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Kyran heaved a sigh and closed his eyes.

After the things he experienced in the Tower of Tribulations, he learned how to control and hide his emotions. But somehow, he was unable to do so the moment Stella mentioned \'that person.\'

Who else did she mean but Cyneah?

That got Kyran riled up at once. He did not even notice Stella telling him the identity of the Spirit that spoke to him in the cottage was the Queen of the Faes.

No, maybe he did notice but chose to ignore it. Or maybe, he already expected it thus he was not surprised. He was far more concerned by the fact that one more person knew about Cyneah, even if that person was Stella who vowed never to betray him. Because Kyran knew Stella was affected by the Time core and worried her judgment would be clouded upon meeting Cyneah.

The possibility that Cyneah was part of the Royal Family was almost certain, based on the Queen of the Faes\' reaction. But to Kyran, Cyneah was only an unwanted child left to die in a cave at the Valley of Morte. Even if, for argument\'s sake, she was the Crown Princess\'s relative, even if they were biological sisters, meant nothing to him.

Cyneah was his godmother\'s disciple. A person whom he viewed as one of his own. That was why he would protect her no matter what.

For this reason, if someone would threaten her safety, Kyran would not stand aside and watch.  It did not matter if that someone was Stella or the Queen of the Faes. He would remove them at all cost.

Of course, the latter one was a last resort.

Right now, Kyran had a few options on how to proceed from here. The ideal one was to convince them Cyneah was not a threat. But this would only be possible if they were not biased about her.

\'Just as well,\' he thought as he opened his eyes. \'This is actually a good opportunity to talk to Stella about her emotions.\'

"Forget it," Kyran said while looking at Stella. The coldness in his eyes was gone. It was as if his expression earlier had been an illusion.

Stella looked back at him, still with a slightly dazed expression.

"I-I\'m sorry… Just now…"

"You are prone to getting affected by the memories of your Time core, Stella," Kyran told her right from the start.

"Huh?" She replied in confusion.

He took a deep breath before continuing, "I know you are aware how our predecessor\'s experiences remains in the magic core, so when the time comes for a new \'Time Keeper\' or \'Void Master\' to appear, they get an absurd boost in magic knowledge because they inherit their predecessor\'s knowledge."

Sensing that this discussion was important, Stella did not interrupt Kyran and continued to listen in silence.

"But included in those experiences, were some of their memories and most of all… strong emotions."

Kyran did not say emotions in a general sense. When his Draconic core went out of control, it happened because of his ancestor\'s strong hatred for the past Royal Family\'s schemes. It was not an emotion that targeted the Royal Family in general. It was for this reason that he did not feel intense hatred toward the current Royal Family even when he was in close proximity with them. Yes, he could sense his Draconic core trembling sometimes, but it was not as strong as when he was reminded of the betrayal the Royal Family of the past had done.

Stella\'s brow furrowed slightly. From her expression, Kyran guessed she was beginning to understand what he was on about and probably disagree. But he ignored that and continued.

"You have been exposed to the Time core at an early age, unlike me who have only recently become aware of it. Chances of getting your own emotions mixed up with the Time core\'s \'experience\' is greater."

"That is not…"

Stella\'s voice trailed off even before she could argue. A few minutes ago, she had just called Kyran by a different name without her realizing it, so her arguing right now would be pointless.

\'No… that is not exactly right. I think I have always known… but….\' Stella thought biting her lower lip in frustration.

"I am not the person whom the first Time Keeper met. But I don\'t blame you for getting me confused with him… err… Caelan," Kyran paused and hesitated for a second before deciding to say the next bit, "I\'ve met him… at least in my sea of consciousness and saw our resemblance."

Stella gaped at him.

"W-What? M-Met him? Sea of where…?"

Black lines appeared on Kyran\'s head, seeing Stella\'s confusion.

Yes, this was exactly what he wanted to avoid, telling her, of all people, about his first meeting with his predecessor.

Ah, that was right, his name was Caelan. He should get used to calling his predecessor that.

Then again, maybe it was just as well since telling her would make it easier to explain her mixed-up emotions. Maybe, telling her could result in comforting the memory of the first Time Keeper that constantly intersects with hers because of all the regret the latter had.

In the next five minutes, Kyran told Stella the brief version of his meeting with Caelan. He also explained how she was more prone to getting affected by her predecessors\' memories because there had been countless Time Keepers before her. Unlike Kyran, who apart from his Void core sealed for years, only had one predecessor, Caelan.

After Kyran finished talking, Stella fell into contemplative silence.

He gave her time to digest what he said, and after a minute or two, she finally said, "I\'m sorry. But…"

Kyran raised his brows. He did not expect her to be this stubborn. Was telling her about his meeting with Caelan not enough to convince her? No, thinking back, why did he even think it was enough to convince her?

Argumentative speaking, he had a point. However, he only had his experience to back his understanding of the matter.

"… I think that is not entirely true."

Kyran did not respond but tilted his head to the side, in a subtle gesture of letting her continue.

"I understand about the memories bit and that sometimes, maybe my emotions are really getting swayed by my predecessors. I think I\'ve always known about that, so hearing your explanation does make sense. But…"

\'Again with the but statement,\' Kyran thought.

Stella looked Kyran straight in the eyes. However, instead of continuing with what she wanted to say, a frown appeared on her face.

"Can you remove your mask first?" She suddenly asked.

Confused at her sudden request, Kyran only cocked an eyebrow.

For the first time, Stella gave him a deadpan glare. She had shot him with all kinds of glares but this seemingly emotionless expression was far more… sinister.

"Humor me," she insisted.

With a slight disgruntled sigh, Kyran took off his mask. He did not see the point but arguing was only a waste of time.

As soon as he did, Stella smiled.

"What was all this about—?"

"I don\'t agree with one thing."

Kyran paused midway while lowering his mask to look at her.

"And that is… I am not affected by my predecessors feelings. What I feel for you, Kyran, is real."

Few things could faze Kyran.

Unexpectedly, this one right here— or at least, what was about to happen, was one.

Seeing Kyran freeze in an almost comical manner, Stella let out a soft laugh.

"I have been convincing myself that I only feel this way because of the Founder\'s last wish, but I know it\'s not like that. For the record, I have yet to awaken my Time core when I began taking an interest in you— or rather, Caelan\'s past. But, I started developing feelings for you the more I get to know you, Kyran, not Caelan.

"Ah, that\'s right. I guess saying I have \'feelings\' for you is to vague, yes? So, I\'ll make it clear. I like you, Kyran. No… maybe I\'ve already fallen in love with you. So… Don\'t ever think that this feelings are being affected by my predecessors, because they are my own, and they are real."

Kyran was rendered speechless.

He was formulating a speech in his head on how to convince Stella that Cyneah was not a threat. He was even prepared to defend his reason while knowing the hidden dangers of keeping Cyneah under his wings.

However, instead of smoothly directing the topic in that direction, Stella decided to make a different move and threw him a curveball.

Finally, after what seemed like a very long pause, Kyran stammered, "Y-You…"

Stella could not help but chuckle at his flustered expression, "Sorry. Was that too much?"

Kyran frowned, "Why now…?"

"Because I feel threatened."

Stella\'s honest answer rendered Kyran speechless once again. With a slight smile, she added, "I just learned you are hiding a woman in some highly secured and secret place. How do you think I\'d feel?"