Bro, I'm not an Undead!

Wait. What?

The Hybrid Luman was lost for words.

See his Wing of Embrace wha...

Then it dawned him.

The shift in his facial expression was not lost to Darwel. She took it as further affirmation to what, as she thought, was already a given.

She trusted her senses.

"You realised something, didn't you?" Darwel said, bringing her torso to the edge of the table where her slender arms rested over its shiny surface.

Skullius grimaced inwardly but kept up a poker face.

Well, shit!

It looked like he wasn't as discreet as he imagined himself to be.

That one instance where he had used his [Wing of Embrace] to escape Kurtish's barrier had been noticed by someone who somehow knew about it.

But how?

Wasn't this something exclusive to him?

Besides, he had been hidden by the barrier when he used it so... why?

That was too unexpected!

What to say.

What to do.

Suddenly, the point of a sword pinched Skullius' back.

"You would dare take your time in front of the daughter of the High Family?" the voice of the guard stormed from behind him, bearing a weight on the air that nearly forced Skullius to his knees!

'Great! These circumstances really like me, don't they?' Skullius thought with a hidden grunt.

"Quit that, Viccil. Let him think," Darwel ordered while waving her hands dismissively. Her crimson gold gaze then focused on Skullius' eyes. "I'm a rather optimistic person by nature, so I'll first give myself up to the belief that you have some form of convincing explanation as to how you have a Wing of Embrace. Is it some kind of artefact you have? That would be suspiciously specific? Are you a Sif? That's highly unlikely. I would have sensed that by now. So... why don't you just show me."

A cool smile graced Darwel's round, unblemished face.

The Hybrid Luman was torn.

Should he show it?

He had made a big deal about hiding anything to do with his Insurgent Magnus powers even if it was just the [Wing of Embrace], or in his case a [Wing of the Just] but... a lot of good that did!

Why was Darwel so interested in it?

Was this really something that already existed in this world?!

'<Sigh>' Skullius breathed out.

He relented.

Oh well.

He wasn't willing to die for something like this.

"Fine," he said before the thick of hostility grew even more from behind him.

Darwel's radiant smile grew brighter.

The guard behind Skullius took a few steps back and waited.

Could this human truly possess a Wing of Embrace somehow?

Unless it was used through some dirty means that served to further show how vile humanity was, especially in the eyes of the Sif...

CHING!

Her sword was ready.

Skullius heard this ring of steel.

These two guards he had met were deadly. Unlike with Gillewart the City Guardian, he couldn't even discern whether or not these two were Incandescent Stage experts or something even more fearsome.

The tension grew.

'If things go south...'Skullius thought.

Well... he had a few plans that would likely work for a while before burning miserably.

'Heh,' he chucked inwardly.

Contrary to what Darwel and the guard expected, Skullius didn't reach into a spatial storage or pull something from his clothing.

He didn't say an incantation or do something heinous as they suspected.

Instead, he simply activated his racial ability, the [Wing of the Just] and immediately, a lengthy wing of light stretched out from his back, its origin being detached from Skullius' flesh!

...!!!

Its golden white hue was beautiful and as it appeared, unfurling with a straight length as if being pulled taut by a divine being, glitters began to show on Skullius' skin, the mana all around being sucked onto him in a breath!

The Hybrid Luman's strength spiked fivefold and he took a single moment to revel in it.

"Dear Listafelle...!" Darwel gaped in utter shock.

The guard behind Skullius was even more so shaken by this showing, her hand trembling as she fell on her knees.

Even though it couldn't be seen, a visage of utter horror showed on her face as her mind whirled violently, her blood screaming from within!

Then, she began to think...

She actually dared to point her sword at an El-Sif!

Her hand dared to threaten the life of...

Great mercies!

The doors to the room were swung open violently with heavy force, the other of the two guards breathing heavily as she had felt just now... the fully exposed power of a...

...!

She collapsed to the ground in terror.

Dear sacred light!

As her body shrieked in fear, she began to wonder...

She had dared to call this man glass she could shatter on a whim!

But she didn't know! He did not expose himself!

No!

That didn't matter!

'What the actual flesh is going on now?!' Skullius thought, getting genuinely scared about this unforeseen development.

Why were these two trembling?

Why were they scared all of a sudden?

"Impossible!" Darwel muttered with fiercely appalled eyes. "How can...? No! How do you have a Wing of an Embrace... coming from your flesh?! Who are you?!"

"Uhhh...." Skullius couldn't find the words to reply to this.

'You already know my name, lady!'

Darwel stumbled her way towards him and clutched his clothes. She ran her hands through the sparkling glitter orbiting around him.

It was genuine.

It was real!

She caressed his face and brought it awfully close to hers.

As they were like this, she could feel his unusually spaced breaths and almost taste his skin.

He wasn't a Sif but he... Now that she could feel his existence... he wasn't quite human either.

...!

To her shock when she felt the mixed blood within him, she could tell that it was undoubtedly 'purer' than hers!

Darwel gazed at his Wing of Embrace... It was quite dull and it was only one.

Yet...

"I can't believe it..." she said, almost choking on her words with teary eyes. "Are you a... <sniff>? Are you really...?"

Darwel began to sob, her head pressed against Skullius' chest.

"..."

Skullius' wires were short circuiting.

'I should have spent some more time with Vali instead,' he thought.

.....

Ten minutes later.

Skullius was seated at the table, anxiously waiting for someone to say something.

He had tucked back in his [Wing of the Just] as he couldn't maintain it for too long.

Darwel sat by his side, her eyes curiously gawking at him, his hand permanently locked within hers over her thighs.

This wasn't even the thick of it!

The two guards were bowing before him on his other side, their bodies still trembling in fear.

Alright!

Seeing as no one wanted to speak, Skullius decided to break the personal space invading ice!

"Can someone please tell me what the flesh is going on?!" he boomed.

The guards shivered at his outburst.

Darwel also seemed to come back to her senses, her firm grip on Skullius' hand loosening.

"My apologies. It's just that... It's too unreal," she said with her eyes sparkling bright at the Hybrid Luman.

"What is?" Skullius asked with a frown.

"Please forgive us!" one of the guards, Viccil, mustered the courage to say.

"We were ignorant! We could not tell who you were! Pardon our folly! Let us earn your forgiveness... we implore you!" the other, Sevill, pleaded.

Skullius turned to the two and back to Darwel.

"And... who am I?" he asked while pointing at himself.

Darwel wore a sheepish smile.

"I had the thought from the moment we sat down that you don't even realise who... what you are," she said.

"From the looks of it, I really don't," Skullius said with emphasis on his ignorance.

Darwel nodded sagely.

"Before I speak, I beg of you, please pardon Viccil and Sevill. Their duty is to keep me safe. They only say what they say and do what they do on my behalf."

Oh.

Well that wasn't too hard.

Frankly, Skullius would prefer to not have to deal with this.

He turned to the two.

"We're good. You're forgiven, I guess," he said to which the guards stood up and bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" they said in unison.

'Highness?!' Skullius panicked a bit. 'BACK THE FLESH UP!'

He turned to Darwel and she wore another sheepish smile.

"The traditions, culture and history of all Sif is uncommon territory for all humans. I understand how you wouldn't know. It's a miracle that one from a long lost line of my people had offspring secretly," she said, her gaze never leaving Skullius' eyes.

She studied the Hybrid Luman's reaction.

"There is royalty among elves, as it is among humans. However, for us, being royalty is not only in name. Royalty can be spotted with the naked eye most times and for those like me, royalty, there are traits we possess."

Darwel stood as she said these words.

From behind her back, two streams of light appeared, their lengths stretching erect behind her. They produced a fierce peach glow before revealing that they were bright wings with sophisticated marks over them!

Hints of glitter then showed over body and the whole scene, a fierce rise in her power was left.

Skullius was smacked right in the face with wild awe!

She too could...?!

She was...!

'Now way!' he thought in a mix of shock and horror.

Darwel took a deep breath.

"Royalty among the Sif is given the name El-Sif. I am such. As are my mother and father, the rest of the High Family the same," she said. "You are similar but far beyond us in purity, beauty and power. My very blood tells me this. I almost mistook you for a mere cousin in foolishness."

"You are possibly the last of the most proud moments of my people's history and may very well be the only one who remains connected to those who came to Opungale with both mystery and fortune, taking refuge among the Sif."

Ba-dum!

Skullius' heart beat fast.

This...!

"You are... a Luminant."