Noxi

The first thing he saw was a canopy of green leaves overhead. Morning light filtered through the gaps, bright enough in places to make him squint. Birds called to one another somewhere nearby, while the thick branch beneath his back swayed gently in the wind.

Tesi remained still for several more seconds.

He had fallen asleep right here.

In a tree outside the capital.

There was nothing particularly unusual about that.

Something else was strange.

He hadn’t dreamed tonight.

Nothing at all.

Tesi closed his eyes, trying to recall even the smallest fragment.

Nothing.

No forest.

No gray sky.

No abandoned city.

No image of himself lying in blood.

After the previous dream, some part of him had expected a continuation.

It had been too clear.

Too real.

And, as things later turned out, too significant to simply forget after waking.

But now—

nothing.

Tesi watched the sky through the leaves for a little longer.

“That’s strange.”

He sat up on the branch, letting one leg hang beneath him.

Yesterday, he had found the first one.

Two remained.

Noxi.

Vasi.

It didn’t take long to decide who would be next.

The battle of Group Thirteen returned to his mind.

Falimon’s barrier.

Noxi taking another person’s magic.

And his body.

The hexagonal patterns that had appeared across his skin. The change in its color. Mana that had barely been detectable only moments before suddenly taking on the properties of an entirely different power.

Tesi had seen mages capable of reproducing other people’s spells.

He had seen those who memorized other people’s techniques.

He had even seen people capable of recreating the structure of magic they had witnessed almost perfectly.

But yesterday, Noxi hadn’t simply reproduced a spell.

He himself had begun to change along with it.

Tesi smiled faintly.

“So you’re next.”

A moment later, the branch was empty.

After the previous day’s events, the participants had been given a separate arena where they could train.

Six days remained before the selection resumed, and almost no one intended to spend them doing nothing.

By the time Tesi reached the entrance, he could already hear spells striking targets inside, dull impacts, and the occasional shout.

A uniformed man stood at the gate.

The moment he saw Tesi, he held out one hand.

“Participant?”

“No.”

“Astra representative?”

“No.”

The man looked at him more carefully.

“Then you’re not allowed inside.”

Tesi glanced past his shoulder.

Part of the stands could be seen beyond the high wall.

“I just want to watch.”

“No.”

“I won’t bother anyone.”

“Participants and Astra representatives only.”

Tesi thought for a moment.

“Not even for a little while?”

“No.”

Tesi nodded.

“Understood.”

He calmly turned around and walked away.

The guard watched him until he disappeared around the corner of a nearby building.

Then turned back.

A moment later, Tesi was already sitting on a roof inside the complex.

Everything below continued as though nothing had happened.

He looked across the arena.

There were several dozen participants.

Some trained alone.

Some fought in pairs.

Several sat near the edge of the field, restoring their mana.

It didn’t take long to find Noxi.

He stood near the far side of the arena.

Alone.

“Found you.”

Tesi disappeared.

For several moments, dust stirred across the rooftop where he had been sitting.

Down below, there was suddenly one more person among the participants.

No one even turned around.

A boy nearby repeatedly struck a reinforced target with blades of wind.

Tesi stood a short distance away from him.

He rolled his shoulders.

Leaned to the right.

Then to the left.

Rotated his neck with such a serious expression that he looked as though he had been training there since sunrise.

A participant walking past glanced at him.

Tesi immediately stretched one arm behind his head, putting on an expression of extraordinary concentration.

The participant lost interest.

“Perfect.”

Tesi straightened.

Now he could observe.

Noxi stood off to the side.

Two mages were training in front of him.

One controlled wind.

The other controlled fire.

Nothing unusual.

The boy with fire magic raised his hand.

Flames appeared almost instantly.

A slight movement of his wrist stretched them into a long stream that struck the training target.

Noxi watched.

Not the fire itself.

The mage’s hand.

How natural it all looked.

He wanted it.

Raised his palm.

And power appeared.

Noxi looked toward the second mage.

The boy made a sharp motion with his arm.

The air in front of him compressed.

Impact.

The target shook.

That was his too.

Noxi lowered his eyes toward his own palm.

Empty.

He clenched his fingers.

Nothing happened.

Of course.

Yesterday had been different.

The moment he took Falimon’s magic, mana had filled his entire body. His skin had changed. Hexagonal patterns had appeared across it. For a few minutes, the power had felt so natural that it was as though he had possessed it his entire life.

Then it ended.

The magic disappeared.

The patterns vanished.

And only he remained.

Noxi.

Exactly as before.

Empty.

He looked up.

A girl passed nearby. Three small spheres of light floated above her palm.

The simplest kind of everyday magic.

Noxi still found himself following her with his eyes.

Not because the ability was impressive.

Because it was hers.

That alone was enough.

Falimon had barriers.

Vasi had his own ability.

Everyone here had something that belonged only to them.

Even the most useless magic in the world was still a part of its owner.

Noxi could only take.

Temporarily.

Only while there was something nearby to take.

“Watching again?”

Noxi turned his head.

One of the participants from yesterday’s selection had stopped nearby. Noxi had seen him several times, but couldn’t remember his name.

The boy nodded toward Noxi’s hands.

“That barrier thing yesterday was pretty good. I thought you’d be able to use them permanently after that.”

“No.”

“So you need another mage every time?”

Noxi’s fingers tensed slightly.

“Something like that.”

“Strange ability.”

There was no mockery in the boy’s voice.

Only ordinary curiosity.

For some reason, that made the words hurt more.

“Still sounds useful,” the boy added. “As long as there’s someone strong nearby.”

Noxi didn’t answer.

The boy soon walked away.

As long as there’s someone strong nearby.

Noxi looked down at his hands again.

Exactly.

Someone else.

There always had to be someone else first.

Ability.

He hated that word.

How could something be called his ability when it first had to belong to someone else?

Noxi stared at the arena for several more seconds.

Fire.

Wind.

Stone.

Light.

Every person here could come alone—

and still be a mage.

Noxi couldn’t.

He turned away.

That was enough for today.

Tesi stopped pretending to stretch.

He had been watching from a distance the entire time.

He hadn’t been able to hear the conversation.

He didn’t need to.

Noxi’s expression had been enough.

Especially the way he looked at the others.

Tesi had seen that look many times before.

Some people looked at the wealthy that way.

Others at the strong.

Others at people with famous names.

Noxi looked at magic that way.

Tesi waited until he left the arena.

Then headed toward the exit himself.

Normally this time.

Through the gate.

The same guard saw him walking out from inside.

He frowned.

Looked at Tesi.

Then at the arena.

Then back at Tesi.

“You...”

Tesi raised one hand in greeting.

“Have a good day.”

And calmly walked past him.

The man immediately turned toward the gate.

Then looked back again.

But Tesi was already walking away.

Noxi noticed him several minutes later.

At first, the footsteps behind him didn’t seem important.

The street wasn’t empty.

But after several turns, they were still there.

Noxi stopped.

“How much longer are you going to follow me?”

The footsteps stopped too.

“When did you notice?”

Noxi turned around.

The man standing several meters away looked familiar.

It took him a few seconds.

“You were at the arena.”

“I was.”

Tesi walked several steps closer and stopped.

“Tesi.”

Noxi frowned slightly.

“What?”

“My name. Tesi.”

Noxi stared at him for several seconds, then gave a short nod.

“Noxi.”

“I know.”

Noxi narrowed his eyes.

“Of course you know. You’ve been following me.”

They stared at each other in silence.

“What do you want?” Noxi asked.

“You.”

Noxi scoffed and was about to walk away.

“Your magic interested me yesterday.”

“Falimon’s magic.”

“No.”

Noxi turned around.

Tesi stood there completely calmly.

“Yours.”

A brief smirk appeared on Noxi’s face.

“Then you came to the wrong person.”

Tesi said nothing.

Noxi waited.

A few seconds.

Silence.

For some reason, that silence made him continue.

“I don’t have magic of my own.”

“I saw something different yesterday.”

“You saw Falimon’s barriers.”

“On your body.”

Noxi looked sharply at him.

“What difference does that make?”

Tesi tilted his head slightly.

“That’s what I want to find out.”

Noxi looked away.

“There’s nothing to find out.”

Tesi didn’t argue.

They remained silent for several seconds.

Noxi started walking first.

Tesi walked beside him.

“If there’s no other mage nearby, I have nothing to use,” Noxi unexpectedly continued. “Falimon can create a barrier whenever he wants. A fire mage can create fire. Even someone with the most useless magic imaginable still has something.”

He looked at his hand.

“I don’t.”

Tesi listened.

He didn’t interrupt.

“I can only take something that already belongs to someone else. That’s all.”

A short silence followed.

“Then take mine.”

Noxi stopped.

“What?”

Tesi extended his hand.

“You said you need another mage.”

Noxi looked from his palm to his face.

“You haven’t even told me what kind of magic you have.”

“Is that necessary?”

“It’d be nice to know what I’m about to shove into my body.”

Tesi smiled faintly.

“Fair.”

But he didn’t add anything else.

Noxi narrowed his eyes.

“Are you deliberately not telling me?”

“A little.”

“Very funny.”

For several seconds, he stared at Tesi’s extended hand.

Then finally approached.

“Fine.”

Noxi concentrated.

Normally, the process always began the same way.

First, another person’s mana.

Its structure.

Its nature.

The way it flowed through the owner’s body.

After that, all he had to do was find something to grab onto.

Pull.

Let it enter him.

Allow his body to change around it.

That was how it had worked with Falimon.

The same way it had worked dozens of times before.

Noxi felt Tesi’s mana.

And immediately frowned.

Something was wrong.

He couldn’t understand what.

The mana was there.

He could feel it.

But whenever he tried to grasp its structure, the sensation blurred.

Noxi focused harder.

Tried again.

Deeper.

Finally, he found something he could hold onto.

He pulled.

Pain tore through his entire body.

Noxi inhaled sharply.

His legs gave out.

His vision blurred.

“Wh—”

The pain came from everywhere at once.

Not like being struck.

Not like being burned.

Not like ordinary mana overload.

It was as though his own body had suddenly forgotten what shape it was supposed to have.

His skin burned.

His joints twisted.

His bones compressed from within so violently that his fingers clenched on their own.

Noxi dropped onto one knee.

“Wait...”

But the process had already begun.

Foreign power was entering him.

And Noxi had no idea what exactly he was taking in.

With Falimon, everything had been clear.

Barrier.

Shape.

Structure.

Property.

Even before fully copying it, Noxi had understood the direction in which his body would change.

Now he understood nothing.

Thin lines appeared across the skin of his arm.

A moment later, they vanished.

Then appeared again.

Somewhere else.

His skin turned pale.

Then dark.

Then returned to normal.

Noxi stared at his own hand, unable to understand what he was seeing.

His fingers seemed longer.

Then shorter.

For a single instant—

there seemed to be six.

He blinked.

Five.

An ordinary hand.

“What the...”

A new wave of pain struck harder than the first.

Noxi doubled over.

His breathing broke apart.

But something else was far more terrifying than the pain.

Fear.

Real fear.

Almost animal.

His body seemed to be screaming at him to stop.

Let go.

Run.

Don’t try to understand.

Don’t look any deeper.

Noxi had never felt anything like it in his life.

Other people’s magic had always inspired curiosity.

A desire to take it apart.

To reproduce it.

To make it his own, even if only temporarily.

For the first time, he wanted the exact opposite.

He didn’t want to know.

Every time his mind tried to push deeper, the feeling inside him grew stronger.

As though behind the next door was something he was never supposed to see.

What is this...?

Noxi tried to stop.

To pull away.

It didn’t work.

He froze.

No.

Again.

He tried to break the connection.

Nothing.

The fear intensified instantly.

“Tesi...”

His voice barely came out.

Tesi was no longer smiling.

He looked at Noxi with complete seriousness.

“Let go.”

“I... can’t...”

Something changed in Tesi’s eyes.

Only for a moment.

But Noxi noticed.

This wasn’t part of the test.

Tesi hadn’t expected this either.

The next instant, he was beside him.

So quickly that Noxi never even saw him move.

A hand landed on his shoulder.

“Then I’ll do it.”

The connection broke.

Instantly.

Noxi fell onto both hands and spent several seconds simply trying to breathe.

Cold sweat ran down his temples.

His fingers trembled.

His body belonged to him again.

But the sensation of that foreign power still lingered somewhere inside him.

Even remembering it sent a chill down his spine.

Tesi crouched nearby.

He didn’t say anything.

He didn’t ask whether Noxi was all right.

He simply waited.

Eventually, Noxi raised his head.

“What...”

He had to take several breaths.

“What kind of magic was that?”

Tesi remained silent.

“I’m serious.”

“I know.”

“Then what the hell just happened to me?”

Tesi looked at his hands.

No traces remained.

Noxi slowly sat down on the ground.

Tesi thought about it.

Really thought about it this time.

“Has that ever happened before?”

“No.”

“Never?”

Noxi looked at him.

“I’ve taken all kinds of magic before. Sometimes my body had trouble accepting it. Sometimes it hurt. Especially when its properties were too different from what I’d used before.”

He looked at his still-trembling hand.

“But never like that.”

Tesi didn’t answer.

Noxi looked up at him.

“Did you know?”

“Know what?”

“That this would happen.”

“No.”

The answer came immediately.

No smirk.

No attempt to avoid the question.

Noxi relaxed slightly.

For some reason, that direct answer reassured him more than any explanation could have.

“Then why did you offer?”

“I wanted to see what would happen.”

“Happy now?”

Tesi smiled faintly.

“More than enough.”

Noxi tiredly closed his eyes.

“You’re insane.”

“I hear that a lot.”

“Probably for a reason.”

They remained silent for several seconds.

Tesi looked at him again.

“Now I’m certain of at least one thing.”

“What?”

“You aren’t simply reproducing other people’s spells.”

Noxi grimaced.

“Very profound conclusion after I nearly got torn apart.”

“Still useful.”

“Then what am I doing?”

Tesi didn’t answer immediately.

“I don’t know yet.”

Noxi turned away in irritation.

“You really love saying that.”

Tesi stood and extended a hand.

Noxi stared at it with obvious distrust.

After what had just happened, touching his hand was about the last thing he wanted to do.

“No magic,” Tesi said.

Noxi looked at his face.

Then finally accepted it.

Tesi helped him to his feet.

“I’m never touching your magic again.”

“Good.”

“I’m serious.”

“So am I.”

Noxi released his hand.

For several seconds, he checked whether his legs would support him.

They did.

“You didn’t come here just for an experiment.”

“Not only for that.”

Noxi sighed quietly.

“Thought so.”

Tesi stepped back a little.

“I want to offer you a place in a group.”

After everything that had happened, the sentence somehow sounded almost normal.

Noxi didn’t even look surprised.

“What group?”

Tesi turned toward him.

“Mariyard.”

Noxi froze.

Several seconds passed.

“Say that again.”

“Mariyard.”

“The Mariyard?”

Noxi stared at him for a long time.

Then unexpectedly gave a short laugh.

“Of course.”

Tesi raised an eyebrow slightly.

“What?”

“What else would you say?”

Noxi shook his head.

“First, some unknown mage starts following me. Then he offers to let me copy his power, which nearly turns me inside out. And now it turns out he’s also from Mariyard.”

Tesi waited.

“All that’s left is for you to tell me you’re one of its founders.”

Noxi smirked.

Tesi gave no reaction.

Noxi’s smile slowly disappeared.

“No.”

Tesi remained silent.

“Don’t tell me...”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“That’s exactly why this just got worse.”

Tesi smiled faintly.

Noxi ran a hand through his hair.

“Mariyard is a legend. They teach about it in school. Academies still argue over whether it even existed in the form the stories describe.”

Tesi listened calmly.

“And you just walk up to me in the street and ask me to join.”

Noxi stared at him for several seconds.

“I honestly don’t know which possibility sounds worse right now—you’re lying, or you’re telling the truth.”

“You can decide later.”

Noxi couldn’t help smiling.

Then his expression turned serious again.

“Why me?”

Tesi didn’t answer immediately.

“If Mariyard is even half of what the stories say, there must be mages in it who would make Falimon look like an ordinary student. I don’t even have magic of my own.”

“There it is again.”

“What?”

“‘I don’t have magic of my own.’ You say that with a lot of confidence.”

“Because it’s true.”

“Maybe.”

Tesi looked at his hands.

“But yesterday, your skin covered itself in Falimon’s patterns. Today, your body started changing because of my power. I’ve seen mages who copy spells.”

“That doesn’t happen to them.”

Noxi looked at his palm again.

For a moment, he remembered that impossible movement of his fingers.

“What does that prove?”

“Nothing yet.”

Tesi paused briefly.

“Except that you decided far too early that you already understand your own magic.”

Noxi fell silent.

“I don’t need to convince you,” Tesi continued. “If you want to think of yourself as someone without magic, go ahead.”

The words stung.

“But if that’s really true, why do you care so much about what everyone else has?”

Noxi looked sharply at him.

Tesi said nothing more.

Silence hung between them.

Noxi looked away first.

“Because they have something that belongs to them.”

“I see.”

“Don’t say that like it’s nothing.”

“I didn’t.”

Noxi clenched his fist.

“You don’t understand.”

Tesi looked at him calmly.

“Then explain.”

Noxi opened his mouth.

Then stopped.

He really wanted to answer.

But finding the words was harder than he expected.

“When I was younger...”

He stopped.

Tesi waited.

“Everyone around me gradually learned to use magic. Some earlier. Some later. Some had weak magic. Some had strong magic.”

Noxi looked off to the side.

“People complained. One guy wanted fire and got some useless plant ability instead. Another was jealous of a boy who could strengthen his body.”

A short, bitter smile.

“I was jealous of even them.”

Tesi said nothing.

“Because at least they had something they could be unhappy with.”

He looked at his hands.

“Then we found out I could use other people’s magic.”

Noxi paused.

“Everyone told me I was lucky.”

You can use different abilities.

That’s way better than only having one.

What are you even complaining about?

Noxi clenched his jaw slightly.

“But somehow nobody understood that I always need someone like them first.”

He looked at Tesi.

“If there’s no one around, I have nothing.”

Tesi remained silent for a moment.

“So that’s why you’re jealous.”

Noxi smirked.

“Finally figured it out?”

“I figured it out at the arena. I just wanted you to say it yourself.”

Noxi stared at him.

“You’re a terrible person to talk to.”

But Tesi’s expression became serious again.

“There’s one thing you’re wrong about.”

“What?”

“I never said having different abilities is better than having one.”

He looked toward the sky for several moments.

“I don’t know which is better.”

Noxi remained silent.

“Maybe someone with only one kind of magic is happier than you.”

“Maybe it’s the opposite.”

“What difference does it make?”

Tesi looked back at him.

“You’ve spent your entire life looking at other people’s hands and thinking about what they have.”

His gaze dropped toward Noxi’s palm.

“But for some reason, you’ve barely tried to understand what’s in yours.”

Noxi said nothing.

“I have.”

“No.”

The answer came too quickly.

Noxi narrowed his eyes.

“You’ve been trying to prove to yourself that there’s nothing there.”

Silence.

This time, Noxi had no response.

Tesi began walking again.

A few seconds later, Noxi followed.

“So Mariyard is supposed to help me find the answer?”

“I don’t know.”

Noxi looked at him.

“I can’t promise you an answer,” Tesi continued. “But if you really want to understand what’s happening to you, you’ll have to see more than what’s here.”

He stopped.

“Sitting in an arena watching other people use fire and wind is a pretty slow way to understand your own magic.”

Noxi remained silent for a while.

Then they continued walking.

“Let’s say I believe you about Mariyard. What would I have to do?”

“Nothing special for now.”

“I already don’t like the ‘for now.’”

“Good.”

“Can I leave later?”

Tesi looked at him.

This time, Noxi immediately noticed the change in his expression.

“No.”

He stopped.

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said.”

Tesi stopped as well.

“You don’t join Mariyard temporarily.”

“For how long?”

“Until you die.”

Noxi stared at him, trying to determine whether he was joking.

Tesi wasn’t smiling.

“So I’m supposed to decide the rest of my life right now?”

“No.”

“You literally just said that.”

“I said that if you join, you stay.”

Tesi shrugged slightly.

“When you make the decision is your problem.”

Noxi remained silent.

“You can refuse.”

“And you’ll just leave?”

“Yes.”

“After everything you told me?”

“Try proving to anyone that Mariyard exists.”

Noxi thought about it.

That was a problem.

He still wasn’t entirely sure himself.

“And if I agree?”

“Then I’ll tell you what to do next.”

“Very informative.”

“Want more?”

“No. I’m afraid it’ll get worse.”

Tesi smiled.

Noxi walked beside him in silence for a while.

The arena returned to his mind.

The mages.

Fire.

Wind.

Falimon.

Then today’s pain.

Tesi’s magic.

If that could even be called magic.

The memory alone sent a chill through him.

“You said there are powers in Mariyard that don’t exist here.”

“Mm-hm.”

“Stronger than yours?”

Tesi looked at him.

“Who knows?”

Noxi suddenly stopped.

“Seriously?”

“What?”

“After what just happened to me, you can say that so casually?”

“Power is difficult to measure with the word stronger.”

Noxi thought about it.

Tesi continued.

“Sometimes an ability capable of destroying a city is useless against someone who can do one extremely specific thing.”

Noxi felt uncomfortable.

“I’m already starting to hate talking to you.”

“Get used to it.”

They reached a crossroads.

Tesi stopped.

“I’m going right.”

Noxi looked toward the other road.

He needed to go left.

Silence.

Tesi didn’t offer his hand.

He didn’t try to persuade him any further.

He simply waited.

That was almost as irritating as everything else.

“That’s it?”

“What?”

“You aren’t going to try to convince me anymore?”

“No.”

“Why?”

Tesi thought for a moment.

“If I have to convince you to join, I’ll have to convince you to stay later.”

Noxi fell silent.

“I’m not interested in doing that.”

Tesi turned toward the right-hand road.

“Wait.”

He stopped.

Noxi stared at the ground for several seconds.

Then raised his eyes.

“If I go with you...”

Tesi waited.

“Will I be able to understand my magic?”

“I don’t know.”

Noxi sighed quietly.

“But you’ll have a lot more questions.”

Tesi smiled faintly.

“Which means you’ll have to look for a lot more answers.”

Noxi smiled despite himself.

Then looked at his palm again.

That morning, it had seemed empty.

Now he wasn’t so sure.

Not because Tesi had given him an answer.

Quite the opposite.

The man had only made everything more confusing.

But for the first time in a long while, the thought—

I don’t have magic.

—no longer sounded so obviously true.

Noxi looked up.

“Fine.”

“Fine what?”

“I’ll join.”

Tesi looked at him for several seconds.

“That was fast.”

“If I think any longer, I’ll change my mind.”

“Reasonable.”

Noxi stepped toward him.

“But I’m warning you now. If all of this turns out to be some idiotic joke...”

“Then?”

Noxi thought about it.

“I don’t know.”

“Excellent threat.”

“After your magic, I’m not even sure I can threaten you with anything.”

Tesi laughed quietly.

Then extended his hand.

Noxi looked at it.

“No magic.”

“Again?”

“I’m serious.”

“Fine.”

Noxi shook his hand.

This time, nothing happened.

Just an ordinary handshake.

For some reason, that was a relief.

“Welcome to Mariyard.”

Noxi released his hand.

“Still sounds unbelievable.”

“You’ll get used to it.”

Tesi was about to leave.

“So what now?”

“Nothing for now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Go back to the selection. Train. Do whatever you were planning to do before you met me.”

“What about Mariyard?”

Tesi looked over his shoulder.

“It isn’t going anywhere now.”

Noxi fell silent.

“I’ll find you when I need you.”

Tesi took another couple of steps.

“Tesi.”

He stopped.

Noxi was looking at his hand.

“Your magic...”

He paused.

“What the hell was that?”

Tesi stood with his back toward him.

The answer didn’t come immediately.

He looked up at the sky, as though thinking about something.

“I’ll tell you someday.”

Noxi was already about to complain.

But Tesi disappeared.

Simply disappeared.

No flash.

No magic circle.

No sound.

One second, he was standing there.

The next, the street was empty.

Noxi stared at the spot for several seconds.

“Freak.”

He lowered his gaze to his palm.

Tried to summon magic.

Nothing.

As always.

But instead of the usual irritation, another feeling appeared.

A question.

He remembered his own body covered in Falimon’s patterns.

Then his hand, which for one moment today had seemed to forget what shape it was supposed to have.

Tesi’s words returned to him.

You decided far too early that you already understand your own magic.

Noxi slowly closed his hand into a fist.

Maybe.

Just maybe.

There really was something he didn’t understand.

Tesi stood on the roof of a nearby building.

He hadn’t gone far.

Noxi couldn’t see him.

From above, Tesi watched as the boy remained at the crossroads for several more seconds before finally walking away.

There was no smile on Tesi’s face.

He raised his own hand.

For several moments, he studied his fingers.

He remembered what had happened when Noxi tried to take his magic.

He hadn’t expected that either.

“What did he see...?”

Tesi lowered his hand.

Only one remained.

Vasi.

He looked toward the arena.

A faint smile appeared.

“The second one has been found.”