[Third Person’s PoV]

The next day…

Lucian held a ball of pure darkness in the palms of his hands. Within the ominous sphere, a controlled vortex rotated steadily. He gripped his wrist as the very light around the orb twisted and was drawn into the sphere of darkness.

“Remember not to blind yourself,” Hecate warned from behind him, a hint of annoyance lacing her tone.

Lucian’s cheeks gained a faint tint of color as he kept his eyes shut. “It was a rookie mistake, and I’m kinda concentrating here, Teach.”

Extending his palm forward, he opened his eyes and wrapped his fingers around the sphere. From the center of the vortex, a brilliant white light erupted—a concentrated beam of all the light he had gathered.

The beam struck the floor and scattered in all directions. The white light was beautiful and pure, untouched by any corruption. However, as the intensity of the beam diminished, the area where it had dispersed shrank. Soon, all that remained were tiny particles of white light, resembling stars fading back into the surrounding space.

Lucian looked at the spot where his attack had landed and frowned. The floor was completely unscathed—spotless, as if nothing had happened.

“Nothing happened…” he murmured, confused.

“Of course not. What did you expect?” Hecate sneered. “That attack had no weight behind it.” She folded her arms. “Congratulations, you just learned how to give someone a tan.”

“What’s with the sudden sarcasm, huh?” Lucian shot back defensively. “I’m trying over here.”

Hecate sighed, unimpressed. “Do you know why your attack did virtually nothing?”

“Yeah, your words helped me figure it out. Light has no mass, so it can’t really do any damage,” Lucian admitted, ruffling his hair in frustration. “But come on, we’re dealing with magic and divine workings here. Surely the rules of physics shouldn’t apply—or at least, they should be bent in some way.”

Hecate nodded at his first statement but shook her head at the latter. “Gods would argue that mortals trying to understand the workings of the universe—the domains of the divine—are misguided. They’d insist that humans don’t know what they’re talking about.” She scoffed. “But they’re wrong. Too prideful to admit that mortals can be smart enough to grasp the laws of the universe through science. Sure, sometimes they get things wrong—but not everything.”

Lucian raised an eyebrow. “How come you’re not as prideful then? I mean, you’re really high up there when it comes to other gods and goddesses—not to mention Titans. Why aren’t you, I don’t know, more arrogant?”

Hecate smirked. “Who says I’m not?” she countered. “I definitely have the divine arrogance all gods possess. I just know how to control it and rarely show it. I have no doubt that no mortal will ever be as great as I am.” She spoke with certainty, but there was no malice in her tone. “However, that doesn’t mean I underestimate the mortal mind. I suppose you could say I appreciate mortals more than the average god does.”

With a dismissive wave of her hand, she shifted the conversation. “Now then, do you have any idea how to fix your problem?”

“I think? I’m not entirely sure…” Lucian hesitated before voicing his thoughts. “If physics suddenly decided to be a thing here, then does the solution involve the law of conservation of mass?”

“That’s one possible approach, but it’s unnecessary,” Hecate said, waving it off with a hand on her hip.

“What?” Lucian blinked in confusion.

“Think about it. Darkness has no mass either, yet it behaves differently than light, doesn’t it?”

“I guess you have a point. But then, what’s my problem? Or rather, what’s the solution to my problem?”

“I won’t give you the answer,” Hecate said, testing him. “But I’ll give you a hint: The Source.”

Lucian frowned, deep in thought. He held his chin, repeating, “The Source? What source?” He muttered the word a few more times before suddenly snapping his fingers in realization.

“It’s because I’m manipulating the light around us! The light in our surroundings has no mass, so instead of using that, I need another source…” His eyes widened. “Which means it has to come from within. But that’s much harder to do than darkness.”

Hecate smiled approvingly at his deduction.

Lucian rested his hand against his chin, the gears in his mind turning rapidly. His eyes glowed with sudden inspiration, and Hecate watched, satisfied, as he worked through the problem on his own.

“I need to find a way to convert the darkness inside me into light, rather than just letting the darkness absorb it… And the answer to that would be in my shadow, wouldn’t it? Since a shadow is a combination of both light and darkness, I just have to figure out how to make the light overpower the darkness and take control…”

Lucian’s lips curled into a grin as he suddenly chuckled to himself.

“What’s so funny?” Hecate asked, curious.

“I found a way to cheat the system,” Lucian said with a smirk. “A way to do this quickly without spending months—or even weeks—trying to master it.”

Hecate frowned, displeased. She didn’t appreciate shortcuts when it came to learning. “How?” she asked, crossing her arms.

Lucian noticed her expression and quickly reassured her, “Don’t worry. Even though I call it a cheat, it’s more like a crutch—a learning tool to help me grasp it faster.”

Hecate raised an eyebrow. “Alright, stop leaving me in suspense and just tell me.”

“Actually, I’d rather show you.” Lucian’s grin widened. “I’ll need a full-body mirror, though. It’ll make things easier.”

Intrigued, Hecate snapped her fingers, conjuring a large mirror in front of him.

Lucian glanced at his reflection before pulling off his shirt.

Hecate frowned in confusion, then her eyes widened in alarm as he removed his pants, leaving only his boxers. “Lucian, this better be good, or I will literally smack you.”

Lucian just laughed. “Relax. Just watch.”

Holding out two fingers, he summoned a blade of condensed darkness. Without hesitation, he dragged it across his wrist. Blood spilled out at an unnatural rate—but instead of falling, it rose into the air, suspended in defiance of gravity.

The moment she saw it, Hecate understood his plan. Her eyes gleamed with fascination. The Suicidal Branding… she thought.

Lucian guided the floating blood with his will, purple sparks crackling around his hands. The blood moved across his arms, forming intricate sigils and runes in an ominous design. The markings mirrored each other as they spread upwards, meeting in the center of his chest.

Hecate carefully read the runes, analyzing his intent.

He’s mapping out the exact process for his darkness to follow—Darkness → Shadow → Light. And he’s also amplifying the potency of his divine bloodline, strengthening the blessing within him and increasing his control over it!

Her heart raced with excitement at his ingenuity, but then her excitement turned to confusion. She watched as Lucian added even more runes, ones that had nothing to do with his magic.

The blood trickled down from his chest, across his abs, and towards his pelvis before moving down his legs and feet.

Lucian’s skin paled, his breathing grew heavy, and it was clear he was pushing himself to the limit. But he held firm.

Closing his eyes, he allowed the blood to climb up his neck, over his cheeks, and across his eyelids before converging at the center of his forehead. A single drop of thick blood remained there for a moment—then it spread outward, forming the image of a radiant sun.

Darkness enveloped his wounds, sealing them shut. As the bleeding stopped, Lucian took a deep breath and remained still.

The sigils ignited, flashing crimson before pulsing in a synchronized rhythm, activating in the order they had been drawn.

Then the transformation began.

Lucian’s pale skin darkened into a rich, sun-kissed brown, as if bathed in golden light. The change spread rapidly. As it reached his neck, his jet-black hair began to rise, floating weightlessly in the air.

The tan reached his eyebrows—turning them a pure, striking white. When it spread to his hair, it followed suit, bleaching it completely.

Finally, as his entire transformation settled, the sun symbol on his forehead radiated a bright golden light. Slowly, he opened his eyes.

Instead of their usual ruby red, his irises blazed with an intense golden hue.

Hecate’s lips twitched. ‘This attention-seeking brat…’

‘Did he seriously just add an entire aesthetic change with runes? He literally used magic to alter his skin, hair, and eye color!’

If she weren’t so impressed, she would’ve smacked him right then and there.

Lucian admired his reflection with a pleased smile, but one thought suddenly plagued his mind:

‘Wait… this isn’t racist, right? Surely not…’

********************************************

+10 advance Chapters on: patreon.com/Shadow_D_Monarch3

A/N: Images in the comments

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep