Vol. III Chapter XII: Rescue Mission

The bell echoed dully through the halls of the academy.

A brief moment of transition, when most students retreated to their rooms or lingered outside in the courtyards.

No one paid attention to the three figures moving with determined steps toward the northern wing.

They had prepared as many vials of essence as they could get their hands on.

“Left at the fork, then down the stairs. Third door past the storeroom,” Tairaku murmured as they ducked into the shadows along the walls.

They reached the door leading to the basement stairs.

The hallway smelled of old stone, moss, and stale air. Only a single lantern flickered lazily on the wall.

Two guards stood watch: an older man with a mustache dozing on a stool, and a young, broad-shouldered fellow leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

Lucius glanced at Tairaku. He merely nodded, stretched out his throwing arm, and hurled a vial so it shattered right at the guards' feet.

The glowing essence quickly spread across the floor.

“Codladh somnus samh.”

The guards heard the words, then their eyes grew heavy. Barely startled by the impact, they toppled over, deep asleep as the magical mist engulfed them.

Carefully, the group stepped over their motionless bodies and moved on to the makeshift prison that held their friend.

Since the academy had no proper prison, it was merely a locked storeroom repurposed into a holding cell.

Meiruna pulled out a lockpick and inserted it into the lock with surprising ease.

Lucius raised a brow. “And how do YOU know how to pick a lock?”

Meiruna shot him a withering look.

“You’ve got to be prepared. In case you ever have to help some idiot from another world who messed up.”

The pick clicked softly, and the lock popped open with exaggerated ease.

“Glizzy…?” she whispered as she gently pushed open the cell door.

There, in the corner of the dim room, sat Glizzy on a straw mat, arms wrapped around her knees.

When she heard Meiruna’s voice, she slowly lifted her head. Her glasses were crooked, her red hair even more tousled than usual.

“M...Meiruna…?” she whispered.

The siblings stepped in first.

“We’re here to get you out.”

Glizzy rose slowly. Her voice was hoarse.

“You came… for me?” Tears welled up in her eyes. Then she rushed forward, throwing her arms around Meiruna’s waist, any higher and she wouldn’t reach.

Then Lucius entered the cell, eyes turned away, full of shame.

She looked at him.

“Lucan...”

No one said anything for a moment. Then she stepped toward him and hugged him too.

“You came,” she murmured.

Lucius was stunned.

Why isn’t she yelling at me? Telling me to get lost? Hitting me?

“I knew you’d get me out of here.”

Lucius struggled for words, finally swallowing hard and whispering,

“...But I left you behind. I abandoned you! Aren’t you even angry with me?”

She shook her head with exaggerated defiance.

“Why would I be mad at you? You told me to trust you, and that you’d be back soon, dummy.”

Lucius let out a small laugh, though his voice cracked, then he gently pulled her into a hug.

“I’m sorry… and thank you…,” he whispered. “Thank you for still believing in me.”

Glizzy grinned against his chest, her sharp teeth gleaming faintly in the lamplight.

“Of course. If I didn’t believe in you… who else would?”

And for the first time in what felt like forever, Lucius felt something close to relief.

They left the cell quietly. Meiruna watched the corridor while Tairaku took the lead, heading back up the stairs.

“Did they hurt you?" Lucius asked Glizzy softly as they left the basement hallway behind.

“No. Only my butt hurts from all the sitting…,” she muttered with a weak smile.

Lucius chuckled faintly, but her voice turned more serious.

“It’s just sad that it’s all over now… That I have to leave.”

The others stopped in their tracks. They stood in the hallway and looked at Glizzy with quiet understanding. It was rare for her to be this serious.

“...It wasn’t just the learning and the essences,” she continued. “For the first time in my life, I felt like I truly belonged somewhere. I had you guys. I was just... happy.”

She sighed. 

“Still... it was a wonderful time. And you got me out. I’ll never forget that, even if I have to return to my tribe now.”

Then she suddenly grinned, almost defiantly:

“Oh boy, my shaman’s gonna get an earful!”

The group slipped silently through the hallways again.

Tairaku led the way, checking every corner with cautious eyes.

“If we take the corridor by the east wing, we’ll reach the outer wall and a side exit,” he whispered.

But then, footsteps approached.

“Damn!” Meiruna hissed.

“There!” Lucius pointed to an open window above a low stone ledge at the end of the hallway.

“We can get out through there!”

One by one, they climbed through the window.

The wind hit them sharply. The stone was slick with rain. They pressed flat against the outer wall, carefully inching sideways across a ledge barely wider than their fingers.

“Slowly… don’t look down…” Tairaku muttered.

“Too late…” came Glizzy’s trembling voice as she clung to the wall, her face squished against a windowpane.

She blinked inside a brightly lit room, and froze.

“Okay… I don’t want to overreact, but either the headmaster is hosting a really weird dinner party… or something nasty’s going down in there.”

Lucius edged up beside her and cautiously peered through the large window.

Three masked figures in blood-red suits stood before the headmaster, who held his arms up in exhaustion, a protective barrier still barely flickering around him.

One of the attackers wielded a long blade, streaked with glowing red veins, and was hammering it repeatedly against the magical shield.

“It’s an attack!” Lucius whispered.

“We have to do something,” Tairaku said immediately, leaning in as well.

“Weren’t we just here to get Glizzy out!?” Meiruna objected.

Then all eyes turned to Glizzy, as if it were her call.

She looked down along the wall, then back through the window.

Inside, the attackers still hadn’t noticed them. They were focused entirely on their target.

“Save your breath! Killing me won’t change anything!” the headmaster barked.

Their leader sneered.

“Not if we burn you all to the ground! Once we have your seal ring, we’ll blow this academy apart from the inside of the Arcaneum. And that’s just the beginning.”

The headmaster gritted his teeth.

“I won’t let that happen!”

He uncorked a vial from his belt, drank it in one gulp, murmured a spell and unleashed a cascade of searing lightning through his barrier.

Two of the assailants were hit, flung across the room, and dropped dead to the ground.

Only the leader remained. His blade devoured the lightning like a black hole, the room darkening around him.

“Go ahead, old man!” he taunted. “The more magic you throw, the stronger my anti-magic blade becomes!”

The archmage snorted.

“So the goblin stunt was just a diversion, huh…?”

The attacker flinched.

“Goblin? What are you babbling about? Losing your mind already?”

“Don’t play dumb. You know exactly what...”

A sudden crash.

The window shattered behind them, glass flying, and the group burst into the room.

Tairaku threw himself in front of the headmaster and cast a new barrier.

Meiruna sent bolts of ice streaking through the air, but the attacker swung his blade, its glowing red veins devouring the magic instantly.

“Crap, magic’s no use on this guy!” Meiruna growled.

“Who the hell are you?!” the attacker shouted.

“Academy security! Surprise inspection!” Glizzy called out behind them.

Lucius stepped forward, summoned sword in hand. “I’ve got this…”

“If you stand in my way, you’ll fall like the rest of this academy!” the attacker growled.

Then their blades clashed.

A blinding flash burst with every strike. The anti-magic sword glowed blood-red, and each blow sent sparks flying, waves of magical backlash lashing Lucius even when he blocked.

He stumbled back, jaw clenched. Even from a distance, red energy surged from the blade, scorching his skin.

"Do you like the pain my blade inflicts on you, even though it never touches you?" the attacker laughed, twirling the blade in a deadly arc..

Lucius ducked under the next swing, countered with a sideways strike, but it only grazed his opponent.

“Tairaku! Any ideas?” he yelled as another jolt struck his shoulder.

“His weapon feeds on magic, we need to hit him with something non-magical! Since your weapon is summoned, it will only makes him stronger!” Tairaku called back.

Behind a toppled desk, Glizzy blinked and muttered, “Non-magical, huh…”

Lucius was losing ground. His sword trembled in his hands, his arms burned. The next strike came from above, heavy and fatal.

Then: a crash.

A bookshelf slammed down with a thunderous boom. The attacker looked up, eyes wide, and leapt, but too late. 

The shelf crashed onto him. His sword flew from his grasp, clattering across the floor.

"Eat that!" Glizzy shouted from the top of the shelf she'd just knocked over.

Lucius didn’t hesitate. He surged forward, dropped low, skidded across the polished floor, and drove his blade into the attacker’s side.

The man screamed, reeled, and Meiruna ended it.

A burst of icy wind erupted from her hands, slamming him into the wall and freezing him in place.

Crystals spread, locking his limbs, encasing his upper body. He was done.

Silence fell, heavy and cold. Then, the attacker groaned weakly.

“Forgive me, Enyo… Eris... I’ve failed… But no matter, Tiberun scum… Ares himself has given Valdrik the power to crush you… It’s only a matter of time now!

Lucius froze.

Enyo… Eris... and Ares?

The names echoed in his memory.

Where did I hear that names before?

But before he could ask more, the man convulsed. Blood seeped from his mouth. He had bitten down on something hidden in his cheek.

And then he was gone.

The headmaster stared at the group, wide-eyed. “You… you’re students, aren’t you?” His gaze fell on Glizzy. “Wait, aren’t you the goblin I had imprisoned this morning?”

Tairaku stepped forward, calm and composed. 

“I believe there’s been a misunderstanding, Headmaster.”

Then he explained.

He told of Glizzy’s courage. That she had suspected something and followed the intruders into the Arcaneum. That her arrest had been a tragic mistake. That her aid in the fight proved her loyalty beyond doubt.

And not a word of it was true.

But it was exactly the truth the headmaster needed to hear. He sighed deeply and braced himself against his desk.

“So… she was just a pawn?”

Tairaku nodded.

And so the charges against Glizzy were dropped. Her expulsion was overturned.

The stolen book remained “missing.” No one knew it was in Lucius’s possession, except his three companions.

But in the days that followed, the academy was officially closed.

With Valdrik confirmed as the attackers and the war still raging, plus Yashar’s southern invasion still not fully repelled, the administration deemed the situation too dangerous to continue.

Classes were suspended. Most students soon departed. The once lively halls, full of spells, laughter, and argument, fell silent.

And so, a few days later, the four stood together at the main gate, boots laced, packs strapped tight.

“Well…” Lucius began quietly. “I guess this is farewell then.”

The others looked at each other. Meiruna frowned.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean… this is where our paths split, right? You know my mission. I can’t waste any more time. And you… you’ll go home.”

Tairaku raised an eyebrow.

“And you really think we’re going to let you charge into another rescue mission alone?”

“The journey back to Animshim takes months,” Meiruna added. “You’ll need someone to keep you in line." 

Lucius looked at her in surprise and she blushed a little bit. 

"Don’t get the wrong idea, it’s just until the academy reopens! Besides, our studies aren’t over or anything..." she added.

Lucius blinked. “Are you serious?”

Glizzy stretched her arms and yawned.

“Wasn’t that obvious from the start?” she asked. “No way I’m going back to my tribe now. You guys are way more fun.”

Lucius looked at them.

Tairaku, Meiruna, Glizzy.

A strange, mismatched group. But they were his friends now. His party.

He nodded slowly. And smiled.

“Alright then. Thank you… all of you.”

Glizzy tugged her pack tighter and skipped alongside him.

“Sooo… where are we going again?”

Lucius looked straight ahead. The wind tugged at his cloak.

“To a goddess,” he answered. “And then... We’re gonna rescue my wife."

Glizzys eyes widened.

“You’re married?! Why didn’t I know of that!?” she blurted out in shock.

The others just laughed, saying nothing, but their faces said everything.

And so, the four of them set out once more, toward gods, danger, and whatever fate had in store for them.