It was two days after Victory Day. The sun was rising on the horizon, shining through the holes in the clouds, making the white snow twinkle. Most of the students and people living on the Island were still recovering, returning to their regular daily routines. Lia was stepping off from a small transport ship, arriving at one of the satellite landmasses, watching the Tower of Light heading straight up its steps. When she arrived at the base, the people there wanted to ask what she was doing there, but as soon as she entered, a message came from Lauron, saying to escort her up to his office.

"Brother Lala." Lia smiled, stepping into the room, which was filled with the morning sun, its panoramic windows facing the sunrise.

"What's up, you little imp?" He grinned, turning towards her, bringing freshly brewed coffee to a small table, signaling to Lia to sit on the couch and have breakfast with him.

"Is Simbad your student?" She asked bluntly while plopping onto the couch, grabbing one of the mugs, dunking a cookie into it, and started munching happily, waiting for his answer.

"Nothing escapes your eyes, eh?" Lauron asked, sitting next to her.

"It was extremely obvious, especially after his polite answer, refusing to join us!"

"Are you angry?"

"No." She shook her head, "I learned something from it… and now know why you sent him after us. My friends can deal with the upcoming challenges in the spring."

"Challenges?" Lauron asked, smiling.

"Some groups think the school has disciplined us through him. So they want in on the action. Good, we need points! Aurora will also continue climbing the Dueling List. Everything will continue as is; I will be just more careful!"

"We will see." Lauron answered, sipping on his coffee, "But I guess you are not here because of Simbad. If so, I can call him up, or you can wait a few years as you will probably meet him back home."

"Ehehe, no, I am not here because of him! I was just curious!"

"Is it about the fire seeds?" Lauron tilted his head the same way his sister used to, "I heard the news that you got your little paws on some really nice ones! Nice job! I think even Razael would have been drooling seeing you use top-tier pills like those!"

"Teehee~" Lia blushed, rubbing her nose, feeling incredibly proud at the moment, "No… not about that! I am fine! I will show that rude man I can do it without consulting him even once! I bet he hoped that I would visit his tower every time, asking for help and guidance! So he can lecture me! Hmph! No way! I can attend my classes, do the student council thing on the side, and manage my group too!"

"It is not like you get anything to do in the council."

"Ehehehe… true~ I think they don't dare to boss me around because of my name!"

"That… is possible," Lauron said, smacking his lip. "How's your secondary element coming along?"

"Much better!" Lia answered, summoning a perfect water ball above her palm. It was stable, transparent, and gently rotating before she reabsorbed it into her body. "Since combining the two and going through my tribulation, it became much easier! I meditate daily and will try to turn water into ice soon enough!"

"Don't rush it!"

"I won't!" She giggled in answer. "I am here because of what happened to Olivia!"

"Oh. That… is… unexpected." Lauron blinked his eyes rapidly before putting down his cup. "Did you ask Mother yet?"

"No. But I did look up their history."

"I see. And your opinion is…?"

"I don't know." Lia sighed, "I realize what they did was monstrous. I agree that they had to be killed, as they were clearly under the influence of the Undead! But they started out with good intentions… I think…"

"Good intentions are the favorite excuse of all evil people!" Lauron shook his head, "I know the crux of your problem. You want to ask me, how are we fighting against the Undead if we don't know about them? If we don't study them?"

"Yes." She nodded, looking into her brother's eyes, glad he grasped onto what was truly bothering her.

"The Undead was studied extensively in the Dark Ages by multiple Ascendri! Erias Amarin was the biggest expert on them! He has a full codex about them, one that you will get to read in your next year."

"Really?" She trembled, turning excited, and Lauron saw her eyes start to twinkle.

"Yep. 3rd year is about artifact creation and Undead. But back to the topic! You will learn all that you need about the Undead. Do you want to know what is the closing thoughts of Erias, recorded in that codex?"

"Yes!"

"We learned everything we have to learn about them." Lauron quoted, his voice severe and somber, "Every child of ours from now on should have everything at their disposal to exterminate Undead wherever they crop up. The Undead is not to be reasoned with and not to be studied. The power of their corruption knows no bounds; Kill them. Exterminate them. Burn them all. Ask no questions about why. Because if you do, you are already one of them… and you should be next."

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"Ugh… Our forefather was really sour at the end, wasn't he…?" Lia asked, twitching her mouth.

"He was." Lauron agreed, refilling his cup and briefly watching the black, steaming coffee. "But he lived through something that is unfathomable for us. There is too big of a distance between the Dark Ages and our Era. We heard about what happened, but we were not there. We can't truly imagine how it was back then."

"..."

"And, for one, I believe Erias's words." He turned back towards his sister, "What he left for us is everything we have to know on how to kill them quickly and efficiently. The study of the Undead is not forbidden because we are hiding something or because we are ignorant. It is simply because we already know all that has to be known. Everything else is unimportant for killing them."

"And we don't need to know anything else…?" Lia asked, unsure a little.

"No. We don't." Lauron said, leaning forward, looking deeply into her eyes, and warning her little sister. "Anyone who ever thought about studying or, even worse, reasoning with the Undead has ended up as one of them. Sooner or later… in worst case scenarios, they dragged dozens with them into the grave…."

"Um…" Lia gulped, feeling a bit scared, as Lauron rarely looked so serious and detached from everything.

"Never do what the Horth family did, Lia. Ever."

"I… I won't…." She whispered, forgetting to even blink.

"Good." Lauron smiled, gently rubbing the top of her head, "Is there anything else that is bothering you?"

"No…" She shook her head, feeling a bit scared thinking about it. She was sure of what Lauron meant by his last words… Her family would not hesitate to act, not even if it was her who was doing it. "Wait! There is!" She spoke up hurriedly, shaking her head, "This year's Egg Hunt!"

"Hm? What about it?"

"Is it always designed by the Headmaster?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I want to ensure nobody can interfere with this year's event!" Lia said, her excitement and happy-go-lucky attitude returning in a flash.

"Are you planning something?" Lauron asked, grinning, knowing her sister's style very well.

"Of course!" She giggled, winking at him, "We are all going to sign up! All of our groups will split, and we are going to go after the eggs! All of them!"

"What?!" Lauron spewed out the coffee through his nose, barely believing what he was hearing. It was way 'worse' than what he initially expected.

"Duh!" Lia grinned from ear to ear, flashing her white teeth. "We are going for a sweep this year! All the eggs will belong to us! Bwahahaha!"

"Are you trying to turn the whole Institute against you?"

"Eh? No!" She pursed her lips, "I just want them to be awed and my people to be proud!"

"Your people, eh?"

"Of course! Every misfit is my misfit!" She puffed her chest, proudly sitting beside him, "As their leader, I have to make sure they all can walk with their heads held high!"

"Heh… you sound like Erias in his memoirs…."

"Really?" She asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Anyway, sure! Go for it! But don't tell this to anyone, especially not the student council! If they knew… I bet that they would try to come up with something to bar you from entering."

“Hm… I bet… Hey, Lala…”

"Shoot." He said, resting his hand on the top of her head.

"What do you think… would Simbad lend his strength to us, participating in it? It will be at the end of the year and… you know…."

"Ahaha… I'll ask him, but I won't promise anything yet! He is similar to Solren in a way."

"Ah… okay. Thanks!" She chuckled, enjoying her brother's gentle touch, switching topics, and having a pleasant time before returning to the Tower of Misfits.

…

….

……

Back at the tower, Keily was in the garden alongside many misfits, with fire as their primary element. The tub was now supporting a golden flame, burning slowly and gently, releasing a mellow, lukewarm air from itself. Keily was amongst the only misfits who managed to draw the golden flames onto his hand and control it. He easily absorbed it into his body and could resummon it multiple times before it dissipated, and he had to 'grab' another strand.

"He is doing great!" Lia chuckled, watching him draw the fire onto himself, letting it envelop his whole body without harming him.

"Mhm!" Ceiline nodded, standing at the bottom of the tower's stairs, watching them and chuckling as Stumpy was also there, trying to lick the fire and eat it without much success as it avoided his tongue like a sentient being.

"The Golden Peacock…" Lia murmured, remembering what she had read about this particular fire. "I had zero success with this one!" She sighed, shaking her head. Which was true. Yesterday, when it was ignited, it completely refused her, and she could not even try and draw from it.

"You are too forceful for it!" Ceiline chuckled, looking at her, "The Golden Peacock is a peaceful animal. Its flames carry healing and cleansing properties. Unlike Stumpy's green flame, instead of burning away toxins, it purifies them. Turning bad into good. The fact that it is so highly compatible with Keily is a good sign!"

"It reminds me of my brother, Solren's light!" Lia added, "His spells many times left behind similar, golden flames, burning away the Undead. At least that is what Aurora told me!"

"How many more pills do you have?" Ceiline asked, turning back towards the misfits.

"Three. I am going to use up all of them. I have one that is supposedly salamander fire, the same green one as Stumpy's. I bet he will gobble some up…. Ehehe, oh well! It is what it is! Then I have one that is supposedly an artificial flame." She explained, slightly unsure, "I tried reading on it and asking the Silly Fox, but he did not answer. I gathered that it is a fire that had no real source and was made by the mage who created the pill. I don't know what to expect from that one!"

"Nothing good, I assume. I heard that many who can make pills like these are extremely eccentric!" Ceiline moaned, rubbing her forehead, "We should be careful when you use it up.

"Not as careful as the last one. It will be a black flame! I was reading about it, and this pill has unique markings! Guess what that means!"

"Dunno. It's an extremely destructive flame? I guess…" Celine shrugged, waiting for Lia to continue.

"It is!" She grinned, nodding so heavily that her head almost fell off, "It's not an ordinary flame! The main marking on it belonged to a dragon… Arcus!"

"Wait… that Arcus?" Ceiline asked, her mouth opening pretty wide.

"Yep! I made sure! I looked up the mark, and it belonged to him! Supposedly it has a sliver of his fire in it! I am curious to experience how that feels!"

"I am going to get everyone ready when you do it… I am not that trusting we are going to be able to handle that…."

"Relax!" Lia laughed, "The Silly Fox wouldn't give us something dangerous!"

"You sure?" Ceiline questioned her, and Lia's smile looked a bit forced when answering.

"Yep… Probably."