Cloé, a class S director, was carefully reading a report.
Her pink hair was tied back, her gaze focused.
The room was silent.
Then—
The door opened.
Harman entered.
— So… did you find anything?
His voice was calm.
Cloé shook her head.
— No.
She stood up, documents in hand, and held them out to him.
— Tell me what you're reading.
Harman frowned slightly, then leaned in.
— Hmm… "Orator Kanix"…
He looked up.
— That's it.
Cloé slowly lowered the sheet and sat back down.
— These are the only pieces of information we have… about him.
She grabbed a pen and began writing again.
— He's the only one capable of giving us information about Selestia…
A faint sigh.
— And of course, he had to be one of the most untraceable people in existence.
Harman thought for a moment.
— Any last known location?
— Nothing concrete. No place, no time.
She paused.
— But a team sent near the Kingdom of Varion reported several witnesses claiming they saw him in that area.
Harman stepped closer to the desk and picked up a map.
— All Class C to A directors are already on missions…
He sighed.
— And Classes E and D don't have the level.
He let out a small laugh.
— As if you weren't already overwhelmed with the Guardian's disappearance… now this.
Cloé didn't react.
A thought had just crossed her mind.
— Speaking of… the Guardian.
Silence.
— According to the patriarch of the Hyperion family, she is supposedly in the Empire of Lesté…
She hesitated.
— But she disappeared after abandoning her title.
Her hand rose to her temple.
As if she was trying to recall something.
But—
Nothing.
A void.
— …her appearance.
Her brows tightened.
— Impossible to remember her face… or even her silhouette.
Her fingers clenched slightly.
— The Ava Corrector… really did alter the collective memory.
Harman narrowed his eyes.
When a Guardian voluntarily relinquishes her role and passes it on…
The system reacts.
Memories linked to that role are erased.
Then rewritten.
Only neutral elements remain.
Cloé said, annoyed:
— She could be anyone now.
She lifted her head slightly.
— She could be right next to us… and we wouldn't even know.
Harman placed a hand on his chin.
— As long as we can't recognize her… even if we stand face to face.
A pause.
— But if she made that choice… there must be a reason.
He placed his hand on the desk, confident.
— However, she has kept her memories.
— Except those concerning the new Guardian… and the current position of the Ava.
Cloé returned to the main subject.
— We'll have to wait until the end of the four-day cycle.
— By then the new Directors will have reached Class B or A… and we'll be able to send them to Varion.
Harman gave a slight smile.
— Let's hope they're up to it.
—
In a training hall.
Participants were practicing individually.
Weapons, techniques, aura.
The atmosphere was very different.
Hajime walked forward, a spear in hand.
— Atela.
She turned around.
He tossed her a sword.
She caught it effortlessly.
— Do you remember what I said?
— Don't get in my way.
— And I meant it.
He spun his spear before taking a stance.
— I want to see what you're worth… before the first fight.
His gaze hardened.
— It would be problematic… to have a princess who needs to be protected all the time.
Silence fell.
Then—
Atela smiled.
But her fingers slowly tightened around the hilt of her sword.
A cold anger rose.
— I'm going to kill you.
Next chapter : Drago Maximus