Kana had left the Esios army camped at the border with Harthland behind her—traveling alone made her faster. Ahead, the bustling capital city of Sira stretched out, filled with noisy streets and lavish mansions.
She glanced upward toward the three towering spires of the palace. Her target was in the central tower. A sly smile crept across her lips. "I've arrived, Raxis. The moment you kick the bucket, I'll be ready to take Harthland for myself."
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The Shinya team had set up camp for the night not far from Sira.
"I'll teach you the Vitalis here," Shinya said.
"Finally, are you going to tell us what it is?" Yuu asked impatiently.
"It's a transformation," she replied. "Before you can use Vitalis, you need to be fully charged with energy. Vitalis will consume your strength to stay active, and when you run out, the transformation will deactivate. At that moment, you'll feel completely drained. Focus, I'll be back in a few minutes," she said, walking away with a cigarette in hand.
"Does she always have to keep us in suspense?" Yuu grumbled.
"That's just how she is, you know," Keiji laughed.
"I'm good, I already absorbed enough air, hehe," Mira chuckled.
"Right when Keiji and I need to concentrate," Yuu emphasized the last word on purpose.
"You should've picked air instead—would've been luckier," Mira teased.
"We're close to the capital," Keiji said. "Look at all those lights."
"In our village, the only lights were torches…" Yuu replied, remembering all the secret night outings he had sneaked out for, even though his family had scolded him many times. He felt guilty for all the times he had disobeyed.
"Are you ready?" Shinya appeared behind them as they admired the beautiful city before them.
Yes, we are," Keiji answered.
"Good." She stepped back and motioned for them to do the same. "Now you need to transform all the concentration you've gathered into pure energy and slowly release it outside your body.""How do we do that?" Keiji asked.
"Are you kidding me?" Yuu shouted. "Toru's been captured, and we're here playing your little games?"
Shinya sighed. "How much hope do you really think you have against Raxis in Ethereum form?"
Yuu fell silent.
"Even the Lightstorm will have Ethereum powers, so let's be prepared for the fight."Shinya watched them for a moment, then continued: "If no one's going to interrupt anymore, I'll explain how to release your energy."
Mira elbowed Yuu and giggled.
"To release the accumulated energy, you need to latch onto a positive emotion. Joy, happiness, love—any of those will work. If you cling to a negative emotion instead, the energy will build up inside you and you'll transform into Ethereum, the negative manifestation of Esper power. Often, Ethereums can't handle all that energy and lose control, attacking anyone nearby. So avoid thoughts of hatred and revenge."
"That's it?" Mira asked.
"Remember, a very strong positive emotion. Once Vitalis is complete, you'll have your Esper weapon—like I have my scythe. Your weapon represents what's in your heart," she explained, showing her scythe. "You can summon it anytime, even when you're not transformed or if it's been destroyed." She looked up. "I rushed things, Kyorano will definitely be mad."
The three split up and began training on their own, but Yuu saw Shinya approach and whisper very softly in his ear, "Don't make me regret this choice—please don't turn into Ethereum."
Yuu grabbed her hand. "Don't worry, I won't become Ethereum."
She nodded with a smile and walked away to let him train.
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It was nearly dawn when a blinding flash burst from Keiji.
A second later, his best friend reappeared, surrounded by a crackling electric aura. He wore a strange armor lined with various gadgets, long white boots, and at his waist, a sheath appeared—inside it, a strange sword.
Keiji grabbed it and drew the blade—it was shaped like a lightning bolt.
"Whoa, Keiji, you did it! And that's a top-tier sword—pure silver!" Shinya exclaimed.
Yuu rushed over to get a closer look.
"This is amazing. I can feel a huge surge of energy," Keiji said, clearly thrilled.
"Just wait—once I get my Vitalis too, I'll totally surpass you!" Yuu shot back.
"Don't get too full of yourselves," Shinya cut in. "Vitalis drains a lot of stamina. Once it runs out, you'll be exhausted and vulnerable. Make sure to conserve some energy."
Right after that, a strong gust of wind erupted from Mira's direction.
"I'd say I've got it too," said the ninja calmly.
She was wrapped in a shimmering veil, revealing a light-blue bikini underneath, paired with elegant blue boots.
She walked over to Yuu and teased him with a grin. "Well? What do you think? Hehe."
Yuu backed up slightly, blushing. "Y-Yeah, it's really... nice."
"This is my weapon," she said, pressing close and showing him a long spear with a sky-blue shaft and golden tips.
"Looks like our Yuu's the only one who hasn't managed it yet," Shinya laughed.
"What are you laughing at? You haven't shown us yourVitalis yet," Yuu shot back.
"Haha, fair enough, fair enough."
Shinya grabbed her black scythe and was instantly wrapped in a wave of violet energy.When she reappeared, she had transformed. Her body was covered in deep violet armor that stopped just above the knees, leaving parts of her arms exposed. She wore black gloves and boots, but the most striking feature was the pair of delicate, light-purple butterfly wings on her back.
Yuu was speechless.
Mira pouted. "Tch, I still look better."
"Ahaha, speechless, huh? Did I blow you away?" Shinya laughed.
"Well... yeah," Keiji admitted. "Your Vitalis is really beautiful."
"It's not about beauty," she reassured him. "We should deactivate now before we end up collapsing."
Mira and Keiji nodded and released their transformations.
Yuu was happy for his friends—but he still hadn't succeeded. Fear held him back. The fear of becoming an Ethereum.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't think of anything happy. Every time he tried to focus, memories of his parents' death would flood his mind—or he'd see Raxis torturing Toru again.
"There's no more time," Shinya said, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"But I..." Yuu started.
"If we want to save Toru, we have to go now—or it'll be too late. We've stayed here long enough."
"But I won't stand a chance without my Vitalis," Yuu protested.
Shinya shot him a cold glare. "You're the one who insisted on coming to save Toru. We left Libertas behind to follow you. We abandoned our home and our comrades to rescue him—and now you want to take your time, waiting around until you master the Vitalis? Normally, it takes days to awaken for the first time. Mira and Keiji did it in just a few hours and this is a miracle! Once we're back, you'll have all the time you need to learn. For now, we fight just enough to save Toru—and then we flee. Stay focused on our mission and set aside your hatred for Raxis."
Yuu closed his eyes.
For the first time in years, he saw them again— The girl wrapped in flames and the red eyes burning within the Darkness.
He couldn't hear their voices but when he opened his eyes, he knew exactly what he had to do.
"Let's go!"
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They reached the city gates with surprising ease.
Too much ease!
Strangely, there wasn't a single guard outside the residential zone, but when they stepped into the city, they were completely stunned.
Guards and civilians alike were collapsed all over the ground.
"Are they... dead?" Yuu asked, terrified.
"No," Keiji said, kneeling to take a closer look. "Looks like they're just asleep. All of them."
"It's a psychic trick," Shinya said. "A skilled Esper can emit a hypnotic wave strong enough to put everyone in an area to sleep. But normally, they'd have to touch another Esper to do that. If someone managed to knock out an entire city from a distance... they must be insanely powerful."
"I don't know of any other strong Espers working for Raxis besides the Lightstorm," Mira muttered.
"Let's move toward the palace—but carefully. There could be traps," Shinya warned.
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They reached the palace gate—but found no traps, no resistance.
"The trap must be inside," Yuu guessed.
"Watch out!" Shinya shouted, deflecting a fireball with her scythe.
In the next moment, a dozen Espers in the Governor's service rushed them.
Yuu caught one of them shouting, "There they are! Why weren't we warned? What were the guards even doing?!"
"So... even they didn't know everyone was asleep," he whispered to the others.
"Almost like someone helped us get in," Keiji muttered.
"Perfect," Shinya said. "A dozen Espers is too much for you three. I'll handle things here. You go—get inside and free Toru. And don't do anything reckless."
"Are you sure you can take them all alone?" Mira asked.
"Don't worry. Go. I'll catch up once I'm done here."
"Finally... it's our turn!" Yuu shouted as he rushed into the palace, Keiji and Mira right behind him.
Shinya watched them go. She wished she could follow—but they were growing. Sooner or later, they'd have to learn to stand on their own.
She turned back, gripping her scythe with both hands, ready to face the wave of enemies head-on.
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Reaching the top of the main tower, Yuu burst through the door of the Governor's chamber—Toru was inside.
And so were Raxis and the Lightstorm.
"Oh, finally. Took you long enough," Raxis greeted them. "They really should've warned me from downstairs."
"Seems like the whole city's taking a nice nap," Yuu replied sharply.
"Guys, I'm here!" Toru shouted, chained up against the wall. "These restraints block my powers!"
"I got you, sweetheart," Mira said with a wink, unleashing a flurry of air blades that sliced through the chains.
Before Toru could even hit the ground, the ninja had crossed the room in a single leap, caught him mid-fall, and returned to her spot.
Raxis and the Lightstorm didn't even move.
"Man... getting saved by a girl like that..." Toru muttered, clearly embarrassed.
"You can thank me later. For now, listen up," Mira said, setting him down and whispering in his ear. "Now that you're free, try to focus all your energy and release it slowly. While you do, hold onto a positive emotion. Trust me—something good will happen." She stood back up and faced the enemies. "Not that I expect much from a moron like you," she added with a smirk.
"I didn't really get all that, but okay," Toru mumbled, still confused.
"Toru doesn't know. He might not pull it off," Yuu said with concern.
"Pull off what?" Toru asked.
"As usual, he understands nothing," Mira sighed. "Just do what I said."
"Oh come on, you'll have plenty of time to argue in the afterlife," Raxis said, clapping his hands to draw their attention. "Now then—time to correct the mistake I made three years ago."
"Perfect!" Yuu shouted. "Then it's time I make you pay—for what you did to my parents, and all the innocent lives you've taken!"
Yuu charged forward with speed and fury, landing a clean hit that sent Raxis crashing into the wall.
The Governor looked stunned. "You... what?"
"I've gotten better since last time. Maybe not as much as my friends, but that training really helped."
Raxis clenched his teeth, trying to stay composed. "Excellent. Then you'll make a perfect punching bag. Lightstorm—deal with the others."
With a shout, Raxis launched Yuu high into the air, smashing him through the tower's ceiling.Their battle continued atop the central tower.
Yara stepped forward first. "I'll take the cute blondie."
With a blast of electric orbs, she shattered the wall and sent Keiji flying toward the right tower—then followed after him in a flash.
Jingrou locked eyes on Toru. "I'd rather finish what I started with him. The girl's yours, Fred."
Mira leaned toward Toru and whispered one last time, "Just do it. Think of something that makes you happy while you release your energy."
"But—"
Without waiting, Mira stepped toward Fred: "Hey, big guy," she said playfully. "How about we take this fight to the left tower?"
"Fine by me," the Lightstorm leader replied.
Another wall exploded as the two launched themselves toward the opposite tower.
Toru was left alone— face to face with Jingrou.