"Are you sure?" Francesca asked with concern.

Marina nodded, "You go ahead and let them know that I'll join you soon, I'll be fine."

Corgi's daughter gave her a dubious look but finally understood.

"See you later, don't take too long!"

"I will not do that!" Marina replied with a smile.

Ien's daughter took a deep breath and headed towards the field where she had held her failed lesson. Access to the place was blocked by some railings and maintenance signs, but Marina passed them without too many problems and continued. Once she reached the small promontory, she found Shirei and Dalia standing in the now deserted training arena.

After moving closer she asked, "Are you arguing?"

As soon as she saw her, Dalia burst into tears and fell to her knees. Marina was immediately next to her while Shirei preferred to keep his distance.

"Y-you're okay!" Cragar's daughter murmured.

"Obvious! I'm made of iron, you know that," the blonde replied with a smile, "Shirei, how are you?"

The boy was silent for what moment, "Can you explain to me what exactly happened?"

Then you don't remember... thank goodness, thought the girl.

"Sorry b-big brother... forgive me..." Dalia began to cry again.

"Okay, but at least tell me what for."

"A couple of ovaries is fine! If that guy hadn't gotten in the way, Aena would have killed you by now."

Marina placed a hand on her head, in an attempt to calm her.

"What else?"

"I used my powers on you..." Dalia continued with difficulty, "I made you lose control. I don't know what happened, I thought it would be 'fun'..."

"I'm afraid there wasn't much fun," his brother commented dryly.

"What are you saying?" Marina replied with evident sarcasm, "A lot!"

"Are you perhaps out of your mind?! I ruined your lesson, drove my brother crazy, and it all escalated into something that even infuriated the goddess of love! It's all my fault!"

Dalia curled up on herself. Marina meant everything she said exactly, but refrained from pointing out the mistakes she had made. It wasn't up to her to make Dalia fall into a moment of weakness. She was her best friend and she was using her to find out new information about Cragar's children for Aena. If there was one person to blame for all this trouble, Marina thought it was herself.

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Shirei, unlike the girl, stared at Dalia with pity. He too definitely had no faults, he wasn't himself, after all. The demigod cast a displeased look at Ien's daughter. She tried to smile at him, but suspected she was too tired when she saw him look away in concern. Dalia held her tightly and started sobbing again.

"I'm an idiot, I apologize, in fact, I apologize to both of you."

"You're just a demigoddess who has difficulty understanding the extent of her powers, and she happens to make mistakes," Shirei commented sweetly.

"It is not true. It's not absolutely true. Don't downplay things."

Marina hugged her, "Dalia..."

"I may be repetitive, but I apologize again," Shirei added when the two's eyes met once again.

"Yes... that is, no! It's not up to you, I should have been more careful and... and... we need to talk seriously, Hollow."

The boy nodded, "You have to think about recovering first."

"I am fine!" She huffed, but was still happy that he cared about her.

Marina hesitated for a moment about what to do, then decided not to interfere further and leave Cragar's children alone. Before leaving, she turned to her best friend.

"Dalia, please remember what I told you: I am and will always be on your side."

The black-haired girl didn't answer, so she simply greeted her with a kiss on the forehead and started walking towards the seventh house.

"How can you not be afraid of me... really. Sometimes I just wish I had been born like everyone else," Dalia commented still through tears.

"I'm not afraid of you because, despite everything, you're not afraid of me. I've always known I had problems with my lost memory, this just confirms it."

The demigoddess sneezed, "You are not a monster... anger, anger... it is normal that if amplified with a power like mine they cause similar situations... Of course you could have avoided getting 'that', but you're not a monster."

Shirei frowned, "That?"

"The dark angel, the one who hurt Marina."

Cragar's son remained silent, trying to think.

"It was supposed to be a secret, I guess, but it's not anymore. Aena will demand explanations and I would like them too. I won't judge you... but I need to know what you're up to."

"You don't make my life easy, Dalia. In due course I will, but now it's best if we go to sleep," he paused, "I suspect tomorrow will be a long day."

"More than today?"

"Yes," Cragar's son replied, ruffling her hair.

Dalia puffed out her cheeks and quickly rearranged them, "Don't ruin my hair style!"

Before she knew it, the two were traveling through the Interworld. The little girl smiled and held onto her brother. She dreamed, one day, of being able to do something like this too.

They reappeared in front of their home after a handful of seconds. Although the journey through the Interworld had been swift, the silence now surrounding them felt almost unreal, as if the demigods had unanimously decided to fall into a deep sleep.

As they climbed the stairs, they heard the familiar creak of the black wood beneath their feet, a sound Dalia usually found reassuring, but not that night.

“Here we are,” said the daughter of Cragar, sighing slightly as they crossed the threshold.

On the beds, carefully placed, lay two sealed envelopes.

The half-siblings took their respective letters, examining them with curiosity or fear. “So tomorrow we have to meet them in Lyceum’s private office,” whispered the “younger” of the two.

He nodded, staring at his piece of paper with an expression of indifference. “Yes, it seems so.”

Dalia placed her letter on the nightstand, suddenly feeling more tired than she wanted to admit. Her half-brother followed, then said, “It’s better to rest now. Sweet dreams, Dalia.”

She glanced at him, conflicted.

“Good night,” she finally murmured, pulling the covers over herself with a lingering sense of unease she couldn’t shake off.

The lights went out, and in the darkness of the night, the house sank into silence.