Tears spilled freely from her cheeks, leaving faint pink tracks where the river ran. She had never thought much of herself — never more than the effort of keeping up, pretending to belong. The fear of being a burden had always sat heavy on her, a quiet, constant worry. Still, people stayed. Whether by choice or obligation, she’d never bothered to ask why. Mister Vix had reached his limit more than once, and yet he’d remained for months.

  It wasn’t just pity or indifference. It was disappointment. Someone who wanted her to stay, but thought so little of her that any attempt felt conditional — allowed but never acknowledged, tolerated but never loved. She had hoped for something else. She had wanted to be earned, not merely used.

  Her eyes widened at the words.

  A surge of green light flooded the crystal room, the entire chamber drowning in a blinding emerald. The barrier shuddered; cracks spidered across its surface. Benneth, Eddie, and Chippy all grunted under the pressure.

  Britlex doubled down, pouring more of himself into the accursed beam.

  “It’s all right, Rin. I get to finally speak my mind now,” he said, voice quiet behind his wand as he launched the death blow.

  When Rin opened her eyes she saw him calm, shoulders relaxed, taking one casual step forward as though he were merely talking to a neighbor. His gaze was a piercing blue; his smile soft and cruel.

  “You pathetic scum-stain,” he said, each word a knife. “I poured too much into you, and none of it matters. Once I kill you and your little crew of miscreants, I’ll start over. I’ll make another child—craft one from scratch—and do this again. Maybe they’ll actually be willing to die for me, unlike you ungrateful swine of a daughter.”

  Rin flinched.

  Chippy and Eddie gritted their teeth, forcing their will into Benneth’s barrier as its glow faltered and flickered. Each pulse of Britlex’s power bit deeper. The situation was slipping into hopelessness.

  “Mind your tongue, boy!” Benneth roared, voice raw as he held the shield.

  Britlex clicked his tongue, almost amused. “You’re still standing? Fine. It won’t be for long,” he said casually.

  He raised the force of his fire even further. Benneth’s barrier was now cracked from top to bottom — holding, but barely. What kept it standing didn’t matter. They still had air in their lungs and life in their hearts; that was enough. They to keep holding.

  “Shit! It’s not gonna hold!”

  “It—it has to!” Eddie shouted back.

  Another crack split across the barrier, glowing like a wound.

  “Rin!!! Please! Help us!!!”

  Rin didn’t understand how much more she could give. Her hands shook as she pushed her wand forward — and then, miraculously, one of the cracks began to retreat, sealing itself.

  “My dear, whatever you just did, ” Benneth shouted.

  Rin understood. She closed her eyes and focused, reaching inward just as Mister Vix had once taught her. In her mind, she saw it again — the blue midnight, the towering tree with branches like open hands, swaying gently before reaching for her. She reached back, tears in her eyes. When their hands touched, her heart jolted — and she woke.

  “Nggh!” she gasped, pushing her wand out again.

  Mana poured from her, a radiant stream of willpower and instinct. One by one, the cracks in Benneth’s barrier began to mend. The violent curses from Britlex’s beam crashed into it — and still, it held.

  “I-It’s working!” Chippy exclaimed.

  “We did it! We can do this! We can win this!” Eddie shouted, voice trembling with hope.

  “We can do it! We can win this!” Chippy echoed, grinning through the chaos.

  Benneth’s jaw loosened, the tension in his arm easing slightly. He couldn’t prove it yet, but every doubt — every lingering suspicion — vanished in that moment as he watched the miracle unfold before his eyes.

  “Rin! You’re doing it!” Eddie cheered.

  “I-I am?” Rin asked, eyes wide, staring at the shimmering wall of light that refused to fall.

  “Seriously?” Britlex sneered through the roar of his beam. “Don’t mistake my pity for defeat, brat.” His smile split wider, cruel and ridiculous.

  He shoved the beam forward; it thickened, a living column of force. The barrier flashed—then another web of cracks spidered across its face.

  Rin grunted, nearly losing her footing. She doubled her grip on her wand and shoved more mana into the wall with everything she had. The cracks steadied for a breath—then kept spreading.

  Benneth clicked his tongue, watching the magic unmake itself. “Children! Abandon the bloody thing! Get out! Now! We can’t beat this!” he barked.

  “No! We won’t leave without you!” Eddie shouted back.

  “Do as I say before it’s too late!” Benneth ordered.

  “No!” Eddie and Chippy both screamed.

  “Not with you! Not without Rin!” they added together, voices raw.

  Benneth’s jaw tightened. Their stubbornness was infuriating—and it was exactly what made his decision.

  “Please,” he said, under his breath and almost to himself, “don’t apologize for anything after this… work on forgiving me.” The words landed oddly soft; Rin, Chippy, and Eddie turned to him, brows knit, not yet understanding.

  Benneth pulled his wand from the barrier. Only the children’s combined will tried to hold the failing shield; it collapsed instantly. He didn’t hesitate. He spun and pointed his wand at the floor, unleashing a concussive blast of wind that thundered outward. It hit the children like a wall—threw them clear.

  They tumbled across the crystal floor, rolling and skidding out of the beam’s path as the shield imploded behind them. The barrier shattered to dust the exact instant Benneth finished his motion.

  He tried to recover. He tried to plant his feet and fire—but the beam hit him first. Britlex’s strengthened strike slammed into Benneth’s gut like a battering ram. He howled; the force sent him skidding across the room, finally collapsing in a heap at the far end.

  Eddie was the first to scramble up. “Director Benneth!” he cried, sprinting to his side. Rin pushed herself to her knees, frozen, and from where she crouched she saw the bright, ugly red: blood pooling from Uncle Remmy’s mouth and staining his robes. Chippy was beside her in an instant, then racing after Eddie.

  Britlex watched, amused. “Shame. I still had more in me,” he said, idly blowing on the tip of his strange wand.

  Rin noticed then that the wand wasn’t the simple thing he had shown her before. The shaft twisted in impossible spirals, every turn catching light; at the tip, a small sculpted hand pointed outward, its index finger forever extended like a command.

  He took slow, confident steps toward her. Her body felt leaden. For a moment she wondered if she could even breathe. When he stopped directly over her, she flinched.

  “Get up. Now. I won’t ask a second time.” He pointed the wand at her temple, cold.

  “…Rin…” Benneth wheezed. Eddie and Chippy steadied him, each taking a shoulder to keep his head from collapsing forward. His breathing was shallow—wet. “…Don’t…”

  “Remmy…” Rin’s voice broke as she looked over at him, trembling.

  Britlex interrupted by pressing the tip of his wand into her temple. The cold contact made her flinch.

  “Ah-ah,” he murmured, smirking. “Your talking to you now.”

  His tone darkened. “Do exactly as I say—without another sound—and I might consider sparing lives over there.” He tilted his head toward the others, eyes gleaming with sadistic amusement. “Though not that old . He’s already halfway through death’s door.”

  A cruel grin cut across his face as blue mana shimmered from his eyes like leaking light.

  Rin nodded weakly. Her body trembled as she rose, forcing herself onto her feet. Her wand hung uselessly at her side, her breath shallow and quick.

  Britlex kept his wand pressed against Rin’s back as he guided her forward, jabbing whenever she slowed. Each poke drew a small yelp from her trembling lips until she stumbled onto the altar.

  “Dad… why…” she whispered, unable to look back.

  “Shut up,” he snapped. “I’m not your dad.”

  The venom in his tone made her chest ache.

  “Playing the role of your father,” he continued, his voice dripping with loathing, “has been the worst mistake of my life. Now finish this task, and maybe——I’ll mention you to my beloved wife when she returns. Now hurry up!”

  His shout echoed through the crystalline chamber.

  Rin’s fingers shook as she lifted her wand toward the ceiling. The light returned—familiar, blinding, merciless. The convergence sequence roared to life once more, swallowing her in its glow.

  If dying was what it took to save her friends… then so be it.

  But before she could rise, something behind her. Rin spun and saw a dark, unamused figure step into the chamber—black silhouette against the riot of light.

  Britlex’s grin snapped off. He reacted, hauling his right hand back to his wand, but it was too slow. A rough, iron grip closed around his wrist. He threw his weight to the right and swung his left fist toward where the man’s head be—only to punch empty air.

  The figure moved like glass—smooth, precise. In a single, blinding motion he spun, delivering a 360-degree kick that slammed into Britlex’s face. The force sent Britlex flying. For a long, disorienting second the world flattened into motion: Britlex tumbling, the altar light blurring, the roar of collapsing magic.

  Rin blinked, stunned. Not even the full fury of Chippy’s Ra or Britlex’s own spells had produced that kind of impact—and there had been no magic in the strike.

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  The man landed on his feet as if gravity owed him money. He turned, drew his wand; it gleamed like bleached bone in the crystal glow. He leveled it at the crumpled Britlex, who was struggling to his knees, blood darkening his lip.

  “Who the—no…” Britlex choked out, breathless, his voice cracking with genuine fear.

  The attacker didn’t answer. He simply stared—blank, bored, unhurried.

  Then, in the space of a heartbeat, five giant quartz crystals erupted from nothingness, each one flanked by four smaller shards along its rear face. They shone cold and hard, humming with an electrical whine as spheres of concentrated energy formed at their tips, each orb trembling like a held breath—aimed directly at Britlex.

  The man’s voice came flat, almost conversational. “I feel like it’s deserved. I won’t take you in. I’ll be killing you here instead.”

  “Commander…” Britlex wheezed, aiming his wand with a trembling hand. “...Nepton. You’re what they sent to finish me? The second strongest man alive?”

  “The strongest part falls on deaf ears,” Vix replied, his tone flat, unamused. “Why would that matter? As far as you’re concerned, I’m stronger than anyone you’ll ever meet.”

  “M–Mister Vix?” Rin whispered.

  Vix glanced at her sidelong, never turning his head.

  “WHAT?! COMMANDER NEPTON IS YOUR SECOND UNCLE?!” Eddie shouted from the back of the crystal room, still crouched beside Benneth.

  “Not now, kid,” Vix said evenly.

  Britlex seized the moment and fired a spell straight for Vix’s face. The Commander didn’t even blink—he flicked his wand once, and the spell disintegrated as it made contact with the tip of his wand.

  Then all five crystals around him fired simultaneously.

  The blast that followed was deafening. Rin dropped to her knees, covering her ears, but the sound still stabbed through.

  When the smoke cleared, Britlex was slumped against the wall, clutching his right arm. His sleeve was torn away, shoulder glowing purple from bruising. Blood trickled down his arm as he struggled to breathe. His wand hung loosely at his hip, yet the smile on his face refused to die.

  “Killing me isn’t the end!” he coughed. “There’ll always be another act—another show!”

  “No one has time for circuses anymore,” Vix said coldly, lowering his wand. “And certainly not my dear partner. I know your little trick—the blue portal from New York? Go ahead. Try it. There’s no escape.”

  Britlex’s grin faltered. Out of options, he swapped his wand to his left hand—his right arm completely limp—and raised it again.

  Vix sighed, the sound calm but final. “Persistent. I’ll give you that. Face me if you dare.”

  Time seemed to slow.

  Britlex twitched, forcing the beginning of a spell—

  —but Vix was faster.

  A surge of green electricity sparked at his heel, racing up his leg, spiraling through his body until it gathered at the tip of his wand. He thrust forward like a spear, unleashing a bolt of cursed energy that tore through the air and struck Britlex square in the chest.

  The impact hurled him backward—straight into a swirling blue portal that yawned open behind him. Britlex’s scream was cut short as the portal snapped shut with a crack.

  “Tch.” Vix exhaled through his nose. “He really did it again.”

  Before sheathing his wand, Vix turned toward Benneth and flicked a green orb from his wand. It sailed across the room and struck Benneth square in the gut, dissolving into him like smoke drawn into a wound. He coughed once—twice—blood spilling before it abruptly stopped. His breathing steadied. He could speak again

  While the orb did its job, Vix was already moving towards Rin. He crossed the distance to Rin in a blur, kneeling beside her. One hand took hers; the other rested firm against her back. His gloved thumb brushed gently over her knuckles, a small human motion beneath the steel of his expression.

  “Rin,” he said, voice low but edged with urgency. “Are you hurt?”

  Rin didn’t answer right away. Her mind was still trying to grasp what she’d just witnessed. The sheer power Vix had unleashed—it dwarfed even what she’d seen in the desert.

  “Rin?!” Vix barked.

  “Y–Yes!” she blurted, flinching upright like a soldier at roll call.

  “Are you hurt?”

  “N–No…”

  “Good.”

  Her world tilted. In the next instant, she was off the ground—cradled in his arms as Vix sprinted toward the others. She clung to him instinctively, pressing her face into the fabric of his coat. His heartbeat was steady. Hers wasn’t.

  “Are you children alright?” he called out as he reached them.

  “Y–Yes, sir,” Eddie stammered, quickly making room beside Benneth.

  “Old man,” Vix greeted, flashing a faint, weary grin.

  “Boy—where the hell have you been?!” Benneth rasped. “I nearly ! Where did that flamboyant pansy go?”

  “He escaped through a portal,” Vix said evenly. “Though I’d say very loosely. The residuals of my magic I hit him with will light him up like a continent. Stark’s tracking it as we speak.”

  “Good… ha!——ah, damn it… Rin! Where’s Rin?! Is she—oh, I’m an idiot.” Benneth let out a strained chuckle. “She’s in your arms.”

  Rin trembled against Vix’s chest. He looked down at her softly, replying, “Yes. She’s alright.”

  “Vix!” Chippy snapped, planting her hands on her hips. “What took you so long?! You’re usually, like… ”

  “Sorry, Chippy.” Vix gave her a tired smirk. “I ran between New Hampshire and Kormadyne three times today just trying to keep up. Won’t happen again.”

  Chippy puffed out her cheeks, crossed her arms, and huffed. Vix chuckled nervously under his breath.

  Then Benneth coughed—hard. This time, blood splattered onto his sleeve.

  Vix’s smile dropped. “Ah… that isn’t good.” He crouched beside him, assessing the wound with quick precision. “Your injuries go deeper than I can fix here. We need to get you to the emergency ward—fast.”

  #

  Rin sat with an ice pack balanced on her head, its chill seeping through her hair. Beside her, Eddie had his forehead wrapped in bandages, while Chippy’s right wrist was neatly braced in white gauze. All three were dirtied and scraped, their clothes torn and smudged from the chaos.

  The hallway outside the emergency ward was still. Only the hum of ceiling lights and the muffled shuffling of doctors filled the air.

  The door opened. Vix stepped out, slipping past a pair of medics who rushed in behind him. His face was unreadable — too calm, too composed.

  Eddie broke the silence first. “Is he… going to be alright?”

  Vix exhaled slowly, crossing his arms. “They’re doing their best,” he said. “Just give it time.”

  Rin looked up at him. Her eyes stung. The last time she’d seen him—really him—was before winter break, back when he’d shouted at her. The words she wanted to say trembled at the edge of her lips but never made it out.

  Vix didn’t notice.

  “Alright,” he said, tone clipped, “I need to go. Some professors and Enforcers are on their way. They’ll escort you back to the academy.”

  “You all know Director Cannus?”

  “Yes, sir,” the trio said together, voices weary.

  “Good. He’s in charge until I return. Take care for now.”

  He turned, already walking away, boots echoing down the sterile corridor.

  The words caught in her throat as she watched him disappear around the corner.

  “You’ll be meeting your parents soon,” he’d said.

  The thought stabbed deeper than any spell.

  #

  Gold trim lined every edge of the marble walls. The chandelier above flickered with crystalline light, glinting off portraits of stern-faced ancestors who seemed to stare at Drenco no matter where he stood. The room was silent save for the faint hum of a string quartet playing softly from invisible speakers — a luxury soundtrack for misery.

  “Who?” a woman’s sharp voice called out from across the hall. Her tone was clipped, practiced — the kind of voice that gave orders, not affection.

  “Her name is Rin!” Drenco stammered, hands trembling at his sides. “She’s this… annoying little presence in the academy! She made me fail the Graduation Run!” His voice cracked halfway through. Too afraid to shout. Too desperate to sound strong.

  Across from him, his mother’s diamond necklace shimmered with every turn of her head. Her expression remained calm — disturbingly calm.

  “Gah! Some in your academy causes you all this trouble? How the hell are you my son?!” thundered a deeper voice.

  Drenco froze. His father, Alphonse Vandergrift, stood by the grand piano, cigar smoke curling around his tailored suit like a halo of poison. His glare burned holes through his son.

  “I—I’m sorry, Father—”

  The sound of a slap cracked through the chamber like a whip. The chandelier trembled. Drenco’s cheek glowed scarlet as he bit down on a sob, tears streaking down his face before he could stop them.

  “Fix it, you stain on my legacy!” his father snarled. “If only your uncle were alive, he’d have known what to do with you!”

  “Yes, Father…”

  “Ensure this doesn’t happen again,” the man continued, voice low and venomous. “You will be top of your class. And I will be damned to care you handle one little girl. Do I make myself clear?”

  “…Yes, Father.”

  Drenco stood still, trembling in his polished shoes, the string music swelling faintly in the background — elegant, hollow.

  “What are you doing standing there?!” Alphonse shouted even louder. “Get the hell out of my sight you little devil!”

  “Y-Yes sir!” Drenco yelped and ran out of the living room as if he was running for his life.

  He shut the door behind him and the world changed — the velvet hush of the corridor swallowing the last brittle notes of his parents’ voices. The room smelled faintly of old money and citrus polish: lacquered wood, lemon oil. Portraits watched from gilt frames, every face composed to disapprove.

  Drenco let his back hit the heavy leather chair and, for the first time all evening, his composure shattered. Tears came quick and without shame. He ran his fingers through the perfect wave of hair he kept for appearances, mussing it until it lay wrong.

  “That Rin,” he croaked, voice small and sudden. “I’ll make her pay. I swear it. I’ll make her pay!!!”

  Outside his door the house kept breathing — servants like shadows, the soft clink of crystal, his parents’ voices resuming their careful performance.

  #

  Grand Majestry Intelligence Division

  Date: May 30th, 2155

  Subject: Aftermath Report – Northern New Hampshire Warehouse Incident

  Filed by: Office of Internal Operations, Sorcerer Enforcing Militia

  Summary

  Following the terrorist-affiliated assault on an unregistered warehouse in northern New Hampshire, and the confirmed endangerment of a Kormadyne Academy student, the institution has been ordered to relocate ahead of schedule. Academic operations have been terminated early for the term.

  Future relocation sites remain undisclosed, though Chicago has surfaced as a potential next anchorage.

  Confirmed Casualties and Disciplinary Actions

  Chase Helixus – KIA

  Determined guilty of espionage and treason against the Grand Order. Direct evidence links Helixus to cooperative actions with hostile entities during the event.

  Commendations and Promotions

  General Torman Haas – Recognized for exemplary command and decisive containment efforts.

  Grand Army promotion: General → Grand General

  Sorcerer Card Rank: Eight of Diamonds → Nine of Diamonds

  Enforcer Glove Mastery: White Glove Sorcerer (unchanged)

  Honorable discharge offered and respectfully declined.

  Lieutenant Milo Stark – Commended for field leadership and assault investigative work efforts.

  Grand Army promotion: Declined

  Sorcerer Card Rank: Ten of Diamonds → Queen class

  Enforcer Glove Mastery: White Glove Sorcerer (unchanged)

  Commander Vix Nepton – Commended for mission oversight and frontline coordination.

  Grand Army promotion: Declined

  Sorcerer Card Rank: Ace class (unchanged)

  Enforcer Glove Mastery: Black Glove Sorcerer (unchanged)

  Filed and authorized by the Grand Majestry Command Board

  Seal of the Sorcerer Enforcing Militia

  Haas stood in the middle of Maruyama Park. The cherry blossoms had long turned to green, but the gentle warmth that brushed his face in the breeze was still soothing.

  Footsteps approached from behind. Haas turned before the man could speak.

  “Stark!” he said with a chuckle.

  “Your Highness,” Milo replied, giving a firm bow.

  “Ah, I might be a Grand General now, but I don’t need that kind of courtesy from my best partner.”

  “Partner?” Milo straightened.

  Haas laughed, placing a firm hand on Milo’s shoulder. “If it weren’t for you, that traitor bastard would’ve never been caught. I wouldn’t even be here.”

  “It wouldn’t have been your fault, sir. He fooled the likes of me—and the Commander.”

  “Oh, now you’re just being modest! Is that a quality every member of the Staffire Squad carries?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “How’d you figure it out?” Haas asked, tilting his head.

  Milo reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out an ID card—Chase’s. Haas took it, inspecting it closely.

  “This?”

  “He dropped it when you first ordered him to join the investigation. I tried to return it and… witnessed him murder the last of his squad. I figured he didn’t need it back when I confronted him.”

  Haas made a grim smirk, nodding slowly. He dropped the card to the ground and fired a small pulse of flame from his wand, burning it to ash.

  “He’s dead now. No use for it.”

  “Indeed, sir.”

  “Walk with me,” Haas said. Milo followed.

  “I seriously can’t thank you enough. I was wrong to chase the Commander over this investigation. But… as much as I hate to admit it, Staffire was right about sending you to me.”

  “The Captain rarely acts without purpose,” Milo replied. “Regardless of how eccentric those actions may seem at the time.”

  “Is that for real,” Haas asked, raising an eyebrow, “or are you sucking up to him?”

  “That’s… for real, sir.”

  Haas let out a jolly laugh, stopping their stroll through the park just above a lone stone bridge overlooking the pond. He turned to face Milo.

  “Will I be seeing you again?”

  “Hopefully not, sir.”

  “I want to see the Captain one day.”

  “He’s a hard man to reach, sir. I hear even his own wife has a hard time.”

  “Do suggest that I must become his wife!”

  Milo’s lips twitched into a faint smile as he looked away, then back. “He asked me to give you this letter. Said I shouldn’t open it—‘for your eyes only.’” Milo handed over the folded envelope. “I must head out now. The Commander requires my presence on an urgent matter.”

  “Right. Take care. And congratulations on your Sorcerer Ranking. I knew you were one tough bastard,” Haas said.

  “Thank you, sir.” Milo gave a brief wave with his white-gloved hand before walking off into the distance.

  When the park finally fell silent, Haas looked down at the neatly folded letter and chuckled.

  “Well… I might as well open this now. It’s rare for Staffire to speak with anyone this meaningfully.”

  He unfolded the paper and began to read aloud.

  “Dear Haas… I know it comes with great embarrassment for you to ever admit I was right, so I’ll do it for you. ”

  Haas gritted his teeth, flinching. He exhaled through his nose and shook his head with a chuckle.

  “Alright. I deserved that one.”

  He continued reading.

  “I’m sure my lieutenant served you well during this investigation, and I will ensure you never get to borrow him ever again.”

  Haas’s right eye twitched. Still, he nodded to himself. “Fair enough.”

  “It’s been a pleasure working with you. Have a great rest of your day, Grand General.”

  Though his complexion was dark, his cheeks warmed with pride.

  “Ohh, look at him. Already like a son to me. I should really visit his residence and properly share gifts!” Haas said, perhaps a bit too loudly to no one in particular.

  Then he noticed the letter wasn’t completely unfolded.

  “Ah, well, I'm dense sometimes. There's more to his letter. Let’s see here… ‘P.S.’—”

  He froze.

  “...IS THAT A ”

  8=D