The eyes of one of the statues drew Alphonse's attention as he crouched just outside the plaza. The entire top half of its head was missing in a triangular shape, giving it an expression of animosity. One arm was destroyed, and the other showed signs of thin cracks along the elbow and forearm. Gripped in its hand were tiny, stone fingers that once belonged to another statue. Judging by the statue's inclined head, Alphonse assumed a child counterpart once stood next to it. Nothing else remained.

He glanced at Kirie and Asa as they clung to the shadows of the side street. Ash crouched somewhere directly behind him in almost complete obscurity.

“Let me take the lead,” Kirie whispered.

Asa inched along the wall of a building. “Don't be too hasty, Kirie. Look at that book. This man is similar to the one Anya spoke of.”

Alphonse propped himself up on his healthy knee and readied his shortsword. He still wasn't in top form since the battle against the ogre. He scanned the broken plaza for any other enemies. His eyes settled on Evelyn, who was lying on the ground being tended to by an unknown individual in black ninja-like attire. The poor woman looked as if she'd pass out if she so much as took too deep a breath.

The original plan was to scope the situation and assist anyone that might have been injured by an explosion. Alphonse still had the possibility of hostiles in the back of his mind, but he hadn't actually expected it in this part of the city. There was rarely any infighting among the demihumans, and humans didn't even usually bother coming here.

Alphonse observed the other side of the broken fountain where the white-haired man stood. Much of his pale skin was hidden beneath his leather armor, while the remainder was covered in what appeared to be tattoos. A number of pouches in various sizes hung from his belts, chest and back. In his hands were a strange spherical device and a curved dagger.

He shifted his attention back to the spellcaster with the book. Shit. Is he really a contract holder?

Alphonse didn't know what it was, but something seemed to prod at his senses as he looked at the book. He tore his gaze away and saw that the woman crouched next to Evelyn was staring straight at him. His thoughts immediately thought of Ash and her ridiculous perception.

The spellcaster and the man who called himself an alchemist also glanced in their direction as Evelyn plainly followed their gazes.

Well, guess it's time for us to make an entrance, he thought.

He stood up and motioned for his party to follow, and they revealed themselves to the faint light of the streetlamps illuminating the plaza.

“We never seem to get much of a break,” he said a little louder than he intended. He drew his shortsword and took a purposeful step back.

“Naturally,” Asa said calmly.

“Works for me,” Kirie chimed in with her typical enthusiasm.

Alphonse was slightly taken aback when Ash moved to step in front of him. She scanned the area with her intense gaze and gave him a barely perceptible nod in the direction of the alchemist. She didn't seem fazed in the least, even with one of her arms rendered immobile.

“Sure you don't wanna sit this one out, Ash?” Alphonse asked.

The fox woman smoothly drew one of her scimitars from its sheath. “Yeah, I'm good.”

Bullshit! he thought. You have one working arm!

She always acted like the typical careful roguish-type, but now he was starting to wonder if she was crazy like Kirie, but just way more reserved about it.

“You'll have to deal with us too,” Alphonse said to the spellcaster. He stepped next to Ash and realized that her aura of confidence was infectious. He almost regretted the words as they left him. Provocation didn't seem like the best decision, but after getting a closer look at Evelyn, he was glad he said it for her sake.

The older man stiffened. His fingers flexed along the orange book's binding. “I see. This changes everything.” He rested a hand on his chest and made a deep bow. “A pleasure to finally meet you, Evan-McCarthy. Truly, it is an honor to find someone of the purest True Equivalence.”

“Not sure what you mean by that,” Alphonse said. He tightened the grip on his sword. “But I'm not liking it so much.”

The man chuckled and gave the two catgirls an admiring look. “Yes, such resilience. Rinka chose well. To think you would give up so much for the sake of others. I know it well.”

Alphonse glanced at the two catgirls to see if the mention of their mother had any effect. It did, but not in the way he expected.

Kirie lifted the axe off her shoulder and let it settle in both hands. “Evan, please give me the word. He's pissing me off.”

“Same here,” Asa said. She nodded to the man standing on the opposite side of the courtyard. “I think he's ready too.”

The white-haired man lightly tossed the sphere in his hand a few times and took up a staggered stance. “Your assistance is appreciated. On your signal.” One of the tattoos on the back of his hand began to glow with a violet light.

Alphonse forced a humorless grin. He had already figured this man was the alchemist Ash mentioned on a previous occasion. It was almost fitting that he ran into him now of all times.

“This might be an interesting opportunity,” the spellcaster said. A crimson aura crawled down the length of one arm as he concentrated his mana.

Alphonse read his intent but decided to make one last venture. "I guess you aren't willing to answer some questions," he said.

"That would be counterproductive at this time," the spellcaster answered.

Figured as much, Alphonse thought.

Alphonse raised his hand. He paused for a moment before he said, "Kirie..."

The catgirl charged forward. The alchemist simultaneously acquiesced and took it as his signal.

The spellcaster lifted both hands in either direction of his closing attackers. “So that's how it is.”

Two walls of protection emerged without any incantation. Kirie's axe dug into one side as a fractured explosion dealt damage to the other. Thin cracks appeared on both.

The spellcaster brought his hand up in an arc and pushed Kirie back with a slice of wind magic. The handle of Kirie's axe split the spell in two to mitigate the force, but it still managed to push her back out of striking distance. She planted her rear foot, brought the axe in a vertical arc and leveled it with the head facing her opponent. One of Asa's delayed protection spells emerged to ward off a follow-up fire orb. The flames spread across the barrier and sputtered out.

“Impressive,” the spellcaster said. “A single blow from an axe matches an alchemist's shard explosives. It seems allocating the stats of an outworlder was a clever move.”

Alphonse's hands shook as he scaled the aim of his drawn bow. The hell...? How does he-

His thoughts halted as he felt his foot sinking into the ground. He pushed backwards just as a spear of rock emerged. It seemed their enemy had anticipated this, for the cobblestone began to tremble where he landed during his retreat. He carried his momentum by lifting his foot, and then planted it in the opposite direction. The second spear was close enough to shift the hairs on his arm. He whirled about and loosed an arrow, hoping that the spellcaster was too absorbed with the current spell to ready any defenses.

The arrow bounced off the man's chest and clattered harmlessly to the ground. The area where the arrow made impact rippled like a stone breaking the surface of a pond.

“Excellent instincts,” the man said. “And you've been working on your perception. Very good.”

Alphonse watched as a fire orb from Asa consumed the spellcaster's form. A heavy shower of falling stone from the alchemist joined in. The fire and smoke dissipated with a quick diagonal swipe from the spellcaster's arm. The enemy stood unfazed amidst the remnants of discolored clouds. Not even his demeanor shifted in the slightest. However, the body protection spell that surrounded him did shimmer in and out of existence. There had to be at least some damage.

Alphonse stared dumbstruck. What the hell are we dealing with?

“Interesting,” the man said. He focused his gaze on Asa and curled his fingers. A bespeckled, violet light shot from his hand. The catgirl dodged aside, but was engulfed in a wave of destroyed stone as the spell swerved to the ground. The thick fog of detritus sucked inwards where Asa once stood. It blew forward after a brief moment as Asa finished a basic firewall spell to obscure her enemy's vision.

Kirie seized the advantage and brought her axe down at an angle towards the spellcaster's head. He raised his arm and caught the blade with the protection spell concentrated on his palm. His knees buckled under her strength as a crimson aura crawled down the handle of her weapon.

His eyes widened when he saw the grin on the warrior catgirl's face. “So much ferocity, Kirie. But you lack discipline.”

Kirie ignored the comment. “Initiate active skill, Seat of Carnage!” The axe suddenly lifted off the spellcaster's hand. Kirie went into a spin mid-air and brought the weapon around in a horizontal swing. Her opponent was forced to use both of his shielded hands to stop himself from being skewered.

He turned his stance, seemingly on instinct, and saw that Alphonse appeared in a quick rush forward with his shortsword.

“When did you-” the spellcaster barely collected himself enough to free one of his hands. He extended it straight, and his staff that had been lying at his feet flew into his hands. One of the runes gyrating around the staff increased pace and initiated a built-in protection, while the spellcaster himself released a wind spell. The force pushed him back along the ground a few feet, but the first inch failed to carry him out of harm's way fast enough.

The scout lashed out with a quick strike. He had anticipated that this enemy would have some trick up his sleeve to block or escape, and so he also redirected the angle of his attack after the feint. The blade barely cut through the withering body protection and sliced along the surprised spellcaster's thigh. Alphonse knew he could've moved in faster if he was at full strength, but his stiff leg that still needed more time to heal held him back.

The spellcaster clamped a hand against his leg as he slid away. The protection over his body formed a thin barrier that meandered like a viscous fluid. The edges of the watery hexagons merged together perfectly until no lines were visible once again. A powerful aura emanated along the contours of his body as he fed the protection more mana.

He narrowed his eyes at Alphonse. It was as if the rest of the individuals in the courtyard didn't exist. “Impressive. I am pleased to see that your deal at the oasis was not an act of cowardice.” He clawed his hand in preparation for another spell. “But it is futile if you don't make further deals.”

“I don't need the fucking book,” Alphonse growled.

Alphonse gritted his teeth and nocked another arrow. He fired it and watched as the spellcaster extended a finger. The arrow halted and wavered for no more than a second before falling to the ground, just as useless as the last one. However, another arrow in quick succession forced him to dodge aside.

But the second arrow wasn't actually fired with the intention of hitting him. The spellcaster noticed the stealthy fox woman move just within his periphery as he shifted his feet in her direction. Her scimitar collided against his waist, but he had already concentrated some of his protection spell to reinforce the area.

The spellcaster's mouth parted slightly when he saw the sharp point of a dagger emerge from the sling that supported her other arm. The throwing dagger flew threw the air with the quick flick of Ash's wrist and dug through the chest portion of his leather armor before he had enough time to balance the protection spell over his body again.

Ash cursed and retreated back to Alphonse's position to regroup.

Unfortunately, the dagger didn't dig deep enough to deal more than a slight flesh wound. The spellcaster pulled the weapon out of his armor and tossed it aside. He returned his attention to Alphonse, as if the brief engagement hadn't happened at all.

“You fear losing yourself,” the other contract holder said. He nodded with satisfaction. “You already understand the contract takes more than it gives in the long term. But you haven't reached the prerequisites to unlock its unique function. Yes, perhaps I was wrong. You aren't ready to enter the dungeon.”

“Protection!” Asa shouted.

A bright pillar of light took advantage of the spellcaster's diverted focus and rose around him. He stared at the melded hexagons with mild interest and rapped his knuckles against one of the tiles. It answered back with a resounding ring. No ripples formed on the surface.

“Superb control as a whole, Asa,” he said. “But there are weak spots. The mana is not evenly distributed on each section.” He shifted his eyes to the edge of the courtyard where she stood. Her healers robe had lost most of its color from the debris. Streaks of blood caked one of her cheeks from a piece of flung rock.

A barely perceptible disturbance shivered along the pillar. The spellcaster calmly looked up and saw the alchemist balancing himself on the edge of the protection spell near its apex. His arm was extended straight with the opposite hand gripping at the elbow for support. A bloody rune was carved in his hand with dark stones the color of obsidian between his fingers. The rune hovered off his palm and spun until it was an incoherent blur of dark light. The stones and dripping blood from his hand dropped and mixed to incite a reaction. A blast of crimson entered the pillar of protection. It burst into countless shards after withstanding the blast for a few precious seconds. The beams of energy shot forth, but the protection spell had served its purpose and contained it long enough to ensure the courtyard wasn't completely engulfed.

Alphonse removed an arm that protected his face from the stinging wind to witness the result of their teamwork. His stomach dropped when he saw the spellcaster standing with his arms bent upwards, fingers clawed and head bowed. A few of the runes on his leather armor sputtered for a few seconds before flickering out of existence. Scorch marks bloomed on the leather armor, but his body showed no signs of clear injury from the alchemist's attack -- only a bit of black soot on his cheek for all the effort.

Everyone stared flabbergasted at the impossible display.

Alphonse wasn't sure if it was his heightened perception that allowed him to see a discrepancy within this display of power, but something drew him to the wound he'd inflicted on the spellcaster's thigh. Blood sprayed in short spurts rather than trickled. He didn't consider himself an expert with anatomy, but he was certain the cut was in the wrong spot and not nearly deep enough to slit the femoral artery. Something was different about his body.

The spellcaster sighed as he glanced down at the blood. “This is...so taxing.” He tore off a piece of what remained of his mostly destroyed robe and used it to wipe the grime from his face. “I believe I have a grasp of your limitations. And we have surely made enough ruckus to attract the city guard. Perhaps, we should consider a truce.”

“Bullshit!” Kirie shouted. She raised her axe again, prepared for another attack.

“No, he's right,” Ash interjected. She struggled to control her trembling arm as she lowered the scimitar. “At this rate, we have more to lose, and he could have killed us by now if he wanted to.”

Alphonse's shoulders slumped as her words fully registered. She was right. This man was just toying with them. But the prospect of an enemy walking away left a bitter taste in his mouth. It was entirely foreign to him. If they pushed their luck, then this man would probably go all out and kill them in no time. Whoever showed up after might be considered a threat, and he would deal with them even faster. In the end, they were getting the better part of the deal.

Goddammit, Alphonse thought. He mirrored Ash and lowered his sword. When he considered the difference in power between his party and a single man, a terrible sense of self-loathing ate at him. He felt weak. Against the dark ogre, they at least had the smallest fraction of a chance. But this man...

The spellcaster turned to Evelyn, who was only barely healed enough to sit upright. “I apologize. It seems those injuries were unwarranted given these unforeseen circumstances.”

He then addressed Alphonse, “Seeker of True Equivalence, do not delay for long. You hinder yourself with the expectations of unity in order to provide greater benefit for those around you.” He raised one if his arms, and a glowing circle of runes appeared beneath him. It slowly raised, and the parts of his body it passed began to disappear into small fragments.

“There is still a shred of faintheartedness that lingers within you,” the spellcaster continued. “I empathize with your betrayal, but do not choose death over losing others. Learn from them, and you will reach your true potential. I wish you luck in this bold endeavor.”

He didn't give Alphonse a chance to respond. He brought his hand down and the remainder of his body obscured in a flash of brilliant light. Everyone recoiled as the radiant white ascended to the sky. After a few seconds it dissipated. A black scar on the ground and some stray light particles was all that remained where the spellcaster once stood.

Alphonse's mind blanked. The words of the spellcaster were there in the void of his mind, echoing over and over. His uncertainty morphed into something not so entirely foreign. He once thought he'd steeled his mind from it in the past. It increased volume, as if something was approaching from the depths of a dark cave of indecision.

He felt powerless.

He shook himself from his scattered thoughts and saw the alchemist and his masked companion each lift one of Evelyn's arms over a shoulder. Kirie, Asa, Ash and Alphonse rallied around them to prepare their retreat out of the eastern district. The contract owner had been right about one thing, the guards couldn't just ignore activity on such a scale. It didn't matter if it was the demihuman district. In fact, they would likely want more than anything for something bad to happen. It gave them an excuse to level more pressure.

“So, you are Evan McCarthy,” the alchemist said. He mostly spoke to himself rather than extending it to Alphonse in greeting. He was too focused on Evelyn.

Alphonse attempted to speak until the alchemist interrupted him, “I know what you want, and I also have questions, but this woman needs medical attention. I'm afraid we must part ways for now.”

Alphonse bit back a poorly rendered comment. He stared at Evelyn and felt foolish for his lack of tact.

“Hold on,” Evelyn gasped. She stared at her side, that had thankfully stopped bleeding, and beckoned for the woman holding her up to reach into her robe. The woman obliged and pulled out a sealed envelope. “That is for him.” She nodded towards Alphonse.

Her urgency rubbed off on him, and he took the letter without hesitation. His eyes remained focused on her as he realized that she was in this terrible state because of what was now in his hands.

"Don't - trust the council,” Evelyn said. She jerked her head violently side to side as her chin tucked into her chest. She swayed on her feet between the two strangers that held her up.

“Killing...adventurers,” she muttered. "Using them..."

The alchemist nodded to Alphonse. "It's time. We will speak again.”

The woman on the opposite side of him folded her rabbit ears beneath her hood and nodded her appreciation. The darkness swallowed them as they disappeared down one of the dark roads.

Alphonse lingered for a short while and stared after them. Everything had happened so fast. One moment he was in the thick of battle, the next he found himself on the run, barely time for thought.

Evelyn's words fully registered as he turned on his heels and followed his comrades out of the plaza. His memory flashed to the archer; his old friend, Alex Lozinski; the spellcaster, Serena Melcott. His heart pounded and he struggled to control his breathing.

'Killing adventurers,' he repeated.