The first and most logical decision would be to remove Rilihad from the barrier. Unfortunately, Cira could not seem to manage that.

  This is… concerning.

  Spatial sorcery usually did the trick when all else failed, but he wouldn’t budge. She couldn’t even send him to the treasury. It was as if he was part of the barrier itself.

  “I have to admit… this is a new one for me.” Cira could not fathom how it became like this. Emma was monumentally more confused, but that was to be expected.

  “Is he… dead?” Cira couldn’t blame her for thinking as much. Even the mana which constantly flowed through and around his body was stuck in place like a painting of shimmering waves, and he didn’t even have a heartbeat. If it weren’t for the roiling life mana in his body, Cira would be preparing for a very difficult conversation with the high arbiter.

  “No… not quite. But I am a little stumped here.” She was trying not to panic but no methods to directly free him came to mind. Shifting Breeze Haven’s barrier around or changing its size did nothing. He simply moved with it.

  Dismissing her barrier was one option, but it was ill-advised as per her father. Anyone could see in, and those with enough prowess could potentially see inside the treasury or even the forbidden archive.

  Worst case scenario, someone could teleport straight in or leave a hidden spatial anchor for later. Whether the latter would work is highly situational, but it was not something Cira wanted to risk.

  Cira didn’t think she could conjure or forge her way out of this one, but didn’t want to dispel her barrier unless she absolutely had to.

  “What are you going to do…?” Emma asked, sounding a little frightened.

  “Okay… I’m going to send you back to the classroom. Try to get Fitzgeralt or at least Eliza over here.” Cira had not had the chance to discuss Rilihad’s unique constitution yet, so hopefully her elders had some insight. “And… please be quick.”

  With a shriek, the girl disappeared in a flash of void lightning. Cira didn’t want to startle her further with fast transport, but Breeze Haven was gaining mana at an alarming rate.

  Cira wasn’t lying earlier. She had never seen anything like this. Staring into Rilihad’s eyes, she got the impression he wasn’t even conscious. Nor did he reply to any of her mental messages. Even his soul was like a flame which refused to furl.

  Hardly a minute later, Fitzgeralt and Eliza arrived just outside the barrier. She let them in and the latter had quite the judgmental look on her face.

  “I honestly didn’t expect him to be the first arbiter you killed.” What is that supposed to mean?! Cira didn’t voice her complaints after one look at Eliza’s glare, “I was eating lunch, you know.”

  “He’s not dead yet!” Cira shouted in desperation, “I checked!”

  “Not yet, he’s not.” Fitzgeralt chipped in, “but he will be if you don’t remove him from your barrier. You can do that, right?”

  “I… of course I can!” Cira sulked, “It’s just… there’s something going on with this guy, right? There might be a simpler method I’m overlooking…”

  “Hmm… Let me clear some things up. You can consider Rilihad to be a greater spirit stuffed into a human body.” As Fitzgeralt explained, Cira furrowed a brow. She heard the words but they made little sense.

  “In fact,” Eliza took the opportunity to laugh at her confusion, “that’s exactly what he is. Ever wonder why you’ve never met a blood spirit?”

  “Uh…” Cira actually had not because greater spirits were usually incredibly rare. If she hadn’t birthed one then met another who travels around with Icarus, she would still only have met one—Undina. Her dad’s friend Paul did not count. “I guess?”

  “You’ve seen all that mana, right?” the high arbiter leaned against the rail and took on a scholarly tone, “uniquely among spirits, those of the blood element can be born naturally to human parents, or any fleshy parents, really. A trick of fate or whim of the aether, nobody knows. Most pass soon after birth in quite the explosive manner. The human corporea simply isn’t meant to interact with the aether in that way. Rilihad, however, happened to be born to a prolific blood mage.”

  “Okay…” Cira had never heard or read any of this, but information on spirits of auxiliary elements was even more hard to come by than most. “So, what does that have to do with my barrier?”

  She was happy to learn, but there was a pressing matter at hand. Even Eliza turned to Fitzgeralt for insight on this one.

  “As a spirit, he can change his mana signature at will. Think of it as the natural resonance of your aura. In theory, he could alter his aura to match your barrier. I have my doubts his body would have made far once inside given how well I know your father, but Gazen likely suspected a spirit would attempt to abuse this vulnerability one day. Never passing up a chance for easy mana, Gazen’s barrier is likely using him as a secondary mana well as we speak.”

  “That’s my barrier, thank you.”

  That was the news Cira did not want to hear. The only way to remove him now would be to completely dismantle the barrier, for poor Rilihad was currently in the throes of assimilation.

  “Right… dammit.” Sometimes being right was very frustrating. “Can you two construct an adequate barrier for a few minutes? This is not something I want to do out in the open.

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  “If it helps.” Lamplights rose as the surrounding sky went dark at the wave of Fitzgeralt’s hand, “No one of my power or below may perceive anything within this shell or enter without completely destroying it. Whatever you must do, please hurry. It appears Breeze Haven has an insatiable hunger.”

  Cira could feel it too. There was more mana in her home than she had seen in years—not since her overprotective father was around.

  “Then I won’t waste time. But know that if you betray my trust in witnessing this event, you will be cursed until the end of time. No offense.” Cira Held out her hand and Breeze Haven’s mana circulated around her like a typhoon. The island’s artificial will which normally only checked boarding passes and dodged debris stones now converged on Cira like the eye of a storm. “First seal of the mindful breeze. Release.”

  The cyclone burst with a gust of mana so forceful it deformed Fitzgeralt’s barrier. With a pit in her stomach, Cira started to feel uncomfortable under Breeze Haven’s gaze. Her home had never given her so much scrutiny, but then again, she had never needed to call on it in this way.

  She exhaled slowly. A chill ran up her spine. “Second seal of the untouched haven. Release.” The surrounding pressure fell rapidly. Cira didn’t know how else to explain it—she just felt uncomfortable. “…Third seal of the sage’s resolve. Release.”

  Breeze Haven’s focus dissolved and for the first time in a long time, Cira felt truly on her own. Not once since he died had she needed to forcefully remove his protection. Granted, the barrier was still active. This simply turned over authority from his dying will to her own hands.

  Cira held her palm out to the center of the lawn, “Breezeheart. Rise.”

  Grass turned to smoke and the dirt melted into itself, forming a churning vortex of mana before giving way to an effervescent light from Breeze Haven’s depths. The lawn broke up until a burning staff breached the surface. The jagged Crystal rod which sparkled like a blinding sunset glided up effortlessly and found its way to Cira’s hand.

  “As beautiful as I remember…” Eliza seemed starstruck as her eyes were locked on like saucers.

  “He… he showed you Breeze Heart?!” Fitzgeralt cried in shock.

  “Silence.” Cira demanded with a sharp glare. This was an important moment for her. The main reason she had avoided wielding this staff all these years was because she did not want to break the seal of the sage’s resolve. It was one assuredly lasting shred of her father, and she didn’t want to kill him twice. Sounds silly now… doesn’t it? Maybe I should have done this a long time ago. “I accept the sage’s domain.”

  The radiant staff in Cira’s hand drew in all light. Even her Lamplights collapsed as they were plunged into darkness for just a moment. Suddenly, Cira felt her aura shudder.

  This… this is Breeze Haven…? It was like she cast spring sense, but without any of the mental strain. Breeze Haven may as well have been an extension of her body with this staff in her hand. How is this not a pillar…?

  The power she wielded in this moment was monumental. Within the bounds of Breeze Haven, it felt as if the pillars of the sage were present as water at her command. This is no time to revel in my own strength…

  She let out a long and painful sigh, “Alright then…. The barrier is gone.” Cira caught Rilihad with sorcery and drew him into the lawn. He subsequently disappeared at another wave of Fitzgeralt’s hand.

  “I will be monitoring him for now, but I suspect he will recover.” The high arbiter spoke calmly. “You may reform the barrier now.”

  Cira was tempted to play around with her newfound powers, but in a stroke of newfound responsibility, reformed the barrier and let go of Breezeheart.

  “Return from whence you came.” Cira spoke solemnly. “I will call on you another day.”

  It receded back into the earth swiftly and the lawn was restored as if nothing had ever happened. The area pressurized again as a cyclone of mana appeared around Cira. There were only two seals left once everything settled.

  Cira stood in the garden breathing heavily. Eliza gave her a moment before resting a hand against her back, “Are you alright?”

  “Just fine…” She could grieve anywhere, anytime, as she had for the past six years. In this very moment, she simply didn’t feel like it. Cira straightened her back and took a few paces over to the table for some water. “Now that this is done with, I suppose I should head back to the village.”

  “Not so fast.” Fitzgeralt cleared his throat as the barrier of darkness faded, “I hate to bring it up now, but… there is a certain matter I would like you to help me with.”

  At this, Eliza chuckled, “I suppose I should get back to my lunch then—” and she was already gone.

  “Well… I suppose I don’t mind helping out a little. It’s the least I could do.” Cira very definitely almost murdered an arbiter—his own fault or not. That fact was not lost on her.

  “You’re a good kid.” Fitzgeralt now wore a grin through his thick beard that would give Jimbo a run for his money. “So eager to clean up your father’s messes.”