Chapter 45: The Truth Behind the Lie

The air inside Naomi’s study was thick with tension. Books floated in place, magical runes faintly glowing around the walls — a silent reminder of her authority as one of the most powerful mages alive.

Kanata stood before her, head lowered, as her voice sliced through the silence.

“Do you even realize what you’ve done?” Naomi’s tone was sharp, almost trembling. “You interfered in an active High Elite operation!”

Kanata didn’t flinch. “Is it wrong to help someone who needs it?”

“It is when you don’t even know who you’re helping!”

“Then tell me,” Kanata snapped back, his golden eyes narrowing. “Who is she? And what does she have to do with any of this?”

Naomi sighed, massaging her temples. “She’s Subject-02 — a classified threat, accused of attacking multiple civilians.”

Kanata clenched his fist. “And Vlad? What about him?”

Naomi froze, her expression darkening. Kanata’s voice grew louder, cracking with raw emotion.

“I felt it — the stench of his malice. There’s something in me that burns whenever I think of him… a rage I can’t explain!”

Naomi fell silent. Itsuha and Celestine, standing near the doorway, didn’t dare speak.

Kanata exhaled shakily. “I don’t care what they call her. That girl needed help.”

Naomi’s eyes hardened. “Kanata, faces can lie. Have you already forgotten what Caine did to us? He smiled, he promised peace, and then he led us into a war that almost destroyed the world!”

Kanata looked down at his right hand — the bandaged, cursed limb that pulsed faintly with dark energy.
“Maybe so… but that girl isn’t like him. I saw her heart. She’s terrified — and alone. If I turn away from her… then what was the point of all this?”

He raised his hand slightly, his voice breaking into a whisper.
“Even if I’m cursed… even if I fall… I want to use this hand to do something good.”

Naomi’s eyes widened. Kanata’s words echoed — not as his, but someone else’s.

“At least once,” he said quietly, “I want to save someone from the darkness.”

The room went still. Naomi’s lips parted slightly — a memory returning from decades ago.
A gentle voice from the past whispered in her mind:

“At least once, I want to be a light of hope… for everyone.”

Alyana’s voice — her sister. Kanata’s mother.

Naomi chuckled softly, tears forming at the edges of her eyes. “So that’s it. Like mother, like son. Both hopelessly stubborn.”

Kanata frowned. “What are you talking about?”

Naomi wiped her tears, smiling faintly. “Nothing, Kanata. Just… don’t lose that fire.”

For the first time that day, she reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder. “Go. Do what you think is right.”

In a sealed, sterile room beneath the High Elite headquarters, Lucy sat strapped to a chair.
Her tiny wrists were bound by glowing red restraints, electricity pulsing through them.

Reiga’s voice echoed through the chamber. “Where is Vlad hiding?”

Lucy’s eyes were wide, terrified. “I… I don’t know…”

Kobayashi’s tone was cold. “Stop lying.”
He flicked his fingers — and her body convulsed as another surge of mana-current ran through her.

Evelyn watched from behind the glass, her expression unreadable. But her hand trembled slightly — the faintest hint of hesitation.

Lucy screamed again, tears spilling down her cheeks.
“Please… stop… I really don’t know anything…”

Evelyn’s eyes darkened. She’s just a child, she thought, her hand pressing against the cold glass. Vlad, what have you done to her?

By noon, the academy cafeteria was buzzing with whispers.

“Isn’t that the guy who got arrested yesterday?”
“Yeah, the lazy one! They say he was fighting a Vampire!”
“What a liar — no way he survived that.”

Kanata sat quietly at his usual table, chin resting on his hands. The noise barely registered.

Then, a familiar voice — soft but lively — broke through the gloom.

“Kanata-san! Are you all right? Did they… hurt you?”

He glanced up. “Oh, Envy. No, they didn’t. Just… a lot on my mind.”

Her expression softened. “I can tell. You’re thinking about her, aren’t you? Subject-02.”

Kanata blinked. “…How do you know that?”

Envy smiled faintly. “Because I know what it’s like — to be blamed for something you didn’t do.”

Kanata frowned, intrigued.

She continued, her tone quieter now. “That girl isn’t evil, Kanata-san. She’s being used — the same way I was when people thought I killed the twin dragons.”

Kanata’s hands tightened on the edge of the table. “Then this whole thing… is a setup?”

“Truth is always there beside lies,” Envy murmured.
“The truth always hides beside the lie.”

Kanata’s eyes widened slightly. “…Go on.”

Envy leaned closer, lowering her voice. “Vlad was once part of the High Elite Wizard Order. A decorated war hero — brilliant, ambitious. But his downfall began with family.”

Kanata listened in silence as she continued.

“He had many children — but only one daughter survived a mysterious disease that even magic couldn’t cure. She died before he returned from his mission. When he found out… he broke. He tried forbidden resurrection rites — and when his daughter came back, she came back wrong. Blood-hungry, hollow, cursed.”

Kanata’s face darkened.

“He brought back his other children too,” Envy said softly. “And when they began killing humans, High Elite sent their best to stop him — Evelyn Vairne. She was half-vampire, half-human, chosen because she could resist their influence. She destroyed his daughters herself.”

Kanata exhaled sharply, realization dawning. “That’s why she hates him so much.”

“Yes,” Envy nodded. “But Vlad wasn’t killed — only sealed. And now, after centuries, he’s awake again. He’s gathering strength… trying to awaken the last of his bloodline.”

Kanata’s fist slammed against the metal table — the impact leaving a deep dent.

“Enough,” he said through gritted teeth. “I’m not letting her die in that cell.”

Envy smiled faintly. “Then we’re in agreement.”

As the sun set over Tokyo, Kanata stood outside the academy gates, his long coat fluttering in the wind.
Celestine and Itsuha approached from behind, both wearing grim expressions.

“You’re really doing this?” Celestine asked.

“You already know the answer.”

Itsuha crossed her arms, pouting. “You always drag us into your reckless plans, you idiot.”

Kanata smiled faintly. “Then don’t come.”

“As if,” she muttered. “You’d probably get yourself killed without us.”

A few meters away, Envy approached, carrying a small crystal device.
“This will disable the mana barriers for about ten minutes. After that, you’re on your own.”

Kanata nodded. “That’s all I’ll need.”

From the shadows near the gate, Rio emerged with a laptop in hand.
“I’ll monitor the perimeter and jam their sensors. You’ll have a clean path — but not for long.”

Kanata looked at all of them — his friends, his allies — and felt something stir deep within his chest.
He smiled.

“Then it’s decided. Tonight, we move.”

The wind howled, carrying with it the distant toll of warning bells from the city.
Far above them, the crimson moon began to rise once more — a silent witness to the beginning of another war.