Sellitha looked out of the carriage window, the destruction she had caused here two months ago was barely visible anymore. Even if she had used her Words of Truth, the damage wasn’t to the extent that the buildings facing the street collapsed completely.

  It was a good thing, as she didn’t want anyone innocent to die. She just wanted to fight against her captors. But she was too weak, so she had no choice but to resort to a sneak attack of full power.

  She didn’t remember much about that day. She had been unconscious for most of it. She had only been awake for a brief moment before deciding to use her Words of Truth in order to bring attention to her situation. A huge attack like that wouldn’t go unnoticed in the outskirts of Cyalis.

  Unfortunately, she had immediately fainted afterward. She always did after using her Words of Truth.

  I wonder how strong I need to become before I can begin to have control over that power. It still feels so mysterious to me. I wonder if it’s like that for the faelin too. I’ll have to travel to Fornia to find out more, I guess.

  But I’ll only go there with Adion. We promised to go together.

  “Have you found out anything more about that artifact?” Sellitha asked the Headmaster.

  “Not since the last time you asked me,” The Headmaster said with a slight smile, “We will certainly discover everything about it when we find Adion. So let’s not think about it too much.”

  “It just worries me that they can freeze space. They were prepared for Adion’s powers. If they didn’t have that, I refuse to believe Adion wouldn’t have gotten away by now. But if they are able to control the space around him…” Sellitha said worriedly.

  “Leave the worrying and planning to me,” The Headmaster said, “Just focus on your classes and training.”

  “Right,” Sellitha nodded.

  I really am too weak right now to think about being able to affect anything.

  “Will you be going to Valis to help, Headmaster?” Sellitha asked.

  “No,” The Headmaster said, shaking his head, “I can’t afford to leave Cyalis. Heavenly Light has infiltrated deeper than I had ever thought, and we are on the verge of losing the Outskirts Guild to their faction there. They are not the only ones either, I’m sure. If I’m not careful, we might fall apart from the inside. I’ve sent all the help to Valis that I can. If they can’t hold on…there is not much else I can do.”

  “Do you think they have a chance?” Sellitha asked. The battle between Heavenly Light’s forces and the Valis Kingdom had been going on for two months. Even with all the help sent to reinforce the kingdom’s troops, Heavenly Light was making steady progress in taking over the kingdom.

  “As the situation is now, it is only a matter of time before the Valis Kingdom falls,” The Headmaster said with a solemn voice, “Things can always change, of course. The Alago Empire might send some help if we manage to convince them.”

  “Why aren’t they doing anything? Do they think Heavenly Light will stop with the Valis Kingdom?” Sellitha asked.

  “I fear they are looking to take advantage of the situation. The Alago Empire has always been incredibly powerful, but Cyalis has been a deterrent for them. They are conquerors. But with us here to hold the continent together, they have had no choice but to focus on the Outskirts. Now, both Cyalis and their other potential enemies are fighting each other. From their perspective, this is a good thing.”

  “Is it possible for me to go there and help?” Sellitha asked. She really only felt at ease when she was fighting. Staying in the Academy only made her anxious.

  “No,” The Headmaster said, “You are stronger than most. But in a conflict like this, you are incredibly weak. The slightest mistake and you will die before you know it. Not to mention that your identity is not ordinary. It wouldn’t surprise me if you got captured before even making it there. I know it is frustrating, but can you imagine the feeling of being used by them? We’d either have to give you up or give in to their whims.”

  “I guess I am being reckless,” Sellitha sighed, “It just doesn’t feel good to sit still when he’s still out there. Maybe I can go search for him? I could hide my identity.”

  “Don’t underestimate them,” The Headmaster said in a slightly scolding tone, “They are a lot smarter than you are. And not as reckless by far.”

  “Sorry,” Sellitha said.

  “You’re young,” The Headmaster said with a smile, “It’s good to be a little reckless.”

  “Didn’t you always scold Adion for being reckless?” Sellitha asked with a slight smile.

  “There is obviously a limit. He’s far too reckless. I’ll have to scold him properly next time,” The Headmaster said.

  Sellitha smiled. She liked that Adion was reckless. Even considering everything that had happened, she was happy that he was willing to risk everything just to stop her family from bringing her home. She had heard all about his actions when she woke up in the Remori manor and Bishop Amelia told her everything.

  Am I bad for thinking like that?

  I’ll be reckless for him, too. I have to make things even.

  It didn’t take long before the carriage arrived at the Academy again. Before they arrived at Sellitha’s dorm room, the Headmaster turned to her and said, “Your family is staying at the Tower. Someone will come to take you to meet them later.”

  “Alright,” Sellitha nodded. “Today?”

  “It would be for the best,” The Headmaster said.

  I’m really tired. But I might as well get it over with, I guess.

  Sellitha wasn’t very worried about her family anymore.

  The Headmaster had been on her side before the war on Heavenly Light, but he couldn’t go too far.

  Things changed a little after they tried to take her away forcefully, though. The Headmaster had been in a very bad mood when he returned and heard about the incident. He had just lost his disciple, and the Elixir of Life had been stolen, it wasn’t a great time for the Amyss family to have tried taking her away. Even if it was her own family and Elder Kilth guided them, they really had no right taking her away with force like they did, without going through the proper channels.

  A small mistake that could have been handled easily or perhaps even ignored in other circumstances was taken very seriously just because the incident was related to Adion’s kidnapping. The Council got really serious about security and went through all its staff to test their loyalty. It was a purge.

  The Amyss family had returned to try and take her away again at a moment like that, and the Headmaster was not having it. He warned that he wouldn’t hesitate to go to war with Iitha, too, if they tried taking away a student of his again.

  What a great face that old hag made. Sellitha smiled at the memory of Lerretha getting scolded by the Headmaster.

  The Headmaster can be really scary when he gets angry. I should remember never to push things too far with him, even if he’s nice to me.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “I’ll try not to be reckless when we meet,” Sellitha said.

  “It’s fine even if you do. I felt the urge to have a fight with your mother myself when I met her. She’s so…diplomatic,” The Headmaster said with a frown.

  “I know what you mean,” Sellitha nodded. Her mother didn’t really feel like a real person most of the time.

  “Anyway. I’m sure it will be good for you to talk. And it might help me a little too. I want to know their attitude to the Hesfym family. If it’s changed or not,” The Headmaster said.

  “I’ll tell you about it afterward, Headmaster,” Sellitha said. She was more loyal to the Headmaster and Cyalis than the Amyss family. It wasn’t even a choice for her. The Headmaster was the one protecting her from her family.

  A side of me almost hopes they turn out to be enemies of the Academy. It would make it easier not having to deal with them anymore.

  The carriage arrived at Sellitha’s dorms, and she bid the Headmaster farewell and headed inside.

  She didn’t see Lastia or Felicia inside.

  We don’t have any classes. Did they go to the Scrolls?

  Sellitha didn’t feel like being alone at the moment, so she looked around to see if they left a note behind that said where they were going.

  Neither Lastia nor Felicia had reached the Silver stage yet, which wasn’t strange. Sellitha was the strange one. If Adion hadn’t existed, she would have become just as big of a sensation as he had. She was still only in her first year, after all. It was considered really good to reach Silver in your fourth year. Even in the diamond class, reaching Silver in the third year was extraordinary. But now, both she and Adion had broken all previous records.

  The reason she was allowed to go and fight against the troops of Heavenly Light was because she was a Silver mage. It was too dangerous for Bronze mages to go, so most of the people Sellitha knew hadn’t been deployed to fight earlier.

  Sellitha didn’t find any note, so she decided to head to the House of the Scrolls to take a look. But just as she was leaving, she felt that someone was in the room with her.

  She turned around and conjured some fire, ready to attack.

  “Lady boss! It’s me!” A familiar voice sounded from the seemingly empty space in front of her, prompting Sellitha to put out her fire.

  “Perk, you need to stop doing that,” Sellitha said, trying to calm herself down.

  “Sorry, lady boss,” Perk said as he turned visible before her.

  “And stop calling me lady boss,” Sellitha said.

  “But you said you didn’t like being called madam?” Perk said with a confused face.

  “Just call me Sellitha,” Sellitha said with a sigh.

  “I can’t do that,” Perk said, shaking his head.

  Sellitha stared at Perk silently for a while. She didn’t want to be too harsh with the boy, but he was getting on her nerves.

  “Maybe mistress?” Perk asked.

  “Lady boss is fine,” Sellitha said.

  “That’s good,” Perk said with a smile.

  “What are you doing here, Perk? You shouldn’t keep sneaking inside the Academy. They are very strict about security these days. And your aura control is far from good enough to get by unnoticed if someone is paying attention,” Sellitha warned.

  “It’s the best way to practice,” Perk argued.

  “Whatever. What are you here for?” Sellitha asked. She had come into contact with the two brothers working for Adion after he had disappeared.

  At first, they had approached her to ask about Adion. She was the only one who knew about his plans on forming an organization called Celestial Shadow. Not even his family knew anything about it.

  Perk and Tib had been very upset when they heard Adion was missing. But it didn’t take long before they got to work. Even if they were young and weak, they spared no effort in trying to find information that could help them locate Adion. Unfortunately, it was something even the combined effort of Cyalis and its allies were having trouble with, so how could the two boys possibly have a chance?

  “We have some news!” Perk said excitedly.

  Sellitha smiled. Even if she was tired and found Perk’s appearance a little annoying, she had to admit that it was impossible to be angry at him despite showing up uninvited once again. She knew they didn’t stand a chance at gathering any useful information, and that they should just spend their energy on training, but she didn’t have it in her to discourage them. They were worried about Adion too, after all.

  “Alright, come sit down and tell me about it,” Sellitha said as she invited Perk to sit down.

  “Tib said I should stand,” Perk said, refusing to sit down even though Sellitha could tell he wanted to.

  “Whatever,” Sellitha sighed with a smile, “Do as you wish. What did you want to tell me?”

  “Right. I found a member of Heavenly Light here in the city and followed him around for a while and found out a few things,” Perk started explaining excitedly, “Most of it was useless, and I was about to give up following him. He was just a Bronze mage, after all. He wouldn’t know much. But then yesterday, he was having a drink with his friend, and I heard him mention something very interesting.”

  “What was it?” Sellitha asked.

  “His grandfather, who is also a member of Heavenly Light, was sent on an important mission to the Saba Desert. Tib and I think it might have something to do with boss,” Perk said.

  “What makes you think it’s related to Adion?” Sellitha asked.

  “Well, I found out from their conversation that his grandfather is pretty famous in certain circles in Heavenly Light. Even if he is just a Gold mage, he has contributed a lot to the organization by recruiting tons of talented people to join them. His status is quite high, it seems like.”

  “What does that have to do with Adion?” Sellitha asked.

  “Well, I don’t really get it either. But Tib thought it was weird for someone like him to be sent to the Saba Desert. We did some digging, and that guy is really good at recruiting people. He should be used in more populous areas, especially at a time like this when they are fighting a war and need more mages to fight for them. But he is sent all the way to the Saba Desert. That doesn’t make any sense, right?

  “But then Tib had this theory. Boss wasn’t killed by those guys. He was taken. That tells us they probably have some use for him. They probably need his help with some space stuff. Maybe that teleportation formation at the Remori manor. But Boss is their enemy, so how could he ever choose to help them? That’s where this recruitment guy comes in. He is sent there to recruit boss!”

  “Wait, what? Recruit Adion? That’s impossible,” Sellitha said, shaking her head.

  “It should be,” Perk said, “But he has been gone for a long time. Anything is possible. And this guy is far from ordinary. Don’t you find it odd that Heavenly Light can recruit so many mages while fighting a war against Cyalis? How could mages be so easily convinced to risk their lives?”

  “We have intercepted a lot of troops,” Sellitha said, nodding, “You’re right. Mages aren’t that common. Heavenly Light should have to be a lot more careful than they have been with their troops. Especially when they are recruiting new members who are going in with the knowledge that they will be joining an organization from outside the continent to fight against Cyalis. You’re saying it’s this Gold mage who is responsible? How can he be so convincing?”

  “There are a lot of strange things in this world. He might have some kind of Gift that makes him very convincing,” Perk said.

  “I’ve never heard about a Gift like that. But it’s certainly possible,” Sellitha said.

  “So you think we might be right?” Perk asked.

  “It’s a stretch. But it’s certainly possible…And it’s certainly worrying,” Sellitha said, “Did you think of all this?”

  “Tib did. I agreed with him,” Perk said.

  “That makes sense,” Sellitha said with a nod, “Well, it’s nothing that should be disregarded. I’ll bring it up to the Headmaster. I’m sure they have thought about the Saba Desert already and even sent some people there. But it’s a big place. We might find something if we focus our attention there.”

  “Great,” Perk said with excitement, “Let us know if you find out anything, lady boss. I’ll go back and spy on that Bronze mage to see if he reveals anything else.”

  As soon as he finished speaking, Perk turned invisible again, and Sellitha could sense him running off.

  “Wait!” Sellitha yelled out.

  “What?” Perk asked, still invisible.

  “Just…be careful. You’ve already done a lot. You should focus on your training. Adion will be disappointed if you haven’t improved when he gets back.”

  “It’s fine. As long as he makes it back,” Perk said. Sellitha felt his hidden aura grow more distant, and it didn’t take long before she couldn’t feel it anymore.

  Haaah. Adion, those kids are far too reckless.

  But I’m glad you have so many people who worry about you.

  I hope you’re safe.