Chapter 50

CRASH!

The ground turned into a disaster zone in an instant.

The sheer scale of the wreckage left Ethan speechless, rooted in place as he stared at the scene before him.

Amid the chaos, Julien scrambled around on his hands and knees, face drained of color, frantically gathering his things.

Shattered bits of junk—no, relics—rolled lifelessly across the dirt.

Ethan murmured blankly.

"...What is this."

"—Oh, oh oh oh! Ethan! Hi! That scared you, huh? Ahaha, sorry! I didn't mean to!"

Julien cut him off before he could even finish. He sprang to his feet, rubbed the back of his neck, and forced a bright greeting.

The sudden shift caught Ethan off guard for a split second, but he recovered and faced Julien.

"Yeah. Hey. You okay, though? Looks like a lot of stuff broke."

"Nah, it's nothing. I'm just clumsy, that's all! My hand slipped. Happens all the time!"

Ethan watched Julien laugh it off, then shifted his eyes to the boy's fingertips.

Blood pooled beneath a fingernail. He must have cut himself on a sharp fragment while scrabbling through the mess.

Ethan clicked his tongue, pulled a glove from his pocket, and slipped it on.

"Looks like you hurt your hand. Patch that up first. I'll help you clean the rest of this—"

Ethan was brushing past Julien when a hand shot out and grabbed him.

"—No! It's fine!"

Thump.

Julien's hand clamped down on Ethan's arm.

Ethan stopped, looked down at the grip on his arm, then turned his head toward Julien.

Julien rolled his eyes with an awkward smile.

"Oh, um. What I mean is... it's absolutely not that your help is bad or unwanted or anything like that."

Ethan watched him in silence.

Julien loosened his grip and let go, rubbing the back of his neck as he stole a glance at the mess on the ground.

"It's just... I can clean all that up on my own. And I'm guessing you've got more important things to deal with right now."

"......"

"The sun's about to set, and you've probably got mission stuff to go over with your new teammates, right? Everyone says this is prime strategy time... and I'd feel terrible holding you up over my own clumsiness. You know... embarrassed! Yeah, that's the word—I'd just be embarrassed!"

Ethan studied Julien's dopey grin.

The way Julien spoke without a shred of hesitation—it was effortless. Almost too natural. Every emotion in his voice hit the right note.

Someone else might not have questioned a single word.

"......"

But Ethan had caught the tremor underneath.

The corner of Julien's mouth, quivering for just a fraction of a second. Eyes that tracked Ethan's reactions more than the situation around him. Fingertips clenched so tight they'd gone white.

Ethan closed his eyes slowly, then opened them. He said nothing more and simply nodded at Julien.

Even if he'd seen through the act, he had no intention of forcing unwanted help on someone or prying into secrets that weren't his to know.

"Then I'll leave you to it. Be careful cleaning up, and get inside soon."

"Yeah! See you around!"

Ethan returned a nod to Julien, who waved big and wide, then turned and walked away.

His footsteps carried him forward, and the scenery around him shifted with each stride.

Dense undergrowth and overgrown weeds gave way to neatly trimmed trees appearing more and more often.

"......"

Ethan stopped. He tilted his head back and gazed up at the sky as dusk crept in.

An early-evening breeze, carrying the first bite of chill, swept across his forehead. A single phrase from moments ago drifted through his mind.

More important things to deal with.

Ethan let out a sharp breath and narrowed his brow.

"......"

Not a soul passed on the empty path. Streaks of blue and red light fell across Ethan's upturned eyes.

Above him, nothing but a tangled sky—as if to mark a moment that defied easy definition.

Ethan stared into it and clenched the hand hanging at his side.

His pupils sharpened as they fixed on the sunset, piercing through the orange to the deep blue lurking behind it.

Right. For now, just focus on using Mikhail's ability. That one goal is enough.

---

Two days passed.

In that time, Mikhail had made rounds through facilities on and off campus, gathering supplies for their first mission site.

From the campus library, distributed documents on incidents and cases related to the mission location. From the general store, a leather bag for keeping things fresh. From the magic tool shop, a training device for mages. And—

Clink.

—before Julien could get there first, he'd secured the necklace he wanted from the traveling relic merchant.

With that, the free mission period officially began.

It was a bright, clear morning.

Mikhail and the other two boarded an express carriage bound straight for Colton Winery and cut across the plains.

"......"

Hoofbeats rang out in a lively rhythm.

The carriage Edwin had specially arranged through his guild connections rode remarkably smooth.

Smooth enough that Mikhail could read through his notes without a hint of motion sickness.

Tap.

Mikhail closed the notebook he'd been scanning.

Inside were brief memos on the flow and key considerations for their first mission upon arrival at Colton Winery—along with information about the items they'd earn as rewards.

Two objectives to complete on this deployment.

The first: as students of Salvator, resolve the sleeping sickness plaguing Colton Winery completely.

And the second—

"......"

Mikhail recalled the pale blue mana Julien carried, then shifted his gaze to the seat across from him.

A massive bag hogged an entire seat, and beside it, Julien was reaching out with a gasp of delight.

"Oh my god. These are the fluffballs that come on their own?"

Mikhail watched Julien extend his hands toward Han and Ul, then glanced down to his side.

The two foxes sat pressed against him, tails swaying gently toward Julien—but neither made any move to leave Mikhail's side.

Mikhail tapped their backs to get their attention and spoke.

"Go on. You're curious too."

"Krrrng."

Only then did the sky foxes move. They hopped across to the opposite seat and began sniffing around every corner, noses twitching.

Julien followed them with wonder-filled eyes, then turned to Mikhail with a beaming face.

"What are their names?"

"The bigger one's Han, the smaller one's Ul."

"Oh my god. Even their names are cute."

That was when Edwin, who'd been dozing with his head against the window, stirred awake with a twitch of his eyebrows.

"Ugh... what's all this noise about..."

"Kang!"

Han leapt onto Edwin's lap as if she'd been waiting for the chance. Edwin yelped and flattened himself against the corner.

"WHOA! What—what are these things!"

"Their names are Han and Ul. Cute, right?"

Edwin gulped, shot Julien a look, then lowered his eyes to Han, who had settled beside him.

Han wagged her tail in a slow, reassuring rhythm.

Edwin stared at the fluffy tail swishing back and forth, then his lips curled into a reluctant pout as he scratched his cheek.

"Tch... still, you can't just jump on people like that. Scaring someone half to death. No manners. Absolutely no mann—"

"Kang!"

But Han had no intention of listening.

A single bark cut him off mid-sentence, and she bounded across Edwin's shoulders and head, springing from perch to perch.

Edwin's eyes chased her frantic path before he flailed both arms and erupted.

"Hey! Did you not hear me? Sit still! I said sit!"

"Krrrrng."

Mikhail left the noisy pair—one human, one fox—behind him and turned to Julien.

Julien was pointing at Edwin and Han, giggling helplessly.

Meanwhile, several bandages dotted his fingertips.

Just as expected—he'd burned through as much of his mana as he could before they'd left for Colton Winery.

In that case, Julien's mana won't be usable until near the end of this mission.

Mikhail tilted his head, thinking through what lay ahead, then leaned toward the backpack he'd brought.

Inside were supplies he'd prepared in anticipation of what would unfold at Colton Winery.

He pulled out a bundle of papers and spoke.

"Julien."

"Hm?"

Julien perked up and met his eyes. Mikhail looked down at the papers in his hand.

"Could you check where we're headed first thing after we arrive?"

"Oh, yeah. One sec!"

The eager reply was barely out before the rustle of a bag being rummaged through followed.

Three or four bouts of rather noisy clattering later, Julien cleared his throat and spoke up.

"It says we report to the central request office first. If we head to the square, there should be a signpost, so it shouldn't be hard to find."

The document Julien had just read from was most likely the standard procedural guide the school provided.

Mikhail nodded without objection and added one thing.

"Right. And don't forget to keep a close eye on your wallets."

"Huh? Wallets?"

"Where'd that come from?"

At the trailing questions, Mikhail raised his eyes from the text on the page.

Both of them were staring at him. Julien with wide, round eyes; Edwin with his eyebrows doing a curious dance.

Mikhail waved the Colton Winery documents in his hand.

"Apparently there's been a pickpocket on the loose that nobody can catch. Word is they'll clean you out the second you look the slightest bit careless."

"...When did you even get those?"

"Yesterday. Distributed bulletins, newspapers, investigation reports from the mission site—the campus library had most of them."

Julien and Edwin exchanged a wordless glance, then each dug out their wallets and shoved them deep into their pockets.

Mikhail watched them, then turned his gaze back to the window.

The first step toward solving the sleeping sickness—that would be apprehending the pickpocket who'd been stirring up the village.

"......"

Mikhail's eyes, fixed on the passing scenery, drifted across the leaves fluttering in the wind.

"Snff."

Another thirty-odd minutes slipped by. Lush groves and gentle hills began to dot the landscape.

Mikhail lowered his gaze from the horizon.

Han and Ul, sitting beside him, pricked their ears and raised their heads, eyes rolling toward the window.

---