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Love was a word I used sparingly. I rarely, if ever, used it when it involved another human being.

I typically reserved the utterance for objects or concepts.

Battleshift, I loved.

Money, I loved.

Power, I loved.

But after being sent here, I learned that love took on many forms. With time, I came to accept how my dear mother wasn't the only person I was capable of loving.

「Zozo! The kids want to play tag, want to join us?」

Melyn, I loved. From day one, she was my truest friend.

Her exuberance, her loyalty, her repartee.

She was sloppy, couldn't think for herself, and was unwilling to face her past.

As much as I hated to admit it, I cared about her. Her good qualities, her bad qualities, all of them I cared about.

All of them I loved.

「Oi, ya ninny! Try one o' yer moves on me, I think I can dodge it!」

Thonvir, I loved. We got off on the wrong foot but slowly opened up to one another.

His bravery, his honesty, his adoration.

He was overprotective when it came to his sister, quick to blush when you complimented him, yet stuck to his guns no matter what.

It wasn't always apparent, but I cared about him. His good side, his bad side, all of them I cared about.

All of them I loved.

「Hey Lorenzo! It's our turn to clean up the dorms! Huh? You thought you were with Ysolva today? Oh no silly, it's probably just your imagination! Come on let's go!」

Oleena, I loved. Regardless of her feelings for me, I still knew her as someone I could confide in.

Her wittiness, her cheekiness, her craftiness.

She'd frequently bully Thonvir, was constantly plagued by her mother's coma and was terrible at concealing her attraction towards me.

Although she would often border on annoying, I still cared about her. Her good side, her bad side, all of them I cared about.

All of them I loved.

「Um... good mornin'... Lorenzo...」

Ysolva, I loved. We seldom spoke, but I'd always be possessed by the need to protect her.

Her meekness, her kindness, her naivety.

She'd run behind Thonvir without fail, was afraid of men, and would never let anyone know how she was feeling.

The handkerchief in my pocket said it all. I cared about her. Her good side, her bad side, all of them I cared about.

All of them I loved.

「Hey kid! Did ya see th' arm wrestlin' match last night?! That Rysef was definitely out o' breath right?!」

Asthos, I loved.

「Lorenzo! How's your training? If you need me to tutor you some more, I'd be happy to whip you into shape! Um... pun unintended...」

Lia, I loved.

「Mm. Good day t' ya Lorenzo. Ya wouldn't happen t' be sick now would ya?」

Maksa, I loved.

「Fancy meeting you here Lorenzo. Headed to the training chamber? I'm headed to the Warrens myself. Patrol duty. Let's both work hard eh?」

Klon, I loved.

The Lakua Village was my home. It was hard not to love the people who made up my home. No matter how much they'd test my patience.

「Kiddo! You should try having a drink with me someday! It'll put some hair on that chest of yours, you know? Haha!」

Even Rysef, I loved.

And there was a collective name for the people I loved. The people who made up the Lakua Village.

My family.

I couldn't picture life without them at that point. They were that special.

Irreplaceable, even.

---

What... is this..?

Sunlight from the door spilled into the unlit cave ahead, illuminating everything.

Littered throughout the room were clumps of small bodies, burnt beyond recognition. The strong odor of singed hair and charred flesh was unmistakable.

Through the darkness and the dying embers, I spotted a pair of distinct corpses in the center of it all.

One was hunched over the other. And next to the pair of bodies, was a familiar piece of cloth, scorched and blackened by the same flame that took all these lives.

In a trice, my mind was flooded with the realization of what I was looking at. The sight, the smell, the situation—I registered it all upon glimpsing the handkerchief on the ground.

Hit with a wave of severe nausea, I keeled over and vomited.

What the hell... is all this..?

Through the tears and retch, I witnessed Melyn silently proceed towards the slain siblings. Not a word exited her mouth.

She simply stared at the dead children for what felt like an eternity.

Then she spoke.

「Zozo... call Maksa. The kids need medical attention.」

「M-Mel..?」

What she was saying was impossible. Ani magic didn't work on inanimate objects. If it wasn't alive, there was no bringing it back.

The thief girl understood that and yet...

「Zozo... quit dawdling and lend me a hand. Ysolva and Virvir are injured... they need help...」

「Mel... but they're...」

From behind, I could tell she was clenching her teeth.

「Say, Zozo... what are you going to do..?」

「Huh..?」

「This is your fault isn't it..?」

I was taken aback by her blunt response. She wasn't completely wrong but... I had a hard time believing she'd blame me of all people.

Foolishly, I closed my fists and confronted her.

「And... what do you mean by that?!」

「You lied to me. You just couldn't keep your nose clean after I told you to...」

「T-this isn't my fault, Mel! It would've happened either way—」

「THEN WHO AM I SUPPOSED TO BLAME?!」

She turned to me with tears dribbling down her cheeks. The thief girl had finally lost her composure.

The resulting meltdown left a lump in my throat.

「You would always dig into the Church when I wasn't looking. Even when I was in the same room you'd whisper about it. Do you really think I'm that stupid, Zozo..? You think I didn't know..? You yourself said that you were responsible for this. By bringing the infirmed here, you let them find us right..?」

My emotions got the better of me, and before I knew it, I grew defensive.

「Then if you're so smart... why didn't you stop me..?」

「Because I trusted you...」

「What?」

Melyn bit her tongue as her lips quivered.

「So..? What are you going to do Zozo..? You always went on about your plans right..?」

I backed down as she quietly mouthed her inquiry. There was no answer I could give.

「How are you going to bring everyone back?!」

I couldn't look her in the eye. Nothing I said would've helped.

「HOW WILL YOU TURN EVERYTHING BACK TO NORMAL?!」

Following my inability to respond came a plaintive cry from her that gradually turned into a wail. A loud keening that tore into the dead silent atmosphere.

A sound that shattered my soul.

I staggered to my feet, walked past the crying thief girl, and picked up my handkerchief off the floor. It almost disintegrated into ash as I held it aloft.

When I said I wasn't keeping my promise... this wasn't what I meant...

I inspected the two corpses once more.

Till the end, Thonvir protected Ysolva. I clutched my handkerchief as I tried to imagine the pain they felt before perishing.

Death by fire was only to be reserved by those who deserved hell. For mere children to experience it...

It made me sick to the stomach thinking about it, yet soon replacing that disgust was an unbearable sadness.

I surveyed the place, hoping I could find the remains of Oleena... to no purpose. Most of the other bodies had melded into dark brown masses.

「Who would do this..?」

Creeeaaak..!

As if to answer my question... the door on the other side of the room opened, revealing another child. But this was no child from the village.

They donned the Bloody Talons' signature feathered coat. Concealing their face was a hooked beak mask and strapped to their back was some sort of gas canister.

「Two more targets..?」

From the muffled voice alone, I deduced they were a "she". And judging by her height, I figured she was around Thonvir's age. Young... but not that young...

「You... you did this..?」

I tried keeping my cool as the little girl approached me. She was equipped with what appeared to be a flamethrower. The flexible tubes connecting her backpack to her weapon were a telltale sign.

Thus, provoking her would be a bad idea.

This bitch is probably the one behind the village fires...

「Thirty-three platinum coins, thirty-four platinum coins.」

「What..?」

She was undeniably adding us to her kill count. A platinum coin for every human life was still ridiculously cheap.

The masked assassin didn't seem to care though.

「Hey birdbrain! I asked if this is your handiwork!」

She ignored me and instead shifted her focus to the thief girl.

「She is being loud. I do not like loud noises.」

「She's bawling her eyes out because of what you did, murderer!」

「Murderer? Me?」

Her deadpan delivery was reminiscent of a robot's. If this was any indicator of some machinelike accuracy, then we were in trouble. My wooden cudgel wouldn't fair well against literal flames.

Moreover, we were dead center in a relatively cramped room. She had the upper hand when it came to combat. As much as it pained me, our only option was to retreat.

But Melyn was not in an ideal state to be taking orders. I had no choice but to stall for time.

「Y-you're with the Bloody Talons, right? How'd a kid like you get in? You must be pretty skilled with that weapon of yours huh..?」

「That is irrelevant. All that matters is that I end your lives right here, right now.」

「Why would you give up your humanity for meager earning huh?! You could earn much more doing way less!」

「But to give up your humanity is the least one can do. I do not understand the point you are trying to make.」

For a child, she was certainly stony-faced. Talking my way out of this wouldn't work with her. The young contract killer was hellbent on obliterating us.

Suddenly, a string of footfalls interrupted my cogitation, accompanied by the absence of Melyn's cries. The thief girl had a cudgel in one hand and a blistering rage building up in her heart.

It was the worst possible move she could've made.

「You... so you're the one who did this...」

「Yes. In accordance with the contract. Every person here is to be eliminated and disposed of.」

Before I could tell Melyn to stand down, she streaked towards the assassin with killing intent, no different than a speeding bullet.

But of course, the Bloody Talons were a force to be reckoned with. By the time the thief was halfway there, the kid had already readied her flamethrower and prepared to let loose.

Rapidity was a common trait between these feathered hitmen.

「MEL!」

BVVVVVV!

I yelled her name before a searing heat momentarily flashed across my body.

The inferno had been unleashed. One that showered the room in bright and violent orange. I squinted at the source of the blaze, expecting the worst.

Instead...

「What on earth..?」

The illustrious white barrier appeared out of nowhere, shielding the stunned thief girl from guaranteed incineration.

My eyes darted around the room and sure enough, by the entrance was my mentor.

「Lia!」

Drenched in water and heavily wounded, she levered herself up against the doorway.

「L-Lorenzo! Melyn! Get away from her immediately!」

She swiftly and seamlessly transformed the chalk defense into a net, using it to snatch us away to safety.

Once we were out of harm's reach, Lia pushed the chalk wall back into the foxhole and broke it up into a cloud of dust. It filled the air and powdered the assassin an off-white.

「What are you doing here? What happened to Anash and Tyton?」

「Should you... really be worrying about them... monster..?」

Lia could scarcely speak, but did so out of necessity.

The young assassin responded by staying in place. She didn't move a muscle.

「I've read all about you, Lia. Your specialty is chalk manipulation. You purposely reduced your pieces of limestone into fine dust in the hopes of trapping me.」

「D-did I now..?」

And using all of her strength, Lia seized our collars and threw me and Melyn outside. She then returned to facing the beaked girl.

「But that will not work on me. My coat is heat resistant and chalk has a low melting point. If you plan on apprehending me by hardening this weak material, I simply have to burn it off.」

「Well... aren't you knowledgeable?」

The little girl raised her flamethrower and prepared to attack.

「Your life constitutes five whole platinum coins. It would give me great pleasure, taking it.」

The instant the contract killer tugged on the trigger, Lia turned on her heel and alerted us of the incoming conflagration.

「The two of you, get down!」

BOOM!

A dust explosion.

The fire ignited the flammable particles of chalk dust, causing a chain reaction that led to a spectacular blast.

It produced enough force to collapse the ceiling. Within seconds, the foxhole caved in. Lia had jumped out and wrapped her arms around us as the ground rumbled.

I looked over her shoulders to see the aftermath. A pile of rockfall had buried the entire place.

Thonvir, Ysolva, Oleena, and all the other orphans were gone. That was final.

Melyn pushed herself away from the injured woman and rushed to the plugged-up opening.

「Lia... w-why..? Virvir and Ysolva were still in there...」

The thief girl collapsed to her knees as her puffy crimson eyes were stuck to the site. She was undoubtedly reminded of her painful past.

She had lost her loved ones again.

「Melyn we couldn't... save them anymore. There was no other way... I could've dispatched the assassin. Not in my current condition...」

Lia was profusely bleeding from her arm. She was in need of a healer, but Maksa was nowhere to be found.

「Lia, are you okay?! Why'd you show up here? Weren't you dealing with Anash..?」

「About that...」

Her expression dimmed.

「I'm fine. For now, Anash has retreated but Asthos is...」

Understanding the fate that had befallen the hunter, I took a step back.

Asthos of all people..?

I was overcome with a familiar helplessness I felt two years ago.

I may have been strong enough to protect myself, but when it came to the people I loved, I was laughably powerless. The darkened sky reflected my misery—the hopelessness before us.

My newfound family was steadily fading away like a mist. I wishfully hoped I could reach out and grab it to no avail.

There was no happiness handed to me in a silver platter. There was only sadness, and regret.

My dreams had presaged everything, yet it was only when they transpired, that I started recalling them. It was an endless cycle of déjà vu, one that preceded heartbreak and turmoil.

「Rysef's new orders are to protect you. I may be in bad shape, but I still have plenty of stamina.」

「L-Lia... you don't have to overdo it you know.」

In a rare display of emotions, Lia chuckled and pat me on the back.

「I'm your teacher, Lorenzo... I have to overdo it.」

She was beautiful when she smiled. I understood why Asthos was crazy about her.

Now he'll never see it again...

「Melyn, let's go! I'm taking you two to a safe place until everything calms down. We need to travel back through the village but... Tyton should be preoccupied with Rysef, so we're safe as long as we don't intervene.」

「...care anymore...」

The thief girl said something under her breath.

「Mel..?」

「I just don't care anymore...」

She sounded empty—irreversibly damaged by everything going on. The Melyn I knew would bounce back easily from any woe.

But now she was truly broken.

Lia, an ex-soldier, understood the look in her crimson eyes. It was the same look many of her comrades-in-arms shared after a long and grueling mission.

And she wordlessly went up to the thief girl and carried her.

Fighting through the excruciating pain in her limbs, she proceeded onward away from the springs and walked down the path back to the village.

As the waterfall blared in the background, I looked back one last time.

I was wrong when I said the spring waters were untainted by blood. They were very much colored a deep sanguine in my eyes.

What used to be a place of fond memories had become a haunting reminder of my sins. It was forever ingrained in my mind as a location of death.

Thonvir, Ysolva, Oleena...

Beloved names I would never say again.

Beloved friends I would never see again.

Beloved lives that would never be lived through.

And people, whose fresh blood I had on my hands.

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