As she walked towards the med camp where Reian was, she still felt embarrassed about forgetting her sniper. for easing up her embarrassment She mimicked Kiro in her head — "Miss Himari." Then immediately argued back with herself. I just forgot. People forget. Calm down, Himari. He's just reminding you. Yeah, yeah. He's not making fun. She exhaled sharply. Ahh, but why am I so frustrated?
OH.
She arrived near the camp where one of the seniors stopped her. "You need to submit your weapon — the task activity has ended." She nodded, handed over the sniper without ceremony, and moved on.
Everyone was standing outside — students from every academy, clustered in small groups, voices low. Reian was there too, talking with some of them. She nudged him slowly and asked in a low voice, "So. What happened?"
"Oh — your hand, is it okay? Did Kiro bandage it?"
"Yes, he did. Now tell me — who got injured?"
"It's a girl from the Leo team."
"Oh." She paused. "Where?"
"Her hand."
She looked at him. "But why did the general take you with him? You went with him and you don't know why he called you?"
Reian just raised his shoulders. "I don't know. He just took whoever was free. Sir Vane was busy."
She looked at him with the face — one lip twitching upward, the sign she made when someone was clearly annoying her with a lie. She knew he was hiding something. She just couldn't prove it. So she went quiet.
In the meantime, Kiro joined them. "So what happened? Who screamed? Is someone injured?"
Before Reian could reply, Himari repeated his answer — same words, same tone — but in a way that made it perfectly clear to Kiro that Reian was either lying or hiding something. Reian immediately went completely neutral. "Yep. That's it."
"And Miss Himari is my interpreter," he added, sighing.
"Yeah, I am," Himari said. "Because I didn't want your mouth to get tired. Save your energy — you know, in case the general calls you again for another mysterious reason." She smiled once, sharp and brief.
She didn't know it herself, but they both knew — she was maybe a little jealous, or at least annoyed, that they had taken Reian and he is still not revealing anything
In the meantime, as everyone came out from the camp, one of the figures was Niel. He looked at her for one second — eye contact — and she immediately looked away. Leo was looking at her as well, and so were most of the other students, all of them watching Leo, waiting for him to say something about what happened. But Sir Vane stepped forward and told every student to line up.
Then Niel came forward. The camp went quiet.
"As you all heard the scream — it was from a student from the Northern Aegis Academy. Her name is Milli. She got injured. I wanted to tell you all to take safety measures. Your safety is our first priority."
He paused.
"The second announcement is that most of you are going home today. Pack your bags. Within an hour we will announce the names. Before nightfall, you will be on your way back to our military academy, and the next day you will safely return to your own academies. Those who want an explanation can come to my tent, or speak with Sir Haru."
And then — again, just as he finished — he made eye contact with Himari. A clear sign.
She thought — why? — and looked to her right where Kiro was standing. She caught Kiro looking at her too. She gave him a look — part sassy, part uncertain — and saw him give a single small nod back.
Yes. Niel is calling you.
Without wasting a second her mind rejected it nervously — but the situation was different this time. She was genuinely worried. She was too easily targeted in every situation. And she really wanted to know how Milli got injured, because nobody had clearly explained it yet.
Her reaction said everything without words. Without even realizing it her nails were pressing into her knuckles, and her hand moved briefly to the back of her neck before she caught herself and forced it back down. She tried to act normal.
But she wasn't the only one worried. Every student present looked anxious. Niel hadn't revealed how badly Milli was injured, how it happened, or why they were being sent back. The announcement was small and thin on details. The air was cold and the chill everyone felt wasn't just from the mountain. Something serious was happening — or about to — and everyone could feel it.
Himari thought everyone would form a big line outside Niel's tent. But she was surprised. Most students were already heading back to their tents. Only four or five stayed, quietly making their way toward Haru instead of Niel.
The three from Arthford were still standing there. Reian asked, "So Kiro, what are we going to do? Going back or staying?"
"I don't know yet," Kiro said. "It depends on whose name they call."
Their conversation was interrupted by a student from a nearby group — clearly their leader.
"Hello. I'm Tyler, from Verlier Academy. and leader of my group "
Kiro introduced himself. Behind Tyler, Himari noticed that only four students from Verlier were present — two girls and two boys. One of the boys stood out immediately. Sharp eyes behind glasses, calculated and observant, the kind of person who noticed everything. She found herself staring at him because he was standing directly in front of her in the loose line — Kiro first, then her, then Reian — and that boy stood beside his group leader, right in front of Himari. He was fairly tall so she had to look up slightly, then looked back at Kiro as their conversation continued.
"I saw that one of your team went with Sir Niel," Tyler said to Kiro. "Have you found out what happened?"
"No," Kiro said. "He had to stop at the front of the med camp. We don't know either." Himari gave Reian a sideways look. Kiro was covering for him. Reian had never told them the truth about how the girl got injured.
"Are you all staying if possible?" Kiro added.
"Yes," Tyler said. "We really need all five official stars for our academy. We're not the type to back down easily." He smiled. "But as you said — it's not up to us. They'll call the names."
"Very well then," Kiro said.
He looked at Himari and Reian and extended his hand. Himari took it. He introduced himself, then the same to Reian. Then he introduced his teammates.
Finally Himari saw her — the tall girl who had stepped aside from the front. She had seen her on the first day but this was the first time up close. She was built differently from Himari — stronger, more grounded, every bit the professional. They shook hands. Himari felt the grip and understood immediately. There was a quiet competition already signing itself between their academies. She kept her mouth closed.
Then the girl asked, "So are you all not going to ask about what happened?"
"No," Kiro said. "We haven't discussed it yet. What about you?"
"We're going to ask Sir Haru," Tyler said.
Reian asked, "Why not Sir Niel? I saw no one going to his tent."
Tyler smiled. "He's one of the most senior officers here — above everyone else. We don't dare go directly to a General. We prefer Sir Haru. He's a better explainer."
Himari smiled at that. It was the first time she had heard someone talk about Niel in a way that wasn't pure praise. Usually she only ever heard people admiring him. She stopped herself from saying anything — just quietly controlled it.
They said their goodbyes. As the Verlier group walked away, Reian watched them go. "They feel like a wolf pack."
"Do you know them?" Kiro asked.
"Not exactly. But I know enough — they're very competitive. More so than Leo's group."
Kiro nodded. Then he looked at both of them. "So. We need information. Here's what we're doing." He looked at Reian. "You go to Sir Haru." Then at Himari. "You go to Sir Niel."
Himari stared at him. "Huh? Whyyyyyyyy?"
"Because I'm going to Sir Vane," Kiro said, with the calm of someone who had already thought this through completely. "There's too much missing detail and I don't know why they're not telling us everything. But I need those five stars — we all do. Stars can't be earned by one person alone, which means all three of us have to stay at all costs. So we split up, collect what we can, then meet at my tent and share. Got it? Any more questions?"
Reian raised his hand. "If we're asking different questions, what's the point?"
Kiro looked at him. "I never told you to ask the same questions. I said gather information. That's the point."
Inside Kiro's head, his brain was already calculating.
Why is Niel calling her? What does he want from her now? Why did I make that eye contact — I basically confirmed she'd go. He exhaled internally. But she needs to be safe, and Niel is a senior General so she's not in danger there. And Reian — he's been too suspicious. He made contact with Leo's group and I've been trying to ignore it but it's getting harder. Haru needs to see him. This is the best chance to let Haru read him properly.
"Okay," Kiro said aloud. "I'm going. You two should go as well."
Himari just stared at the two of them as they left. Then she was alone.
One went to Sir Vane, standing at a distance outside. One went into Sir Haru's tent.
And she had to go to Niel.
She had wanted to ignore his signs. She had wanted to pretend she hadn't seen the eye contact. But now — no chance.
She walked. Every step felt heavier than the last. She arrived in front of his tent and called out, "May I come in, Sir?"
Niel stood up. "Yes, come in."
She sighed. Took a deep breath. Stepped inside.
He is a senior. He is a General. I am a student. That's it. That's all this is.
He was sitting on a small chair. It was clearly a General's tent — the facilities were different, more structured and severe. Himari kept her eyes on the ground, composing herself, then asked, "Sir, you called me?"
One of his junior officers was also present. She felt a small wave of relief at that.
But before Niel replied, he turned to the junior and said, "Go to Haru and bring the sheets." The boy nodded' said "yes sir" and stepped out.
And then there were only two of them.
"Hima. Sit down."
She looked up. Those crimson eyes met his directly — piercing, steady, giving nothing away.
He got up and came toward her. "I need to discuss something with you. It's a long talk. Sit down."
He was already looking at the bandage on her hand. Then at the one on her temple. He sighed quietly — the kind of sigh that comes from seeing someone who keeps collecting damage and calling it fine.
She was still standing. Stubborn.
He pulled the chair closest to where she was standing and placed it there. "I'm not going to start talking until you sit down."
She wanted the conversation over as fast as possible. So she sit down .
"Hima." He looked at her steadily. "Have you filled in your attendance confirmation form and submitted it to Professor Arata?"
She looked up fast.
He was standing in front of her, one hand resting lightly on the desk, arms folded across his chest. The answer was clearly no. "Yes, I —"
"You did not," he said, before she could finish. "And you didn't ask your parents' confirmation either. Am I right?"
She didn't answer. Her hand was scratching at itself slowly. "I told my father's assistant," she said finally. "So he must have informed him. I asked through them."
He stepped forward and crouched slightly — bringing himself to her eye level, closing the height difference between them.
"Why are you lying?" he said quietly. "You didn't ask your parents' permission. You didn't submit the confirmation form to your professor. You lied about not being sick. You used magic here." He paused. Then — her full name. The one that meant something serious was coming.
"Himari."
She looked at him.
"I know you're angry at me. Maybe you even hate me. But you need to understand how much danger you are in right now." He held her gaze. "Milli — that girl who got attacked — she was hit by a leaked magic signature. She got the same initial symptoms you first showed when your magic started leaking. The same way."
He wanted to keep going. To tell her everything.
But her face had already changed.
In one second the color drained from it completely. Her hands started trembling — not the small nervous tremor from before, but something deeper. Uncontrollable.
"That's not possible," she said. Her voice was barely there. "They were only in Cyphrus. How would they — no. You're lying." She stopped. Pulled herself back together. "Okay. I apologize for not asking my parents' permission. But I'm an adult now. I don't need permission from them. My father is too busy anyway. I'll personally apologize to Professor Arata after leaving here as well. Okay?"
He put his hands on her hands as they were quite shaking.
"Calm down. I didn't mean to scare you."
And then a single tear dropped onto his hand.
She was still looking down. Her voice came out small and stripped of everything she usually kept in front of it.
"Is it true? Did she really get attacked by them?"
"She's okay now. There are doctors with her. We're cancelling the camp." He paused. "I didn't call you here to tell you that. I called you here to ask — are you okay? Are you feeling alright? Have you felt any discomfort?"
He was clearly asking about the seal.
She looked up.
The eye contact was too deep. Too full of meaning. Himari's eyes were red — not crying yet, but full. The kind of full that means one wrong word and it all comes down.
She just looked at him.
That look was enough.
Niel understood immediately that he had made a mistake. He had told her too much, too fast. He had wanted her to understand the danger. He had wanted her to leave without a fuss. He had wanted to ask about the seal — because something in him clearly sensed they were close, that they had found her, that she couldn't keep using her magic freely without consequence.
But it had done the opposite.
He couldn't touch her. Couldn't comfort her. He wasn't even a friend in her eyes. He was nothing she had chosen.
He sighed. and back his hands He stood up abruptly and ran a hand roughly through his own hair.
He walked to his small desk, picked up the glass of water, and came back.
"Here. Calm down. Take a deep breath."
Her face was red. Clearly she was trying to hold it together — that specific habit of hers, the one where she held her breath when she was trying not to cry. Stopped it completely. Like if she didn't breathe the feeling would pass.
He remembered the first time he had seen it. Back in Cyphrus, at a field camp with their teacher. Everyone was making jokes and laughing, and Haru had flicked Himari on the forehead — she had been laughing with her friends, face red, breath held, trying not to cry from laughing too hard. He had asked Haru about it afterward. That's just what she does, Haru had said.
Right now, hands shaking, she took a sip of water. A failed attempt at composing herself. Then asked, very quietly —
"Is it happening because of me? Did I cause this? Is it because I came here? Is it because I used my magic?"
Then — for the first time in years — she used his name.
Not sir. Not General. Just —
"Niel."
He noticed. He didn't show it.
"I don't know," he said. "We haven't been able to find a clear reason yet. And I don't think it happened because of you."
"No," she said. "It happened because of me."
"Himari—"
"Tell me the real reason you called me here," she said. Her voice was steadying now, slowly, the way a flame steadies after wind passes. "And tell me the real reason you're so insistent on sending me back."
He sighed. She could read everything too easily. He had always known that about her.
"It's nothing important," he said. "Go back. Pack your bags. You're leaving before nightfall. You'll be safe."
"What about the others?"
"They're safe. I'm here. But your safety is what matters right now."
She looked at him. "Why? Because they're targeting me? Because they came here to take me?"
Niel, caught in the flow of the conversation, said, "Yes."
A beat of silence.
"And now," he said quickly, "just get to the military academy. You'll be safe there. Arthford has strong barriers."
She looked at him flatly. "Oh really. I got my first attack at Arthford. You know that, right?"
"I know," he said. "And I've already spoken to Professor Arata. Because of your actions you're already facing a one-week suspension. So you will be safe at home. Your whole family are strong magic users and your father is one of the strongest — you don't need to worry. I've already spoken to Haru. He's the one taking you back."
She just looked at him.
The disbelief was complete. Then the tears fell — not gently. Just fell.
"How dare you."
Her voice didn't rise. It didn't shake. It was flat and certain and more dangerous than shouting.
"How dare you make decisions for me. I am not going back home. Not there. Not at all. Who gave you permission? It's my life. And you're hiding something." She looked at him directly. "Why are you in such a hurry to send me away?"
"Because it's about your safety."
"Oh really." Her hands were trembling but her voice stayed level. "And what about that girl? What about Milli?"
He was getting slightly frustrated. The way her tears were still falling even as she kept talking without raising her voice — two things happening at once that he didn't know how to hold.
"Listen, Hima. This is serious. Students don't suffer from what you went through. Worry about yourself first. I'm a General — I'm not letting something happen to anyone care about other student i am sending them back as well."
"Oh really," she said again. "But look at Milli. The same thing happened to her. If she also becomes the same way as me — then she must be their next target. And I am not letting that happen." She took a breath. "And you know very well. Haru knows very well. It's happening because of me. And you're just sending me away." Her voice cracked slightly. "No. I am not running away."
"Himari, try to understand. I'm doing it for your safety—"
"Did you ask me?" she said. "Did you ask me if I need safety or not? Who gave you that right?" She looked at him. "I'm not the same kid. And what guarantee do I get? I wasn't attacked at home. I wasn't attacked on the way back somewhere. I got attacked at Arclight — one of the most protected academies, surrounded by elite magic professors. And you're one of the elite." She didn't look away. "So what's the guarantee?"
She paused.
"Don't make me a runaway. Because I'm already regretting staying alive enough as it is."
She wiped her tears with the back of her sleeve. Roughly. Like they were something that needed removing, not something that deserved to fall.
"Don't create another reason for me to hate you more. Tell me the truth. Why do you want me to go back home?"
She looked straight at him. Strength in her eyes even through the red.
He sighed.
"Officially — a senior commanders and my companions are coming. They're going to inspect everyone." He stopped. Then, like the words cost him something — "They're going to found your seal, Himari."
She looked at him.
He looked like a man who had been backed into a corner he built himself.
"Hima." His voice dropped. "They're going to use someone as bait. And I know — I know — that you would have to volunteer they are going to use you to catch them. Please." His jaw tightened. "Don't do this to yourself. Go back home before nightfall. They arrive in the morning. It's an order from me. Not a request. Understand my situation. Don't put me somewhere I regret for the rest of my life."
He stopped.
Then, quieter —
"You don't know this. But I'm already regretting my whole life for what I did in the past. Don't give me another thing to carry."
He came toward her. He pulled his gun from his side and held it at her head its clear eh just making her at all cost to back down .
"Are you ready to die, Himari?"
His voice was low. Shaking slightly. Not a threat — a plea disguised as one.
"Because you know what the Agnes Pact does to their targets. More brutal than a vulture on a dead body. You know that. And I am not letting that happen."
She stood up. Stepped forward until she was directly in front of him.
"Shoot," she said.
Flat. Steady. Looking straight at him.
"Shoot, Niel. Because you cannot send me home at gunpoint. And you and I both know — it's enough running. I need my revenge." She didn't look away. "I am also one of their victims. You are not the only one with the right to find them."
She exhaled.
"You became a General. You took this case into your hands. Haru — my brother — did the same. So what am I? A showpiece who just needs protection? huh?" Her voice stayed level but the words had edges. "If you see me as a friend you always included me in everything. But you're both treating me like fragile glass." She shook her head. "I'm not. I am a human who got abducted. Who got injured. But I am going to get up, face my fear, and take my revenge. I will not let any other person become the next Himari. Or the next Kiro. I will protect those like me — the ones who are under them right now, getting the same treatment and torture I went through. I am going to save them."
She looked at him directly.
"See me as your subordinate. Not a doll who needs protection. I am not going home. Nobody is waiting for me there. You are mistaken about my family." Her voice dropped quieter. "If you came here without the full details of my life — you came with an incomplete picture."
She picked up the glass from the table and set it down firmly.
"So don't be foolish. Let me walk next to you. Not under your wings." She paused. "Understood?"
A beat of silence.
"And tell Kiro—"
She stopped. Let it sit for one second.
"I know. I remember him from the day he spoke in similar language . He doesn't need to pretend anymore. I have every single memory back."
Niel went very still.
She turned and walked out.
The tent held her presence for a moment after she was gone. Her stillness still sitting in the chair somehow. The shape of her still in the room.
Niel looked at the back of his hand.
Where her tear had fallen.
He closed his eyes.
Just — held it. The weight of her being here. The weight of her still fighting. The weight of a girl who said I'm already regretting staying alive and then stood up and told him to let her walk beside him.
He closed his eyes and tried to absorb it all.