Ensnaring his Dark Moon-Chapter 283: Black magic practitioners

’’Mhmm?"

Both of them knew that these were Luciana’s poor attempts to shift her attention from the situation that had occurred earlier.

Having her mother right in front of her eyes and watching her disappear all over again stirred something in her. She wanted to go back into her room but at the same time, she was scared of drowning in despair.

’’You... pretended to be Duchess Flora...’’ Luciana cleared her throat. This was something that had made her curious for a long time, ’’...And you seemed to be Duchess Flora. With Duke Maverick around, is it possible that you are into men too?"

Cardan’s eyes narrowed subtly. He grabbed the pillow that she had held between them and threw it aside before he tugged her towards him. Getting hold of her hand, he placed her palm near his torso.

Luciana’s breathing turned shallow when she felt heat emanating off the place as something hard bulged in her hand.

’’Say the word, Lucy. I will prove to you how much I am into you,’’ he whispered, his eyes turning hazy when he felt her fingers grazing his bulge, ’’And this... this happens to me just by sitting in your presence so...’’ he added, letting his words hang in the air all the while as he let her know about the effect she had on him.

Luciana gulped softly as she gently pulled her hand back, ’’No need to show me whether you are a man or not. Your mistresses should know about it.’’

Cardan smiled mysteriously, ’’Are you jealous?"

’’Do I look like that?" she frowned.

’’It has been over a year since I gazed at some other woman... How can I do that when a certain someone occupied my thoughts so much that I came back from heaven just to have a glimpse of her...’’ he smiled when her lips parted, ’’You caught my attention since the day I saw you in that underground chamber, amidst the chaos of my dying brother and raging mother. You were there with your brother and father, arguing with them about something when I looked at you. For a few moments, I could not look away.’’

Luciana stood up from the bed, her face blank, ’’I should go back to my room.’’

Her cheeks which were stained red gave away her real emotions.

Cardan grabbed her wrist and gently tugged her back to the bed, ’’It’s soul infusion.’’

Her curiosity was back and she momentarily forgot about his words, ’’What?"

’’Not just witches, people who are proficient in black magic can infuse a dead person’s soul in a living body and control them. I had a piece of Duchess Flora’s soul-infused in me by my... mother. A part of her soul meant sometimes, her true self showed in me, her thoughts mirrored mine and so did her actions. She genuinely cared for this family, she was very much of a warm and compassionate person.’’

It was not hard to understand how Cardan was able to hide his darkness. Duchess Flora seemed to be the kind person who emitted light with every smile and every word.

But that was not what caught Luciana’s attention, ’’Not just witches... Anyone can perform black magic?"

’’Black magic practitioners are not rare but very few succeed in it,’’ Cardan said, ’’Witches are born with inherent black magic coursing in their blood so they can tame the viciousness of it. Other people need ancient scriptures or books or someone to guide them. Even then, humans would not be able to withstand the tremendous pressure.’’

’’W-What about mers?" Luciana’s eyes widened.

’’Mers are mostly known to be naïve and vain creatures,’’ When she glared at him, he cleared his throat, ’’Of course, not all of them. My Lucy is so unique,’’ he smiled playfully as he cupped her cheek.

Luciana slapped his insolent hand away, ’’Sweet-talker.’’

’’I only sweet talk with you, my dear,’’ When she glared at him again, he glanced at her reddening cheeks and sighed helplessly, ’’The lower mers who are weak rarely withstand the black magic, let alone practice it. But the same can’t be said about mers who have high abilities.’’

’’What about the sea court? Can people there withstand it?" Luciana asked.

Cardan nodded, ’’The members of the sea courts are mostly those old officials with raging powers. With the right amount of determination, it would not be hard for them to walk down that path. But practicing black magic needs you to have potential. A child with enough potential can start it without needing to grow up. Someone like you or Lucian or even Esme could have withstood it if you started practicing it when you were younger.’’

’’Then my father...’’ Luciana’s voice trembled, ’’He... possessed...’’

’’What are you talking about?" Cardan frowned.

’’When my mother was on her deathbed, she started growing pale, her eyes were sunken... Mermaids do appear like that when they die but I had caught glimpses of strands of white hair behind her ears and I read it somewhere that...’’ that something like that would happen when a witch or black magic was involved.

She did not need to finish her sentence for him to understand what she was insinuating.

Cardan stroked her hair gently, ’’Don’t dwell on the past, Lucy. For the peace of your mind, I will look into it.’’

Luciana looked at him. The question ’Why would you?’ rested at the tip of her tongue but not wanting a glib response from him, she said, ’’What about you? When did you shatter Duchess Flora’s soul?’’

’’I had her soul infused with mine for years but the time was running out. Mother was in cultivation so I had to do it myself,’’ Cardan said.

"Did it hurt?" Luciana licked her bottom lips.

’’A bit,’’ he shrugged, gazing at her lips for a moment before he looked into her eyes.

Luciana’s heart skipped a beat at his discreet gesture but she could not help but wonder. A bit, he said. Extricating a soul that was melded with his for years. Was it truly just a bit? ’’What would have happened if you did not shatter it?"