First, it was the lights that annoyed him, but they were not enough on their own to bring Edmond out of his rest.

  Then he heard voices, initially a white noise of words he did not yet understand, making them even more of a bother. He could not help but lift his heavy eyelids as a result.

  The darkness outside the windows made it clear it was nighttime, and the lights in the room were far dimmer than he initially thought. Still, they were enough for him to identify his surroundings just fine.

  The room was spotless, just like the bed he id on, everything so clean that he almost felt guilty about carelessly resting in such a pce. The thought was illogical though, for what other purpose did a hospital room have if not for the rest of those who needed it?

  Regardless of how Edmond felt about it, he was clearly considered such a person. Bandages and gauze were visible across his body, and much of what went unseen under his clothes felt simirly dressed in the results of medical treatment.

  By far, three things surprised him the most. First, the presence of an IV line connected to his arm, hinting at the long time he must have remained asleep. Second, the particurly heavy wrapping around his knee, which instantly reminded him of the most… recent events.

  And third, a familiar-looking woman sitting on a nearby chair, barely fighting off sleep while almost slumping back. A woman with bck hair arranged in a very simple side bun, a few wrinkles that hardly stood out compared to the heavy shadows under her eyes, and clothes with smoothness that could only come from consistent, yet delicate washing and ironing.

  “Mom?”

  A single strained word unconsciously leaked past his lips, and Ingrid Bach promptly snapped out of her near slumber.

  “… Edmond? You… You’re awake. Oh, thank goodness, I just…”

  She stood up frantically, causing the chair to rattle with a somewhat loud noise as she walked over to him. A cold hand was pced over his own and another on his cheek, then she came to a sudden stop.

  Even in his bewilderment, Edmond had fully expected her to hug him at this point, but she may have thought of his state as too delicate.

  Her almost cloudy gray eyes shone wetly as she pulled back, briefly gncing at another side of the room, then back at him.

  “Just… wait here. I need to tell Isolde and Maximillian; the nurses too.”

  The sight of her walking away filled Edmond with a sudden panic.

  “H-Hold on, please! How are Cude and Tatyana? Or the other cadets, Finn too and Hil—”

  He found his words cut off by themselves, but the somber look Mom gave him could have also done the job.

  “… You’ll get to know all about that. There’s… more people who want to talk to you. ‘Knight’ people.”

  She did not wait for another reply before leaving, though he did not really have any.

  Everything was still too sudden, too confusing. He did not even know where to look as he heard his mother’s voice joining the annoying ones from before.

  There must have been nurses and doctors out in the hallway, promptly joined by other familiar voices.

  “Mondi!”

  “For fuck’s sake, can’t you leave things to someone else for once!?”

  Maximillian. Isolde. His younger siblings burst into the room, cking that bit of self-control shown by their mother as they hugged him. Or rather, Isolde hugged him, while Max could only barely cling to his luckily unplugged arm.

  “That’s… too hard for me.”

  Such was the only way in which he could reply to his sister on the verge of furious tears. Not only due to the difficulty of responding to her worries, but also because of the untimely interruption from one of the unfamiliar voices.

  “How are you feeling, Edmond? I mean, sorry, Mr. Bach… No, I really don’t like that. May I please call you Edmond?”

  The voice was strange, but the gsses-wearing face not so much. If anything, the sight of it made him realize he had heard that voice a couple of times before.

  “You’re… Yuriy Gogol, right?”

  After all, the young man in the nurse scrubs was rather well-known among his fellow knight cadets. Still only in his sixth year, yet with several offers for spots in top-notch squadrons once he graduated, Yuriy Gogol was as known for his excellent combat skills as he was for his genuine passion about the medical side of the Knight Corps.

  Whether from articles written about him, one or two interviews and maybe an occasional speech when receiving certain accodes, Edmond was just one more person who knew about him.

  “Huh? Oh, well, I guess we don’t need introductions~. So…?”

  His very real, even if modest, fame did not appear to concern him in the slightest as he insisted on his previous question.

  Briefly, some embarrassment spread through Edmond as he realized his sudden stupor.

  “I’m… feeling okay, for now. I’m tired, and my throat’s kind of dry, but other than that I think I’m good.”

  “Hm, got it! That’s awesome.”

  With such an honest and pure smile, as well as the slightly grounded way in which sweat matted his blonde hair, Edmond realized Yuriy’s talent may not be the only thing that made him so popur.

  “And you can call me Edmond if you want. I don’t mind.”

  “Make that ‘double awesome’ then. So, Edmond, there’s plenty we have to talk about now: your state when you came in, what we had to do, what you need to be aware of going forward—”

  “How about whether or not he’s actually healthy? All he did is tell you how he feels.”

  Mom’s voice coldly cut off Yuriy’s words. She stood by the door now, alongside a stubbled man with a lean, yet broad-shouldered build. The contrast was rather eye-catching, as were his uniformly dark gray jacket, shirt and scks; almost comically so.

  He looked between Mom and Yuriy with an apologetic expression, before ying his soft green eyes on Edmond.

  “You’re really something else, Ed. I knew you were an honest guy, but you’re actually ten times the man I’ve ever shown to be.”

  “Eric… You didn’t have to.”

  “Oh, please forget that. Couldn’t have stopped me if you tried.”

  Truth be told, it was probably impossible that his mother’s boyfriend would choose to not visit him, but it did not even slightly soften Edmond’s discomfort. So many people he had troubled, all beside him now…

  “All tests have come out well, Mrs. Bach.” Luckily, Yuriy steered the conversation away soon after. “He woke up earlier than we expected, with enough energy to sit up and follow conversations. Everything is pointing toward a smooth recovery, but we can never know for sure unless we hear things from the patient themselves.”

  “… I understand. I’m sorry, it’s just been… a really stressful time.”

  Coupled with her obvious relief at the optimistic outlook, Mom’s regret at her crudeness felt even heavier. Eric turned with a hand approaching her shoulder, but he hesitated even in that. Edmond wondered if she had perhaps refused reassurance recently, in a way that intimidated even her easy-going partner.

  On Yuriy’s end, however, things were much simpler.

  “It’s all good, your worries are perfectly justifiable. For now, just enjoy your time with him. I’m sure there’s a lot of catching up to do so I’ll leave you be for now.”

  “I’m gd you’re leaving a patient in peace for once, Yuriy, but I’m afraid that family time will have to wait just a bit longer.”

  That was a voice Edmond absolutely did not expect to hear. So much so that despite the pain following any sudden movements, he jerked his head back to the open door just to make sure he was not mistaken.

  And there they were. Behind an equally surprised Mom and Eric, and accompanied by a Tatyana who, despite already standing on her feet, looked about as bad as he did in her dressed injuries and pin garb.

  For his first time seeing her after he woke up, it was a harrowing sight even if he expected something of the sort. Her posture was clearly strained, and despite the bandages and gauze on her, bruises and traces of half-healed cuts were still somewhat visible. The half of her face that had been injured the worst by Hellbound at least seemed to be mostly healed, with only modest padding adhered to it and framed by hair he was seeing loose for the first time.

  And yet, in spite of it all, the two people beside her became the center of his attention.

  A young woman and man, both appearing to be in their early twenties. The former may have been slightly taller than Edmond, with a wonderfully toned build noticeable through her tight half-sleeved t-shirt and bck jeans, as well as an eye-catching combination of blonde hair in a loose shoulder braid and equally golden eyes.

  The tter was about as tall as Eric and in very obvious shape, even if not quite a match for the woman. Still, it was not the man’s build that stood out the most, but rather his practically gleaming chestnut brown hair, with smartly cut bangs framing a pair of sharp turquoise eyes, that well-featured face…

  “Sorry Edmond, but I just want to get some things out of the way as quickly as possible.”

  … Yeah, they looked so very simir.

  “… Got it.”

  He should have expected Alexander Nesterov and Alyssa Cross to come in person, considering Tatyana had ended up in such a state. It was obvious, even.

  “I’m pretty sure you can wait.” Yuriy’s reply was, for once, rather aggressive. “They’ve been worried to no end for days and deserve some time with him. This is what’s good for them and the patient.”

  “Yuriy, this isn’t up for debate. I wouldn’t insist if the matter wasn’t important enough.” But Alexander pressed onward without further concern, sparing a quiet apology for Mom right after.

  To say she looked merely uncomfortable with such a development would be ridiculously generous. Her gre at Alexander could never be called accepting, and that seemed like enough of a ‘go-ahead’ for Yuriy to try and refuse again.

  That is, if not for her sudden approach, only to take Isolde and Max by their hands as she began to slowly head out.

  “Mom? You’re really just going to—”

  “Discuss whatever you need to. Take your time, even.”

  She ignored Isolde’s baffled words, addressing only Alexander. More than pleased, he seemed relieved at her compliance.

  “Thank you very much. I promise we won’t take more than a few minutes.”

  “But make sure you take care of everything. None of us want more interruptions.”

  The initial sharpness in her tone was downright chilling, but when she briefly turned to gnce back at Edmond, all he felt was the bluntest of guilt.

  “As you wish. We’ll discuss all we need to, and in a timely manner.” Alexander replied in a manner respectful to her wishes, but with a poise that showed he was not intimidated at all.

  Satisfied, or perhaps just not wanting to deal with such annoyance any longer, Mom exited the room with a confused Max and an irate Isolde, promptly followed by a disappointed-looking Eric.

  “… They’d probably like to hear some more details on the recovery. Excuse me.”

  The previously jovial-looking Yuriy seemed like a different person by this point, making no secret of his displeasure at Alexander’s actions as he refused to talk or even look his way when leaving.

  Still, he did stop for a moment just before heading down the hallway, his attention now on…

  “Walking around already? I know you don’t have to stay in bed anymore, but there’s no one who’ll compin if you want to rest some more.”

  … Tatyana of all people. She looked back at him in surprise, seemingly not expecting the sudden address, then darted her eyes away with a complicated expression.

  “… This is important for me too. Besides, I feel fine.”

  “Mm, alright then. If you feel okay, then that’s all that matters. See you ter.”

  From such a brief, innocuous exchange, Yuriy’s warm, almost sunny smile finally returned to his face.

  As he walked off, his back now to her, Tatyana’s turquoise eyes y back on him while her lips seemingly struggled over words.

  “… Yeah. That… That’d be cool.”

  Huh…?

  Edmond could only remember a few times he had felt as confused as when he witnessed such an interaction, but there was hardly any time to dwell on it.

  As soon as Yuriy left, Alexander and Alyssa finally entered the room proper, with Tatyana apparently hesitating a tad. Or maybe it was her injuries inconveniencing her? He was also surprised to see a rge bag he had not noticed before in her hand.

  Nonetheless, it was Alexander’s voice that took over his attention after the three of them sat down, filling three out of four sparse chairs around the room.

  “So, shit really went down, eh?”

  His flippant attitude had always been frustrating, but Edmond had learned to endure it over the st four years. Somewhat.

  “You don’t have to tell me that. You… How are you doing?”

  He asked Tatyana, who looked back at him with a brief, awkward shimmer in her eyes.

  “Better than you at least, so judge by that. But the stuff you can see is not the worst; having to cast Tathlum Airgeadlámh twice in one night, considering it’s something I should only really use once per week at most… It took the toll you would expect.”

  It only made sense a person like her would be uncomfortable being thought of as vulnerable, no matter the situation. Her expnation was both rushed and hitched, and the awkwardness in her eyes only intensified by the second.

  Still, Edmond could not help but ignore that in his worry, considering all that had happened.

  “Can I get some more detail?”

  “… Well, I certainly won’t be pulling off anything of that magnitude in at least a month from now. Even wielding Areadbhair normally will be a tall task for the moment.”

  Edmond narrowed his eyes in frustration. That was definitely not the response he wanted, even if it was to be expected. Hiding her ails behind talk of her abilities helped no one.

  Could she really not admit to some pain and difficulty even in front of someone in the same state?

  Alexander almost seemed to respond to that question. Not with his words, but by cutting in as if to say it was futile to try to get any relevant details on Tatyana’s condition out of her.

  “Anyway… With how fixated you are on how injured everyone is, it does seem like we have to tell you things outright.”

  Alyssa followed up promptly, her voice deep and commanding.

  “Obviously, you’re well aware of what happened, but that doesn’t mean you know just what an amazing job you all did with your victory.” Her tone held very honest admiration, one that Edmond wished to think may have been pride in them.

  The ending words themselves, however, caused a dense discomfort to well up inside him.

  “Victory?” With his question, he merely hoped for details that would soften it…

  “Pretty much, yeah. A few of the unpowered Violet Thorn members that participated in the assault managed to slip away, but most were captured and arrested, as were their four leaders. With the one who got caught before, those strays are now leaderless. It’s no exaggeration to say that one of Seyfelt’s major gangs was brought down that night.”

  … but that did not happen. They should have known to start with something else, at least when talking to him, so if they chose to focus on this instead…

  “What about casualties?”

  His inquiry was met by silence. An exasperated sigh from Alexander, a knowing gre at him from Alyssa, and Tatyana gncing away with somber frustration.

  “Counting you two, twenty-three people were severely injured. Nine more died: four Violet Thorn members, one fourth year cadet, three second years, and one first year.”

  The dense discomfort instantly exploded within him, like molten lead had repced his very blood. And Alexander was still not done.

  “We only know one of those five was a Thorn due to questioning, however. When it came to the actual event, what we heard is he shot one of the Unmasked by surprise.”

  “Ended up turning the whole thing around, even before the final blow was delivered.”

  White-hot lead turned gcial cold all of a sudden. Edmond wanted to scream, but he somehow could not bring himself to.

  He thought of a Violet Thorn who was against the whole pn, to the point of asking a hated enemy of the gang for help. He saw a head of red hair and a nky, unassuming figure; a man who had trusted him to make things right.

  A name and a face, fresh in his mind. A person with pns for next week, hopes for a few years in the future, family he wished to reunite with… and eight more people who may have been just like him. Some cadets even younger than him, Thorns in possibly the same horribly unfortunate situation…

  “This is so fucked up… Just why did any of this have to happen!?”

  Edmond brought both hands to his face, with any pain from the rough pull of the IV plug failing to distract him.

  “I knew this would happen…”

  “And that’s why you decided to not be upfront? It’s obviously what worries him the most so—”

  He could hear the argument between Alexander and Alyssa, but it felt like a different reality from his own. Something meaningless and unimportant, not worthy of attention or memory.

  A touch on his shoulder forced him back to that alien reality.

  “Stop this. We did all we could, tried our fucking hardest and saved so many more people!”

  It was Tatyana, showing unhesitant and honest rage despite the clear sympathy in her touch.

  “Did all we could…? Fuck no I didn’t!”

  But Edmond did not care for any of it, and did not hesitate to hit that soft hand away.

  “You of all people should know that! When that demon helped me out, it was like I could do anything!”

  More than his rejection of her good will, it was seemingly those words that caused Tatyana to turn pale from shock.

  “You… You were aware when that happened…?”

  Edmond rubbed at his moist eyes, memories from the horrible event unlikely to ever fade.

  “It felt… like a dream. Vague, hazy, as if my mind was floating; but I remember it well enough, and what I did then, I… I wanted to do it, at least at that time. Veltis… They said they owed me for all this time. If I’d just called them a bit earlier, nothing could’ve stopped me! Not a hair on anyone’s head would’ve been touched! Finn would be—”

  Another touch interrupted his words, as well as his train of thought.

  Only this one was far from gentle, gripping his head with such force that he may have screamed were he not so preoccupied. The press-like grip forced his head to turn, toward Alyssa’s stern face.

  “That is not an option, Edmond. We came here to talk about several things, but this is by far the most important. We cannot allow you to rely on this demon for anything. It must be the first and st time anything like this happens.”

  “… What?”

  It took him a while to fully process her words, one which Alexander had no intention of waiting for as he spoke again.

  “Edmond, if those safeguarding runes I put on you from the start are not enough to suppress that thing past a certain point, it’s clearly a power none of us is meant to handle. I don’t want to expose Tatyana or you to that danger.”

  His st words were even more confusing, somehow. Edmond had not recovered enough to even ask about them, but his expression alone was seemingly enough for Alyssa to let go of his head and step back.

  Her gaze was… painful.

  “The medical staff here in Seyfelt is good. If we’re being honest, someone from another facility like Yuriy wasn’t outright needed to deal with the fallout of an incident like this, but we had him come along after Baudeire and Kloel reached out to us because we needed a… private hand to treat you.”

  “…? A doctor just for me? Oh, isn’t that just fucking amazing. Hold on, I need to tell all those suffering cadets that Captain Cross’ ckey simply deserves more.”

  “You know that’s not the reason, moron!”

  Even now, such a change in her tone could silence him instantly. His throat locked up like it was petrified, but Alyssa only sighed regretfully before continuing.

  “… We needed someone who could be trusted with this information and keep the secret. During your… ‘outburst’, as Tanya put it, you didn’t just change without consequence. Or, well… I suppose there’s situations in which that sort of thing would’ve worked fine, but that’s not your case. The demon’s power wasn’t simply forcing you to move, it strengthened everything including your body’s natural recovery. Only you weren’t healing as a human, but as a demon.”

  “…”

  Edmond doubted his ears that heard her words, his eyes that read her lips, and the very consciousness that acknowledged the clear and concise message Alyssa delivered.

  The knowledge that she would not lie to him, especially about such a thing, suddenly became pure torture. Alexander continued after her, his eyes shut and bringing a hand to his forehead in frustration.

  “We recruited Yuriy before even you, and he’s been with us since. He’s solid, and he did a fantastic job removing and repcing those ‘healed’ parts in surgery. The whole thing was a success, and he said you’ll be fully back to normal within a week, but I hope things are now clear enough for you. This Veltis or whatever Fei-hung Long called it, the first person it puts at risk is you, Edmond. That power changes you toward its own nature, and next time it might just be irreversible.”

  Edmond was filled with fury, one he could not aim at Tatyana who was still here for him despite so much difficulty, nor against Alexander and Alyssa who were only concerned about his well-being.

  But the fury was still there, setting every corner of his mind abze. For the power that could actually make him a superhero to be something like this…

  … It was simply not fair.

  “Why not just take Veltis out, then…? I doubt you want me to keep being a prison for them, considering all this…”

  “We know why you decided on that, and how you’d react if we tried.” Somehow, Alexander’s reply being so instant and effortless only made it more annoying. “Besides, letting such a dangerous demon loose for just a second is terrifying.”

  “We still don’t know what it would take to trap it again, let alone killing it, and whatever time it takes to die from our atmosphere is plenty enough for a catastrophe to occur.” Alyssa said, with an honesty so absolute it was almost cruel.

  If any of Edmond’s fury had disappeared, it was merely from it turning into growing hopelessness. One that he was willing to have anything distract him from.

  “… You mentioned a final blow, after that Thorn was shot. What did you mean by that?”

  Alexander and Alyssa shared gnces, seemingly confused by his willingness to learn even more. But their hesitation was very real despite that, to the point that it was Tatyana who spoke up next, gring disapprovingly at the two of them all the while.

  “Around the time we passed out, a strange function activated across all of the stolen Gamma-css weapons. A spell that shouldn’t have been there, but was impnted in them at some point and suppressed their prana, nullifying their abilities by extension. The Thorns could no longer fight back at that point, so even though there were only a few cadets still standing, they were free to rampage and pay them back. Communication lines went back online around this time too.”

  Her words struck Edmond as weird, to say the least. The events did not change the horrible casualties he had already been made aware of, but was this not an outcome that likely prevented even more deaths?

  … No, not exactly. If anything, it was possible the Thorns’ deaths came as an unfortunately justifiable result, but it was still an extremely convenient outcome for one side of the conflict. So much so as to feel… artificial.

  “What kind of spell? Was it some safety measure to prevent the weapons from being used by the wrong hands?”

  “There’s no way to construct Gamma-csses in such a way without compromising on performance, so no. It was also determined by R&D forensics that they only had that ‘lock’ impnted after being stolen, but aside from that and the spell pattern being the exact same across all the weapons, nothing else could be figured out.”

  His question was but a way to quell unnecessary hopes, and only the opposite effect took pce.

  So… could that mean…?

  “… Did Hilda… Did her group maybe impnt that spell in the weapons, to minimize casualties after they got what they wanted—”

  “Stop it already, please.”

  Alexander coldly cut him off. Not only his words, but even his thoughts briefly froze at that moment.

  “I know what this is about, and I don’t bme you for trying any rationalization that could lessen the severity of her actions, but it’s a useless effort. I’ll be completely honest here, so you can start to accept things sooner rather than ter: Fei-hung Long’s cadet team, including Hildegard Tirpitz, have all been deemed high-priority criminals on the international level, and their neutralization is of the utmost importance even if it means death.”

  Whatever traces remained of Edmond’s ideas were turned to ash at that moment. Hearing completely unmistakable words, he could only grip his bedsheets in a futile attempt to quell the rising panic.

  It was an obvious result; one he had expected from the moment he faced off against Hilda. A simply reasonable judgment after she admitted to her deeds without any hesitation, regardless of her reasoning.

  Or maybe, it was that exact reasoning that made her such a target…

  So why did he feel such despair despite all that? Why could he not accept reality for what it was this one time? Even after such disastrous events, including their own csh which had proven her intentions beyond any doubt, how could he still feel this way?

  Why…? Why did anything have to… Like this…

  Even worse, Alexander seemed ready to say even more, his expression a merciless reprimand on its own. But before he could…

  “That’s enough for now.”

  … Alyssa stepped in, holding his hand. Not gently or softly, but full of disagreement instead.

  “There’s still more to discuss. Important things.” He replied without missing a beat, confronting her eyes with an equally sharp look.

  “I know, but that can still be discussed ter. Just look at him and tell me if this is being productive at all.”

  Still, she stood her ground, gripping his hand more tightly and not allowing her gaze to drift even slightly away.

  On Alexander’s end, he finally turned his own look back on Edmond, several seconds ter. It lingered for a shorter time, but that seemed enough to do away with whatever words he had pnned to say earlier.

  “… I’m sorry, Edmond. We’ll talk more tomorrow… Or actually, just rest up for now. We’ll wrap things up when you’re ready.”

  Edmond did not reply, looking down from Alexander and onto his white bed.

  He heard a disappointed sigh, then the sound of him and Alyssa as well standing up, ready to head out.

  But the third person approached him first, her hand entering his view with the bag from before.

  “Noelle and her dad came to visit with a bunch of the Concert people. They were… very worried and brought some stuff. This is for you.”

  Tatyana’s tone was almost clumsy in its sincerity, and just thinking of his coworkers and bosses coming over to bring him such a rge bag of goods was simply moving.

  Even so, his thoughts could not escape what had taken hold of them.

  “Thanks… I owe them, and you.”

  “That’s not what… Ugh, whatever. Just focus on recovering; we’ll talk again, okay?”

  He barely managed to nod in response, practically feeling Tatyana’s dissatisfaction at his subdued reactions. But she did not prod him anymore, simply turning and heading out of the room with clearly annoyed footsteps.

  Several more were heard soon after, except they were coming back into the room rather than exiting.

  “Finally! They sure took a while.”

  “A gift, Mondi? From them?”

  “… That young nurse said some promising things. You might have to stay a night or two more, but I have your phone and a few changes of clothes. So… Are you hungry, maybe? Just tell me and…”

  Isolde, Max, Mom, as well as Eric keeping a distance and silence that felt a little too respectful. His family just wanted some time with him after so many days of crushing worry, doing their best to make things even a bit better for him… But despite that, he could only barely look back up at them.

  As just a gnce reminded him of her, and what she had caused.

  “What the fuck is your problem!?”

  Tatyana yelled without hesitation, utterly unconcerned with any people who may also be walking down the hallway.

  “I know telling you to rex is stupid, but can you at least keep it down if you want to discuss anything? This is sensitive information, Tanya.”

  She nearly did so again after hearing Alexander’s casual response, not even looking back at her. But as loathe as she was to admit it, he was right on this particur regard.

  She hurried her pace, passing by a resigned-looking Alyssa until catching up to her brother’s side.

  “Even after everything I told you, when he has been awake for maybe twenty minutes tops, that’s how you talk to him? The only reason he didn’t punch your ass out is because he’s that much of a mess right now!”

  “I fail to see how any of what I said is incorrect. Come on, refresh my memory.”

  The side-gre from his turquoise eyes was beyond strict, bringing to mind the cold of a desote tundra.

  But it meant nothing to Tatyana, as she may as well have held a white-hot inferno in her gaze to match.

  “How about telling him there’s pretty much a kill-on-sight order for his former friend? Or forbidding him from using a power that could help him so much if used well!?”

  “So you want me to keep him in the dark; is that what you’re saying?”

  “Don’t you belittle me, or him! I know there’s things he should know before long, but he just woke up after his world was turned upside down! He didn’t even get to talk to his family for a minute, and you’re dumping everything you can think of on him! Besides, is leaving him just a tad of hope that much of an issue?”

  Alexander stopped walking.

  Her legs still somewhat numb from medication, Tatyana almost tripped when having to suddenly do so as well. No longer sparing her a mere gnce to the side, her brother was now looking directly into her eyes.

  There was no anger or mockery this time, but the expression he showed froze her words better than either of those could.

  “Tanya, you talk too much for someone so out of their depth. You really think I’m being straight with Edmond to be an asshole? I want him to beat this hard and fast, but I also don’t want him to break again when something else blows up in his face. It’s not the first time it happens, and it won’t be the st. Babying him won’t help with all the difficulty someone like him will face of his own will!”

  “Babying…!?”

  After he said his piece though, Tatyana became even more furious than before.

  “What the fuck is that ban on an enormous power if it’s not ‘babying’ him!? You want Edmond to endure things and prevail? Why not encourage him to learn more about it!? Hell, you can help him get it under control! But no, not that. There’s now something that gives him hope of reaching even further heights, but you won’t trust him to handle it or even try!”

  Alexander’s brow furrowed more than before, plenty of anger returning to his face. Nonetheless, she did not miss the brief trembling of his lips, no matter how slight.

  Trembling not born from his rage or even thinking that he was wrong, but from simple, raw worry.

  “… Do you have any idea of what that demon can do?”

  “… What do you even mean? I’m the only witness aside from him and Fei-hung’s group!”

  He chuckled in a way that seemed genuinely unconscious, but Tatyana still had to actively restrain herself from punching him right in the mouth.

  “You saw him with your own eyes, but you still haven’t realized the true extent of that phenomenon… Well, I did put a lot of work on those seals, so it’s to be expected that they’d record more detailed information.”

  “Just get to the point!”

  She stepped forward, shoulders shaking and both hands tightened into fists. But her aggression did not seem to even register in Alexander’s mind; forget flinching, he did not even blink in response.

  “Remember that burst of… What did they call it? Id, right? When he pretty much exploded to break out of the prison Fei-hung Long and his teammates made. What if I told you that without the barrier to offset most of the attack’s force, it would’ve been enough to raze over half the country?”

  Tatyana’s throat locked up.

  Her shoulders slowly dropped, her fists loosened and once again she had to make some extra effort to retain her bance. Even her frown disappeared as her eyes went wide, thoughts spiraling in every direction.

  Of course, she doubted his words. Not only their meaning, but also the very fact that her ears had received them properly. But hearing was not a problem from so up close, and why would Alexander lie to her about such a thing?

  She tried to think of any possible reason, but came up with none. If he had genuinely made an exception to his ‘babying’ revulsion… something like this was a perfect expnation.

  “And that’s with my seals still on him; I don’t even want to imagine what it could’ve done if they were not. It’s obvious he wasn’t nearly as aware as he cimed to be, Tanya, and that’s not a power a half-dreaming man should wield. Now, is it really so nonsensical to be terrified of such danger being let loose around my little sister? Or of it consuming my ‘little brother’ until there’s nothing left?”

  Tatyana finally faltered, looking away from the unbearably anxious gaze Alexander finally revealed. Or perhaps she had unconsciously refused to acknowledge it, until it became completely impossible.

  “… Then why keep such a votile responsibility? Why make him continue to keep it too?”

  “We expined it before; letting that thing loose for any period of time is a risk we won’t take. But more than that… You better than anyone should know we cannot trust the knight administration to handle something like that.”

  Her sharp gaze returned to his, the most unpleasant memories suddenly dug up from within her, and made even worse when she remembered… Hildegard’s words. Why did her whole speech have to…

  … Whatever. She knew it was not something to be furious at Alexander over.

  “… Yes…”

  “… Yeah. I’m very gd to see you covering each other like this, Tanya. But as I said, you’re out of your depth. Don’t forget you’ve known Edmond for less than a month, while I have supported him for four years.”

  Still, this was something entirely different, and perhaps the worst thing he had said yet. Tatyana tried giving him the benefit of the doubt, but almost as if to mock her some more, he said something so idiotic for real now.

  “… From a whole other side of the world, you have.”

  Alexander’s gaze twitched, then turned to his most aggressive gre until now. But even as Tatyana made no effort to stop him, he did not say something back.

  She followed on without dey.

  “Sure, you recruited him. Maybe even supervised his initial training and special milestones, but what else? I didn’t even know he was under your wing. Not once was he with you when you came over, or even when I visited. From what I know, it seems like you just dropped him off where you thought he might succeed and then called it a day. Now that he’s more vulnerable than ever, you’re going to do that all over again?”

  Each of her words caused the heat inside her to swell; a heat which seemed to give way to more emotion, and more words as a result. Alexander’s visibly growing indignation was of no concern to her at any point.

  “Tatyana…!”

  “You know what? Forget it! I’ve heard enough to know how pointless this is!”

  Whatever response he may have prepared was irrelevant; something she would not pay attention to even if he did say it.

  She had long since turned away, now facing Alyssa’s golden irises that had gred her into submission so many times. A reality that for this single moment, felt ridiculous.

  “What about you? Four years of this shit, and now you want to act like the voice of reason? As if you’re the sensible one or something?”

  “…”

  She merely looked back at Tatyana. Lips tight, arms crossed and only a vague hint of discomfort as her fingers dug in somewhat deeply.

  “So? Do you have anything to say here!?”

  Tatyana waited for seconds that felt like years, but nothing came. Alyssa remained as she stood, with the only change being her eyes closing to her breath’s pace, then looking down after opening again.

  “Fuck this.”

  Enough was enough. Or rather, nothing she needed was here, and she finally knew that.

  Without a single extra word or look, Tatyana walked off further into the corridor.

  Not knowing where to, nor what would come next. She just knew it would be better than anything she left behind.