Modern World Warlock

While Dante and Faelyn started to practice "primal magic," Paige gave one of her translators to the archangel, Gabriel, with the intention of asking him more questions relating to the goddess.

The angel was arrogant when speaking to anyone from the Jade Dragons, except Camille and Baba Yaga, whom he clearly respected as he bowed every time he saw them.

Since Gabriel was Aelara's creation, he was able to sense the same "godlike" energy that all Atlanteans possessed. Even when Camille couldn't cast any magic, Gabriel's devotion didn't falter.

Paige was curious to know why Camille hadn't asked Dante for a contract like the ones he had given to her to learn magic, knowing that it could be helpful in the future if the handler knew a few spells.

Moreover, now that they were aware of Camille's lineage, she pondered if she would be some kind of genius with unmatched talent.

Camille honestly replied that she had considered making the contract with Dante, and revealed that the warlock even offered to do it the same day that Paige awakened her magic.

However, she couldn't explain why, but it was as if her body was telling her that she did not need Dante's magic.

Their conversation was interrupted by Yaga, who left Dante and Faelyn in the training room while she strolled around the mansion. "Of course, you don't need it. The only thing holding you back from casting magic is your own perception," she said.

It didn't matter that Camille was a late descendant of the Atlanteans; she should've had the ability to cast magic from a very young age. However, since nobody around her perceived this magic, she never learned about its existence.

Still, there were times when Camille showed that she had an incredible sense of danger. She could tell who to trust, sometimes with a simple look or after exchanging a few words, and while the handler believed that she was simply following her instincts, Yaga explained that it was her magic perception that gave her those feelings.

Instead of having Dante forcefully awaken her magic with a contract, all Camille needed was to finally "see" the energy in the environment to be able to weave it into a spell. So, Baba Yaga asked the handler to grab her hand for a minute.

Following the witch's instructions, Camille closed her eyes and took a deep breath, picturing herself standing in the middle of an utterly void space.

Paige stayed silent during the process, as she didn't want to interrupt, no matter how many questions she had.

After a few seconds, the handler started seeing herself being surrounded by strands that looked like they were made of a see-through silky material, glowing faintly in the dark void.

Then, when more of these luminous strands appeared, their glow became slightly brighter, making Camille speed up her breathing without noticing.

"Open your eyes," the handler heard the witch's voice, and as she slowly opened up her eyelids, she could see an almost invisible fire surrounding Yaga's body.

Camille thought that it looked like a hologram and gazed at Paige beside them, noticing that the energy around the scientist looked utterly different, as it resembled a strange, floating liquid instead of a faint flame.

"Huh… Dante's eyes worked better than this," Camille commented.

She quickly recounted how Dante had used a spell a few times with her that allowed him to share one of his eyes with her.

Since Dante was able to sense people's lies and intentions with a simple gaze, she thought it was one of the most useful skills that a handler could have. Moreover, the way the energy looked from the warlock's eyes was clearer and more vibrant than the faint glows she could see at that moment.

"Ah, yes. But that child is a little different…" Yaga replied.

The witch elaborated and said that all warlocks had the ability to see other people's lies, so it wasn't an exclusive skill that only Dante could use. However, Dante himself also had a keen sense for magic, which he developed after many years of training and battling.

Besides, Dante had conquered Hell itself, so it was only natural that his umbra control and perception could only be matched by some of the most powerful demons to ever exist.

Now that Camille was able to see the mana in the air, her eyesight would only get better with time. And while she wouldn't be able to tell if a person was lying like Dante, at least she would know if the person was a threat to her or not.

____________________

A few days later, Asphodel and her family, along with members from the GTS and Azure Rebels, visited the Jade Palace.

At first, the meeting was supposed to be an exchange of information about Nekxis, but with Yaga's arrival, their plan was slightly altered.

The handlers and leaders of each family were gathered in a meeting room, where Baba Yaga told them everything she knew about Nekxis.

Imera listened attentively and asked about the organization's objective, believing that if they truly wanted to take over the world, they would have done so long ago.

The witch explained that Nekxis already controlled branches of different governments in the world, and while they could forcefully take one or two countries, there were still a few forces that prevented them from doing so.

Of course, one of those "forces" was Yaga herself, who kept raiding their bases and destroying their progress to slow down their plans. Nevertheless, the leaders always escaped from her grasp.

As the handlers and leaders discussed the information with themselves, Asphodel calmly spoke up and caught everyone's attention.

"I saw a temple dedicated to Goddess Mystara to the north of this country. Is she a part of Nekxis as well?" the vampire mother asked.

Yaga maintained a serious expression, knowing precisely the kind of temple that the vampire was talking about. "That's a different story," she said.

"Though I can say that Mystara is not our enemy, if that's what you were wondering," she continued, not giving any more details than that.

Nonetheless, Asphodel didn't care about the rest, and knowing that the Goddess of Magic wasn't their enemy, she felt that she already had all the information she needed.