Three-steps plan

On our way back, I tried to cross-check with Luna the information I had, but it turned out to be a bad idea. The overwhelming red was making it too hard to focus and everything she had said went in one ear and out the other. I really wanted the bloody headache to stop already and take away this splitting chaos with it before it would drive me crazy.

Nevertheless, there was also a bright side to this pain. The number of mana spots I found grew significantly, there were now five markings on the map app. The green behemoth wasn’t taken into account any longer, which made the road sign and the pine tree correspondingly the mana spot number one and two.

One of the newcomers was discovered when I cut through a small playground. A normal slide was covered with dark green radiance and judging by the amount it should be comparable to the road sign.

The title of the mana spot number four was given to a metal trash can standing outside someone’s house. When I had tried to check if it could be moved, over half of its green radiance had dissipated. It was already the weakest of them and after that became nearly nonexistent. I decided not to put much hope on this one.

The last, fifth one, was huge, at least when compared to the previous four. An entire single-family house was shimmering. It was also quite close to my flat, about thirty minutes of walking distance. In some way, the mana covering it seemed the most alive as it was constantly swimming around and erupting in smallish geysers. I was wondering if people living inside could feel anything or if it had any other effect on them.

A few minutes after that discovery it was over.

“There’s no more mana activity in master’s eyes.”

“Fucking finally.”

“Was it really that bad?”

“Last time I felt like that was when for an entire night my tooth hurt like a bitch and I had to wait over a dozen hours before I got my hands on a dentist. Now, when there’s no more fucking red chaos crawling everywhere, even a grey wall looks wonderful.”

“Both red chaos and toothaches are alien to me. Does master wants to stay still for a moment to appreciate the beauty of a wall?”

“No, it was just a transient feeling, but I really am happy that the bloody headache has stopped. Now I can go back home and sleep soundly. Perfect plan.”

“What about me teaching master?”

“Let me rest first, my head still hurts like crazy.”

“Buuu!”

Instead of listening to her protests I aimed myself in the direction of the flat, and the bed inside it, and went forward with renewed vigor. On the whole, it was a rather successful long walk. I got to learn something new and managed to secure five mana spots for the future. However, I wasn’t sure how to approach the incoming day. On the one side was my promise to visit Amato mansion and on the other the shadow of TET. After weighing them both for a second it turned out to not be as hard as it had initially looked like.

Sure, the perspective of losing my memories is scary as hell, but promise Is still more important. It’s a one hundred percent death end, if I ignore it, while TET is more uncertain. With a bit of luck, I will get them both done the same day, but Vio takes precedence.



After climbing the stairs to the third floor, I reached the corridor on which the door to my flat was located and stopped mid-step.

Jeans and brown biker jacket, familiar short black-hair, standing twenty-five meters down the corridor, opposite my door, was Adam and he had already turned his swollen face in my direction.

My sudden appearance had surprised him as well but I knew that he didn’t come here to talk, not in the middle of the night, not with that taser in hand.

“Hey, the-”

When he decided to open his mouth, I was already running down the stairs, skipping three of them each step.

That fucker! Does he want to screw with me so badly?!

“Master?! What’s with that sudden shaking?!”

I could hear Adam’s heavy steps chasing me from behind, there was still some distance in between us.

In no time I reached the second floor and continued running down. Getting outside was the first thing that came to my mind, but I decided against it, there was a better option. I took out Luna from the pocket.

“Scream as loud as you can, I promise to get you back.”

“Geas?! What’s happening?!

When I was on the first floor it was a do or die moment, I threw the phone through the gap in the railing to the ground floor and hid behind the corner of the first floor corridor.

Luna scream, I need noise, please scream!

*SCREEEAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKK*

A second later an inhuman loud screech without any signs of it ever ending had pierced the area, but I was still able to hear a set of heavy steps coming closer from upstairs, passing me and finally going down. It had worked, Adam didn’t even slow down among that shrieking.

One, two, now!

Trying to be both fast and silent enough to not be noticed, I went back to the third floor.

All I wanted to, was to get behind my door. I barely stopped myself from frantically inputting the password with a shaking hand and deliberately did it slower than normal.

Now the card!

My hearing was strained to the limit, scanning for any sounds coming from the direction of the staircase, but there was only Luna’s screech growing distant till I couldn’t hear it anymore and then nothing.

Once inside, I leaned my head against the closed door and started breathing deeply. It didn’t take that long to return my heart rate to normal.

I will get used to this shit at this rate.



I made myself a cup of mint tea and sat at the table, the headache and tiredness that I nearly forgot about came back at full force. A replay of the whole situation was being analyzed inside my head.

He just can’t leave me alone, can he?

What does he even wants from me? At this point, there’s no connection between us.

Revenge for messing up Rora? She messed with me first.

To wipe out my memory with the Seal? I may know a little, but it shouldn’t be a problem big enough to risk TET getting involved.

Kill me…?

That last thought felt unreal till I recalled that they had already done that once to Victor. Realizing that helped to stop my regrets that I had run away without even trying to talk.

At that time running outside was something that probably most people would do, that’s why I had decided to change the game from ‘catch me if you can’ to hide and seek. The inspiration for doing that was provided by the unnamed skeleton.

It kind of sucks to be left without a phone, but I will be able to buy a normal one next month.

I took a sip of the tea and looked through the window at the snow-covered street.

I warned her that she will have to act as a distraction at the first sign of trouble. This time, I even made a promise to show her how serious was the situation.

There was also some remorse mixed within my motives for doing that. All those things I had said about trust and I was the one who had backstabbed her first.

Well, I don't think she can be easily hurt inside that vessel and there’s no time limit on my promise, so as long as I get her back somewhere in the future there’s nothing to worry.

It was silent, yet I could nearly hear the doorbell ringing and some other noises of intrusion, but that was only happening inside my head.

Or maybe I should mobilize myself to get her back a little faster, Luna still has to explain all that stuff to me. She’s the only one I can count on in this regard.

I went to the door and put my ear to it, not that it could do much given its thickness, but I still wanted to try.

He may be standing on the other side waiting for me to come out, I find it hard to believe that he will give up that easily.

After standing like that for ten minutes I got tired and simply sat down on the corridor's floor.

But that scream sure was something, chilling to the bone, it’s hard to believe that it was produced from a phone's loudspeaker. Saved my hide, I will have to thank her for that.

Just as I was about to think of how to get her back from Adam's hands - it hit me.

Her shriek didn’t suddenly stop, it gradually went away.

“It can’t be…”

That phone was said to be a powerful reward, even if they didn’t want to use it there was still the possibility of selling it.

“Shit…”

What’s more, one of the reasons why Rora had sent me to the cemetery was to obtain it.

If there’s no Adam standing behind the door, then I fucked up heavily, but if he is standing there then I will fall straight into his hands.

Those were the first two serious faults I found in the front door, it was not only too soundproof but there was also no option to check what was happening on the other side.

Open or not to open, at the end the former won by a slight margin after I had added the pangs of guilt into the equation.

I inputted the code, swiped the card and carefully opened the door, ready to close them with a slight provocation. There was no one there.

“Fuck!”

I couldn’t avert my eyes from this any longer. Just because I was scared and wanted to grab the easiest solution - it was also the worst possible move. Not only I gave them exactly what they wanted, but now, with the promise bounding me to get her back, if they decided to ‘kill’ Luna, she would take me down as well.

Not to mention that I had less than twenty-two hours left to visit the Amato mansion and there was still the whole matter with TET.

Three big problems were crushing me beneath them and the first thing destroyed was my superficial calmness. For a moment I thought about grabbing a ticket and hiding inside a mana spot, but when I thought about the things that Votr would say…

With nowhere to run, no idea where to start and nearly hearing the ticking of the approaching doom clock, I turned towards luck and mysticism.

O great power of highest heaven, tell me what to do before I start crying.

One - Action: Going to sleep.

Reaction: A high possibility of removing tiredness, headache and regaining the clarity of mind.

Two - Action: Going to the flat number 501.

Reaction: User lacks mana to complete the prediction.

Three - Action: Eating the cinnamon cereals in users kitchen.

Reaction: User will no longer be hungry.

“Ha… haha… hahahahaha!”

For the second time I heard something breaking inside my head. Sitting on the floor, laughing aloud I was asking myself ‘why do I even care?’.

“My great power is right! Sleep well! Eat well! And visit your neighbors!”

The question I had made was simply too general so the answers were also all over the place. However, it strangely helped to warp the clutches of despair into apathy. After a moment of reflection, I realized that following those directions might not be such a bad idea.

Out of my three great problems, two could be safely ignored. Why?

If I lost my memories I wouldn’t care about it anymore.

If they could easily kill Luna, I wouldn’t even be able to get to Rora’s house on time.

And so the plan of action was completed.

Eat, sleep and visit family.