It turned out that Rosalind was quite serious about making their entire faction rest, as was Nero. After resting to their satisfaction it was back to business as usual. She saw no signs of Alvis’s presence in the manor, but she knew he had yet to leave. Alois, on the other hand, had been called away by the Headmaster the moment their rest order was lifted.

When Cassandra did finally try to return to work she found that very little had been left for her to do. It seemed Tobias had taken back over the majority of the duties, and Cassandra had to admit he did an excellent job. Far better than she had managed. She had to remind herself of Rosalind’s words that she was still just a student. She had to complete even her first year at Nobility. It was hard to believe when she considered everything that had happened.

With even more free time than she expected, Cassandra decided to take a stroll through the mansion’s gardens. While it was not as impressive as the gardens she had seen at the palace, it came close. The atmosphere was so relaxing it almost put her on edge, as if any sign of peace was just the calm before the storm.

As Cassandra approached the fountain near the outer gates that depicted some form of magical beast frollicking with a mermaid. It was an odd fountain as neither creature had been mentioned in Cassandra’s book of magical beasts that she had read to find out more about Yuki. As she watched the water twirl and gurgle, the fox in question suddenly became agitated.

“Yuki?” Cassandra asked in surprise, looking over at her shoulder to see his eyes wide open. Even though he had chosen to remain by her side, their entire time together the fox had spent still or sleeping. She could feel his muscles tense as he clung close around his shoulders. What was he looking at? She followed his gaze and caught sight of Alvis stepping up to the other side of the fountain.

As she watched him, their eyes met and he smiled. “Cassandra, I was hoping to speak with you,” Alvis greeted, approaching her side of the fountain, “I fear that some of Lann’s fixation on you may have been my fault. When he insulted your lineage I felt it was my duty to correct him. In doing so, I believe I may have accidentally made you seem desirable as a political partner.”

While it was relieving to think that Lann only liked her as a political marriage candidate, Alvis’s words weren’t exactly comforting. It didn’t help that Yuki was behaving strangely all of the sudden. All of Cassandra’s instincts were screaming of danger, so she quickly plotted an acceptable way to escape the situation.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but Duke Lann made his own choices,” she told Alvis, “You should focus on more important matters rather than worrying about me.”

“Indeed,” Alvis agreed. For a moment Cassandra believed her escape plan had worked. Then Alvis’s smile became something far more sinister. “Yuki, how long do you intend to keep playing pet fox?”

As all of Alvis’s attention turned to him, Yuki suddenly jerked up and dove off of Cassandra’s shoulders. Cassandra stepped between the founding headmaster before she could think about what she was doing.

“What do you want with my summon?” she demanded.

“Summon? So that is what he is playing at,” Alvis mused, “I can obtain a far more useful summon for you. I doubt that lazy fox has been very helpful.”

“Yuki has been helpful enough,” Cassandra defended. She didn’t like how Alvis’s sarcastic tone reminded her of Lann. “I will state again that he is my summon. You have no right to interfere.”

Alvis suddenly stepped very close. “No right?” he asked, his voice low and dangerous, “Do you have any idea what Yuki is, little girl?”

Cassandra jerked back. “I have my theories but no one will confirm them,” she admitted, “Even if he is the summon of the founding archmage you have no reason to scare him like that.”

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“Ah yes, that is how history recorded it,” Alvis sighed, his threatening demeanor gone, “You are wrong, though. Yuki has never been a summon. He is the founding archmage of Tethia. The very same who helped me create the six artifacts, though two were lost almost immediately.”

There had been one wild story that mentioned Yuki and the archmage were one and the same. At the time Cassandra had dismissed it as nonsense, but she was currently living in a world with elves, beastkin, and fae. No wonder everyone’s reactions had been so strange. Rosalind and Nero likely knew exactly who he was.

“Why would the found archmage run from you?” Cassandra asked instead.

“He is but a child running from scolding,” Alvis replied, “Had he taken any time to mature instead of living in dreams I would have no need to do so.”

“Whatever his history, I can take care of my summon,” Cassandra decided. It didn’t matter if he was a sleepy fox or an all powerful archmage. Yuki had chosen her.

“I will warn you again, you have no idea what you are getting into,” Alvis warned, “Yuki is more dangerous to this world than you can fathom. He-”

A white fur ball charged into Alvis’s legs, causing him to cut off his words. Yuki stood his ground with a growl and fur standing up on end. Then Cassandra suddenly heard a new voice come from the fox.

“Silence!” Yuki demanded, “Don’t say another word!” His voice was younger than Cassandra had imagined, and she immediately understood why Alvis had referred to him as a child.

“Or what?” Alvis prodded, “Will you throw another childish tantrum and destroy this world as you did ours?”

Cassandra wasn’t sure why but she was confident Alvis was at least partially wrong. “Yuki wouldn’t do that,” she spoke up, “Not for some childish reason like you claim.”

“I could tell you why if you truly intend to keep him by your side,” Alvis offered, “I have no intention of letting someone handle a ticking time bomb with no knowledge of what it is.”

Still confident, Cassandra scooped up the angry fox and held him close. “Your words won’t change my mind.”

“Very well,” Alvis said, “I will begin with a simple fact. Yuki becomes more attached to those he likes than ordinary people. Being chosen by him may be an honor, but it also means that the fate of your world is now directly tied to your life. Should you die, this world will perish with you.”

Though Yuki had calmed in her arms, Cassandra felt a chill. She could do her best to avoid dangerous situations, but she would eventually die of old age and Yuki was immortal. The fox nudged her in a comforting way. Was this warning reserved for murder, then?

“Difficult for you to comprehend?” Alvis guessed. She wasn’t sure when, but Cassandra became aware they were trapped together in some kind of barrier, “The full story would be long, so I will summarize. Yuki here lived his life from birth alone, following orders as a war slave. That’s right. My world had its own share of filth.”

“What does that have to do with him becoming overly attached?” Cassandra questioned.

“Patience,” Alvis told her, “There was another slave in that place. A woman who took him in and offered to become his mother. Though the two remained perfect soldiers, their keepers did not like the fact that monstrous war slaves could have any solace. Especially the terrifying magic weapon, Yuki. They killed her, and that is when the world ended. It was over in a moment. A moment of one child losing control of his magic.”

The chills Cassandra had felt become stronger, like a rush of tingles on her arms and spine. It was scary to think about, but she felt assured that she had been right about one thing. First, Yuki had never intended to destroy everything. Not only that, he had every reason to lose control. It wasn’t his fault he had more magic than most. She could not fathom fearing the very magic she loved so much just because it was stronger than she had expected.

“Convincing me to reject him won’t fix the problem,” she told Alvis resolutely, “So you are saying I have to be careful? Fine. But Yuki is my summon, and I won’t abandon him.”

“Yuki, what do you say? Will you give up your life as the layabout hidden archmage to live as her summon?” Alvis asked him, “If you choose this path, you must act as a real summon would. Help her as you have me in the past. Become a true partner.”

“I can do it,” Yuki promised.

It truly did sound like a child being scolded by his parent. Despite his antagonistic approach, perhaps Alvis had meant well.