Chapter 4: Field Exercises

Chapter 4: Field Exercises

The day of the field exercises finally arrived. First-year students of Jenifa Royal Magic Academy’s intermediate division loaded themselves onto horse carriages waiting outside the city’s west gate, which soon began making their way toward the site of this year’s field exercises, Trowa Forest.

“The field exercises shall commence shortly!” announced one of the male teachers in a loud voice after all the participating students had gathered before him. “You have two objectives! The first is to survive for ten days in this forest! The forest is home to countless dangerous animals and plants, and students are to pay the utmost attention in ensuring the safety of themselves and their teams! Furthermore, during these ten days, students are expected to be fully self-sufficient, so bringing in any food and drinks from outside is strictly forbidden!”

The students nodded along to the teacher’s explanation. They’d already heard this explanation in class, and none of what he was saying was new information. The only things they were allowed to bring in with them were weapons and medicine intended for personal use. All medicine was examined beforehand to determine if it was truly necessary, and only approved items could be used.

“The second objective is to fight and win! The field exercises are both a survival test and a battle royale! Defeating another team earns your team one point. Surviving the full ten days earns your team five points. The final ranking will be determined based on total points!”

Again, nothing new. There were no questions, and the students waited for the teacher to continue.

“However, this is ultimately for your education, and we have no desire to see our students die in the process. To that end, we have given each of you an item known as a substitute pendant.”

Sain looked down at his chest, where a new pendant now hung, somewhat camouflaged amongst his other trinkets. It was not, however, one of his seals, and it bore a simple design with a black gem set in the center.

“That pendant will act as your substitute, absorbing pain and damage in your place. Upon receiving damage that would otherwise be fatal, the pendant will shatter, at which point a powerful barrier will be deployed around the wearer. Once this barrier is in place, the student will be considered down and thus out of the competition. The barrier is too powerful to be broken by students, making it impossible to attack any participants who have already been downed.

“In addition, the substitute pendants will also absorb damage from effects such as poison. While you may not feel the damage itself, should you fail to apply the appropriate antidote and allow the poison to spread, your pendant will continue to take damage. In that case, it won’t take long for your pendant to shatter. There will, of course, be a learning curve. The inclusion of the pendant will require you to behave differently than usual. However, remember this simple rule: while wearing the pendant, anything that would have otherwise killed you will instead remove you from the event. The effect is ultimately the same, and I trust that you will all adapt to its usage in no time.

“I should also mention that, while the pendant will absorb damage, it will not protect you from all sensation. In order to prevent students from growing careless in their risk management, we have purposefully stopped the pendants from absorbing the sensation of pain. Do nothing more dangerous than you would have without them. Know your limits, work with your teammates, and survive until the end.”

If the students had any illusions about the pendant’s protective abilities, they were dispelled by the teacher’s final statement. The item was used to enforce the rules of the event, not give the students an edge in their survival or combat. Relying on its effects would be foolish.

“You may now begin moving! Ten minutes later, we will signal the start of the event, after which all combat will be fair game!”

At the teacher’s command, the gathering of students immediately began to thin.

“We should move, too,” said Alicia.

“Time to get going,” agreed Melia.

Sain and his team made their way deeper into the forest, as well.

“So, it finally begins,” he murmured as they moved.

Alicia smirked at him.

“What, are you nervous?”

“N-N-Nervous? Me? Of course not! I... I’m totally normal!”

“I’m not sure you could be any more nervous...” said Melia, as she gave him a flat look.

The sound of shuffling footsteps caught their attention, and another team of students appeared nearby. The air tensed a little as they traded glances, and the other team moved on without a word. No one felt like chatting with people who were minutes away from becoming enemies.

“...All right, enough joking around. Let’s go over the plan again,” said Alicia, her voice calm but sober. “We have three goals today. One, we find a water source. Two, we set up camp. Three, we secure food. We’re going to do those things in that order.”

“Preferably, we won’t have to run marathons between our base camp and our water supply, so we should start by looking for a river or something,” Melia added.

“Right. And in the worst-case scenario, we can go for a day without food. Also...we could always raid another team and take theirs.”

Sain nodded in agreement. It was only during the first ten minutes when fighting was forbidden. Afterward, all combat was fair game.

“Marni, are you good with that?”

“...Yes.”

Marni nodded at Alicia as well.

“If push comes to shove, I can move by myself at night. Dark elves have night vision.”

“I’d rather you don’t have to... but yeah. We’ll keep that in mind. If things really get thorny, we’ll have to ask you to work the night shift.”

Even by herself, Marni was no slouch in battle, but the thought of her wandering alone in a forest full of monsters was still uncomfortable. It wasn’t a lack of trust; as friends, they just didn’t like the idea of sending her out by herself. Just then, they heard the loud pop of something exploding overhead.

“I guess that’s the signal?”

“Yeah... From now on, we have to watch out for monsters and the other teams.”

Trowa Forest was massive, and the teams had all been moving away from each other until the signal sounded. At the moment, they didn’t sense any enemies nearby.

Alicia gestured for their attention.

“You all remember when we discussed the results of our scouting report, right?”

“Yeah.”

Sain recalled the discussion they’d had on the top floor of the library tower.

“As for people we should watch out for... The Eldis twins come to mind.”

“You mean the twins that everyone thinks have a good shot at winning first place?”

The report that Alicia and Melia had compiled was simple and easy to understand. In general, when it came to head-on battles, Sain’s team could handle whatever came at them. The opponents might be Jenifa students, but they were still first-year intermediates. Meritocracy or not, they didn’t stand a chance against the sheer firepower wielded by Alicia and Marni.

There was, however, one exception. The Eldis twins were the only ones they couldn’t afford to lump in with the rest. Any attempts to defeat them had to be carried out with the utmost caution.

“The two Eldises are both fivekind, but they have completely different styles of fighting. The brother, Rayde, is good with fire and earth magic, and his style can be summed up as ‘hit it until it breaks.’ In terms of fire magic, you’ll probably see him throwing out a lot of the same spells as me — Flare and Velle Flaram, for example. His earth magic is pretty much the same.”

“I see, I see. Basically, we can just assume there’s another one of you on their team,” quipped Melia.

Alicia scowled.

“...Somehow, I feel like I should be upset about that comment. But anyway, you get the idea.”

“What about the sister?”

“Yuria is a little like you, Melia, in that she likes to play with compound magic. She doesn’t use fire and water, though. Her specialty is earth and water, and the effects are... muddy? Or maybe I should say swampy. Either way, compared to her brother, her magic is more supportive and focuses on disabling enemies.”

Melia then showed them a list of spells the twins could use. The list went on and on, its sheer length and variety attesting to the rumors of their prowess. It far surpassed the level of most intermediate division first-years.

“...Preferably, we only fight them when we’re fully ready,” mused Sain.

“Yeah. Fortunately for us, they’re a real aggressive pair, so they might wear themselves out fighting other people before we even get to them,” said Alicia.

While Sain would certainly appreciate it if his opponents willingly put themselves at a disadvantage, the Eldis twins’ strength was on another level. He wasn’t sure if the other students could even present enough of a challenge to them to weigh them down with attrition.

“I hear water.” Marni’s announcement put a stop to the team’s chatter. “This way.”

They followed her lead and soon came upon a narrow river. It wasn’t particularly rapid, but there was a place where it flowed right over a small rocky cliff, and a constant splashing sound was audible from below. Seeing that the water itself was clear, Marni scooped up some in her hands and brought it to her mouth.

“...It’s fine. We can drink this.”

“Lucky us. Let’s start setting up camp, then,” said Alicia, as she gave the ground a few stomps to check its firmness. “This place is pretty good. The ground is solid, and we won’t have to worry about the river overflowing, even if it does rain.”

She pushed aside a small boulder to make some room, revealing a couple of creepy crawlies that squirmed past her feet. They didn’t seem to bother her in the slightest. Melia wasn’t the type of person to lose her cool over a few bugs, either, and as for Marni, well, she came from a race that literally felt right at home in environments like these. Dainty damsels these were not. The ladies of Sain’s team had some serious guts.

“Miss Marni and I will be the lumber team.”

“Sure.”

Alicia nodded as Melia and Marni went off in search of materials to set up their base camp. There were plenty of trees along the riverbank, but most of them were wet or cracked in places. Building a cabin would require sturdier wood, so they headed deeper into the forest.

“All right, Sain, we’ll be the leaf team, then. Start gathering. We’ll need them to make the roof.”

“Got it.”

While Sain and Marni had been spending all their waking moments on his magic training, Alicia and Melia had been busy doing all sorts of preparations, which included figuring out how to build a simple cabin. Had they not explained the process to him beforehand, he — having done nothing but shoot dark magic at things day in and day out — would be completely useless right now.

He walked around, gathering leaves from the nearby trees. One of them had particularly big ones. Figuring those would be good for the beds they’d eventually have to make, he approached it, only for a chunk of earth to burst through the thick mass of leaves and fly at his face.

“Hm?!”

As the attack had come from afar, its aim was slightly off, and he only needed the slightest tilt of his neck to avoid it. Nevertheless, it was doubtlessly an attack. A magic one, at that.

“Taking fire!”

He dropped his leaves on the ground and prepared to fight.

“Good timing on their part. They attacked just after we split up.”

Alicia followed suit, dropping her leaves and getting ready to engage.

Four boys emerged from the trees. They’d already drawn their weapons and clearly intended to use them.

“Okay, Sain... Think you can do this?”

“Hah, a foolish question. I do not think. I know. The darkness in me—”

“See, that’s the kind of answer that makes me less confident in you.”

“Augh, damn it! Look, I can hold my own, okay? Just watch me.”

Sain’s complaint earned him an even more skeptical look from Alicia.

“In fact, aren’t you the one we should be worried about, Miss Gold? Can you handle this?”

“What do you mean?”

“We’re in a forest, you know. If you go in with fireballs blazing, you’re going to—”

“Don’t worry.” She smiled boldly. “You weren’t the only one who was training. I also got a lot better at controlling my power.”

Holy fire was a special power that was extremely tricky to wield. For the past month, Alicia had dedicated a significant portion of her time to mastering its usage.

“I’m going to distract them,” she said. “Hit them while they’re confused.”

With both hands held toward the four opposing students, she began her incantation.

“Great torrent of fire, turn all into ashen seas — Velle Flaram!”

Raging white flames enveloped their view, threatening to swallow them whole.

“C-Crap, it’s coming!”

“Stand your ground! It’s fake! There’s no heat!”

“But...”

As Sain rushed toward the boys, he took a moment to appreciate what Alicia just did. She’d used her holy fire to disorient their opponents. Though heatless, its fire was whiter than normal, and it was exceptionally effective at impairing vision. Everything, from the concept to the execution, was impeccable. He wouldn’t have been able to recognize it before, but under Marni’s tutelage, he’d gained a deeper understanding of magic. He could now tell that Alicia had mastered the usage of her power.

“I-I can’t see anything in thi—”

“Darku!”

“Wah!”

He aimed a dark missile at one of the disoriented students, sending it flying toward his gut. As it flew, the holy flames that blanketed the area parted around its path like two massive tides, ensuring that the projectile would encounter no magical interference before reaching its target. Simultaneously, Alicia was in motion toward another one of the four boys. She dashed up to him and caught him by surprise. Placing a hand on his chest, she showed him a fierce grin.

“No forest to worry about at this distance, is there? Flare!”

“Gyaaaah!”

The boy went flying backwards, propelled by the point-blank impact of an orb of flame. Normally, using magic like that would risk damaging the caster as well, but once again, Alicia had made clever use of holy fire’s properties. She’d tweaked the spell’s composition, keeping the part that hit her opponent as real, ow-it-burns fire while making the part that recoiled back at her holy and harmless. By skillfully controlling and making simultaneous use of both versions, she’d turned herself into a menace in close-quarters combat as well.

The pendant of the student who’d been sent flying cracked audibly and deployed a pale blue barrier around him.

“Sain!”

“I know! I got them!”

The remaining two boys began to flee. Sain aimed his right hand at them. The rules of the field exercises stated that one point was rewarded for defeating an enemy team. However, a team was only considered defeated when all of its members had been downed. If even a single person got away, then no points would be awarded. Furthermore, whoever defeated that final member would win the point for their team. If Sain allowed them to escape, some other team might end up taking the point. His team would lose its chance to take its first step toward victory. He thought of Marni — of her desire to find her sister — and began gathering dark magical energy in his palm. This was it. All that training had been leading up to this moment.

“Taste my ultimate technique! Dark Ray— Augh! Why does that always happen?!”

His lance of darkness shot toward the fleeing students, only to do the wet noodle thing soon after launch and spend the rest of its short life slithering along the ground. As Sain held his head in frustration, the remaining two boys looked at each other, let out a smirk of relief, and continued retreating.

“Spirits of turbid water, grasp what you seek — Worta Halden!”

“Spirits of the lost abyss, seize with cursed arms — Darku Halden!”

Two pairs of magical arms lashed out at once, one set made of water and the other made of darkness. They erupted from the ground and clung to the boys’ ankles, causing them to fall over screaming.

“Looks like we made it just in time.”

Melia and Marni appeared with bundles of wood strapped to their backs.

“...Sorry we’re late.”

Seeing that they’d caught the last two students, Sain let out a sigh of relief. With their whole team rejoined, they walked over and surrounded their two magically ensnared victims.

“W-Wait! We give up! No more, please!”

“I don’t see any reason to stop,” said Alicia, her voice cold as ice. “Do any of you?”

Neither Melia nor Marni gave any response. Feeling the metaphorical noose tightening around their necks, the two boys turned to Sain in a panic.

“H-Hey! You! Darkness Dork!”

“Who’re you calling Darkness Dork?!”

His unflattering nickname had proven surprisingly popular, becoming a bit of a viral phenomenon in the campus. Almost nobody called him by his real name these days. Even the teachers slipped up sometimes.

“Y-You’re a guy, too! You’re on our side, right? You must understand our noble goal!”

“Your... noble goal?”

“Yeah! Look, we’re aiming to win. And when we do...we’re going to ask the headmaster to make all the girls wear miniski— BLUARGH!”

Three sets of spells from three girls slammed into the poor boys. Their pendants popped immediately, and pale white bubbles formed over their twitching bodies.

“Just... the worst.”

“Enemies of all women.”

“Gross.”

Their frigid gazes then shifted over to Sain. Alicia, in particular, fixed him with a spine-chilling glare.

“Saaaaain?” she asked in the kind of long, drawn-out tone parents used toward misbehaving children. “How come you didn’t cast any spells just now, hmmm?”

“W-Well, it was all so sudden and, I mean, I was just surprised that... Wh-What’s with that look?! Don’t overthink this, okay? I didn’t mean anything by that!”

His voice grew more flustered as he spoke, which certainly didn’t help his case. In the end, he was forced to resume their camp-building under the contemptuous, distrustful gazes of his teammates.

“By the way, Sain. What was that spell you just used?” asked Marni as they were working on the roof.

“Wh-What do you mean? It was the spell you taught—”

“Because I definitely don’t remember teaching you such a sorry excuse for a spell.”

“Eep!”

Marni was, in general, not a very expressive person. Possibly due to all the time they’d spent together, however, Sain was starting to pick up on the subtle cues that gave away her mood. And right now, she was very angry.

“Tonight, we’re training.”

“T-Tonight?! But we’re in the middle of the field exer—”

“It doesn’t matter. As your mentor, I can’t have my apprentice embarrassing us every time he uses magic.”

In the end, Marni followed through with her plan.

While setting up a base camp would normally be a challenging endeavor, they had access to magic, which made the process far smoother. Thick branches were used to make the frame of the cabin, and broad leaves were placed on top of each other to form the roof. With plenty of time left to spare, they even managed to put up a few simple beds. Their creations were crude and unlikely to last very long, but with careful use, they should hold for a while. In the coming days, they could slowly work to improve their creations’ sturdiness.

Food acquisition was easy as well, as the river harbored fish. They considered making fishing rods, but ultimately, Melia and Marni went with the old tried-and-true method of catching fish with their hands — their large, water- and darkness-infused Halden hands.

“You’re too slow.”

“Ugh!”

Sain grunted as he desperately tried to avoid the Darkus Marni shot at him. His stomach churned violently, threatening to eject its contents out his throat. He tasted his dinner again and winced. They’d grilled the fish Melia and Marni had caught over a fire Alicia had started using timber she’d gathered. While it hadn’t been as tasty as the cafeteria food they normally ate, effort and labor proved to be surprisingly effective spices, and he’d found their hand-crafted dinner quite delectable. He didn’t want to keep swallowing it over and over, however. It tasted far worse after the first passage down his throat.

“Dark Ra—”

“Too slow.”

“Augh!”

Her dark projectile hit him on the forehead. She’d held back, but the impact was still enough to knock the sense out of him for a few seconds. Meanwhile, his magic was far from ready, and while dealing with the pressure of a real battle, his failure rate had increased significantly. The only solution was to gain more experience, so the mock battle took up most of their training today.

“We’ll stop here for today... Any more will hurt your performance tomorrow,” announced Marni in a cool, distant voice.

She’d barely finished her sentence before Sain collapsed onto the ground.

“...Geez. Is this what it’s always like for you two?” said Alicia with a grimace.

“I went easier on him today than usual. If this wasn’t the field exercises, we’d be doing this for another two hours.”

Alicia’s grimace twisted further as she sucked in a breath. Marni wasn’t lying, though; their usual mock battles had been much more grueling than the one today.

“The bath is ready!”

Melia’s voice came from the direction of the base camp. She’d crafted a big tub using earth magic, instilling in her teammates a newfound appreciation for fivekind and the conveniences they conferred.

“This should be obvious, but I’m just going to remind you that we’re going to be very upset if you attempt to peek.”

“Hah... Do I look like I’m in any condition to do so?”

“...I guess not. Just stay there, then. I think you need the rest, anyway.”

Alicia looked down at Sain, who was sprawled on his back, with a certain amount of pity before she walked away. Marni followed after her.

While the girls were enjoying their bath, Sain lay there on the ground, feeling the cold earth against his back, as he gazed vacantly up at the night sky.

“Have I gotten stronger? It’d be nice if I have... Sure would be nice...”

He reached up, his hand a dark silhouette against the canopy, and made a grabbing motion. Unsurprisingly, he felt nothing in his hands but empty air. Everything he’d done so far... had felt just like that motion. There was the effort. The attempt. But no results seemed to follow. Compared to his friends, he simply didn’t feel like he was making any progress. Perhaps they were just absurdly strong for their age — which, to be fair, they were — and were distorting his sense of scale. He was definitely getting better at controlling magic... but strength was relative. It’d be meaningless if his progress was only evident when measured against himself.

“Sain.”

After a while, he heard a voice behind him. He sat up and, lacking the willpower to attempt a full rotation of his body, simply craned his neck to look backward.

“Miss Grim? That was fast.”

“I want to talk to you for a bit.”

She sat herself down beside him, and the two of them looked up at the night sky, neither saying a word. Eventually, she broke the silence.

“How did you become friends with Alicia?”

“...She hasn’t told you anything?”

“She said it’d be better if I asked you directly.”

It seemed like the kind of question that was definitely better answered by Alicia, but perhaps she didn’t feel comfortable telling the story.

“Well then. It’s a long story, so you’d better get comfortable if you want to hear it...”

After giving ample warning, Sain launched into the tale of his past month. He spoke of the labyrinth in the Origin Spire, where they searched for the holy sword that would enhance the wielder’s light magic. He described their discovery of the fake holy sword and the Chaos that hid within. His tone got a little heavier as his story approached its climax, wherein Alicia took the tainted sword, fell under the influence of Chaos, and could only be saved by becoming an attendant of the holy knight. Finally, he closed with Alicia’s awakening to her special power of holy fire, which allowed her to rid herself of the label of “loser” that had plagued her throughout her life.

Having finished recounting the events of the past month, he stopped and took a breath.

“Holy fire... Alicia had been troubled by a power she was born with, too, huh,” Marni said softly after hearing the whole story.

Being born a dark elf, she’d endured her fair share of hardship as well. Alicia’s suffering must have resonated with her to some degree.

“You approached her and stayed by her side, all through her struggles. And then, you even saved her. From others... and herself.”

She regarded him with solemn admiration.

“...No. My actions were hardly as noble as you make them seem. I simply did what I could to help a friend. Nothing more,” he replied, feeling a little embarrassed by the height of the pedestal she’d placed him on.

“I see why Alicia fell for you. I don’t blame her.”

“She what?!”

Sain jumped to his feet. Or, he would have, if they hadn’t immediately given out under him, resulting in an awkward floundering motion that was unseemly but at least conveyed his surprise.

“D-Did she tell you that?”

“Yes... She also mentioned that she’s still waiting on your answer to her confession.”

Apparently, the bath they’d taken together had facilitated some very frank conversations. He scratched the back of his head and said in a soft voice, “Yeah... I’m just... I want to stay focused on becoming the dark knight right now.”

He’d told Alicia as much, and she’d expressed understanding, saying she’d try her best in the meantime to keep things the same between them. That didn’t stop her jealous side from rearing its head every so often, though. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel guilty about leaving her hanging, exactly. He was, however, also honest about wanting to stay focused on his goal of becoming the dark knight. He had very little experience and not even a lick of talent. For someone like him to outpace all other contenders — many of whom were far better positioned than him — and reach the finish line first, he needed to prioritize. And that meant making sacrifices. Things that weren’t at the top of the list simply had to go.

“That reminds me. You know how you give everyone nicknames? That’s because of your power as the holy knight, right?”

“Yeah. If I call someone by their real name, I’ll end up infusing them with my power. Apparently, my compatibility with the holy knight’s power is better than that of my predecessors’... It’s nice when I’m on the job, but I can’t turn it off, so it can be a real nuisance in everyday life.”

Only after he offered his explanation did it occur to him that Marni was the only member of his team he didn’t call by name. Alicia and Melia were both his attendants already, so when necessary, he could say their names without fear of irreversible consequences. While it wasn’t intentional, and there were certainly extenuating circumstances, the effect was nevertheless that he’d been singling her out. Given her upbringing as a dark elf, she was probably extra sensitive to being alienated.

“Sorry. I wasn’t avoiding your name on purpose. Well, I mean, it was on purpose, but like—”

“It’s fine,” Marni said, shaking her head. “I’m your mentor... You’ve got a long way to go before you’ve got any business calling me by name.”

She smiled. While she didn’t quite succeed in making it look natural, he took the hint and let the matter rest. If she’d come to terms with it, then who was he to say otherwise?

“...I guess you’re right.”

“I’m glad I took you as my apprentice, Sain,” she continued. “You learned, and you got stronger. Much stronger than I’d ever expected. You’ve done your mentor proud.”

“...Have I? It doesn’t feel like it to me.”

“You’re just not aware of your own progress. Granted, you’ve still got a ways to go, but the amount of improvement you’ve shown this past month has been incredible... If you just keep at it, I think you’re really going to start turning some heads. Honest.”

Then, she regarded him with a more solemn look.

“The third principle of dark magic: never give up.”

“...That got cheesy, fast. And yes, I recognize the irony of that statement coming from me.”

“It might sound cheesy, sure, but there is merit to it. Learning dark magic is hard, which means lots of people give up halfway. It’s rare to find someone who’s serious about trying to master it. That’s why the principle exists. As both a warning, and as encouragement... But I guess you didn’t even need to hear it.”

Sain raised an eyebrow at her final sentence, but he continued to listen.

“You practiced your heart out, shedding sweat and blood day after day. It was hard, and it was painful, but you just kept going. You’re lightkind, but you met that natural handicap with twice the passion and drive. The way you soldier on... It’s not something anyone can do. It really isn’t. And yet, I can’t imagine you giving up halfway at all.”

“...Thank you. I, too, am glad to have become your apprentice, Miss Grim.”

The evening wind whistled in their ears, and Marni — perhaps feeling its chill — huddled closer to Sain.

The next morning, the team rose from their makeshift beds and made their way to the river to wash their faces and discuss their plans for the day.

“As long as we have this base camp, we won’t have to worry too much about food. Which means... we should start focusing on defending ourselves from attacks by other teams,” said Alicia.

“We could also take the initiative and raid them first,” suggested Melia.

“Hmm, good point, but...” She frowned and looked at Sain. “Hey, you said the Eldis twins tried to get under your skin before the event started, right?”

“Yeah. I’m not sure if that was their intention, but we should assume there’s a good chance they’ll come pick a fight with us.”

“Then we can probably afford to sit and wait for a while. We don’t want to get into a fight with some other team, and then have the twins show up right when we’re exhausted. Besides, while we’ve loaded up on water and rations, and had a good sleep last night, I’ll bet there are plenty of teams having trouble with basic survival. Five days in, they’ll probably start dropping out all by themselves.”

Melia nodded.

“True... In that case, we’d be better off staying put and conserving our strength.”

“The five points we get for lasting the full ten days is big. No matter how hard we work during the event, if we end up dropping out before it’s done, we lose those five points. It’s important to defeat the other teams, of course, but I think we should focus on surviving until the end.”

The field exercises were one of the bigger school events, and having attended Jenifa through her junior division days, Alicia knew the tricks to winning first place.

“Teams that have trouble being self-sufficient are likely going to try raiding other teams, so we just have to focus on fending them off,” Marni concluded. Like Alicia, she’d attended the junior division here as well.

Just then, there was a sound from the thickets.

“Is that... a chimera?” Sain asked softly.

A monster, which Sain had correctly identified as a chimera, appeared out of the brush. It had the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a venomous snake. The creature walked on all fours, and it was viciously aggressive.

“And the big nasty monster would like to remind us that there’s one more threat we forgot to bring up,” quipped Melia.

Indeed, opposing teams weren’t the only threat in the field exercises. The forest was home to all kinds of dangerous monsters.

“We can’t have it messing up our encampment. Let’s take it down!”

At Alicia’s word, they all readied themselves to fight. She struck first.

“Great torrent of fire, turn all into ashen seas — Velle Flaram!”

A wave of white fire rolled over the creature. While she’d learned to tweak its properties, by default, Alicia’s magic was only effective against monsters. In a way, this could be considered a significant advantage, as it didn’t risk setting the whole forest on fire. If she needed to hit human targets, she’d have to turn it into regular flames, but against monsters, she could use pure holy fire.

“It’s not enough! Marni! Give me a hand!” shouted Alicia as she kept her spell going.

“Okay.” Her reply was terse. “Dark Ray!”

The bolt of darkness that materialized before her shot forward with blinding speed, lancing straight through the monster’s cranium and continuing out the other side. It was deadly and efficient — unbridled destruction pared down to its purest form and condensed into the shape of a spear. The big creature was dead before it hit the ground.

The spell was strong. So amazingly strong. If only he could master it, Sain thought, he’d be so much closer to becoming the dark knight.

“Huh. That was easier than I’d expected.”

The tension seeped from Alicia’s shoulders and she breathed out in relief. The sound of her breath coincided with the thud of a windy missile making contact with Sain’s chest.

“Oomph!”

“Sain?!”

“I-I’m fine!”

He’d pivoted just in time to soften the blow and get away with little more than a grunt of pain. Looking over in the direction of the shot, they saw a team of four students — two boys and two girls — appear behind the fallen chimera.

“So, they think they’re smart, timing their attack right after the chimera showed up,” Alicia said with a bold grin as she turned to face them.

Their opponents had already prepared their spells and were about to fire them off. Melia reacted immediately.

“For now, I’ll make sure they stay put. Londo Mysteria!”

Mist appeared out of nowhere and quickly filled the area. They began to hear confused yelling from the other team.

“Sain! Move up! I’ll support you when necessary!”

“Got it!”

Melia dispersed only the mist surrounding Sain, allowing him to move freely. Those whose vision was still obfuscated had to stay in place, as running blind across the uneven terrain would risk a fatal stumble.

“Darku!”

“Ugh!”

Sain’s dark missile stuck a nearby enemy in the stomach, but it was quickly shrugged off, accomplishing little.

“Hey, you.” One of the boys spoke to him through the mist. “Some friendly advice. Don’t count on a dark elf to have your back. You’ll regret it.”

“...What?” Sain snarled.

“They’re a race of murderers. I don’t know how you’re comfortable teaming up with one of them.”

The second boy’s voice rang out from the mist.

“You never know when they’ll stab you in the back. I’d be careful, if I were you.”

They were almost certainly speaking loudly enough for the rest of his team — Alicia, Melia, and of course Marni — to hear. In response, Sain scoffed. He put some emphasis behind it, too.

“Hmph. What rubbish.”

It had been about a month since he’d met Marni, and they’d spent a significant chunk of that time getting to know each other. A few hostile remarks weren’t going to shake his trust.

“If you’re trying to shake up our teamwork, then let me tell you that it’s having the exact opposite effect.”

The boys’ taunting failed to sow the seeds of doubt amongst Sain and his friends. It only earned their anger. Melia’s Worta Halden broke their formation, giving Sain and Alicia a chance to strike. Split into two groups by the assault, their opponents tried to get behind them to counterattack.

“Miss Grim! I’m counting on you to cover my back!”

Ignoring the enemies circling around him, Sain attacked a boy in front of him with Darku, who barely managed to dodge it. The boy was not so lucky for the follow-up Flagus from Alicia, which left him enbubbled.

“Great torrent of darkness, drown the land in seas of black — Velle Darku!”

Behind Sain, Marni cast a large-scale spell, sending a raven-black wave through the snow-white mist. The two girls trying to get behind him were swallowed by the rolling darkness, and their pendants popped together. The wave kept surging forward, reaching to within an inch of Sain before splitting around him. Under Marni’s watchful eye, no spell of hers was going to harm Sain by accident.

“There’s only one of them left! Don’t let him get away or we’ll lose the point!” shouted Alicia as she pointed at the final, retreating member of the enemy team.

Sain rushed to cast a spell, but...

“Gah!”

...He could do little but watch as a block of earth slammed into the boy right in front of his eyes.

“Looks like somebody’s leaving food on his plate, isn’t he, Sain Fostess?”

A boy, all flaming red hair and ferocious grin, appeared from the woods. Behind him, a girl similarly hued in both hair and attitude, soon followed with their other two teammates.

“The Eldis twins...”

Sain mentally put aside the battle they just fought, refreshing his mind for the new one at hand. This would take every last ounce of his concentration, for the contenders for first place — the team of Rayde and Yuria — had just taken the stage.

“E-Everyone, back up! We have to regroup—”

“You wish. Grund Shot!”

Alicia’s urgent instruction was cut short by Rayde’s attack. He drove his foot into the ground. A split second later, the earth around it flew up in a heap and congealed into multiple pellets that fired themselves at Sain in scattershot fashion.

Sain barely had time to react before the pellets reached him. One of them grazed his cheek. He felt almost no pain, but a tiny crack appeared on his pendant.

“Sain!”

“I-It’s okay! I’m fine!” he shouted to reassure an alarmed Alicia.

Meanwhile, the Eldis twins had already closed the distance. Faced with the menace of the incoming duo, he grimaced.

“Miss Grim and I will handle the twins! My maid and Miss Gold can take care of the other two!” he shouted.

“Ahh! Whatever! I’m trusting you!” Alicia shouted back from a distance.

She put up a blanket of white flame that separated the twins from their two teammates. Rayde glanced at the burning barrier and smirked, as though he found it amusing.

“I didn’t expect you to show up so soon,” said Sain, tsking with dismay at how confident the red-haired boy seemed.

Rayde shrugged.

“I’d rather not wait until everyone’s tired and worn out. I want to fight when we’re all at a hundred percent.”

Being the warmongering maniac he was, he apparently had a particular preference for the state of his opponents as well.

“Alchemia!”

At his command, the ground at his feet swelled up, eventually taking the shape of a sword that floated in front of him. He grabbed the handle and charged at Sain, who rushed to draw his own black sword. The two blades clashed with a harsh, metallic screech.

“Oh? What’s this? You know your way around swords, too?” said Rayde.

“I dabble a bit,” Sain answered.

When in holy knight mode, Sain mostly used a sword, albeit an immaterial one of light created by a spell. He hadn’t received any formal training, so when it came to raw swordsmanship, he was at a disadvantage.

“So... I hear you’re aiming for first place, too?” Sain asked, as though trying to distract from the fact that he was on the back foot.

“Sure. Not that I care much for the prize, mind you. But if we win, I’m gonna ask the headmaster to put us in a third-year class.” He broke off the clash and backed up a step before continuing. “You heard of Cain Theresia? Yeah... Of course you have. See, our good student council president is in his third year of the intermediate division, which puts him two years above us. I’ve known him since my junior days, and I’ve never beaten him. I fought him over and over, and sometimes, I feel like I’m getting close, but I always end up losing... Back then, I had plenty of chances to challenge him, but after he became an intermediate, he started refusing to fight me. Ever since then, I’ve felt this hole in me... and it’s agonizing. You know what I’m talking about?”

“I see. So you want to have a chance to challenge that man in combat, and therefore, you wish to become a third-year student like him.”

“That’s right. If we’re in the same class, then there’ll be more events like these field exercises where I can fight him. He can refuse my personal challenges, but he can’t skip a school event, now, can he?”

In a place like the Jenifa Royal Magic Academy, that prided itself on rewarding merit, Rayde was arguably a model student. His thirst to become stronger was incredible, if not bordering on outright insanity.

“Let’s keep the banter to a minimum, now, Rayde,” said a girl’s voice.

Yuria appeared behind her brother. She fixed Sain with the same dark glare as before.

“All right,” said Rayde. “Let’s do this, Sain. Don’t wimp out on me, now. Remember all those things you said to me in school? Well, now’s your chance to prove you meant it.”

If that was meant as a taunt, it worked. Sain’s eyes flared. When Rayde had first shown up, he’d called Marni a coward. He was wrong. Marni was absolutely not a coward, or a person who couldn’t do anything on her own, and Sain was going to make the belligerent Eldis take back what he’d said.

Rayde brandished his sword, and Sain hopped back a few steps to make some distance.

“Sain, can you buy us some time?”

Marni’s whisper sounded in his ear. He’d been so focused on Rayde that he hadn’t noticed her approaching.

“...How long?” he whispered back.

“Three minutes. Keep them busy for that long, and I’ll finish off both of them.”

Two Eldises for three minutes of work. That sounded like a steal.

“Understood. Leave it to me.”

Marni had, after all, once claimed that she could take first place in the field exercises all by herself. Initially, he’d assumed it was a boast, but after a month’s worth of first-hand experience, he reconsidered his opinion. She might actually be right. Rayde, meanwhile, saw her as a pushover.

Three minutes.

If he could hold them off for three minutes, he’d be able to show them how wrong they were about Marni.

“Darku!”

Sain let his signature spell fly.

“Whoa, whoa, are you serious? Beginner-level magic? In a situation like this?”

Rayde stepped out of the way with ease, inserting a twirling flourish in his motion just to drive home the point.

“Crucible of swirling mud, swallow the sinking earth — Mud Grail!”

The incantation came from Yuria, who pressed her hands onto the earth. Immediately, the ground below Sain’s feet began to soften. It grew wetter and wetter until it gave way under his weight, and he began to sink.

“This is... turning into a swamp?!”

The spell worked exactly as the report had described. Yuria was a fivekind specializing in compound magic that used water and earth. He’d been on guard for it, but in the heat of the moment, he still failed to evade it.

“I know you think you’ve got some sort of plan, but it’s not going to work. We won’t be stopped by a loser like you.”

“Gah! Damn this mud!”

Rayde dashed toward the immobilized Sain. At the same time, a dagger flashed out, tracing a short, tight arc across where Yuria’s neck would have been had she not quickly leaped backward. A figure then landed nearby, her maid uniform fluttering in the breeze. Yuria tsked as the swamp ensnaring Sain reverted to normal earth.

“Are you okay?” asked Melia as Sain hastily backed away from the oncoming Rayde.

“M-Maid?! Why are you here?! What happened to Miss Gold?!”

“She’s probably fine on her own over there, so I figured I’d come lend a hand.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the wall of white flame flaring up as she spoke. He was worried about Alicia, but he could definitely do with some help from Melia right now. After a moment’s hesitation, he nodded.

“Maid! Buy some time for Miss Grim!”

“...All right. I see what the plan is.”

Her eyes flashed with comprehension, and she held her hands out to her side.

“Sprites of crystalline veil, roam the endless mist — Londo Mysteria!”

Fire and water mixed, producing the thick white mist of her signature spell. It quickly engulfed everything around them.

Rayde tsked.

“Now that’s a pain.”

“It’s only a distraction,” replied Yuria. “It can’t do much els— Kyaa?!”

She was entirely unprepared to have the maid suddenly appear beside her like that. Being a master of mist magic, Melia was naturally used to fighting in it, as well. She could read the changes in air currents and shadows to extrapolate the locations of her foes. Her attack forced the younger Eldis to escape from the enshrouded area.

“Master Sain, your turn.”

“I know! Darku!”

He took aim at the vulnerable figure of Yuria just as she emerged from the mist. It hit her, and he heard her pendant crack a little.

“You insolent little—”

She couldn’t finish her sentence, as Sain was already charging at her with his sword raised. He slashed at her, and she’d had just enough time to produce her own sword, using the same Alchemia spell as her brother, and meet his swing. They clashed.

“You can call me a loser, and maybe you’re right... But my friends aren’t.”

“Th-That’s not your own strength!”

“It’s not. But it’s a strength, and that’s what matters!”

As they pushed against each other with their blades, Sain felt a powerful surge of magical energy behind him. It looked like the Marni Cannon was finally ready to fire. He quickly hopped away to distance himself from Yuria.

“Dormant darkness, vagrant and lost, roar in resonance with the twilight black...” In a tone steady but eerily ominous, she spoke the words of her incantation. “Seize the plaques of names sequential, swear your soul upon the clock tower ruined... Opulence shattered, its dirge composed, rise from the bedrock of your tomb...”

The earth itself darkened, as though dyed in shadow, and a paralyzing chill ran up Sain’s spine. His hair stood on end. He could feel the goosebumps on his skin. No one moved. For a long moment, Marni’s voice alone marked the passage of time. Then, her long, foreboding incantation ended, and her colossal spell was complete.

“Aun Grohlis!”

From the blackened ground rose a pair of gigantic arms. Two massive hands pressed down, depressing the earth as the head and torso of a mountainous titan emerged from the shadowy crater. It let out a terrible roar before fixing its massive eyes on Rayde.

“Oh shit... What the hell is this spell?! V-Velle Flaram!”

He sent a wave of fire surging at the dark titan, only for it to be extinguished by the swirling mass of darkness that surrounded the towering figure. Trees, bushes, and even the very earth surrounding the titan turned black and began to disintegrate, suggesting it had the power to break down whatever it touched.

“You’ve... got to be kidding me. How the hell do you stop this thi—”

Marni had only one word for the flustered Eldis.

“Goodbye,” she said in an icy voice before the titan swept its massive arm across the ground. Rayde — along with a significant chunk of the surrounding forest — disappeared in a thunderous squall of destruction.

Yuria stared at the spot where her brother had stood just a second ago. There was nothing left but barren earth. A drop of cold sweat rolled down her forehead.

“All right... In that case...” She held out her hands. Not up in surrender, but forward in defiance. “Looks like I’ll have to do this myself, then!”

She wasn’t giving up. Her back was against the wall, but her will was unbroken. Magical energy gathered in her palms. Just as she was about to cast a spell, however, there was a deafening roar that caused them all to freeze. It wasn’t from the titan. This was something more... beastly.

“...What was that?”

As if in answer, there was a rustling sound from the direction that Rayde had been sent flying. Their heads all snapped toward it. A second later, a large, leonine monster appeared. Sharp fangs protruded from its thick jaw, and they looked strong enough to crush bone.

“A blast tiger?! Th-They didn’t say blast tigers would show up around here!” Yuria shrieked in confusion.

Sain had heard of them before. Blast tigers were ferocious monsters with a voracious appetite for both animals and people. They had tough, powerful bodies that allowed them to adapt to many different environments, and their teeth excreted a special fluid that dripped out of the tips. This fluid was combustible, and by grinding their teeth together, they could produce explosions from their mouths. While hunting, blast tigers would first hold their prey in their teeth, and then rub them together to produce an explosion, before gathering the fragments of the broken carcass and eating them at its leisure.

The blast tiger looked at the person standing closest to it, which happened to be Yuria.

“Eeek?!”

Two beastly eyes, each the size of a human head, fixed themselves on her, and her face paled immediately. The bluster she’d displayed was gone without a trace, replaced by an uncontrollable shaking in her arms and legs. She started to back away, but in her panic, she tripped on a protruding root and fell on her rear.

“Ahh... Ahhhh...”

Before he knew it, Sain was dashing to her aid. One look at the expression of pure terror on her face was all he needed to spring into action.

“Darku!”

He launched a dark missile at the blast tiger, striking it in the eye. The monster howled in pain and stumbled backward a few steps. In that time, Sain dashed in and swooped the cowering Yuria up in his arms.

“Wha—?!”

She struggled a little in surprise, but he held her tightly, supporting her neck and knees as he made his escape.

“Miss Grim!”

“On it.”

Not missing a beat, Marni directed the dark titan, Aun Grohlis, to swing its massive arm at the blast tiger. The strike connected, sending the monster slamming into a tree trunk, but it immediately got back on its feet and charged the titan with a roar. It sank its fangs into the titan’s head and produced an explosion. The powerful blast rocked the ground, causing everyone to recoil — everyone except Marni, who didn’t even flinch. She softly whispered two words.

“Crush it.”

One enormous fist fell upon the blast tiger like a hammer, shaking the ground a second time with a thunderous quake. When the fist lifted from the deep crater, only a flattened carcass remained inside. The titan began to crumble, breaking into tiny particles from the outside in. That final blow had likely consumed all of its energy.

“Why...” asked Yuria, still cradled in a princess carry. “Why are you helping me?”

Sain gave the question some thought before answering.

“If I had to give an answer... it would be because you looked like you were scared.”

She stiffened at his response, her cheeks flushing with color as he set her down. Soon after, Melia approached from behind with a dagger brandished in her right hand. She took Yuria’s pendant and, as though it were the most natural thing, drove her blade into it, shattering it immediately.

“Oh, don’t mind me,” she quipped casually. “Just taking care of unfinished business. It’s the maid’s job to clean up after her master, after all.”

With her pendant destroyed, the familiar pale blue barrier deployed around the younger Eldis.

“Let’s go help Alicia,” suggested Marni as she joined them.

Sain nodded, and they ran off, leaving Yuria in the safety of her protective bubble. As they moved, Melia gave him a questioning glare.

“So, Master Sain, why did you help Miss Yuria?”

“Hnnnngh, l-like I said, it’s be—”

“She had the pendant, you know.”

“Becau—”

“She had the pendant, you know.”

“All right, all right! I forgot, okay? I remembered after I helped her!”

His face reddened with his confession. In hindsight, with the protection of the substitute pendant, Yuria was never in any danger of dying, even if she had been attacked by the blast tiger. In the heat of the moment, however, this fact had completely slipped his mind, and he’d acted without thinking. As a result, he had to endure Melia’s mockery all the way until she reached Alicia.

With the destruction of her substitute pendant signaling the end of her participation in the event, Yuria eventually got up and wandered through the forest, looking for her brother.

“Yo.”

She heard a voice from above. Looking up, she discovered Rayde dangling upside down from the treetops, his legs caught in a mess of branches.

“Well. That’s a very... acrobatic way to greet someone.”

“I’m not doing this for fun. I just woke up and found myself like this.”

“Figures. You went flying a good distance, after all.”

He pulled himself free and landed on the ground. The same pale blue barrier surrounded him as well, suggesting he’d been downed by that one titanic strike from Marni’s spell-made titan.

“...Well, I guess we lost.”

“...Yes.”

At first, they seemed downcast, their voices subdued in acknowledgment of their defeat. Then, they looked up at the sky. Their eyes were distant and a little glassy, and a hint of reverence entered their tone.

“...Beautiful,” whispered Rayde.

“Yes... Very much so,” replied Yuria.

Their feelings were in concert, but the object of their worship differed. Rayde thought of Marni, while Yuria saw Sain. The twins’ had always been focused on fighting — more specifically, winning. Their obsession with obtaining victory was so intense that the people at school had dubbed them ‘the Muscle-Brained Twins.’ For them, their encounter with Sain and Marni had shaken them to the core.

“Yuria. Looks like we’ve got a lot more training to do.”

“Yes. It appears that the strength we’ve been pursuing is but one of many... They have a kind of strength we do not.”

The pair shared a moment of mutual reflection.

“...Let’s try to regroup. The other two have probably been downed already, but we might as well go find them,” said Rayde as he started to walk off.

Yuria was just about to follow when she sensed an unnerving presence nearby. She turned toward it.

“What... is that?” she murmured with a frown.

Rayde had stopped as well. He looked in the same direction.

“No idea. I’ve never seen a monster like that...”

They narrowed their eyes, gazing suspiciously past the trunks and leaves at the strange, misshapen figure of a blood-red monster.

Sain rushed to Alicia’s aid, only to discover that his help was entirely unnecessary. As Melia had predicted, upon arriving, he found pale blue barriers surrounding the two students who’d been Alicia’s opponents. Seeing that the battle was done, the four members of Sain’s team made their way back to their camp to reinforce the cabin roof and walls.

As night fell, they grilled some fish for dinner before enjoying some casual banter around their campfire. Alicia, in particular, was in good spirits following their victory.

“We are so lucky! It’s only the second day, and we just took out one of the favorites to win! We’re on a roll!”

Sain concurred. Luck was definitely on their side. Their team had two points now. Already two points. But also only two points. There were eight more days left in the event, and the fighting was only going to intensify. It would be in their best interests to keep themselves well-rested and on guard. Then, without warning, he spun around and stared out into the darkness behind them.

“Sain? What’s wrong?” asked Alicia.

“I... I thought I sensed something weird just now...”

He focused again, but the peculiar sensation was nowhere to be found. Figuring it was just him, he turned back toward the campfire. Eventually, it was time to sleep.

At night, forests were dark places. With leaves and branches blocking most of the moonlight, there were times when even the ground underfoot was shrouded in shadows. Figuring that none of the other teams would try to move around during these dimmest hours of the night, the four of them relaxed as they got into their respective beds. Soon, the soft, rhythmic breathing of peaceful slumber permeated the camp.

Except... it didn’t come from everyone.

“Where are you going?”

A voice, its volume magnified by the surrounding silence, echoed in the darkness. Marni stopped at the boundary between the camp and the forest. She turned around to find two of their beds empty. One was, of course, hers. The other belonged to Sain.

“I’m going to do some patrolling. Even if people are asleep, monsters might be nearby,” she answered.

“Then allow me to accompany you,” said Sain, who approached her from behind the cabin.

“There’s no need. I’m used to walking around at night, and it’s probably easier to stay hidden if I’m by myself.”

He frowned at her, concern written plainly on his face. Something about the look struck a chord with her, and her impassive expression gave way to a smile.

“Get an ego check. You’re still the apprentice. You’ve got no business worrying about your master. Besides, you worked really hard today, so you should be exhausted. Get some rest. We’ll need you in good shape for tomorrow.”

“...Fine. Don’t do anything too risky, though.”

After watching Sain reluctantly return to the camp, Marni stepped into the forest. Being a dark elf, her eyes were unaffected by darkness, which gave her a significant edge in the field exercises. Under conditions where normal people couldn’t see more than a few inches in front of their face, her vision was as clear as if she were in bright daylight. Even if she ran into nocturnal monsters, she was perfectly capable of fighting them.

“...Good. It doesn’t look like there are any dangerous monsters around here.”

Water was the source of life for more than just humans. In general, where there was water, there were lots of monsters, as well. Fortunately, though their encampment was by the river, it didn’t seem to be a spot that monsters usually frequented for water. After deciding that their perimeter was safe, she was just about to start heading back to camp when she heard a voice.

“Good evening, Marni.”

She turned to find a woman in a plain black cloak standing behind her.

“Who are you?”

“What do you mean? It’s me,” said the woman as she slid back her hood. “Your sister, Harti.”

Rays of moonlight slipped through the treetops, illuminating her brown skin, long pointed ears, and the blood-red highlights of her silver hair. The woman was undoubtedly a dark elf and, as Marni’s widening eyes confirmed, a familiar face.

“It... can’t be... Harti?”

All the planning and practice... Winning first place at this event... It was so she could search for her lost sister. And now, there she was. Harti.

“How? Is it... really you?”

“Of course it’s me. Do I look any different to y—” Harti paused before letting out a short laugh. “I guess I do. It’s been two years since we last saw each other, after all.”

Everything, from her voice, to her face, to her mannerisms... It was all exactly as Marni remembered. The woman standing before her was indeed Harti. With slow, unsteady steps, she approached her sister. Halfway there, however, she stopped.

“...Where have you been all this time?”

“Really? It’s our long-awaited reunion and that’s what you want to do first? Ask questions? No hugs or anything?”

“Answer me. I... I kept looking for you. All this time.”

Marni’s voice — and in fact, her whole body — trembled as she spoke. Her thoughts were in disarray, thrown into utter chaos by the sudden appearance of the person she’d spent the last two years searching for. There was joy, of course; she was happy to see her sister again. But there was more.

Where have you been?

What were you doing?

A tempest of emotions raged inside her, wild and confusing. One in particular was red-hot and bubbled to the surface. It was anger.

Why did you leave me?

“I apologize for not getting in touch with you. It’s not that I didn’t want to, but I was busy.”

“...Busy?”

Harti nodded.

“I was searching, as well. For a place where we belong. A place where even we dark elves can enjoy peace and well-being,” she said as she began walking toward Marni, closing the remaining distance between them. “And the reason I’ve appeared before you today, Marni, is to bring you there. Come... Take this.”

Marni’s sister reached into her cloak and produced something that looked like a blood-red gem, which she held out toward her. It pulsated like a living heart. A single look at it was enough to elicit a visceral reaction of disgust, and Marni couldn’t help but remember that she’d experienced a very similar sensation not long ago. It felt just like the monster that Sain had used his holy knight powers to defeat. She knew just what it was.

“...Chaos?” she whispered.

Harti’s eyes went wide.

“Why do you know—”

“Miss Grim!”

An anxious voice echoed through the forest. They turned to find Sain staring at them, his expression tense. Alicia and Melia were behind him.

“You... Who are—” he said, glaring at Harti.

“Ah, we meet again. Thanks for giving me directions that time.”

Her voice jolted his memory, and he suddenly recalled the encounter in the capital city when a woman had asked for directions to the west gate. She’d hidden her face then, but he could see it clearly now.

“You... It can’t be... Miss Grim’s sister?”

“You mean Marni’s? Yes, that’s me. My name is Harti. Shall we shake hands?”

Sain ground his teeth at the revelation.

“...That’s a pretty good imitation. How did you do it?”

“Imitation? What do you mean?”

“You know perfectly what I mean, Chaos. You’re part of them.”

“...I see. So you’re the one who told my dear sister about Chaos. Oh, well. Saves me time doing it myself, I guess.”

Harti looked from Marni to Sain.

“We are the Clan of Chaos, an organization that believes the world should be ruled by neither of the two gods, but Chaos itself. Chaos is our rightful god.” She took off the pendant that hung at her neck. “This is a magical seal for Chaos that the clan created. We can’t use the power of Chaos while we’re wearing it, but it allows us to hide its presence.”

Marni took a step backward.

“H-Harti...?” she said, caution creeping into her voice.

Why do you have something like that?

“Two years ago, I left the academy on an invitation from the clan,” said Harti as she held her sister’s gaze. “Marni, you know as well as I do that dark elves face rampant discrimination no matter where we go. Even in Jenifa, which prides itself on being a meritocracy, we were not spared the baseless condemnation that plagued us all our lives. I tried to shield you from it, Marni. I always tried to protect you... but I never stopped thinking. I thought and thought, wondering how we dark elves could live our lives in peace... And just when I was all out of answers, the clan came to recruit me to their cause. I’m sorry I left you, Marni, and I regret it to this day, but I needed to know. I needed to see for myself whether the clan’s claims truly held merit.

“Long story short, they were right. The Clan of Chaos is a gathering of outcasts and misfits — those for whom the world offered no sense of belonging. There, dark elves face no persecution. In fact, those like us are the very people the clan is trying to save. So put aside your worries, Marni, and join me. Take up the power of Chaos, and never again shall you suffer at the hands of prejudice. Come with me... and forever free yourself from the cursed fate of our race.”

Faced with her sister’s offer, Marni fell silent.

“Don’t let her trick you! Those tainted by Chaos can’t possibly hope to live a peaceful life!” yelled Sain.

“Sain’s right. That power... It’s too much. It’ll consume you.”

Alicia joined in as well. Having had a taste of Chaos just a month ago, her words carried the weight of experience.

“You...” Harti narrowed her eyes at Sain. “You’re no ordinary person, are you? You know too much.”

Before they could trade any more words, another man appeared from the forest.

“And here I was wondering what was taking you so long... No wonder. I see we’ve got a pest problem on our hands.”

He had dark red hair and amber eyes.

“Allow me to do the introductions,” said Harti. “This is Iblis. Like me, he is a member of the Clan of Chaos... and in fact, it was him who asked me to join the clan two years ago.”

Iblis gave no visible reaction as Harti introduced him. He cast a glance at Marni before regarding Sain, Melia, and Alicia in turn.

“The only one I want is your little sister there. Hurry up and kill the other three brats.”

“Wait. It looks like those other kids know about Chaos. What if they’re like that student president and have special powers—”

“Kill them.”

The man named Iblis spoke right over Harti, as if he hadn’t even heard her. At his command, a Beast of Chaos appeared and charged at Sain.

“Gah!”

He was sent flying as the Beast slammed into him. It pounced on him, fangs bared for the kill.

“Sain?!” screamed Alicia.

She tried to run after him, but she suddenly realized they were surrounded on all sides by Beasts. Some had wings like birds. Others resembled the blast tiger.

“I keep telling you, Harti, you’re too soft. We kill all witnesses. That’s the rule,” said Iblis, his voice cold as ice.

Harti lowered her gaze. After a long pause, she nodded.

“...You’re right. Sorry for the trouble.”

Just then, an explosion of light roared outward, and the whole forest seemed to flash white for a second. Soon after, the body of the Beast that had chased after Sain traced a wide parabola through the air and landed next to Iblis.

“What the f—”

He reeled in shock, swearing as he frantically looked from the unmoving carcass toward the source of the light. When he saw the figure that appeared from the woods, however, he froze.

“...In the end, I have no choice but to rely on this power.”

Sain — devoid of his usual assortment of trinkets — was walking toward them. His white coat took on a silver sheen in the moonlight, and his blond hair seemed to glow. With his seals removed, his holy knight powers were fully unleashed, and he fixed Iblis with his azure gaze as he approached.

“No... No way...” To know of Chaos was to know its antithesis. Iblis’s eyes widened with realization. “The holy knight?! Damn it! What the hell is he doing here?!”

Sain made no reply, instead addressing his two attendants.

“Melia. Alicia.”

Their powers unleashed as well, the two girls called the names of their respective weapons.

“Siem Saevas, here I bear the attendant’s mark. Second gift — Holy Sinking Blade!”

A number of daggers made of pure light materialized around Melia.

“Poht Teurch, here I bear the attendant’s mark. Seventh gift — Holy Weaving Torch!”

Holy fire flared in a brilliant torch that took shape in Alicia’s hand.

Faced with not only the holy knight but two of his attendants, Harti’s expression darkened with concern.

“Color me surprised... I never thought the holy knight would be in a place like this, much less a student... You’re practically a different person than before. How did you do it? What’s the trick?”

“The same one you use, as a matter of fact. I also wear light-binding seals on a daily basis.”

“I see... It all makes sense now. The holy knight and his attendants. Of course you’d know about Chaos. So? What’s the deal? Is my little sister already one of your attendants?”

“...No, she’s not.”

“Oh, good. Then she still has a choice.”

Harti turned back to Marni.

“Listen, Marni. Come with me.”

“B-But...”

Marni looked uneasily at her friends, who of course gestured at her to stay. Chaos ruined lives. It was something that Sain knew better than anyone. He’d spent his life fighting Chaos, and he’d seen what they did to people.

Eventually, Harti sighed.

“I guess this isn’t the kind of environment for making big life-changing decisions,” she said before fixing her eyes on Sain. “You’re being a nuisance, holy knight. Let me get rid of you first.”

She threw her arm out, and her black cloak fluttered in the sudden gale.

Multiple shadows dashed through the darkness.

Sain imbued the black sword he’d brought for the field exercises with the blessing of the goddess. The blade immediately turned white and radiated a saintly glow. With its hilt held firmly in his hand, he charged toward Harti...

“Beasts, attack!” roared Iblis.

...Only to be pushed back by an onslaught of Beasts that rushed him at her partner’s command. They came at him from multiple directions, sharp fangs gnashing at him both high and low. He dodged them with focused precision, keeping his movements as limited as possible.

“Augh! Cursed knight! Stop getting in our way!”

Iblis’s angry yelling was matched by a howl from his Beasts, who assaulted Sain with increased intensity. A heavy impact sent him stumbling back, and the substitute pendant he wore around his neck shattered with a sharp crack. A pale blue barrier deployed around him.

“Be careful! The substitute pendant can’t negate the powers of Chaos!” he shouted as he fell to one knee, his voice strained. The sheer number of Beasts leaping at him was starting to pile together into a heap, threatening to crush him under their weight.

The substitution pendant worked by absorbing magical attacks in place of its wearer. However, it was only effective against normal magic. Chaos, which belonged to no magical genus, passed straight through.

Suddenly, a wave of brilliant white fire incinerated the pile of Beasts on him.

“Sain! We’ll take care of that guy and his freaky minions! You should go—”

“I know! I’ll do something about Miss Grim’s sister!”

Not missing a beat, he burst out of the smoldering ashes in a run, leaving the surrounding Beasts to Alicia and Melia. He stopped in front of Harti, his sword held ready. She threw her head back in a laugh.

“Do something? Are you too scared to say kill?”

“...You’re my friend’s sister. Killing you is my last option, and I want to avoid resorting to it if at all possible. Is there something wrong with that?”

“Really... The holy knight, huh. Now, aren’t you the compassionate one. Unlike your darker counterpart, that is.”

As they traded words, Sain kept his eyes on Harti, carefully studying her for an opening to strike. As Marni’s sister, she was also a dark elf. Her repertoire of dark magic, which would have been powerful enough under normal circumstances, would now be further amplified by the powers of Chaos.

“Orb of gloom, devour with shadow and darkness — Dardia!”

Harti made the first move, sending several large orbs of darkness flying at Sain from both sides, flanking him. He dodged them by leaping directly up into the air.

“Darku Shot!”

A barrage of dark pellets shot out of her palm, their lack of individual strength made up for by their speed of release. Her swift follow-up caught Sain at the apex of his jump. Being airborne, he had no way of avoiding her second attack. Yet, his face showed no panic. As the dark pellets approached, he calmly spoke the holy word, “Sanctuary.”

Light rushed outward, permeating the air in an ever expanding globe. Harti’s spell-made pellets disintegrated as the barrier of light passed through them.

“The ability of the holy knight to imbue empty space itself with the blessing of the goddess... Sanctuary, huh. As long as he has that power, it looks like my weaker spells aren’t going to be much use,” Harti mused, calmly studying her opponent, all despite being in the midst of battle.

Sain did the same, glancing at the Beasts hiding in the vicinity to evaluate his own position.

There are a lot of them.

As fifth-generation Chaos, Beasts were devoid of all reason and intellect, which normally prevented them from moving around in packs. The fact that they were surrounding him in such numbers, then...

“I see... That man has the ability to control Beasts of Chaos.”

“Correct.” Harti laughed. “Iblis is a third-generation Senbou Kairai, the Thousand Puppets. His power is to control his minions. And...”

She fired off a dozen dark missiles in one go as she talked. With his holy knight powers active, Sain had little difficulty evading them, and they went flying into the woods behind. He noticed, however, that the bark of a tree grazed by the missiles had withered and fallen away.

“...I am a second-generation Meishu Tenrei. I’m sure you’re familiar with the Infernal Skylord’s power, holy knight?”

Sain tsked audibly. The Founder, Meishu Tenrei, was a massive bird-shaped monster whose power was the ability to inflict abnormal ailments on its victims. When in battle, Meishu Tenrei would scatter its countless feathers throughout the area, and anyone they touched would suffer all sorts of torturous agonies. That, however, wasn’t the problem that concerned him.

“A second-generation...”

“That’s right. I’m not trying to brag or anything, but I’m told that integration at the second generation without complete disfigurement is a rare feat. Apparently, most attempts result in failure, and the candidate isn’t of much use afterward.”

Conversely, successful integration conferred enormous power on the individual. Second-generation Chaos weren’t as powerful as the Founder itself, of course, but they were certainly the next strongest thing. Harti was not the kind of opponent he could leave for Alicia or Melia.

“...Meishu Tenrei should have been sealed away. How did you acquire its power?”

“Our clan has the tools to accomplish such feats. We can extract power from higher-ranking Chaos and concentrate it into something we call Seeds of Chaos. By using them, we can gain the powers of Chaos, as well. In fact, the thing that I showed Marni earlier is a Seed.”

Sain stared at Harti. Everything she just said was entirely unheard of. He quickly glanced at Marni, who was curled up into a ball on the ground. The sudden development had clearly overwhelmed her, and she likely felt confused and lost, wondering who was right and whom she should trust. He wanted to console her, but he was sure Harti would allow no such thing. As if affirming his suspicion, the black-cloaked dark elf began casting another spell.

“You think I’ll let you try that? Take this!”

Sain promptly charged forward and swung his sword at her, interrupting her spell and forcing her to dodge away.

“Keeping me on my toes, huh... That sword of yours does look painful...” murmured Harti as she kept her eyes on the glowing shape of Sain’s blessed sword.

“Clan of Chaos, was it? What are you people trying to do? Tell me your goal,” he demanded with a glare as the dark elf leaped backwards.

“Would you believe me if I said world peace?”

Her answer caught him off guard, and he paused.

“Like I said before, the Clan of Chaos is a gathering of outcasts and misfits. This world is filled with people suffering from discrimination and persecution. They run from place to place, trying to escape the cruelty that surrounds them, but relief is rare indeed. At the end of their harrowing search for solace, they always happen upon Chaos. It is their final haven. The two gods grant power only to their own — she to the holy knight, and he to the dark knight. But Chaos is different. Chaos is an entity of equality, granting power to all who seek it. And all of them, once empowered, gain the ability to fight. To repel the tendrils of torment that reach for them.”

“...But it comes at a cost. The taint of Chaos is lasting. Those who fall under its influence will never live a normal life.”

“Perhaps we won’t. I admit that Chaos is no panacea. Challenges yet remain.”

Magical tools formed the basis of all modern life. From drinking water to indoor lighting, everything was fueled by the user’s magical energy. Those tainted by Chaos, however, experienced a corruption of their magical energy that distorted its nature, rendering it incompatible with the instruments of daily life. To take in Chaos was a permanent disengagement from society. There was no going back.

“But that’s why we’re going to change the world.” A grin crept across Harti’s lips. “Into one without those challenges. Our final goal is to release Chaos from the seals that confine it and have it permeate the world. In other words, we’re going to change the very systems that the world is built on, and make them conform to us.”

If the seals that kept Chaos locked away were broken and it were released into the world, all aspects of daily life would be fundamentally altered into ones based on Chaos. It would indeed make for a world well-suited to a clan that bore such a name. Before that happened, however, there would undoubtedly be a period of destruction, during which the whole world and its people would be subject to brutal selection pressures. In other words, mass casualties.

“Not everyone can successfully integrate with Chaos. What you’re doing will result in innumerable losses.”

Harti and Iblis seemed to have retained their sense of self, but when Alicia fell under the influence of Chaos last month, she’d almost completely lost herself in it. And she was still one of the better examples. Those who lacked the mental fortitude to withstand the influence of Chaos were left as misshapen monsters, having lost not just their self-awareness but their very shapes, as well. The release of Chaos into the world would come at the cost of countless victims.

“They’re all necessary sacrifices. No matter the age or era, selection has always followed revolution. It’s a rule of history, isn’t it?” said Harti, her voice devoid of both guilt and sympathy for the sacrifices she spoke of.

“So that’s how you see it...” Having grasped the full picture of Harti’s envisioned future, Sain cast his glance downward. “All right.”

Then, he looked back up and, his eyes blazing with renewed resolve, said, “The last option it is, then.”

Harti recoiled before beginning to back off warily, sending forth a spell to create distance between them.

“Great torrent of darkness, drown the land in seas of black — Velle Darku!”

A torrent of darkness rushed at Sain, its strength and scale greatly enhanced by Meishu Tenrei’s power.

“It’ll kill you with a single touch! Let’s see what you do about this!” she shouted as her massive wave rolled forward, blackening the trees, grass, and ground in its path. Everything it passed began to rot and melt away.

The spell’s density was immense, and Sanctuary wasn’t going to stop its advance.

“Sain, let me use holy fire to—”

“No. There’s no need.”

He halted Alicia with a terse command. Then, he held out his right hand in front of him. Light magical energy gathered in his palm.

“Lighto!”

Pure, eye-searing light exploded from his right hand, washing over everything around him. The torrent of darkness vanished instantly, and the burst of purifying energy reached even the Beasts that Iblis controlled. Half a dozen of them disintegrated at once.

“What the— You’ve got to be kidding... Isn’t that supposed to be a beginner-level spell?!”

For once, Sain’s powers seemed to have exceeded Harti’s expectations. Her calm exterior finally cracked, and the sheen of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.

“There’s no escape for you.”

He rushed toward her as she began a panicked retreat.

“Wha— Damn it! Dormant darkness, vagrant and lost, roar in resonance with the twilight black...”

She began reciting an incantation as she ran. The words sounded familiar. They were the same as the titanic spell Marni had cast earlier.

“Seize the plaques of names sequential, swear your soul upon the clock tower ruined... Opulence shattered, its dirge composed, rise from the bedrock of your tomb — Aun Grohlis!”

A massive titan of pure darkness rose from the ground and loomed over Sain. Like Dark Ray, it was almost certainly an advanced-level spell — the kind that was brutally difficult to master. He wasn’t surprised to see it in her arsenal, though. She was, after all, Marni’s sister. But for all its size and menace, the titan failed to intimidate him.

“Begone, titan.”

He swung his blade of light, the motion swift and sure. A golden arc split the titan from head to toe, and it was gone before its knees even hit the ground, its massive form fizzling away into a quickly vanishing mist.

“...No way.”

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of Harti’s face and landed on the ground as she stared at the empty space her titan had occupied a moment ago.

“What the hell are you doing, Harti?! You’re second generation! At least keep him occup—”

“Hey, eyes over here! Your fight’s with us, buddy! Flare!”

Alicia launched an orb of holy fire at Iblis, who hastily threw a nearby Beast at it as a shield. As a result, a gap appeared in the formation of Beasts that were protecting him.

“Melia!”

The maid was in motion, twin daggers flashing in her hands, before the words even left Alicia’s mouth.

“Ugh, against two little girls...”

“Londo Mysteria!”

A thick swirl of white mist appeared around Melia, obscuring Iblis’s vision for a second. That second was all she needed.

“Graaaargh!”

A silver flash severed the mist, along with the man’s right arm from the rest of his body.

“Oh geez, that ended up a little more sadistic than intended. I was just going to lop off his head. Third generations are nimbler than I expected,” said Melia with a scowl as she watched the groaning Iblis clutch at his stump.

“Okay, this is not looking good,” Harti said through labored breathing. The tides of battle had clearly turned against them. “In that case, it’s time for the trump car—”

“That’s enough.”

Sain appeared behind her in a flash of light. His movement was blindingly fast, as if he’d become light itself, and Harti didn’t even have a chance to react. Whatever she’d intended to do, it was too late. She lowered her hand, relaxed her shoulders, and let out a sigh.

“...Just my luck. Of all the people to show up here, it had to be the holy knight,” she said with a sense of resignation.

“Harti! Do something already!” screamed Iblis.

She looked at him and shrugged.

“What do you want me to do? We’re up against the holy knight, you know? And the one said to be the strongest ever, to boot.”

“Why did you go after your own sister?” demanded Sain as he held his radiant blade at her throat.

“Because she’s my sister. I love her, I care about her, and I want to be with her. Is there something wrong with that?” She glared at Sain. “Well... I guess his circumstances are also factored in.”

She motioned at Iblis with her chin.

“What do you mean?”

“I managed to integrate with a second generation, and Marni’s my sister, so the clan had high hopes for her compatibility, as well. My crippled recruiter over there fast-tracked his career in the clan when he pulled me in, so he was probably hoping to earn himself some more points with her.”

Then, she turned around, paying not the slightest attention to the blade at her neck, and faced Sain. The lack of hostility in her motion caught him by surprise and stayed his sword hand.

“You’re too strong, holy knight... and that’s why you’re an obstacle. Having you around will only weaken Marni’s resolve.” Emotions swirled in her eyes, subtle and complicated. “Can you take responsibility for the rest of her life?”

“...What do you mean?”

“That girl is struggling right now. She’s tearing herself up inside trying to choose the path she walks. Either she comes with me, or she stays with you. I can protect her... But can you? You, the holy knight... Can you swear in good conscience that you’ll always be there for her? You can’t. Eventually, you’ll leave her behind. It’s just a matter of time.

“The salvation you offer is fleeting. It’s the passion of a moment that serves nothing but your own ego. I won’t let you take my sister... You don’t have what it takes to look after her. To keep her safe.”

Her gaze was solemn and testing, filling the very air between them with tension. In response, Sain threw his head back and laughed. It was a disarming laughter — the kind that came from inside.

“Wow. That’s what you’ve been worrying about this whole time? That’s so... stupid!”

“...What did you just say?”

“I said that’s stupid. You don’t trust your sister at all.”

His words struck a nerve, and Harti bared her teeth in a fierce scowl.

“Harti.”

Suddenly, Marni spoke up. It was the first they’d heard from her since she’d curled into a ball on the ground. Now, there was a glint of determination in her eyes. Realizing that she was about to make her choice, Harti rushed to speak first.

“Marni, listen. You need to calm down and think about this carefully. Your friend might be the holy knight, but he can’t protect you forever. If you come with me, though... and if you gain the power of Chaos, I know you’ll—”

“I’m... okay now, Harti.” Marni looked up at her sister and held her gaze. “Ever since you left, I’ve been lonely... but now, I have friends. Friends I care about. Sain, Alicia, and Melia... None of them treated me differently when they found out that I’m a dark elf. And I... I trust them from the bottom of my heart.”

Her voice still trembled when she began, but it steadied as she spoke, growing in volume and confidence.

“That’s why,” she continued, “I’m not lonely anymore. I want to stay here. With everyone else... I can’t go with you, Harti.”

Her last few words carried with them the weight of finality.

For Harti, Marni’s time had stopped two years ago. She still saw her sister as the same person she’d left behind — her dear and delicate sibling who needed her protection to survive. That Marni, however, had ceased to exist. After a long pause, during which a multitude of emotions flashed across Harti’s face, she finally nodded.

“I see. You’ve... grown, haven’t you? Stronger.”

And then, her expression softened, and she gave Marni a look. It was one that Marni recognized — the same gentle, caring gaze of the sister she knew.

“Well, that’s it, then. I guess it’s time to say goodbye,” Harti said, making Sain’s eyes go wide. The least thing he was expecting was for her to back off so easily.

“...Are you serious? That’s it? Weren’t you here to take your sister with you?”

“I would if she wanted me to. I’m not going to force her. I never intended to. I am her big sister, you know? If she says no, then I’ll leave. That was the plan all along.”

She smiled. Her colleague, however, was not impressed by the turn of events.

“No way... There’s no way in hell I’m going to let it end like this!”

Iblis howled, his face twisted in bitter rage. Sensing that something was wrong with the man, Harti tried to placate him.

“Iblis, calm down. You promised you’d respect Marni’s choice—”

“Shut up!” he snarled.

There was a sudden shiiick — the sound of something sharp meeting flesh — and Harti grunted. Sain watched in stunned silence as a previously undiscovered Beast began to retract its long claw, now protruding from Harti’s flank.

“Ib... lis... You...”

“Stay out of my way, Harti. This is for the sake of the clan. I’m taking your sister back, whether she likes it or not. I might have to rough her up a little, but hey, if she’s lucky enough to survive the integration, then it’ll all work out fine.”

Harti stared daggers at him, but he paid her no mind as he walked toward Marni.

“And you, holy knight!” he shouted before Sain had a chance to move. “Stay right where you are.”

“S-Sain...”

“This is definitely not my best moment...”

Sain spun around to discover Alicia and Melia each in the clutches of large reptilian monsters. Pained groans escaped the girls as the monsters tightened their grip on them, threatening to crush them alive. Furthermore, behind each of them was a Beast standing guard.

“How’s that for an ace in the hole, huh? Meet my little pets. They’re fourth-generation Fubaku Yuukai. Hehehe... Looks like even the mighty holy knight has trouble sensing things he can’t see.”

“...Damn you.”

The Founder, Fubaku Yuukai, had the ability to turn invisible. More specifically, it could hide both its shape and presence, making it impossible to detect even by sound or smell. The two monsters his attendants had been captured by were heirs to that power.

“Now don’t try anything funny. There’s only one of you, and there are two of them. You can’t save them both. If you don’t want them to turn into meat pies, then do what I say... You said you always wear light-binding seals to hide your powers as the holy knight, didn’t you? I want you to put those back on. Remember, you do anything weird, and they die.”

Sain had no choice but to obey. He took out the seals he kept in his coat pockets. One by one, he put the trinkets back on, starting with his silver necklace and ending with his grossly over-designed rings. Once he slid the final ring onto his finger, his holy power vanished. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground, clutching at where Iblis had driven a boot into his stomach.

“Ugh... Hngh!”

“Bahaha! What a sight! The holy knight himself crawling like a worm at my feet! Look at you! Without the blessing of the goddess, you’re useless!”

He stared with amusement at his victim before cackling to himself. Marni grimaced at Sain’s muted groans of pain, and she ran toward him.

“Stop!” Iblis snarled, causing Marni to freeze. “You, little miss Harti Junior, had better stay where you are.”

He waited to see that his orders were being obeyed before continuing.

“Good, good. Things were really starting to head south, but this is turning out just fine. Who’d have thought I’d be able to get rid of the holy knight in a place like this? Hah! It’s our clan’s lucky day! Harti’s sister is just a consolation prize compared to this!”

He snapped his fingers, and a massive catlike monster appeared from the forest. With his holy power sealed, Sain stood no chance against it.

“...Sain.”

He heard a soft voice. He craned his neck up to find Marni looking at him. She said nothing else, but her unblinking eyes told him everything he needed to know.

You can do this. I believe in you.

Iblis made a gesture, and the menacing Beast slowly padded toward him. Sain watched as it approached. As he stared death in the face, his heart was filled not with terror, not with worry, but a single phrase that echoed in a voice he knew so well.

The unpracticed mind knows no composure.

To use dark magic, he needed to be cool and composed. The relentless mock battles Marni had put him through were to teach him just that. He mustn’t panic. Slowly, he held out his hand. He forced out of his mind all his pain and exhaustion, leaving only cold, hard focus. Dark magical energy began to coalesce in his palm.

Remember and recreate.

He fettered his baseless fantasies of dark magic and dug through the mental archives of painful practice and hard-earned experience. He recalled the dark forest where he’d battled night monkeys and the tag-team training with Marni to practice his new spell. He felt a familiar tension in his muscles, their fibers yearning to repeat the motions he’d ingrained in them through countless repetition.

His sweat and toil had not been in vain. Dark lightning buzzed around the dense mass of energy in his palm. It lengthened before congealing into the form of a spear.

“Die, holy knight.”

The maw of death opened before Sain’s eyes. He stared down the black abyss as the final principle surfaced in his mind.

Never give up.

He must never allow his will to falter. Even in the face of despair, even if everyone else had given up hope, he had to keep reaching past the darkness for the victory that lay beyond.

“Dark Ray!”

The dark spear began its flight. It lanced through the air and disappeared into the woods like a shooting star, leaving a black trail in its wake. For a second, time itself seemed to freeze. Then...

“Gyaaaaaaaaaah!”

An ear-piercing scream echoed through the forest. The black trail of the spear led from Sain’s hand into the Beast’s throat, out the other end, and straight through Iblis’s torso.

“H-Holy... knight...?! H-How... dark... magic?!” gasped Iblis as he crumpled to his knees, one hand pressed to his side.

White flame shattered the darkness.

“Looks like the tides have turned,” said Alicia.

Melia made a wry face.

“I’m sorry it took so long.”

The reptilian Chaos that were Iblis’s aces in the hole lay defeated at their feet.

“Ahh... Ahhhhhh!”

Iblis paled at the sight of the two girls, both having freed themselves from their captors. In his confusion, he turned to the woman he’d personally harmed mere moments ago.

“H-Harti! Do something! Help me!” he screamed with panicked, bloodshot eyes. “I-I’m the one who brought you into the clan! You owe me! You have to pay me back, so help me!”

Harti, still wincing at her wound, slowly got to her feet. She looked at her little sister.

“Marni. You’re staying here, right?”

“...Yes.”

After hearing Marni’s answer, Harti turned to Iblis. Her expression darkened.

“Writhing needles of festering doom, be the thorns in the cursed one’s flesh!”

A strange incantation escaped her lips. Immediately, Iblis vomited a mouthful of blood.

“Urrggh!”

He stared at the crimson blotch on the ground in shock as black dots appeared all over his body. They began to grow in size, as if trying to consume him whole.

“S-Stop it! Harti! Please! Don’t!”

His pleading was met with a gleeful grin.

“Too bad.”

As soon as Harti said the words, even more blood was ejected from his mouth. Marni watched in shock as he collapsed onto the ground.

“No way. Is that... a curse?” she said, bewildered.

“It is. Once you have the power of Chaos, you can do stuff like this too... but I guess you’d have no use for it.”

Curses were a terrible power that the dark elves used to possess. They were the only ones who could use them, and the sheer cruelty of their effects struck fear into people’s hearts. The dreadful power was, in fact, the very reason dark elves came to be a hated race. Nowadays, their blood had become so mixed that dark elves could no longer use curses, but with Chaos enhancing every aspect of her power, it was no surprise that Harti had reclaimed the ability to use them.

“Did you... kill him?”

“No, he’s still alive. Just barely. We’re not exactly seeing eye to eye right now, but I still have some use for this man.”

Closer examination proved her right; Iblis was indeed breathing, albeit weakly. He had lost a lot of blood, though, and he wasn’t going to survive without immediate treatment.

“Well, then. I guess this is where we part ways,” said Harti as she walked over to Iblis.

However, Alicia and Melia brandished their weapons at her.

“Do you really think we’re going to let you go?”

“Seems sort of like wishful thinking to me.”

Harti calmly gave them a questioning look.

“Look around you.”

They heard a rumble in the distance. A cacophony of strange cries and violent thrashing rose in all directions. It was the noise of Beasts of Chaos rampaging through the forest.

“Iblis was using his power to keep a lot of Beasts on standby. Now, without their master controlling them, they’ll just follow their destructive instincts. Pretty soon, there’ll be a bloodbath.”

“Damn it! Melia! Alicia! Get to work! We need to hunt down every last one of those Beasts, or they’ll start killing the students!”

Neither of his attendants voiced any complaints about his decision — the safety of innocents took precedence over capturing Harti.

“Goodbye, holy knight... Take care of Marni for me.”

While Sain rushed to direct his friends, Harti began to sling her incapacitated partner over her shoulder. All of a sudden, three spears of light shot through the air and buried themselves in Iblis’s body.

“Wha—”

Blood splattered on her face as her jaw dropped in surprise. Almost simultaneously, the same spears of light fell upon all the Beasts in the area, nailing them to the ground. They let out short shrieks of agony before falling dead. Everyone was frozen in shock as they watched a young man descend from the sky. His blond hair fluttered gently, and his fierce blue eyes shone with the majesty of a lion. He wore clothes resembling those of Sain — of the holy knight — but he was definitely a different person.

“...Cain Theresia,” Harti said, her voice slow and trance-like as if the words were escaping her not of her own volition.

Cain reached for a sword at his waist and drew it from its sheath. Then, without any flourish or flair, he swung it at Harti.

“Hngh?!”

She lurched back to evade the strike, letting go of Iblis in the process. His lifeless body fell to the ground.

“Velle Darku!” she shouted as she continued to back away. Omitting the incantation reduced the spell’s power, but it was still more than strong enough to wreak havoc on any humans in its way.

As the black tide rolled toward Cain, he swiped his sword sideways. A blinding arc of light shot out of his blade, crashed into the oncoming wave, and neutralized it completely.

“Darku Shot!”

She followed up with a barrage of projectiles. He dodged them all with precise, deliberate steps. Then, for the first time since his sudden appearance, she heard his voice.

“Ray Javelin!”

Pure, blinding luminescence exploded out of Cain, its intensity causing Harti to reel. Only after it flew past her did she realize it was a massive spear of light. The air in its wake seemed to sizzle, and it had disintegrated everything unfortunate enough to have been in its path — an errant leaf; an airborne insect; a left arm.

Harti screamed, grasping at what was left of her limb. A second later, Cain was already upon her.

“N-No, don’t...”

Marni’s trembling protest did little to slow Cain’s blade. It flashed, and the golden trail it drew was soon followed by a crimson arc. Fresh blood colored the nearby trees.

“Auuugh!”

Harti’s leg — hampered by the gaping cleft in her thigh — failed to clear a protruding root. Her foot caught as she tried to step back, and she went tumbling to the ground. She landed hard and could no longer push herself back up. Cain stood over her and raised his sword.

“Stop!”

Marni’s desperate scream filled the air. It entered Sain’s ears and, without passing through his head, went straight to his legs. The next thing he knew, he was staring Cain in the face, the metal of their swords grinding harshly against one another.

“Holy knight...” Cain said, spitting out the words like bile. His eyes flared with leonine ferocity.

Sain grimaced against the intense pressure emanating from his opponent. It wasn’t just the physical force of the blade. There was something else, something invisible — an intrinsic understanding that the slightest lapse in focus would result in both him and Harti being cut in two. He’d heard more than enough rumors around the school about the extraordinary strength of the student council president. What he was witnessing right now, however, was something else entirely. To describe the student council president as “strong” was true, but improper. A horse was indeed stronger than a mouse, but the very act of comparing their strengths was in and of itself farcical. The Eldis twins and Marni — both contenders for first place in the field exercises — were certainly strong in their own right, but it would be ludicrous to compare them to Cain. From the light magic he’d used to the way he moved, everything the student council president did was clearly far beyond the realm of ordinary students. Their swords interlocked, they both continued to hold their ground. For a moment, a strange thought flashed in Sain’s mind. It almost felt like Cain was standing in opposition against him. Against the holy knight.

“Why do you stand in my way? Is that woman not one of Chaos?” Cain said in a harsh voice. “Has emotion clouded your judgment?”

Sain bit his lip. Was he doing the right thing? He wasn’t sure. His body had acted before his mind. Perhaps Cain was right. Maybe he had let his emotions get the better of him.

“...Go.”

He directed the command at the wounded woman behind him. Emotions or not, the one thing he didn’t want was for Marni’s sister to be killed. Cain, however, posed a threat of unknown proportions. Sain couldn’t be sure that he could fight him and protect Harti at the same time, so he needed her to escape on her own.

Harti clutched at the remains of her left arm and, breathing raggedly, forced herself to her feet. She quickly began to run off. Sain waited until her presence had disappeared into the distance before breaking off their clash and leaping backward.

“A holy knight who lets Chaos go free...” said Cain said with a wry, derisive smile. “You’re ill-suited for the mantle... You’d be better off trading roles with me.”

Their eyes met, and what Sain saw in Cain’s left him at a loss for words. There was hatred in those eyes — a bitter, rage-filled enmity that ran far deeper than the events of today. They both remained still for a while, gazes locked in silent stares.

Eventually, the teachers waiting outside the forest signaled the suspension of the field exercises.