"We should be reaching Galford within the hour."
The burly knight's voice rumbled from the front of the carriage, barely audible over the creaking wheels and rattling armor outside.
Inside, however, things were strangely peaceful.
For once.
Yura sat across from me with her legs crossed, lazily spinning her staff between her fingers while Shina leaned beside the window reading through a weathered spellbook. Beside them sat Heira, the support mage assigned to Princess Yullia's group, watching me with growing disbelief.
"You made that spell in one morning?" she asked.
I shrugged lightly, staring at the small black ripple floating above my palm.
"Well... technically."
The ripple distorted briefly before swallowing the apple beside me whole.
Storage magic.
Primitive.
Incomplete.
But functional.
When I released the spell, the apple reappeared in my hand moments later.
Useful.
Especially since I was tired of carrying bags everywhere.
Heira rubbed her forehead. "Support magic usually takes people years to properly understand."
"I get bored easily," I answered honestly.
Yura snorted.
"That's his excuse for everything."
Shina closed her book softly. "You're abnormal. That's different."
I ignored that statement entirely.
Mostly because she wasn't wrong.
As the carriage continued onward, the conversation shifted toward ruins, dungeons, and ancient magic buried throughout the world.
"Most lost magic originates from ruins," Heira explained. "Entire civilizations disappeared long ago. Some people dedicate their lives searching for what they left behind."
"Most never come back," Yura added casually.
"Comforting."
She grinned.
I leaned back against the carriage wall thoughtfully.
This world fascinated me more every day.
Magic wasn't rigid here.
Visualization alone was enough to shape spells if your control was refined enough. Chanting simply helped stabilize intent and focus.
Like training wheels.
And eventually...
I wanted to stop needing them.
I closed my eyes again, focusing on the flow of magic particles around the carriage.
Then suddenly—
Pain.
A violent wave of dizziness slammed into me hard enough to blur my vision.
The spell in my hand shattered instantly.
My chest tightened.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
The closer we got to Galford...
the heavier the air became.
Like something was reaching into my mind directly.
"Shiro?" Yura's voice sounded distant.
I clenched my fists hard enough for my nails to dig into my palms.
"This area..." I muttered weakly. "Something's wrong."
The carriage itself suddenly felt suffocating.
My breathing slowed.
My limbs grew heavy.
It felt like the town ahead was swallowing consciousness itself.
Dark violet flickered faintly behind my eyes.
"Make sure the princess..." I forced out through gritted teeth. "...is safe."
Then darkness consumed me entirely.
---
Silence.
An endless black void stretched around me.
Then...
a voice.
Soft.
Beautiful.
Cruel.
"Shiro..."
The voice echoed through the darkness like silk wrapping around a blade.
"You will suffer."
A woman's laughter followed quietly.
"This will not be an easy test."
I drifted deeper into the void unwillingly.
Far ahead, a faint golden light flickered weakly in the distance.
Warm.
Familiar.
"My sister..." I whispered quietly. "I'm still worried about her."
The darkness around me pulsed softly.
"And no matter where I go..." I continued bitterly, "people don't really change."
The voice answered immediately.
"She is under my watchful eye."
A second voice.
Gentler.
Older.
"She watches you with me."
For a moment, warmth touched the darkness.
Then—
something else stirred.
Deep purple light pulsed beneath the void itself.
Watching.
Waiting.
Hungry.
And then—
everything vanished.
---
My eyes opened slowly.
Soft warmth pressed against my cheek.
Silver hair brushed lightly against my face.
Yura.
I was laying in her lap.
Her ears twitched the moment she realized I was awake.
"You stayed behind just for me?" I asked weakly.
Yura immediately looked away.
"Worried? Hardly."
Liar.
Her flushed face made that obvious.
"And the lap pillow wasn't your idea either?"
"That was Shina," she muttered instantly.
"TRAITOR," Shina hissed from across the carriage.
I laughed weakly before sitting up slowly.
The carriage had stopped entirely.
Outside felt... wrong.
Quiet.
"What happened?"
Yura's expression darkened immediately.
"The princess, Izsa, and Shura went ahead into town," she explained. "They haven't returned."
"How long?"
"Thirty minutes."
Too long.
I stood immediately.
"Then we move."
The moment we jumped from the carriage, cold pressure crawled across my skin.
The town ahead looked normal at first glance.
Too normal.
The castle doors suddenly burst open.
Princess Yullia stumbled out alongside Izsa and Shura, all three breathing heavily.
Yullia's normally composed expression looked shaken.
"What happened?" Yura asked immediately.
"The men..." Shura muttered. "Something's wrong with them."
Behind them, several knights staggered through the doorway.
Their eyes were glazed over.
Smiling.
Laughing softly to themselves.
Like puppets.
One reached toward Yullia mindlessly.
I stepped forward instantly.
"That's an intimacy spell," I said coldly.
The realization hit almost immediately.
"It attacks men specifically."
Yullia nodded grimly.
"The noblewoman ruling this territory uses it to enslave people. Anyone resistant loses consciousness. The weaker ones become obedient."
Disgusting.
Behind me, dark purple flickered briefly through my pupils.
"Stay behind me," I said quietly.
The knights rushed forward clumsily.
I enhanced my body instantly.
One punch to the stomach.
Another to the jaw.
A kick behind the knee.
Precise.
Controlled.
No killing.
Just enough force to shut their bodies down safely.
Three collapsed instantly.
"Shiro..." Yura whispered softly.
I ignored her.
My hood slid over my head as invisibility magic wrapped around me.
Then I disappeared.
The castle halls reeked of perfume thick enough to suffocate.
Guards wandered aimlessly against walls, barely conscious.
Some laughed.
Some cried.
Others simply stared blankly at the ceiling.
My skin crawled.
I closed my eyes briefly.
Expanded my senses.
And felt it.
Deep underground.
A cluster of life signatures.
A cellar.
"There you are."
I moved silently through the halls until I reached the massive cellar doors below the castle.
The moment I opened them...
I regretted having eyes.
A massive woman lounged across an oversized chair draped in silk and perfume bottles.
Green hair.
Sweaty skin.
Eyes filled with hunger.
Not seductive.
Not alluring.
Just vile.
She smiled the moment she saw me.
"Oh my," she purred. "What a handsome little toy."
I physically recoiled.
"Succubus?" I muttered.
Then looked again.
"No... just ugly."
Her expression twitched violently.
Worth it.
"You're coming quietly," I said calmly. "Deactivate the spell first."
Pink mist exploded toward me instantly.
I sighed.
Wind magic spiraled around my fingers.
The mist reversed direction immediately.
Straight back into her face.
Her eyes widened.
Then rolled backward.
THUD.
Silence.
The spell throughout the castle broke instantly.
Above me, dozens of life signatures stabilized.
"Glad you attacked first," I muttered. "That conversation was becoming painful."
I summoned Sangui from my shadow.
The massive Cerberus emerged with a low growl before immediately sniffing the unconscious woman.
Then one of his heads sneezed dramatically.
"Exactly."
We tied her up carefully using enchanted restraints while avoiding direct contact entirely.
I wasn't taking chances.
A few minutes later, the others finally arrived downstairs.
The relief on Yura's face when she saw me unharmed lasted approximately three seconds before she crossed her arms angrily.
"You disappeared without warning."
"I came back though."
"That's not the point."
Shina nodded seriously.
"It's exactly the point."
Princess Yullia stepped toward the unconscious woman coldly.
"She kidnapped and violated dozens of people under the crown's protection."
Her voice hardened.
"She'll spend the rest of her life imprisoned."
"Good," I answered simply.
Around us, the affected men slowly regained consciousness one by one, confused and exhausted.
I exhaled quietly afterward.
Another disaster avoided.
For now.
As we left the castle, I glanced back once toward the dark cellar below.
Something about this town still bothered me.
Like a lingering stain that hadn't fully disappeared.
And for the briefest moment...
my dark violet eyes reflected something deep beneath the castle staring back.