Albert and I rushed into his dorm building, where we swiped our IDs to gain access to the dorms. The custodian glanced at my gunked up jeans and wrinkled his nose as we passed by, and Albert blushed, rubbing the back of his head.

The smell of barbecue sauce was overpowering, and I gagged as we rushed into his second-floor dorm and made our way inside, locking the door behind us.

I quickly reached into one of my jacket pockets and pulled out my Nexus device as Al stood back, crossing his arms with a grin.

"Well, I definitely didn't think I'd get to see this fancy phone in action this quickly. You gonna do the thing, Sienna? Hope you aren't too... lost in the sauce."

I glared at him. "Really, Al? That was low."

Al shrugged. "What can I say? It's a sticky situation."

I shook my head, shoving him playfully.

"Now, check this out," I whispered with a grin.

Fuck it, I'll make a show out of it.

I stretched my right hand out to the side with my Nexus device in hand, closing my eyes and concentrating. Then, I willed that increasingly familiar well of energy to flow through me, exhaling as the magic reacted to my thoughts and desires.

My eyes snapped open, and I brought my hand up, holding the plain-looking phone close to my chest. The edges of the device began to shine with a bright golden light, and the room filled with an ethereal shimmer.

"O pitiful shadows begone! O distant and forgotten dreams! Hear my call and arise once more! I am the guardian who fights for harmony and justice..."

The tips of my dark brown hair lengthened and turned into a bright shade of strawberry blonde, and my molten gold eyes flashed with a glow that lit up the room. The Nexus device transformed into a heart-shaped orb of light, and I raised it up above my head with a flourish.

"In the name of love, in the name of truth, I — Magical Girl Harmonia Lux bring light and peace to your hearts!"

I was engulfed in a blinding light as ribbons of lights erupted from the Nexus device and spiraled around my body. In the span of seconds, my clothes had transformed into a red and gold magical girl outfit that made me feel like a million bucks. The oily, sticky gunk that coated my jeans and jacket was wiped away in a flash, leaving me feeling clean and refreshed.

Holy shit, that actually felt kind of good.

With a flourish, I spun around, struck an Arcadia Vox style sideways peace sign, and cocked my head to the side with a wink. "So, what do you think? Hammy enough for you, Al?"

I had a huge cheesy smile on my face, and Al started snickering as he leaned back against the door. "You put a lot of thought into it, huh?"

"I thought it'd be fun! Just one time," I protested, willing the Nexus device into red motes of light that were absorbed into my body. I'd spent some time last night checking out some of the other features and enhancements that had come with the upgrade, but I hadn't gotten a chance to see it in action yet.

Now was as good of a time as any, I supposed.

"One time? Yeah right," he scoffed.

I sighed, shaking my head and popping my neck as I checked out my new boots.

Then, I traced my fingers in the air and whispered "Status."

VITALS

Name: Sienna Russo

Alias: ✨🌟Harmonia Lux✨🌟

Level: 51

Points: 0

Aura Health: 100%

Mana: 100%

ASPECTS

Soul Graph: Light

Origin: Love

Archetype: Prismatic

Signature Talent: Luminary Conversion

ATTRIBUTES

Strength: 🌠20 (4)🌠

Agility: 🌠25 (8)🌠

Constitution: 🌠25 (7)🌠

Intelligence: 17

Charisma: 11

Magic: 21

SKILLS

ABILITIES

ARTS

Luminary Conversion (Rank 5)

Luminary Bolt (Rank 3)

Luminary Beam (Rank 4)

Luminary Mirage (Rank 3)

Luminary Barrier (Rank 3)

Luminary Nova (Rank 2)

Luminary Bolt: Rapid Fire

Luminary Conversion: Hopeful Heart Alchemy

Luminary Nova: Dawn's Glorious Explosion

Luminary Mirage: Ethereal Moonlit Dance

Luminary Barrier: Celestial Guardian Dome

Passives:

Aura Sight

Resilience

Insight

MISC.

Transformations

Hopeful Heart Alchemy

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Cadet Mode Twilight Aster Partial Shift Arcadia Vox (LOCKED) Full Shift Nightingale Eclipse

In the aftermath of the Cataclysm, the World System had been disabled entirely for weeks.

As far as humanity remembered, we had always been able to check on our physical health and any supernatural abilities with a simple status spell, and it was a shock for the whole world when the status screens were suddenly locked all around.

The World System was a complex and interconnected network that supposedly relied on the collective magic energy of millions of people, and it was broken during the Cataclysm. Doctors were paralyzed as their ability to heal quickly and somewhat automatically just... disappeared. Countless nations also entered a panic as their defenses, which were built around active access to skills were suddenly stripped away.

It'd been down for just under two weeks until it was purportedly restored by the Guardians, but now there were a few modifications to the system that everyone had to adjust to.

One such modification was that the Status menu could now only be accessed by those who had 'ascended' under the system until it was fully repaired - whether as Magical Knights or Pioneers. In addition, there was a noticeably tighter limit to how much damage the thin metaphysical aura that protected people could take before shattering.

It was an interface significantly different from what I was used to, and it felt a bit daunting to wrap my head around. Still, I'd gotten the hang of it over the last couple of days, and I felt surprisingly good about where I stood after saving Albert all those days ago.

According to the Guardians, the system would be updated and refined in the coming month, but right now, it seemed stable enough.

Without warning, my reverie was shattered by the sound of a siren blaring in my ears. An alert suddenly popped up in front of me.

SYSTEM WARNING Attention: The Vicious Alliance has engaged Class 8 Team Buster: Scuttler Scrapper near the outskirts of Downtown Kaleidoscope City.

Oh, fuck...

A class 8 villain? That sounded serious.

SYSTEM WARNING All Magical Knights are advised to be ready for action. Magical Knight Teams: Bravehearts, Prismatic Gems, and Garden Dreamers prepared to intercept.

What the hell was going on?

Just as I finished reading the alert, the faint sound of laughing and cackling reached my ears, and I grimaced, turning towards the sound.

"Al, I've got to go," I hissed.

"Stay careful out there, you crazy witch," he grinned. "Try not to blow up too much stuff. It's bad for the environment."

I rolled my eyes. "I think we've had enough of blowing up things, haven't we?"

"Nah, that was fun," Al quipped. "I mean, I know you hate oceanfront property and all that, but I know you had an absolute blast over at Refuge Zeta."

I threw my arms up in exasperation. "You're totally taking this as a joke, huh?"

He held out a fist for a bump, which I returned while I shook my head.

"Hey. You've got this, Sienna."

"Yeah, I guess so."

We shared a look, and he nodded. "Now get out there and kick ass."

I grinned. "I'll be right back. Later, weirdo."

"Later, dweebus."

I stepped back, focusing an orb of light between my hands.

"That is seriously fucking cool," Al gaped. "Seriously, you lucky duck, you."

I flashed him a smile and opened his balcony door, stepping out and coiling my legs to jump.

"Sienna... Hey."

I paused, glancing back at Albert. "Yeah?"

He rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "Just be careful, okay?"

I nodded, winking back at him. "Don't I always?"

Then I focused on the orb between my hands. "Luminary Mirage..." I whispered, channeling my magic around me.

In a flash, a pulsing orb of golden light sprang up around me, wrapping me in its soft embrace as the illusion spell took hold. It would allow me to get the drop on Princess Eris. Hopefully.

With that, I tightened my stance and pushed off, jumping into the air with a low whistle as I pulled myself up and onto the roof above.

Fuck being lost in the sauce.

I was ready to kick this psycho clown's ass.

"Nyhehhehehhheh! Face me, puny peasants! Nyheheheheh! For I am the Dark Princess of Chaos! The ruler of discord and disorder! NYHEH HE HAAAAAA!"

Her echoing cackle made me want to punch myself in the face, but I resisted the urge and made my way over the rooftops towards the center of campus.

I blinked in surprise as I spotted four cadets who weren't in my orientation yesterday strewn out on the ground like rag dolls, twitching and clutching at their faces and arms. They were coated in that same sweet and sticky substance that Princess Eris had blasted us with before, and they looked like they were in pain.

So much for being harmless.

A wave of guilt hit me as I realized that I shouldn't have been messing around with Al and fooling around with the transformation sequence. But hindsight was 20/20, and right now, I had to do something.

I jumped down to the ground, quietly stepping over towards Princess Eris. She had her hands on her hips, posing like a supervillain as she kicked one of the cadets in the ribs.

Three more flashes of light caught my eye as I spotted more junior Magical Knights making their way towards her.

"Fools! Fools, all of you! The Dark Princess of Chaos will not be conquered! Nyeh he heeeeeeeh haaaaaaa!" Princess Eris cackled, dropping her cannon.

Her hands glowed with a crackling red lightning that lit up her face, and I paused, watching as a magical girl dressed in a frilly, stylish red ad pink dress with reddish-brown cat ears, a matching tail and a pink ribbon on her ponytail rushed at Eris, fire dancing on her fingertips.

Another Magical Knight cadet, a boy with thick glasses and a camera around his neck dressed in a blue suit covered in electronics was crouching on a nearby rooftop, and a third Magical Knight — a dark-haired, muscular boy dressed in a flowing purple fur coat with a tiger mask and chest wide open was standing a few feet away from him, his arms crossed.

I activated my Aura Sight and quickly spotted the red, blue, and purple flames and rainbow flecks of light radiating off themt. Judging from the aura they gave off, they were... around level 20 to 40.

But what threw me off was Eris.

The aura she gave off was... pitiful. It was a pale and flickering black, and from what I could see, it was barely at the level of the cadets on the ground around her.

Which frankly didn't make any sense, considering she gave a seasoned journeyman team like the Jupiter Belles a runaround.

Unless she was hiding her real strength, somehow? But she didn't exactly seem to be playing it down right now.

Eris dodged the fireball thrown by the magical girl in red and nimbly leaped into the air, landing on a nearby tree branch and swinging her legs back. She crossed them as she sat on the branch, placing a fist against her cheek in a cocky pose.

She grinned, flipping her hair before turning back to the cat-eared girl, who was already charging up another attack. The two boys on the rooftop jumped to flank her, but Eris quickly flipped into a hand stand on the tree and jumped up, snapping her fingers and sending a thunderbolt of red lightning straight at the boys.

There was a loud explosion of electrical energy, and I felt the shockwave rattle the ground. Both boys dropped from the rooftop and onto the concrete, where they lay stunned and unmoving.

The girl with the cat ears closed the distance, aiming an attack at Eris as she flipped through the air. Eris skidded to a halt and grounded her stance, summoning a spinning shield of green energy that blocked the blast, the force of the impact sending the cadet hurtling backward.

The cadet regained her stance with feline reflexes and lunged at Eris, who stepped aside, almost casually, grabbing the girl by the back of the neck and grinning as her hands glowed with red lightning again.

The expression on the girl's face was a mix of terror and resolve, and she clawed at Eris who summoned a red wall of energy between them, holding her back like a big sister would. The whole thing was almost comic.

"Kitty cat, kitty cat, what to do, what to do? Nyheh heh heeheeehhhaaaahaaa! Nyheh he haaahaaaaaahaha!" Eris giggled, pinching the back of the girl's neck and eliciting a howl of frustration.

I decided I couldn't stand by and watch any longer. The cadets on the ground didn't look like they were in any condition to fight, and she was running right through them.

I breathed deeply, before stepping quietly toward Eris as she suddenly knee'd the girl with cat ears in the stomach. Her movements were too erratic and unpredictable, and it didn't seem like the other students could even touch her, let alone take her down.

Taking a few more steps forward, I was practically right behind her when she leaned back, squirming her lower back against the air and giggling maniacally to herself.

"Nyhehhehheeeh! Give it up, pesky heroes! The Dark Princess of Chaaaaa...?" She trailed off as she stopped, blinking and looking around.

Then, she whipped her head around, staring straight at me with a shocked expression.

...Could she see me?

A wicked grin crossed her face, and she suddenly raised her free hand up, firing a dark bolt of lightning that screamed through the air and collided with a golden barrier of light, shattering it into a million pieces.

I steadied myself, stepping through and dropping my mirage with a scowl as my impromptu Luminary Barrier shattered.

"Oh? You're approaching me? You've got guts!" She winked as she spread her arms out in a showboating pose, laughing as the cat-eared girl beneath her groaned in pain and rolled her eyes.

I cringed at her reference, before sighing and strutting towards her.

"Tch. Seriously? You're worse than my best friend... Well, I'll play along."

The air hummed with tension, and I glared at Eris as I settled into a fighting stance.

"I wouldn't be able to beat your ass if I didn't come closer, would I?" I spat, charging luminary beams in both hands.

Eris grinned. "Nyhehheh! That's it, I knew I had to visit Kaleidoscope one of these days. You lot are absolutely perfect."

"You know, I was having such a nice day. And you just had to ruin it, didn't you?" I hissed, focusing my aura and channeling it towards the tips of my fingers.

Eris pulled the cat-eared girl up by the back of her dress, causing her to cry out in pain as she threw her across the commons.

I grit my teeth, stepping closer as the orbs in my hands became brighter and brighter.

"Ooh, getting close now, are we? What's your name, little one? I'll make sure to remember it for posterity's sake!"

I narrowed my eyes, ignoring her as I willed my magic to keep pulsing, filling me with warmth and energy.

Her smile faded as she stared at the orbs in my hands, then my eyes, and she blinked.

Then, her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Huh."

I sucked in a deep breath of air, doing my best to focus and control my temper.

"My name is Magical Girl Harmonia Lux," I growled. "And you owe me a new pair of fucking shoes."

Then, I clapped my hands together and fired.