Chapter XLVIII

There was a soft breeze that afternoon as Album Luz stared down at the courtyard of West Wilham High School. She was perched up on the roof of one of the nearby two-story houses and it gave her a good view over the front gates of the school. She was using distortion magic to hide her presence from anybody that happened to look up at her location but, on the chance that her mana levels went too low and the distortion faded, she was still wearing her white cloak with the cowl pulled up to hide her face.

For the past week, ever since Nigreos had made contact with the girl named Lilly Harper, Album had been keeping as close a watch on the school as she could. While Harper had never confirmed that she went to West Wilham, the presence of the pocket realm made it clear that Eric Reiner, at least, must. And if Eric was at the school then Harper had to be, especially given the fact that she swapped into his body during the school day. The problem was that they didn’t know what either Harper or Reiner looked like. Communicating telepathically didn’t reveal any physical details and Nigreos hadn’t seen Reiner since the boy was very small. They also couldn’t rely on sensing the mana remnants of the stone due to the close proximity of the pocket realm. Truthfully, Album wasn’t even sure what she was looking for that day. All she had to do was hope.

But we’re at least making some progress, she thought. We now know with certainty that Eric Reiner is the enemy, just as we assumed. All we need to do is find him and the relic’s as good as ours. She narrowed her eyes. Or at least…it should be.

She wasn’t sure how much she trusted Nigreos to do what needed to be done. She knew he’d be ruthless to the nonmagical people who used the stone but she feared his connection to Abi Reiner would make him hesitate to erase Eric.

But whether Nigreos likes it or not, we don’t have an option. He must realize that erasing Reiner is a mercy at this point. Being a descendent of Abi, he was never going to be able to lead a peaceful life. Nigreos has to understand that it’s for the best that Eric leave this world. That boy never should have existed in the first place.

She sighed, looking down at the masses of people wandering around the courtyard’s lawn. It seemed like the school was holding a festival that day judging by the number of adults and small children in the crowd, as well as the various food stalls set up. It was a peaceful sight and it reminded her of the old days at the Academy of Erika. There was a weak feeling of longing deep in her chest, one she knew she’d never be able to truly silence. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, those days meant something to her and part of her wished she could go back to them.

But I can’t, she told herself. Those days are gone. Peace was never in the cards for a woman like me. And…

She reached up and brushed strands of her white hair behind her ear, then placed her left hand against her chest so she could feel the quick beating of her heart. She took a few deep breaths until she felt herself calm down..

Unfortunately, the peace of this school… Of this town… And of Eric Reiner is coming to an end very soon.

***

“Man, as much fun as I was having, it’s nice to get out and about for a little while, am I right?”

As Vinny excitedly glanced around the decorated second floor hallway, Damien couldn’t help but smile a bit. His friend looked a bit like a kid set loose in a candy store and Damien had the feeling that if he weren’t there, Vinny would already be sprinting around the festival in search of whatever could entertain him. Luckily, he had removed his witch costume before they left, though the pale makeup still remained.

“Honestly!” Liz said from his left. “I mean, it’s not like anybody else is gonna come by for a fortune! I wanna explore a bit!”

Yeah, I feel like the same probably applies to her, too, Damien mused. Though, I like to think Liz has more self control than Vinny does.

“So where should we head first? Eric and Lilly told us to be back by two so we shouldn’t just stand around.” Damien pointed out, hoping to figure out a plan rather than just wandering randomly. “Do you guys want to get some lunch first or would you rather find a show to watch? I hear the dance club has some performances in the gym.”

“Oh, food first!” Vinny replied. “Alice wanted to meet up at the culinary club’s café for lunch so I say we head there first.”

Liz nodded her agreement. “I could go for some food!”

“Alright, awesome,” Damien said. “So where’s this café then? I don’t actually know where the culinary clubroom is.”

The blonde boy thought for a moment then snapped his fingers. “Ah, I remember. Alice said it was in class 1-14 downstairs. Come on, let’s go!”

With Vinny in the lead, the three of them turned and made their way toward the second floor staircase, though they were forced to keep to the wall so as not to run into anybody. The crowds in the hall were obnoxious on a normal day but with the spring festival in full swing, it was even crazier than usual. Add in the scents of various foods wafting through the hall, the balloons laying scattered on the floor, and the students standing in front of classrooms, shouting out to get customers attention, Damien’s senses felt overwhelmed. In addition, he could feel the eyes of some passersby on him and none of them felt particularly friendly.

Man, I hate crowds, he thought bitterly. Two more days of this, huh?

They finally reached the staircase and shuffled down to the first floor where it was a little less crowded, thought not by much. Their progress was rather slow and Damien was forced to grab Liz’s hand just to keep her close. After what felt like ten minutes of struggling down the halls, they finally reached the door to room 1-14. Damien could immediately tell that they were in the right spot due to the sign hanging above the door that read “Café Culinary” in big, colorful letters.

“And people say our naming sense is bad,” Liz muttered under her breath, earning a soft chuckle from Damien.

“Yeah, it is a bit basic but then again, at least it makes it obvious what club it is and what they’re selling,” he replied.

His girlfriend shrugged. “Yeah, fair enough.”

Vinny reached for the door and headed inside with Damien and Liz following right behind him. Despite the lazy name, Damien actually found himself surprised at how nice everything looked. Desks were flipped together in groups of four to make tables and there were white cloths thrown over them. All the tables but one were filled and two girls in barista outfits were running around serving people. Room 1-14 was connected to room 1-13 by a doorway and Damien could smell food cooking from the other side. One of the students looked up at their entrance and, for a moment, she looked hesitant to talk to them. Her stare remained on Damien far longer than the others, something that didn’t surprise him in the slightest. Luckily, she got over herself quickly and approached them.

“Hi! Table for four?” she greeted.

Vinny nodded. “Yup. Sounds perfect.”

The girl led them over to the only open table in the back left corner and they took their seats, with Vinny sitting across from Damien and Liz with his back to the windows. The barista girl placed three menus down in front of them then rushed off to talk to another group.

“Wow, they really went all out,” Liz mused, staring down at her menu in surprise.

The culinary club had laminated multiple sheets of paper and had written everything out in fancy writing as if to mimic some high end restaurant. Though, one look at the items revealed the fact that they were amateurs. The only drinks they had were basic juices and coffees and their food items were all desserts.

This is a terrible place to eat lunch! It’s all sugar!

“Man, this looks like a great place to eat,” Vinny mused. “Who doesn’t love brownies and cookies for lunch!?”

Liz nodded. “Yeah, really! I’m just gonna get a big ol’ brownie!”

Damien sighed. Yeah, I guess I should’ve expected that from these two. Of course they’d be excited over sugar for lunch!

After seeming to decide that he knew what he wanted to order, Vinny placed his menu back on the table and grinned. “So, before Alice gets here, I have to ask. What’d you guys make of the Harper sisters?”

Damien glanced up from his menu and narrowed his eyes, prepared to tell Vinny off for even bothering to bring the subject up, however he quickly caught himself. He knew his friend well enough to be able to see the hint of genuine concern masked behind his mischievous smile.

“What’s there to think about?” Liz asked. “Yeah, things seem a bit shaky between them but it’s really none of our business.”

Vinny shrugged. “Yeah, I get that, but think about it, guys! Lilly’s only in this position because of us! If she were able to tell Alexa about the stone, there wouldn’t be any need to be suspicious of us.”

“No, I disagree,” Damien chimed in. “In fact, with how on guard Lilly claims her sister is around us, I think showing her the gem would only make things worse.”

The boy across from him sighed and leaned back in his seat. “Maybe but…”

“Vinny,” Damien interrupted firmly. “I get that you’re concerned about Lilly, but she asked us to stay away from her sister. We should respect that.”

Liz nodded her agreement. “And anyway, she gave Eric permission to try and gain her trust so maybe he’ll help us in that department. We just gotta wait and see.”

“Okay, I hear you guys,” he grumbled. “It’s just…I don’t know! Lilly’s been so good to us and I just…wanted to do something for her.”

Damien smiled. “I know what you mean, Vin’, but I think doing what she asks is good enough.”

“Alright…you’ve got a point.”

Just as he finished speaking, Vinny suddenly smiled and perked up, indicating to Damien that Alice must’ve arrived. When he glanced over his shoulder, sure enough, Alice Mendez was headed their way.

“Hey, guys,” she greeted, taking her seat beside Vinny. “Sorry I’m late. The halls are insane!”

“Tell me about it,” Liz grumbled. “I was so close to just smacking the bastard behind me for pushing so hard.”

Noticing a fourth person had arrived, the barista came back and took their orders. Vinny and Liz both ordered giant brownies and milk while Damien and Alice opted for just some small oatmeal cookies and water.

“You guys are so boring,” Liz teased. “Why not get something more exciting than just bland old oatmeal cookies?”

Damien snorted. “This is supposed to be lunch, you know! I figured they’d at least have a sandwich or something but all they have is sugar!”

“I fail to see the problem,” Vinny joked.

He and Liz broke out into laughter and Damien shook his head, reminding himself that it was pointless to argue with either of them. After calming themselves down, Vinny then glanced at Alice, who was staring off into space.

“You good, Al’?”

“Hmm?” She seemed to return to herself before smiling. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just thinking. I was considering stopping by the hospital to visit Jay tonight. He always looked forward to the spring festival so I’m just missing him a bit.”

The sad look in her eyes made Damien wish he could do something for her. Even though Lilly still used the stone to help them talk on occasion, it was clear that Alice was really missing Jay. Even Damien found himself missing the boy’s occasional presence in the clubroom even though they’d never really interacted one-on-one. Eric and Lilly seemed certain he’d come back eventually but the longer it took, the more he was missing. At this point, Jay was going to have an entire semester to make up.

“You know, why don’t you and I go visit him together tonight?” Vinny suggested. “I’ve been wanting to stop by and see Jay.”

Alice looked at her boyfriend in surprise. “Y-you’re sure? It’s gonna be kinda late when the festival ends, you know?”

Vinny shrugged her concern off. “Eh, I don’t care. My parents won’t mind and like I said, I want to see him. Maybe we can stop by the diner afterwards and get something eat.”

She considered his offer for a moment and then nodded. “Okay, sounds good. Let’s do that.”

“You know, I’m sure Eric won’t care if you leave a little early,” Liz pointed out. “So don’t worry about us. We’ll hold down our meager fortune booth for the last hour.”

“Yeah, definitely,” Damien agreed.

Vinny grinned. “Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. Oh, and Alice.” He turned to look at the girl beside him. “Don’t forget to stop by our booth tomorrow! That way, we can read you your fortune!”

She chuckled. “Okay, sure. I’ll try to get up there sometime tomorrow.”

With that, the conversation ended as their food finally arrived at the table. The café really wasn’t exaggerating when they claimed their brownies were huge as they were nearly as big as Damien’s hand. However, Vinny and Liz seemed to enjoy them so he supposed he shouldn’t complain. He looked around at the three of them eating their food and smiled.

Well, day one of the festival seems to be a success.

***

Vinny, Liz, and Damien had left the clubroom nearly an hour earlier to check out the festival, leaving Eric and Lilly to run the booth. Luckily, only one curious student had wandered in for a fortune, so they were able to just sit around and relax. Though, after Alexa’s visit to the clubroom, Lilly was finding that strangely hard. She knew her sister would want to talk to her when she got home and she really didn’t want to bother. Of course, Vinny, Liz, and Eric had put a show on for her and it was obvious that Alexa had been uncomfortable by it.

However, what irritated Lilly was the fact that Alexa had almost certainly dropped in to gauge the other club members. Her sister hadn’t directly spoken to her about them since January but, between the Evan/Rina incident and Jay’s suicide attempt, it was almost certain that Alexa was no closer to getting off her case about them as she was back when Lilly first met the club. She was hoping that by dating Eric, Alexa would come to trust him and the club a bit more but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

Well, I guess I should just stop worrying about it. There’s really nothing I can do. If Alexa wants to have an issue with the club then that’s her problem. I really shouldn’t care.

Yet, she did find it irritating that Alexa spent years trying to get her to make friends and the moment she did, her sister got all suspicious of them. Of course, Lilly understood why her friendship with the club would look strange from an outsider’s perspective but it didn’t make it any less irritating.

What am I supposed to do? I’ve talked to her about them before and it never seems to do anything. And I’m sure that having her interact with the club members won’t help much either…

She sighed, then looked up to stare across the room. Eric was sitting alone, gazing into the crystal ball, still dressed in his witch outfit. He seemed lost in thought as well and part of her wondered if maybe all she needed to do was talk it out with him. Knowing Eric, he probably had some sort of idea of what to do. So, she got to her feet and crossed the room to sit down in Vinny’s vacant chair beside him.

“See anything interesting?” she asked, indicating the ball.

He chuckled. “Yes, in fact. Currently, I’m watching our daughters running around a quaint little suburban house.”

“Oh really?” She raised an eyebrow. “So you’re saying we’re gonna have girls then? Damn, I always wanted a son.” She smiled. “But I guess if we have kids, then our relationship works out, huh?”

“I would assume so,” Eric replied. “We look happy, at least. And I guess if we’re happy, then I suppose I’ve gotten your sister to like me. That’s a plus, as well.”

He said it like a joke but Lilly could sense some truth to his words.

“It bothers you, doesn’t it?” she muttered. “That Alexa doesn’t like you?”

He nodded. “A bit. I mean, I’ve gotten used to weird stares and untrusting glances over the years so I should have expected this, but I suppose I just want my girlfriend’s family to trust me. Do your parents have similar worries about me?”

“I dunno, honestly,” she replied. “But I don’t think so. My parents aren’t really the type to care about quirks like yours. As long as you seem like a good guy, then they won’t have a problem. And you are a good guy, Eric. Alexa will figure that out eventually.”

He grunted. “But…you said that her distrust in us comes from your sudden friendship with us. I take it to mean that she suspects something devious brought us together?”

“Yeah, I think so. I haven’t ever told her about the stone so to her, it just seems like I suddenly decided to break out of my shell and befriend the school outcasts.”

“I see,” he mumbled. “So then…why haven’t you told her about the gem? You trusted Natalie with it so…what’s different about your sister?”

She looked down and stared at the ball as she considered his question. She wasn’t actually sure how to answer it. He was right. She let Natalie in on the secret without an issue and the same even went for Brad, a guy she hardly knew at the time. Alexa was her older sister so why was she so opposed to revealing its magic to her. But after a moment of thought, she realized what the answer was.

“To be honest…” she began, “if I had to guess, I’d say it’s because I think it would make things worse. Alexa’s very protective of me and, if she knew I was screwing around with some unknown magical item, I think it would make her panic.”

“Ah, so she and Damien are similar in that regard,” Eric said.

Lilly nodded. “Yeah. Alexa’s just a bit more extreme. He can be reasoned with, but her? I don’t think she would hear us out. And I don’t want to unnecessarily scare her. It’s just…better for us both if she’s in the dark about it all.”

Yeah, it really is. I love Alexa. She’s my big sister, after all, but she can be a bit paranoid. I know she just wants to keep me safe and all, and I appreciate it, but I wish she’d just let this go.

“Well, I guess I have no choice but to figure this out,” Eric said, getting to his feet and stretching his arms up over his head. “I meant it when I said I was going to do something about this. And, if revealing the stone isn’t the way to go about it then I’ll just have to figure out what is.”

Lilly smirked. “Well, I wish you luck. Especially after your little show here earlier, I doubt she’s going to want to go anywhere near you.”

“Not a problem,” he declared. “If that’s the case then I shall go to her! But no matter what happens, I will win her over!”

“You know what, Eric? Despite how stubborn my sister is, I actually believe you.”

“Good!” he replied. “Then prepare yourself, Lilly, for by the end of the spring festival, your sister will have learned just how amazing the Magic Club truly is!”

Lilly grinned, eyeing her boyfriend with the utmost confidence.

“Good luck, Eric.”

***

After a long day of hanging out at the festival, Alexa Harper felt exhausted and was just anxious to finally get home so she could rest. She luckily wasn’t in any clubs since she usually had dance practice after school so she’d had the day to essentially walk around and hang out with her friends. It had been fun and the different games and shows the school had set up were cool. She even got the chance to stop by the auditorium to watch the dance club’s performance followed by the drama club’s play. She’d really enjoyed it and was excited for the next day, but the whole time, the incident with the Magic Club remained firmly in the back of her mind.

She knew she should just forget about it and put it behind her, but she just couldn’t stop thinking about how stupid she had been to even bother stopping by. She should have known it would only irritate Lilly more and, unsurprisingly, that was exactly what happened. She logically knew she should just stop thinking about them and leave her little sister to her own business but, as the older sibling, she just couldn’t bring herself to shake her worries. Something weird was going on with that club and she couldn’t stop from stressing over it.

Alexa sighed as she leaned against the window of the rather empty library and stared down at the houses below. The sun was beginning to set, meaning the first day of the festival would be coming to an end soon. She glanced over her shoulder to see a few other groups of students browsing the books or sitting at tables and chatting. There were no attractions in the library. Instead, it was intended to be a little safe haven for any students who needed space to relax and just hang out among themselves.

The only reason Alexa was there was because her two good friends had wanted to see the dance performance again. She, however, had been getting a bit of a headache from the crowded auditorium and decided she would meet up with them afterwards so they could have dinner before they went home. She’d immediately fled to the library where she could have a bit of personal time to think.

Alexa reached into her purse and pulled her phone. It was nearing six o’clock, which meant that it was just about time to go find her friends. They’d planned to meet in the courtyard to grab some food so she figured she might as well start heading down. She straightened up and turned from the window, heading past the rows of bookshelves before exiting the library. The third floor was fairly empty since most attractions were on the first and second floors. Only a few students remained straggling on the top floor. She imagined most were either in their clubrooms or watching one of the performances.

She sighed, turning down the hall that would lead to the stairs when she suddenly came to a stop. Eric Reiner had just emerged from the bathroom and had spotted her almost immediately.

Oh shoot! Please just ignore me and keep walking!

“Oh, good afternoon, dear Harper,” he greeted cheerfully.

Damn it! Now what? Should I even bother talking to him?! I’m sure Lilly would prefer I ignore him but…

“This is actually perfect,” he continued. “It must be the hand of fate. I was just thinking that I wanted to talk to you. Are you free to walk with me for a bit?”

She swallowed hesitantly, struggling to look him in the eye. “Well, I’m actually planning on meeting some friends down in the courtyard.”

“Perfect!” he said. “I’ll walk you down there, then. Assuming that’s okay with you, of course?”

Despite his stilted way of speaking, she could tell that he was a genuinely nice guy. The same could be said for the few times he’d paid a visit to their apartment. He liked to talk about utter nonsense but she never felt that he intended to harm Lilly. It was actually the opposite. What made her so nervous about him was what could have won Lilly over in the first place? What was the catalyst that made her want to befriend him at the start of the year?

I guess…if Lilly won’t tell me, then maybe I could learn something from talking to Reiner instead?

“Um, okay, fine,” she muttered. “Let’s go then.”

She continued walking and he fell into stride alongside her, grinning all the while. In fact, she realized that she couldn’t remember ever seeing him without a grin. It almost seemed as if he was happy no matter what.

“So, you said you wanted to talk to me?” Alexa began. “What’d you want to say? I hope I didn’t do anything to offend you earlier today. I know I didn’t seem particularly comfortable…”

The boy brushed her worry aside. “Oh no, don’t bother thinking about that. Actually, what I wanted to ask you about was what you think of me?”

“Y-you?” she stuttered. “Uh, what do you mean?”

He shrugged. “Well, your sister was telling me that you’ve expressed worries about me and my club and I was really taken aback by this. She said you were suspicious of us and, well, seeing as I’m her boyfriend, I thought it was my job to remedy that.”

She exhaled softly. Yeah, I should’ve figured that Lilly would tell them, especially after everything that happened today. Well, I guess I should just be honest with him then.

“To tell you the truth, Reiner, I am a bit confused by you guys,” she replied. “My sister was never the type of girl to hang out with people in general, let alone, er, eccentric people like you and your club. So, can you really blame me for wondering why she ended up being friends with you?”

Eric laughed and shook his head. “No, not at all. I can’t say I’m not familiar with the antisocial Lilly Harper. Believe me, it baffles me, too, to think that she ever gave us the time of day.”

Alexa narrowed her eyes in confusion. He sounded completely serious and she couldn’t sense any deceit in his words. “So then…what happened?” she pressed. “Why did you guys become friends? In fact, how’d you even meet in the first place?”

“Ah, I’m sorry,” he apologized. “But that’s a secret between me and her. Though I promise that it isn't anything scandalous. It’s simply private.”

Alexa scowled, coming to a stop as she eyed Eric. “See, that’s my issue. Neither of you can apparently tell me what started all this.”

“With all due respect,” Eric replied, “it’s not like it’s your business. I assure you, your sister is safe, I swear on my life.”

“B-but…” she stuttered then went quiet.

His tone wasn’t judgmental. Instead, he was simply stating a fact. It wasn’t her business and she really didn’t have a right to know. Yet, even telling herself that, she couldn’t stop from worrying. She looked up to see Eric about to say something when he hesitated, his stare shifting to something over her shoulder. She glanced back to see two boys she recognized from the football team walking by. She’d been to enough games to recognize both Steven McCormick and Evan Wright. As they passed, Wright glanced briefly at Eric, snorted, then continued on without saying a word.

“And then there’s that,” Alexa said after a moment. “Think about it from my perspective, Reiner. Even ignoring your apparently top secret meeting, there’s still all the rumors about you guys and Wright. First I hear he’s bullying some girl and then I hear that my sister’s club might have gotten him arrested for drugs! Not to mention what happened with that boy back in January—Brooks, was his name? I’m just worried about my little sister! I don’t want her to get hurt or to get wrapped up in anything dangerous!”

She said it all without giving Eric a chance to speak, but he didn’t seem like he intended to. Instead, he just listened as she ranted to him, never once looking like he was judging her.

“I understand that,” he replied. “I honestly do. And truthfully, I would like to explain everything to you. I know you’re short on time right now, but how about we meet in the morning before the festival and talk. Perhaps we can clear the air a bit.”

She frowned, taken aback by his willingness to discuss with her. “You…want to meet up and talk?”

“I do,” he said firmly. “Like I said, I want to resolve any worries you might have. If my girlfriend’s sister doesn’t trust me then it falls on me as her boyfriend to amend that. Do you not agree?”

“Uh, well…” Once again, she found herself thrown off by his genuineness. “I guess so. Okay, sure. Let’s meet tomorrow morning. In the library, how about?”

He nodded. “The library is perfect. I’ll see you then.”

The boy then bid her goodbye, apparently forgetting his offer to walk her to the courtyard, and made his way back in the direction of the clubroom, leaving her to stare after him in astonishment.

Well…I guess all I wanted was to talk so…I guess this is good. I’ll see what Eric has to say and…maybe we can finally clear some of this up.

Feeling her nerves oddly calmed for the first time all day, Alexa Harper turned and continued on her way down the hall.

***

The day passed on and soon enough, the evening had arrived. Album remained perched in the same spot, never once removing her eyes from the school. She still wasn’t sure what she was looking for, but she hoped that with the larger number of people at the festival, she would be able to gain some information on either Lilly Harper or Eric Reiner. However, as the sun began to set and the air turned colder, she began to suspect that she would wind up returning to the run-down house empty-handed.

Perhaps I should call it a day and search elsewhere in the city tomorrow. Being so close to the pocket realm is making this far more difficult than it needs to be.

Album clenched her teeth in irritation as her thoughts shifted to that realm. Even after so much time, she still couldn’t find the answer to its riddle. She refused to believe that Eric Reiner created it. That was utterly impossible and spending time considering it was embarrassing for a mage of her stature. Reiner was both far too young and lived in a magicless realm. There was no way he created it.

So then…who did?

Nigreos hadn’t been able to locate the presence of any mages aside from Reiner in the city so if somebody else did set it up then they were no longer in Wilham. Album believed this to be the more likely answer, but then it still begged the question of who could have set it up? Unless the realm wasn’t intended to trap them, something she had already considered, then the sorcerer would have had to know they were coming. But how? How would they find out?

Damn it… It all just gives me a headache!

Perhaps it wasn’t put there for them in particular, rather it was there just as a precaution on the chance Ijiria located the relic. After all, a pocket realm was a pathetic excuse for a trap when it came to Ijirian Masters like them. All the realm served to do was delay them by a few months.

And if that was the intention, then why delay us? What did that achieve for them?

Album’s gaze slowly shifted to the school’s front gates as two students made their way through them, chatting as they walked. It was a boy and a girl, most likely a couple based on the fact that they were holding hands. They were the first students Album had seen leaving and she figured that meant the festival would be ending soon. She was about to return to watching the school, when something the boy said caught her attention. They were walking down below, past the house she was currently on, and she was just able to make out the word “Lilly”.

Album immediately got to her feet, keeping the distortion magic surrounding her, then propelled herself upwards. She landed gracefully on the road below, relying on the magic to muffle her footsteps. Despite knowing that there could be a number of “Lilly’s” in the town, she knew she would be foolish to not make absolutely sure that these students weren’t talking about someone else. Once she was on the road, she moved closer to the students so she could hear their conversation, though keeping far enough back that they wouldn’t hear any sound that escaped her distortion.

“Yeah, I hear what you’re saying, Vinny,” the girl said. “But I think Damien’s right about this one. It’s her business and if she doesn’t want you guys involved then you should respect that.”

The boy, evidently named Vinny, sighed. “I know, I know. I just hate to think that the club’s the cause of their relationship getting hurt. She’s done so much for everybody so it’s not fair that she’s getting distanced from her sister like that.”

“I know and I agree with you there,” the girl replied. “But like you said, she’s letting Eric deal with it so just trust him. If anybody can win Alexa over, it’s him.”

Album barely suppressed the laugh that threatened to escape her lips. The girl had said exactly what she had been hoping to hear. In that one sentence, Album’s situation had turned completely around. If these two also knew an Eric then the chances of the Lilly they spoke being Harper increased quite a deal.

And if they know the two of them, did they use the relic? Are these two targets?

“Yeah, you’re right about that,” Vinny muttered. “I guess I’ll just see what Eric can do. He won me over so I’m sure he’ll find some way to get Alexa to like him.”

Album held her breath, both wanting to keep listening and to verify that they were targets. She slowly stuck her hand through the barrier of the distortion, praying that neither turned around to see it floating in midair.

“Causentus,” she uttered.

Using the spell, she reached out and tried to sense any disturbances in their bodies. Sure enough, within a second of casting the spell, she could feel faint residue of the relic within them. There was no doubt now—these two had used the stone and were targets to be erased.

“Markus,” Album quickly breathed.

A dim ball of white light no larger than an eyeball shot from her palm and faded into the boy’s back. She then quickly yanked her hand back into the distortion boundary just as he suddenly stopped.

The girl looked at him with concern. “Vinny? You all good?”

He was silent for a moment then nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just suddenly felt a little off. Not sure why. Anyway, let’s go.”

Album smirked. And just like that, we’ve finally got a lead.

She waited in place for a moment until the two students were out of sight. Once she was sure she wouldn’t be seen, she released the distortion, centered her mana around her feet, then launched herself up onto the roofs. Once she was up top, she returned the distortion then took off in the direction of their hideout.