“This fucker…” Blaire glared at Tucker with eyes that held no light. “All this, for a child you don’t even know.”

  Tucker kept his hand on the hilt of his sword and waited for Blaire to make a move. Yet no matter how long he waited, Blaire remained still.

  “For this… child, you would risk the lives of your brothers and sisters? The lives of those within the Order?” Blaire asked.

  Tucker clenched his jaw and fixated his gaze on Blaire. He couldn’t utter another word and took a deep breath at the question with a heavy heart. Parts of him knew he was wrong, but if he chose to look away, it would tear into the very fabric of his conscious. The air prickled against his skin and a trace of sadness surfaced in his eyes. He didn’t want to fight his comrades. Not like this, but the same couldn’t be said for Owl. Even if the child wasn’t welcome in the Order, he would take her somewhere else. Somewhere safe.

  Blades of grass swayed side to side from the night’s breeze. Drowning the silence with a soothing gust that pulled on the seams of their cloaks. Only to be broken by the sound of footsteps pulling him back from his trail of thoughts as Alex stepped forward.

  “Step aside.” Alex waved his hand dismissively as Tucker’s eyes fell on him, but upon seeing the rookie remain still, he sighed. “Loosen up you idiot, I won’t hurt the child.”

  Tucker worriedly glanced at Alex but knew that he was a man of his word and nodded before stepping aside. Once Alex had moved closer to the crate, he examined the markings within the container and gestured for Blaire to stand down, causing the hardened veteran to immediately frown.

  “Even you, Salamander?” Blaire glared at Alex with eyes filled with doubt.

  “Yes, now we don’t have time for infighting. So let me confirm what’s written within the container before you tear each other’s throats.”

  Alex ignored the piercing gaze and fixated on the markings. If there were any signs of protection circles inscribed in the container, he would know from the characters. Yet no matter how thoroughly he examined the surface of the wooden planks. Not a single protection engraving was in sight. He looked over his shoulder at Blaire with eyes that carried a harsh light. Even though the veteran’s worries were understandable, the chances of this child being turned into a living bomb were highly unlikely. But whatever the Empire had in store for her was another matter entirely.

  “There are no signs of protection inscriptions.” Alex brushed his fingers against the markings and asked in a dry voice. “Did the magic circles have any other markings besides the ones to store mana?”

  Blaire stood still. “I didn’t have the chance to properly check.”

  “Then come check,” Alex replied.

  Tucker’s eyes widened. “But—”

  “Let the man do his job.” Alex sent him a sharp glare that stopped him in his tracks.

  “But he’ll kill her—”

  “He won’t, not while I’m around.” Alex turned to Blaire. “Am I right?”

  “You have my word.”

  Tucker kept his hand on the hilt of his sword, but soon tightly shut his eyes and loosened his grip. He couldn’t understand how Blaire could concede that easily. If she truly was as dangerous as Blaire said, then the veteran wouldn’t move an inch. Yet as Blaire passed Alex, he gave up his weapon and approached the chest with heavy steps.

  The man shot a glare at Tucker and then focused on the box in front of him. He ran his hand along the edges of the container and followed the flow of magic with his fingertips. Each word engraved on the surface of the wooden planks read “copia” and not a single trace of “praesidium.”

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  Alex was right. There wasn’t a single protection engraving within the chest. The entire thing was simply meant to drain and store mana. Not a single safeguard was there to protect them in case the mana in the child’s body went on a rampage. It made no sense but Blaire didn’t have time to dwell on such things. He turned to Alex and nodded.

  “You’re right, there isn’t a single protection engraving,” said Blaire.

  “Good, now scout the area ahead of us. We’ll be right behind you.” Alex watched as Blaire pulled his hood over his brown and grey hair before disappearing into the foliage of the forest. Then he shot a glare at Tucker and pointed at the handle on the other side of the chest while closing the lid. “Well? This chest isn’t going to move itself.”

  “Right…” Tucker grabbed hold of the other side of the handle and hoisted the container with Alex, but as he took a step forward, Alex pulled the chest back. The old man glared at Tucker with an expression that he had never seen before.

  “Listen Tucker, if you’re going to keep working with us. You can’t keep doing this fucking bullshit,” Alex sternly said. “Not during the fucking mission, at least. Do I make myself clear?”

  “Yes but—”

  “No, no buts, not this time kid.” Alex pointed at the side of Tucker’s neck, drawing the rookie’s attention to the cut fabric. “First off, you are an idiot for even thinking about fighting one of your own. If Blaire wanted he could have killed you right then and there, but he didn’t. That’s the gap between you and him. You didn’t even see the attack. Second, Blaire may be a coldhearted bastard, but he is anything but cruel. Sometimes, death itself is a form of mercy and that child will never be able to live a normal life. Not anymore.”

  “So, what are you saying? We should just kill everyone who is in a similar situation?” Tucker gazed at Alex in disbelief. “There has to be something we can do to remove the magic circles!”

  “Even if we did, that’s not the problem. It’s the mental trauma those bastards did to her. There’s no telling how far it goes and what’s worse is that you can’t just help everyone you meet.” Alex pointed at Tucker before gesturing to their entire surroundings. “It’s not within our capabilities, especially because we’ll be sent out to other missions, other frontiers.”

  “I… I…”

  “No, Tucker. Just fucking listen to me.” Alex pulled on the chest as it swayed between them. They both walked forward, following the path that Blaire went. “You can’t keep thinking with your heart. You need to think with your head. I let it slide before because I’m old. There isn’t exactly a lot of time left for me, but the others? That’s a different matter entirely.”

  “I know, but how could I trust Blaire from what I know of him? He’s not a kind-hearted person and you know that.”

  “He’s not but that’s not the point. My point is you don’t have a single ounce of respect for the man who's a part of this goddamn team.” Alex glared at Tucker, who kept his head down. “That’s your problem. You don’t have that trust because the respect isn't there.”

  Tucker slowly nodded with a heavy heart. “Then what should I do?”

  “Establish that trust because when you weren’t there at the checkpoint. Blaire didn’t hesitate for a second when I said we were looping around.”

  The rookie felt his heart twist once he heard this. “How? How would I do it?”

  ”That’s for you to figure out,” Alex said with a smirk. “I’m only so lenient with you because I’ve learned from my past mistakes. It’s why I haven’t given up on you, since I know how much this means to you.”

  Tucker stared at Alex for a moment, watching as the old man softly chuckled before returning to his regular demeanor. “Thanks.”

  “Don’t thank me. Blaire’s gonna rip you apart in front of the administrators, and there isn’t much I can do to stop it.” Alex grinned at Tucker, who seemed unfazed by the news. “Though I suppose you don’t care so much for it.”

  “It’s a setback for me to become a ranger, but…” Tucker stared at Blaire’s figure, who was several meters ahead. “I have to learn somehow, right?”

  “I suppose so,” Alex replied.

  They all stood on the small teleportation platform hidden within the alcove of a cave. The stone granite walls shielded the device, along with the foliage and vines that covered the entrance. Tucker could see Blaire glare at him from the side, but ignored it as they lowered the chest.

  “I’ve changed the coordinates of the device. We’ll head to one of the holding areas that the Order uses,” Blaire said.

  “That’ll do. It’s best to have the chest in an isolated area away from others,” Alex replied. “Right Tucker?”

  “Yeah.” Tucker nodded and glanced at Blaire, whose gaze sent chills down his spine.

  The sound of mana flowing through the engravings of the device drew his attention as they stepped onto the platform with the chest. He knew that he shouldn’t have stood against his comrade like that, but what should he have done? Stand aside and let Blaire slit the child’s throat? Tucker didn’t know, not anymore.