Bright sunlight filters through the spaces between the pillars in the open-air hallway. The wooden beams exude a soft scent that mixes with the floral scents already within the warm winds. A few vines grow on the outside of the pillars, but they refrain from encroaching on the interior space because of the sigils carved into the surface and redone by powerful sages every few months. Students of Kinoko Scholar's Academy pass through the breezeway in small collections, giggling amongst each other as they either head towards the sleeping quarters or to the common room, both part of the dormitory.

Among these students, Shelby Grace from the Antarctic Empire walks by herself. She wears a pleasant smile on her face, looking out towards the inner courtyard of the academy. More students are spending their afternoons out there, studying in groups or playing games. In the far corner of the courtyard near the stone wall that separates the academy from the forest, Shelby can even see the beginning of a martial arts tournament. More than seeing it, she can hear the students' excitement starting to amass into one deafening noise vaguely reminiscent of cheering.

Shelby smiles even wider at the sheer joy radiating in the air alongside the soothing weather. She finds herself comparing it to the cold of the empire, but these thoughts drag her mind right back to home. Even though Barnabas swore he was taking care of the plants inside her greenhouse, Shelby continues to worry about them like a parent away from their children.

Shelby stops reminiscing as she passes through the door frame into the common room. The sliding door painted to look like blooming pink flowers was already moved out of the way for students to enter and exit the room freely. Shelby darts out of the way of a group of students leaving the common room. As she finds herself standing next to the door frame, she looks out across the common room.

It is a fairly large room made from dark wood and a light off-white material that looks and feels like durable paper. The floor is made from the same wood as the walls' accents, but green sprouts seem to blossom between the floorboards. When someone gets close to a sprout, it grows instantly, forming into a chair that resembles a lotus. Although these magical seats glow softly, the main source of light in the room is the large sigil carved into the ceiling that filters in warm golden light that resembles sunlight. Along the sides of the room are trees growing sideways from the ground to form tables where snacks are served on trays. A sage named Bertha stands behind one of the tree tables to sell supplies and other goods to students. Bertha is also passing out letters that came for the students to the people in the common room.

Shelby joins the line. With Bertha taking charge, the letters get passed along quickly. Bertha's expression changes with every student to let them know the sage's opinion of them, and Shelby finds herself giving Bertha a friendly smile even though she gets a raised eyebrow in return. Shelby laughs to herself as she takes the envelope from Bertha. Shelby steps out of the line, pressing the letter to her chest. Her family and her master sent her a letter earlier in the week, so she already knows who wrote this letter. Shelby's smile grows even brighter as she imagines what Prince Theseus has to tell her this time.

"Shelby!" A voice chirps. She looks up from the ground. Tsesarevich Wilbur sits in one of the lotuses. He leans back in it, obviously engaged in some capacity with the other students around him. Shelby raises an eyebrow at him, shaking her head. Out of the two of them, Wilbur is clearly the more sociable one. He has tried being on friendly terms with everyone, though he isn't particularly close with any of them. In contrast, Shelby sticks to a smaller group of people that she's far more intimately close with. Her roommate, for instance, is someone Shelby would consider her sister– even calls her that sometimes.

The one thing they have in common is that even at the academy, they are each other's best friend. They grew up with each other, after all, and so they know nearly everything about each other. More than that, they have always been best friends. They have always been exceedingly kind and thoughtful around each other. With such a sturdy foundation to stand upon and being so far away from their shared home, their friendship has only gotten stronger as they stay at the academy. By the time they graduate, Shelby surely will fully know everything about Wilbur.

Wilbur rises from his lotus chair. He says a few polite words to the group, and they all smile in understanding at him. Shelby can even see a few blushes as Wilbur gives them one of his perfectly crafted smiles. Wilbur steps away from the group, hurrying over to Shelby. He links their elbows together, pulling her close to him. Wilbur's smile takes on an imperfect but natural quality as he gazes into Shelby's tuscan yellow eyes. "Why must my morning class be so boring and arbitrary? I am rising with the sun in order to waste away the precious hours of the morning learning what will never be useful."

"What happened this time?" Shelby asks. While Wilbur is one for theatrics, he rarely complains about his classes unless something particular happened in them. On top of that, Wilbur never complains about when he wakes up in the mornings. He naturally wakes up with the dawn. When he doesn't, if he wakes up earlier or later, Wilbur will act like a sickly person. It annoys Shelby to no end, but her personal feelings don't stop her from helping Wilbur in every way she can when his sleep schedule has been thrown out of whack.

"Through no fault of my own-"

"Wilbur Craft, I need to speak with you for a moment," Bertha calls out from their post. Shelby looks over at Bertha to find another sage standing beside Bertha, leaning in close to Bertha's ear as if whispering something. Wilbur and Shelby share a look with each other. Bertha only sells wares and hands out letters. There is no immediate reason for Bertha to call out Wilbur, and even less for another faculty member to go through Bertha to do it. The expressions on their faces imply that something terrible has happened, not that Wilbur is in trouble.

"I will see you when this is concluded, Shelby," Wilbur tells her, wearing a comforting smile meant to put Shelby at ease. It would have completed its purpose if Shelby didn't see the slight tremble in Wilbur's hands and the confusion in his warm brown eyes. Wilbur pulls away from her, and Shelby resists the urge to draw him back. She has this uncanny feeling that if she can keep Wilbur here with her, whatever has happened won't find them. It is a silly thought, of course, and Shelby pushes it down as she watches the sage that came to speak with Bertha lead Wilbur outside the common room. They stand behind the sliding door. Shelby can hear faint whispering, but she can't make out any of the individual words.

To distract herself, Shelby lowers the letter from her chest to the area in front of her. She hooks her thumb underneath the wax seal. She pulls, and the seal breaks into two pieces. Shelby pulls the flap of the envelope up. She pulls out the folded letter. Shelby sets the letter on top of the envelope, lifting up the folded edges to show the entire page.

Dear Shelby,

I hope this letter finds you in good health. It will please you to know that I am sending this letter in good health. In fact, I believe that I have never been healthier. Between my maid, Niki, watching over what I eat and my teacher, Diplomat Sam, training me, I have been getting adequate exercise and following a strict diet. It is both tiring and a little painstaking, but I know that more people wish for my health to be well than those who wish for it to suffer.

To answer your last question, no, the tsar and the second prince have not returned home yet. The analogy I wish to use is that they come and go like the tides, but at least fishermen can determine the times when the tides will shift from high to low. While I do find myself wishing I could know when they will arrive, I must admit that it is not as bad as I might have implied in my last letter. They are doing what they need to for Techno's safety. I would be a fool not to understand their actions, so please do not feel angry at them on my behalf nor try to comfort me.

To ask a question of my own, how is your research into Eidolons coming along? In your last letter, you told me that you were getting close to figuring out the truth. As it has been some time since I last received that letter, I am curious to know if you have gotten any closer. You mentioned the 'simulation' last time, did you not? Do you know for certain if Eidolons are connected with this simulation? If you have both found the truth and understand why Kinoko has kept it a secret, you do not need to tell me. I will be content with my curiosity, and perhaps you will answer my questions on your deathbed.

In other news, I have been told that your greenhouse is well. I send a servant out there every few weeks to gather the details, and they tell me that all of your plants remain healthy. They do admit to me that some parts of the greenhouse are not permitted for guest entry, but I suppose the plants in those areas must be hardier than most.

Mother is also in good health, if you desire to know that. She is working hard for the empire, but she seems to be taking care of herself as well.

There is also another matter. I feel incredibly anxious these days, as if I am waiting for a storm that only I can see. It is beginning to unnerve the people around me, and I do not wish for their prolonged discomfort. I would like to take your esteemed opinion into consideration. Perhaps there is a special incense I can burn to help ease my anxiety? The jester, at least, thinks there must be some plant that can help, so I promised him I would ask you.

That is all there is to say for this letter.

From yours truly,
Theseus Craft

Shelby frowns slowly. While she has gotten closer to the truth in her research into Eidolons, Headmaster Strigiformes personally brought Shelby into his office to tell her not to delve any further or she will face academic repercussions. He even threatened to take her off the list of seniors that might be chosen to enter Mizu, an underwater research facility famous throughout the continent. Shelby told him that she would. She stopped researching Eidolons and the simulation, though she has yet to destroy the journal she wrote all of her new clues in. She knows that she needs to do so before the headmaster calls for a dorm search and finds it, but Shelby can't easily part from all the research she's done, especially when she's on the cusp of learning the truth.

The other matter also makes Shelby frown. While she does know plenty of plants that make good incense, she finds the source of Theseus' anxiety more perplexing. It would be better to find the source of his worries and eliminate that, but she has a feeling that he won't share any more information than he already has. Ever since he was young, Theseus has been secretive. He avoids asking people for help, refusing to show his weakness. He is the kind of child every noble wishes they could have, but Shelby is only saddened by the facts. She doesn't even understand how Theseus turned out like this considering the attitudes of his parents and how Wilbur and Techno turned out. Shelby shakes her head. She'll send over a list of good incense to burn.

Shelby turns to the door that leads back to the breezeway between the common room and the sleeping quarters. Shelby takes a few steps toward it, and she hears a pained cry. Shelby's eyes widen. She watches Wilbur pull away from the sage. Wilbur's eyes flash around, and they meet Shelby's eyes for a split second. Shelby sees the intense panic residing around the edges of the brown color. Shelby lifts her hand, his name on her lips. Wilbur runs away from her immediately. Shelby hears the sage call out, but they don't go after Shelby. Momentarily frozen, Shelby watches Wilbur run past the entrance to the sleeping quarters and down the stairs that lead into the courtyard.

Shelby shakes herself out of her stupor. She runs after Wilbur, ignoring Bertha yelling at her not to run inside and the other sage yelling that she should give Wilbur a moment alone. Once Shelby is halfway down the breezeway, she reaches one of her hands out. A long blue and white feather lands against her palm. She squeezes the feather and throws it in front of her. The feather expands, turning into a familiar in the shape of a bird with the same blue and white color scheme as the feather. Like Gemini promised, Shelby created a powerful familiar. Shelby was able to trap an entire storm into a compact body, and the familiar now serves her in the same way an elemental would serve an elementalist.

"Find Wilbur," Shelby tells Gale, the storm familiar. The bird makes a noise like the rumbling of thunder, and light blue electricity runs down her wings. Gale shoots forward, and Shelby follows after her familiar. Shelby leaps down the staircase, missing several steps in a row. Gale slows down a little for Shelby's sake, but once the mage's feet are firmly on the ground, Gale is proving why they are a storm given material form. Shelby almost shouts for Gale to slow down, but she wagers that finding Wilbur is far more important. Shelby knows Wilbur enough to know that when he panics, when he gets brought down by anxiety, he is prone to breaking. Shelby has seen Wilbur break once in her lifetime, and she refuses to let it ever happen again. Wilbur is her friend, after all. It's her responsibility to protect him, especially from his own mind.

Thunder shakes the air as Gale stops between two sakura trees that grow inside the courtyard. Shelby stops underneath Gale. She opens her hand, and her familiar turns back into a blue and white feather. Shelby shoves the feather back into her sleeve. She takes a deep breath to slow down her racing heart as she approaches a person sitting at the roots of a large sakura tree right beside the stone wall. As Shelby gets closer, she recognizes Wilbur's uniform and his brunette locks, though they are far messier as he tears his hands through the material. Shelby approaches slowly, leaning down onto one knee in front of him. Wilbur looks up at her, and she can see the tears sliding down his cheeks. Shelby opens her mouth to comfort him, but he leans forward into her arms. Shelby hugs him back without spending a second to think about the action. It comes naturally, as most things do with Wilbur.

"What's wrong, Wil? What happened?" Shelby asks, reaching a hand up to smooth out his hair. Wilbur hates having his hair untidy, even spending far too many hours in the morning fixing it while Shelby and her roommate, Prismarina, wait for him. These sessions of waiting for Wilbur are part of the reason Shelby and Prismarina are as close as they are, so Shelby doesn't completely hate them.

"Mother and Theseus were attacked," Wilbur whispers, grabbing onto Shelby's shoulders and looking up at her. Shelby feels panic swirl inside her stomach. Wilbur's mother, Tsaritsa Kristin, is someone Shelby admires, someone she aspires to be like in strength and composure. Theseus is Wilbur's precious younger brother and one of Shelby's closest friends. His letter is inside her pocket right now, and she can't help but wonder if the storm that was causing him anxiety was this. Wilbur shakes his head so violently that Shelby's attention returns to the present. "They survived. Mother was unharmed. They say Theseus wasn't hurt too bad. The perpetrators were caught, too, all of them. The only thing is that there were casualties. Among them was Clara, my music teacher."

Wilbur's voice breaks again. Shelby pushes his face against her chest, letting his tears soak into her uniform. She stares over him, searching the bark of the sakura tree for answers. While Shelby wasn't close with Clara, she understands why this is tearing Wilbur up inside. Shelby feels horrible even knowing that Kristin and Theseus survived their brush with death.

"I'll have to return home," Wilbur murmurs, his crying softening into a tremble in his voice.

"Yes, you do," Shelby murmurs half-consciously.

"I promise I'll be back," Wilbur promises.

"You aren't going alone," Shelby says immediately, her words spilling from her mouth. They are no less true even if they weren't consciously decided upon.

Wilbur shakes his head. "You need to stay here at the academy."

"You must understand why I cannot do that, Wilbur. My home was attacked. My tsaritsa and third prince, my precious friend, were almost killed. My best friend is hurting right now. There is no way you are leaving without me, academy be damned," Shelby chides him, looking directly into his eyes to see if he understands.

All Shelby sees is Wilbur's gratitude and affection. "Thank you, Shelby."

"It is not a great strain."

—

Shelby and Wilbur sit in a carriage provided by the academy. It is barely big enough for the both of them since the carriage was only meant for one person- Wilbur. The academy were against Shelby leaving with him, but they weren't entirely able to refute her claims as she explained the importance of her position as Wilbur's vassal and her nature as a duke's daughter in the empire. The academy simply had to watch her go, promising punishment when she returned if not immediate expulsion. Wilbur and Prismarina begged Shelby to stay after that threat was presented, but she listened to their words in the same way she listened to academy's words. That is to say, not at all.

Shelby sets her elbow on the frame of the carriage's door. She stares out of it contemplatively, but her eyes travel upward. It still astounds her. The sky is legitimately clear. Shelby can pick out every single star that the scholars of the far past described in their writings. The sky that could only be seen in paintings was now lucid enough for anyone to see as long as they had access to the sky. Shelby doesn't know when it happened, but she first noticed it her first night away from the academy. When the carriage stopped to let the passengers and guards from Kinoko rest, Shelby was able to see the entire night sky complete with the stars and distant planets. All sorts of celestial bodies radiated directly into her eye without any interference. It surprised everyone that first night, and she finds them all sneaking glances at the night sky.

The carriage jerks to a stop. Shelby's head slams against the carriage window. She hisses in pain, raising her hand up to rub the tender skin. Wilbur makes an aborted snoring sound as he rustles to awareness. He looks around, eyes squinting as he tries to determine where and who he is. Shelby reaches over to put a hand on Wilbur's hand, hoping to comfort him as she looks outside the window- this time towards the guards that are hopping off the front and back of the carriages. Shelby unlatches the window, pushing it open. One of the guards snap their eyes toward Shelby, half of their face illuminated by a torch's light. "Do not worry. We're only stopping for a moment to check something. We will continue on to the empire in a moment."

The guard closes the window, locking it from the outside. Shelby frowns, narrowing her eyes as the guard joins with the others. As far as Shelby is aware, they are at the edge of Kinoko's property, near the lake of Drywaters. There shouldn't be anything on the border except a checkpoint, but she can't see the tower of a checkpoint or any sort of gate. When she expands her senses, she feels the edges of the barrier surrounding Kinoko from their sigils about two miles away. They aren't close enough for the guards to be getting out now.

Shelby flickers her wrist. From the sleeves of her traveling robes, the blue and white feather appears in the center of her palm. Gale transforms in front of her, hooking her claws around Shelby's hand. Those swirling gray-blue eyes seem to glow as the cackling electricity around Gale's feathers illuminate the interior of the carriage. Shelby nods at her familiar. "Find out what they are doing."

"Help Gale," Wilbur declares. Shelby looks over to see Wilbur's fire elemental, Sally, floating in the center of the carriage, taking up a lot of space. Sally nods at her contractor. She disappears into spirit form, reappearing outside the carriage. Gale flaps her wings. As she flies toward the wind, she turns into a small ball of electricity that zaps over to the other side. Gale flies after the guards, lifting into the air to observe them from on high. Sally remains lower to the ground, going around the guards from the side. Although she's dimmed down her internal light, Shelby can still see Sally's glow from a distance.

The carriage suddenly shakes again, this time side-to-side. Shelby slams against the side of the carriage again, this time her shoulder taking the brunt of the damage. She hears the clanging of metal. Shelby presses her face to the window on the other side of the carriage. Someone has dropped their torch, and the underbrush and dead leaves on the ground have caught fire. In the reddish orange light, Shelby watches the guards from Kinoko's militia fighting against what she assumes are bandits. Shelby frowns tightly. It feels strange to her that bandits would appear now, and the way the Kinoko militia is fighting right now feels disingenuous. Shelby's face brightens with panic. She doesn't know if this is about her leaving the academy without permission or if this is about her looking into Eidolons and the simulation, but she knows that it must have more to do with her than it does Wilbur.

Wilbur. Shelby's eyes look over at her best friend. He is staring out the other window at the fight happening over there. Shelby looks around, trying to formulate a plan. She doesn't have anything other than to protect Wilbur. He is the Tsesarevich of the Antarctic Empire. He is far too important to die here. He is also her best friend, and she refuses to let him die because of her foolish decisions.

Shelby grabs Wilbur's shoulder, pulling him away from the window. She stands up inside the carriage. She pulls at the threads surrounding Gale. In a few moments, her familiar is hurtling towards her. Shelby stops Gale before she can enter the carriage. Gale lands on the ground, following Shelby's mental instructions to increase her size. While this does cost her the ability to fly and the use of some of her abilities, Shelby transforms Gale into a mount. Shelby kicks open the door of the carriage, her boot thudding hollowing against the wooden material of the door. Shelby grits her teeth, reaching for Wilbur's arm. She grabs his forearm, and with as much carefulness as she's allowed, she throws Wilbur onto Gale's back. Wilbur scrambles for a moment, and Gale lifts her gigantic wings to keep Wilbur from falling off. Shelby hops out of the carriage right as it jerks to the side again, a bandit and guard battle crashing into the side. Glass shatters on the other side of the carriage, and Shelby flinches so hard that she's suddenly looking into Gale's eyes.

"Protect him," Shelby orders her familiar, putting all of her power into the singular command. Gale nods, her entire form resonating with the directive. Shelby looks up from Gale into Wilbur's wide eyes. "Stay with Gale. She isn't able to fly right now, but she can still move. Head around the checkpoint. If you can, take refuge in Drywaters."

Shelby takes a deep breath. She puts both of her hands over her chest. She searches her entire body for EXP. She feels the essence of her soul expand away from her, reaching high into the skies. The next second, the sky is covered in thick gray storm clouds. The light shower increases into a thick downpour, creating enough cover for Gale and Wilbur to run away. There is even a thin layer of mist that begins to permeate above the ground. Shelby feels a little woozy from conjuring such a powerful storm so quickly, but this is her proficiency magic. Weather spells are the ones she can do without using a verbal or hand motion component. If she can't do this, she shouldn't call herself a mage and she certainly shouldn't study under the Imperial Mage, Gemini Tay.

"I'm not leaving you," Wilbur tells her, his voice rising above the turbulent winds that continue to carry sparks in the air despite the rain doing what it can to put out most of the fires.

"We don't have a choice. I can defend myself, and you have to be protected at all costs," Shelby tells him, putting one hand on Gale's neck and the other one reaching up to grab Wilbur's hand. He is starting to shiver, and Shelby tries to make the rain warmer. It doesn't take effect immediately, and Shelby is starting to feel terrible about this. It must be done regardless of her emotions, but that doesn't stop her from feeling them.

"I don't like this!" Wilbur tells her, and Shelby wonders if Wilbur would be crying if the storm wasn't raging all around them. Shelby frowns, her eyebrows drawing together. When she feels her control start to slip, she sees Sally appear right behind Wilbur. The rain turns into steam as soon as it touches Sally's skin, but the fire elemental doesn't complain as she nods once at Shelby.

Shelby pushes Gale's beak gently. While Wilbur protests, Gale understands her master's orders. Gale turns around. Her claws dig into the earth as she races away from the fiery underbrush and the combatants. In contrast, Shelby turns towards the enemies. Shelby narrows her eyes. She pushes her thumb against her forehead, crudely drawing a glyph with the rainwater. When she's completed the glyph, a flash of light appears in front of her and suddenly, Shelby can sense what is going on by using the storm. Shelby would rather have a potion of night vision, but she doesn't think Prismarina— a witch— packed any of those.

Shelby reaches her hands in front of her. She momentarily stops the raindrops, and they crystallize into icicles. Shelby moves her pointer and middle finger together in sync, directing each icicle into the bodies of the bandits. She hears pained screams as the icicles land, and blood starts to mix with the puddles on the ground beneath the fighters. Shelby twists her fingers into a fist, and the icicles melt. Water rushes into the wounds. Shelby is about to cast a spell when she feels pain flare in her shoulder. Shelby whirls around, seeing a bandit stab a dagger into her body. Shelby's eyes narrow, and she whirls around. A strong wind travels alongside her fingers, and she slams her palm into the bandits stomach. The wind continues without her, and the bandit is thrown across the road into a tree.

"Деревянная тюрьма," Shelby spells, moving her hands to interlock her fingers and snap her palms together and then apart in quick succession. The trunk the bandit landed across starts to move, ripping apart and extending branches that wrap around the bandit. These branches tangle together, forming a prison that holds the bandit back.

While Shelby was casting that spell, another bandit came up to her. He slams his leg against her ankles, sweeping Shelby off her feet. She lands harshly against the ground, spitting up and feeling her breath fall short. The bandit drops down on top of her, slamming his elbow into her stomach. Shelby wheezes pathetically, her body curling inward. The bandit slams his dagger into her thigh and reaches forward to press his thumb into her shoulder wound. Shelby cries out, blinding white pain causing her vision to blur. Shelby pushes down her vomit, instead putting both of her hands in front of her. With her palms facing the bandit, Shelby whimpers out, "Распространяющееся пламя."

A cyclone of red-hot fire bursts from Shelby's palms. The fire rushes against the bandits face. He howls in pain, darting away from Shelby. He shoves his face into the muddy puddles, but the water doesn't do anything to cleanse away the fire. Another one of the bandits puts her hand on his shoulder to calm him down, but she screams as the flames jump onto her wrist. She bangs her fist against the carriage, setting the entire thing on fire. Even as the rain pours from the sky, the carriage remains lit up, burning down slowly. The first bandit inflicted with the flames lies dead on the ground, half-submerged in a puddle to make it unclear if he burned to death or drowned. The other bandit is lying prone on the ground, holding her wrist as far away from her as possible as she whimpers.

Shelby rises back to her feet, ignoring the pain that shoots through her body both from her shoulder and her thigh. She places a hand against her thigh for a moment to slow the bleeding, but she has to lift her hands back up when a Kinoko militia man comes hurtling at her with his sword above his body. Shelby reaches a hand towards the sky, and a bolt of lightning collides with the metallic surface of the sword. It travels all throughout the militia man's body. It then travels to the ground, rippling through the puddles. The lightning circles around Shelby without touching her, but some of the others are brought down to their knees from it.

Shelby's breath is taken from her once more when she feels pain in her stomach. She watches an arrow leave her body, landing directly into the ground. Shelby whirls around, sensing the area through the storm's presence. A guard from Kinoko sits in a tree with a bow and arrow. They are knocking another one, and Shelby dodges to the side. The arrow strikes through her ankle, remaining lodged there instead of exiting once more. Shelby coughs up blood, but the iron taste in her mouth doesn't stop her from sending a gust of wind through the tree. The archer falls off the branch, and as they fall, an icicle slams right through their chest to pin them to the ground. Shelby smiles crookedly, wondering if the archer likes how it feels.

Shelby grabs onto a nearby tree to pull herself up. She looks around dimly for her next few opponents, but everyone else is starting to retreat. Shelby frowns. While she is taking out several of them, there are more guards and bandits than her several times over. They would have eventually been able to kill her, especially since she isn't exactly conserving EXP. Shelby looks around for the source of their terror, and she sees it when she hears a low groaning sound.

A zombie steps out of the shadows of the forest, kneeling down to grab onto the body of the bandit who went up in flames. A creeper stumbles into the carriage, and Shelby hears a hissing sound before it explodes, blinding her for a second and making the bandit with the burning hand scream in agony. Another hiss fills the air, and Shelby peeks her eyes open to see a spider descending over the bandit trapped in the tree. The spider starts tying them up with cobwebs along with the tree's trunks, and the bandit pleads for someone to save them. More monsters begin to trickle out of the forest. Shelby is absolutely horrified. She's never seen so many monsters— not even when she's gone to the Summer Hunts with her parents. She's never seen so much agony, either, since the Summer Hunts are filled with capable warriors and the ones Gemini brings into the workshop are safely contained.

Shelby has one second to feel sympathy for the bandits and guards. She has the urge to help them. Those thoughts are ushered away by the overwhelming, alarming thought that these monsters are coming from the same direction that Gale, Sally, and Wilbur went. Shelby doesn't have time to worry about these people who tried to kill her when her best friend is somewhere in the woods surrounded by monsters.

As cut up as she is, Shelby runs faster than she ever has before. She practically flies past the monsters, clearing a path with wind and icicles. Shelby comes to a stop when she breaks through the underbrush into a clearing. Gale and Sally are protecting Wilbur from monsters with the power of a storm and fire. Wilbur himself even has a dagger that is slicing through zombies or spiders that get close to him. Their efforts, while valiant, won't be enough to stop the sheer onslaught of creatures, especially when Shelby can sense the blood coming from Wilbur's body.

Shelby rushes toward the group. She has to fight her way through the monsters. A creeper explodes near her, causing burns to appear against half her body. A phantom descends from the skies, knocking Shelby off her feet. She grabs the wings of the phantom, tearing with all her strength. This ruins the membrane of its wings, not killing it but immobilizing it. Shelby lifts to her feet right as an arrow falls into her other shoulder. Shelby leaves it in as she uses the wind to enhance her punch, shattering the skeleton archer's ribcage with one strike. A slime launches at her face, trying to suffocate her. Shelby tries pulling it off, but her hands fall through the goop. The slime begins to infiltrate her mouth and nostrils. Shelby snaps her fingers. The rain turns into icicles, tearing the slime off her face. Unfortunately, both the slime and icicles tear skin off with it. Shelby's left eyes soon begin blinded by blood.

Using her right eye and the storm to guide her, Shelby continues to the middle of the group. As she slides into a position right beside Wilbur, Shelby lifts her hands to the sky. With most of her remaining EXP, she yells, "Водный Дракон!"

The rainwater starts to swirl together, taking on the appearance of a creature known only through storybooks and spells like this one. It said that the Lost Realm, the End, is populated by dragons. Shelby doesn't know anything about that, but as she watches the rainwater in a draconic form start demolishing the monsters, she understands why an entire Lost Realm would be ruled by these creatures.

As the last monsters are washed away, the dragon disappears back into rainwater. Shelby falls to her knees. She pukes up blood again. Her entire body is on fire, and she can't see anything more than vague blobs of color.

A loud rumbling sound catches Shelby's attention. She looks up, meeting the horrible eyes of a ravager— an ancient beast no one has seen in dozens of years. The ravager glares at the group. Sally throws her arms around Wilbur to protect him. Shelby rushes forward, nearly falling over again as she slides in front of Wilbur alongside Gale. Shelby throws her hands up, yelling, "Барьер!"

Shelby and Gale create a magical barrier that protects the group from the ravager's first headbutt. The barrier cackles weakly, cracks forming along the material. Shelby grits her teeth, pouring everything she has into this barrier. When the ravager attacks again, the barrier shatters. One of the ravager's horns goes right through Shelby's stomach. The other one slams into Gale. The familiar destabilizes. As a single feather is left behind, Shelby feels a magical backlash that makes her crumple weakly. She slides off the ravager's horn, her blood staining the gray creature red. Shelby falls completely to the ground, unable to conjure any energy. She lies weakly on the ground, blood pouring from her wounds, breath weak in her lungs, and half-dull eyes watching the ravager.

The ravager ignores Sally's flames, hitting Wilbur so hard that he flies across the clearing. Wilbur slams into a tree headfirst, and Shelby hears a sickening noise. With her contractor unconscious (or maybe dead, Shelby doesn't know), Sally disappears. The ravager continues to stalk after Wilbur. Other monsters begin to fill the area, sensing the blood and knowing weak prey is near. Shelby watches for a second, using that time to consider her options.

With how much EXP she's used and blood she's lost, Shelby understands that she's going to die. She doesn't want to, of course, but she doesn't have healing magic. Even if she did, she has no EXP. She doesn't have a healing potion, either, nor would she have had the strength to go get it from the flaming carriage. Shelby is going to die here.

But there's a chance Wilbur might not. He isn't as wounded as Shelby, and even though he hit his head, there's a chance he's still alive. It is a chance Shelby has to take. If she's going to die anyway, she might as well die saving her best friend. She might as well die protecting the heir to her homeland's throne.

Shelby pushes herself onto her feet. It is an exhausting process, but with her determination, it isn't a slow one. Pain unlike anything she's ever felt before wraps around her body. Shelby can barely think as she yells so loudly that all the monsters in the clearing turn to look at her. They start moving towards her— the shuffling of zombies, the tapping of spiders, the flapping of phantoms, the wobbling of creepers, the shambling of skeletons, and the heavy strides of a ravager. Shelby locks eyes with the ravager, knowing that this entire clearing must be covered in her blood. Shelby gives the ravager a scarlet smile, lifting one hand above her head and using the other to support her arm.

Shelby is about to use blood magic. It's forbidden magic, meant to exchange a caster's blood for a powerful spell since blood is the very liquid EXP flows through. It also takes the caster's life, but Shelby doesn't care about that. All she cares about is that with this spell, she can make her death worth something. Shelby's smile grows even wider and her eyes begin sparkling with golden electricity, Shelby yells at all the monsters, "I am Shelby Grace, and I will kill you."

Lightning shoots out from Shelby's body, arcing from her wounds to all the splatters of her blood across the clearing. The lightning is as golden as her eyes, and it burns inconceivably bright. Shelby's eyes are forced shut, and she can hear the screaming of dozens of monsters being brought to their knees. The entire forest lights up, and the smell of burning wood and flesh assaults Shelby's nose with enough force that she starts choking. The lightning is quick to purge the entire area, and soon, there isn't any noise other than the cackling of electricity.

The spell ends as quickly as it began. Shelby falls to the ground, twitching slightly and in no control over her body. She stares with half-closed eyes and parted lips as the ravager continues to stand despite the assault. Shelby feels silent tears slide down her cheeks, momentarily happy that the ravager is targeting her instead of attacking Wilbur again. Shelby's feelings swiftly turn to disappointment when she realizes that she's failed. She's killed every monster, a feat most could only dream of accomplishing, but the ravager continues to walk. She's failed.

Something moves in Shelby's peripheral. Her eyes watch it since her body cannot. The figure lands in front of Shelby, raising some weird machine at the creature. The figure pulls a tiny latch with their index finger, and a pressurized spell shoots out from the tip of the machine. The spell crashes into the ravager, disorienting it. The figure aims their machine at the ground, using the momentum to lift themselves into the air. They land directly on the ravager's back and aim the machine against its head. They pull the lever again, and the spell shoots directly through the ravager's head like an arrow. As the ravager falls to the ground, the figure slides off the beast. They land on the ground, and their leather boots get even closer to Shelby. The mage is barely able to see their face as a clear and cool voice breaks the silence, "Do you want to live?"

It's such a stupid question, Shelby thinks, yet a pointless one. She's casted blood magic, and she's wounded beyond recognition. She isn't going to make it out of this one alive. Despite this, Shelby has the compulsion to answer honestly. She manages to murmur, "Yes."

"Are you willing to pay the price living costs?"

"Yes."

"Very well."

Everything goes dark and silent, like the void swallowing her whole.

—

Her eyes lift open in one smooth motion. She awakens in one single bound between the world of dreams and reality. Pain accompanies her first, dull and aching, a little distant but unnaturally clear. Her vision, or perhaps her ability to process her vision, comes next, showing her a flap of a tent that moves with a wind she can hardly feel under the heavy but soft weight of a blanket. Thoughts are what come last, tearing at her exhausted soul and coaxing her back into an uncomfortable state of mind. She tries to remember why she feels pain or why she's inside a tent, but her memory only gives her two facts: lightning flashing and her name, Shelby. Well, her first name, anyway. She's certain she has a second name, but she cannot remember it.

Her panic is subdued when she realizes that someone is talking near her. She turns her head. Half of her vision is filled with the pillow she has her head on, but the other half shows a man kneeling beside the bed she's on. 'Man' is not the correct term. His body is made from metal with tiny strings holding him together underneath the metal platings. His eyes are like glassy marbles, and they stare at a mortar and pestle he holds in his hands. He is quietly speaking, perhaps to himself since she cannot see anyone else, but he stops when his marble eyes notice her staring at him. He gives her a bright smile, a touch too human to be worn by a mechanical puppet. "Your companion has already woken up."

Her companion... Yes, she vaguely remembers that. She doesn't know their name or what they look like, but she knows there is someone she's meant to protect. They need her, and she needs them.

"My name is Jimmy, the Sheriff," The mechanical puppet introduces himself. He lifts his hands towards Shelby, and she finds herself taking them even though she doesn't know Jimmy in the slightest. There isn't even a shadow of remembrance. Jimmy doesn't take Shelby's trust for granted. All he does is help Shelby sit up, leaning her against the bed frame. She has the passing thought about why there are two beds inside a tent instead of sleeping mats, but she doesn't think long when Jimmy puts a bowl in her hands. She sniffs the contents. Floral, she knows, but she can't figure out what else is in the mixture. Shelby shrugs, taking sips of it.

After a few sips confirm that the liquid is good (not quite delicious, but it isn't disgusting, either), she introduces herself. Jimmy's expression turns a touch more comforting. "Do you remember who you are?"

Shelby feels saddened as she remembers that she doesn't know who she is. Shelby shakes her head with a frown. "I only know my name... my name and lightning flashing."

"Don't worry about it! This is extremely common. You see, you and your companion were in an accident. You were going to die if my deputy didn't save your lives. Because of how she saved your lives, you might feel a disconnect with the person you were before the accident. It will ease up with time. I was able to remember who I was in no time at all," Jimmy explains, his words careful and weighted like he's been practicing what to say.

"Am I a mechanical doll?" Shelby asks as she looks down at her hands. Instead of being made from metal, she can partially see right through her hands. She frowns, having the feeling that she wasn't translucent before.

"I'm a mechanical puppet, not a doll, but no, you aren't. You and your companion are phantom hybrids," Jimmy says with a twitch around his eyes that creaks like a rusty door hinge.

"I don't... understand," Shelby murmurs, lifting her hand up to really look through it.

"That's okay. Just take it one step at a time," Jimmy tells her, tapping his finger against the bowl to remind Shelby to finish drinking it. Shelby lifts the bowl to her mouth, sipping it again. Jimmy smiles contently.

The flap to the tent lifts open to reveal a young woman with blonde hair and blue eyes. She steps inside, sitting on the bed on the other side of the tent. Shelby lowers the bowl, frowning at the woman as another memory takes root in her mind. "You're the one who asked me if I wanted to live at any cost."

"I am. I go by the name False," The woman confirms, nodding once. She looks over at Jimmy. "Explain to her."

Jimmy nods, looking over at Shelby with a more neutral expression on his metal face. "False, like you, almost died a long time ago. To save herself, False pushed her soul outside of her body. Her soul became a crystal. This process turned False into a lich. They're undead creatures that feed off of EXP to survive. Because of this, False became a monster hunter to feast on the EXP of monsters.

"She's also a really good artificer. She went by a town in the empire one day, and she discovered me. I was only half-alive because the villagers were beating me since I'm both an Oracle, a type of Diviner, and a canary hybrid. False bought me from the villagers, and she created a puppet body to hold my soul since my original one was too damaged. This makes me a lich, too, so I also need EXP to live. Because of this, False and I began traveling all over the continent.

"We met up with an elven witch named Scott. He was a necromancer who wanted to permanently revive someone, so he's been studying underneath False and traveling with us. As part of his necromancy, Scott can contract with ghosts, gaining their wisdom and a fragment of their abilities. One of these ghosts is an ancient gnome named Shrub. Although usually no one except Scott can see ghosts, a dark fairy from the Fae wilds can see Shrub. The dark fairy, Joey, and Shrub have a... odd friendship, but Joey refuses to leave Shrub, so he travels with the group."

"That's a lot of information," Shelby narrows her eyes at him. She tries to keep track of it all. With her mind as empty as it is, processing the information is easier than she thought it would be.

"It might be. As of the present, we found you and your companion dying. Since creating one lich takes a lot of time and energy, let alone two, False used the cores of phantom corpses to make you and your companion, Wilbur, into phantoms. You two are now hybrids like I am. You should have Origin magic, including a Phantasm, which is a type of magic unique to undead hybrids like phantoms, skeletons, and zombies," Jimmy finishes off.

"You and Wilbur can travel with us, or you can go your own way, whichever you prefer," False tells Shelby, taking her attention away from Jimmy.

"I want to go with you guys. At least until I remember who I was and where I need to be," Shelby answers, though she isn't sure what her companion- Wilbur- wants to do. She would prefer sticking with him.

"Welcome to the group," False acknowledges Shelby's decision. False stands up, walking out of the tent. Shelby finds herself frowning as she watches False go.

"Don't worry. False may seem aloof and distant, but she's very protective of the people who choose to stand with the group. False just has trouble socializing. That's why I do all of the talking. I'm great at it," Jimmy confirms, nodding sagely with self-importance.

Shelby laughs. "You are."

She sets down the bowl. She starts to move, and Jimmy helps her stand on her feet. Together, they walk outside of the tent into the fresh sunlight.