Zatiel had reached the floor that was owned by Zitra and was standing outside a large gate. This was the only way to enter the residence unless you are strong enough to overcome the magical defenses of the tower.
He waited just a few moments outside the gate, before they opened by themselves, allowing him to enter.
Shadows were filling every inch of the residence, not allowing the slightest form of light to be present.
Even with his night vision, Zatiel's sight was impaired, but the shadows could not stop his Eye of Life and Creation.
There was nothing special on the walls, not even a piece of furniture. Zatiel did not find it weird since this tower was just a temporary residence and its true purpose was the army headquarters.
What called his attention was the sphere of light he could see with his Eye of Life and Creation in the center of the room. It was covered by shadows constantly feeding it and was stopping any dispersion of the light.
In this sphere was a woman that seemed to be floating and was using the light in it to heal her wounds. Zitra's condition was pitiful, burn marks were covering all of her body and they had some sort of energy that difficult any type of healing, the worst part was her right arm that was completely carbonized.
It was obvious that stopping both Angelic Paragons from attacking the Daybreak clan by herself had carried a great cost.
Zatiel saw all of this, but his face was emotionless and he continued advancing until he was right outside the sphere of light. His Eye of Creation allows him to see the extremely harmful energy inside the Magus.
Her condition was even worse than her body was showing, but despite that Zitra's aura was as firm as always and she refused to show any sort of weakness as she looked back at Zatiel.
"Why did you do it?"
Zatiel's question carried a deep meaning, and he focused on Zitra as he waited for her answer.
Seeing her condition, Zatiel could theorize how great was the danger she faced to protect Kilo, Rax, and the rest.
By any intent or purpose, she went beyond what was expected of her.
The other Magus that was working with her, Ronald, the one with a Trent body had escaped after being severely hurt by Oliver's attack. His actions were justified, after all, Zatiel could not ask him to risk his life for his people.
Of course, that was the rational way of thinking, but Zatiel had already marked that Magus and he will handle him in due time.
Zitra was staring back at Zatiel. She felt that anything other than the truth will be a serious mistake.
"I don't know them and I don't care about them. I will normally just fulfill my job as a protector, but I will never risk my life for people who I have no relation to, even if we are on the same side. After all, this is a war for profit."
Zitra's words were cold and practical but despite her stipulated lack of concern for the Daybreak clan, when Zatiel heard her, instead of anger, a smile appeared on his face.
The mind of the Neo-Demon worked the same as her. If it was his clan, he would do anything in his power to protect them, but if he was defending another group, he would fulfill his obligation however if true danger appears he will definitely prioritize his safety over the others.
This was the best anyone could expect of an army, made by different groups, that was formed with the sole purpose of just obtaining wealth.
Besides, no matter how harsh Zitra's words were, to Zatiel her actions meant everything.
When Zitra saw Zatiel's smile, her expression became a little less distant, and she continued speaking.
"But I know that you truly care about them. You are an anomaly and you will reach a level of power and influence in the future that may surpass mine, so having you in my debt is worth the risk."
As she spoke, Zitra was concentrating on Zatiel and saw that despite revealing her intentions, his smile did not falter.
"Good, I can accept that."
Zatiel was satisfied with the woman's answer. If she had tried to deceive him, things would have been different, but by bluntly telling him his goal, she achieved it.
Zatiel sits down on the ground and he takes the corpse of a Rank 3 magic creature from his ring. Before Zitra could ask what he intended to do, she saw how he used his golden flames to start to consume the carcass.
The power in Zatiel's golden flame was much weaker than before since his injuries were still present. It will have been faster to directly use his golden flames on Zitra, but he has too little of them, so using the energy of the corpse was the best path to follow.
The process will take a long time with the current power of his flame, so Zatiel chose to pay part of his debt immediately.
"Can you explain to me your understanding of the duality between the Law of Light and the Law of Shadows?"
Zitra was surprised by Zatiel's question, but there was also curiosity in her eyes. She saw how Zatiel was able to use the two opposite powers of the negative energy and his golden flames, to achieve an equilibrium that greatly increased his strength.
She was curious about how he did it. Even if they are from different sources, the way he managed to find balance could help improve hers.
"Light and shadows are two opposite but connected laws, they empower each other and are one of the fundamental dualities of the universe. By making my shadows absorb the light in the surroundings and concentrate it in a single point, I can increase the reach of the first and strengthen the second."
Zitra's voice was soft, but as she spoke, the shadows and light in the surroundings behaved as she described.
Zatiel nodded when he heard this. The Magus talent was impressive, and even more remarkable was her deep understanding of the way her laws can act together despite her young age.
"You are right, but your vision is too narrow, just focusing on shadow and light will limit you. If you manage to induce the 'devouring power' of the Law of Shadows you could use it to consume all types of energy, not just light. By then the power of your Law of Light will be increased as its source will be greater and you can begin to use the 'power of order' of this law."
Unlike with Totto, where Zatiel only gave some vague route to follow and let the Magus figure out things for himself, right now he was giving Zitra the best path for her laws. One that can allow her to become a Being of Laws if she manages to reach the peak of it.
After hearing Zatiel's words, Zitra was doubtful. Your law comprehension was very important and if you were to follow someone's guide but then you realize they were mistaken, the damage could be catastrophic.
She closed her eyes, and slowly and safely started to see the effect of Zatiel's pointers.
Zatiel nods as she sees her behavior. He focuses on the carcass and prepares to show her the apex of her path.
After several hours, Zitra's body trembled, and the shadows and light seemed to change. The difference was too minuscule to truly notice it, but it was there.
Zitra's eyes opened, and they were sparkling as she looked at Zatiel. The time was too little for her to draw the power that he spoke, but she was able to prove they indeed were present and that they will help her become stronger.
This realization fills her with excitement. To her the most important thing was not status or relationships, it was power, only with it she will be able to control her destiny.
After seeing that Zitra had focused again, Zatiel's aura changed and a dark power that seems to be the representation of emptiness filled his right hand. Meanwhile, a bright power filled with life appears on his left hand.
"Pay attention, I will show you the evolution of duality. It will be very fast and I can not control it, so try your best to understand the principles behind it."
When Zitra heard his words, she starts to nod with all her strength and her eyes widen, as if she was afraid that something could escape her sight.
Zatiel almost starts to laugh as he saw the always composed figure of this mighty Magus genius behaving like this, but he did not lose focus and channeling all of the power of his True Names, he started to put his palms together slowly.
The emptiness aura that was Dexisus was beginning to interact with the genesis power of Natux, and they slowly started to create something.
What appeared between the two palms was a white spark, it was feeble and it gave the impression that it was an illusion as if it wasn't really there. But the moment it appeared, all the light and shadows in the room froze on their own volition as if they were in the presence of something bigger than themselves.
