The masked man gently opened the book. His lips moved rapidly, no sound coming out, yet there was an inexplicable rhythm to it. Daina felt dizzy, nauseated, and weak in all four limbs.
Seeing Daina completely powerless, the masked man closed the book and tossed it directly onto her. He drew a short sword and held it upright before him. Golden-orange flames actually rose from the blade.
A heatwave washed over her, and Daina found it difficult to breathe. She tried to cry for help, only to discover that her body had already gone numb. She could not even move her lips. Despair filled her heart, and two clear tears ran from the corners of her eyes.
Perhaps this had gone a little too far. Watching Daina cry, Ace felt a faint pang of regret.
But with the arrow on the string, it had to be loosed.
He pointed the burning short sword at Daina and said, "Today, the pioneer of the path of magic shall make a pact with the person before him!"
The surroundings abruptly darkened. Daina watched unknown, mysterious patterns appear on the ground, tinged with chilling blood-red light. They wound around her and the masked man, forming two blood-red seats.
Once they were seated face-to-face, golden light burst from the two blood-red seats. A pure golden scale appeared between them.
"I shall make a covenant with Daina, with the mental power and blood of both parties as the basis."
Daina suddenly felt as if she had been struck heavily. Her head throbbed as though it were splitting apart. A sharp wind blade sliced across her wrist, spraying blood. The wind carried her blood, not a single drop missed, into the pan of the scale closest to her.
Enduring the pain, Daina stared at the pan. Besides