The events that followed were rapid. The carriage entered the city under strict inspection; at first glance, it did not differ from the Zalindar. With such modern buildings and streets, it still managed to win over Ashe.

The carriage soon stopped, and its passengers had to continue their journey on foot. Ashe and Aigis bid farewell to Gogi and Maia and went their separate ways. The girl offered to accompany the boy to the guild, since she had a business of her own.

After changing several local carriages, they reached the centre of Piranesi, where the city's government guild was located. Since Ashe was already a member, he did not intend to change anything. Aigis was also in the same boat and told him about the building, which was much grander than the one they had in Zalindar.

"Do you remember what I told you? Keep my secret and don't talk about me being an Eminent," Aigis whispered, bringing her lips close to Ashe's ear.

Ashe, who was used to the girl's physical closeness, didn't even recognise her actions. Instead, he shook his head in reprimand. "I know, I know, I know. You've warned me at least ten times, but I still don't understand why you're hiding it."

"Ashe, Ashe, Ashe! You know nothing. Hiding strength so everyone thinks I'm weak and vulnerable, when in reality I can break their bones, is the best feeling." After a short pause, she smiled. "It makes me feel like the main character."

"You're stupid." The boy replied shortly and entered through the door.

"You don't believe me, do you?" Aigis, following him, didn't let go. As if she had been challenged and wanted to prove herself. "I'll show you right now." She held her head proudly, leaned forward too much, and bumped into the nearest bald man.

Both of them fell in the collision. The incident, which was caused by the girl, did not end with an apology from her. On the contrary, it continued with artificial aggression, which birthed the victim. At the same time, Aigis looked into Ashe's eyes as if saying, "Look at me carefully."

The spectators advanced to the excitement she caused. The bald man did not intend to endure oppression from the girl. Mark activation was prohibited in the building, although hand-to-hand combat was allowed.

The man immediately swung at Aigis. The girl did not block it, nor did she dodge it, when based on her mobility, she clearly could have done so. She was prodding the bald man, who had fallen to the ground again. "Your head is like a wizard orb; can I see my future there?"

The last words hit the man's ego hard. So he continued to hit the fallen girl until his friends calmed him down. "Get out of here! Don't you know who she is?"

"Who is she?" A little fear crept into the bald man's voice. Did he just hit a big shot?

"That is Crazy Aigis. She and her team are full of retards. They think they are heroes and pretend to be the defenders of the city." One of his comrades explained. Their dialogue moved to the guildhall.

Ashe witnessed the entire event without a word. He did not help the girl or try to protect her. Instead, he watched intently. That was what Aigis wanted. The boy also heard about the lines fired at Aigis and received new information about the girl.

"Can you get up?" The boy stood on top of her and offered to help.

Aigis shook her head and stood up on her own. "See what happened?"

"What are you talking about?" the boy asked.

"That idiot thinks I am weak. Imagine the look on his face when he finds out I'm Eminent." Here comes her trademark manic grin, which extends to show her teeth.

"What would you do if he was Eclipsed or higher, and he was stronger than you?" Ashe had a logical question that the hastily acted girl wouldn't have considered.

"They beat me up. End of the story. And now guess what happened to me, genius." She told him sarcastically. She ignored the fact that she got hit for nothing and wiped her bloody nose. "That cretin punched me in my pretty face."

After all the strange interactions, Ashe settled the registry business. This time, the process was easier. He showed his ID, and all his data was already in the database. Aigis found her friends and went to meet them. She also completed her mission and talked to the receptionist.

After the two of them were done with their businesses, Aigis wanted to introduce the boy to her team. "Come on, I'll present them to you. But be prepared; they're a bit weird."

"You, of all people, say that?" Ashe said in surprise and followed the girl.

Her group was waiting outside. There were four of them, and Aigis was the fifth. "This is my new friend, Ashe." She said casually like it was her everyday occasion.

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"This is Kara." She pointed to a fair-haired girl in a green uniform. She seemed to have a flower growing out of her head.

"This is Esker, Kara's twin." This boy was less shy than his sister. Underneath the blue cloak, he was also wearing green and was holding a lit candle in his hand for some reason.

"This is Link." Finally, she pointed to a pale blond boy with a vertical red stripe drawn across his face, from his eyes to his chin. He was holding a thick-bound book in his hand.

They were all Aigis' peers, and she met them at the academy.

Scrutinising each other lasted more than a minute. Ashe looked at the other four as they looked at her.

Esker made a pointed comment. "Aigis ran into another oddball of her kind. Please tell me he is the reason you are bleeding." He spoke softly as if he were attentive to the flame. His words were directed at Ashe but somehow included Link as well.

It was the latter who replied. "You'll stop your sorry mouth when I blow out your candles."

"Don't you dare!" Esker threatened sternly, which was only visible with the movement of one finger.

"Guys, stop and don't embarrass Aigis in front of her friend." Kara calmed them down and peeked at Ashe warmly. Her voice was as gentle as the girl herself.

Aigis eyed what was happening. She looked happy as if she were the organiser of a grand party. "My friends should be friends with each other." She announced with satisfaction.

"Hello, as you already heard, my name is Ashe, but I don't know why Aigis is introducing me." He was interested, but he suspected he left it to the girl to reveal.

Aigis peered around, and lowering her voice, she said. "Officially, everyone is Eminent except me. They know my secret, and we are a party of sorts."

"Wait, did you tell him too?" Kara was surprised. It was clear that Aigis wasn't revealing her secret easily.

"No, he figured it out himself." Then she looked at the boy. "I still don't know how." She had an interest that she indirectly revealed.

"Secret!" the boy retorted. "You're not the only one who has them."

"Okay, okay." Aigis continued. "You should understand why I brought you here."

Then Link stated. "You want to go on that mission together?" The boy opened a book in the meantime and was reading as he spoke.

Esker called out. "I thought so too, but I feel like there's one big but."

Aigis was about to answer, but Ashe beat her to it. "Not one, but two 'buts.'"

Eyebrows rose one by one at his words, but no one objected—not until they heard.

"First, I'm Eclipsed," he said, and without waiting for a reaction, he called out the second. "And if you want me to follow you and help you on 'that' mission, then you must obey my instructions." Only after that did he look at their faces.

Esker sighed as if he were no longer careful with the candles. "Crazy child."

Kara pursed her lips. She said nothing, but it was clear she was trying to hold it.

Link closed the book, examined Ashe again, and shook his head. "Why?" he questioned shortly.

Aigis's reaction was the most dramatic. Loud even. Full of laughter, as if she had expected to hear something like this. "I knew you would say something crazy." Then she went into thought as if she was considering something.

"Wait, don't tell me you're going to give up leadership." Esker was stunned and wanted to argue.

Her twin brother also supported her. "You know better than us how much responsibility this is."

Link did not stop assessing the boy. As if wondering what Aigis saw in him that had brought the situation to this point.

The girl finished her thinking quickly. Her laughter and smile were nowhere to be seen. Now she was serious. More than Ashe had seen in all these days. "I have witnessed your mastery to observe and coordinate with my own eyes, and I will allow you to do so only once. However, this is not enough to lead the team."

She ignored the reactions she caused again and addressed the boy with renewed severity. "I agree, but if you put any member of the team in danger even once, then I will beat you with my own hands. I will throw you into the lake and tie you to a tree for two days."

This time Ashe laughed. "Sounds good." He extended his hand to the girl and took the reins of leadership upon himself.

This was the first time Ashe would take a leadership position outside his school. In a real, harsh, and dangerous environment. In this place, one mistake could have cost him lives.

"Now tell me about your mission," he declared, addressing the tense team members with satisfaction.