Wisteria cast a spell, freezing Agrius and Sylfie on the spot. She encased them in ice, wiping the sweat from her brow as she and Ryu approached the scene. Aurora floated cautiously behind them, her ears twitching as she viewed the aftermath with curiosity.

They jumped back suddenly as Agrius’ form started to shimmer.

“What?” Ryu muttered.

“Uh oh,” Wisteria bit her lip.

Agrius’ visage disappeared, replaced by Mathias’ as he glared at the mage. Ryu moved to thaw them both from the ice. The young lord was quick to scold his sister.

“What are you doing?!”

“Don’t yell at your big sister!” Wisteria exclaimed, smacking Mathias around with her staff.

“Shorry,” he said through swollen lips.

Ryu hid behind Sylfie, sweating. “Remind me not to get on her bad side.”

“You’re already on her bad side, nya,” Aurora stated.

“We were shparring,” Mathias explained. “I ushed [Mimic] to look like Agriush so Shylfie could get into the right headshpashe.”

Ryu glanced at Sylfie.

“Don’t look at me like that! If anything, I’ve given that idiot more than enough grace,” Sylfie said, crossing her arms.

“One of these days you’re gonna take someone’s head off if you’re not careful,” Ryu warned.

Sylfie grabbed him by the shirt pulling him in close. She had a terrifying look in her eyes. “You should be worried about which head I cut off, not whether I will. Understand?”

Ryu crossed his legs, nodding.

She let go of him, lying back on the grass. “I’m tired. Mathias, the ice—”

“I’m all good. [Mimic] transfers any damage sustained to the person I copied,” the young lord chuckled as his sister healed him.

“Hold still!” Wisteria ordered.

Ryu pictured the sight of the Great Hero, shivering in his bed, soaking wet. The thought brought him great pleasure. “That’s a total cheat skill!”

Mathias shook his head. “Nah, it has its drawbacks. First, I have to be within the vicinity of the person I’m copying and secondly, it only lasts for a few minutes with a day-long cooldown period. It’s really only useful as a party trick.”

“Oh.” Ryu looked disappointed. He turned to Sylfie. “Were you really going to shoot him?”

Sylfie sighed, pulling her bow back and charging up the same attack as before.

“Hey! Don’t aim it at me! I was just asking a question!” Ryu exclaimed, putting his hands up.

“Nooooo!!!!” Aurora jumped in front of the shot as Sylfie loosed the arrow. A blinding flash of light enveloped the archery range.

Ryu covered his eyes with an arm, rushing over to Aurora when the light died down.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“How could you?!” he exclaimed, caressing Aurora’s limp body. “She was so young!” he sobbed.

Aurora blinked suddenly, sitting upright in his hands. “Eh? I’m not dead, Ryu!”

“Do you both have memory loss? Do I need to get you two checked?” Sylfie stared at them incredulously.

“T-that’s beside the point! You shot at me!” Ryu accused Sylfie, pointing at her.

“It’s a blinding spell. It won’t hurt anyone,” Sylfie explained, exasperatedly.

“Oh,” he said, feeling stupid. His face reddened.

“Is this every day for you?” Wisteria asked Sylfie.

“Pretty much,” Sylfie shrugged.

Wisteria gave her a look of sympathy.

“Hey! We’re great party members!” Ryu stated.

“Yeah!” Aurora chimed in.

They both crossed their arms grumbling indignantly.

“We should check on Agrius—see how he’s doing,” Mathias mentioned.

They all agreed to visit him, if not to check up on his well-being, but to make sure they didn’t accidentally kill him.

***

When they arrived at Agrius’ room, Sir Maxwell was already there, holding a damp towel. “Ah, Sir Mathias, Lady Wisteria, and friends. You came at the right time. Sir Fullbright, has met with a terrible accident!”

“He’s dead?!” Mathias exclaimed.

“Er, no, sir. But he was the target of a diabolical plot to freeze him to death! Luckily, I happened to be making my rounds when I heard Sir Fullbright scream.”

“Scream?” Sylfie inquired, curiously.

“Why, yes,” Sir Maxwell explained. “It was in the range of a tenor or even a soprano—unmistakable.”

Sylfie stifled a snicker. “Erm, we should probably go in and see how he’s doing.”

“Yes, of course. Pardon me,” Sir Maxwell moved out of their way.

They entered a grand room, opulent in its design, with ornately carved wood, imported silk sheets, an armoire filled with expensive clothing, and the like. This was clearly a bedroom reserved for special guests, though nothing seemed special about the man sitting in his underwear, shivering under a towel.

He looked ghoulish, like a shell-shock victim, with sunken eyes and sallow skin. Ryu was horrified.

“Ooh, yeah, that’s a pretty bad reaction,” Mathias said, sucking his teeth. “Wis, can you heal him?”

“Easy,” she replied, rolling up her sleeves. As she healed him, Agrius’ eyes became fuller, and his skin returned to a healthy complexion.

“The truth has finally been unveiled,” Agrius finally spoke. He had a sagely air about him, as if the secrets of the universe had been revealed to him. “I had a vision.”

Ryu was intrigued. A vision? Does he have some sort of prophetic power? “What did you see?” he asked.

“I’m glad you asked, my rival—”

“I’m not your rival.”

“There was only darkness,” Agrius continued, ignoring Ryu’s remark. “I was fighting with my beloved. She aimed at me with an arrow that burned bright, but I was struck down from the side by a chilling attack!”

“O-oh so it was like a warning not to mess with her anymore,” Ryu remarked, careful not to mention those events had happened.

Agrius shook his head. “No, it was an epiphany about my nature.”

“Your nature?”

“Yes, of who I really am.” He turned to Ryu with a grave expression. “It awakened something inside me.”

Ryu was afraid to ask. He didn’t want to know. He didn’t need to know. Against his better judgment, he poked further. “Awakened what?” he said warily.

“Pain—”

“Well, I’ve heard enough. This was a waste of time,” Ryu concluded quickly.

“I agree,” Sylfie said, backing away from Agrius.

“W-where are you guys going? Don’t you want to hear about my vision?” he called after them as they exited through the door.

“Go to sleep, man, and reevaluate yourself,” Mathias said, shaking his head.

Wisteria shuddered as she left, clutching her shoulders.

“Goodnight, creepy hero!” Aurora bid him farewell, zooming out of the room.

“Creepy?” Agrius frowned, watching the same scene play over in his mind. Demons marched East. Cities were leveled to nothing but ash and smoke. He was engaged in a bitter battle with Sylfie, and Ryu…Agrius shook his head, refusing to watch any further. He clicked his tongue. “I guess it is creepy.”