Blargh, I managed to spit out another chapter.

By the way, does anyone want to be my editor, or rather, chapter checker? Considering the length, it's very easy to make small mistakes.

Other than that... uh, enjoy. As the title says, stuff happens.

///

Flickering within the shadows of the night, a fireplace crackled as it dyed the room in a bright vermillion. In front of the hearth of a luxuriously decorated room, five individuals could be seen seated around a low table.

As the apprehensive ambience permeated the already oppressive air, each of the five individuals looked towards each other in weary reserve. With different thoughts running through each of their minds, they anxiously waited for someone to start.

Minutes passed before something finally happened. Standing up slowly, the youth with flaxen blonde hair hesitatingly prepared to share his thoughts on the situation as he quickly gathered the attention of the others. Wearing nothing more than a white shirt and some brown trousers, he looked like a typical male you’d find anywhere despite having rather good facial features. Swallowing the built-up saliva with a big gulp, the youth began speaking.

“Um, before we get to the main issue, why don’t we introduce ourselves first?” The youth said as he glanced around for any objections.

When no one spoke out, the youth tentatively continued, “I guess I’ll start off. My name is Sephtis Helant. As you all might imagine, I’m not quite sure what’s going on either. Even so, I want to try my best to cope with this situation. Um, my hobbies are reading and drawing. Uh, I also like to exercise a lot and-”

Before he could say any more, he was abruptly interrupted as a girl sitting across the table raised her hand in a stopping motion. Unlike Sephtis, this girl was rather peculiar in appearance. Beautiful, lustrous hair that shined in a fluorescent splendor adorned her head as they reflected an assortment of colors. Tied up neatly in a long side-tail, her hair seemed to glimmer amidst the flickering of the hearth. In contrast, her stoic face gave off a pale glow yet, at the same time, accentuated her delicate features. Wearing an intricately-designed silken robe tightly wrapped around her figure, her very presence gave off an air of graceful elegance.

However, everything paled in comparison to her eyes. Within a bright, green iris, three dark pupils swirled around as they continuously rearranged themselves in accordance to the movements of her eyes. As she silently stared back at him, Sephtis fidgeted uncomfortably.

After momentarily examining him, the girl calmly said, “Just your name is fine. We don’t need to know about your personal life.”

“Ah, yes, sorry.” Sephtis apologized.

“There’s no need for apologies. Now, since I’m already speaking, I’ll take this chance to introduce myself as well. I go by the name of Chesnia Karnaciel. Despite the circumstances, it’s a pleasure to meet you all.” Chesnia replied with a smile.

“This here is my little sister, Vera.” Chesnia continued as she tapped the shoulder of the girl sitting beside her.

Getting a little flustered as she became the center of attention, Vera quickly hid behind Chesnia in panic. Incidentally, Vera looked almost identical to Chesnia with the exception of four pupils in her eyes instead of three and having a side-tail on the other side of her head.

“Don’t mind her too much. She can be a little shy around other people, especially around those she does not recognize.” Chesnia explained as Vera peered out from behind.

“Now then, why don’t we have the rest of you introduce yourselves so we can move on to the problem at hand?” Chesnia finished as she waved towards the others.

At the signal, another girl sitting near Sephtis stood up. The girl had long, wavy crimson hair with streaks of black running through it. Wearing a white, waist-length tunic under a pink bolero and a black jacket decorated with various pins buckled below a brown high belt, she surveyed the group through ruby-like, slit eyes. With a tanned and healthy complexion, the girl held a bit of a wild look as her eyes quickly darted from person to person. Her pointed ears twitched slightly as she gathered her thoughts before finally opening her mouth.

“I’m Audrisylvania Carmine. You can just call me Audris.” The girl declared.

After her introduction, the group turned their attention towards the last member. Looking to be the youngest amongst the current group, the last individual was a boy dressed completely in black. From head to toe, everything from his hair to his clothing was an almost unnerving black with the only exception being the glowing silver crescent sigil on his forehead. With empty, seemingly-lifeless eyes and eerie, porcelain-white skin, the boy gazed apathetically at the group as they stared at him strangely.

“Darce.” The boy said with a coarse, wispy voice before shifting his eyes downwards.

Realizing that Darce wasn’t going to say anymore, Sephtis said, “Um, alright, so now that we know each other a little better, let’s move on.”

“Can we all agree that we want to return back to where we came from?” Sephtis asked as he looked around for approval. Receiving a few nods in response with the exception of Darce, Sephtis continued on.

“So, to do that, I think we should try and help out with this country’s current predicament. The king said he could send us back if we do that much. Are you guys alright with this?” Sephtis proposed.

“If that’s what it takes to get us back, then I’m fine with it. Since we’re already here, we might as well do some good in this world before going back.” Audris agreed.

“I’d like to respectfully decline.” Chesnia refused as she crossed her arms.

“Huh? Why?” Audris asked in surprise.

“Yeah, please tell us your reason.” Sephtis requested, a bit perplexed at her refusal.

“Well, to put it simply, I do not trust the king’s words. Much like the others who left, I’m of the impression that the king is hiding something important from us. Besides, there is no guarantee that he will send us back even if we did help him or if he is even able to.” Chesnia held a hand out and explained.

“The people at the top of any hierarchy will always have something to hide. I don’t think it’s something to discredit him over. Moreover, he even said it himself that he will send us back after we’ve finished.” Audris responded.

“We’ve been taken here against our will, don’t you think we have the right to know about the whole situation? Even then, I’m not naive enough to take people’s words at face value. Did you not notice the corpses of those priests? If that is how the summoning ritual ended up for them, then I’d rather take my chances elsewhere.” Chesnia calmly rebuked.

“Then what are you planning to do? This is the best, and as of right now, the only chance we have to return. Besides, are you just going to abandon the people of this country who desperately need us right now?” Audris questioned.

“My sister and I are going to bide our time for now and gather information. If the situation becomes unfavorable, then we will leave and find our own way back.” Chesnia answered.

“So you’re just going to ignore the people of this country?” Audris asked.

“Essentially, yes.” Chesnia affirmed.

“You know, you’re sounding rather selfish right now. How can you just abandon the people of this country when they’re desperate enough to summon us here? Even more so than that, you are only hurting the rest of our chances of returning by leaving. Shouldn’t we be working together since we are in the same situation?” Audris asked, her eye twitching with a slight irritation.

“That is precisely why I want to leave should anything troublesome happen. Why do you think they’re desperate enough to summon us here? Because the enemy is dangerous. It’s not that I don’t wish to work together, more so the fact that I prioritize me and my sister’s safety above all else. Sorry to say, but that includes all of you as well.” Chesnia reasoned.

“How can you act so self-centered? If the enemy takes over this country, then the situation will only grow worse won’t it? We’ll lose our only lead and then what? All our safeties are important, not just yours, so we should stick together to increase our chances of returning. And right now, our only lead to getting back is with the king. If he could summon us, then shouldn’t he know how to send us back as well?” Audris said as she frowned at Chesnia’s answer.

“I am not acting self-centered; I am being reasonable. Do you believe this is some game? This is reality, and the reality is that this country wants us to fight in a war. I don’t know about you, but I’m not carefree enough to fight some stranger’s war for them, much less strangers who forced us here against our will. I’m not going to arbitrarily put myself at risk for people who have the gall to think that they can just bring us here without our consent and expect us to comply with them. Rather than heroes, I’m of the impression that they view us as nothing more than tools; commodities to be used and then disposed of.” Chesnia refuted.

“Then why are you even here!? If you didn’t want to work with us to begin with, then why didn’t you just up and leave like the other three!?” Audris snapped, getting tired of Chesnia’s stubbornness.

Closing her eyes for a brief moment before slowly opening them, Chesnia glared at Audris. “Because, we did not have any other choice. We know nothing of this world. Not. A. Single. Thing. I’m not headstrong enough to believe that nothing out there can threaten us. Even setting aside the outer dangers, we can’t understand the language of this world without these bracelets; it would be impossible to gather any information should these bracelets be taken away. Do you really understand the meaning of us being here against our will? It means that, for now, we are forced to cooperate. And even if those issues did not exist, I still wouldn’t want to go and antagonize an entire country. Now if you get that, then why don’t you put that little brain of yours to better use and think of a way to get more information about that summoning ritual among other things?”

Scowling, Audris asked through grit teeth, “Are you picking a fight with me?”

“If I wanted to do that then I would insult something other than your intelligence because clearly you don’t have any.” Chesnia mocked.

“You bitch.” Audris growled

“They say a person’s vocabulary reflects their personality. You must be quite the crude person.”

Before anyone knew what happened, a loud splintering crack reverberated through the room as Audris’s hand smashed through the backrest of Chesnia’s chair right beside her head. Glowering over Chesnia with glowing red eyes, their faces within a hair’s breadth of each other, Audris hissed threateningly.

“Next time, it’ll be your head that has a hole in it.” Audris muttered under her breath.

Gazing back at Audris completely unperturbed as her pupils began rotating within her iris, Chesnia calmly said, “There won’t be a next time.”

After hearing this, Audris froze up as she felt a chill down her spine. Floating in mid-air right behind her was a knife with the blade pointed directly at the nape of her neck, the tip lightly pricking her skin as the cold steel drew a trickle of blood.

“Wait! Wait! Stop! Please calm down you two.” Sephtis interjected with a panicked look, finally mustering up the nerve to intervene.

“Big sis, please don’t do this.” Vera quietly pleaded as she pulled on Chesnia’s robe.

Pausing momentarily, Chesnia sighed before the knife floating behind Audris dropped to the floor with a loud clang. Pushing Audris away with one hand, Chesnia dusted off her robe that had gotten covered in splinters and sawdust.

Standing up and then leading Vera towards the door, Chesnia said, “I believe it’s time for this meeting to come to a close. Apologies for my childish behavior earlier. Now, if you’ll excuse us.” Then, Chesnia and Vera closed the door behind them before going back to their own room.

“Damn, what’s with her?” Audris spat as she plopped back down on her own seat.

“I’m sure she’s just agitated like the rest of us. Though she did have a point with what she said.” Sephtis replied.

“Even if she had a point, so what? Does she expect us to just quietly gather information while the rest of the country is burning down around us? I won’t just sit by and let people suffer, whether I know them or not, when we clearly have the power to do something about it. In a situation like this, we need decisive action, not scampering around on the sidelines hoping to come across something useful. We should be sticking together, so why are we fighting like this…?” Audris trailed.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Audris waved, “Well, I suppose I’ll also head off. Good night.” Then, getting up, she quickly scurried out of the room leaving the last two individuals in silence.

Turning his head to look at Darce, Sephtis was a little stunned to see that the young boy had not budged from his position at all. Feeling a bit uneasy being alone with the boy, Sephtis decided to laugh it off.

“Ahaha, Um… Say… Darce, are you alright?” Sephtis asked nervously.

Without even a sliver of movement, Darce ignored Sephtis as he continued to look downwards.

“Uh, well then, I’m heading off for the night so you should hurry up and get some rest as well, alright?” Sephtis said as he also exited the room.

Sitting as still as a statue, Darce continued to stare downwards with dull, voided eyes for long after Sephtis left. As the flames of the hearth flickered once more, nobody noticed that the boy neither reflected any light nor casted any shadow.

///

As the birds sang their daily routine of melodies greeting the sky that slowly became painted in brilliant saffron, the dawn of a new day began. Rays of light slowly crept up the walls of the Little Tortoise before shining in through the window cracks, stirring the residents from their slumber.

Among those who were awakened was Cyrus. Cracking open his eyes and blinking a few times, he let out a long sigh as he rid himself of drowsiness. It was then that he noticed a weight on top of him. Slowly raising the covers, he found Seffy straddling him as her body clung tightly to his.

With the cold morning air wafting down on her face, Seffy stirred as well. However, that alone was not enough to convince her to wake up as she merely buried her face further into Cyrus’s chest.

After seeing her reaction, Cyrus gently whispered, “Wakey, Wakey. It’s time to get up.” As seconds passed without response, Cyrus decided to take matters into his own hands.

Lifting her head up, Cyrus lightly caressed her soft cheeks. Then, without warning, he pinched them hard and pulled apart. As her cheeks turned bright red from the strain, Seffy’s eyes snapped wide open. Quickly slapping Cyrus’s hand aside, she rubbed her stinging cheeks to try and ease the pain.

“Oww. Come on Cyrus, that’s not how you wake a girl up.” Seffy mumbled.

“Would you rather I throw you out of bed?” Cyrus grinned.

“Please don’t. Still, I’d expect you to be a little happier waking up with a cute girl on top of you.” Seffy smiled cheekily.

“I’d be a lot happier if you weren’t drooling on me.” Cyrus replied.

“Huh? But, I’m not drooling this time. Are you sure you’re completely awake yourself?” Seffy asked confused.

“Oh no, you’re definitely drooling.” Cyrus affirmed.

Pausing for a moment with a blank stare, Seffy slowly raised her hips as she peered downward. Then, Seffy wordlessly turned back towards Cyrus as she gazed intently into his eyes.

“Pleasant dreams?” Cyrus smirked.

“Very. Now, you got a towel anywhere?” Seffy requested as she quickly got up to look for a change of clothes.

Sitting up, Cyrus grabbed a towel from his bag on the side before handing it to her. “Here. A lot sure came out though. Do I dare ask for the contents of the dream?” Cyrus said as he noticed the size of the damp area around his lower stomach.

Taking the towel from him, Seffy leaned in and whispered into his ear. Grinning, she then twirled around and started wiping herself off.

“Oh my. How… risqué.” Cyrus remarked after hearing what Seffy had to say.

“Shhh. Don’t tell anyone, alright?” Seffy shushed with a finger on her lips.

“And if I do?” Cyrus teased.

“I’ll reveal to the world about that thing you have in your ring.” Seffy smugly declared.

“I thought you didn’t know what that was?” Cyrus asked, as his brow twitched slightly.

“Cyrus, even I’ve learned a thing or two after being together with you for so long. If you thought I wouldn’t be able to crack open your ring, then you’re sorely mistaken. Though, it is surprising that you would keep something like that in there.” Seffy giggled.

“I see… Hey, Seffy can you hand me the towel?” Cyrus asked.

“Huh? What do you need it for? Oh.” Seffy questioned warily before she saw the stain on Cyrus’s shirt.

“Alright, here.” Seffy handed the towel over to Cyrus after she finished up.

“Great.” Cyrus simply said as he took the towel. Instead of using it to wipe off his shirt however, Cyrus whirled the towel up, grabbed the other end, and then promptly used it to whip Seffy right across her bare rump, leaving a long, red welt mark.

“That’ll teach you not to rummage through other people’s stuff without their permission.” Cyrus grinned as he tossed the towel aside.

Unexpectedly however, Seffy didn’t seem all too bothered. “Come on, is that the best you’ve got? I can take waaay more than that.” Seffy haughtily laughed as the welt started to heal.

Raising an eyebrow, Cyrus stared perplexedly at Seffy. “Huh, guess she was an M after all.” Cyrus silently mused.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, nothing.” Cyrus waved.

“Anyway, cover up your lower half already. I don’t particularly mind, but it won’t be good if you start building slovenly habits.” Cyrus said as he began changing.

“Hey, whose fault do you think it is that I have no panties right now? Besides, you get to enjoy this nice view all to yourself.” Seffy teased as she playfully wagged her butt in Cyrus’s direction.

“I’ve seen that butt of yours too many times to care.” Cyrus shrugged after putting on his usual outfit.

“What a rude thing to say to a girl.” Seffy pouted.

“You’re not very convincing with your bum still swinging in the air.”

“Come on, you can touch it if you want. It's nice and soft.” Seffy grinned as she scooted closer, still shaking her rear.

“Enough with the sexual harassment. Put these on already.” Cyrus said as he threw Seffy’s skirt in her face.

Getting up from the bed before pulling up a chair, Cyrus motioned for her to sit down. “Come here. Let me fix your hair up for you.”

Going over and sitting down, Seffy started humming as Cyrus combed through her hair. Enjoying the sensation, Seffy had a thought. “Hey, what made you suddenly want to fix my hair? You don’t usually do that for me.” Seffy asked as she tilted her head back to look at him.

“Well, since we’re heading to the academy today, I figured I might as well have you look a bit nicer. As a person who likes to keep things tidy, it pains me to see you mismanage your hair all the time.” Cyrus replied as he parted her bangs down the middle. Then, taking out a ribbon, he neatly tied up a small ponytail at the back of her head while letting the rest of her hair flow freely. Satisfied with the result, Cyrus gave an approving nod.

“My hair doesn’t need that much management though.” Seffy said as she felt her hair.

“That’s what you think. You’re just too sloppy to notice. And also, change your clothes already. We still need to get you some new panties… unless you’re okay going without them for another day?”

“Help me dress then.” Seffy coyly said as she held out her skirt.

“Huh, sure.” Cyrus said. Taking her skirt in one hand, Cyrus used the other hand to produce a small flame. Then, Cyrus dangled the skirt over the flame threateningly as he inched the fabric closer.

Quickly snatching her skirt out of Cyrus’s hand, Seffy pouted, “Fine, fine. I’ll do it myself. Sheesh, you could’ve just said no.”

“If I did you would’ve just kept going, wouldn’t you?” Cyrus replied.

After getting changed, Seffy twirled around one more time as she examined herself. Content with her dress, Seffy skipped up to Cyrus wearing a smile.

“All ready!” Seffy declared. Then, with a provocative grin, Seffy slowly lifted the edges of her skirt up in a teasing manner, only to be met with a foot as Cyrus kicked her out the door.

Finishing a quick breakfast, the two made their way out of the inn and towards the wide, main road where all the shops were located. Selecting one that sold women’s clothing, the two went in as the sound of the doorbell ringed out.

“Welcome to the Lacy Lassie! How may I be of service?” A salesclerk went up and greeted.

“We would like some underwear for this one.” Cyrus said as he motioned towards Seffy.

Looking back and forth between Cyrus and Seffy, the clerk flashed a knowing smile. “Great! I know just the thing.” Winking at Cyrus, the clerk grabbed Seffy by the hand and led her into a dressing room. After some time, they left the room with Seffy holding a paper bag and came back up to Cyrus.

“Alright, that’ll be ninety silvers.” The clerk said as she held out a hand. After paying for the underwear, the clerk whispered to Cyrus, “I’m sure you will be most pleased with them.” With an encouraging smile, the clerk waved them off as they left the store.

Turning his head back towards Seffy, Cyrus asked as he lifted an eyebrow, “Should I be worried? What exactly is in the bag?”

“You’ll see them later.” Seffy grinned as she stowed the bag away.

Deciding not to delve any deeper, Cyrus shrugged and dropped the subject.

Casually strolling, the two soon neared the area where the academy exams would be held. Getting closer with each step, they soon noticed a large crowd bustling about. Turning the corner that would lead them to the front of the tower, what lay before their eyes was nothing short of an army of students, examiners, teachers, parents, and the like. The overwhelming buzzing of the congregation signaled a jubilant sense of excitement to anyone bearing witness to it.

Surrounded by six huge buildings that were finely chiseled out of stone and marble so that even minute details were shown was a gigantic grass plaza lined with hundreds of platforms. Upon these platforms, large glass spheres were placed on pedestals and surrounded by many metal rings that revolved around them erratically in all directions. People of all ages were standing in front of these baubles and placing their hands on them as they glowed up.

Within the sea of people, Cyrus could make out some semblance of a line in front of the many booths around the plaza. Realizing that it would take much too long, Cyrus decided to bring matters into his own hands. Signaling Seffy which elicited a nod from her, Cyrus went ahead and shifted through the crowd and towards the front of one of the booth lines. Reaching the front without too much trouble, Cyrus went up to the booth much to the confusion of the people behind.

Seated behind the table cluttered with forms was a haggard-looking man, most likely tired from the rush of people. As Seffy stepped up next to Cyrus, the man seemed to have finally noticed their presence.

After scrutinizing their appearance for a bit, the man straightened his back and flashed a large, albeit forced, smile.

“Greetings, lord and lady. Before you enroll, may I see your proof of peerage, if your esteemed selves would be so inclined?” The man politely requested.

Sharpening his eyes as he scowled, Cyrus indignantly harrumphed, “Hmph, who do you think you are to ask anything of me!? What an insolent man! Don’t you know who I am? To think that there are still people who wouldn’t recognize us at first glance. Just you wait until my father hears of this. He won’t tolerate the shame you are bringing upon us right now.”

“B-but, sir! It’s mandatory that all nobles show their insignias before enrollment.” The man panicked as his face grew a few shades paler.

“Mandatory!? How dare you!? We came all this way here to this forsaken cesspool of crass ignobility out of the grace within our hearts and this is how we’re treated? To be lowered to a level that such a common precedent could be applied!? I am the first son of a preeminent foreign lord! What do you think will happen for this continued debasement of my lineage? I hope you’re prepared to bear the consequences that your mannerism will bring!?” Cyrus arrogantly pointed as he started to draw attention. Sticking out his chest and looking downwards, Cyrus made himself seem even more intimating. Then, Cyrus released a frightful aura that gave the man, along with a few others, the chills.

Gulping down his own saliva, the man decided that pursuing any further wasn’t worth the risk of inciting the wrath of chagrined nobles. “N-no! I meant no insult milord! Please don’t be angry. You don’t need an insignia. Rather, someone of your stature doesn’t even need a test. Please fill this out.” The man stuttered as he presented the enrollment form.

“That’s what I thought.” Cyrus gruffly said as he snatched the papers.

As Cyrus was filling out the forms, Seffy uncomfortably clenched her hands as a wave of whispers and gossip washed over them.

“That girl is so pretty!” A bystander stated with a blush.

“The guy is also pretty darn good looking, but isn’t he kind of… scary?” Another person whispered.

“Woah, look at those wings! I’ve never seen anything like them. Foreign nobles?” Someone else commented.

“Got to be. You think normal people would be like that? I wonder where they’re from…” Someone responded.

“Damn, I want that girl to be my bride.” A rather bold person declared out loud.

With the exception of the last one, most of the comments were made out of harmless curiosity. Nevertheless, they still made Seffy restless as she looked around uneasily.

Noticing this, Cyrus smiled as he used his other hand to hold Seffy’s. Feeling the calm pressure of Cyrus’s reassuring grip, Seffy also seemed to relax a bit.

After filling in the necessary details, Cyrus prompted Seffy to do the same. Finishing the forms, Cyrus brusquely pushed the documents back towards the man who frantically received them. Handling the papers, the man then presented two intricately-designed badges that were circular in shape. On them, there were images of a large embroidered sun surrounded by three roses. Grabbing the badges from the man, Cyrus smirked as he handed one to Seffy.

As the two of them turned and were about to leave, the man hesitantly asked, “U-umm. Dear sir and madam… you haven’t paid the enrollment fees yet…”

Turning around, Cyrus scoffed before carelessly tossing a bundle of gold coins on the table, prompting the man to quickly shut up.

“Now, if that is all, we will be leaving. I will let you off the hook this time so make sure you reflect on how to properly treat nobles.” Cyrus warned before he, along with Seffy, left the booth amidst many stares from bystanders.

Gaining enough distance from the mob of people, Cyrus grinned as turned to Seffy. “I’d say that worked out well.” Cyrus laughed.

“Seriously, you always have to be the center of attention, don’t you? You know I’m not great around other people.” Seffy sighed as she leaned on a nearby wall.

“Get used to it. You’ll be getting a lot more stares. These face masks lose their effectiveness once a person recognizes you for the first time.”

“Besides, since we look like this, we might as well make the best of our appearances. I think I did a pretty good job acting if I do say so myself.” Cyrus continued as he waved the badge in front of Seffy.

“Well, I have to admit, you were pretty convincing. Though, if I were to say, most nobles our age wouldn’t use such flowery language like you did.” Seffy smiled.

“Didn’t you know? First impressions are crucial to any sort of interaction. Being eloquent only provides confirmation of my status, or at least creates an illusion of it. Of course, a little bit of intimidation never hurts.” Cyrus replied.

“I sure hope you’ll know how to deal with it once people start finding out you’re not actually a noble.”

“Don’t worry, I have my ways. Anyway, we should probably get going. I think all of the newly-enrolled students are funneling into that building over there.” Cyrus pointed as he saw a wave of teenagers heading towards the entrance of one of the buildings.

However, as they were about to head off, a shadow darted out from around the corner and fly-tackled Seffy before she even knew what happened. Crashing in a heap, the two people lay sprawled on the ground as dust flew up into the air.

“Seffyyyy. It’s been so long! I’ve missed you sooo much.” The person squealed as she rubbed her cheeks against Seffy’s.

“Cassidy!? W-wait, get off me!” Seffy yelped as she pushed Cassidy’s face away.

“Huh, on second thought, I think it’s best if I leave you two to yourselves. I just remembered something I have to take care of. You ladies have fun now.” Cyrus laughed as he quickly rushed off.

“Wait! Cyrus! Don’t leave me here!” Seffy shouted after him before he disappeared altogether.

With a hand to her face, Cassidy eagerly tried to give Seffy a hug as her arms flailed around to reach her.

“Ugh, it’s only been two days! Why are you acting like it’s been years since you’ve seen me?” Seffy complained as she finally fended away Cassidy’s assault. Standing up and brushing off her clothes, Seffy look at Cassidy’s beaming smile in weariness.

“Ehh? But it did feel like years! There’re no other girls my age I can freely talk to.” Cassidy said as she got up as well. Then immediately after, she pounced on Seffy and gave her a big hug, wings and all.

Deciding it would be for the best to give Cassidy what she wants, Seffy conceded herself to the embrace. “But, what about that other person who was traveling with you? He looked about your age?” Seffy sighed.

“Girls that I can freely talk to. He might be my age but it’s different with guys. They can be so boorish and immature. Plus there is plenty of stuff we can’t talk about with them. You understand me right? You’re always with that guy so you must’ve had it hard. You’re always taking care of him right? Ahhh, you are so huggable.” Cassidy chattered on with a blissful expression as she hugged Seffy all over.

“Uhhh, yeah… Kind of…” Seffy awkwardly replied as her eyes veered off towards the side.

“Say, you really are always with him aren’t you? What’s your relationship with him? Siblings?” Cassidy curiously asked.

“No, we’re not siblings. But, I guess we are blood-related in way… if that makes any sense.” Seffy hesitantly answered.

“Huh. Well, I don’t really get it, but whatever. By the way, you got in right? You must’ve right? Come on show me your badge.” Cassidy urged.

As Seffy held out her badge, Cassidy looked at it with twinkling eyes. Then, noticing something, Cassidy asked Seffy with her head tilted. “Hey Seffy, isn’t this badge only for nobles? See? Mine only has one rose on it.” Cassidy said as she held out her own.

“Ah, oh yeah. I guess you’re right.”

“I knew it! So you were a noble after all!” Cassidy concluded.

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t associate me with people like them.” Seffy flatly replied.

“Huh?”

“No, it’s nothing.” Seffy shook her head.

“If you say so. Anyway, let’s get going! Orientation is starting soon!” Cassidy heartily declared before forcefully grabbing Seffy and pulling her towards the throng of students.

///

Within a spacious, decorated chamber and surrounded on all sides by bookcases of a myriad of shapes and sizes, an elderly man was busily scribbling away on top of a finely-aged, oak-wood table. A cluttered mess of papers could be seen strewn across the tabletop. Bearing a stoic expression, the man calmly stroked his puffy, white beard as he pondered over something.

Pausing, the man sighed before setting his pen down and looking up. Standing right in front of him was winged young man with long, silver hair. As light from the mosaic window behind the elderly man shined onto the person’s face, a self-satisfied smirk revealed itself. Staring placidly into the young man’s eyes, the elderly man seemed to be in deep thought.

“It’s impressive that you got through the barrier I put up around the room.” The elderly man finally complimented.

“It’s even more impressive that you managed to notice me, old man. I was hoping for my appearance to be more of a surprise.” Cyrus replied.

“Don’t underestimate your elders, child. I haven’t gone senile yet. I’m not called Zerxis the All-Seeing for nothing. Now, what would a person like you want with the Headmaster of Sangin Academy?” Zerxis asked with gentle impassivity.

“Unlimited privileges for myself and one other within the academy.” Cyrus stated.

“You don’t beat around the bush do you? Fine.” Zerxis replied as he rummaged under his desk before presenting two gold, rose-shaped pins.

“I do enjoy roses. Just got to be careful about the thorns.” Zerxis added.

“I’m glad you are so understanding.” Cyrus grinned as he pocketed the pins.

“I know better than to resist when I’m outmatched. Wisdom begotten from age is not something to laugh at.” Zerxis said.

“I couldn’t agree more.” Cyrus concurred.

“Just one question, if you will?” Zerxis requested.

“Of course, what is it?” Cyrus asked.

“For what reason did you decide to come to Sangin Academy?”

“Boredom.” Cyrus curtly stated.

“Boredom?” Zerxis questioned further.

“Uh uh, only one question.” Cyrus teased.

Turning around to leave, Cyrus left one last comment. “Though out of respect for your compliance, I’ll tell you this. There are dark clouds overhead. You might want to duck under something.” With that, Cyrus strutted out of the room as the echoes of his footsteps slowly turned distant.

Scrunching his brows, Zerxis leaned back as he gazed out the window towards the sunny, clear sky. Sighing, Zerxis silently mused, “That’s the third time today. Security sure has gotten lax.” Shaking his head, Zerxis picked up his pen and continued where he left off.

///

Tens of thousands of people were rambunctiously chatting about within a spacious auditorium hall. The noise quickly drowned out everything else as every person in the room excitedly talked about the upcoming school year while waiting for orientation to start.

“Seffyyyy! Come on Sef! Talk to me like you do with Cyrus! You’re always so flirty with him; why can’t you be like that with mee!?” Cassidy pouted as she vigorously shook Seffy by the collar.

Seated near the edge of the hall to avoid the various gazes from other people, Cassidy was, as usual, giving Seffy a hard time. Nevertheless, they couldn’t evade the stares for long as curious and amorous glances soon came their way.

“You’re not exactly making it easy for me.” Seffy replied.

“I can’t help it! You wouldn’t say anything at all otherwise!” Cassidy retorted.

As they continued to bicker, they ignored a group of boys that were slowly approaching them. With a snobbish grin, the boy standing at the front of the group, presumably the leader, strolled over before positioning himself in front of them, prompting them to stop their conversation.

“What a pretty little flower you are. I’ve never seen someone quite like you before.” The brown-haired boy complimented Seffy with a wink.

“Thanks.” Seffy mumbled.

“Do you mind if I take a seat next to you?” The boy pointed to the empty chair beside Seffy.

“Yes. That seat’s taken.” Seffy denied.

“Hahaha, but of course. It’s taken. By me.” The boy haughtily laughed as he sat down next to Seffy.

Leaning back as he glanced at her chest, the boy continued, “Judging from that badge you’re wearing, you’re a noble. What a coincidence, I happen to be the same. The name is Hallond Sigrel, first son of the great Lord Sigrel. It is a pleasure meeting a beauty such as yourself.”

While Hallond proceeded to introduce himself, a wave of whispers erupted from the surrounding area as rumors began forming.

“Isn’t that Hallond? It looks like that pretty girl over there has caught his attention.” An onlooker whispered.

“Poor girl. When Hallond gets like that, he doesn’t stop until he takes what he wants. I pray that she makes it out alright.” Another quietly whispered in sympathy.

Hallond’s eyes twitched as the side chatter entered his ears. Standing up once more, he held his hand out invitingly towards Seffy as she looked back skeptically.

“It appears that it’s gotten quite noisy here. Why don’t we go somewhere more appropriate for refined, like-mannered people like us? I fear that your elegance and grace are wasted on these dregs of society who lack the decorum and class to recognize the shining jewel in front of them.” Hallond offered as he glared at the on looking students.

“I’ll pass.” Seffy curtly replied, eliciting another annoyed twitch from Hallond.

“Oh, but I insist!” Hallond pressed on as he went and grabbed Seffy’s wrist.

Slapping his hand away with enough force that it nearly fractured the bones, Seffy glared back at Hallond as he reeled from pain.

“Touch me again, and soon you’ll be finding it very difficult to comfort yourself at night.” Seffy threatened before turning away and ignoring him.

“Hey guys, let’s stop this already. We’re causing a scene.” Cassidy interjected worriedly, though it appears her efforts were futile when they were completely ignored.

Gritting his teeth as a vein popped out on his head, Hallond shouted as he pointed at Seffy, “You-! You can’t treat me like this! I’ll have you know my father is a high ranking member of this country. It’ll be easy to get you expelled from here even if you’re a noble.”

As he yelled, even more heads around the hall turned towards them. The other boys behind Hallond shuffled up and took their place beside him, forming a wall of intimidation while he scowled at Seffy.

“Tch.” Seffy clicked her tongue as she stood up. Then turning around, she began walking away while ignoring him.

“Listen to me!” Hallond yelled as he grasped Seffy’s shoulder.

Popping and snapping noises soon reverberated through the auditorium as Seffy crushed the boy’s hand within her iron grip. As his howls of pain echoed through the room, they now had the full attention of the entire assembly.

While this happened, Hallond’s group proceeded to surround both Seffy and Cassidy, who unfortunately got caught up in the ordeal.

“N-no! Please! Stop! Let’s calm down alright?” Cassidy desperately allayed as she tried to pacify the situation.

“Shut up! I’m going to make her pay for this.” Hallond growled before shuddering as he held his broken hand.

“What? You’re going to gang up on a girl? Well aren’t you pathetic?” Seffy scoffed as she looked around.

With tensions rising to an all-time high for the people involved as they glared venomously towards each other, all the other students held their breath, waiting for the coming onslaught. As the standoff played out, slow claps soon resounded out from an unknown location much to everyone’s confusion.

“Oh wow. Not even ten minutes since I left and you’ve already made a huge mess. You’re a real riot, you know that Seffy?” Cyrus laughed as he popped up next to Seffy, surprising nearly everyone present. Placing an elbow on Seffy’s shoulder, Cyrus continued to chuckle as he observed the situation.

“Who the hell are you?” Hallond rudely questioned, taken aback by Cyrus’s sudden appearance.

“An interloper. And as an interloper, I find this situation quite amusing.” Cyrus smirked.

“Cyrus, this is my problem, you don’t have to meddle.” Seffy frowned.

“Of course I do, Seffy! Didn’t I tell you this before? People like them exist solely for my own amusement.” Cyrus exclaimed out loud.

“Stop. Please. We really shouldn’t be fighting like this. We could seriously get expelled at this rate.” Cassidy, again, tried to assuage the hostilities in a panic.

As they started bickering again, Hallond, having now been ignored, nearly blew his top off as his face fumed from rage. Shouting at the top of his lungs, Hallond hollered, “Get the-.”

However, before Hallond could finish, Cyrus instantly appeared in front of him. With a crooked grin, Cyrus reached down and grabbed him by the briefs that were slightly sticking out. Then, in one fluid motion, Cyrus yanked it over his head before pulling it down over his eyes, effectively smothering him in his own undergarments. Shocked the entire assembly could only gaze blankly at what just happened. Very soon, laughter exploded from the crowd, and even some from Hallond’s group, as the boy keeled over from having been given an extreme wedgie.

Patting his hands off, Cyrus smiled in satisfaction before strutting back to Seffy, who was now giggling uncontrollably.

“Let’s go somewhere quieter, shall we?” Cyrus suggested as he pushed Seffy to a different section of the auditorium. Stepping over some of Hallond’s goons who were still laughing, Cyrus, Seffy, and Cassidy made their way to the other corner of the hall amidst a sea of stares.

Finding seats near a relatively quiet area, the three sat down as Seffy struggled to catch her breath. As Seffy calmed herself, Cassidy mumbled anxiously with her head tilted downward, “I really hope we don’t get expelled for this. Please, please, don’t get expelled for this.”

“Relax, we’ll be fiiine.” Cyrus flippantly waved.

“How do you know that!? Why didn’t either of you listen to me!? I didn’t come all the way here to get into this school just to be sent back before it even starts! I can’t go back yet, not like this! Ah-”Cassidy snapped before holding her mouth. Biting her lip, Cassidy stood up before rushing out the back door of the auditorium.

“Huh, first time I’ve seen her mad.” Cyrus mused.

Glancing at Seffy as she stared guiltily at the swinging doors where Cassidy departed from, Cyrus sighed, “Go after her, Seffy. Don’t worry about getting expelled or anything like that, I’ll handle it.”

Pausing for a moment as she gazed into Cyrus’s eyes, Seffy nodded back before also rushing out. Leaning back into his seat, Cyrus casually observed the aftermath of the confrontation as a group of teachers finally came running up to control the situation. Grinning, Cyrus said, “Well, I guess that’s one way to make a debut.”

///

“Wait! Cassidy!” Seffy shouted.

Running outside to the now-empty plaza, Seffy finally caught up to Cassidy. Kneeling near a patch of roses, Cassidy was staring gloomily at them, her eyes with a bit of a distant look to them. As her borwn hair swayed gently with the wind, she held an almost somber aura around her that made it a bit difficult for Seffy to approach.

Stepping up behind Cassidy, Seffy stood there for a while with a regretful expression on her face. Organizing her thoughts, Seffy began, “I’m sorry!”

Bowing her head down, Seffy continued, “I shouldn’t have provoked him like that. I should’ve listened. Even more than that, I shouldn’t have responded violently. I didn’t take into consideration that I’d be troubling you and even ended up dragging you into it. I got lost in the moment and didn’t take into account the consequences of my actions. For that I am sorry.”

Seeing Cassidy unresponsive, Seffy proceeded, “I won’t ask for your forgiveness; I know what I did was wrong. I didn’t realize how much school here meant for you and could’ve gotten you expelled; that’s not something an apology can fix. It’s fine if you don’t want to be friends with someone like me anymore. You can even hate me; I don’t mind. But, I just wanted to apologize.”

Slowly standing up, Cassidy turned around and looked down on Seffy bowing. After a while, Cassidy began, “You know Seffy… When I met you, do you know what the first thing that went through my mind was? It was that I definitely wanted to be friends with you. That feeling still hasn’t changed.”

Putting her hands on Seffy’s cheeks, Cassidy raised Seffy’s head so that they now stared each other in the eye. Bearing a smile, Cassidy continued on, “I want to be friends with you Seffy, I mean it. I’m sorry as well, for snapping like that back there and running off. I'm sure it worried you. And also, I’m sorry for always imposing myself on you. I knew it was bothering you, but I felt like if I didn’t you’d only grow more distant.”

Lowering her hands as her smile turned more melancholic, Cassidy softened her voice before saying, “Maybe it would’ve turned out better if I told you a little about myself first. Believe it or not, I don’t actually have that many friends, at least, not anymore. So meeting you for the first time, I was overjoyed.”

Closing her eyes, Cassidy started, “Our village was a small one. With no more than three hundred people, it was neither known nor cared for. Rather than a village, it’s more of a frontier camp than anything else. So because of that we have always fended for ourselves.”

“Two years ago, right after the Second Cataclysm, magical beasts started appearing in droves. It might not mean much for the average person living in a town or city, but as you can imagine, for a tiny frontier village, the effects were devastating.” Cassidy told as she brought both hands to her chest as if praying.

“Every night, we would lose more and more people trying to fend them all off. It got to a point where we couldn’t even sleep at night because of the constant fear of attacks. We reached out for help, but none ever came.” Cassidy said as she started shuddering a little.

“One night, a number of magical beasts, the largest we’ve ever seen, came to attack our village. Even though the people of my village were giving it their all, the numbers were just too much and they were eventually overwhelmed.”

Gritting her teeth as she struggled to speak, Cassidy continued, “More than half of the villagers died. My mother and most of my friends met their end that day.”

Listening to this, Seffy was at a loss for words at first before saying, “I-I’m sorry. I never knew.”

Shaking her head, Cassidy replied, “No, don’t worry about it. It’s already been two years after all. There’s no point brooding over something that won’t change. I’ve already made my peace with what happened. I have to stay strong, both for myself and my dad who is still here with me. And from now on, I have to become even stronger, so that something like that doesn’t happen again.”

As she continued to listen, Seffy felt knot in her heart as she cupped a hand over her chest. Reaffirming her own feelings, Seffy, for the first time, felt a sort of kinship with someone other than Cyrus. Along with that, there was also a trace of guilt as she came to the realization that she still hasn’t let go of her own past. A newfound sense of respect overwhelmed her as Seffy gazed at the girl in front of her.

“Even now, our village is still struggling with attacks, though they’ve been doing better recently and have even started recovering. That’s why, for them, I want to study at this academy. To be able to become strong enough to support them, to relieve even a little bit of their struggles, to repay them for all the difficulties they endured to send me here. Because of that, I can’t go back like this.”

“Though, I guess even if I say all that, it would matter little since it’s not up for me to decide now. Just know this Seffy, even if I was a little annoyed, I didn’t blame you for what happened and I certainly don’t hate you; it wasn’t your fault. That noble had it coming to him. So even if it doesn’t work out, I’ll still be your friend, okay?”

“Heh, now that I think about it, I guess that’s what you meant earlier right? You hate nobles?” Cassidy smiled.

“Yeah…” Seffy nodded as she smiled back.

Then, Seffy suddenly said, “Listen, Cassidy, we’re not going to get expelled.”

“What makes you say that? Even if the academy doesn’t expel us for that disturbance, I’m sure that noble isn’t going to let it go.” Cassidy asked in surprise.

“Because Cyrus said so.” Seffy simply stated.

“Haha, you sure are confident in him aren’t you?” Cassidy laughed.

“Yeah, I trust him more than myself.” Seffy resolutely said.

“Hehe, how does that even work?” Cassidy chuckled.

Sighing in relief, Cassidy said, “Alright, if that’s what you think, I’ll take your word for it. Let’s go back then?” Holding her hand out, Cassidy prompted Seffy to take it. This time, Seffy didn’t hesitate and grabbed it willingly.

“Also, sorry about how I acted before. I’m not very good around people I haven’t opened up to you see.” Seffy apologized.

“Then doesn’t that mean you’ve finally opened up to me!? Yaaay, gimme a hug Seffy!” Cassidy beamed as she spread her arms.

“That doesn’t mean you can jump on me anytime you want.” Seffy denied.

“Oh, boo.” Cassidy pouted.

///

“-And with that, we welcome you to Sangin Academy. All of you are now proud members of a new generation of mages who will guide this world out of darkness and into the light of Solaris. May your studies be rewarding and may your futures be bright. Now, a word from our student representative…”

As the spokesman finished his speech, Cyrus let out a loud yawn, causing nearby students to look at him in reprove. Scratching his head, Cyrus had a look of boredom the entire time before he heard the sound of doors opening from the back.

“Girls sure take a long time.” Cyrus mumbled as Seffy and Cassidy sat down beside him.

“An “Oh hey you’re back, how did it go?” would’ve been nice, but I guess that’s expecting a bit too much from you.” Seffy retorted.

“You would be like this too if you had to sit through that speech.” Cyrus yawned again.

“So? How are you planning to deal with that earlier incident?” Seffy asked.

“Here, the both of you put these on your badges.” Cyrus said as he presented two golden rose pins.

As looks of confusing spread on both Seffy’s and Cassidy’s faces, Cyrus explained, “I was graciously ‘gifted’ them from the headmaster. Put them on and you should have no more troubles in school.”

“What about you?” Seffy asked as she clipped the pin on.

“What about me?”

“Don’t you need one too?” Seffy questioned.

“Why would I need them if I’m just going to bury myself in the library?” Cyrus replied with a raised eyebrow.

“Huh?”

“Did you forget Seffy? I’m not here for the school drama like you are. My sole aim is the grand library inside Xantel Tower.” Cyrus stated as he pointed towards the large sun tower outside the auditorium window.

“Wait, what about me?” Seffy asked.

“What about you? Have you forgotten what you came here for? There’s no point if I babysit you the whole time.” Cyrus shrugged.

“Which reminds me, why am I still here? If you need me, I’ll be at the library.” Cyrus quickly said before he promptly disappeared, leaving Seffy a bit disoriented.

“That guy…” Seffy mumbled.

Before she could say anymore however, cheers erupted from the rest of the assembly. Turning their heads, both Seffy and Cassidy looked towards the stage to see what the commotion was about.

Walking onto the stage was a beautiful girl with long, deep-blue hair styled into twin drills. Complementing her hair were two rich, blue eyes that sparkled brighter than sapphires themselves and held within them a dazzling shine. Dressing in a neat, beige-colored uniform with a red ribbon at the center, this girl instantly captivated the entire assembly as all the students’ eyes glued themselves to her figure. With a graceful smile, the girl confidently waved as she stepped up to the podium.

However, everything paled in comparison to one distinguishing trait.

“Greetings fellow students! I am Celaria Askiel. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance!”

That very trait was the pair of soft, glowing-white wings protruding from her back.

///

“Woaah, so this is the grand library.”

Stepping past the large marble entrance of Xantel Tower, what greeted Cyrus were rows upon rows of bookshelves positioned so erratically that the entire ground floor resembled more of a maze than anything else. Along with that, even more bookshelves lined the walls of the structure and spiraled upwards the entire height of the tower. At the very center of the library was a huge, spiral staircase that led up to the various access layers periodically dispersed throughout its length.

“… Hmm, I expected it to be bigger… Oh well.” Cyrus shrugged before he began strutting towards the staircase.

However, as he neared the staircase, something, or rather, someone caught his interest. Sitting at an empty table nearby was the familiar bespectacled, heterochromatic man. Piled on the table were various books of multifarious topics. Currently, this man was tinkering with some strange metal box strapped to his arm.

On a closer look, Cyrus saw a gold rose pin on the man’s vestment. “Ah, so that’s why the old man wasn’t surprised.” Cyrus mused.

Being the troublemaker he is, Cyrus instantly seated himself opposite of the man. Grinning as he waited for the man to notice, Cyrus was thoroughly disappointed when he realized the man was completely engrossed in tinkering with the metal contraption.

“Heeey! Four-eyes. Remember me?” Cyrus rudely pestered as he waved his hand in front of the man.

However, despite Cyrus’s meddling, the man continued to ignore him as though he were air. Smirking, Cyrus went ahead and snatched the man’s spectacles from him and proceeded to wear them.

“Wooah, these flashing lights in your glasses are so weird! How do you even see with these?” Cyrus asked as he played with the spectacles.

Quickly snatching the spectacles back and putting them on, the man gave Cyrus a look full of annoyance.

“What do you want?” The man curtly asked.

“Eeh? How cold. Who do you think made it possible for you to get that gold reward, huh? You should be thanking me since you wouldn’t even be here otherwise!” Cyrus indignantly remarked.

“Again, what do you want?” The man asked, not entertaining Cyrus in the slightest.

“Oh, boo. You Dicaceneons are all the same. Always so uptight.” Cyrus pouted.

Upon hearing a certain word, the man’s eyes shot wide open. With a clicking noise, a metal weapon was pointed directly at Cyrus’s face, much to his amusement.

“You. How do you know that name?” The man demanded as he narrowed his eyes.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Cyrus flippantly replied, completely unfazed despite being threatened.

“Yes. I would. And you will tell me. Now.” The man said, with each word becoming heavier in tone.

“Mmm, I haven’t seen a gun in such a long time. How nostalgic. Though, it seems to be a more advanced version than I’m familiar with.” Cyrus mused as he ignored the man’s demands.

Continuing on, Cyrus mocked, “So, what? You gonna shoot? You think a toy like that can harm me?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a loud bang reverberated through the library as Cyrus’s head tilted backwards. After a moment, Cyrus tilted his head back revealing the bullet stuck between his teeth.

“Trigger happy aren’t you? I’ll ask again, you think a toy like that can harm me?” Cyrus smiled with the pellet still in between his teeth.

“Oh, no. That bullet wasn’t meant to hurt you.” The man flatly replied.

As a questioning look surfaced on Cyrus’s face, the bullet he was holding in his teeth glowed up before sparking. Immediately following, a large, blinding flash encased the entire section of the library in a white radiance.

As Cyrus tightly shut his eyes, the man quickly materialized a metal baton that seemed to pulse with blue energy.

“This is meant to hurt you.” The man curtly finished before swinging the baton horizontally.

However, as he completed the arc, the man realized that he was no longer holding the baton. Glancing at Cyrus, the man saw him juggling the baton with his eyes still shut.

“Ahaha, that was unexpected indeed! What neat toys you have.” Cyrus laughed as he opened his eyes a crack.

“Just what are you?” The man squinted.

“Not what, but who. As for that, all I’ll tell you is that I’m just a man with too much free time on his hands. Now then, unless you want to try out some more of your toys on me, why don’t you introduce yourself as well like a civilized person?” Cyrus grinned as he held the baton out hilt first.

Snatching back the baton as he readjusted his spectacles, the man tersely replied, “Zix. That’s my name.”

“And?” Cyrus prompted as he crossed his arms and leaned back.

“And nothing. That’s all you need to know.” Zix answered.

“You must be fun at parties.” Cyrus shrugged.

“You still haven’t answered my question. How do you know that name?” Zix glared.

“I could tell you… but that would be no fun. Not at all.” Cyrus teased.

“I see. That’s fine then. I’ve more or less come up with a suitable conjecture.” Zix replied as he once again began to tinker with the metal box on his arm.

“Oh? You got some things figured out have you? Humor me.” Cyrus said, half-amused, half-interested.

“You are a resident of this world or at least very familiar with it. From the fact that you are not wearing that language device and can still communicate to the fact that you are much too relaxed considering the situation, I can only deduce as such.” Zix began as he proceeded to adjust the metal contraption.

“Now, I couldn’t care less about that, but you just used a name which shouldn’t exist in this world. Not only that, you seemed to be familiar with the weapons I use despite the fact that they are much too advanced for this primitive world.” Zix reasoned before a sudden click resounded from the metal box.

“With that in mind, along with your choice of words at the time of summoning, I can only conclude that you must have a way of travelling to other worlds much like that summoning mechanism.” Zix concluded.

“Heh, I gotta hand it to you, you’re a pretty sharp one to notice such things.” Cyrus nodded in agreement.

“Which brings us to our next point.” Zix interrupted as he pointed at Cyrus.

“You will send me back. Right now. That is, if you don’t want the explosives I prepared ahead of time all around this area to detonate. If you harm any part of my body, they will detonate automatically, so don’t even try whatever you did earlier.” Zix threatened.

“Oh my, you sure are prepared aren’t you? It doesn’t seem like you’re bluffing either.” Cyrus casually replied.

“Unfortunately for you, I always cover my bases.” Zix solemnly answered.

Chuckling upon hearing this, Cyrus smiled. “Ahaha, well, I guess it would be pretty bad if that were to happen.”

“So? Will you do it?” Zix pressed.

Pondering over it for a moment, Cyrus revealed a crooked grin as he said, “Hmm… Let me think… How about… No.”

“I see… that’s just too bad then.”

As Zix was about to detonate the explosives, he found that he could not move his body. Struggle as he might, he realized that he had absolutely no control over his motor skills. If one were to look closely behind him, they would see his own shadow being restrained by numerous other similar shadows. With the eyes and the mouth being the only body parts capable of movement, Zix glared menacingly at Cyrus.

“You… What did you do to me?” Zix hissed.

“I figured that even if I can’t harm you, I could just restrict your movements.” Cyrus said as he got up and strolled over to Zix.

“Yoink! So this is the thing controlling the explosives, huh?” Cyrus snickered as he grabbed the metal contraption from Zix’s arm.

“You guys sure have advanced a lot. Hmm, I wonder what would happen if I break this.” Cyrus mused as he juggled the box around.

“Don’t you dare…!” Zix growled.

“Oops!” Cyrus said as he dropped the box to the floor before stomping on it, smashing it as if it were made of glass.

As various cogs, screws, and wires rolled onto the floor, Zix was left speechless for a moment before his face turned an ugly purple and his veins popped out. “You imbecile! What have you done!?” Zix roared in rage.

“Ahaha, well you see, I don’t like being threatened. Besides, you people are good with machines. I’m sure you can just make another one.” Cyrus laughed.

“Don’t fuck with me you halfwit! That is not something that can be so easily replaced.” Zix spat.

“Oh! All the better then!” Cyrus clapped.

As Cyrus continued to taunt Zix, two shadows peeped out from behind a bookshelf. The shadows curiously examined the strange scene in front of them and maintained a steady distance. Nevertheless, they were quickly detected by Cyrus as he turned to them.

“Come on out you two. It’s quite rude to hide like that.” Cyrus called.

After a pause, the two stepped out from behind the bookshelf and revealed themselves to be Chesnia and Vera. Looking warily between Cyrus and Zix, Chesnia held an arm out in front of Vera protectively as if to shield her.

“I don’t think you’re in a position to call anything rude.” Chesnia replied.

“What are you talking about? I’m a gentleman!” Cyrus exclaimed with fake indignation.

Looking at him completely unconvinced, Chesnia asked, “Is it true that you can send us back?”

“Ah, so you overheard. Well, the answer is yes and no.” Cyrus replied.

“What do you mean by that?” Chesnia asked in confusion.

Smiling, Cyrus went over to Zix and tapped him on his spectacles which elicited more veins to pop out on his forehead. “Hmm, it’s nice to see that not all of you are as hot-blooded as this one. Alright, I’ll tell you since you were kind enough not to attack me the first chance you get.”

“Now then, what this guy said before he decided to play terrorist was all correct. I am indeed from this world and I can indeed go to other worlds… with certain limitations.” Cyrus continued.

“Limitations?”

“Yes, well, let me begin with the fact that there are two main branches of world-hopping magic available and those are the targeted ones and the non-targeted ones.” Cyrus explained with a raised finger.

“Go on.” Chesnia urged.

“I’ll explain the non-targeted ones first since you’ve already experienced it. The magic called ‘summoning’ falls within this category. And while it does cost the least amount of mana, or fuel if that’s what you’d like to call it, it is, to say the least, randomized. This means that you can neither control who or what appears nor where they are taken from. As you might expect, results may vary.” Cyrus lectured.

“Now that you understand that, I’ll explain the targeted ones. These are the ones you want to use and also where our problems lie. You see, for the targeted ones, you’d first need to know the location of where you want to go, if that wasn’t obvious enough. Without that condition, you’d just be sent to a random location which would be pointless to your dilemma.”

As Cyrus mentioned this point, a look of understanding and also one of dread, appeared on the others’ faces. Cyrus let this problem sink in a bit more before continuing.

“The other problem is mana expenditure. Unlike the non-targeted ones, this branch of magic scales up the cost of mana in proportion to the distance meaning the further you go, the more it costs. In some cases, the cost could be so astronomically high that it may even threaten myself. So, while I do have the ability to send you all back, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s something that can be done.” Cyrus finished.

“…So you’re saying it’s impossible to return…?” Chesnia nearly croaked those words out.

“Essentially, yes. You might want to get used to this world from now on.” Cyrus suggested.

“Fuck that shit of a king.” Chesnia swore under her breath.

Smiling, Cyrus grabbed an ink container from the desk and dipped his fingers in. Then, he proceeded to smear ink all over Zix’s face.

“You! Stop it this instant!” Zix barked.

“Don’t worry, I’m quite the artist.” Cyrus hummed as he continued to vandalize Zix’s face.

“There! All done! A fine work if I do say so myself.” Cyrus finished before nodding in self-satisfaction. What used to be Zix’s face now looked like a monstrosity painted by children who don’t know any better.

“Now then, I’ve had my fill of entertainment for today so I’ll be off to do what I came here for. Later.” Cyrus waved as he went and climbed the spiral staircase.

As the restraints on Zix loosened, he collapsed to the floor. With what seemed like a frustrated expression, Zix yelled, “Damn it!” before he slammed his fist on the floor.