Shadow and Dark

( After the Battle. )

Draven uses his <Shadow Transport> to go into the highest tower he could find near the place, walking in there as he sighs hard.

" Guess ya've been waiting. " Draven says as from the Darkness, Tenebrae comes out, showing himself upon Draven.

" Have ya waited long, sorry If I'm late? " Draven asks Tenebrae as the man walks to him.

" No, you're not that late. "

" I also had just come here too, you know. "

" Donovan. " Tenebrae says to Draven which made the Black Shadows in the [Shadow Realm] get chaotic upon hearing the word come out from Tenebrae's mouth.

< [Black Shadow Elite I, Tania] panicked after hearing Tenebrae calling the User with the User's real name. >

"( Well it's not that 'real', Tania. )"

< [Black Shadow Elite II, Doom] requests to be summoned and hit Tenebrae right here, right now. >

< [Black Shadow Elite IV, Reala] requests to be summoned and shoot her stars onto Tenebrae's body. >

As the Black Shadows request things from Draven, Draven decides to make them wait as he takes a deep breath and just looks at Tenebrae straight.

" So you knew? " Draven says as he changes his way of speaking.

" Now, that sounds a lot more like 'Donovan', Draven. " Tenebrae says as he hears Draven speaking like 'Donovan' again, like the last time he sees him in the Prodigal Academy.

" You try to speak informally so bad, even I couldn't stand how corny or forced or stupid it was sometimes. "

" Besides that, yes, I knew who you were behind that vigilante cosplay, so please... "

" Don't act tough over me, just act normally like you do. "

" I won't tell Duncan and Irina after all, let them find out by themselves. " Tenebrae tells Draven as he responds with a sigh.

" *sigh* Whatever you say, Mr. " Donovan says this to Tenebrae.

" If you tell them, I'll guarantee they'll be pissed, but still... "

" I believe they will never expose it to the public. " Donovan tells Tenebrae which made him smirk.

" Indeed they won't, they don't have the balls to even betray you, even if you were just their 'adopted son'. " Tenebrae responds while rubbing his chin.

" Especially Duncan, he must've seen a lot of himself in you. "

" Just like what 'Black Merchant' told me. "

" 'Black Merchant'!? " Donovan asks as he hears Tenebrae mentions him.

" What? You met him back in Alviheim, didn't you? " Tenebrae asks as he bluntly reveals his acquaintanceship with the person.

" I'm also one of his Constant Customers, Donovan. "

" Including your father too. "

" I see, I already know from him about this so... "

" Yes, Just like you and me, Duncan often buys something from him, I just recently knew from Black Merchant in recent years about it, realizing it so late that I and my arch-nemesis had the same item supplier. " Tenebrae sighs.

" That Black Merchant, able to keep the secrets even I had a hard time figuring it out until he tell me himself. " Tenebrae says it which made Donovan surprised.

"( Yeah, I'm surprised myself when hearing this, did dad know about it too? )" he wonders about this, for it would be funny if his dad and Tenebrae suddenly meet each other when they're going to meet Black Merchant somehow, that would be an interesting encounter.

" Guess Black Merchant had his own secrets, huh? " Donovan asks Tenebrae and Tenebrae shows him his shrug gesture.

" Well, we could only theorize about that. "

" For now... "

" We're going to talk about how did you free Gidhra from her prison, right? " Donovan quickly asks the topic.

" Yes... "

" About that... " Tenebrae thinks for a moment.

" Let's just say, I only participate in her escape as I put the 'Dark Core' within her... " Tenebrae explains it.

" The rest of her escape is on her, I had no control over that since you know... "

" The Witch is simply too wild to even manipulate. "

" Even I had to distance myself as I take the risk of inserting that Core upon that ravageous beast. "

" She was, quite an interesting Test Subject after all..., so sad she's a loose cannon, unlike the Forest Elf Queen, Faelivrin. " Tenebrae explains.

" Forest Elf Queen, huh? " Donovan remembers when he killed her back in Alvitor Prison, he did that to save his parents no matter what.

" I can't tell if I should be sorry about that, but the ones I cared about are in danger at that moment, so I prioritized their lives over hers. " Donovan says without any regret, for he thinks Faelivrin is simply too dangerous to let live as he fears she might kill his parents.

" Well, can't argue with that either. " Tenebrae says to Donovan, realizing Donovan might not know the thing between the Forest Elf Queen and his mother's family.

" We both had our priorities, right? "

" You, prioritizing your academic and magic life, maintaining your family's safety as well guarding everyone from the shadows. "

" While I scheme everything in the deepest darkness of this very Country and bring havoc once more. "

" For that is my purpose as a Nyx Nocterra. " Tenebrae tells Donovan Donovan replied with a 'meh' expression, within his mind, he could only think of one thing.

"( System, I don't know if what I see now is like a long-ass Cinematic Cutscene or what... )"

"( But do you have a 'skip' button if there's any? )" Donovan asks because he couldn't take it anymore of Tenebrae's lecture, he thinks Tenebrae might've dragged his words on purpose.

"( He must've dragged this too long for a reason, there's no way a villainous person like him would just blatantly reveal his true plan to others, only dumb villains do that. )" Donovan thinks in his mind, meanwhile.

"( Why are you looking at me like that, do my plans bored you already? )"

"( This is just the start, I'm only giving you the tip of its iceberg... )"

"( Guess not everyone could understand or even listen to it properly, then... )"

"( Guess I better cramp it up. )"

" So basically, Donovan. "

" After this, I warn you. "

" You better hope you and your shadows do not end up meeting me and my people again. "

" For the next time we met, I wouldn't be so kind as now anymore, things are currently progressing too much for me. "

" Yeah, you too... " Donovan replied to him as Tenebrae turns his body around and walks.

" You better hope my shadows don't sniff your presence around me and my close acquaintances..., Tenebrae. "

" Or else we will storm you the full might of the Black Shadows. " Donovan threatens Tenebrae back which made him smirk.

" Oh my, you really getting the 'Duncan' part, each time I see you. " Tenebrae says as he somehow sees Duncan inside Donovan right now.

" Huh!? " Donovan asks.

" You may not have his blood, but I could tell you have his guts. "

" Guess this must've been the reason he adopted you in the first place, isn't it, 'Child From the Dungeon'? " Tenebrae asks Donovan replied with silence.

" Confused? " Tenebrae asks Donovan again.

" Fine, then let me give you a clue... "

" About your father... "

" *sigh* "

" Before he met your mother just like the ones in his biography he always told you about. "

" Your father once belongs in the Dungeons, just like you. " Tenebrae tells Donovan which surprises him to no end.

" What!? " Donovan was surprised to hear it.

" That's the truth, Donovan. "

" You better ask Black Merchant about that when you meet him if you want to ask about anything out of the ordinary, he knows. " Tenebrae waves his hand while walking into the darkness and disappear, just like that.

" Black Merchant? " Donovan asks as he then remembers the person he met back in Alviheim.

...

( At the same time. )

Just meters away from Donovan's place, the Black Merchant sees the whole thing with his binoculars and sighs.

" Tenebrae, you really couldn't hold that goddamn mouth, can't you? " Black Merchant asks himself while still watching over Donovan who is contemplating what he was informed earlier.

" There's no way... " Donovan says to himself.

" Dad came from the Dungeons too? it can't be? " Donovan says as he wonders about it, decided to leave that place as soon as possible and go back home before his mother.

...

( Meanwhile. )

< Location: Richter-Grimshaw House. >

Duncan is still sleeping in his room, with little Adria beside him, as the two sleep well, unhinged by the chaos that happened in the capital due to the place they're sleeping being far away from that place.

Just look at him.

* Duncan snores with full satisfaction as if he could sleep well without Irina beside him. *