Kyrie stood alone in his body and felt empty. As he tried to move, he found himself incapable of doing so easily. Pain shot through every part of his body like he was moving while being submerged and suffocated.

“How the hell am I supposed to move around like this?” Kyrie thought.

A blue swan appeared in front of him and scowled. “Are you truly having trouble piloting this body?”

“Yes. Wait, why did you say pilot?”

“Hasn’t he let you take the wheel before?” Issac asked as he floated around Kyrie’s consciousness.

“I have. But this is different somehow. Like all my sensations are turned up to max.”

“Karl, did Kyrion leave on any active brain-altering spells?”

A glowing cube appeared in front of them. “Checking…Yes. There are currently three spells active at the moment. First Is Brain.exe, the second is Vitals.exe and finally, there is Mana.exe.”

“What is the .exe for and why is my gut telling me not to mess with those?”

“It’s something Cecil mentioned a while back. Apparently dungeons in his world live in boxes, important things used to have .exe at the end they are executable. Opening Brain.exe… Ah that’s how he did it. At least that’s what I managed to discern.”

“Sometimes I wonder what goes through that one’s head. What’s the issue?” Jala asked as she eyed Kyrie’s consciousness.

“He left his perception raised to the max and his brain in its overclocked state with a few actions preset to trigger if necessary. Right now your sensations are amplified by 200% and the world around you is moving at 25% of its natural speed. As you didn’t activate the ability yourself, you aren’t properly linked to it so there are some cognition issues. One moment as I reset the values as this can lead to brain damage if prolonged.” Karl began the process of resetting Kyrion’s mind to its normal state.

Kyrie moved the body around and scowled as he began to do some stretches. He then moved on to a series of kicks, punches, and spins, drew his great sword, and practiced a sword form. “You stingy son of a farmer! Why aren’t you participating in the solo tournament?”

Jala shook her head. “Because he isn’t trained as a one on one fighter. His skills usually revolve around healing and crowd control. His style of fighting revolves around taking on a large number of overwhelming foes without killing. Albeit that’s more a mindset that kept him from using lethal force. But you Kyrie have killed before. And I’m not referring to human-shaped monsters. You and the other one don’t value lives the way he does.”

“I did fight in a few skirmishes before I was sent to this world. I have killed, I have died. The bodies you get in this world are much more durable than the ones from my own. Had I fought the man who killed me with his level of raw strength and agility, it would have lasted longer and I’m pretty sure he was at a level far past this himself. But I doubt I have been bested so easily.”

“I saw those memories. I believe you were getting played with.” Karl said with a monotone.

“I was just saving my true power,” Kyrie said, exasperated,

“You mean that the ritual circle you were fighting in kept you from releasing your strongest attacks due to it being able to absorb most of the mana you produced to power it,” Karl added.

“You’re a rude one.”

“I’m just making sure you don’t corrupt your own memories and start challenging experts beyond your station.”

“I mean. I’m sure with enough preparation I could take on anyone. Just ask Kyra.”

“Why is my head still spinning?” Kyra shared a wave of nausea with Kyrie as her mind joined his in the center.

“Oi! Kyrion! Why are you talking to yourself?” Ander said as he entered the space while flexing his hand.

“Kyrion is currently gone at the moment.” Kyrie stated.

“What do you mean by gone?”

“Abyss if I know. Wanna spar after the exorcism?”

“Sounds like a plan. Can you fly in that form?”

Kyrie scowled as he jumped high into the air and landed back on the ground.

“Not to my awareness. As I don’t have the experience.”

“How do we find him?”

“How do we find and help Midas?” Kyrion thought aloud.

A memory placed itself in Kyrie’s head as he stood there menacingly.

“Yes. I can perform the surgery required to remove the demon from her core.” Kyrie withdrew a rainbow-colored vial from his domain before scowling.

“Does that make three?” Kyra asked as her mind was syncing with Kyrion’s memories.

“Just what is going on…”

“Why do you carry items like that anyway?” Ander interrupted.

“Kyrion is a bit of a hoarder on top of being a klepto. I once saw a dream where he went from house to house taking items from other people’s chests before leaving. The people observing, not reacting to that at all.”

“That item is detrimental to those with power.” Ander stated the obvious.

“It’s going to be our catalyst for the exorcism. We need to loosen its connection with Midas…er… their core and then remove and destroy it. One wrong move and we’ll he dies and we either have to start over or he can no longer be a spirit master. Let us not forget that we’ll also need to escape soon after as to not cause trouble. Being caught after would be bad. Being caught before means that Volain will kill them and reset the day.”

“That’s needlessly brutal, but it needs to be done. Even though I’ll miss my endless training sessions.” Ander nodded.

“Same, but we can always come back later.”

“Let’s go then.”

Ander flew from the room, and Kyrie pounded at the ground, his steps propelling him forward by leaps and bounds. The two returned to the city in minutes and headed straight towards Midas.

Kyrie had made it past the front door of their lodging and was going to casually walk towards his location until he was far enough to free. That was before he passed by Cecil, who had taken an interest and approached from behind.

“Cecil baby. It’s me. Rion your best friend and captain please but the gun down.” Kyrie stated as Cecil stood next to his captain, his magic pistol placed against Kyrie’s spine.

“Rion doesn’t know what a gun is. He calls it a curved magical wand.”

“Why are you here anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping?” Kyrie rolled his eyes.

“I was sleeping until Tiffany woke everyone up with a panicked cry. She believes that Rion is dead. As the orb in her pendant turned red.”

Kyrie clicked his tongue. “Tiffany is the girlfriend that uses a sword right?”

The gun was dug deeper into his back.

“Your girlfriend then?” Kyrie had not paid enough attention to Kyrion’s group outside of Ander, who he trained with often.

“Who are you, imposter?”

“Ugh. Can’t you just ask Ander? We don’t have much time left for details.”

“How do I know your people didn’t infect him as well?”

“Listen, let me finish what I’m doing, and then I’ll get back to training.” Kyrie stated.

“Who are you?”

“Right now We’re Rieon.” Kyrie rolled his eyes.

“Your pronunciation is off.”

“Then use your context clues. Ander’s gonna beat me there if you hold me up any longer.”

“Where is Ander anyway?”

“Flying right over there.” Kyrie pointed to a strange-looking bird far up in the sky.

As Cecil looked up and squinted, Kyrie used a trick he inherited from Kyrion to slip into the space between worlds and moved through it with a lot of effort. Navigating this place felt dangerous, almost as though one wrong step could get him killed. He still managed to get 10 feet away, and from there, he powered his legs and lept from roof to roof in a chain of jumps that led him toward the intended location.

Ander had already arrived at the window and proceeded to set up the silence array while Kyrie bounded through the city like a madman, somehow not disrupting any roof tiles in the process.

“What took you so long?”

“That Cecil guy is too clingy. Do you know if that one, plays both sides?”

“I mean don’t you have access to his memories?”

“Only what he allowed me to see as he’s the dominant personality. Back when Psycho was around he showed me things that the other didn’t want me to see. But even then it’s mostly combat oriented.”

“What did you see him do?”

Kyrie recalled Kyrion getting someone who slighted him back by covering their sword handle with a strange plant sap that caused their hand to fuse to their handle. It couldn’t be removed without skin peeling or until twelve hours passed. The fact that he hadn’t been caught or reprimanded was surprising. He’d been a bit of a troublemaker with a strong sense of justice. Albeit his justice was a bit chaotic.

“Just stuff.”

“Right. Now get this window open.”

Kyrie placed gloves onto his hands before tracing a square around the window with his fingers, creating a brief opening both he and Ander could pass through to enter. When the portal solidified, Kyrie hopped through and landed softly on the ground. As he crept to the door his presence was erased. In moments, the door was sealed shut as the wood fused briefly.

Ander entered soon after and approached Midas, his feet not touching the ground as he activated a painless stun that would ensure that the young man stayed unconscious throughout the operation.

Instantly, the sun arose as time moved forward while they were frozen shut. The demon within Midas began to fight in an attempt to stop them from killing it.

Sadly, that brief action alerted Kyrie to its location, and he plunged the needle into Midas’ core, forcing the medicine in.

Midas didn’t react. He couldn’t respond as the coma Ander forcibly induced would keep him unable to move for a while.

Time continued to move around Midas and Ander at an accelerated pace as the two worked to exorcize it; the demon’s act only sped up the exorcism as Ander covered the unconscious man’s chest with Angel Tear.

The demon screamed as its body was forced out through Midas’ core and revealed. The

Kyrie produced a scalpel, covered it with spatial mana, and cut it into Midas’ core. From there, he used his order and healing affinity to purify and kill all impurities within the core. Which turned out to be a lot more than he first thought. As instructed, he cut and removed all the impurities from the young man’s system. Moments later, he placed his hand within Midas’s core and sent in a wave of healing mana to restore the damage and remove the poison that was loosening up his core.

“Metal, light, and Holy affinities. The holy affinity had atrophied due to a bound possession. Now why would a mortal go and do a thing like that?” Karl muttered.

Midas screamed as a spirit flowed out of their body from their mouth. The spirit tried to fight, but only a golden cage entrapped it as holy light filled it. In moments, the cage was empty.

“Holy?” Kyrie muttered aloud.

“What are you doing in my room?” Midas awoke suddenly and confused, his eyes shifting from brown to the color of golden coins, half his hair going from gold to almost white while the other half changed from gold to green. All in all, he appeared pretty odd with the mix of hair colors. This was followed by the sounds of bones shifting loudly to match the soul inside, growing more lithe than bulky.

Before Midas could look at Ander, the green-haired boy turned into a bolt of lightning and flew out of the room.

“Rion told me that you should probably go before anyone else see’s you. May light guide your path hero.” Midas put their hands together and said a prayer.

Kyrie nodded as he hopped through the window and ran like his life depended on it. Just what had he been a part of.

Midas waited for the others to leave and got to her feet as her body finally returned to how it was meant to be. Her golden robes fell to the floor as a large golden tattoo appeared on her back in the shape of a torch holding a golden flame.

“Goddess of light and flame. This servant is sorry to have betrayed your expectations. She does not deserve mercy for what has happened. I who was once lost has found her way back.”

The golden marks around Midas glowed as the magic that the time demon had cast was erased, and the world shifted forward exponentially as all living beings were forced into temporary stasis.

Cecil climbed out of bed as he awoke to a knock on his door. Not having a reason to be up this early, he withdrew his gun just in case, making sure he had it set to anti-magic before he opened the door.

Outside the door stood a flamboyant-looking woman with white and green hair, golden eyes, and a disturbing smile on her face as he seemingly bowed deeply.

“I humbly request that you let me join your harem on behalf of my mother.”

“No.” Cecil saw the resemblance immediately and took a step back.”

“Oh that’s disappointing.” Midas looked hurt.

“You can’t be. She was too young.”

“Mother can appear however she wishes, as can I technically. She is also married for better or worse so she sent me instead as a way to atone for my improper behavior.”

“You have to be pulling my leg. That Kyrion bastard put you up to this didn’t he? I bet he’s trying to get me back for earlier.”

“Your captain isn’t here at the moment. For reasons I can’t explain, his return had been delayed. Don’t expect his full arrival before the team battles begin.”

“Who are you anyway?”

“Midas is what people call me. Though Marigold is a bit more apt, and something I prefer.”

“Because everything you touch becomes gold?”

“Something like that.” Marigold poked the door; where she touched it, it had become pure gold as though all its atoms had shifted through transmutation.

“How long does that last?” Cecil asked.

“Forever and it can’t be dispelled. In turn, this ability can’t be used on living creatures.”

“Why do I get the feeling we’ve met?”

“Because we have. Very recently in fact. I believe half of your team hates me with a passion.”

“Then why have you come?”

“Because my savior Kyrion could use my help in the upcoming battle.”

“Kyrion’s dead, he can’t save anyone. No, you can’t be that Midas. None of your features match.”

“Your captain isn’t the only one with the ability to alter their physical appearance. Although mine came with some changes to my memory and a few curses. I am no prince of a small human kingdom. That’s just something my supposed parents decided to have me pretend to be when they saw my talents. They are of course dead, may their souls find peace. I was then taken in as the biological son of a concubine that the king supposedly visited quite frequently. A fact he didn’t deny as he was perceptive enough to know my heritage. Probably.”

“And your memories were altered why?”

“Children of Imala or any of the other guardians of the seal are born with a level of cognition higher than most newborns and we develop faster because of it. You could say I’m fourteen in human years, although I do appear slightly older. We can also directly communicate with our parents through prayer like most high-ranked priests and priestesses. The binding placed on my core allowed them to mold me into an arrogant puppet. And so, for well over thirteen years of my life, I was a tool meant to grab the throne while my soul was elsewhere.”

“Yeah you should probably switch back to your usual appearance to avoid suspicion. Wait… How old is your soul?”

“I won’t. Who would dare attack me in broad daylight? And you don’t ask a woman her age like that.”

“Minah probably. Maybe Kyrion when he gets back. Lin definitely owes you a slap or two. Then there are the various people you supposedly harassed and bullied on your team and otherwise.”

“Was I truly that evil? Maybe we can say that Midas had died and I am their replacement team member…”

“Meh, if you were mentally manipulated then chances are the axe falls on whoever put the spell on you. But how do you plan to prove that you’re telling the truth? And will you run from atonement and your responsibilities now that you’re free? We don’t really need cowards.”

“Isn’t the truth enough? On top of that, I intend to be very upfront.”

Like clockwork, Minah left her room wearing a tank top and shorts. Stopping briefly as she passed by Cecil’s room. “Who’s the pretty girl?”

Marigold visibly shivered as someone spoke from behind.

“This is your brother Midas.”

“Very funny. This girl is too hot to be my bratty little brother. Nor does she look or act like Max.” Minah gave off a seductive wink.

Cecil was somewhat amused, while Marigold was visibly uncomfortable.

“It’s true dear sister. I am was Midas, please stop. Your words are making me uncomfortable.” Midas said with a trace of an old tone.

“You just said please, you can’t be the same person.” Minah looked to Cecil, who nodded.

“That is common courtesy, yes?” Midas looked to Cecil, who was currently still nodding.

“If you were Midas, why did you change your appearance so drastically? Are you a spy?” Minah asked, with an expression that showed she wasn’t buying it.

“Nothing like that. I intended to join the harem and offer up my unique talents.”

“Oh, well, while I’m sure those talents are well known in some niche circles, I doubt they’d be helpful in this type of harem.”

“I should go.” Marigold had reached her mental limit for the day and took the chance to leave.

Cecil and Minah stood there for a good minute as Marigold got a reasonable distance away.

“How long have you been eavesdropping?”

“Since the beginning, I was headed here when I noticed a strange presence so I decided to hide a bit and listen in. Just in case you needed backup. You know, this pisses me off for reasons I don’t quite understand.”

“So you hit on your sister.”

“I just wanted her to feel uncomfortable and flee, it’s a minimal amount of payback. If she joins, chances are I won’t accept her, in any shape or form. Different person or not, she made most of my early life a living hell, I can’t forgive her like none of that has happened.”

“That’s your prerogative. I got a countermeasure to complete before I meet with Kyrie.”

“I mean, we were raised to be rivals for fathers throne. Her leaving like that won’t make my victory mean anything.” Minah turned and dashed off.

“Good luck with that.” Cecil shut and locked his door. If his captain were away, this would be the perfect time to work on his secret weapon. While he didn’t expect to need it against his co-captain, he didn’t like people being able to teleport about freely in combat nor spy on him without tripping his countermeasures. He doubted he would have a better chance to finish this project.

Lin awoke in the usual spot, but when she went to find Rion, she discovered he was missing. The last time she saw him, he had been dying a pile of limbs and organs. She wasn’t able to count the pieces that were left. Rion could be pretty cruel sometimes. Not everyone would stay sane after seeing a human in that condition. A sacrificial play that ended in his death. She was probably the only person who knew why he faked his death in such a way. Something he hadn’t bothered to reveal to her personally.

As she waited for the impostor’s return, she felt a shift in the ambient mana as though someone who was supposed to be here had disappeared. “Team Drisil has ten members, Rion Cecil, Minah, Midas, Tiffany, Bella, Nox, Brion, Ander, and Eden. The max is twelve this year due to alternates and assistants being allowed to participate should team members be injured.”

“What’s going on my princess?” Kyrie said as he appeared behind her.

Lin whirled on her heels and moved to slap him.

Recognizing the look, Kyrie didn’t bother dodging and paused his natural regeneration.

Kyrie held his jaw and rotated it before speaking while Lin examined her now split hand. Kyrie took it and applied some quick healing unbothered.

“What’s wrong?” Kyrie asked.

“Don’t call me that until you’re back to normal.”

“So… You can tell.”

“Anyone who’s known him can tell, while ambidextrous, he tends to lead with his left foot. You just led with your right and stumbled onto your right foot.” Lin stated something Nicole had told her when she asked about Drisil’s other captain. She hadn’t seen him start walking, but she had seen him stumble recently and knew he didn’t pay that much attention to details.

“I don’t have the memories of Kyrion’s schemes but I knew that we were on the C route when the real enemy revealed themselves. I believe Nicole was supposed to be the calvary should he get assassinated by Everest or killed fighting Milo. Why he planned to die I am unaware but to my understanding he went to get something he had been missing. And until he returns I’m the one leading this body.” Kyrie hadn’t let go of Lin’s hand.

“So you aren’t Rion. How well can you play the role?” Lin asked as she began to lower the temperature around her hand subtly.

“I am quite bad at pretending to be my baseline. He’s quite complicated and dense with his explosive emotions. Rion, however, is a flamboyant peacock with tons of power and isn’t shy about using it to get what he wants.” Kyrie moved to place a kiss on Lin’s knuckle.

Lin easily slid from his grasp while her magic numbed Rion’s hand significantly. She took two steps back and summoned a short wall of ice between them.

“What are you, a split personality?”

“No. I am a shard of his soul. Most people born in these worlds are incomplete. Born with an urge to find what’s missing and become complete. I would like to think we represent Rion’s passion and diligence.”

Kyra rolled her eyes, which resulted in Rion’s left eye rolling while the right stayed completely focused.

“And what does he represent?”

“At his core, Kyrion is a petty and spiteful being that would go out of his way to help those around him. At his heart, he is a healer more than he is a warrior. In a perfect world, he’d probably be a traveling doctor.”

Lin took a step back. “You’re insane.”

“Yeah, he kinda got lucky and unlocked us pretty early. Next time you’re with a powerful expert you trust, ask them about incarnation. The headmaster seems to be at six of eight if my guess is correct.”

Lin had noticed a few odd traits experts had, like the ability to channel complex magics quickly as though performing them with a group. It could be possible if it were genuinely integrating more minds into one body. No, Rion is just trying to get off easy. Lin took another few steps back and scowled.

“Keep your distance bub. We have fights to observe.” Lin stated coldly.

“You still my heart with those words.” Rion swooned dramatically.

Kyrie and Kyra scowled as neither of them said that. It felt as though something else had taken control for a brief moment.

As quickly as the moment started, it also faded. Rion stretched as words entered his mind.

“I should be back in a week. Please don’t ruin my life before then.” Kyrion’s presence in his mind vanished moments later.

“Just what is he up to?” Kyra muttered.