for money. Through it, he was earning a great fortune. Since he was the owner of a large company, he even changed his old name to Taron. According to the law of the Luminous Isle, only the king had the authority to keep workers. Therefore, he managed that vast company all by himself. When Lucy reached there, she used Elrian's money to buy clean water, because she had given her own money yesterday to her neighbor, the grandmother.
If they paid ten coins, water would be delivered to their house for an entire month. Taron kept his company open from six in the morning until ten. After that, he too had to go work at the palace.Lucy and Elrian had supplied their home with water for a month and then went to the market to buy food supplies. According to the law of the Luminous Isle, all the shops had to close by ten in the morning. It was a rule established after the king had conquered the island. From there, they bought a little rice and returned home.
Lucy's mother had never used the anima code for cooking. She always believed that food would taste better only when made by her own hands. But Lucy, not knowing much about cooking, had to rely on the anima code to prepare the meal. The two of them sat at the table. Though they were not hungry, they still drank a little porridge, for if they skipped eating, there was the risk of collapsing during work. Once they ate in the morning, the next chance to eat would not come until night.
Using supernatural energy, Elrian awakened the watch. It stuck out its tongue and spoke.
"Time: 9:50 AM."
As soon as they heard the time, they washed their hands, opened the main door, and went outside. They began to praise the light. From the palace, as usual, the siren echoed. In a large golden vessel, the food for the king was also taken. It was the body of Daisy, who had died yesterday. Her boiled flesh was the king's food.
Unable to bear the sight of it, Lucy and Elrian walked at the very back. Neither of them had any desire to go to work that day. Yet there was no such thing as a holiday for them.
They reached the great gate. At its center, the enormous eye examined them. Only after that did the Celestial Gate slowly begin to open.
Through that great path they walked toward the palace. The food that was brought was carried by two or three people and placed near the palace gate. Beyond that, no one was allowed to enter. Because of that, they ran to the side of the others. The palace gate opened with a great sound. A black wave surrounded that golden vessel. In the very next moment, it rose into the air and was pulled inside. As soon as the food reached inside, the palace gate closed with ten times the sound. Except on the day of battle, not even once had they been able to see the king. Everyone began to do the work that was given to them. The job of cleaning the path in front of the palace was the work Lucy received. Since it was a big task, she was not doing it alone. Elrian was in the work of cutting and cleaning the garden. Even if the garden was cleaned today, by the very next day it would grow like a forest that was the peculiarity of that garden.
They worked until five in the evening. Then, after receiving that day's wage, they traveled back to the village. At night also, it was porridge that Lucy and Elrian ate. After putting Elrian to sleep, Lucy went outside the house without him knowing. She spread light on the path she walked using her anima code. Light is a common energy present in every anima code. Because of that, everyone had the ability to create light. But in the light, the uniqueness of their anima code could be seen. For example, the light of Daisy, who had died, was the color of fire. The light of the grandmother their neighbor, was deep red in color. Lucy's was a mixture of violet and yellow.
It was to the grandmother's house that she went. In her hand, she had that day's wage. She knocked on the door, and as if waiting for her, the grandmother opened it at once. After giving the coins in her hand to the grandmother, Lucy entered inside. Telling her to sit, the grandmother went to the kitchen. After five minutes, she came back to Lucy with coffee in a vessel. The coffee was in a cup made of wood. All the things there were made of wood. Everything made of gold was only in the palace.
There were two cups of coffee in the vessel. Lucy took one, and with her own cup, the grandmother sat down on a chair. Because it was hot, Lucy blew on it gently before taking a sip.
While drinking, Lucy asked her,
"Grandmother… will you at least tell me your name now?"
"I have told you before,Call me whatever you wish. I believe a name itself holds no great meaning."
The grandmother had no intention of revealing her name. So Lucy did not press her any further.
After finishing her coffee, Lucy placed the cup back on the table. Since the grandmother could not easily stand, she set her own cup down on the floor.
"Alright then… teach me the things you know." Lucy spoke after releasing a long breath.
Her left eye was completely white.
"The first thing I am going to teach you,
is how to lift an object without letting your supernatural energy be seen."the grandmother said.
"How is that even possible?" Lucy asked, her voice filled with doubt.
"This is something very few people know. You will understand once you learn. Now, use your anima code to lift this cup."
Hearing this, Lucy gathered supernatural energy into her hands. Slowly, she transferred it into the glass. In an instant, the glass began to rise into the air. Around the cup, the ring of supernatural energy could clearly be seen.
"Now, let it go."
The moment she said that, Lucy stopped channeling energy into the cup. Immediately, the cup dropped to the ground. Since it was made of wood, it did not break.
"Now you've seen it yourself. Next time you lift the cup, your supernatural energy must not leak out of it. That is what you must do and I will tell you how. For that, you must separate your body and your soul into two. Do you understand what I am saying?"
"A little…" Lucy replied. But truthfully, she had understood nothing at all. The grandmother realized it instantly.
"That means your soul-body must always stay one step ahead of your physical body. To do this, you only need to meditate upon your soul-body. Continue with the breathing process, and fill your mind entirely with the thought of your soul. Then, when you lift the cup, no supernatural energy will be seen. Because it will not be you doing it it will be your soul-body.
How long it will take you to succeed on your first attempt, I cannot say. When I mastered it, it took me two weeks. But once you obtain this power, you can use it whenever you wish. If you gain it, even a single leaf can become a powerful weapon in your hands. With any object, you could even strike the king himself.
Now let me tell you the other advantages. When you attack using your anima code, the king senses the scent of your supernatural energy and blocks the strike. The aura of supernatural energy always travels through the air. But if you master this, your energy will never reach the air, and he will not be able to sense it. Then, you will be able to attack the king with ease."
Having said this, she lifted the wooden cup she had set down earlier and began to drink her tea.
"Why does he not know about that power? Why did the other gods never grant it to him? I want to know its history. Can you explain it to me?"
After drinking her tea, she placed the cup back down.
"Oh, so you wish to know its history as well? I can tell you that too… but for that, you will have to give me one more coin."
"Alright, I'll give it."
Lucy realized that the grandmother had a strong grip on the coin. She wondered what the reason for that could be. The money for living for the next two months was already in the grandmother's hands. Lucy understood that if she asked a person who did not even wish to reveal her own name for a favor, she would never receive an answer. Therefore, Lucy did not insist on it.
Grandmother began to tell its history.
"This power is known only to our god, the Great Light.
It was our god, the Light itself, who discovered this power and kept it a secret.
The Great Light had already realized that the other gods would deceive him.
That is why, even in the battle with that king, the Great Light never used this power.
For the Great Light knew that if that king were to obtain this power, we would never be able to free our god.
Therefore, this power remained known only by a secret name: 'The Mystic Power.'
Some here know about this power, but none ever dared to use it in the battle against that king.
Everyone feared that he too would come to understand it.
From the very beginning, history had written that a child named Angel would be born to defeat him.
Later, it was known as just a story.
Thus, generations passed.
In some families, the heirs did not pass it down.
Yet in others, this secret was carried on for generations.
Today, only a very few among the people of this island know of this secret.
Your family is among them.
When Daisy learned that your name was Angel, she changed it to Lucy only to hide it from others.
Because if they came to know, the news would somehow reach the ears of the king."
Slowly, grandmother stood up.
"You are the Angel. That means it's you who must wield this power in the battle against the King. Some among us even believe that he fights with one of us only to discover the mystic power.I will tell you that this is the second reason why he engages in such battles. How much of it is true, I do not know," Grandma concluded her words.
"What is it that you are going to teach me now?"
"There's nothing else for me to teach. Only this one thing exists," she said with a faint smile. Lucy was suddenly filled with astonishment.
"This… is all there is"
"Yes… now give me the payment for teaching you."
After a brief silence, Lucy took out four coins from Elrian's pouch and handed them over. One coin was the fee for telling that piece of history.
She accepted it and slipped it into her pocket.
"Now, you must train as I have told you. One day, you will master that power." Saying this, the grandmother stroked her head with her wrinkled hand. This time, it was not for money. Her touch carried affection.
She thanked her grandmother and returned to her home.
To be continued....