Tiago knocked on the stone structure harder this time around, but he was still met with the same heavy silence from his previous two attempts.
"Come out, Toad!" he yelled aggressively, lifting his foot and slamming it against the solid surface. The impact shot up his leg, but the structure did not budge.
The failure irritated him even more when he realized his kick had done absolutely nothing to it, not even leaving a faint scratch behind.
He opened his palm, and a ball of fire began to gather in it, heat building at the center before spreading across his skin. The flames tightened into a controlled sphere, casting a sharp glow against the stone.
"Might as well burn you with it and bury you," he said before he pulled his arm back and attempted to throw the ball of flame that had formed in his hand.
But Koa stopped him. He moved quickly, stepping in front of Tiago and summoning his own water affinity. A sharp stream burst from his palm and swallowed the flame midair, hissing as it died before it could touch the stone.
Tiago turned to him angrily. "Why did you do that, brother?"
Koa did not raise his voice. He lowered his hand as the last trace of steam faded between them. "Now is not the time to make hasty decisions," he started calmly. His gaze shifted briefly to the structure before returning to Tiago. "Fire against stone like this will not weaken it. It will only temper it further. Heat will harden the surface and seal whatever weakness it may have had. You would be strengthening the very thing you are trying to break."
"How then do we get the toad to come out?" Tiago asked exasperated.
He stepped closer to the structure, studying it with measured focus while the others watched. "If there is a way through, it will not be by force alone."
A faint pause followed. He kept his eyes on the stone as he continued, voice steady. "Perhaps dissolving it would serve us better. And we can achieve that with water and flame. Heated water would weaken the surface gradually. Once it softens to a point, Rhory can use his earth affinity to fracture whatever we manage to thin out."
Tiago, who had been frowning, slowly began to smile. "Yes. Let's do that." His grin widened with renewed energy. "And we will dissolve him with it."
"Whenever you're ready," he added, already summoning his fire affinity again, a controlled flame forming in his palm to prepare the heat they would need.
Koa glanced at Rhory as if seeking approval. When Rhory gave him a curt nod, Koa accepted it as consent and extended his hand. A steady stream of water formed from his palm and flowed toward the stone structure that had Arin hidden within it, wrapping around the base and beginning to press against its surface.
Suddenly, Koa stopped. The stream faltered and thinned before falling away. It was as though he had just recalled something important. He turned back to his brothers.
"But what shall we say when he is sought out? Roldar from the Merit Tribunal saw us already. Perhaps now is not a good time."
Tiago's smile vanished immediately, his jaw tightening at the suggestion.
"Now is not the time to be smart and reasonable, Koa. Let's do this and be done with it."
Koa turned his head slightly, and for a brief second Tiago's smile returned, thinking he would agree and resume the procedure to dissolve the structure.
But Koa turned to face him once more, and spoke again. "I do not think I have it in my conscience to take another life unjustly."
Tiago scoffed, looking away in clear exasperation before snapping his gaze back to him. "Unjustly? Did you just say unjustly? This is very much just."
"How is it just?" Koa countered. "He has done nothing to us."
"He has," Tiago shot back without hesitation. "The moment he walked into the room, he did. No, the moment he stepped into this academy, he did. And you know it. You were the one who pointed it out."
"I did," Koa admitted, his voice lower now. "But I did not think we would stoop this low. We can make him answer for his disrespect. We can make him regret it. But I do not want to kill anyone. Not again."
Tiago held his stare for a long second before shrugging lightly. "Then don't," he said dryly. "I'll carry the burden for you. My conscience has proven far more flexible."
But Koa did not step aside. Instead, he spoke again, quieter this time but no less firm. "How are we any different from the one who killed our Grandmaster if we continue down this path? If we do this, we sink further than we already have. Let us not do this. Please."
His gaze shifted to Rhory, seeking his input as well.
Tiago immediately cut in. "Do not turn to him. Look at me. If you think he is going to suggest otherwise, he is not. He was the one who said we should take the lower grounds if his plan fails, and that we shall."
Koa did not respond to Tiago. He kept his eyes on Rhory, waiting.
Tiago threw his hand in the air, clearly exasperated before him too shifted his gaze to Rhory.
But Rhory was no longer looking at either of them. His gaze had shifted past them, fixed on the stone structure. His brows drew together slightly.
"I think we have a problem."
Koa and Tiago followed Rhory's gaze, and their gaze landed on a stone structure. Their gaze sharpened and their posture changed when they saw what Rhory meant.
A section along its side had melted inward, the surface warped and uneven as though exposed to sustained heat.
Tiago frowned. "Koa, did you melt it further?"
"I did not," Koa replied immediately. "I did not use enough water to cause that. And your flame was meant to provide the heat, not mine. You were controlling it."
"If you did not touch it, then how did it melt?" Tiago shifted his gaze to Rhory. "Or did you touch it, brother?"
"No, I did not. I was too busy waiting for you both to come to a conclusion," Rhory replied.
"But not too busy to notice it?"
Rhory shifted his weight and faced Tiago squarely. "Unlike you, I am capable of observing and thinking at the same time." His tone remained even. "You tend to favor noise over awareness."
Tiago took a step closer to him, jaw tightening. "Careful."
Rhory did not move. "Not that you know what that entails."
Before Tiago could respond, Koa's voice cut through sharply. "Enough, both of you."
They turned to him at the same time. "What?"
Koa was no longer standing where he had been. He was closer to the structure now, near the warped opening along its side. His attention was fixed on it.
He looked at the stone, then back at his brothers.
"He is gone," Koa said evenly. "The toad is gone."