The tent flap fell back as Arthur stepped inside. The canvas smelled of oil and dust. Lamps burned low along a stretcher and a folding couch. Maps lay spread on a low table, ink bleeding where water had hit. A stack of ration tins rattled in the corner. The place felt built for long meetings, not for rest.
Arthur froze the moment their eyes met. Rin and Lyra watched him like they were waiting for a verdict.
"What?" he asked, one brow lifting.
Rin blinked and rubbed her temple, then shook her head. "Let me—"
"Let us catch you up," Lyra interrupted, voice flat. She sat, folding her hands in her lap. Her dark rose mana pulsed just under the skin of her wrist, a slow, angry heat you could almost see.
Lyra kept her gaze to the maps. "Right now we have almost no information on the generals' locations. We sent a small team into the palace to scout. It looks practically empty."
"Which probably means Julius is nowhere to be found," Rin said. She folded her arms and rocked back on her heels. "Empty palace is worse than a full one. Julius would not leave a place where he had the advantage. He's not the kind of man who runs. I think it means he's planning something bigger. The palace no longer fits his plan."
Arthur listened, then nodded once. "That's a reasonable assumption." He tapped a fingertip against his chin. "Then again, we are quick to assign motives. Maybe he's shown a cowardly side we never saw before."
Lyra's jaw tightened. "Theories do not help us. Facts do. Stop overreaching with speculation." She pinched the bridge of her nose and leaned forward, thinking. "What we need is leverage. A trap, or a way to force him into the open."
Rin's face lit. "Easy. We hit the machines keeping the tear open. That will get his attention. He will come if his whole plan is threatened."
Arthur folded his arms and looked at the couch. "There is one problem."
Both women answered in the same breath. "What?"
Arthur pointed toward the low sofa. "You better sit for this."
They shared a look and moved to the couch. Rin kicked her boots up on the table without thinking, crossed her arms, and waited.
Arthur inhaled, steady and small. "Ancient beasts."
Lyra's mouth fell open. "You're joking, right?"
Rin frowned, head tilted. She watched Arthur a second longer and then asked, voice soft and curious, "What are ancient beasts?"
Arthur's eyes went distant for a moment, like he was listening to something only he could hear. "My mother told me this tale," he said. "My father called it nonsense. The version I know is blunt and ugly." He shifted on his heels and began.
"In the old story there was a man named Vaelor of the Deep. He wanted power so badly he could taste it. He felt the world's magic as a hum under his feet, and he learned that the glow grew stronger the deeper you went. The earth's heart was a furnace, and mana pooled there like molten light."
Arthur's hands moved as he spoke, carving the air in careful shapes. "Vaelor built a contraption to carry him down, a shell of iron and runes to mute the heat. He thought he could harness that raw mana, make himself greater than any man. But the deeper he went the more the mana changed him. It was not warm or bright anymore. It was heavy and hungry. It whispered. It bent his mind so that the hunger for power split the man inside."
He paused, eyes trapping theirs. The lamps flared tiny, ghost-bright.
"Closer to the core, Vaelor's skin turned ashen. His hands grew claws. The soul in him burned away into a thing that only wanted to feed on mana. He became a beast, a wandering hunger that could never rest. They say some of those things still drift near the core, ancient and blind, and any man who tries to steal power from the earth risks becoming the same."
Lyra's face had gone pale, not from fear but from the memory of a lesson. She rubbed her thumb along the inside of her wrist like it was a scar. "My family told it too," she said. "We called it Vaelor's Descent. They used it as a warning, the way some folks tell a story about flight to warn children about the sun."
Rin set her chin on her fist, the smirk gone. "So the core is not just a source. It can eat you alive."
Arthur's voice was quieter now. "Mana comes from the earth's heart, yes. But take too much, or take it in the wrong way, and it twists you. The beasts, the old tales—they are the result. Creatures born from greed and heat."
Lyra folded her hands neatly on her lap, her gaze drifting back to the map spread across the table. The flickering lantern light caught the faint crease in her brow. "If Julius seeks something like that, if he truly believes the core can make him more than he is, then striking the machines won't just lure him out. It could be feeding right into his desires."
Arthur leaned back slightly, arms loose for a moment before he straightened again. "That tree at the heart of the Blight dimension, the one that reaches beyond the clouds… it's their source of mana. That's why time bends there, why strength grows so quickly. The core of their world sits exposed. To go too close to it would mean death. Creatures twisted by it will already be stronger than anything we've seen, and the mana itself can strip away the mind."
Rin tilted her head, one hand resting thoughtfully beneath her chin. "So the heart's off-limits. But if we burn the machines farther out, we might not need to step near the tree at all."
Lyra's eyes softened, though her voice remained cool. "That much, I agree with."
Arthur hesitated, gaze heavy on the map before crossing his arms. "Still… sometimes I wonder if all of this is a board he's already set. Every step we take might only be moving the way he wants." His shoulders sank. "Where are the others?"
"Reid's still recovering," Rin said quietly. "Ren's… not here."
Lyra's hands tightened, nails pressing faintly into her skin. Her voice was low, almost to herself. "He took an assignment clearing out blights in one of the survivor zones. He never came back. Just kept moving on to the next."
Rin leaned back, eyes narrowing in thought. "That doesn't sound like him." She exhaled through her nose, then looked to the side, expression dimming. "Unless…"
Both Lyra and Arthur turned to her.
"Unless it's about Nina," Rin finished. "And Milo. He wasn't the same after Milo. Nina's death only cut deeper."
Lyra's lips parted slightly. A shadow of worry flickered in her eyes before she quickly looked down at the floor. "He really should return already."
Arthur shifted, voice steady but distant. "He won't. Not until whatever's eating at him is finished. I know what it feels like, to chase something until there's nothing left in you. You can't drag someone out of that."
Rin forced a smile, playful enough to lighten her own thoughts. "Well, maybe he'll come back stronger than Sosuke. That would be a first."
Arthur's eyes widened. His hands clenched into fists. "None of us have caught up to Sosuke… not yet. I won't allow it." His voice rose with sudden fire. "I'll surpass every one of you!" He stormed out, the flap of the tent snapping shut behind him.
Lyra shook her head slowly, a small sigh slipping past her lips.
Rin's smile lingered faintly. "Some things never change." She leaned back, relaxing into the silence that settled. After a moment, she turned her eyes on Lyra. "You do seem worried though. Is it Ren?"
Lyra stiffened. "No!" She waved her hands quickly, cheeks warming with color. "Absolutely not. Why would I—? He's ridiculous."
Rin tilted her head, unimpressed. "You weren't always so terrible at lying. You two were close once. What happened?"
Lyra wagged a finger as if batting the thought away. "That was before the Starborn got split apart. A mistake, really. Short-lived and pointless."
"Stay on topic, Valcrest," Rin pressed, her tone sharper now.
Lyra crossed her arms and huffed. "We were friends. He was distant, arrogant, always acting above it all, but somehow…" She trailed off, frowning at herself. "Somehow I found it interesting. Then he pulled away. That's on him."
Rin rested her chin against her palm, thoughtful. "Strange. I never even saw how it started. One day you two were just talking like it was natural."
Lyra's cheeks tinged with heat. She brushed a strand of hair from her face. "We bumped into each other in the first-year hall. He was cold, and maybe a little narcissistic, but… different. I guess that drew me in."
Rin's lips curled in a sly grin. "So… interesting, huh." She nodded once, certain. "You have a crush on him."
Lyra nearly jumped out of her seat. "What? No! Not even close!" She buried her face in her hand with a groan. "You're impossible. It's not like that at all. He's just… still interesting."
"Fine," Rin teased, standing and brushing off her clothes. "I'll take your word for it." She gave Lyra a warm smile before heading for the exit. "I hope you get the chance to talk to him more."
The flap closed behind her, leaving Lyra staring at the table. She sighed, running a hand through her hair, but the corner of her mouth betrayed the smallest, reluctant smile.
———
Sosuke peeled off his plain white shirt, the fabric sticking faintly to the half-healed wounds etched across his torso. The recovery tent was dim, lit only by a lantern on the side table, its glow washing over folded bandages, a basin of cloudy water, and the cot that sagged under its own weight. The air carried the sharp tang of herbs, mixed with the faint smoke of the campfires outside.
He flexed his arm and opened his palm, his reflection in the dented mirror watching back. His brow furrowed as he closed his eyes, the muscles in his jaw tightening. He forced himself to call mana, straining to feel the sparks stir beneath his skin.
The flap rustled. Rin barged in with two glass bottles clinking in her hands. "Sosuke—!" She stopped dead, eyes narrowing at the tension in his stance. "You'll strain yourself."
Sosuke opened his mouth, but no words came. He exhaled hard through his nose and straightened. "I was just testing it. Not like I was about to strike the camp with thunder." A faint smile tugged at his lips.
Rin lifted a brow, unimpressed. "If you try too hard, you'll only harm your recovery." She spoke like she was quoting a rule carved in stone. "That's what the doctor said." She flicked her wrist, holding a bottle out to him. "Now, take it."
Sosuke accepted, the glass cool in his hand. He cracked it open and gulped deep. "It's good," he murmured, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
Rin tipped her own bottle back but winced immediately, scrunching her face. "Did it always taste this way? Ugh…" She sighed and set it down on the side table with a soft clink.
Sosuke chuckled, shoulders easing. "Didn't you used to like these?" He shook his head. "Why'd you come here?"
Rin arched a brow. "Why can't I just stop by? I wanted your company." She caught his hand and stepped closer, her touch warm against his scarred knuckles. "And I wanted to let you know I'd be gone for a while."
Sosuke rolled his eyes with a weary sigh. "Where are you going?"
"Nothing serious," Rin said evenly.
"Why won't you tell me?"
"You need to focus on yourself right now," she replied, tone firm. "Don't worry about anything else."
"Rin—"
She lifted a finger to his lips, quieting him with a look. "I'm serious."
Sosuke's eyes hardened, voice steady. "And so am I. You can't keep this stuff from me. It'll only make things harder."
Rin's eyes slipped to the dirt floor, her silence heavy. She drew in a slow breath. "Ren's been gone for a while… and I wanted to check up on him."
"That's it? That's all you were keeping from me?" Sosuke's voice cracked into disbelief. "Seriously?"
"I figured it's not your concern," Rin muttered, folding her arms like a shield.
"What about the day you guys find the generals, o-or Julius?" Sosuke pressed, his voice rising. "Would you lie to me? Would you keep that from me too, just because I can't fight?"
Rin's lips pressed thin. She said nothing.
"Rin," Sosuke urged, his tone edged with command. "Answer me. Please. Promise me you won't keep this from me."
She lingered, shoulders tightening, before whispering, almost against her will, "…Okay."
The tension left Sosuke's chest in a long sigh. "Okay." He nodded, more to himself than her. "I just want to be aware, that's all."
Rin nodded once, her mouth a firm line.
Sosuke clasped both her hands, drawing her eyes back to his. His purple gaze held steady. "You tell Ren to come back and not get himself killed like an idiot. You can use me as the example of what happens when you don't think ahead."
Rin's lips curved into a laugh, soft but genuine. "I'll make sure to warn him."
The tent fell quiet, the silence easy for once.
"We'll have our peaceful life one day, alright?" Sosuke whispered, voice low, almost fragile.
Her smile warmed, and she took a small step back. "Not if you don't stay out of fighting."
"Where are you going?" Sosuke asked, his voice reluctant.
"I was going to talk to Arthur," she replied.
He hesitated, his hands slipping from hers. "I won't get to see you for a while… can't that wait? Just stay a little longer. It gets boring here."