"Do you have the item, Awoeka?" the tall man asked. His blue eyes scanned the twelve hooded creatures behind his black mask with purple contours.
"Yes," he replied, taking a small device from his pocket. He stood on the very right of the beings.
"Great. Now we have all ten monster absorbers. Have you contacted continent Asura?"
"Yes, they say they have the device. All we need now are the other five Stigmas and someone…"
"…to create it," the masked man finished. "Which ones were they again?"
"Fire, darkness, creation, archery, and most importantly, light."
"Why 'most importantly'?" the leader asked. He mustered the hooded man before him with a blank gaze.
"Luraika, the goddess of light, has almost no apostles. We don't have enough in the continent"
He paused for a second before speaking.
"In the academy, there is only the prince-"
Before the hooded man could finish his sentence, the leader slammed his hand onto the throne. His glare pinned him like an eagle circling prey.
A shiver ran through the twelve figures. Their cloaks rustled as if the shadows themselves recoiled.
"I told you that we're not going after the princess," he said. He wasn't furious, simply disappointed and emotionless.
"But then we won't have enough. The same goes for the other stigmas."
"Let them be. The higher their stage, the more they'll benefit us."
"But it still won't be enough," another intervened.
"Oh, don't worry. Our enemy's enemy is our friend, after all," the leader said.
"What do you mean?"
His blue eyes glimmered behind his black mask. The purple contours reflected the room's dim light.
"Demons."
A heavy silence fell. Even the hooded creature who stood on the very left, fixed its stance.
"However, the Gaia barrier is too strong right now, so we should focus on finding future subjects. Have you found some interesting ones, Awoeka?"
"Yes. Aside from the ones we already know of, the academy has an archery, creation, fire, darkness, and someone else," he replied.
"What do you mean by 'someone else'?"
"Nox van Strier. He supposedly has the ice stigma."
"Never heard of that." The leader rustled in his seat; his gaze remained uninterested.
"Me neither. Lucky for me, they were at the same auction, so I decided to fight him."
"What? You fought a student of Yom Academy?" the masked man asked, his tone sharp and dangerous.
"I- I didn't hurt him. I was merely driving him to his limits to see if he had any other powers."
"And?"
"He only used ice magic. I don't think he is the person we're looking for. He doesn't seem to have a skill that creates items."
"He doesn't seem interesting but continue to keep an eye on him. That shouldn't be a problem in your current position," the leader commanded.
"Of course," a familiar smile crept under the man's hood.
***
It was afternoon when Nox found himself lying on Lina's lap.
They sat beneath a small tree in a meadow.
"You're finally awake," she said, her tone strict.
He knew exactly what she was waiting for and he could understand it.
"Sorry."
"Sorry for what?"
"For pushing myself too hard," he replied.
"Yeah, that was good. How could I be mad when you're apologizing this cutely?" Lina whispered, stroking his silver hair.
Her fingers absently combed through it, the sun catching strands of silver that glinted faintly in the breeze.
"Guys! We gotta stress!" someone interrupted.
The quiet moment shattered as Beatrice bounced on her heels, tugging at their sleeves like a whirlwind of panic.
She jumped from one leg to the other as if she had to go to the toilet.
"Why?"
"I need a present for Regea!"
"Oh, right," Nox replied, shooting up.
"Where is he, though?"
"I told him we needed to buy women's underwear."
"Hm? And what did you tell him about me then?" Nox asked. He put his hands on his head, knowing he wouldn't like what was about to come.
"Oh, the same thing. I told him you like such things," she replied with an innocent face.
"W- What?"
"Regea just nodded seriously and walked away."
"I'll have to pray he doesn't spread rumours."
As they walked back to the main road, Nox checked his new stat window.
"I should discard my useless skills. The others will get stronger through that," he thought, pointing at something in the air.
He needed to look twice to understand the countless new numbers.
Stigma: Stigma of Combination
Strength: 23.5 (+5)
Stamina: 18.9
Agility: 20.7
Mana: 6.2 / 31.1 (+8), +4.3 per hour
Equipped items: Red Stone Sword (+5 strength), Mana Ring (+8 mana), Twin Ring of Healing Meditation, Special Elemental Necklace (-20% mana usage for special elements)
Skills: Ice Crystal Launch (0.32), Freezing Wind (1.6), Spider Shot (2), Ice Crystal Growth (2.4), Snowball (3.2), Ice Shuriken (4), Magnetic Field (5.6), Icy Field (8), Magma Chamber (16)
"Alright. I discarded some of my ice skills and hid the ice boost and the ones I only use for combination," Nox muttered, glancing at the new numbers on the screen.
The values shifted rapidly, a visual reminder of how much potential he was shelving for strategy.
"I don't have any mana. Looks like combining uses it too," he murmured, his head still aching.
The three friends stepped out of the school gates and crossed the street.
"How about you buy him an item for everyday life instead of for fighting?" Lina suggested.
"Y- Yes, but I only have 250 silver, meaning 2,5 gold coins from that time in the palace."
"That's more than enough," she replied, pointing at a small store on the side of the main street.
As they entered, a middle-aged man welcomed them. He had brown hair and a sharp face.
"Oh, hello Lina! Long time no see," he said.
His warm tone contrasted with the rigid posture he kept while briefly glancing at the teenagers with her.
"You brought friends? How impudent of me! I'm Toman Nickel," he added, extending his hand.
"Hello, I'm Beatrice."
"I'm Nox."
The man's mouth formed a slight grin, but he quickly went back to normal.
"Van Strier, right?" he asked.
"Oh, yeah. Do we know each other?"
"No, I just heard of you… somewhere."
"Toman is actually one of the Six Lions!" Lina said.
"Huh?" the two of them widened their eyes in surprise and instinctively took a small step back.
"You couldn't keep that to yourself, could you?" the man sighed.
"W– Why do you work in a store like this then?" Beatrice asked.
"I already must fight in case of catastrophe. I don't want to fight more often than that and I have other hobbies as well," he replied.
"How did you even get this strong then?"
The man's gaze drifted toward the ceiling as if searching for an answer.
"Well, I still train almost every day in the mana arena. The efficiency there is ten times more."
"Anyway, what are you guys looking for?" he asked, changing the topic.
"We're searching for a present for her boyfriend," Lina replied, wrapping her arm around Beatrice's shoulder.
"H– He's not my…"
Toman's gaze shifted to a small shelf in the corner. Even through the dim light, everyone could see the outlines of the items.
"Oh, I've got some good things. For example, these sex toy-"
"I don't think they're that far yet," Nox interrupted.
Beatrice's head turned bright red as she quickly turned away.
"Oh, then how about this?"
He led them to a small shelf in the opposite corner.
"This is a camera," he said, taking a black device from the shelf.
The camera looked compact and featureless at first glance, but the glint of metal along its edges suggested precision craftsmanship.
"What is that?" they asked, eyeing it suspiciously.
"Light enters the front and saves what it sees. It then creates a so-called photo."
The shiny lens seemed to stare back at them.
Seeing their confusion, the man aimed the camera and pressed a button.
"I don't really know how it works either but look at this."
A small photo printed from the side of the device.
Their eyes widened as they saw a perfectly colored image of themselves.
"Oh, it's like a mirror on paper!" Beatrice shouted, her eyes sparkling.
Lina and Nox leaned closer, noticing every detail, from the dirt on Beatrice's shoes to the shine in her red hair.
"B– But how much does it cost?" she asked.
"There are only about 200 on the continent, so the lowest I can do is three gold coins."
"Oh…" Beatrice's voice fell quiet as her head drooped.
"Alright, we'll buy it," Lina said.
"No, guys, I don't want you to pay again!" Beatrice interrupted, placing herself between the device and the students.
"Don't worry. Each of us will pay one gold coin. Lina and I need a present too, after all," Nox said.
"O- Okay."
"But don't worry, you can give it to him," Lina added.
"Alright. Thanks!"
They paid and quickly left the store as the sun began to set.
With every step toward the castle, shadows stretched across the cobblestones, and an unspoken unease clung to the wind. A reminder that danger might be closer than they thought.