A day before, when the group of strangers left, Mary came into the cabin bringing a pair of earpieces that she got from the nearby riverside. It has a small chain accompanied by a tiny shard of diamond-shaped amber, wavering opulence. For her, its luxurious pattern presented to her the idea that it was worn by a former princess. There’s only one that she noticed wearing those accessories, Ellen.

She ran into Gavin and requested with withdrawn eyebrows, “Gavin! The elegant lady left an accessory from the bath. This might be an important item to her. I need to return this as soon as possible.”

Gavin shook his head and replied, “You should return that tomorrow. The sun will set soon.”

Mary pressed her lips together with a slumped posture. “I… I think she’s disappointed in me. I should return this to her soon and apologize no matter what it takes. If I took too soon, she may not forgive me.”

Gavin tapped her head and remarked, “There’s always tomorrow, Mary. It’s best to stay safe, and she’ll always be grateful for your help.” He clenched his other hand, pressed his lips, and whispered, “I don’t want to lose a family anymore.”

***

“There are random variables in this world, one that shouldn’t have been considered, but humans are overthinking creatures. In plotting the future, it’s always essential to exclude these numbers that represent both positivity and negativity. It will all become real when you blackball everything imaginary.”

Inside the Kollaria Kingdom’s festival’s second day, I stood with Guinelle before a crowded stall offering its customers an old-time roulette, a game of wheel of fortune. The wheel had 60 divisions, and the 50 in it were red ‘Try Again’ prizes, a total cheat. These recreational games were famous in this kingdom, an easy access to gain fortune for merchants, but the reason for indebted addicts.

Seeing Guinelle’s eyes glimmer and darken after a roll, I’m afraid I’m accompanied by a gambling addict. It’s her eighth roll, yet she didn’t stop rolling the money. I suppose I need to cut her budget.

“What are you talking about, Quimora? The uncertainty of a game makes it fun,” Guinelle exclaimed as she bet her ninth roll. “The desperation of winning makes your skin shiver. It’s the ultimate euphoria!”

“If I’m your parent, having children is forbidden,” I replied and sighed. “You’ll lose.”

“Don’t make me down, Quimora! That’s immoral.”

“Look who’s talking, dopamine-overloaded devil, a menacing godforsaken face in disguise.”

“Why don’t you try this, Quimora? You’ll see and feel what I mean, the power of Gatcha!”

I relaxed my shoulders and sighed as I put a bag of gold coins, the highest of the overall offer, over the betting table. This attracted the crowd’s leer and caused the merchant’s anticipation to lick his lips. I can hear from his face the word Delicious since only he can roll.

No one but me noticed the secret mechanism hidden by the merchant to control the odds. As the merchant spun the wheel, gathering wonders in the audience’s slack mouth, I was in the middle of lecturing Guinelle.

“The centripetal force, the friction of the spin, the mass of the roller, etc. There are too many variables to consider. It’s similar to crafting your plans. One misinformation will be the cause of its downfall. Suppose this may give one an illusion that there’s a 59-over-60 chance that you’ll lose. However, if you didn’t specify the necessary variables and eliminate the randoms–”

As the wheel slowly halted, pointing its arrow at the greenest division which left everyone in awe, I uttered, “There'll be a one-to-one chance that you’ll win.” Only I noticed that a thread fell behind the mechanism.

The trembling merchant, whose face was once flooded by euphoria and soon overtaken by denial, stepped back. He spoke slowly, and I didn’t expect Guinelle to synchronize with him.

““WHAT!? NO WAY!””

Shaking her head, Guinelle exclaimed, “That’s upright cheating Quimora! That’s immoral for the Gatcha gods!”

“You know who’s cheating?” I asked, pivoting at the merchant whose face turned pallid. “The best example for pre-defining the future is eliminating the random uncertainties…” I soon gazed at the thread and grinned menacingly. “How will you explain those rigs, Mr. Merchant? The spotlight is now on you, sir. I suppose audiences here might remember you for controlling the odds, leading to a scam. I wouldn’t mind though. However, I think there should be something you’ve done, isn’t it? Now tell me, what is it? What is it!?”

His hands shook as he was unable to blink. His lips and chin trembled as soon as the sweat covering his head appeared visible. As soon as he sensed defeat, he kneeled on the ground and uttered with a shrill voice, “I’m… sorry.”

“QUIMORA!” I soon turned my head after a familiar shout bounced in my ear. Ellen and Kingsley exhaled the tiredness from gathering information. Ellen soon pouted after witnessing what we’d been doing while they worked down to blood. “I’m utterly disappointed.”

“Now what? I didn’t ask about your date. Where’s the intel?” I asked as we hid in an isolated alleyway, discussing our next plans. Guinelle held the bag of coins that was doubled from the game. Also, as compensation, the merchant gave me an out of the common flower in a pot.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Cirficius Flower, whose yellow petals took the similarity of a rose’s shape, only bloomed as the sun shone but withered every night. Once it reflects the light of the full moon, this will trigger a secret reaction only a few know. Like the saying famous within the kingdom, once a moon shows its everything, miraculous things happen.

“Look at you, Quimora! Having all the fun by yourself together with this bewildered money-draining airhead,” Ellen complained.

Slowly, I rotated my eyeball toward Guinelle and replied, “I’m lecturing her.”

“Huh!? I’m the one who should be lecturing you!” Guinelle argued. “You’re a boring person, Mary Sue. You always win. You can’t even grasp the fun of winning or losing. I’m just teaching you about the morality of–“

“Can you shut your morals up?” I uttered and stared back at Ellen. “Back to business, I suppose you’ve checked the underground?”

Ellen’s gaze suddenly left the world as she stared down the ground without uttering a word. Kingsley, a truthful person, nodded on her behalf.

I sighed and exclaimed, “You’re adults now. You’re not visiting a haunted house and going back with clown makeup. As soon as you find the stones, you’re free to do everything you want… as long as we’re not forced to go out I suppose.”

Ellen raised her head and asked a diversion, “By the way, have you seen the arsonist kid? Isn’t it safe for her to be here?”

“You’re concerned? Don’t you remember? Wasn’t it your fault she’s here? It hits hard to have Alzheimer’s in the early 20s,” I replied. “Rox had a spare memory supplement, and she was disappointed she couldn’t digest it.”

“It may be my responsibility, but…” Ellen inhaled, lowered her gaze, and clenched her fists. While grimacing, her chin dipped down to her chest, adopting a slumped posture. “... I don’t know how I can face her.”

“This should be the chance that you clarify things within you two. You caused all the ruckus by uttering snuffbumble, upright nonsense. It’s a rule within our group not to dwell back in our past and focus on the controllable future. Did you forget that after chasing men’s pecs in the gym?”

Her expressions were left unchanged. It might’ve hit her hard when the kid mentioned a vision of her past trauma. It’s a turn-off when an adult forcibly crushes one's dreams. As a person whose mind is like a kid. I hated that.

Finishing the meeting, I uttered, “Gathering information is our utmost priority. You do your job, and I’ll do mine. I suppose I might skip leg day now. Just remember… When you’re in character, you shouldn’t go all out.”

***

“The underground means the slums. Why didn’t the author add that as a footnote?” Ellen complained as she wandered with Kingsley to the hidden shade of the kingdom, the slums.

The informal settlers dwelled within the abandoned wooden houses whose exteriors appeared with cracks and burns. Far from the lively living, the smell of rotten biodegradable and dust intoxicated the sense of smell of every person passing through the place. Under the afternoon sunset, the residents completely shut their windows and doors closed.

“This is no laughing matter. Can you talk, King?” Ellen asked as she switched Kingsley’s amulet on.

“Better than never, I wanted lead, forever! Are you upset? Why don’t you eat lead for breakfast? You’ll enjoy it,” King’s amulet in a cute tenor tone replied.

Ellen pinched her forehead and sighed. “I can’t imagine you talking in that Bench-built body. It’s better than getting bored.”

“You’ll never get bored eating lead!”

They knocked on every household they encountered. Not even a single voice responded. They circled the slums for clues about the banished prisoner, yet no one dared to talk. Forcing through the house would be their last resort, but it would only reveal their intentions to the public.

Suddenly, they heard a girl’s scream within the vicinity. The familiarity of the voice alerted Ellen, who already had a hunch of who the person was. Kingsley already confirmed the identity of the girl, hence he rushed towards the source of the noise.

“Wait, King! Don’t dump me in this dumpster!” Ellen shouted and followed.

As they got into the scene, they spotted a woman who carried a girl with a backpack and turned her back to Ellen. She’s surrounded by a group of 47 light-armored men wearing the same silver helmet as her. That helmet bore three horizontal holes between the ears and shone the lighted heat emitted by the sunset, which soon faded into darkness.

When the woman faced them, Ellen and King saw the unconscious Mary full of violet bruises freshly made minutes ago. Though the army was equipped with sharp withdrawn swords, they kept Mary alive by hitting her with blunt attacks. On the ground, she saw the pair of earrings that she left when she took a bath in the river yesterday.

Witnessing the brutal torture a kid shouldn’t experience, Ellen clenched her jaws and hissed. Though she may look like a lady hooker in the red district, she’s very fond of kids. In the syndicate she’s in, she’s the most emotional when it comes to children.

“How dare you…” Ellen stomped her feet, recklessly planning to punish the people who did this to Mary, but Kingsley halted her by pulling her arm.

“What are you doing, King!? Let me go!” The raging Ellen shouted while unconsciously building up the magic enhancement in her arm.

Kingsley shook his head. Soon, he wrapped Ellen’s feet with roots that came from the ground, which he controlled. The AI spoke, “Dumb as fuck! Don’t you see those blades? They’re so scary, oh my god! It’s like jumping down a cliff with bottom spikes.”

Ellen’s clenched fist swiftly swung into Kingsley’s amulet, but she halted before directly smashing it. She exhaled deep breaths, calming herself to identify the situation.

Kingsley didn’t stop her because he was betraying her. Rather, he’s just mindful of their identities leaking. The kingdom hasn't heard the name of the Veiled Paradox yet. If they do, since they already sold their identities behind the mask, it would be easy for them to be tracked by opposing groups and forces.

The woman spoke like her voice was suppressed by metal, “I’ll pretend I didn’t see you. Leave now, or else, I’ll be forced to kill you.”

“And how can I pretend I didn’t see anything? Do you know who you’re threatening?” Ellen argued while suppressing her anger, “You’re doing a crime upright in my face. If I caught you, I might become a millionaire from your bounties.”

“Ready your swords. They shouldn’t be allowed to live,” the leader commanded. The soldiers replied in harmony, ““Yes, Ursa!””

Ellen’s arm glowed fiery blue, but she didn’t experience heat. It’s the aura that appeared when she was trying to surpass the limits of her unusual ability, completely overridden with anger. With superhuman strength much more destructive than Phantom had, she sent Kingsley flying by pushing him toward the nearby abandoned house. “I’m sorry, King. I’m completely responsible for this.”

As the men marched towards her with their swords, Ursa commented, “You don’t have any chance to win with our numbers. You can’t save this girl with our combined abilities–” Ursa halted when a flick from Ellen’s fingers bounced in and around her helmet. Soon, a crack split her helmet in half. Her raven-like hair that turned dark blue due to the evening clouds weaved down her waist.

Before the men reached her, Ellen commented with a sense of threat, “Now that I revealed my identity, you should reveal yours… Then we’re even.”