A prison would never be a pleasant eyesight.

Perchance was the only most frigid site in the middle of summer warmth. Others also declared it as the Infernal Tartarus on earth, so torrid it made no sense for the summer itself.

Two big personnel dragged the poor Alicia with force to the registration chamber. Alicia did not attack herself with a tantrum, for she was trying so hard to repress her dread. However, her eyes are still teary and her lips kept begging that all of this was just an utter misunderstanding.

Entering the chamber, the young girl was told to sit in the only empty chair around. In front of her was an officer in white with a haggard face—probably due to lack of sleep.

The gloomy man sat in the middle of the hanging lamp, staring at Alicia. The dark contrasting corners added to the unpleasant impression of the room. Not to mention the deep shade enveloped the face of the officer as if Alicia was encountering a serial killer in a deserted alley. This forlorn room was more like an interrogation chamber. The officer with an ID that read ‘David Whistlehoff’ then took out a form and a pen and began to write. The two men who were herding Alicia earlier backed, uniting with the shadows.

“Name?” said David, the administrator.

Alicia, who was lulled by the room's horror, was surprised. “W-what? S-sorry, can you repeat?”

“First question and you’ve already wasted my time,” David grumbled in a flat tone. “Name!”

“Sorry. Alicia. C-Crimsonmane.”

“Sorry Alicia Crimsonmane?”

“Alicia Crimsonmane. Sorry.”

David looked at her annoyed again with his blank eyes. No one could tell if he really hated this profession.

“Mystic Art?”

“I-I don’t know.”

David Whistlehoff gazed back at him sharply. This time, suspicion carved his pale visage. “‘Don’t Know’ is not a mystic art, Miss Crimsonmane.”

“I-I mean…,” In desperate, Alicia continued, “I don’t know what magic discipline I used. I j-just used my power, s-spontaneously...”

David’s brows furrowed. The sound of her breathing became heavy, Alicia was perplexed about what was wrong with the way she spoke.

“D-Did I say something wrong?” she asked.

“Are you playing with me, miss?”

Alicia was getting more and more nervous. “I-I d-d-don’t know what that m-means, sir.”

“Huh,” David called the officer in the corner to get a pushcart filled with certain tools, then he proceed with his writing.

The pushcart displayed the equipment on it in bright light: metal gloves, metal eye patch, restraint armour, an iron mask with a bulge at the back of its mouth—to gag one’s mouth, apparently. Then there was a bottle of peculiar potion and more unsaid dubious apparatuses. David’s eyes were drawn to a small box with a hand hole in one side, then he grabbed it with his left hand. What made Alicia hesitate was that its upper side formed the temperament of an angry dragon with flaming eyes. There were suspicious serratures inside the hole.

“Put your hand in there, lady,” David ordered.

Alicia was worried. “What’s that? What’s in the box?”

David drew his face back a little, making the employee’s demeanour even more sinister due to the contrast of light and shadow around his mien.

“…Pain,” answered the emotionless man.

Alicia suddenly panicked and started to wail. “Wait! Please don’t torture me, I will tell you everything! I’ll be honest Please, please!”

“Divine Mercy, calm down, miss. It’s just a procedure! It’s not that bad.”

The two personnel approached Alicia. She just could not believe the cradle from a prison receptionist. The first officer restrained herself from breaking loose, while the other forced Alicia’s left hand to enter the box hole full of teeth. Alicia squirmed with enormous vigour, trying her entire being to let out a scream. But what the slender girl could do compared to the guards with robust muscles? The first officer covered Alicia’s mouth with his hand lest she did not create another furor.

Alicia’s hand made it into the hole, almost without resistance. The hole then gave off a bright blue glow, then an even brighter light streak appeared across her palm as if it was being scanned. David took her hand out of the box, and the guards released their grip on Alicia’s being. They returned to the black lair, laughing. Alicia looked at the flat Whistlehoff with an incredulous face. She had just been pranked in a penitentiary, and David Whistlehoff didn’t try so hard to laugh as if he had been born that way.

The dragon's carving on the top side of the box split apart and formed the puzzle pieces, revealing a screen that Alicia had no idea what it contained. David looked at the contents of the screen and simply responded, “Oh,” as he wrote it down on the report.

“W-what did it say?” asked Alicia, curious.

“Not your business,” said David. “Please seal this lady.”

“Are you going to tease me again, shameless Mister Whistlehoff?”

One of the guards came to take out his wand and began to cast a spell.

“Verum Vates!”

The tip of the wand started to glow. The guard was about to paint something onto Alicia’s right hand, which had a burn mark on it.

“Stop! Come on, not there! Don’t you feel pity for her? The other hand!” cried David.

The officer switched sides and returned to paint the other hand. The drawing resembled a glowing magic circle. It gave Alicia a tingling sensation for a moment, a sign that the spell had already been implanted.

“Now we’ve done that, moving on,” said David. “You said earlier that you don’t know the mystic art you practice? Does your magic rely on hand and body movements?”

Alicia was still unsure whether this David was asking seriously or not behind his reluctant temper.

“Y-yes,” she answered.

“What about finger movements?”

“A wee bit, I guess.”

“Eyes?”

“Pardon me?”

“Your eyes. Do you control your magic through your eyes?”

“I d-don’t know. Maybe not.”

“Do you need a magic conducting medium to cast spells?”

“My power comes from Orb, so yes.”

“Do you say your spell?”

“I don’t.”

“Are you sure you’re not a sorcerer, miss?”

“I’m not a sorcerer. Like I said, I don’t practise magic from any discipline.”

“Then how do you cast magic?”

“I… I fuse my mind with Orb to gain its power.”

“That magic ball of yours? So it’s not a divination orb? Without Orb you can’t do any magic?”

“I don’t know if Orb can predict one’s fortunes. And no, I can’t do magic without my Orb. A divination orb is fake, by the way, there’s no such thing. One little trivia for you.”

David Whistlehoff stared at the girl with intent, then at her stamped hand. The magic circle seemed unresponsive, so he summed up his report.

“We don’t need any of these. Get rid of it.” The guards then took the pushcart back into the artificial dark night. David, with his blank yet sharp gaze, intended to enunciate something to Alicia.

“The good news is, without the orb, you’re just A girl. These two kind officers here will escort you to a low-level magic detention room. The magic circle in your hand will stay there until the trial is concluded. Thank you, have a good rest.”

David Whistlehoff did not beat around the bush, even completely indifferent to the Crimsonmane girl who supposedly wielded the strongest magic power in the universe. The two officers hauled Alicia right away through the door behind David.

“Wait!” asked Alicia before heading for the door. “You’re really going to imprison a sixteen-year-old teenager?”

David turned around. “You’re a mage, miss, aren’t you? A mage, no matter one’s age, will be dealt with strict and equal, if necessary.”

***

Along the passage, the petty magic prisoners faced outside to confirm that the rumours were true. As the herded Alicia walked to her cell, the prisoners began to show their predatory intentions toward the young girl. Whistling and collections of nasty words were thrown at her.

“Look alive, lads! A bonnie lassie coming in!”

“How come a pretty bookworm lik’ ye ended up here?”

“Wench! yer having that pure Arcane with ye, are ye not?”

“If ye dinnae want harm, share yer magic with me, wee fanny!”

“Hey, little girl. Why are you being carried to prison by those two lackeys? Let uncle cuddle you here, hen.”

“You’re the possessor of pure magic power? A runny girl like you?”

“Look! Look at her frantic coupon! Och, how I can’t wait to scratch her face, hahaha!”

“Why don’t you use your mighty magic to get yourself or us out? Come on, come up with a trick or two for us!”

“The guards are so kind, they left us a piece of entertainment!”

“White, smooth, a pure arcane owner, plump body as well! Ellie’s wrath you must be a noble lass! Let me taste a noble lass!”

“Yer gaun to ‘enjoy’ yer time in jail, wean! Because we’ll enjoy it too. Especially since yer powerless here.”

All the verbal abuse that came out really made her shudder in silence. Alicia kept her head down, not wanting to look at the rancid, depraved prisoners. Thankfully, the guards understood, and they marched faster.

Finally, they reached the quieter prison complex. At the far end of the cell, Alicia was locked there and left alone. All around the walls, she could see glowed colorful symbols, which seemed to be magic runes used to seal one’s mana to be cast out as spells.

Alicia sat down on the bed, her eyes swelled. Living in a solitary confinement cage in the midst of ruthless ragamuffins had never been so eerie.

“Don’t panic, Alicia. Don’t panic!” she asked herself. “You can get through this. You can get through the court well. You just have to tell the truth, easy, right? It’ll pass!”

A more civilised address from across the cell caught Alicia’s attention. His euphonious yet masculine voice made the young girl turn her head.

“A new roommate? Hello to anyone there!”

A young man was revealed from the face of the cell. Looked like he had just finished his workout, judging by the sweat on his face, and the lustrous biceps that the black singlet could not reach. He gazed directly at Alicia Crimsonmane’s eyes while wiping his face with a small towel.

The bookworm’s eyes widened, almost as big as her round glasses. Her hands gripping the cage poles tight. The prior sadness had come to pass her as she was hypnotised into the gate of puppy love.

‘What does a handsome man do in Tartarus on earth? Is he the devil trapped behind bars too?’

Alicia even recalled an incubus demon in one of her readings—Yes, the same books and encyclopedias she read all the time (there was also a charming incubus portrait inside). The devil, incubus, god of death, whatever mysterious creature it was, was always described as the most beautiful creature in the entire universe. His elegance and charisma had prevailed in deceiving all beings of all ages.

The man’s skin seemed pale but radiated a bright shine, nonetheless. His hair was shoulder-length black curls, falling down and gleaming with his perspiration. His mint green eyes were tired, just like Whistlehoff’s, but the gaze tore down the sky. It implied a mysterious impression with a thousand and one interpretations to Alicia’s already melted mind. He was actually not as tall as any common adults—almost on par with Alicia, in fact. But Alicia was already an idolater. She desired to squeeze the tiny man even more.

“W-who?” asked the flabbergasted Alicia.

The man gave a slight grin. Alicia let her mouth agape. Her heart fell off.

“I am… one of the magic prisoners, I suppose?” said the man, frowning. “Not an important person, though. But it’s nice to have someone to talk to in this empty compound—“

“I’m Alicia!” she uttered abruptly.

“Pardon me?”

The aware Alicia immediately blushed. She was shaking so hard while trying to change the topic through her stuttering lips.

The man just laughed. “Even though you were just about to cry, you suddenly felt so awkward. Is that how attractive I am?”

Alicia didn’t know where else to put her face. Covering her face with her hands was the only way that came to mind, because of how abashed the girl was.

“I-I… N-n-no… S-sorry! Didn’t mean… I d-didn’t mean… you… just j-j-just….”

“I’m Mars,” interrupted the man, who stopped her relapse of the stuttering straightaway. “Why does a young lady like you have to be here?” he asked again.

Still embarrassed, Alicia looked the other way. “Y-you don’t have to ask, do you? You must have heard the rumours recently, just like the others.”

“Oh, it’s you! I never expected the Divine Grace in flesh. Bless me.”

The perfunctory compliment felt different to Alicia. “N-not me! I can’t cast pure Arcane. The power is connected to a magic sphere, and somehow the Romans were able to block my mind, making me unable to access its power.”

“I see. Western-rite Sorcery is really good at manipulating thoughts and suggestions. But I’ll tell you one simple trick. You can’t control your magic ball because your brain is blocked by suggestions. The best way to erase those suggestions is to touch the surface of the ball and Voila! The blockades shall perish. The point is to feel and connect with what was once part of you again.”

“Wait, really?”

“I’m a Western-rite sorcerer myself, of course, really.”

Alicia dared to meet her eyes with Mars’. “You… Mars? W-what about you? Why are you even here?”

“Ah… It’s not grandiose. I fought with other wizards over personal matters. They’ll release me later,” said Mars.

Both human beings advanced in silence. Alicia was still nervous, not knowing what else to say. But it seemed Mars was yet done with his inquisitiveness about the girl.

“Your burn is unique,” Mars teased. “Don’t you think your wound is more like a symbol, rather than just an ordinary burn?”

Alicia hid her right hand.

“Oops, sorry if that offended you. I have a wound on my hand, too. Look!” Mars stuck his bandaged palm out of the cell.

“Eh, no, it’s just… This burn is different from the others. It might look disturbing to you.”

Mars could only chuckle. “You kept your wounds uncovered all the time, yet you’re even shy about my opinion? Alicia, could you—“

Alicia realized she had slipped, her face was red as chili jam!

“ARGH! You! Why are you so straightforward like that?” shouted Alicia with embarrassment.

Mars burst out laughing after hearing her scream. It was long enough for Alicia to turn her face to the side. Mars gradually slowed down his laughter, then tried to lure Alicia again. He said, “Even though we just met. But Alicia, I can’t help but say you are so cute.”

Her ears were hot. Alicia hollered once more in annoyance. “Haud yer wheest! Enough! Enough! Yer a wee scunner!” With a flushed face, she disappeared from the embrace of the cell and ran to her bed, covering her face with the pillow. Alicia squirmed while screaming, muffled by the bed.

‘What kind of prison is this!’

Prison may not always be that bad after all. []