Back in Demacia Capital, Lux's life seemed to return to normal.
After a quiet and low-key New Year, Crownguard Manor became lively again—shortly after Lux returned, Tiana also finished her war preparations in the north and returned to Demacia Capital.
Participating in noble activities, practicing art with Sona, exercising on time every day, preparing Petricite circuits for simulated training…
In addition to these daily routines, she also added an extra activity.
Visiting The Forbidden Magic Prison.
More precisely, going to chat with Ino.
For ordinary people, The Forbidden Magic Prison is a forbidden area, absolutely not allowed and impossible to enter.
But for Lux, entering The Forbidden Magic Prison was not much harder than going home—as the little princess of the Crownguard Family, whose uncle was also the current leader of the Demon Searcher, no one would be foolish enough to stand in her way if Lux wanted to enter The Forbidden Magic Prison.
Aside from changing into a Demon Searcher's blue robe, Lux needed no other preparations.
The Demon Searcher guarding The Forbidden Magic Prison were tight-lipped enough; no matter how curious they were, every time Lux arrived, they would silently open the door to the prison and then quietly stand guard outside.
As long as Lux's safety was guaranteed, nothing else mattered.
...
According to Demacian law, Ino was considered a person who "caused damage under duress," and considering that Ino was still a minor when everything happened, the Demon Searcher court ultimately sentenced her to ten years in prison.
That is to say, Ino would serve ten years in The Forbidden Magic Prison, and after her sentence, she would be escorted by the Demon Searcher and exiled beyond Demacia's borders.
However, because The Forbidden Magic Prison is almost entirely built of Petricite, mages here are constantly having their magic absorbed, and most people simply cannot last ten years.
And those who can last ten years… even by Klein's standards, are considered to have "a bit of talent."
Because being able to last ten years means both abundant magic and considerable control over magic, and the combination of these two is a necessary condition for becoming a powerful mage.
It is precisely because of The Forbidden Magic Prison's astonishing suppressive power over mages that Lux often comes to see Ino—in her opinion, this can help her get through this difficult period.
Speaking of which, Ino is a very clever girl; she had already learned simple reading and writing while working as a maid at Kodora's house, so Lux simply continued to teach her characters while bringing her some books to read.
Although Lux cannot rescue her now, she can at least ensure that her spirit is not also confined by the prison.
Ino, on the other hand, completely regarded Lux as the light of her life—she would confide all her insights from reading, cherish every visit from Lux, and even tremble with excitement every time Lux held her hand through the bars.
And all of this was observed by a pair of eyes in the adjacent cell.
...
On this day, Ino had just finished reading a passage of an epic by the dim sunlight, and as soon as she put the book down, a low voice came from the cell next to hers.
"That book… could you lend it to me?"
Ino was startled.
Although she had long known there was someone in the cell next door, that person was unlike Ino, who was specially cared for by Lux; he had been wearing heavy Petricite chains from the very beginning, making a clanging sound with every slight movement.
As for himself, he appeared listless all day long; even when the guards brought food, he would just chew silently, and after eating, quietly put everything away, never uttering a word from beginning to end.
At first, Ino even tried chatting with him—this was a place for "juvenile offenders," and although the other person didn't seem to be a minor, Ino felt they might have some common ground.
Moreover, Ino was genuinely bored when Lux wasn't around, so chatting with someone was always a good thing.
But unfortunately, the other person seemed to be mute—or perhaps simply unwilling to speak; no matter what Ino said, he remained like a zombie, showing no reaction whatsoever.
She didn't expect him to speak first this time!
Ino looked up at him with some surprise.
And almost as Ino looked up, the other person also moved closer to the edge of the cell, looking at Ino with longing.
"Please, little girl," he said somewhat indistinctly in Demacian with an eastern accent, "Let me read it…"
Ino blinked.
For her, everyone incarcerated in The Forbidden Magic Prison were fellow sufferers, so she was very willing to help.
However… this book was Lux's after all.
And Lux bringing books into The Forbidden Magic Prison, if one were to be strict, was also a violation.
Ino didn't want to cause trouble for Lux—so, after a moment of hesitation, she sat down on the edge of her cell.
"I'm sorry, Mr.… Sir," Ino unconsciously mimicked Lux, maintaining her manners, "This book belongs to Miss Lux—if I were to lend it to you, I would need her approval."
"…"
"But we can chat now." Perhaps feeling that such a refusal was a bit heartless, she blinked and added, "Don't worry, she'll be back tomorrow or the day after. Miss Lux is very kind and will definitely agree."
The other person seemed very satisfied with this answer; he let out a long breath, then tried hard to express his gratitude: "That's truly very kind—I've been here for ten years, and the emptiness and pain are driving me mad!"
"Ten years already?" Ino blinked in surprise, "So, you should be getting out soon, right?—This is a detention center for minors, and most minors with magic-related sentences don't exceed ten years!"
"Unfortunately, I have a life sentence." The other person shrugged, causing the Petricite chains on his wrists to clatter, "I'm afraid I'll have to spend many more decades in this dark place."
"Life sentence!" Ino was dumbfounded, "My goodness, what did you do?!"
"My name is Sylas." The other person sighed, putting on a helpless expression, "Perhaps you've heard my name before—a magic outburst killed three people, and although it wasn't my intention, it still earned me a life sentence."
Ino was silent.
The name Sylas… she had indeed heard it before.
However, she had heard it from bards.
And how unreliable the bards of Silvermere were, one only needed to look at the stories they sang about Lux to know.
In the stories they told, Sylas was supposed to be an evil and powerful fellow who killed three people at once, including elite Demon Searcher, then colluded with the abominable Noxus, and almost escaped abroad.
While mages killing people were rare in Demacia, there were always a few such incidents each year.
But a mage killing a Demon Searcher, that was truly rare.
For Demacia, the Sylas case was undoubtedly the most sensational and shocking major case in the past decade.
At this moment, Ino wanted to retreat, wanted to distance herself from this person.
Even though she was also a mage, in her opinion, this guy in front of her was still a bit too dangerous.
Compared to such a murderer, Ino suddenly felt that her own act of freezing a patch of farmland was completely insignificant!
"Don't be so nervous." As if sensing Ino's emotions, Sylas gently shook his head, "I told you, it wasn't my intention—magic isn't that easy to control, causing such a tragedy, it was all an accident!"
"…"
Ino didn't speak—but from her eyes, Sylas saw a complete lack of trust.
"Alright, alright, stay away from me." Sylas waved his hand dismissively, "If possible, could you listen to my story? Just consider it a charitable act; I really haven't spoken to anyone in a long time."
And Ino didn't stand on ceremony; she stood up and walked several steps back, until she leaned against the edge of her own cell, then nodded.
"Then, begin your story—Mr. Sylas."