Chapter 27

Darkness began settling over the distant sky.

Inside the Firefly Cavern, the moment Mikhail and Ethan's gazes locked—

Crack, crack.

The edges of the mask crumbled away like an old stone wall.

Mikhail hastily raised his hand to cover his exposed face. The disguise spell embedded in the mask was fading.

'Damn it.'

Ethan, who'd been staring directly at him, tilted his head slightly.

The corners of his mouth trembled subtly, and his tightly closed lips began fumbling to form words.

"...Have we met somewhere before..."

Mikhail sucked in a breath and jerked his face downward. He scrambled to his feet and staggered backward.

This was dangerous.

If his identity was exposed, everything would fall apart.

Thud.

Mikhail reached into his inner pocket and grabbed the old book. He tossed it toward Ethan while forcing his tone flat.

"...Our deal ends here."

"No, it's not over yet."

Ethan quickly got to his knees. He walked forward without even glancing at the book on the floor. The blood streaming down his body gradually slowed. Ethan stared sharply and spoke.

"Tell me. Who exactly are you...?"

Mikhail bit his lip.

The gap between him and Ethan was barely ten steps.

So before then, he had to hurry and—

"Kugh...!"

In that moment, heat flared at his solar plexus.

The magic's backlash made Mikhail stagger and double over. He barely managed to hold onto his fading consciousness.

With trembling hands, he clutched the spatial leap scroll, bit it between his teeth, and tore it.

Tsssss!

It was instantaneous. A magic circle formed beneath his feet.

"!"

At the sudden situation, Ethan flinched and stopped. In that brief window, Mikhail tilted his head back toward the distant sky.

Far away. He had to go very far away.

'Somewhere Ethan won't be able to find me...'

Tszzzzz.

Brilliant streams of light shot up from the magic circle.

Ethan's eyes widened greatly as he watched. As if urgently trying to grab hold, his hand reached forward.

"—Maxwell!"

A sharp cry rang out, either pursuing or trying to grasp him.

...But he couldn't let himself be caught.

Mikhail clenched his faintly trembling fingertips tight. He swallowed the groan escaping between his teeth and turned his back on Ethan.

"......"

White streams of light blazed brilliantly and engulfed his senses. His entire body was swallowed by the distant radiance.

Whoooosh!

---

Much time passed after that.

The night sky well past midnight was an unusually deep blue.

"Krung."

The sky foxes huddled by the window looked up at the sky.

Tonight the wind carried a bit of moisture.

The lazy golden stars had appeared, and sharp-eyed owls flew here and there.

But their friend who'd promised to return early hadn't come back.

"Keeeng..."

The sky foxes huffed out sighs through their noses and curled up—

Creaaak.

The firmly closed door opened.

The sky foxes perked up their heads and rushed toward the entrance.

"Kang!"

Their friend they'd been waiting for had arrived.

But instead of welcoming him, the sky foxes jumped in place. Their friend's condition was terrible.

"Ha, ugh..."

His body covered in weeds and sap was a complete mess. The cloth wrapped around his left hand had turned dark with flowing blood.

And his complexion—it was deathly pale without a trace of color, looking like he might collapse any moment.

"......"

That's when it happened.

The corners of the mouth looking at the sky foxes curved into an arc.

"I'm... back."

Thump.

That halting greeting was the last.

Mikhail tilted forward and collapsed.

---

[...No, it's not over yet.]

[Tell me. Who exactly are you?]

"......"

The next day, late afternoon with sunlight pouring in.

Mikhail finished showering and threw himself onto his bed with a thud.

While his whole body ached indiscriminately, only Ethan's voice kept ringing sharply in his ears.

'It's done. It's all in the past now. There won't be any more involvement with him.'

Mikhail shook his head to clear away the thoughts and changed the topic in his mind.

What came next was related to the main storyline's progression.

'Tomorrow will be the first department meeting. They'll announce field participation there, and about ten days later, I'll join the convoy.'

Mikhail clenched his left hand tight. Only a stinging sensation lingered in his palm, which held not a trace of mana.

'I ended up growing much more than expected, but still, it's best to keep moving while I have the chance.'

Past the first, to the second. And then the third.

As the main storyline continued, the frequency of major incidents would gradually increase.

The story's sphere of influence would expand as well.

'By then, it should be fine to gradually expand my range of movement...'

"Kang!"

A sharp cry stopped his thoughts. Mikhail turned his head toward the window. The sky foxes hopped over with moonhalo flowers in their mouths. Mikhail smiled awkwardly and spoke.

"I'm really fine. You don't need to bring those anymore..."

"KANGKANGKANGKANGKANG!"

The snapping voice was practically a scolding. At the fierce reprimand, Mikhail leaned back slightly.

"No, well... sorry... I'm sorry. I really didn't know things would get that twisted."

"Grrrrr."

Even with Mikhail's apology, the sky foxes had no intention of forgiving him. They narrowed their eyes sharply and raised their tails stiffly. Mikhail glanced away and clapped his hands.

"Oh, come to think of it, I bought you gifts! Ellondia specialty tea leaves, and they have a wonderful aroma..."

"Grrrrrrrrrrr."

This time it seemed hopeless.

Their front paws struck the bedspread as they approached. Mikhail scratched the back of his neck looking troubled—

Knock, knock, knock.

"Oh, someone's here. Someone."

A knock suddenly rang out.

Whatever the business was, he was quite grateful for it. Mikhail sprang up from the bed and approached the front door, opening it.

"Who..."

"......"

Standing before him was Ethan.

Mikhail confirmed this and closed the door.

SLAM.

Mikhail kept his hand on the doorknob without moving an inch.

His back grew cold and the sound of dry saliva sliding down his throat rang especially clear in his ears.

'What? Why is he here? We haven't run into each other before, have we? There shouldn't be any particular business...'

...Or maybe there was.

It hadn't even been a day since the incident at the cavern.

If, by the slimmest chance—

If he'd noticed something from yesterday's encounter.

'Then should I play dumb?'

Knock. Knock. Knock.

That's when it happened. Another knock followed.

More distinct and forceful tapping than before.

'I should figure out what's going on first.'

Mikhail took a deep breath. He pulled down his sleeve to cover his injured left arm and slowly opened the door.

Creeeak.

A gap barely wide enough to meet eyes formed between Mikhail and Ethan.

"...What are you doing?"

"None of your business. What do you want?"

At Mikhail's unfriendly tone, Ethan narrowed his eyes looking displeased, but didn't add anything more.

Ethan rummaged through his clothes and pulled out a neatly folded paper.

"Take this. Your department registration confirmation."

Mikhail, who'd been staring at Ethan, opened the door a bit more.

Creeeeak.

Then he quickly snatched the document from Ethan's hand.

Snap.

"Thanks."

"......"

"Nothing else to talk about, right? You can go now. I'm tired..."

Mikhail was about to close the door again with a casual voice—

GRAB!

But the door didn't close.

Ethan had firmly grasped the door's edge. He held onto the door while staring directly at him.

Mikhail scrunched up his face mercilessly and snapped.

"What? Why are you doing this?"

"......"

Ethan's gray eyes were cold and flat. His gaze was inscrutable, impossible to read.

"......"

Mikhail's throat dried up completely as they faced off.

Ethan slowly opened his mouth.

"...One more."

"What?"

"There's one more, I said."

What Ethan pushed through the door gap was different from before.

Rustle.

An envelope that looked expensive at a glance.

The opening was firmly sealed with navy blue sealing wax.

"It was stuck in your door."

With those words, the envelope was placed in Mikhail's hand.

Ethan finally released his grip on the door. As if there was nothing more to see, he turned and walked down the opposite corridor.

Thud, thud, thud.

The neat footsteps grew more distant, and the door closed.

Click.

But Mikhail remained frozen in place. He stared down at the envelope in his hand.

The seal stamped in the wax. The elegant handwriting with the sender's name. He knew very well what they meant.

[From the North, Joseph Senit.]

"......"

Mikhail stared at the seal silently, then broke it open.

---

The next day, late afternoon.

Inside the Dispatch Unit 2 office in the academy annex.

"—Alright, introductions are done, right? Then let's officially start activities! Nice to meet you, underclassmen!"

One of the two people standing at the podium—a woman with rose-colored bobbed hair—looked around the office as she spoke.

Her deep green eyes sparkled with enthusiasm as they swept over the new members' faces.

"I'm Ann Scanion, third-year combat department! I'm the captain of Dispatch Unit 2. And the person next to me is..."

Suddenly.

The one who stepped forward looked exactly like Ann, but only the length of her hair and the atmosphere she gave off were complete opposites.

"Joan Scanion."

"...Ahem, right. Vice-captain Joan Scanion. For reference, she's also my twin sister."

Mikhail withdrew his gaze from Ann, who was glancing at Joan irritably.

He looked at the scrawled writing on the blackboard.

[First Field Training Details]

[In ten days, you'll escort cargo carriages heading to the capital through the Gilteur Mountains.]

[Trade led by major merchant groups isn't common, so if you do well, you might get a chance to make an impression!]

'Well, nothing new. It's exactly what I knew.'

While Mikhail propped his chin and mulled over what to do, Ann tapped the blackboard explaining the training.

"It's one of the few large-scale convoys in a year. But don't be too scared! We have reliable..."

"Most of the escort work is done by the official escort team anyway."

"Kkhhm, but we still have things to do! The cargo carriages that conclude the convoy! That'll be our assignment..."

"It's a worker transport carriage, so we won't get much attention."

"Hey! Just keep your mouth shut!"

In the end, Ann exploded and growled at Joan. But Joan just smirked dismissively, pretending not to hear.

That way, the explanation mixed with bickering continued for thirty minutes.

"—Ahem, let's stop here for now. No more questions, right?"

Ann, who was wrapping up the discussion, looked slightly worked up, but she took a deep breath and smiled broadly.

"Now, let's erase all those discouraging things Joan said from your heads~ and decide on training groups! Look forward to it! How will we decide groups, you ask...?"

Mikhail, who'd been watching Ann, tilted his head slightly.

'It'll be a lottery.'

"The time-honored tradition of a lottery!"

Ann bent down below the podium and pulled out a lottery box. She shook it vigorously to mix the papers inside.

"So we'll start with second-years..."

While Ann moved around holding the lottery box, Mikhail rolled his eyes toward Ethan sitting in front.

Since the order would go by grades, the first person to draw would be that guy.

And he'd pull out the slip marked number 5.

'So I just need to avoid number 5.'

It wouldn't be difficult. The members assigned to number 5 would already be decided.

If he just picked a remaining slip, he'd automatically be assigned to a distant group...

Step.

That's when it happened.

With a sudden presence, the lottery box was thrust right in front of Mikhail's eyes.

At this unexpected situation, Mikhail looked up dumbfounded.

Joan looking down calmly and Ann smiling brightly stood right in front of him.

"Now, shall our bold underclassman go first?"

...Ah.

His head throbbed.