Published at 22nd of January 2020 5:03 pm

Volume 5, Chapter 3: A Hated Dream

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

A warm sun was shining over the road and the large prairie it cut through. Clouds drifted across the sky, and a gentle breeze tickled the prairie grasses.

He gazed out at the peaceful scenery. “I get all sleepy looking at places like this,” he mumbled to himself, sleep-deprived as he was. “No, more than that, I haven’t slept in forever. I want to sleep for two hundred years straight, no, I wanna sleep so long it transcends time and have great dreams the whole time. But instead of sleeping for two hundred hours I’ve gone days without sleeping. What do you think of that?” He tried asking the boy sleeping in the grass beside him.

Obviously he didn’t reply…

Ryner shrugged, then looked around their surroundings. It was peaceful as far as the eye could see.

“…Ferris is late. Maybe Kuu caught up to her…”

He shook his head.

“No, she wouldn’t mess up like that.”

But… if Kuu did catch up to her… no. Ryner stopped that thought in its tracks. Worrying about it wouldn’t accomplish anything. He looked back to Arua and grimaced.

The situation sucked. Sui and Kuu were working with Runa to get to Arua, and if Ryner wasn’t there with him… they’d probably make Arua go berserk and gouge out his eyes.

Ryner recalled what Sui had said when they fought before.

“You’re a valuable Alpha Stigma, so we won’t let you escape. We will crystalize and steal those eyes of yours.”

Apparently that ‘crystallize’ thing meant making them go berserk and harvesting the power in their eyes…

Then Sui had held a crystal up to show them.

“You don’t know about these crystals?”

At that time, it seemed like the crystal in his hand was supposed to be the same thing…

Sui tossed the crystal, and it resonated with his words… and then Ryner’s eyes went berserk.

He’d wanted to destroy everything in that moment. Everything, including all that lived. Even Ferris, who’d been there by his side…

Again. His eyes were going to steal from him again. To him, they…

“……”

Ryner wordlessly brought his hands to his eyes. He pressed hard against them with his fingers…

“…Geez, what are these things?” Ryner muttered to himself listlessly. “They said they’d crystalize them… so are those crystals eyes like this? Would they become those crystals if they were gouged out? And what would happen to me if they were gouged? I mean, I’d definitely go blind, but… if I just gouged them, could I be a normal person…?”

Ryner pressed even harder, tensing his hands and pressing his fingers in as deep as he could get them.

“…If something so easy could free me, then…”

Ryner’s hands stopped there. He laughed quietly, tired, and looked up at the sky.

“…Things would be so simple then… and it’d be so easy. But I’ve already tried that so many times,” he whispered.

But no matter how many times he tried to ruin his eyes or gouge them, they remained completely unharmed. As if protected by some principle he couldn’t understand, his eyes alone were impossible to wound…

So how were Sui and Kuu stealing them?

They’d said that, too.

They said they made them go berserk and then stole them. Apparently it was possible as long as the bearer was berserk.

Going berserk, huh…

Ryner looked to Arua, who was still sleeping. “Would that… save you? Or would it kill you? I wish I’d asked. If gouging your eyes could save you before you hurt anyone, before you hurt your own heart…”

Otherwise… he’d just live an unsettling life.

Arua was despised as a monster by the sole reason that he was born with those eyes. They were the entire reason his parents were killed in front of him. Now his childhood friend was even being held hostage because of him…

Ryner grimaced. “This has all gotten to be so much effort. It’d be bad if we didn’t rescue Kuku… but we have to fight Sui and Kuu for that. They’re just too strong…”

Right then, Ryner heard a sound from his side.

“…Mm.”

“Oh? Finally waking up?”

The kid opened his eyes, but squeezed them shut soon after, the world still too bright to look at… then reopened them slowly a few moments after.

Ryner looked at his eyes. Even now there was a faint, difficult to see crimson pentagram. It was the same cursed symbol that lay in Ryner’s eyes, feared and loathed by all…

The boy sat up and looked around. “Ah, um… where am I…? And where are my mom and dad…?”

Oh no…

“Great, you’re awake,” Ryner said, avoiding the question. “Do you hurt anywhere?”

Arua shivered horribly, then glared up at him. “Wh, who are you! My mom… and my dad… my d-dad…”

Arua’s words trailed off for a moment, and then his face suddenly distorted.

“Ah… uuah… no…”

Arua shivered.

Ryner understood why very well. He was remembering how his father was decapitated before his very eyes…

“U, uuuoooaagh!! He was killed… killed… aaaghh!!” Arua screamed madly.

That was a normal reaction. Both of his parents had been killed in front of him, after all.

Ryner looked at him with disinterested, half-lidded eyes.

Arua screamed like he’d gone mad, tears flowing down his cheeks…

“I, it’s my fault… My mom died… because of me… A-augh… I hate it… I hate it, I hate it… Everyone… I’m…”

He glared back at Ryner.

“Y, you… You killed my parents… I’ll kill you!” Arua said. He stood up suddenly, then clasped his hands together to chant a spell…

“You’re too slow,” Ryner said and grabbed Arua’s hands, then pushed him over onto the ground, interrupting his magic with ease.

Arua groaned from his spot on the ground, then looked up at Ryner with a pained expression. “Why did this happen… what did I do for this to happen!” He yelled.

Ryner shrugged. He didn’t have anything to say for that.

“Just stop,” Arua sobbed. “Enough already… Why did… it’s my fault that my parents died… What did I… enough, I’m so tired… enough, enough…”

Arua covered his face and his sobs with his hands.

Ryner watched him with a bored expression. “So do you wanna run away? Where can you even run? Do you want to see what it’s like to die? I won’t stop you. Do whatever you’d like. Don’t you think you should be the one to decide what it means for you to be saved?”

Arua uncovered his face to glare back up at Ryner. “You… you guys want to kill me, don’t you!? You… I’m a monster, so… you killed my mom and dad already, so just kill me too! I’m just a monster! So hurry up and kill me… There’s no point in a monster like me being alive—”

“Right,” Ryner said. “There might not be any point in living at all. But…”

Ryner raised the eyelid of his left eye just so. When he did, it glowed brightly, a crimson pentagram appearing within its depths.

Arua was surprised and about to comment, but Ryner spoke before he could. “I’ve thought about what you’re thinking now so, so many times. There’s no point in living, is there? All I do is hurt the people who are important to me… shouldn’t someone kill me? And on top of everything, I’m a monster that everyone fears and loathes… so why am I even here? Why was I made? I cried and screamed but nobody answered. And yet…”

Ryner pulled his hand away from his eye. It narrowed in sadness.

“And yet… despite everything, I lived. Pretty dumb, right? I should have died. I still haven’t found a point in me living. Do I really need to be alive? Nobody wants me. Because just the fact that I live hurts people and makes them hate me. So I should die. I’ve thought that so, so many times… and yet…”

Ryner’s exerted expression scrunched up as he continued. “But in that time, people said they were glad that I was alive. There was the king that has strange tastes so he said he wanted me even though I was a monster. Then there’s the girl who kept trying to persuade me I’m not a monster at all… and recently even the girl who keeps bullying me and calling me her slave… It weakened my perception. Made me think there could be a point… and if there was, couldn’t I just keep living?”

Ryner held his head in his hands. “That’s why… I started to want to make a world where I won’t lose the people who are important to me anymore… aah, sorry, that got dumb. A-anyway, what I’m trying to say is, like…”

Arua stared up at him, amazed. “Y, you’re just like me… Then that means you saved me…?” Arua whispered. “For me, there’s… no one who wants me alive anymore…”

“What did your dad say just before he died?” Ryner asked.

“Ah…”

His dad had earnestly yelled out to them to save Arua. He told him that it wasn’t Arua’s fault that he was dying as tears fell from his eyes and his face crinkled in sadness.

“The one who asked us to save you from the Runan nobles was a childhood friend of yours,” Ryner said. “A girl called Kuku.”

Arua’s eyes widened. “Kuku!? Is Kuku here?”

Ryner shook his head. “No. She’s being held in a noble’s mansion to lure you out. I’m going to go save her, so… what’re you going to do?”

“I’m going too!” Arua said.

Ryner smiled. “Then you can’t die here, can you? Dying’s pretty serious. You can’t do any of the things you need to do anymore then… what a pain. I’m so sleepy I could die… and you’re awake now, so how about you keep guard while I sleep? I’m seriously at my limit, so goodnight!”

With that Ryner lay down on his side in the grass.

“Ah… um, wait, what about rescuing Kuku…?”

“Nope, not yet. We gotta meet up with my partner in crime first. She’ll wake me up when she gets here. Then we’ll go save Kuku…”

Ryner’s words trailed off as the plan to go save Kuku spun around in his head. He recalled the problem: Sui and Kuu were aiming for Arua. If Arua left his side, they could easily force him to go berserk and steal his Alpha Stigma. So they couldn’t let Arua out of their sight as long as they were going against those two… So they had to bring Arua with if they were gonna save Kuku. So they had to be able to protect him even as they fought… And they’d be tough opponents even if they had Ryner and Ferris’ full attention. Sui and Kuu were both amazing fighters, after all…

Ryner sat up to look at Arua. “Amazing fighters, huh… I wonder how much you can do if I start training you now?”

Arua’s eyes widened. “Huh? Wait, what?”

Ryner completely ignored him and crossed his arms in thought. “I mean, you’re an Alpha Stigma bearer, so you can easily use any spell, no matter how hard it is… You should be able to back us… wait, no…”

“That’s… bro—”

“Ryner Lute. Call me Ryner.”

“Then, then, Ry—”

“No, actually you should call me Professor. We don’t have any time so I think we should channel your feelings towards that kind of thing.”

“Huh? Profess…or? Then…”

Ryner stood up, then looked down at Arua. “Alright. Let’s get started.”

Arua looked confused. “Um… with what?”

“Well, we don’t have much time so let’s keep the explanations short. You wanna save Kuku, right?”

“Oh, um, yes. I did say that, but…”

“Then you’ll help us save her, right? But you’re weak - no, you aren’t even useful now. So, um… man, what’d she say at times like this again? A long time ago, Jereme - that’s my master - told me, uh, I think it was like…”

Ryner looked up into the sky as he recalled it, then spoke in a monotone as he recounted it like he was reading out of a textbook or the like. “‘You want to protect people when you don’t have any power of your own? Don’t be such a brat! I’m gonna send you to a hell so hot you won’t be able to worry about anyone but yourselves. So worry about your own lives from now on. If you want to escape, then you need enough power to kill me!’ …I think that’s how it went?”

“S… sounds like a scary person…”

Ryner grimaced horribly like he was recalling something terrible. “She wasn’t just scary. Like, when we first met she introduced herself like, ‘I am Jereme Crysler. That is the name you will all heed as God this year. Remember it well. Because I will kill you if you should ignore my orders.’”

“K-kill you…? Even if it’s just a threat…”

Ryner shook his head. “No, she was serious. She definitely would’ve followed through on that. Even Ferris… oh, she’s the one who’s coming here in a minute - my partner in crime. Anyway, even she was serious on the day we first met and she put a sword to my neck and said I looked like I wanted to die. Man, women are seriously scary,” Ryner said, grim.

For some reason Arua looked at Ryner’s exhaused expression with great respect. “So like, Ryner… I mean, Professor. It sounds like you’ve had a very rough time. But you still listened to me whining about wanting to die… I’m really sorry. B-but I’m gonna do my best from now on. You’re going to train me, right, Professor? So we can go save Kuku? I’ll do my best to answer to your expectations. So please don’t look so sad.”

Even after he finished, Arua continued to gaze at Ryner with deep respect…

“Oh, um… you respect me that much now?” Ryner said. “W-well, whatever. Anyway, first I’ll tell you a little about the foundation of magic…”

Arua nodded real big. “Yeah!”

“Havin’ an apprentice might be kinda nice after all,” Ryner said, not entirely dissatisfied with how things were going. “Anyway, let’s get this started.”

And so Professor Ryner Lute’s first lecture on magic got off to a great start here in the middle of a prairie.

“So like, when the military or whoever teaches this, they usually start with talking about what magic is, but I guess I gotta put it in a way that a kid can understand…”

With that, Ryner patted Arua’s head lightly.

“What do you use when you need to think about something?”

“Um… I guess I use my head?”

“Right? You use your head, right? Well, really it’s your brain inside of your head. You use it to think and tell your body to move and stuff. But there’s another part that we don’t use much so it just sleeps. You need to wake those many sleeping nerves up to like… you need to look at the flow of energy through the world.”

Arua looked around. “Are you talking about the floaty and sparkly gold things you can see if you look real hard?”

Ryner snapped his fingers. “Exactly. Perfect. Normally it takes awhile meditating and training your discipline to see those floaty sparkly guys… like, over a year usually? But because we’ve got these special eyes we can see them pretty soon. Anyway, congrats, you’ve passed your first year of magic training. Great. Time for year two.”

They were advancing at an unthinkably fast rate. That was the power of their eyes. They could see things that normal people wouldn’t… so someone like Arua would probably be regarded as a magic genius. Because he had a power that surpassed what humans could do…

But Ryner wouldn’t call him that. He himself had never wanted to be called that even once. He never wanted to be a genius all those years ago…

Ryner continued his lectures in high spirits. “Anyway, those floaty sparkly things are the flow of energy through the world, like I said before. Sciency people call them spirits.”

Arua’s eyes shone. “You mean like ghosts!?”

Ryner shrugged. “Well, there’s theories like that, but… right now no one’s really sure what it is. But we do know that they’ll obey orders we give them. It’s kinda hard to explain? But depending on how they line up, they can cause all sorts of things to happen. Like you can make them shoot fire or lightning…”

Ryner’s fingers danced in the air as he spoke.

Someone incapable of using magic would say that he drew letters of light in the air, which then caused magic to fire.

But that wasn’t really right.

Someone who could use magic would see it as precise meddling with golden particles - the energy of the world - to make them do their bidding…

And when an Alpha Stigma bearer saw it…

Arua’s fingers moved naturally as he watched Ryner’s magic as if in a daze. As his fingers copied Ryner’s, the particles following his fingertips.

Even when Ryner’s fingers stopped, the particles moved to fill the air as if solving a puzzle, drawing letters of light…

“I dedicate the words of our contract - fire the beast of light dancing within the heavens!”

A mass of light appeared above Arua that soon solidified into a beast. Ryner controlled its movements with his fingers.

“I dedicate the words of our contract - yada yada, make the light go dark,” Ryner said. It was hard to tell if he meant that as some kind of spell or not…

But the light liquified and a dark beast sprung from it. Then it disappeared as if painted over by darkness…

Arua watched it, shocked. “Wow… That was amazing. Professor, did you just invent a spell?”

Ryner beamed. “Man, teaching you is great. And yeah, that was a spell I made on the go. That’s how you can make them. As long as you say something that conveys what you want to the sparky floaty guys, they’ll do it. And when you say the incantation at the end, you need to picture what you want to happen really strongly. That image is the same thing as your magic’s power - the stronger you can imagine it, the stronger your spell will be.”

Arua nodded along even though the topic was getting difficult. “I see. So that’s why my magic’s so weak. My imagination’s not strong enough…”

“Yeah. And if I could add one more thing, the way you line the floaty sparkly things up is still a little inexperienced. Anyway, your magic’s power depends on the strength of your imagination and how you line the floaty sparklies up. Militaries around the world are doing research to remove the limits on how much you can line up and how… The form and effect of magic changes completely with that, after all. That’s why magic’s so different everywhere. But that also means that anyone can improvise it and make spells up just like I did.”

“But compared to the spells scholars spend a long time inventing…”

“Yeah. It doesn’t stand up at all. Homemade magic can’t stand up to regular spells on the battlefield. By the way, the spell I used as an example is from a place called the Kingdom of Estabul. You could tell it was well-made, right?”

“Yeah. The sparklies arranged themselves beautifully for it.”

“Right? I think it’d be real hard to improve. It’s already really well-made. It’s quick and efficient, and the incantation lets you vividly picture the image you need. Roland’s spells are usually about the same grade, but… Lightning Flash might be a little better. I’ve been messing with it recently ‘cause it’s got more room to change things around with.”

“Lightning… flash? What’s that?”

“That’s a whole different conversation. But if you gotta know, it sent me flying for a good three years. It’s used in battle simulation training… Anyway, let’s move on to magic acquisition. You should learn spells if you just watch me use them, so… really, this is comin’ in more handy than—”

“That’s dangerous!”

Arua suddenly disappeared from Ryner’s line of vision. No, disappeared wasn’t right… Someone had picked him up with lightning fast speed, making it look as if he’d disappeared altogether.

Arua shrieked from where he’d been carried to behind Ryner. “P-professor! Help me!”

Ryner didn’t react other than his eyes going slack. “I don’t know what’s dangerous about this, but… welcome back, Ferris.”

Ryner turned around to see a peerless beauty holding Arua under her arm.

“Arua, don’t be deceived,” she said. “I don’t know what sort of perversions this man has taught you, but… don’t trust him. He’s a prime example of a bad adult. He just sleeps instead of working, gets drunk, makes girls unhappy, and crawls the city at night and…”

For some reason, Ferris’ face went red there.

“…Uugh, I can’t say another word in front of a child like this…”

Arua looked at Ryner. “Is that true, Professor!?”

“Don’t believe her! Anyway, she’s the one I told you about before. My partner in crime, Ferris…”

This time Arua looked up at Ferris. “Really…? But she’s so pretty…”

“Don’t be fooled. She’s got a personality so bad it could cause the end of the world one day…”

Sure enough, Ferris unsheathed her sword and poked at Ryner’s shoulder with it. “Mm? What did you say?” She asked, staring at Ryner with those abnormally clear eyes of hers.

Ryner opened and closed his mouth silently a few times before finally finding the words. “So, um… she’s actually a beautiful angel who saves the world from ruin time and time again… yeah? Yeah.” For some reason, Ryner sounded teary for the second half of that.

But Arua just laughed as he watched them. “Ahaha. You guys are really close, huh? You’re actually dating, aren’t you?”

“No, where’d you even get that impression?” Ryner asked without missing a beat.

Ferris put her sword back in its sheath where it belonged in a stunning display of self-control. “Hm. Clearly anyone would admire me, a high-class flower whose beauty hits like an avalanche. But what can that flower do about the love of a slug writhing around on the bare ground?”

“Whoa, those’re some fancy new words… Slug? Avalanche…? Anyway, you’re right, there’s nothing the slug can do about that. It can’t live somewhere an avalanche is gonna smush it at. I pity you, Slug. Disaster will befall you at the hands of that heinous woman who bullies people with swords…”

“I hear it begging me for death.”

“Ahh, it’s joking! It’s just joking. You don’t have to grant its wish… And you just put your sword away! No need to get it back out!”

“Granting wishes is a beautiful angel’s duty to the masses,” Ferris said. “And I’m zealous about my work. Praise me.”

Ferris had pulled out her sword again. Ryner sighed and looked back to Arua. “She wants me to praise her for that. What do you think?”

Arua smiled. “I think you guys are really close!”

“Seriously, what part of this is giving you that impression?”

“Huh? Um, it’s like what me and Kuku do?”

“…What? Seriously…?” Ryner asked, then went silent for a moment. “I think I’ve been misunderstanding things then? Um… I know it’s kinda late for this, but maybe we should like… give up on saving Kuku… urgh!?”

Ryner was blown away by the same lightning fast whack on the head as always, courtesy of Ferris’ sword. He rolled around on the ground until he came to a stop.

“I see,” Ferris said. So you plan to go save Kuku as well?” She asked Arua.

“Oh um, yes, ma’am.”

“Don’t just ‘yes, ma’am’ her, Arua!” Ryner shouted. “Aren’t you worried about your professor!? She just hit me, you know!”

Arua looked back to Ryner for a moment, concerned, before looking back at Ferris. “So, um, yeah, I was gonna come along so we’ll be working together to save her… Professor Ferris…”

Ferris nodded. “Mm. Fine. I’ll make you nice and strong.”

“…He’s got a good business sense alright,” Ryner muttered to himself.

Ferris looked back to Ryner. “So from what you were saying before, your plan is to have Arua provide support while we fight that pink-haired gang?”

Ryner stood, cradling his aching head with his hand. “I mean, I think it’s pretty rash, but… we don’t have any other options, do we? I guess it’d be a different story if we found Heroic Relics like the ones they’re using though…”

“Do you have something in mind?” Ferris asked. “Any leads in the legends and fairytales of Runa?”

“We won’t be able to make it in time,” Ryner said. “It’s not like I don’t have anything in mind, it’s just… it’s most likely just a false lead. We wouldn’t be having any trouble if it was that easy from the start. And it’s like I said before - all the legends from Runa are related to the royalty, so there’s not gonna be any real info on them anywhere but the capital. We could make for the capital now but we might still not find anything… and I’m honestly not confident that I could protect Arua…”

Ryner trailed off for a second.

A new idea occurred to him. “What if we ask Sion for reinforcements?”

“In Runa? That’s impossible. If word gets out that Roland sent troops into its ally Runa, Roland’s reputation would fall with every country. Worst case scenario, Runa is saved by another country and Roland is destroyed. And what if we appeal for reinforcements and are attacked by Sui and Kuu while we wait for them? And we can’t leave Arua alone. Sui and Kuu aren’t our only worry. The Runan military is aiming for him, too.”

Ryner crossed his arms, troubled. “Right… And if we wait too long, they’ll kill Kuku… We really do need to train Arua…”

“Um, sorry for making you do all this for me,” Arua said.

“There’s no need for you to worry,” Ryner said. “We seriously don’t have any time, so your training’s gonna be pretty harsh… Soon you’ll be saying sorry ‘cause you want us to make it stop. Anyway, give me a week, Ferris. A week and he’ll be battle ready.”

“Hm. A week, you say. Fine.”

“Right, that settles that. I’m literally about to die out from sleep deprivation so I gotta sleep. Teach him martial arts while I do, Ferris… it’s probably better if you teach him that instead of me anyway.”

“Mm? You’re just leaving it to me because you want to sleep…”

“No, you have it all wrong. I sincerely think that, as a swordswoman, you’re the ideal person for this job.”

Ferris looked oddly touched. “Hm. I don’t know what you’re scheming by complimenting me, but… fine. Come on then, Arua,” Ferris said, and led him to a place a little into the distance.

“That’s true, but like… I mean, even if I said you’re ideal… your personality’s seriously a different story,” Ryner muttered to himself.

But he really did think that she was perfect for this job. Ferris was faster than Ryner even when he was using magic to push his body to its limit. Her physical ability was outside the realm of what humans should be able to do.

Ryner was far slower than her, and she could easily hide her presence entirely and steal her opponents’ lives before they ever realized she was there.

Ryner was someone who many called a genius. Even so, he couldn’t begin to follow Ferris’ movements. Her reaction speed, swordsmanship, and hand-to-hand ability were all far more impressive than Ryner’s…

Ryner didn’t know who’d win if he used every spell at his disposal against her. That was exactly why they were a good match.

Ryner, who’d been called the greatest magician in all of Roland… and Ferris, whose ability as a swordswoman was right at the limit of what was possible.

They might even be able to win against Sui and Kuu, who had the power of Heroic Relics on their side.

Ryner looked over at Arua, who was being led away by Ferris, from his place on the ground. “Wonder how much of a prodige he’ll become from all this…”

He’d be learning swordsmanship from Ferris and magic from Ryner, who was also an Alpha Stigma bearer. Of course he should keep his expectations reasonable, though…

Ryner closed his eyes. “But he should at least be useful by the end of the week.”

And right then—

“Aaaahhh!! Y-you’re kidding! You’re kidding, right!?” Arua screamed in the distance. “F-f-f-forgive me… j, just forgive me already… Gyaaahhh!!”

“Knew it,” Ryner mumbled without even opening his eyes. “Knew this’d happen. Good luck, Arua~”

Ryner drifted off to sleep despite Arua’s screams echoing through the prairie.

---

The Runa Empire was built on faith in God. That fact was reflected in facets of everyday life as well as events and functions.

For example, women could not enlist in the military. A doctrine said by the faith to have been left by God said the following: “God made men to protect His country; after that He made women so that they may soothe and support men.”

And so women could not enlist. That was one of many examples of the scripture defining law…

“…How inefficient,” Froaude whispered as he surveyed his surroundings.

He was currently in the center of the Runa Empire - the heart of it, even. Within the massive castle at the center of its capital city. The walls depicted Runa’s guardian deity here and there, strange designs with crosses linked by stars adorning the walls.

Those present were evidently greatly religious. They viewed the imagery with modest expressions.

In reality…

“The doctrines themselves are altered to the royalty’s convenience,” Froaude murmured as he viewed the facade.

He was in the audience chamber.

There was also an unbelievably pale woman present. She was Princess Ena Asto, well-known for her beauty within Runa. She was truly pale to a ridiculous degree, to the point that one wondered if she’d been outside even once in her life - a very sickly pale. She had delicate, graceful arms, and a necklace embedded with scarlet red jewels around her small neck. She bowed to him…

Froaude’s eyes narrowed.

The people lived wholly modest lives while the royalty lived in open splendor… It appeared that nobility did not change no matter the country…

“…You are an ambassador from Roland, correct?” Asto asked.

Froaude slowly put a hand to his chest, then bowed to her. “Yes. I am Lieutenant General Miran Froaude, affiliated with Roland’s military, Princess. I have come to further deepen the bonds between the Runa Empire and the Roland Empire. As you are aware, the Roland Empire recently enthroned a new king…”

Asto nodded. “Yes, I have heard. Lord Sion Astal, correct? Despite his young age, he governs well and is a wonderful king with the full support of the peasantry. That is what my father says as well.”

Froaude bowed once more. “I feel reassured as a representative of Roland to hear that the King of Runa has said such a thing. As the alliance between Runa and Roland was a pact from the previous king’s time, my king worried that his enthronement may cause it to break at the seams…”

Really, the seams would soon rip wide open… Runa’s threatening activity made that amply clear.

“And groundless rumors have spread on our streets,” Froaude continued. “For example… that Runa’s and Roland’s nobles conspired to assassinate Roland’s king…”

He meant his words as a threat.

They’d already uncovered everything, so now was the time to stop.

But Asto just looked at him with surprise. “My, have you really heard such rumors?”

“…Yes. Of course His Majesty does not believe them. But there is always a chance, however improbable, of any rumor being true. Though the thought of our allied countries fighting is unthinkable…”

Asto nodded. “Obviously. Cooperating to avoid conflict is a doctrine of our faith passed down from God. We would not step on the good relationship with Roland that we worked so hard to cultivate.”

Froaude gazed at Asto’s face. But her expression did not waver. It appeared that she was sincere.

And because she was sincere… many nobles within the crowd visibly paled.

A smile rose to Froaude’s face. A dark, icy smile…

“Princess, I will convey your exact words to Roland’s king… And if at all possible, I believe the words of Runa’s king himself would be a great boon to us as well…”

“I… do wish that you could, since you have come all the way from Roland, but the king and queen are currently out of the country,” Asto said, apologetic.

“Hm, and in which country are they presently? I have not heard of them visiting Roland… so I assume you mean Gastark in the north? Or perhaps Imperial Nelpha?”

Asto fretted her eyebrows. “I am sorry. I also do not know, but I believe they are on official business rather than tourism… It is quite embarrassing, but I am not really involved in any of that…”

Froaude shook his head. “No, I was prying. Women are not involved in politics in this country, are they. Even so, you have most considerately come to greet an ambassador from Roland. I am grateful for that, Princess.”

Froaude pressed a hand to his chest and bowed once more.

For some reason, Asto went red. “Ah, no, I… I am very happy that I was able to meet someone like you, Lord Froaude… Um, how do you plan on spending tonight, Lord Froaude…? Will you be staying here? If so, what do you think of eating dinner together…?”

Froaude’s eyes narrowed.

He looked at her face, so happy that it seemed to shine…

“…You’ve got to be kidding, lady,” Froaude muttered. “Nobles really are the same everywhere, whether they’re men or women…”

Asto didn’t catch it. “Hm? What did you just…?”

Froaude smiled sweetly. “Of course I will join you, Princess.”

---

Late that night, the castle was quiet as its inhabitants all slept.

It was a beautiful, cloudless night, the moon shining brightly across a garden within the castle’s walls. Froaude was sitting on a garden stone, watching the moon’s reflection in a pond. Then he looked up at the sky. “It really is a beautiful night. Beautiful nights like this are suited to pledging love to someone beloved, aren’t they…?”

“……”

The person he was speaking to did not respond. No, he couldn’t respond. He was surrounded by shadows darker than the night itself that took the form of beasts and surrounded him… He was frozen in fear, unable to move even a single finger, much less speak.

He was a young nobleman - Ohnprome Bifira. He was a duke of Runa.

Froaude leisurely turned his eyes to Bifira. “You needn’t be so afraid. I won’t be rough with you as long as you answer my questions…”

Bifida finally overcame his fear enough to speak. “Wh, what are these monsters…!? And you… you think you can get away with doing this to me, don’t you? I, I have royal blood, you know. Don’t you understand what that means?”

Froaude tilted his head. “Hm… What does it mean indeed?”

“It means I’m descended from God,” Bifira said proudly. “Descended from the God that protects Runa. You will invoke God’s punishment by doing this!” He yelled.

“That is scary. God will punish me if I kill you now, then?”

“He will! So release me at o—”

“Let’s test it then,” Froaude interrupted. If I kill you and god truly punishes me, then my king will end up invading Runa. It seems that god cannot win here.”

Bifira’s eyes widened. “What? You mean that Roland intends to ignore our alliance and invade!?”

Froaude shrugged. “Your words are quite vexing. You are the ones who broke the terms of our agreement first, aren’t you? Now then. You conspired with Roland’s nobility to assassinate my king Sion Astal. Now for my question - how powerful is the noble whose orders you acted on?”

“Th-that isn’t right! This is a misunders—”

“I already understood the answer to this question during my meeting with Princess Asto today. That plan was enacted by the Runa Empire’s king himself… He plotted to assassinate Roland’s king, and in the wake of his blunder, left the country to appeal to an ally for aid, did he not? An ally who also wishes for Roland’s destruction? A country that he believes they could win against Roland with…?”

“I, I’m telling you, it’s a mis—”

A shadow beast’s jaws opened wide and moved soundlessly to the nape of Bifira’s neck… where they stopped abruptly.

“Hh… ahh…”

Bifira fell on his butt in fear…

“They will eat you alive next time,” Froaude said. “I don’t necessarily have to get my answers from you. You are not the only one who paled in the audience chamber earlier today…”

Bifira’s face contorted with fear. “S, someone… someone might come save me…”

“That’s impossible,” Froaude replied quickly. “My direct subordinates are watching the area. So if anyone should come, think of it as your end. It would be difficult for me if anyone were to see you here like this, after all… so if that happened, you would disappear. Well… I said this before as well, but if you responded honestly, we’d be having a different conversation now…”

Froaude looked back up to the sky. To the moon, glittering just as it was before.

“And… this really is a beautiful night,” Froaude continued. “Does it not make you want to return home to those you hold dear?”

Those words were the deciding factor.

Bifira’s whole body was wracked by a shiver, and then he spoke on Runa’s situation and on their king’s whereabouts.

Froaude smiled sincerely when he finished. “You did well.”

“Th-that’s everything,” Bifira said. “Everything. Will I be saved now? Will you s, save me from these monst—”

All it took was a wave of Froaude’s finger… no, of the strange black ring on his finger. In the next moment Froaude was left alone in the garden.

The beasts, Bifira, they were all gone…

“It really is a beautiful night,” he whispered once more.

---

Eleven days passed.

It was a pitch-black night, the moon completely covered by clouds. But they had a brilliant fire, so they could still see.

Chezo Caltey was the ruling lord of the region that included Ridget Village, Arua’s birthplace. His mansion was far larger than anything in poor Ridget Village - nothing there could even compare to it…

“…Hey, Ferris… This is where we…”

Ferris nodded. “Mm. Where we found that carriage.”

“We didn’t really find it, we stole it… But anyway, this is where they’re keeping Kuku. The Hero Arua has come to save Princess Kuku… and how do you think that story’s gonna end?” Ryner asked, turning around as he did.

There stood Arua, his whole body covered in wounds. But he was a totally different boy from a week ago. He was overflowing with energy now. He glared right at the mansion. “We’ll definitely save her. Take the lead, Professors,” he said. He was already strong enough to say that.

He’d been taught martial arts by Ferris, and magic by Ryner, both in the context of support in battle. Half a week ago he could have stood his own against a normal soldier or mage from Runa, but now he could take one or two on his own. Well, not if they were both mages, though…

But give him another year or so and he might even be stronger than Ryner was as a child. Maybe that was thanks to Ferris’ martial arts training, or maybe it was thanks to Ryner, another Alpha Stigma bearer, teaching him.

But there was one place where Arua was decisively different from Ryner at that age - he was motivated. He’d really given it his all in order to save Kuku.

Even so…

Ryner looked at him. “So I’m gonna ask one more time before we head out, alright? Do you really wanna go with us? You should be able to hide from Runa’s soldiers until we get back now. Even if they find you, you’ll be able to get away on your own. You’d die if Magical Knights found you, but… but if you come with us…”

Ryner’s eyes slid back to the noble’s mansion.

“I might die even sooner?” Arua finished for him.

“Yeah. So do you still wanna come with?” Ryner asked. He looked back to Arua.

But Arua’s expression didn’t change. He stared right back at him. “Of course. That’s why I’ve been training so hard. I know I’m still inexperienced. But this past week… you’ve been teaching me how to fight against these people called Sui and Kuu, right? I understood that when we had to fight against normal soldiers - you taught me moves and spells I wouldn’t need to use against plain old soldiers, right? But these guys are enemies that you two can’t win against alone. So…”

“Kids like you don’t need to worry about that stuff. You’re right, that’s what our intention’s been… but like, this is gonna be really dangerous. I don’t think they’ll kill you right away if they catch you, but… They might take you as a hostage, so—”

“Still,” Arua interrupted. “Still, I want to go. Even if you try to stop me. That’s the only reason I’m alive right now. I got my parents killed, so—”

“You’re not the one who killed them,” Ryner said quickly.

That shut Arua up, but Ryner knew better than anyone that it wasn’t any consolation.

It’s all your fault. It’s all your fault.

Those words followed them as long as they had their eyes.

Arua smiled sadly. “But I want to go. Because I’d already be dead if you two hadn’t come to save me back then. You saved me because of Kuku. Kuku saved me…”

“But you saved Kuku’s life before too, right?” Ryner said. “Your eyes saved her when things got bad. You two are even. So you don’t need to feel so respons—”

“I’m going. I’d just go on my own if you guys didn’t take me. I can do that now.”

Ryner grimaced and looked to Ferris. “I think he grew up a little too fast…”

Ferris nodded. “Mm. He’s grown up wonderfully. He resembles his mother. Good. It’d be rough if he mimicked his deadbeat father instead.”

“…You don’t mean me, do you?”

“Mm? Who else? You’ve won the world championship for being a deadbeat for the past few centuries…”

“I’m not that old!” Ryner countered. Their usual bickering aside, he looked back to the mansion where Sui and Kuu were lying in wait… and then he continued in a listless tone. “Anyway… I think we can win based on our battle ability alone, and if worst comes to worst me and Ferris can keep them busy while Arua escapes…”

Sui and Kuu were interested in Ryner’s Alpha Stigma. Arua and Kuku might be able to get out unscathed if he let himself get captured. Then Ferris could go back to Roland to regroup…

Ryner nodded to himself. “Alright,” he said. “We’ve waited until now, the darkest night possible. Let’s go before the sun rises.”

Ferris and Arua nodded, and with that, the three began to move towards the mansion.

---

The mansion was practically unguarded.

When they were here before, there were a bunch of guards just with the carriage…

Ryner’s expression clouded over. “This isn’t good, Ferris. I can’t sense anyone inside. If everyone here is at Sui and Kuu’s level, then…”

Ryner didn’t bother to hide his voice as he spoke. They broke the lock on the gate with a loud sound, too…

Ferris responded in her usual disinterested tone. “Mm. They might’ve realized we’re here. But that’s part of your plan, isn’t it?”

Ryner grimaced. “Yeah, but… if possible, I’d like to go in while Sui and Kuu are out… then take out the guards and the lord of the mansion and save Kuku lickety-split. But it looks like they’re waiting here, and that they don’t think they need to prepare for opponents like us at all… They’re seriously underestimating us.”

“Correct!! Obviously. Even if you think you’re strong, there’s no way you can win against my Scythe of Ailuchrono!” Kuu suddenly said cheerfully from where she leaned against the top of the wide stairwell just inside the mansion. She spoke like an entirely different person from their last encounter. When she wasn’t using that aforementioned scythe of hers, she talked so much that one wondered if she even knew how to shut up.

So she continued, since she didn’t know how to shut up. “Geez, Sui, get over here already! Are you gonna make me fight them alone? I mean, I’m pretty sure I’d win, but… c’mon, those two Rolanders are here.”

Sui emerged from the hallway, smiling calmly just like always. “My, my, sorry for keeping you w—”

“Don’t tell them sorry! It’s been a week! A week!! You guys are cruel! You heard that we were keeping a girl trapped here and you neglected her for a week!! Sui, don’t just sit there quietly! Tell them!!” Kuu said, apparently not caring that she herself was the one who interrupted Sui.

“Huh? Um, sorry… Anyway, what I was going to say is that I’m sorry for keeping you w—”

This time Ryner was the one who interrupted him. “No, you already said that, it’s fine. So what are we gonna do now? Fight?”

Sui shrugged. “Do we really need to? You guys came to save that girl Kuku, didn’t you? Oh, she’s sleeping in the farthest room down the hall behind us, by the way… The problem is that she’s sleeping closest to—”

“Just say it,” Ryner said. “You’ll kill Kuku if we don’t surrender, won’t you?”

“Exactly,” Sui said with a smile. “But I’d rather settle things without that.”

Kuu nodded enthusiastically. “See, we actually hate doing cruel things like that. Powerless people are the only ones who have to be cruel. But we’re powerful so we don’t have to. But there’s something my brother really wants to do, so…”

“Research my Alpha Stigma… right?” Ryner asked.

Sui looked at Ryner… no, at Ryner’s eyes. At his Alpha Stigma. “Right as usual, Ryner. I’d regret losing those special eyes of yours… They look just like other Alpha Stigmas, and yet… when you go berserk you’re in a league all of your own. You even recovered your sense of self afterwards. Is it because you’re strong of mind? Or is your Alpha Stigma the only special thing about you…? Who are you? There’s no end to my questions.

“Our king will surely want you, too. That’s why we’re ordering you to surrender… so why don’t you try using that power of yours for our country? I think you two would recieve quite the warm welcome, considering your power…”

“What a ridiculous thing to say, without even introducing your king or country,” Ferris said.

“It’s Gastark, Ferris,” Sui said. “We’re from the Gastark Empire, a country far north of here. Our king’s name is Riphal Edea. There’s no reason to hide it anymore. Roland’s probably already figured out that we’re here—”

“That’s not it,” Ferris interrupted. “You’re only telling us because you don’t plan to let us go back alive. If we don’t surrender, you’ll kill us… won’t you?”

“No, well, yes, but… I think we have the advantage right now. The world will belong to Gastark sooner or later. It will be a peaceful world ruled by an excellent king. It’ll be a world without discrimination where nobody is hurt, nobody cries, and everyone grows up smiling. Our master, Gastark’s king, is someone who can create that world. That’s why we work for him. So you too should—”

“Enough joking—”

“No, Ferris, wait,” Ryner said. “I feel like he’s saying something really good…”

Ferris turned to look at Ryner. “Wha… What are you…”

Ryner ignored her and stared up at Sui. “A world without discrimination where nobody is hurt, nobody cries, and everyone grows up smiling… that sounds really nice. Is your king really aiming for that kind of world?”

“Of course. But… well, his methods can be cruel. But it’s all to make that world a reality.”

Ryner watched Sui’s expression as he spoke, then nodded. “Yeah. Sounds like he’s a good king that you can put your faith in. Real charming guy. I can see that just by looking at you. Your king really might be able to make that kind of world if his subordinates like him that much. Sounds like a great king. Being on your side might be fun…”

“Then you’ll become our—”

Ryner suddenly glared at Sui’s smiling face. “So why do you kill people? Why do you only fight dirty? You guys… have killed lots of people. You use Heroic Relics… no, you call them Rule Fragments, right? You get rid of everyone who knows about them so your country can have a monopoly on them, and you gouge the eyes out of us Alpha Stigma bearers.

“When you gouge them… we die, right? And when Alpha Stigma bearers go bersker we can’t go back to before. You said that yourself. We can’t be human again. So you gouge our eyes, right? You kill us! You kill us! You kill us!!” Ryner spat.

“Just shut up already,” Ryner continued. “A world where everyone grows up smiling? The same king who said that gave you the order to kill us! I don’t belong there. Not somewhere where you don’t think of Alpha Stigma bearers as human.”

“What the heck,” Kuu said. “We—”

Sui covered her mouth with a hand to silence her… and then spoke just as calmly as always. “I see. It isn’t like I don’t understand what you’re saying, Ryner… But Kuku and I will get a little mad if you say bad things about our king like that. What do you know about His Majesty? You’re talking about a fake, overly beautiful world. Why do we kill people? Because it’s necessary. Our country is made with the fewest sacrifices possible, and you’re saying that’s wrong? I’m not saying I like it. It hurts us when we have to kill people too…”

“It hurts you? Aren’t you just killing them for your own dreams and ideals? You’re walking the road of the fewest possible sacrifices, are you? But then…”

Ryner grimaced.

But then… what about Arua?

That was what he wanted to ask…

What about Arua, an Alpha Stigma bearer?

Just the fact that he lived meant that he might go berserk someday… and if he did, he’d kill tons of people. Did they mean to exterminate all Alpha Stigma bearers to avoid that?

Did they mean to kill all Alpha Stigma bearers now to avoid the many potential deaths that each one could cause?

That was how Sui and Gastark’s king thought. And Ryner did understand the appeal of that sort of thinking. Sui did say that it hurt when he had to kill people… and that was true. Ryner knew that too. Killing people meant that it was your fault that they died… and that knowledge alone was enough to make one go mad.

No matter what dreams or ideals they fought for, the wounds made from killing others wouldn’t disappear.

Even so, their king wanted to move forward. Even if it meant hurting himself… he wanted to move forward on the path to save as many people as possible.

It was certainly appealing.

But…

Ryner stared at Sui and continued. “I thought that would be nice. I always did. I… I’ve already killed so, so many people. Because of my eyes… I’ve killed so, so many friends. So when I hear you guys say there’s no reason for someone like me to be alive… I think that might be true. No, I’ve always thought that was true. There’s no reason for monsters like me to be alive. But… Arua’s different. He hasn’t killed anyone yet. He might never kill anyone. But you’re still going to kill him, even though he’s different from me… He still has a future…”

“But nowhere accepts Alpha Stigma bearers…”

“Sorry, but Roland’s different. Sio… Our king’s an unpleasant guy who bullies me every time he gets the chance, but even so, he’s different from your king. Our king’s a real idiot who says flat out that he wants everyone to grow up smiling - he’s a greedy guy who says he’s going to save the majority by sacrificing the minority, and says it’s all his fault and is overly aware of every sacrifice… but…”

Ryner smiled. “But that’s why we’re lending him a hand. Because we can live in the world he creates…”

“I see,” Sui said. “King Sion Astal, correct? According to what I’ve heard, he’s a very talented person, but I wouldn’t call him talented as a king… Yes, our kings are the same in that they both aspire towards a rule with the fewest casualties possible, and yes, your king may really be successful in keeping sacrifices to a minimum. But what about saving the majority? If he’s saving you, then he’s being contradictory, isn’t he?”

Ryner nodded with ease. “Yeah, maybe. But I still like the country he’s making better than the one you’re making. Humans aren’t gods. There’s a limit to how much power any one human should have. But you guys push that limit so you can avoid killing. I don’t want to live in the world you make…”

“Yes, but even so… even if your king is an excellent person, he’s burdened with choices. Soon his ideals will differ from your own… What will you do then?”

“Then I’ll give Sion a good punch so he goes back to before.”

That shut Sui right up. Even his smile faltered, turning ever so slightly into a scowl. “Hmm. Do you really think you’ll win against Gastark if you’re glued to the idea of that perfect world of yours…?”

“We came here with the intention to win,” Ryner said.

“And what about little Kuku?”

“You always intended on killing her. You kill everyone who knows things you don’t want them to know.”

“Then I suppose our negotiations have failed.”

“We were never gonna negotiate with you guys,” Ryner said. Then he looked to Ferris and spoke quietly. “Are we about good now? It’s been long enough, right?”

“Mm. Your speech was pretty good. I don’t dislike how you think.”

Ryner was surprised. “Hah? What’s this all of a sudden?”

Ferris looked right at him with the same blank expression as always. “Hm. It’s because we could die here if we don’t fight well.”

They might die…

That was true. Death was a perfectly realistic outcome here. That was how strong Sui and Kuu were with those relics they used freely. To be honest, if they fought here ten times, they’d probably die ten times. That was how despairingly strong they were. And they were indoors this time. Escape would be difficult, especially since they’d done that last time. Sui and Kuu wouldn’t let it happen again.

So they couldn’t just escape. They’d die if they couldn’t win.

Ferris unsheathed her sword. “What I meant to say… is that these past few months of being your partner in crime weren’t bad. When I first read your naive report before all this, I wondered what kind of a worthless guy you were…”

Ryner smiled bitterly. “Hey, you still call me that!” He said and tensed his body for battle. He looked up at Sui and Kuu. “Are we… gonna die?”

“We might.”

“But we have no choice but to do this.”

“Mm.”

Ryner was silent for a moment before speaking again. “Aw, what the hell. It wasn’t bad for me either. I thought you were an enraged, violent woman at first… Whoa, hey you. Don’t whack me now of all times,” he said as Ferris angled her sword towards him. “But like, it wasn’t so bad. You’ve saved me a bunch of times. Man, I’m always the one getting saved. Milk, Bio, Jereme, Perio, Pia, Kiefer, Sion, Tyle, Tony, Fahle, and tons of others have saved me… You, too… and Arua. We can’t… just let them kill him.”

“Mm. The son of the woman you played with and threw away has come back for revenge on his inhuman father. Even if you work hard to show him something fatherly at the end… it won’t reach him. He’ll still stab you to death. What an emotional resolution…”

“You saying I’ll die at the end? I hate unhappy endings…”

“So.”

Ryner nodded. “Yeah. Let’s do something nice for Arua so we get a better ending than that. Now, Ferris…”

Ryner prepared himself for a fight, opening his usually sleepy eyes for the scarlet pentagram to rise from their depths. It made him look sharp. Like a completely different person.

It was like a switch had flipped in his head, and he moved to kill, murderous intent seeping from him like he was someone else… no, perhaps it was better to say that he’d returned to the time he was a genius named Ryner Lute, the greatest magician in all of Roland. He was given that title because he outclassed other mages with ease. He had a certain physical ability, and he excelled at one-on-one fights and assassinations… and most of all, he was inhumanly skilled at using magic. Everyone was afraid of him. He alone could do any job. So he was called a genius.

He was someone who didn’t need allies. They just got in his way. He couldn’t fight like he wanted to with them around. So he didn’t need them. He was too strong for them, and he never once thought of them as a necessary thing.

Don’t come near me. No one come near me. That’s what he was always thinking.

You’ll get in the way, you’ll get in the way, you’ll get in the way…

Because I’m a monster. Because people who get close to me realize that and hate me.

Ryner’s willful eyes didn’t waver and he didn’t turn back. “Hey,” he said quietly. “I trust you, partner.”

“Mm. Naturally,” Ferris said. “We’ll win.”

Ryner smiled. “Yeah… naturally!”

They moved out with explosive speed.

“Kuu, get your scythe out. Unfortunate as it is, we’re killing them.”

“……”

Kuu’s scythe seemed to appear from nowhere. She held it wordlessly… and leapt at them, flying towards Ferris. As she did, Sui took out the dagger-like Heroic Relic that Ryner and Ferris found before, and stabbed it into his left arm just above where the prosthetic was attached to his elbow…

“Guaaahh!!”

An ear-splitting roar rang through the mansion as Sui’s arm became something else entirely. First a head formed, then sharp fangs and scales, and finally crimson eyes…

It was a dragon. Sui’s arm had turned into a dragon. That was the power of that dagger relic. In contrast to Kuu’s relic, which turned everything it touched to ice, Sui’s let him control fire.

“Now… die for us, will you?” Sui asked, aiming his arm at Ryner.

Ryner’s hand danced in the air, drawing letters of light. “I dedicate the words of our contract - give birth to the beast of malice sleeping within the earth!”

Ryner’s body accelerated by the power of his spell. He kicked off the floor to dodge the dragon and landed near the wall.

“Relics are amazing,” Ryner mumbled. “That fire… no, is it even really fire? I can’t make out how it’s made even with my Alpha Stigma…”

And being unable to see that meant that he couldn’t nullify it with magic…

“Shit, we’re at a disadvantage…”

“You can’t win against us,” Sui said. “It’s not too late. You can still join u—”

Ryner lifted his hand once more to draw in the air with magically accelerated speed. “We might be at a disadvantage, but the match isn’t decided yet. I wish for thunder—”

“Do you really think that spell can match Rule Fragments?”

“—Lightning Flash!”

Sui moved to dodge, but… “Huh?” He said, astonished.

Because the thunder from Ryner’s magic circle didn’t fire at Sui. Instead, thunder crashed into the wall to his side, breaking it apart.

“What are you…!?” Sui muttered as he flopped onto the floor from the impact, then used his dragon arm to bite at the thunder. It disappeared into the dragon’s mouth… but across from them, something was happening Ferris and Kuu’s fight.

The wall by Sui hadn’t been where Ryner shot his spell. He’d shot it at Ferris, who cut it into pieces with her sword, then aimed her sword at Kuu. Kuu moved her scythe to avoid it, but Ferris just pushed it further towards her.

“…W, wall.”

A wall made of water sprout from the ground. Ferris found a foothold in it without touching her charged sword to the water, and let it shoot her up to the second floor where she pointed her sword at Sui.

“I-I’ll burn you to a crisp,” Sui said.

“Won’t let ya,” Ryner said as he raced up the stairs, drawing a magic circle in the air as he did.

Sui’s fingers moved up, down, left, right, forming a lattice of light. “From the west, from nothing, from battle, from the sun—”

“I wish for thunder—”

They started to chant their incantations at the same time, but Ryner finished first.

“—Lightning Flash!”

Thunder fired towards him in time with Ferris’ sword.

Sui used the dragon’s fire to counter Ferris.

“Mm…”

Ferris pulled her sword away, twisting her body around to dodge. She landed on the floor.

But Ryner’s thunder was still shooting towards Sui.

“—I bring forth brilliance!” Sui said to finish his spell off. A spear of light shot from his lattice towards Ryner’s thunder.

But Ryner’s spell won. The aftermath of their two spells meeting blew towards Sui.

“Ggh… shit…”

That wasn’t all. Thunder from the wall was headed for Sui too.

“This wasn’t… supposed to…”

Sui frantically moved his dragon arm to try to stop it… but it didn’t make it in time. Sui’s expression turned to one of hopelessness.

“I lose…”

But then Kuu was there in front of him. She swiped at the thunder with her scythe.

“…You have another opponent,” Kuu said.

Ryner scowled. “Augh, shit! We couldn’t get him…”

“Mm. This is getting bad. Our surprise attack strategy was a failure. Call him back.”

“Arua! The hole on the left!” Ryner yelled.

“Understood!” Arua said from outside. Then he poked his head out of the hole made from thunder earlier. “Wh, what happened? Are they down to one?”

Ryner grimaced and shook his head. “That was a bust. They know you’re here now, too. It’s kiiindaaa…”

“The situation isn’t great,” Ferris said. “They fight with the knowledge that they’re both overwhelmingly strong. If we can’t take one out, then…”

Kuu helped Sui up. His narrowed eyes narrowed further as he stood. “Amazing… It really is such a waste to have to kill you guys. His Majesty would definitely want you. Geez, I’ve never fought a battle this tough using Rule Fragments before,” Sui said, his voice filled with admiration.

“And that wasn’t just any attack,” Sui continued. “Kuu and I didn’t travel abroad by ourselves just for fun. We were ready to be ambushed here, though not by someone like you. I didn’t ever think they’d be a problem. Because you need to see your target to effectively hit them with magic, right? And yet you were able to hit my from outside with near perfect accuracy. How, exactly?”

Sui looked at Ryner. “You fumbled with the spell, didn’t you? You made it so that boy’s spell fired at the same target as yours…”

Ryner shrugged. “So you figured out that much, huh? Amazing. Man, I really don’t wanna fight you guys…”

Sui stared, his eyes fixed on Ryner. “I should be the one saying that. You made that spell just to fight us, didn’t you? In just a week you changed an existing spell into something new, no, made an entirely new spell just to attack us… Alpha Stigma bearers… among the Cursed Eyes, I never thought of you as high-quality goods… but you’re real trouble. The most troublesome, even.”

“That doesn’t sound like praise,” Ryner said.

“That’s because it’s not… Fear is all I feel. Fear towards you unfathomable monsters… Since the very first time I fought you monsters, I understood. I understood why you were fundamentally incompatible with humans.”

Ryner’s expression changed completely.

Monster…

He’d heard that word so much that he was sick of it.

Fear and hatred shone in Sui’s eyes. Ryner was already used to seeing that expression.

But… that was a lie. He wasn’t really used to it. And being called a monster still hurt.

Ryner looked back to Arua. He was gripping Ryner’s clothes in his hand tightly, seeming to will Ryner to save him…

Ryner smiled and lightly patted Arua’s head. He watched Arua as he spoke. “But… but even so, we’re alive. We’re more scared than you are. We’re always scared and regretting that we were born… We’re always, always worrying that we’re going to hurt people… Kill them, even…”

“Then why don’t you just die?” Sui asked. “Won’t you just die for us…? You’re in the way. You’re too strong. You’re a huge obstacle to Gastark. I’ve never been so afraid in my life. To be frank, I don’t know that Kuu and I can win if we keep fighting. I don’t know what other tricks you have up your sleeves and it’s two against three.”

Ryner smiled bitterly. “We don’t have any more tricks.”

That was a lie.

They’d planned two more with Arua in the past week.

He didn’t think they’d really win, but… it was possible. They didn’t know everything that Kuu’s scythe and Sui’s arm could do yet… but they might be able to win if they figured that out.

But Sui had probably figured that out, too. “If possible, I don’t want to fight anymore…”

“But you aren’t just gonna let us go,” Ryner said. “So what’ll you do?”

Sui shook his head. “I really don’t want to do this, but I have no choice. Kuu.”

At his signal, Kuu disappeared with unreal speed into the depths of the hallway.

“You’re taking Kuku hostage?” Ryner asked. “What difference will that make? If we die here, Kuku will die anyway. So we…”

Sui shook his head and took a jewel from his pocket, raising it for Ryner to see. “Remember this?”

“……”

Of course he did.

It made his eyes go berserk.

“You can’t use that,” Ryner said. “Because you can’t win if I go berserk.”

Sui nodded. “Certainly, we’d lose. But…”

Kuu returned, an unconscious Kuku in tow.

“Kuku!” Arua yelled. “What are you guys gonna do—”

“We aren’t going to do anything to her,” Sui said. “When I see you reacting like that, I think this’ll be very effective indeed.”

“You’re not… no…”

“Exactly, Ryner. If I use this crystal, both you and the boy will go berserk. But if I kill this girl, the boy alone will go berserk and never regain his sense of self again,” Sui said and pulled Kuku close.

“N-no,” Arua said, his eyes going wide.

This was the worst possible situation.

Not this…

“Shit!” Ryner yelled and ran towards Sui.

“Too late,” Sui said. The dragon of his left arm opened its jaw, inching closer to Kuku…

“Stooooop!!” Arua screamed.

But in the next second… a horrible gushing noise rang out… and blood gushed up.

Ryner stopped dead in his tracks.

Blood. Blood was getting everywhere. An unbelievable amount of blood… but that blood wasn’t Kuku’s.

It was coming from Sui’s shoulder. It had been ripped violently at the point it attached to his arm.

It was a strange sight. The shadows behind Sui sprung up and took the shape of beasts, and ate Sui’s shoulder just as he tried to kill Kuku.

Sui looked at it, dumbfounded. “Gu, aguh, aaaahh!!”

Even Kuu shivered when she looked at it. Kuu, who seemed to lose all emotion when she held her scythe, shivered. “I… this shouldn’t…”

She swung her scythe at Sui to freeze the blood pouring out of him. It stopped the bleeding, but the wound was still bad. Sui fell to the floor…

“Wh-what… what is this…? Wh, what just… it’s the same type of Rule Fragment as our brother Lir’s…”

Ryner had seen it before. He’d seen the shadow beasts that ate Sui’s arm before.

Then someone spoke in a cold voice from the mansion’s entrance.

“Rule Fragment… that is a Heroic Relic, correct? That’s a term I haven’t heard for them before…”

Ryner looked in the direction of the voice. He wore a dark, formal outfit… dark like today’s moonless night.

Miran Froaude. That was his name. They’d fought him once before, when he meant to kill Toale Nelphi, a prince of Nelpha, and all of his younger siblings…

He was probably acting professionally in the interests of some country or other.

Ryner scowled. They’ve been fighting Sui and Kuu here in the Runa Empire, and they fought Froaude back in Imperial Nelpha… and from how Froaude just attacked Sui, it looked like they weren’t allies. That meant at least two separate countries were moving now.

“…Geez, is anywhere peaceful nowadays?” Ryner muttered.

Froaude being here meant the situation had taken a turn for the worse. They got out alive last time they fought, but Ferris sustained major wounds… and if they’d continued to fight, she probably would have died. He had a worse nature than Sui and Kuu, too. He didn’t seem to have a guilty conscience at all, even when killing.

And… he was immeasurably strong.

Ryner stepped back. “Ferris.”

She nodded.

They had to run. Sui was injured and probably couldn’t fight, but Kuu still had her scythe, and now they had to worry about those shadow beasts… and Froaude’s Ring of the Dark Emperor. They wouldn’t be able to protect Arua here.

Ferris moved quietly, aiming to save Kuku from where Sui and Kuu were…

“Big bro… big bro…!”

Kuu was hanging over Sui, trembling. She wasn’t paying any attention to Froaude at all. She was too busy with Sui, who had nearly fainted due to blood loss…

“K… Kuu… r-run. This’s… dangerous… if you can take me, then… go to…”

“But… but,” Kuu protested, her face still entirely lacking emotion.

“Now then,” Froaude said. “You are the ones who have been instigating here in Runa. You’ve done a bit too much, haven’t you? I should have you atone.”

With that, Froaude raised his hand. His hand bearing that ring.

Beasts sprung up from the shadows… and headed towards Kuu. But she didn’t move. She just sat there over Sui in a daze. And so the darkness closed in…

“Aaaaghh dammit! I wish for thunder - Lightning Flash!” Ryner yelled, firing off magic without a second thought.

The thunder hit the shadow beasts straight-on, but it didn’t seem to have any effect at all. But Ryner didn’t stop. Ferris began to move, too. She grabbed Kuku, then sent Sui and Kuu flying into the back hall with a kick. “We’ll hold them back. You take Sui and run.”

Sui stared, shocked. “Why are you… saving us? We tried to…”

Ferris shot a look at Sui, careful to stay on her guard against Froaude. “It’s a favor. You owe us one. You’ll repay us someday.”

“You’re still… so naive… someone will stab you in the back one day—”

“I thought that too at first,” Ferris said. “I thought that acting like this is horribly naive. That it can’t save anyone or anything… even children understand that. Even so, Ryner… that guy hates seeing people die in front of him. Because he’s weak. He hates people dying, and he hates killing… but even so, he wants to save the world in his own way. He’s like you in that regard. He’s a real idiot that wants a world where nobody loses anything… so hurry up and leave. Ryner can’t fight seriously with you guys around.”

Ferris pointed her sword towards Froaude. “That shadow guy is strong. We can’t fight him while protecting you guys…”

Sui cringed. “You guys can’t be serious.” He stopped for a moment to think before continuing. “Kuu, we’re calling it quits for the day.”

Kuu nodded, and wrapped an arm around Sui to help him up.

Froaude didn’t let that go without comment. “Do you really think I’ll let you escape—”

Ryner began to draw another magic circle of light.

“…Hm. I don’t quite understand this situation,” Froaude said. “I came here to eliminate the spies from Gastark that infiltrated Runa. I eavesdropped on your conversation for some time. However… you two are not from Gastark, correct? You are from Roland. Why exactly are you protecting people from Gastark? Those two must be very troublesome to you…”

Ryner glared at Froaude. “We’re not like you. You erase everything that bothers you. What’s left then?”

Froaude made a face like he didn’t understand at all. “What’s left? Hm. A peaceful world, without war… Is that the sort of answer you want from me? That’s fine. For the sake of a peaceful world without war, I will kill those two—”

“So you’ll torture them enough to hear the information you want and then kill them, right?” Ryner said. “Like hell I’ll let you…”

Kuu had taken Sui to run through the hall while they were talking. She swung her scythe against the back wall to break it open, then jumped out into the night…

Froaude did not pursue them.

“……”

He crossed his arms wordlessly, deep in thought…

He didn’t appear guarded in the slightest. Ryner had drawn a magic circle and Ferris had her sword at the ready… and yet…

“…In this situation… I suppose I will let those people from Gastark go. The Heroic Relics… Rule Fragments… Just what does His Majesty…?”

With that, Froaude turned his back to them and walked right out the entrance he’d come in through.

“Huh? Wait, what?” Ryner said. “You’re not gonna fight us?”

Froaude turned back. “I do not feel that it’s necessary. But, I get it… You are from Roland…… I see…”

For some reason he looked a bit troubled, and then a bit bitter…

“What country’s hired you?” Ryner asked. “If you don’t want to fight us then it’s somewhere that has no relation to Roland, right? You can tell us, it’s fine.”

Froaude looked even more troubled than before. “Someday,” he said, then shook his head. “No. It seems that we will be seeing each other often from now on, so I will tell you.”

“Huh…? Seeing us often? Then…”

Froaude ignored Ryner and continued. “I am affiliated with Stohl. The militaristic Imperial Stohl. Do you know of it?”

“Oh, uh, it’s that huge country in the north, right? I see… Stohl, huh… It’s pretty far. You went out of your way to come this far south…?”

Froaude smiled wryly. “Gastark is even farther north.”

“Huh? Really?”

Froaude faced Ryner once more. “Um, this is rather forward of me, but may I give you a piece of advice?”

“Huh? Advice?”

Froaude nodded. “Earlier you asked me… what would be left if I killed everything that bothers me. I personally feel that what is left is a world that is convenient to me. From your point of view, that may be a world where all humans are killed so that Alpha Stigma bearers can live in peace… and that would be peaceful for you, wouldn’t it? People cannot live without fighting. We fight to eat, for the sake of our pride, to live better than others, and to protect those we love… People fight,” Froaude said.

“A peaceful world where everyone can grow up smiling… is nothing but a platitude,” he continued. “A world like that is impossible. The world isn’t as sweet as you think it is. There will always be painful things that others don’t see…”

Froaude paused for a moment before continuing. “No… you Alpha Stigma bearers understand how ugly humans are most of all, don’t you. This really has been forward of me. I will stop now. That is all I have to say… I will take my leave…”

Froaude made to leave the mansion once more.

“Ah, wait. What’s with that. I really don’t like you, but… you really helped us out this time. Thanks for saving Kuku.”

Froaude stopped in his place, but he didn’t turn back. “Do you really think saving her was my intention?”

“No… that was just when Sui let his guard down. Even so…”

Froaude turned to face him for the last time. He looked at Ryner and scowled. “What a shame,” he said. “It seems that I will kill you someday… Your existence is extremely…”

Froaude left it at that and walked away again. Ryner watched him disappear completely into the dark…

“Hey, Ferris,” Ryner said once Froaude was far out of sight. “Think I said something to get on his nerves?”

“Mm. That’s a difficult question. You rank pretty high on the list of Things That Get on One’s Nerves—”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m number one, aren’t I!” Ryner said before Ferris could finish.

Then Arua began to shout. “Kuku! Kuku?” He said and ran to her.

“A… Arua?” Kuku said, opening her eyes weakly as if in reaction to hearing her name. She hugged him when he came to her.

“Romance between children is forbidden,” Ferris said. “Don’t engage in it or you’ll become a worthless person like this guy here.”

Kuku and Arua just laughed at Ferris’ nonsensical joke.

Just then, light from the sun flitted in through the windows…

Night would end soon. Little by little, the world would light up again.

Ryner narrowed his eyes. “Whoa, it’s already morning… Can’t believe I pulled another all-nighter,” he said. But he was smiling too.

Ferris was badmouthing him to Kuku and Arua, but… he was still smiling.

The sky became brighter and brighter. It drove the dark of night away. The dark, loneliness of night…

When he looked at Arua, Kuku, and Ferris, he felt like that was a thing of the past. Like dark and lonely nights didn’t exist anywhere anymore.

Even if it was just make-believe, a willful deception, he wanted to believe in that for awhile…

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