Two heaping baskets of vegetables and fruits that smelled like sweet dirt and refreshing sky was stuffed vigorously into Essairyn's hands by Leœss's sister, Amirael, without forewarning. She and the youngest sister of five years, Kylaine, then shooed Essairyn and Leœss along with the rest of the group out of the house with brisk goodbyes and good luck for their journey ahead.

Seeing Essairyn's fluster at not having a chance to even utter a word of thanks or protest at the parting gift, Leœss chuckled while scratching his head sheepishly. "Ahh...I swear they're usually not like this."

The girl blinked, processing them being comedically kicked out of Leœss's own home by his family before bursting out in a laugh."It's okay, haha! I know they're just being nice and don't want to delay us after fixing the farm and eating a late lunch. Besides, they were absolutely darling. I'm glad we stopped here." Thinking back to the boisterous lunch and adorable antics of little Kylaine while they mended the farmhouse prompted a cheerful curve of her lips.

Leœss's sisters had expressed guilt for unintentionally dragging the group into mending the property when they were on such an important journey. Luckily, the farm was on the way, and they didn't stay long due to their insistence to not take up more time. If the situation had allowed, Essairyn would have loved to stay and chat especially with the nineteen-year old Amirael. Also, Leœss's baby brother was just too precious. It broke her heart knowing that the little boy would never get to know his parents.

"By the way," Essairyn began as she stored the baskets in her cache, and they headed back to their carriage "Your sister really makes the best food. That's why I didn't expect her to give me anything else after leaving me with the leftovers of that delicious lasagna-like dish."

"Oh, you mean the friettielli? Yup, that's sis Ami's speciality. All the neighbors request it during the cook-off potluck." Leœss puffed up in pride whenever speaking of his family. His devotion to his siblings went beyond his societal obligation as the new head of the house after their parents perished. Anyone with eyes could see that it was genuine from his heart, making it all the more heartbreaking that his parents couldn't witness his dedication.

"I won't be able to cook nearly as well as her, but I'll try to do justice with these amazing ingredients." Essairyn gave a thumbs up and accompanying wink.

"It's all good." Leœss laughed and waved his hand.

"Yeah, I'm curious to what you'll be able to cook," Aispin softly added with a subtle, teasing air.

"Hey now, I'm not that bad." She stuck out her tongue and gave a little huff with her hands on her hips, making Aispin smile.

"Haha! I'm sure you're better than my older sister. I still don't know how she was able to get married with her cooking abilities. Just kidding. I love her. She's really awesome; I wish we had time to visit her in the next village over. But it's in the opposite direction from where we're headed sadly."

"Maybe next time when we head back, you can introduce us. From the way Ami and little Kyla idolizes her, I can imagine what she'll be like." Essairyn giggled upon remembrance of their adoring rambles about their older sister.

"You said that she was childhood friends with Knights Commander Chaera Ch'tahur, right?" Darren interjected.

Leœss nodded ebulliently and then struck a sheepish expression and posture. "Yes, that's how I got to know Chaera, heheh..."

Darren smirked and jabbed Leo roguishly as they boarded their ride. "So then, weren't you like, seven when you met her?"

"Yes, and she's still the most beautiful fourteen-year old and now twenty-seven year old that I've ever seen!" Leœss put on an adamant, defensive face as if arguing with someone about the hottest celebrity crush.

Darren sarcastically face-palmed before smiling and bursting into laughter with Leœss. Essairyn let out a giggle, and Aispin shook his head while grinning. Happy, simple little moments like these and with Leœss's siblings back at their farm made them all momentarily forget about the terror of the early morning and direness of their trip northwest.

"That's pretty amazing, though, that you knew Chaera before she became so famous. But you never got to see her again after that time in your childhood?"

Leœss sighed regrettably at Essairyn's question. "Unfortunately no. She moved away pretty soon to become a Knight..." He suddenly gripped his fist in an aggrieved manner. "But she's so amazing, becoming the youngest and strongest Commander that the Order has even seen! No one can compare to her—"

"Okay, come back to Earth, Leo." Darren bonked the other boy's head with the back of his hand.

"Excuse me, but I've never lived on Earth." Leœss shot right back at Darren with a smug smile.

"Hah, the saying just slipped out."

"And just you watch, when I move up the ranks, I'll definitely confess to her one day. Although we were young, having that history and connection with my sister has to account for something, right?"

"Of course," cheered Essairyn. "I'm sure once we complete this mission and uncover H.T.'s schemes, we'll be able to meet her in person just like Classerth!"

"Ugh, don't mention that name. I nearly gagged at the sight of him earlier." Leœss held his stomach for added effect.

"Come on, he's a pretty cool guy!" Essairyn laughed and punched Leo's arm.

"Yeah, and he's my biggest rival!" Protested Leœss while clutching his heart as if hurt by Essairyn's abrupt betrayal.

"Pft. Such a drama king." The girl rolled her eyes in mirth. This star-crossed romantic was a comically stark contrast to her first impressions of Leœss.

"It doesn't even look like he's interested in Chaera seeing how he was all over Izra. Then again... based on what I've heard about Chaera, I feel like the two are pretty similar, hm..."

Leœss tilted his head and pondered the comparison. "Now that you mention it...I don't know Izlende Ryrarin very well, but they are alike in some ways."

In this lighthearted, open manner, the quartet bunch plus one sleeping, swaddled fox amicably trailed H.T. on a carriage drawn by six horses. The specialized, high-trained horses knew how to follow the road without instruction. Classerth had provided the conveyance when they decided to go after H.T., citing that a single horse was perfectly fine for him and that the Knights always overdid his traveling accommodations.

After an hour of riding, the horses suddenly neighed skittishly and halted their running. Alarmed, everyone tore open the curtains and looked out. Nothing was on their sides, but they quickly spotted ominous smog surrounding blurred figures in the near distance ahead.

"What.. is that?" Essairyn breathed quietly out, confounded by the swirling mass that seemed to pulse with dismal energy. Akari might have known, but the fox gravely needed her rest. So Essairyn wasn't about to wake her up to ask.

Instead, severe lines etched Aispin's face at the sight of the horde of strange creatures encased in demonic energy. His voice was low and strained. "Possession. No, not quite... Those animals are...being eaten by the demonic energy!" He leapt out of the carriage and unsheathed his sword, calling the others to follow.

Although they didn't know what to make of the situation or what Aispin specifically meant, they trusted him. Upon nearing the scattered animals in a stupor, Aispin's sword ignited with a burst of dark silver magic in a cone. The struck animals were harshly singed, but the demonic clouds around them dispersed. Aispin sharply observed the animals in the clear air and widened his eyes in horror. He could now see their crazed eyes, a reflection of their deteriorating mental state.

"It's no good. They're lost now. We can only kill them to stop the spread of the demonic energy." He gritted his teeth and charged forward to swing his blade in sweeping strokes. The wind generated by each blade fanned out in a thin arc of magic and severed all creatures in its path.

"Essairyn! Do you think you can do something about this smoke? Our swords alone will not be able to eliminate the demonic energy in the air."

She pursed her lips, racking her brain to think of a solution. The smog seemed to suck the very life out of the congregated animals. From farm animals to wild ones and even what seemed like demon or spirit animals, they were all being consumed inside and out. The smog covered several square acres, so Essairyn needed to cast a wide range spell or quickly take out sections in increments.

So far, their group had been cautiously avoiding the smog by tackling the animals on the peripheries. But this method wouldn't allow them to reach the bulk of them in the center. Even Essairyn didn't want to test whether the smog affected her much less a magically inept person who didn't have the added protection of an accompanying magic aura. Knowing not to get ahead of herself based on the hazardous situation, she didn't try to whisk it all away.

Instead, she engulfed a small portion of the dark mass in a flurry of lavender particles that exploded in miniature bursts. After repeating this consecutively, Essairyn started perspiring lightly. As she had guessed, the demonic smog was simply too dense and expansive. It was almost as if something was released into this area to cause such a concentration.

At that thought, Essairyn's mind clicked, and she peered underneath the section she had just cleared. "No good, even if I clear the air, it's literally being reinfected by the ground. Look."

Everyone directed their attention at the faint wisps seeping from the earth itself. Now that the area was clear, it was easy to see the source of the miasma. Frustrated, they scanned the area, squinting while trying to discern the innermost depths and what possibly caused this.

Aispin was the first to notice, zoning in on an odd rectangular outline lying flat on the ground around the center of the demonic field. As they cleaved a passage toward the geometric shape, they instantly recognized it upon closer inspection.

An underground entrance—! Essairyn gasped inwardly, wondering why she hadn't realized this sooner when she discovered the direction of the energy. Denser fog snaked through the cracks of the seemingly out-of-place trapdoor. The fragile looking lock and hinge barely appeared to do their job. Without any hesitation, Essairyn kicked through the battered wooden door, snapping the corroded metal. Beneath laid crumbling stone steps leading to even murkier depths down a tunnel that had lost its lights from blown-out wall lamps. Together, they cautiously treaded forward with Essairyn's bubble of protective magic around them which cleared the path ahead of harmful demonic smoke.

Barely ten meters inside, the tunnel opened up into a large space full of broken machinery and glass chambers. When Essairyn neared one of the shattered chambers, she quickly pinched her nose from the foul, strange colored liquid that had seeped out and then coagulated into a pool on the floor. The solidified substance looked like ash mixed with bloodied earth, and the liquid glowed ever so faintly in the color of smoldering rust.

"What is this place...?" Essairyn inhaled sharply with bated breath. "This can't be...the experiments that Kajarn was talking about...could it?"

"It might very well be. In fact...there might have been many more places like this right under our noses for a very long time." Aispin sighed deeply with hardening eyes. "From the looks of it, whatever they doing here, perhaps injecting some demonic energy into those animals, it exploded, releasing all of it above this place slowly while diffusing into the ground itself. And based on the direction of the wind, it scattered the demonic smoke even farther out."

Essairyn clenched her hands with a grave expression. "Then, what do we do?"

Aispin's face darkened. "Burn this place until there isn't even ash left." His words and ominous tone caused everyone to glance over worriedly. Feeling their stares, Aispin eased his expression before turning to Essairyn with a reassuring smile.

"They taught you the mid-level beginning spell, Magic Fire, right? Use that to clear out this place and also entrap the premises so that no smoke or anything else leaks from burning the debris."

"Okay..." Essairyn turned and looked at the space around her, deliberating. Before she could gesture for everyone to move back into the tunnel so that she could begin, Aispin spoke up again.

"Before that, I'll need to take pictures of this place with magic. We can't leave it alone due to the demonic energy leaking, but the Knights can at least examine the pictures and have some proof of H.T.'s experimental labs. Better yet, if I could scan this place..."

"Scan it?"

"Yes, it's much more intensive than taking pictures. Unfortunately I don't have the magic capability to—" Aispin halted as if lightning struck him. "Wait. You might be able to!" He suddenly spun around and stepped forward to hold Essairyn's shoulders in excitement. "Ah! I'm sorry!" He apologized when he realized his grip was a bit too strong.

"Ahah, it's okay... I didn't learn scanning in my time at the Byar'non Regional Academy, but if you think I can, then I'll trust you. So, describe the process for me? Is it anything like taking a picture?"

"Yes, somewhat. Here..." Aispin explained the differences from taking a photo, process of scanning a space, and the method of adjusting the detail level to limit magic output.

When he finished, Essairyn's eyes seemed to glow with a brilliant light. His description of magic scanning thoroughly enraptured her. Confident, yet curious, she sharpened her gaze and initiated the process. Steadily, her vision and magic focused on one area and spread out, skimming over the surface and every nook and cranny of the underground space. Her outstretched hand guided the enveloping magic while she walked with it. The method of adjusting the detail and magic output was based on the visual information desired to be stored in the scan. Thus, someone with a sharper eyesight would be able to discern more details and possibly record them. Of course, additional magic could be used to enhance the eyesight just like typical magic amplification of physical abilities. That's why this process often took an extensive amount of magic.

Once Essairyn got the hang of it, the magic swiftly accelerated, creating a transparent veil that rippled over the entire space. The whole scanning process took nearly ten minutes. Aispin then stored the scan inside a medium-sized diamond. Higher-level knights or those on important missions would be given gemstones to store magic and spells curtesy of the Order.

For Aispin, both situations applied. He would transmit the scan once they reached a relay station at the next town. He could have also asked Essairyn to transmit the scan herself since she had enough magic to do so. But the process was too tricky for a complete beginner and could easily be messed up. He wouldn't risk the possibility of the scan being destroyed in the process or accidentally lost. Tapping into the world's flow of magic made sending mail and even packages easy, but with the slightest error, the message or item in transit could implode. Thus, more stable, large-scale devices were utilized at relay stations.

In the same fashion, the difficulty and risk of teleportation laid in casting a spell with enough magic power and meticulous intricacy so that not a single iota of the body or soul was lost or misplaced. Such spells could be weaved into a transportation talisman, making teleportation safer if the person had previously been to the target destination. This was the case for Kajarn and Lyam's escape.

But the enormous amount of m'u that teleportation required, regardless of the method used, made this a highly inefficient and exorbitant means of travel. Only high-rank elementals could teleport with relative ease for small distances. So, seeing H.T. use teleportation talismans was another layer of concern. It demonstrated that they held vast stores of magic power.

However... Aispin frowned to himself at the memory. Lyam hasn't used a charm, but some kind of cracked pill in his mouth. Although he didn't witness the event, apparently the typical aftereffects of transportation weren't seen either. And since Aispin himself hadn't yet seen transportation in person, he couldn't deduce how or why Lyam disappeared with black specks in the aftermath.

Shaking his head, he cleared his mind for the situation at hand. As mage-knight, this kind of high-level magic discussion was better left for the true mages. He could only do basic magic and was limited to some magical tricks and spells with his weapon.

"Essairyn, are you ready? Do you want to rest a bit before using Magic Fire?"

She smiled at his consideration but rejected the offer. "It's a simple spell that doesn't take much magic. I'm only igniting a real fire anyway."

"True, only elementals from As'fyre have innate magic fire and thus can naturally control it. Still, be careful since you'll still have to seal the space, and that does expend quite a bit of magic."

Essairyn laughed softly. "Thanks for the concern."

The group retreated to the safety of the tunnel before Essairyn enclosed the ruined lab and set fire to it. As the flames grew, the explosions became violent enough to make her magic enclosure tremble. Rather than be surprised by the combustibility of the equipment, she was alarmed by the liquid substance's extreme reaction to her magic. It couldn't be deposed of by fire, so she instead had to destroy it with magic. Because the space was sealed, the essence of the liquid or coagulated substance appeared to rebel wildly, as if trying to escape. The sight made Essairyn involuntarily shiver. Seeing the faint beads of sweat forming on her brow and somewhat pained face, Aispin leaned over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Are you okay? I didn't expect that you'll still have to use magic to directly destroy the remaining contents of the glass chambers. But seeing as demonic energy seemed to emanate from the liquid, it does make sense." With a sympathetic sigh, he transferred some of his magic to assist Essairyn, surprising her.

"You can do that?"

"Hm? You mean transferring magic to someone? You didn't know that?"

"No!" She looked up at him with wide eyes. "It thought it was just to gemstones or other objects like amulets; I didn't realize—" She cut herself short and looked away, slightly blushing at having missed the simple deduction from her classroom lectures.

Aispin smiled kindly. "I can't let you do all the work today too."

"Huh? That's not true." Essairyn rebutted, knowing he was referring to yesterday's fiasco. "We're a team in this. I wouldn't have known about the scan without you."

"Right, you wouldn't have gotten good food without me." Leœss joked, making them all roll their eyes in mirth.

Some time later after the dust settled, they were content to leave the dungeon-like lab for good. That is, if this was the first and last they were to ever see of one. But they all had a gut feeling that it wouldn't be the case.

Upon resurfacing, the group set about clearing the air along with the lunatic animals. Even if they had destroyed the source, such malicious demonic energy was contagious, similar to how Akari explained wounds inflicted by demons could corrode. Since the earth was still suffused with harmful demonic energy, and Essairyn was utterly exhausted having to expend nearly all of her daily magic's quota, they decided to rest here for the night. In the early morning, Essairyn would attempt to finish cleansing the area.

While the guys pitched camp and arranged an early dinner, Essairyn rested in the carriage and checked on Akari who was now awake.

"Hum, so you finally check to see if I'm still alive, eh?"

"I see you're feeling well. I can't say the same for me." The girl flopped onto one of the cushioned benches with half of her body sprawled out and hanging over the edge.

Pinpricked by guilt at Essairyn's enervation, Akari backtracked on her usual sassiness. "Tough day, huh? I'm...sorry about that." She coughed a bit with a paw over her mouth.

Essairyn chuckled and poked fun at the fox. "Don't have to apologize, haha. I could use some of your sarcastic peppiness. Besides, I'm sure it was tough for both of us. You still haven't told me just what happened to you."

Akari stuck out her tongue. "That's because I couldn't, dummy. And you swaddled me like some baby—do you know how hard it was to get out? I nearly twisted a paw!"

"Ahahaha, my bad, I just didn't want you to roll out while we're traveling."

"I'm more worried about rolling away!" Akari's eyes flashed wide as emphasis, making Essairyn giggle and smile warmly. Despite Akari's prickly exterior, it seemed that she could easily make Essairyn feel better in her strange, cute fox way.

"Mmhmm." Essairyn murmured while reaching out to pet the fox's soft ears.

Akari flicked her ears in annoyance before quickly submitting to what she had to admit, felt nice. Only as an animal could she find this motion to be soothing. Just one of the perks in her original form. On that thought, she wondered whether she'd be able to gain enough power in this life to change form. Would you still be alive if I look for you in As'rien...? Akari inwardly sighed and laid down on her belly, placing her head on Essairyn's other arm. She blocked the latent pain from rising up in her heart. It wouldn't do any good to think about the past now.

Essairyn gave Akari a quick, last ear scratch before ruffling her neck fur. Then, looking at the fox seriously, she continued. "Now, enough stalling. Tell me what happened."

Akari nodded nonchalantly and shared her story. Since they landed in Farinheld, she had noticed the faint scent of demon in bits and parts of the town. None of the trails led to anything. They were just in the surrounding spaces. But one day, she ventured to the outskirts of town and picked up paths of demon crossings. That's when she came across some humans conversing suspiciously in the forest.

"Of course, I eavesdropped on them." Akari waved a paw as she recalled the darkly clad men who were stupid enough to talk during the bright of day. "And found out that they were planning something. But they didn't clarify what, annoyingly, and after that instance, I no longer came across any more of those likely H.T. goons."

"However, I didn't know that they had been poisoning our food. So I suppose I'm lucky that the specific catalyst doesn't work on spirits, only humans. They couldn't have expected we'd have any species other than humans on our side anyway, but it didn't matter since I wasn't of much help..." She flattened her ears slightly in shamed self-disappointment to which Essairyn then nudged them back up in a gesture that conveyed it was okay. The mission didn't ask for the fox to lay so much of the burden on her small shoulders.

"On the night that they attacked, I smelt a horde of demons quickly approaching. I tried waking you and the other girls up, but it was of no use. It was then that I realized something was terribly wrong. So I decided to take advantage of the time before they arrived in order to get help. You know, wake up some useful people so that others would wake up too and maybe run away or something."

"Err..." Essairyn didn't know what to say to that oddly casual, apathetic phrasing of finding help. The fox paid no mind to the girl's funny expression and plowed forward with her tale.

"But wonderfully, you were all poisoned! And waking up the townspeople was just stupid—they were so confused when they saw me, dumb idiots..."

"Umm.. Akari...haha..." Essairyn would been thoroughly entertained by the fox's sarcastic retelling of the events if it had not been such a ghastly ordeal, but she supposed it was Akari's way of lightening up the heaviness of the story. Surely, from the state that she was in when they found her, what happened was not pretty.

"So of course it was futile and the demons sniffed me out. Mind you, not the fake human-demons you all saw, it was the actual demons that they kept on leash."

"On leash—!?" The girl couldn't help exclaiming at the unexpected tidbit of information.

"Yes, like bloodhounds," sneered Akari. "I don't like demons either, but humans are as every bit cruel as demons or any of the species, even spirits." The fox paused, ruminating that last phrase. Both parents and pups would bite at their own children and caretakers. Blood ties, race ties, none of that mattered when it came to power and so-called order within the species. The instinct to protect and put oneself first was engrained in anything living.

"Without those real demons, the fake demons would have never known my whereabouts. Tch, I guess I owe it to those human demons for needing to feed on the demon beasts' energy; otherwise, they'd had sniffed me out quicker."

"Is that really what they're doing?" Essairyn's voice rose excitedly in pitch. This was crucial intel that could allow them to piece together H.T.'s schemes.

"Hm. Nasty things..." Akari shivered as she imagining how it must feel to be reduced to a energy store that got siphoned until dead and dry. "Well, I got into a pickle since they ganged up on me. Hmph! But I put up a good fight, you should've seen me!" The fox puffed out her chest. No demon would get the best of her without getting punched squarely back. "Of course, outnumbered is outnumbered. I'm not stupid, just a little hotheaded at times, I admit. So I ran away and almost made it. But I got knocked out by some insanely large sphere of black magic. It was ten times my size! That guy is absolutely nuts! And very inefficient too. Just look at me! A smaller one would've done the trick."

"But you would've gotten away." The girl pointed out.

"Ah right, that's true. Guess I should feel proud for not being underestimated..."

"Was that guy Kajarn, by the way?" The vague description of the sphere reminded Essairyn of Kajarn's ashen black magic.

"Yes, it was. Like I told you way before, that guy creeps me out! Looking at me weirdly... that's another reason why I didn't join you guys. He wanted to stalk me or something, I think. But he had to keep an eye on you all, so I was free to escape his observation." Akari cutely bobbed her head. It had turned out that her intuition about that guy from the very beginning was correct.

"I see..." To be honest, Essairyn was a bit miffed that Akari didn't join them and yet again wandered around on her own. Now upon hearing the full explanation, she felt a bit guilty for holding the notion that the fox should accompany her everywhere. She wasn't sure if it was due to a lingering concern that the fox would betray her somehow, considering that this friendship started out as a mutual cooperation which could very well be only temporary. Or, if she had more than just gotten used to the sassy little furball's presence.

Regardless of the reason, having the animal beside her was the singular constant source of comfort for Essairyn in this world. It might've been due to her resembling a dog, man's best friend, or that combined with Akari's ability to speak intelligently and feel humanely. Whatever it was, a small, worrisome knot formed in her heart that she might be getting a little too attached, too quickly. No one knew what laid ahead on this haphazard journey.

"Luckily, before that redhead fox-napped me after I almost got knocked out by his attack, some cloaked guy scooped me up. I thought at first that it was one of redhead's goons, but after he leapt away, I recognized him as that dude you met in the town shop when we arrived at Farinheld! That relieved me; however, talk about suspicious when you can't even see the guy's face!"

Essairyn chuckled, reflecting on how she also wished to attach a face to his—Oh wait, I still don't know his name. She sighed in droll regret before remarking, "He saved me in a similar manner earlier from Kajarn's attack too. I met him once before in Reisparte while you were off wandering by yourself."

Akari frowned pensively. "Suspicious indeed... I wouldn't trust him. I can't clearly see his motives for helping us, especially when he's not in a Knights uniform or some other identifiable outfit. He probably has some other agenda. Actually...it concerns me that you've encountered him so many times. Is he following us? You, specifically?" The girl's magic was a big worry for Akari. Anyone magically knowledgable would know that hers was unusual.

"I'm...not sure..." Essairyn didn't want to think that he was a bad guy. But it was uncanny that he always helped her at crucial times. Her adventures felt pretty random to her as well, so it couldn't be just coincidence.

"With that said though, he gave me this message for you." Akari raised a paw and deftly took out a slip of slightly crumpled paper from her magic cache.

Seeing that Akari had her own personal inventory, Essairyn's eyes went wide. At that surprised expression, the fox quickly clarified. "My power restored enough to access my magic cache now." She smirked a little. "What? It didn't cross your mind when I fended off so many demons and got away?"

"I thought you exaggerated a bit."

"You don't believe me?!"

"Hm!" Essairyn gave a roguish smile that slightly irritated Akari but also made her own mouth twitch into a smile too.

"Fine, whatever. Just take this." She flicked the paper over to Essairyn who eagerly caught it with a tender grip.

Carefully unfolding the scrap, she read the message with eagerness. "Please be careful. -C."

"A man of few words," remarked Akari with an eye-roll, prompting a lopsided smile to flash across Essairyn's somewhat disappointed face.

So the first letter of your name is C? She paused, feeling a small burst of joy that she at least knew something about the man now. Then again, perhaps it's just some random letter of his name, or middle name, or... She pressed a thoughtful finger to her lip and tipped her head to the side.

"Hellooo~ earth to Essairyn!" Akari waved her paws and slapped them on Essairyn's thighs.

"Ah." The girl jerked her head up and blinked with wide eyes.

"Is the message that interesting for you? It's only three words!"

"Three words..." Essairyn's mind trailed off onto ambiguous tangents again.

Suddenly, she shook her head vigorously and stored the paper gingerly in her magic cache. As if on auto-pilot, she then scooped up Akari under one arm and swiftly strode over to the now ready campsite that the boys constructed.

"Um..excuse me?!" The fox was thoroughly confused by Essairyn's weird shifts in expressions and actions from moment to moment. She really couldn't fathom what thoughts swirled around in that girl's head. So, she didn't bother to guess and just went with the flow. Usually, the answer revealed itself later anyway.

Upon noticing Essairyn, Aispin and Darren waved her over. Leœss was currently boiling a pot of water. Curious about what he was going to cook, Essairyn gently placed Akari onto Darren's lap and bent over to spy on Leœss.

"So you're good at cooking too, like your sisters?"

"Who says I'm cooking? I thought you were!"

"Oh, right. Haha." Essairyn tapped the side of head in remembrance. "Was going to say that you're such a family man, knowing how to cook, would be a good husband someday."

Leœss almost choked on his spit. "Er-What? You're so random. Did my sisters' rub off on you with their marriage talk? Please don't listen to them."

"Haha, I am random. But it's true that a cooking man is attractive."

Leœss soundlessly chuckled as he checked the fire under the pot. "I guess, haha."

Essairyn narrowed her lavender eyes which glinted mischievously. She leaned forward and whispered suddenly into his ears. "I heard some girl and her family wanted you two to marry in your village since a long time ago? Does Chaera know?"

"Ah, seriously! It was nothing, nothing at all! So don't you ever say a word to her or Classerth, or anyone!" Leœss whispered back loudly through clenched teeth.

Spotting the rising, faint blush on his cheeks, Essairyn giggled softly with a sparkle in her eyes. "Ohh? How interesting..."

"Es-sair-yn!!" He thought he'd have unraveled some of what goes on in a girl's mind having had three sisters, but this Essairyn was just too much sometimes. From serious and quiet, to bubbly and playful, he couldn't quite pin her down. Even now, he still wondered what she truly thought about chasing after H.T. and helping people who were strangers not too long ago. Although she didn't swear under the Oath, he regarded that willingness to help others as characteristic of a true Knight. So for that, he respected her.

"Sorry, sorry, I'll stop." She tittered boisterously with a hand over her mouth.

"Um, what's happening?" Darren voiced with confusion as he walked over with Akari cradled in his arms.

"She's teasing me!" Leœss exclaimed pitifully while pointing a wooden spoon at her.

"Just having some fun." Essairyn shrugged with a soft smile.

"Ah-hah." Darren nodded slowly, totally not getting it.

"Anyway, time to use those lovely ingredients from Leœss's sisters! Let's stuff ourselves after all that today! You chopped the vegetables?" She motioned her hands at the wooden board piled with sliced vegetables several feet away on a squat, fold up table.

"I did." Leœss responded while bringing the chopping board closer so that Essairyn could see before dumping the vegetables into the pot.

"Eh? What're you doing? The meat first, meat! That's how we can make a yummy broth."

"You really like meat, Sairyn..." Aispin casually commented as joined them.

"Shut up!" Essairyn retorted with faintly red, puffed up cheeks.

"Why're you so awkward, Sairyn..." Akari exhaled breathily, jumping in on the playful mood.

"You're awkward! No food for you!"

"What?! NOooo~~ Someone stop her! She'll hog all the meat! My paws! Argh, too short!" Akari cried dramatically in good humor while striving to reach the meat, inducing grins on everyone's faces. In the open lands with a crackling fire and bubbling pot, the quintet felt the promise of good friends and a brighter tomorrow.

The morning came quickly, and Essairyn surveyed the demonic tainted ground right after breakfast. A good night's rest in good company had thoroughly revitalized Essairyn and the entire motley crew.

"So, do you think purification is possible?" Aispin asked the raven-haired girl who stood with her head thoughtfully tilted against her knuckles.

Essairyn dropped her pensive gesture, crossing the previously propped up right forearm with her left. "Perhaps. I definitely can't cleanse thoroughly it all at once, but if I lay a spell that works over time, it just might work."

Aispin raised his eyebrows. Although he knew Essairyn was magically gifted, she was still a newbie in magic and spells. She couldn't possibly know how to cast complex spells that worked over a timespan. Those were some of the hardest spells to achieve successfully due to requiring a stable form of magic input after the caster had left the vicinity. Either that, or an enormous amount of energy before resupply.

From Aispin's expression and silence, Essairyn perceived his underlying doubts. She didn't blame him and felt grateful that he didn't at least question her. Now, she just had to answer those doubts, and her own misgivings, with action.

Lavender light sparked from her fingertips as she drew wide circles while walking forward. She flung them like lassoed arcs into loose shapes. And the magic ropes gradually grew and stretched out over the entirety of the tainted area. Like a spinstress, Essairyn spun the cords into a strange tapestry, seemingly dancing in a trance as she moved her body about. The peculiar yet graceful sight transfixed her curious onlookers who were confused by the unorthodox spell-casting. Her eyes closed in deep concentration and her lips quivered with soft incantations. To those watching, she appeared to be reciting a spell. But only she knew that it was just reflexive muttering to herself while she voiced her train of thoughts and commands.

Previously, she had made a long-lasting spell on the fence at the Welforts' farmhouse. So she drew from this experience as a blueprint for the current spell. Since a whole area was being covered rather than a perimeter, instead of wasting time by walking across every section, Essairyn emitted her magic over the whole space. She also covered a short distance beyond the tainted area for the stratagem she had in mind.

Her arms, wrapped in luminescent strings, roved the air. Her fingers tugged and twisted on lavender threads that circulated her commands across the larger, interwoven cords. The formation hummed with energy as if coming alive with every additional instruction. Her onlookers felt as if she was a maestro of a silent orchestra standing in the open plain. Two rotating circles appeared out of the complex formation and configured the spell's circumference. The rest of the shapes within the circle also began spinning and taking on clearer forms.

After a couple minutes, everyone saw the formation fully develop into an intricate, magic circle. Unknown words and symbols were threaded into the fabric of each magical line. And a transparent, lavender film enclosed every gap. Essairyn stared at the structure for a few seconds before feeling satisfied to continue to the next step.

"Activate."

The enormous magic circle quaked and rose in the air. It speared ropes into the ground that hardened into fences when it halted at two stories high. Then both fence and magic circle faded into nothing. The magic show was quickly over.

Akari and the boys paused for a long moment, unsure whether it was complete. But as soon as they noticed Essairyn's wavering figure, they rushed over in alarm.

"Sairyn! Are you okay?" Darren exclaimed in worry as his eyes inspected Essairyn's slumped over condition.

The girl smiled weakly and pushed herself off of Airpin's arm. "Haha, I'm fine. Just a little light-headed after that release of magic. Don't worry! I'm feeling better already!" Not convinced, Darren continued frowning. As he opened his mouth to protest, Akari beat him to it.

"Let's get you to the carriage. We have a long way to go, so you have plenty of time to rest." She blinked with calm, hazel eyes while flicking her tail to the side.

Essairyn appreciated the fox's no fuss approach. She knew Akari was concerned, but they had more important affairs at stake. A large consumption of magic would cause the user to be momentarily faint while their body adjusted to the shortfall. Since Essairyn could roughly gauge her level of regular m'u, she made sure not to tap into too much of her daily capacity. They still had a whole day to go through, so it wasn't safe to deplete all of her magic.

Back at the carriage, Akari nestled onto Essairyn's lap while Leœss started the horses. As they proceeded on their journey, the group chatted pleasantly. At their inquiry, Essairyn explained how her spelled worked.

"I don't know the basics of casting magic circles because we're only taught the fundamental theory. Magic circles can only be constructed through incantations of ancient language. And since ancient language spells are advanced level magic, it's not taught at the regional campuses.

"But since coming to this world, I figured out that my magic can sometimes turn into magic circles by default. I'm not really sure why this happens, but it only occurs through certain non-combative commands. As such, I've never used them directly in combat. For this spell, I just imagined a lattice of sorts across the field that would purify the area slowly each day while obtaining the power to do so from the atmosphere and untainted ground."

At this simple conjuring, Aispin blurted in shock. "You tapped into the environment's magic flow with your spell?!" Based on his long-standing knowledge, one could only tap into the world's magic flow through natural, magical osmosis of their bodies. Using this principle, higher compatibility meant a higher influx of magic into one's body. This universal magic was then transformed into one's own personal power, marked by a signature hue of their magic type affinity.

Although surprised by Aispin's unusual outburst, Essairyn calmly replied in the affirmative. What followed was a pregnant pause and stare off from Aispin. She fidgeted, feeling like she was suddenly put in the hot seat. Just as she opened her mouth to ask what was the matter, Aispin answered her unspoken question.

"Sorry. I was just thinking of the demon-humans. If the way you tapped into an external power was in any way similar to how H.T. might be accessing demonic power."

Intrigued, Essairyn straightened up in her seat to listen to Aispin's theory. But Akari jumped up on four paws and beat Aispin to the punch, hurriedly replying, "Maybe! Or they found some ancient spell that could extract and transmute the power into their own. But it looks like it's restrained to a small range..." She recalled how the chained demons were dragged ruthlessly around by their human captors. The deranged yet pained expressions on their faces struck a violent chord with Akari. It chillingly reminded her of a vague memory that was forgotten all but silently in her heart.

"Yes! That's probably the more likely theory considering Essairyn is a bit... of an unusual case."

Seeing Aispin's awkwardly apologetic micro-expression, Essairyn laughed blithely and waved her hand. "It's okay, I get it. If I could offer any more help on this, I would. But I don't even understand the full extent of my power. To be honest, I'm not sure who would know..." She scratched her cheek, feeling a little embarrassed. It almost sounded like she was bragging, but it was indeed true. Just why was her power so baffling to others? Arriving into this world and coming into contact with the demons and H.T., was there some connection to her? This possibility plagued Essairyn's subconscious.

They discussed the subject for a little longer before moving onto lighter topics. Opting for getting to know one another, they resumed idle talk of family, friends, and notable past experiences in their life. Soon, late afternoon fell, and with evening approaching, they decided to detour from the main path toward the road that lead to a minor village on their map of southern As'pyze.

As their carriage neared the village outskirts, the faint, foul stench of smoke and decay edged its way in their conversation, prompting them to peer out the windows. What greeted them was not a quaint little village, but a ramshackle, ghost town that seemed to have a deathly haze over it.

"What the hell happened here..." Darren whispered in choler and growing alarm.

"Hell." Leœss simply responded in dry humor while moving to step out of the carriage.

Aispin, Essairyn, and Akari exchanged glances. It looked liked today wasn't going to be a peaceful day either.

As the group moved through the desolate dusty streets that reeked of rotten blood, a heightening sense of alarm rippled through them all. The foreboding ballooned with the sound of skittering feet that didn't seem to be touching the ground and whispering howls that creeped in the billowing dust.

"****. Why do I get the feeling that we shouldn't be here?" Leœss remarked edgily with alert brown eyes flickering past their surroundings.

"Because we probably shouldn't be." Darren dryly joked. "This is definitely not going to be where we're sleeping tonight."

"Uh, hell no." Essairyn seconded his declaration without a thought otherwise.

Aispin narrowed his eyes at the broken shutters and and faintly swinging, ajar doors. "This scene doesn't look like it happened recently. But then why is the stench of death so strong here..?"

The black-haired boy's observation only further unnerved the crew. Akari's hackles rose with every creak and rise of the unsettling breeze. She couldn't put her paw on it, but like the humans, she also felt disturbed by the strange atmosphere. Her nose picked up demonic scent every few steps, but they were faint and varied. Being unable to pinpoint what types of demons the scents came from concerned Akari to no end. Not knowing the enemy was a surefire way for disaster.

"Guys... I think we should turn back." Akari slowly suggested with a nervous pause in her gait. "Even though the demonic energy here is weak, I keep feeling like something's watching us." She shivered upon expressing her suspicion. "I feel queasy now, ugh."

Seeing Akari begin slouching down as if to balance her center of gravity, Essairyn immediately bent down to scoop her up. Even if the fox protested, she didn't want to let Akari lay down on the tainted, dirty ground. It also felt dangerous in this unfamiliar place.

Fortunately, the fox didn't resist and actually found Essairyn's arms to be comforting. Perhaps it was the magical aura that emanated from the girl, but Akari's body involuntarily relaxed in their close proximity. She surmised it was due to Essairyn's magic being a natural counter for demons that it could induce this calming effect.

"Since Akari's not feeling well and also feels apprehensive, with her sense for danger and demons, it's best we head back like she said." Everyone nodded at the girl's words and turned back in the direction they came.

"Shit. Now I'm worried about our carriage. Maybe we shouldn't have left it unsupervised." Leœss's words caused the group quicken their pace in anxiousness.

"Damn, you're right." Darren muttered. "Why the hell did we do that? It's the perfect way to end our trip short and give an advantage to whoever is watching us, according to Akari."

"Too late now." Aispin lightly sighed. "Let's hope we're just being overly worried."

The entrance to the town came into view, and to their relief, the carriage and horses seemed perfectly safe and untouched. "Thank goodness..." Essairyn murmured, releasing the breath she didn't know she was holding.

After checking that the carriage and animals really hadn't been tampered with, their tension dissipatedly slightly. But not getting complacent, they cursorily discussed what to do. Everyone wanted to just move a safe distance away from the town, but being out in the open wasn't smart either. And as part of their Knights mission, they were obligated to investigate why this bleak village was uninhabited in case it was connected to H.T. and Farinheld's catastrophe.

"Then that's decided." Essairyn stated while turning to survey the town. "We find a large enough lodging to stay inside and monitor the situation at night. Hopefully, we don't get another demon attack at night and be surrounded."

"I'll take the first shift," offered Leœss, furrowing his brows. "I don't think I can sleep right away like this anyway."

Darren nodded and volunteered to be second followed by Aispin and then Essairyn. Afterwards, the group moved swiftly through the village, soon finding a large enough building to house them all. Essairyn carefully opened the double doors and let her eyes adjust to the darkness inside. Seeing no one, she motioned for them to disembark the carriage and enter. As they all walked in, Essairyn casted a flame of light in her hand to brighten their way. Feeling that the large space was suitable, Aispin and Darren turned around to guide the horses inside.

"Why did you come back?" A rough, gnarled voice suddenly resounded in the quiet, shaking their jumpy hearts. With startled eyes and hands on their weapons, they turned around and faced a hunched shadow limping towards them.

"You should've left and never looked back." The ragged voice revealed itself in the dim. "Are you all blind, don't you see what this place is like?" Now in the soft light of Essairyn's flame, everyone saw that it was just an old woman.

However, her appearance was threadbare, sooty, and oddly nourished. While her bones were knobby, they were relatively thick with health. This incoherent sight only caused more questions to arise. They had presumed that no food was available in this abandoned, wrecked village. But it turned about that it was neither deserted nor lacking in sustenance for the remaining villagers.

Essairyn stepped forward with a firm voice; even though, her body was subtly trembling. "Then are you blind too? Why haven't you left then?"

The old woman paused, staring at the young, pretty girl that glowed with vigor. After peering at her robust companions, the woman's frenzied eyes bulged into saucers. "Don't you think we would've left if we could?" Her words sent shivers down their spines, and their hairs stood on end.

"What..do you mean? You..can't leave?" Leœss asked in a hushed, uneasy tone.

"Why would I still be here if I could?" The old woman retorted lifelessly. "Don't you think we've tried?"

"We?" Aispin echoed, gripping his sword tighter. At his words, small shapes shifted on the peripheries of the flame's light.

"Grandma? What's happening?" The little voices whispered, coming closer. "Have the heroes arrived? Are we saved by the knights?" Dirty, baby faces of children in tattered clothes revealed themselves and shyly gravitated toward the old woman. The group inhaled sharply at the sight, no longer able to process the situation. Speechless, they watched as one of the bolder kids shuffled up to Leœss and tugged on his pant leg.

"You're a Knight right? You've come to save us, right? I knew Dad was right when he said that the Knights would come! You're here, you're here!" The boy's pitch rose with feverishness at his supposed rescuers.

"No, that is—" Essairyn started, feeling something was off and then stopping upon not knowing how to continue.

Aispin strode forward and put a defensive arm in front of Essairyn. "Stand back." He breathed voicelessly to Essairyn with a side glance. He too felt like the situation was off. "Who are you people, and why is the town like this? What do you mean that you can't leave?"

The old woman slowly shook her head regretfully. "No, no... You don't understand. You must leave now! Not even the knights can save us! Or you'll be trapped here too!" She jerked forward with crazy eyes and flailing arms, and the group all flinched back unconsciously.

"Grandma! Grandma! Stop, you're scaring them!" The children all grabbed onto the woman with desperate cries. "You'll save us, right? You won't leave us, right?" The little boy who grasped Leœss looked up at him with watery eyes.

"I—" He began and then was cut off by the old woman breaking out in silent wails. She scrubbed her eyes before turning around and receding into the darkness of an adjacent room. Absolutely boggled, Leœss looked back at his group who similarly shared his bafflement.

"Well, at least it looks like this place is a little safer? to stay in?" Darren offered without any real belief in his positivity.

"We've got no other choice." Akari croaked while stumbling out of the carriage. "This is your duty as knights after all. You can't shy away from it even if you want to at this point now."

Essairyn's face wrinkled in displeasure. She got caught up in something yet again. Inwardly cursing herself into confidence, she shook her head and stared resolutely forward at the children clustered in the doorway of the next room.

"We'll protect you, don't worry..." She softly reassured the children whose faces lit up at her words.

The little boy from earlier tumbled forward and peered up at Essairyn with bright, hopeful eyes. "That's a promise, right? You promised!"

"Yes, yes..." Essairyn assured with empty conviction. Although the children seemed harmless, she couldn't stop herself from feeling unnerved by them too, especially this little boy.

"Yay!" The boy cheered and wrapped his short arms around Essairyn's leg. She patted his lightly on the head after a moment's hesitation. At the very least, he was definitely human since he didn't react to her magic aura. That was one small comfort.

Aispin tapped her shoulder. "While I feel this situation is suspicious, it's our best option. Let's try settling down for the night." Essairyn nodded slowly with a troubled expression, evoking Aispin grip her shoulder gently in a firm, encouraging shake.

Left with no choice, the group set up camp inside the spacious building. A short while after they had finished, the grandma returned with a shallow basket of assorted food.

"Wait, don't give them your food! Stop!" The children protested, obviously unwilling to share with their visitors and alleged heroes.

However, the group didn't want the food anyway. They had experienced food poisoning once before, and they surely weren't going to be caught unawares again. Rejecting the woman's bizarre, late display of hospitality, they quietly dined in a tight circle around Essairyn's fire. The horses rested in the back of the room by the carriage.

Night descended swiftly, and the village sunk into a quieter hush. Not even the sound of scuffling dustballs could be heard. One by one the group members kept vigil. Soon, it came time for Essairyn's shift. The tense night was almost over.

Click, clack, clip. The sound of a stick striking a wooden fence jerked Essairyn out of her sluggish thoughts. Instantly awake, she zoned in on the distant noise that slowly approached their building. When the sound halted in front of their boarded up windows, a chilling sensation trickled down her spine.

"Hm?" A deep, disdainful, and slightly grating tone reverberated through the wood cracks. A smile curved the hidden man's face. "Who's this? We have visitors?"

Sharply attuned senses due to an abruptly awoken mind tensed her muscles and accelerated her blood flow. Essairyn's ears zoned in on the man's every movement outside while she advantageously waited to strike him as soon as he entered. From the tone of his voice, it was obvious that they weren't welcome.

And as if on cue, the grandma started screaming and sobbing, "He's back! I knew he would be back soon; he never leaves for long!"

Gritting her teeth in annoyance, Essairyn muttered soundlessly, "This stupid woman," before springing forward on the toes of her feet while swiftly retrieving her ice sword from her magic cache. It was best to save her magic until she gained better knowledge of their intruder. Although, technically, they were the outsiders here, infringing on someone's property.

Jerked awake by the old lady's cries, her team that had developed keen instincts at night after having experienced an ambush while sleeping alertly scrambled to their knees and feet. Aispin was the first to jump beside Essairyn as he hadn't completely fallen into deep sleep due to finishing the previous vigil shift. Wordlessly, the group began positioning themselves defensively toward the door just as it opened.

Silhouetted by dusky first daylight, the man overbearingly revealed himself. Sinewy, daunting, wicked. He poised heedlessly in the doorway as if no one could possibly harm him. Not bothered by his blatant display of arrogance, Essairyn swiftly sprinted forward and jutted her sword-tip at the man's neck. But before it reached inches from his jugular, a blast of heated energy deflected her preemptive blow, sending Essairyn stumbling backward for a couple paces.

"Oh? Not bad." The man emptily praised with a sneer. "But I can't have you killing me too quickly, mage-knight. Let's play a little~"

Alarmed, Essairyn tightened her defensive position and eyed the man who insouciantly walked forward. Various thoughts and conspiracy snippets configured in flashes across her mind. Essairyn gripped her sword handle tighter, agitated by the man's name of address to her. Mage-knight? Her brain flickered to Sol'h'meyr's history and the First Mage-Knights of Goddess Cyrienne. She shook the notions away, intent on focusing on the enemy before her. But something ill-at-ease writhed in her gut, whispering incoherent importances.

Aispin deftly made a move during her split-second deliberation. His sword collided with the pompously garbed man's invisible forcefield. But having knowledge of what happened to Essairyn's attack, Aispin was prepared for the bounce back. He dug in his boots, enduring the repellant energy, and adamantly launched a series of sword strikes against the now frowning man.

To Essairyn's great surprise, Aispin had an uncharacteristic bloodthirsty expression strewn across his face. From a bystander's perspective, it would look like Aispin, who was dressed in all black, was the sinister one striking at the richly attired man in that moment. Contrasted against the ramshackle village, the man's noble clothes might lead one to presume that he was being attacked by a bandit town during his travels.

"Fool." The man jeered, almost snarling. "Get out of my way." He flung his left arm straight out, propelling and spiraling Aispin into the air and against the walls. Essairyn shrilly cried out as his shoulders hit the wooden panels, shattering them and kicking up fine dust that crumbled from underneath the wood.

Before she could rush over to help him, he recovered quickly, picking himself up lightly from the debris. Darren hovered nearby on standby to check Aispin's condition as he was the closest in distance and first to react by moving toward him. So Essairyn instead directed her panic-turned-fury at the lavishly dressed man.

Seeing her expression, he laughed thunderously in satisfaction. Then, with a wide smile, he opened his arms and motioned his hands. "Come at me."

Essairyn's left eyebrow scrunched fleetingly in irritation at his taunt. "As you wish."

Two people, both confident in their abilities despite not fully knowing the other's powers, clashed in a torrent of shredded rubble and whipped wind. The air trembled to breathe in-between the opposing energies. Neither gave the other any space or any opportunity. After twenty seconds of several dozen exchanges, Essairyn detached and blocked the man's incoming blow while commanding, "Move out now!"

Startled, the group who had been trying to follow the less than half minute fight with their human eyes jumped at Essairyn's order. But they regained their senses immediately and spun around to hitch the horses and ready the carriage. Akari followed them silently after gazing at the two fighters for a brief moment longer.

Gratified, Essairyn charged forward with a hidden magical attack that she had been circulating within her left arm. She needed to clear the double door entrance in order for them to escape this madman.

Although their opponent easily figured out what she was doing, he made no move to stop her. Instead, he even let the magical attack strike him. Witnessing his complacent, smug mien, Essairyn instantly knew that something was wrong. He had a trick up his sleeve.

And indeed upon the man being hit, Essairyn felt a rebounding force pummel her instead. While she had split-secondly prepared for something to occur, she didn't expect and was certainly not ready to receive the blow of her own attack two-fold. Shock smeared her face as she gasped and held her chest. Slightly hunched over, she glared indignantly at the smirking man.

"What? It hurts having a taste of your own medicine, miss mage?" He flipped a stray wisp of his permed, dirty blonde hair away from his forehead. Due to their close proximity, he had been harmlessly buffeted by an upswing of wind from the reflected attack.

"What did you do," Essairyn growled menacingly, flexing her grip on her weapon.

The man chuckled. "Nothing special. I just graciously returned what you gave back to me in double! I'm so generous, aren't I?"

A corner of Essairyn's mouth twitched. "What the actual **** of a person are you, you sick bastard." Every curse was enunciated with true venom. This man irritated her beyond all reason and own understanding.

The man narrowed his eyes, clearly affronted by her verbal abuse. But interest also sparked dangerously within the depths of his murky, cochineal orbs. He silently watched the spin of her blade before Essairyn dashed forward to engage him once more. He paid no heed to the escaping crew on the carriage nor the children who had all awoken and shriveled up against their grandma's skirt at the sight of him and the wreckage to their home.

Flares of raw, magical power erupted between their blades. The two energies danced and fluttered away in widening gyres as metal screeched upon burnished ice. Not wanting to use her magical strengths to only have it slammed back into her face, Essairyn persisted with her sword.

But she was quickly becoming exhausted. Never before had she exerted this much focus, power, agility, and effort to parrying another's blade after Knight Hætherin's brutal sparring lessons. Her fighting inexperience and lacking swordsmanship was beginning to rear their ugly heads in the worst scenario.

Must I really have to resort to magic? She frustratingly flipped through her possible courses of actions before settling on magic as the only means to hinder the enemy without getting killed first from slipping up in physical combat. Stepping back while drawing in a deep breath to steady her determination and swell her magic, Essairyn spun her hands in two large yet differently sized circles. Her left hand gestured the smaller one while the sword hand carved out an encompassing circle with the blade tip.

Immediately after her motions, bitter cold chilled the surroundings as if winter had suddenly peeked around the counter to greet the dawning day. Icy mist shrouded her sword and lingered in the circles that she had just quickly drawn in the air.

"Ice elemental..?" The man whispered in disbelief. His confidence slightly quaked at the appearance of ice magic and the possibility of the human girl before him actually being a disguised elemental—perhaps even a royal at that considering they trained in both physical and magical arts. He wondered if he had deduced wrongly that she was a mage-knight. Upon nearing the building, he had sensed her magical aura, so he knew she was a mage. But when she had demonstrated adept sword skills, he retracted that for a mage-knight.

Essairyn had no idea why the atmosphere became more wintry than usual when handling the ice sword, but she took advantage of his bafflement to speed up her process. Just when he regained his awareness, an array of magic circles materialized and bulleted arrowheads of condensed frigidity at him.

As Essairyn partly expected, the attack bounced off yet again and attacked her. Disappointed, her hopes that the amendments to her magical commands would bypass his reflective abilities slowly began disintegrating. True fear started to well up inside Essairyn. It seemed that not everything in her magic would come true if she willed it. And if she couldn't injure her opponent, then she wouldn't be able to protect her teammates.

Clutching her shirt and fortifying her buckling knees from taking the doubled impact, she panted heavily while trying to slowly regulate her breath. Essairyn couldn't lose her resolve. She was sure that some possibility was slipping her mind. And she only had to steady her mind to think clearly. At the very least, she could roughly calculate the amount of damage she had done to herself since it was based on her own output. If, no, when she survived this, she vowed to work on her physical endurance in order to take more hits.

"Essairyn!"

Yanked out of her thoughts at the sound of her name, Essairyn watched with wide eyes as Aispin returned with laboured breath. Ignoring the stinging of her lungs, she screamed, "Idiot!! Why did you come back?! You—"

"—And leave you here alone? Come on, we're a team! Why do you always insist on doing things by yourself?"

"Why—How would you know anything about me to say that?" Essairyn exclaimed with vexation before a bubble of something metallic rose up in her throat. She had retched, half coughed up blood that splattered and pooled in her non-dominant hand.

"ESSAIRYN!!" Aispin hurtled forward, almost stumbling with an outstretched arm to catch the bent over girl. But she took a step back, jutting out her hand in a stop motion. Essairyn refused to be supported, regarding that as a show of weakness to the enemy when she could handle herself just fine.

However, she did vaguely regret her outburst in the heat of the moment. Essairyn could only think of sending him away somehow, and the words departed from her mouth before she could register them.

"Hahaha! What a scene to behold!" The cochineal eyed blonde held his stomach in mock laughter. "You really thought that hitting me harder would somehow work? Think again, genius!"

A wry smile curved the bloodied corners of Essairyn's lips. "Yeah, maybe."

Confused, the man was about to refute when unexpectedly, a drop of blood trailed down from his forehead, nearing touching his eyeball. Startled, he patted the stream lightly with his fingertips and stared with widening eyes at the thin blood. Quietly enraged almost to the point of shaking, he narrowed his reddening orbs. A voice thick with deep-rooted resentment rumbled ominously in the hushed air.

"I hate people like you the most."

A rumble rippled across the ground like a torrent, unsteadying and even toppling over a few buildings. All of the hidden people streamed out like blind ants at the man's explosion in power. At first, Essairyn thought they were escaping the crumbling structures as each ripple rolled through the village. But then, she quickly realized it was for a more nefarious reason.

Smoky black twines sprung up from fleeing bodies and dangled in the air above, spiraling toward the man at the epicenter. Before he even spoke, Essairyn roughly guessed what was happening due to the escalating accumulation of power she sensed emanating from him.

"I usually like playing, but unfortunately for you, I got too impatient. Don't worry though, I'll make sure to use your soul well."

His portentous words prompted Essairyn's eyebrows to shoot up in trepidation. This man was clearly neither bluffing nor boasting. His reflective powers and possession of all these villagers was likely connected to his ability to utilize another's soul. That speculation alone freaked the crap out of Essairyn. Having one's soul controlled seemed like a forever damning existence.

The air crystallized in response to Essairyn's heart quickening and fingers tightening around the handle of her ice sword. Faint, icy billows gushed and undulated from around her, causing Aispin to involuntarily shiver. They poured into the cracks on the ground and mysteriously congealed to form an intricate, asymmetric spiderweb of ice.

"Quick! Take the villagers as far away from here as you can!" Essairyn commanded Aispin. "He's draining their vitality somehow!"

"That is—!" Aispin hesitated, not wanting to place some strangers' safety over someone he cared about, but he understood the risk of allowing their enemy to accrue power. "Okay, I'll go."

With a grudging expression, he whistled sharply with his fingers, indicating to the awaiting Darren and Aispin in the carriage to rush over. None of them had truly gone far and abandoned their comrade. They had merely stationed themselves in a safer location that allowed them to make a clean exit if necessary.

At the sound, the whinnying of horses could be heard. Chaotic clops proceeded, and a carriage burst through the flurrying debris. Since the people closest to the man were basically lost to him, the three knights focused on the villagers in the periphery. Essairyn did her best to gently knock away the villagers in order to disrupt the man's spell, but it was only a temporary solution as he and the the townspeople seemed connected by some unknown bond.

Observing the girl's futile attempts, the man smirked and chuckled fleetingly. "Silly, but needlessly heroic. You adventurers never fail to amuse me." He shrugged his shoulders, sighing dramatically. "Let's just end this now, shall we?"

Essairyn scrunched her face in disgust. "Tch! Don't get so cocky, noble." The word had slipped out based on his dress which also reminded her of Kajarn.

"Noble?" The man's amused face dropped instantaneously like the wrong button had been pushed. "Who're you calling a noble?" His pitch raised sharply. "I would never group myself with those two-faced, self-centered, abhorrent politicians!" He practically spat.

Surprised by his turn of expression and malice, Essairyn stepped back subconsciously at his venomous wrath. But she couldn't ponder his words as he furiously stomped toward her. Bracing herself for impact, Essairyn dug in her heels and balanced her stance. The air chilled stilly, as if copying the forceful calm within the girl. Essairyn slowly swung her sword in circles in front of her, picking up speed as her mind cleared and sharpened. With heightened perceptiveness and control of her magic, Essairyn willed it to enfold her sword length from beyond the point and pommel. The weapon lengthened into a double-sided, doubled bladed sword from either end of the former hilt.

The man raised an intrigued eyebrow at the sight of the forming weapon. But it didn't rattle him as he welcomed a counterattack. With a scoff, he halted in his tread and hoisted the palm of his right hand straight into the air. Black twines corkscrewed into a ballooning globe that writhed with resentful energy. Before releasing it, he indifferently spoke to Essairyn.

"The only thing I retained from those bastard nobles is my name so that they'll know who ended their pampered, shallow lives. I don't know who you are, but you at least deserve to know who killed you and your companions. My name..." He simpered with the cursory pause. "...is Balgair."

The black mass barreled into Essairyn's spinning weapon. The blades protracted and snapped together in a semi-opaque, lavender shield to ward off the harmful demonic magic. The sphere then abruptly exploded, splintered in a conical shape around Essairyn, and ruthlessly punctured the buildings behind.

"And my name is Essairyn." Her voice rang true and clear.

The wispy globs leftover from Balgair's attack dissipated around Essairyn as if burnt from simply being in her presence. Her subterfuge of calm and ease at spoiling his ultimate spell gave her the courage to speak.

"Remember it well." She glared defiantly.

"Essairyn!" It was Darren this time that reached her first before Aispin and Leœss who had Akari cradled alertly in his arms.

"You came back." She insipidly stated, keeping an eye on the strained Balgair. Thankfully, he had overtaxed himself with his ruse. It was clear that he held no apt skill to properly fight Essairyn squarely without his reflective abilities. But this was hardly reassuring.

"Of course, we wanted a piece of this scumbag ourselves." Leœss replied, scoffing.

Essairyn gave a small smile. "Then, I'll need your help. Please lend your power to me."

Inspired by Balgair's attack, she had rapidly assembled a new plan of attack. Her previous attempt might have largely failed, but she had greatly learned from the test. Injuring this man was possible, and from his immediate decision to expose and launch his trump card, Essairyn knew that Balgair had been bluffing at not being significantly hurt by her previous magical attack.

Following her train of thought, having been with Essairyn the longest, Akari caught on first. The fox frowned and speedily objected. "It's too dangerous. If you underestimate, you'll all be in critical condition with him still alive. And if you overestimate, you'll kill yourselves. Don't be stupid."

Essairyn wryly grinned with downturned brows. "Unfortunately, we only have 'stupid' to fall on now." She moved her gaze up to Leœss holding the fox. "Please send Akari far away. No. I'll do it myself." She lifted her hand, intending to sweep the fox up to a safe location.

"Stop!" Akari exclaimed through gritted teeth. "Let me stay. I won't get in your way."

"But—"

"No buts. You're confident of succeeding, right? Do it with that mindset and kill that pretentious bastard."

Essairyn sighed. "Okay." She turned, her back facing her companions, and squared her shoulders. "Let's do this."

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Leœss whistled with courageous cheer, making a smile creep onto the corners of Essairyn's lips. That's right, she had to believe in herself. If she didn't, then she was setting herself up for inevitable failure. Luck was not reliable.

"While I agree with Akari on this," began Aispin reluctantly, "there isn't any other feasible method. However." He sternly looked at Essairyn who had turned her head around to listen. "Please let me take the brunt of the force."

The girl's eyes widened. "No I can't—!"

His steady, serious eyes silenced her budding protests. Essairyn clenched her hands and pursed her lips, swallowing her words. They had no time to argue, and Aispin was unwavering.

"Fine." She spun around and took a few steps forward before stopping.

Aispin exhaled in relief. He wasn't doing this out of any particular concern for Essairyn; although, he did care about her wellbeing and tendency to take everything personally on her shoulders. He had a trick up his sleeve in case her spell went wrong. In the worst case scenario, at least Essairyn had to live. If she was alive, then As'pyze and the Knights had another shining beacon of hope besides Commander Chaera Ch'tahur and the KMA's Headmaster—the last legacies of the Original Knight-Mages.

"Please...survive this and carry on our will. I'm...sorry to entrust so much to you, Sairyn." Aispin whispered under his breath.

The team formed a triangle with Essairyn at the front, Darren to her left, Aispin to her right, and Leœss at her back. They all held their weapons in front of them in defensive positions. Aispin had the point of his buried in the ground. He quickly chanted a complex charm, triggering invisible red lines to skitter up his blade. Akari crouched preemptively behind Essairyn in the center of their formation.

A faint magic circle materialized beneath the four humans' feet before swiftly fortifying and radiating a pulsing force. All of their energies flowed into Essairyn through their connection to the magic circle. For the boys, it was like an exodus drained out their power in receding tidal waves. But they held on resolutely. For Darren, it merely felt like he regressed back into a normal human as on Earth. The familiar sensation was oddly nostalgic.

But that feeling only lingered a moment as all of their amassed power hurtled toward Balgair at Essairyn's command. Even at this point, the man still hadn't made any moves to thwart their spells. Like two walls, they clashed in distorted, intermingled energy waves before the expectant force rebounded back toward Essairyn.

Sonic.

The force was beyond crushing. It shredded their every fiber from body to mind to soul.

Silence.

Gears grated to a standstill. No one could think. After excruciating pain, no one could feel. Heat that chilled into numb. Tumult that hushed into peace. Color that flashed into black. The world seen before them collapsed into nothing as they fell to their knees.