Nevia pulled two mugs out of a cabinet—one black and the other white—and poured the coffee. She placed the mugs on the counter, then followed with the eggy bread. Nero yawned once more, but the delicious scent of the breakfast mostly woke him up. He took his mug and blew on the coffee before taking a light sip.
"... Sigh~."
He exhaled in comfort, tension leaving him as Nevia plopped down in the seat beside him. Nero took a bite of the eggy bread, color returning to his otherwise pale skin.
"... Y'know," Nevia began. Nero glanced at her and hummed. She continued, "I'm hesitant about this arrangement with the Young Master..."
Nero took a sip of coffee, set the cup down, and looked at his little sister. "Why?"
Nevia paused, her tail twitching twice before lifting to her mouth. She bit down on it, ears standing straight. Nero waited patiently; he knew her actions were normal for those of their race. After a while, she let go of her tail, then spoke with a tremor in her voice. "Yesterday, he... the Young Master cut himself. I rushed to get a medical kit to bandage him up, but by the time I got there, the wound had healed on its own, Nero..."
Nero paused, his eyes growing sharper.
Nevia continued, "The wound wasn't deep, so there wasn't as much blood... but there was hardly any blood, Nero, and the shadows in the room seemed to come aliv—!"
"Shhhh!" Nero placed a hand over Nevia's mouth and looked around discreetly. Once he sensed everything was safe, he looked back at her.
Through gritted teeth, he glared at his sister with absolute seriousness and whispered, "Nevia, this family and all its branches are full of secrets. I believe if we learn those secrets, the only path left for us is death. Even if we've been working here for over half a decade now, do you understand?"
Nevia stared at her brother, color draining from her face. He removed his hand, and she whispered, "What about Dad? Why do they not guard against him like they do with us?"
Nero remained silent, unable to vocalize the answer he knew deep down. ...Isn't it obvious? He's part of their secrets... Nero thought to himself. He looked down at the now-cold eggy bread and lukewarm coffee, sighed, and continued with breakfast. Nevia also began to eat once she realized her brother wouldn't talk anymore. After two bites of eggy bread and a few sips of coffee, Nero muttered under his breath, "Don't question it. Just do the task well."
------------------------------
Whoosh!
Like a streak of black lightning, Meimei wove through the air with Nox gripping onto her fur. Instead of tuning out, Nox looked around as they moved. A thought suddenly occurred to him: "Meimei! Do you even know the way out?!"
Meimei slowed to a halt, also realizing the issue. Her ears twitched while Nox observed their surroundings, trying to figure out where they were on the property. They were several meters above a wide expanse of neatly trimmed grass. Ahead lay a forest, while behind them was the main house.
"... Meimei," Nox said, his eyebrows furrowed as a faint feeling startled him. It felt like something had faintly tugged at his heart.
Hm?
"What do you think about that forest?"
Meimei stared at the trees like she wanted to uproot them. ...There's no overwhelming Aura which could indicate a creature that Master can't deal with alone...
Hearing this, Nox pointed toward the trees, and without another word, Meimei crouched and resumed her pace. Soon, they reached the tree line. Nox stared into the woods as they descended to the ground; he felt a tug. Very faint, but present nonetheless. He placed a hand over his chest in a daze.
Once they touched solid earth, Nox slid down and walked toward the nearest tree. He spotted strange characters he couldn't comprehend. "... Is this a language?" he muttered beneath his breath.
Meimei whined, Master~. We best be getting on our way!
Nox finally tore his eyes away from the tree and turned back toward Meimei. With her by his side, they walked into the forest looking for prey. '...I wonder if I can sense anything—'
"'Of course you can!!!'"
Veil popped out of Nox's chest, startling the young man.
He scowled at the ball of writhing darkness and asked as they walked, 'How then?'
"'Oh it's easy, all you have to do is extend your senses into the darkness around you, be one with every darkness and shadow.'"
Nox looked at Veil with an expression that said, "No shit, Sherlock." He let out a low breath and stopped walking. Meimei looked at her master in confusion. Nox scanned the area for a fallen log, found an unusually large tree stump, and sat down in a lotus position. His hands rested on his knees as he took deep breaths to calm himself.
Then came the dizziness, with nausea following close behind. He endured it. Meimei noticed his distress and placed a paw on his back, feeding Xenon into his body. Relief washed over Nox. He soon steadied himself and began taking deep, rhythmic breaths. '...How do I do this? Be one with shadows? As in...?'
Nox had no clue what he was doing, but he tried anyway. The more he breathed in, the more he could sense something. It was as though he were sitting in the middle of a perfectly still lake. He opened one eye and flicked his finger to the south.
The shadows and darkness rippled to life. Stunned, he closed his hand into a fist. Immediately, all the shadows and darkness in the southern direction compressed into a tight ball. Nox jumped up in shock, startling Meimei. She turned to see a solid ball of darkness and gaped. He grinned, then sat back down.
"..."
He took deep breaths and tried once again to concentrate. After a long while, he felt it again—that feeling of being seated on the surface of a lake. He stayed this way for a bit before a specific part of the "lake" rippled.
Nox snapped his eyes open and jumped up. Meimei stood up straight, watching her master closely.
"Meimei, let's go there!"