Chapter XI
Mallicent Malloway gazed blankly at the white ceiling of the one-room apartment, his hands behind his head as he lay on the bed in the back right corner. Despite it being three in the afternoon, the room was dark, with the lights off and the blinds pulled shut, allowing only a few rays of sunlight to peek through. Up until this point, he had been keeping a consistent yet small amount of mana igniting fire in his palm that would use it up and prevent the other mages in the realm from sensing him, but ever since his confrontation with Ilirianna Iiji a few days prior, he had ceased this strategy, allowing his power to refill itself until he finally reached full strength again. Naturally, that meant his location was now known, but he was certain that Ilirianna and her allies would be too afraid of exposing magic to the Omaruans to attack him. He was sure she wouldn't give a shit about innocent lives, for the nobility rarely did, but if Mallicent set the apartment building on fire, it would make it hard for Ijiria to cover up their existence.
Not to mention, from what Captain Vesh told me about Abigail, she shares many of our values, and is a commoner herself, so even if Princess Ilirianna doesn’t care about Omaruan lives, Abigail might. Course, this strategy banks on them not realizing I’m bluffing. As if I would ever slaughter a bunch of innocent civilians like that. It goes against everything we believe in. If she calls my bluff, I’m dead, but at the very least, they haven’t yet made any moves.
Closing his eyes, he allowed his senses to reach out, and in a realm lacking in mana, he could sense Ilirianna, Ryokumo, and Abigail on the other side of town, having thus far refrained from coming anywhere near his location. Back when he had been undetectable, he had snuck towards where he continued to sense them, only to find that they were staying within a civilian’s house. Then, when he stalked them to that clothing store, he found them in the company of a young Omaruan boy, leading him to realize that they had already made an ally of one of the locals.
I pity that poor guy, he internally spat. I’m sure they failed to inform him that any magicless that comes into contact with magic will be erased from existence. They’ll use him for all his worth and then cast him aside. How vile…
Mallicent sighed, pushing himself to a sitting position and running his hands through his hair as he glanced around the apartment, specifically to the magicless fridge humming in the opposite corner within the attached kitchen. His stomach growled, reminding him that he hadn’t eaten lunch, and he could only curse the fact that he had so foolishly lost his wallet at some point. Uma had promised him that the apartment would have some money stashed away, which should have been enough to get him through the few weeks of waiting for the realm dagger to recharge, but by the time he returned home after confronting the princess, it had disappeared from his pocket, leaving him without a way of purchasing food.
It’s a good thing I already went shopping, but there’s no way what I’ve got lasts the whole time. Rationing is my only choice unless I try to use magic to rob somebody…and I’d rather avoid that if possible.
However, when his stomach growled a second time, he gave in and walked over to the fridge to grab himself an apple that he could use as a snack. As he ate, he wandered over to the room's singular window and pulled up one of the blinds so he could gaze down at the empty street below.
I suppose I can at least appreciate the fact that I’m one of only a handful of people alive to have crossed realms. Omaruo’s not that bad of a place. I’m sure Aeyir would have…
His lips tightened at the thought of his older brother, and though he tried his best to prevent Ilirianna’s words from twisting their way into his mind, he couldn’t stop himself from remembering what she said to him.
“Lord Malloway was burnt to an unrecognizable husk, and Captain Vesh severed Aeyir’s head himself, on his birthday and in front of everybody. And from what I’ve gathered, I suspect even your mother is no longer with us. Do you feel nothing? Do you even care that your family was murdered?”
Mallicent gripped the half-eaten apple tightly, trying to force the guilt out of his mind and ease the nausea that was once again threatening him. He didn’t care whatsoever that his father was dead. He had never liked the man even when he was young, for Mallicent always believed he was selfish and greedy—that he never actually loved his sons and only saw them as a means to an end to further his own lineage. Aeyir never seemed to care, ready and willing to embrace the expectations of being Hiriech’s heir, but Mallicent was never able to do the same.
After all, he never asked to be born as the son of a lord.
He knew that most people would be disgusted by such a sentiment, for how could he complain about being born into wealth and privilege—the son of the one of the most powerful houses in all of Ijiria. Though he never would have taken over Aquesen unless his brother died, Mallicent could have easily lived a comfortable life. His admission into the most respected magical school in the empire was guaranteed. He had an easy route to joining the Korrei-Tarr or becoming a significant leader within mage organizations or among the knights. If he didn’t want to see combat, he was sure that either his father or brother could give him control over some land, allowing him to serve as a baron the way one of his uncles did. It would have all been so easy for him, where most others could never even dream of such a thing.
But that wasn’t what I wanted to do with life. I wanted to study our world and all the worlds that surround us. I wanted to join the Organization for Magical Advancement and Research in the capital of science itself, Stellareid. I wanted to dedicate my life to the benefit of the people—to seek answers to the mysteries of our world. But Father just wouldn’t hear it…
“Members of the House of Malloway are mages and warriors. No son of mine is going to be locking themselves away in a laboratory. My children will be in the army or part of the Korrei-Tarr. They will make names for themselves and live up to their family legacy.”
Mallicent scoffed, turning away from the window and beginning to pace, finding that the movement was quite effective in easing his anger. Well Father, I’d like to see you get in my way now. Can’t tell me what to do if you’re dead.
Of course, Mallicent didn’t aid in the murder of his father for such a pathetically selfish reason. In his eyes, a lord existed to protect the common people, but all Lord Malloway ever did was look out for the rich and powerful, stepping over those beneath him to get what he wanted. Hiriech had a homeless problem mainly because Lord Malloway didn’t care to divert any resources to fixing it. Instead, he spent it on lavish celebrations, trips, and an army that was unnecessarily large. He cheated on his wife with whores from the pleasure houses and taught his children that it was expected of a lord to have some women on the side. Mallicent knew he had bastard siblings somewhere out there, though Lord Malloway never supported any of them whether emotionally or financially.
And the other nobles were no better! Baron Ikro ordered his soldiers to steal from the peasants, arresting them and hanging them when they tried to fight back and defend themselves. He used the fact that his men knew magic and his people did not to harass them. Baron Ubal used the funding meant for the improvement of his territory’s infrastructure on an expensive riverboat he hardly ever used. Baron Caldar was rumored to have raped the underage daughters of his servants, and I knew as a fact that he did because he boasted about it to my father like it was something to be proud of, and he only laughed along with him. The goddamn list only goes on and on! Those pieces of human garbage needed to die! They wanted Aeyir and I to be like them, as if it was expected of a noble to be such scum!
Wanting to vent his fury, Mallicent turned and forcefully threw the apple core into the trash bin, finding himself breathing heavily as he attempted to compose himself.
I will never be like them!
One way or the other, Captain Vesh had noticed this disgust for the elite forming in Mallicent, for he had approached him one day and broached the subject.
“I can tell you are dissatisfied with the current state of things. I can tell that you are different, Mal, and that you might not be as far gone as most people of your status are.”
Vesh had spoken to him about the goddess, Rei, and the beliefs of Kosahanity in the past, but since religions were more or less a debunked and abandoned part of Ijirian past, he had never taken it seriously. Even now, he couldn’t say with certainty that he believed there actually was a goddess who created the multiverse and granted Ijirians magic. But regardless of Rei’s existence or not, her ideals were exactly what he sought.
An Ijiria built on peace… A place where magic was used to help each other—where conflict and suffering were things of the past. I do not know if Rei exists, but I want to believe that her paradise is attainable. It’s not possible, though, if the structure of our society isn’t upended, and like I told the princess, violence is the only means when dealing with people who lack a conscience.
Obviously, when Rotana Vesh first began to hint at the concept of fighting this unfairness with violence, Mallicent had been hesitant. Just as Ilirianna had accused him of, it seemed hypocritical to vie for peace by slaughtering people—even people as vile as the elite Ijirians. There had been nights where he contemplated reporting Vesh’s treasonous rhetoric to his father, but each time he came close to doing so, he felt that if he did, then he would be abandoning the chance of creating that paradise. To him, Vesh represented the only means of attaining that future, so he couldn’t bring himself to commit.
And then, something terrible happened that changed everything.
His mother, Yoral Malloway, had always been somewhat of a depressed woman. She was quiet and reserved, even with her children. That wasn’t to say she wasn’t loving, though, and Mallicent had always considered himself closer to her than anybody else. He knew that his father didn’t really care for her, and that they argued quite often, so he could only imagine that she had simply lost the will to press on because a few months ago, she used ropes of wind to hang herself. She and Mallicent had gone off on a vacation to the southern coastal city of Tropac to get away from the oppressiveness of Hiriech for a while. The two of them did this around two to three times a year, for they shared the same aversion to the Great City and its politics. However, during that particular trip, he had noticed that she seemed more withdrawn than usual, not responding to him as much and unable to hold a conversation.
Then, the night before he discovered her body in her bedroom, she had broken down into tears and apologized to him. At the time, he hadn’t known what she was apologizing for, but she just kept repeating that it was too much and that she hadn’t been the best mother for him that she could be. The rage he felt when he realized that she had been apologizing for her plan to die had been more intense than anything he had ever felt in his life. His mother might have been the one to end her life, but she had been killed by the unloving and harsh environment created by Lord Malloway and Hiriech. Vesh had been a part of the guard assigned to them, and Mallicent had gone to get him immediately.
“I’ll do whatever the hell you need me to! I’ll kill whoever you need me to! I don’t give a damn anymore! These fuckers need to be dragged to hell, so tell me what you desire from me, Captain Vesh, and I’ll do it without hesitation!”
Mallicent stopped his pacing and gazed down at his palms, still not regretting that decision even now. His mother’s death was covered up because, as much as it pained him, she gave them an opening to breach Aquesen more than Vesh already had. Leiolai used her changeling powers to replace Yoral Malloway with Tali Firrik, who had been posing as his mother ever since. Nobody outside of the Kosah-Rei ever learned of Yoral’s suicide.
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“From what I’ve gathered, I suspect even your mother is no longer with us.”
Mallicent smiled bitterly. Don't think I didn’t miss the accusation buried within those words, Ilirianna. I did not kill my mother, nor did anybody I was aligned with! No, the people we wiped out were the ones responsible.
However, not even he could miss the contradiction in his words, for though he certainly did not kill his mother, he played a significant role in the death of his older brother. He had known for a long time that Aeyir had to die in order to reach Rei’s paradise, for he was already too ingrained in the role expected of him. He excused their father’s actions and turned a blind eye to the atrocities committed by the barons. Perhaps he had yet to participate himself, but his morals were already corrupted, and there was no changing that.
But that does not mean I’m not sorry things turned out like this, Aeyir. I did love you. I really did, but sacrifices have to be made. House Malloway has been completely wiped out, and now they can never stain Hiriech again. Yet, the smiling face of his brother entered his mind, and though Mallicent told himself he would move past it, the guilt was still strong. I must never forget why I’ve done what I have. The Kosah-Rei are going to clean up this empire. We’re going to make life better for those who have struggled for far too long. I must never forget that!
And therefore, I must never allow myself to regret my decisions!
Unfortunately, that was easier said than done.
***
Ryokumo snorted with dissatisfaction after using his senses to check in on Mallicent’s location, only to find him in the exact same place he had been ever since he began allowing his mana levels to replenish. It irritated the wind mage, for it was beginning to seem like he was simply going to sit around until his dagger finished recharging before jumping back to Ijiria and leaving them behind. They obviously couldn’t allow that since it meant they would be stuck in Omaruo without any way of getting home, but after the threat he delivered to Ilirianna the other day, they had no choice but to sit and wait while they attempted to come up with a plan. The problem was that they couldn’t even begin to approach Mallicent without alerting him unless they emptied their own mana, but that would leave them without any magic left to actually combat him.
Why does it feel like we're always stuck like this? It’s just like back at Aquesen… Our hands are tied despite knowing exactly who to fight. Mallicent’s shoved us into a corner and at the moment, we have no way out. I just wish I’d killed him when I had the chance to!
Having been the only one to enter Omaruo alongside the boy, Ryokumo had been locked in combat with him for quite some time just outside the borders of Wilham. Taking Mallicent down should have been simple, but sensing the arrival of Ilirianna and Abi had thrown his thoughts into disarray, and when Mallicent began prioritizing flight instead of fighting, he set off a large enough explosion to knock Ryokumo to the ground. By the time he was back on his feet, Mallicent’s mana signature had gone dim before disappearing altogether.
I was outplayed…by a mere boy, at that. How embarrassing.
“No change?”
At Ilirianna’s inquiry, Ryokumo opened his eyes and shook his head. “Nothing. The little bastard is relaxing in his room. It’s honestly like he’s mocking us.”
“Lovely…”
The two of them were sitting alone in Scott Reiner’s kitchen, across the table from one another as they awaited Abi and Scott’s return from school. Ilirianna’s expression was unreadable, but the way she kept staring off into space told him that she was deep in her own thoughts. She had already expressed her fears about the current state of Ijiria in the aftermath of the attack on Hiriech, so he had a little bit of insight into what was bothering her. He wished he could do something to ease her nerves even just a little bit, but he knew that until they returned home and received a report on what had taken place, she wouldn’t be able to relax. If there was anything he had learned about her over the past week, it was that she had a very strong sense of honor and justice, as well as a powerful desire to protect her people. Someone with such morals would not be able to rest happily after what they went through.
Honestly, I do not think Ijiria could ask for a better princess. Even I would happily follow her, and I’ve never felt much loyalty to the Citadel.
Even setting aside the realm hopping, the past handful of days had been strange, for Ryokumo never would have thought he’d be in a situation like this alongside the heir to the Ijirian Empire. After all, he’d only known her for a little over three weeks, and during that time, they were conducting a secret and important investigation, so she had held herself with professionalism and composure. She was his leader, so she was the one in charge and the one he had to obey.
Yet, since arriving in Omaruo, the situation had changed.
Once the school week began, Abi had been escorting Scott to and from West Wilham, so Ryokumo and the princess had been spending more alone time together than he had ever thought they would. While they were obviously trying to find a way to take Mallicent down and get home, there was a lot more time to casually sit around, showing him a side of Ilirianna he didn’t think many ever saw.
Hell, just look at her now. She’s not in her fine and lavish noblewomen’s clothes, rather she’s dressed in the casual garments of this magicless realm—simple pants and a shirt…
In the soft light shining through the kitchen windows, Ryokumo found himself smiling at the sight of the princess, her emerald green hair pulled back in a lazy ponytail with a few stray strands hanging over her face. It seemed like she had gone back into her thoughts, hardly processing that he was staring, and the fact that she was zoned out in front of him at all communicated that she had already grown to trust him. Ryokumo was more pleased with that fact than he would have thought, for although he sought the princess’s respect so that she could help elevate him up the social ladder, he didn’t expect to like her much as a person given the reputation of the powerful.
But it's very clear to me, even in just this short time, that she’s different from them…
He thought back to a conversation the two of them had in regards to Scott just a day ago, where Ryokumo had asked whether she really intended to hide the fact that this magicless boy had been exposed to magic. After all, the law dictated his erasure, and Ilirianna was supposed to be the upholder of the law, so he was a bit nervous she was deceiving Scott. Her answer had been exactly what he wanted to hear, and it greatly increased his already powerful respect for her.
“There’s not even a slight chance I’d turn him over after all he’s doing for us,” she had stated firmly. “Scott’s risking his life to help us subdue Mallicent, so what kind of person would I be if I stabbed him in the back after all of that? As far as the Citadel needs to know, we posed as magicless people and took Mallicent down without ever getting the citizens involved.”
“And what if they figure out we’re lying?”
“Then I’d like to see them prove it.”
“Hey? What are you smiling about?” Ilirianna asked, bringing him out of his thoughts as he realized he had begun grinning.
Ryokumo chuckled. “Just thinking about how I’d follow you to the ends of the earth, my dear princess.”
Ilirianna narrowed her eyes, seemingly trying to figure out if he was teasing her, but before she could accuse him of such, the front door unlocked and the voices of Scott and Abi began carrying through the house. But to Ryokumo’s surprise, they were speaking in hushed voices, and it sounded as if they were arguing about something.
“I’m telling you, it's too dangerous,” Abi said firmly as they entered the kitchen. “Providing us with a place to stay is one thing, but taking such a direct action is out of the question! You could get yourself killed!”
Scott shook his head. “Sure, but if it goes well, then we can turn the tables on the asshole! Sitting around isn’t going to accomplish anything! Besides, I’m the only one who could feasibly get away with it!”
Abigail was clearly concerned, and not wanting to be left out of the loop, Ryokumo sat up straighter and asked, “What are you guys going on about? From the sound of it, is there perhaps a plan brewing?”
“No!”
“Yes!”
“Alright, I’m getting mixed signals here,” he muttered, just before Ilirianna chimed in and added,
“Both of you, explain. If you have a plan then I’d at least like to hear it. It’s important to have all of our options on the table, regardless of how risky they might be.”
Abi shot Scott an uncertain expression, but the boy just shrugged and motioned for her to do as the princess ordered, so she sighed with resignation and began to fill them in on the situation. “Well you see, since the deal was that Scott would let us stay with him if we taught him about Ijiria and magic, I’ve been answering a lot of his questions in our free time. Today, we got talking about mana and how we can sense people via their signatures.”
“And that cleared a lot of things up for me,” Scott chimed in. “You guys have mentioned sensing Mallicent and him sensing you, but you’d never actually explained to me the details of how that worked. So when Abi reminded me that you guys can’t sense us magicless since we lack mana, it occurred to me that I could be standing ten feet from the bastard and he’d never know it, right?”
Ilirianna furrowed her brow. “Yes, that is correct. Why does that matter though?”
“Why does that matter?! Think about it, Princess!” Scott urged. “Right now, Mallicent has the advantage over us because he’s got that dagger, right? All he has to do is sit around and wait for it to recharge, and with that threat he issued, you can’t do anything about it since he’ll sense you coming from miles away. Therefore, the only way to steal back that dagger is for somebody he can’t sense to do it!” Scott then grinned confidently. “So what I’m saying is that I can break into his apartment and snag the damn thing without him being any the wiser!”
“And my response to this was that it’s too risky!” Abi quickly chimed in, wanting to make her position known. “Mallicent has made it clear how willing he is to kill people, so if he catches Scott stealing the dagger, he won’t hesitate to burn him alive.”
“But I’m willing to take that risk! If he’s gonna kill me, then I just won’t get caught!”
Abigail’s features were strained with concern as she glanced sidelong at a frustrated Scott then over towards Ilirianna, whose uncertain expression was making it appear as if she were about to take Abi’s side. Ryokumo, however, quite liked where this conversation was going, for the young magicless boy had actually concocted quite an interesting plan. Of course, there was a single flaw in the idea, and Ilirianna didn’t hesitate to point it out.
“The issue, Scott, is that in this realm, anything with mana is very easy to sense,” the princess told him. “Yes, Mallicent won’t be able to sense you, but the second the realm dagger is in your pocket and begins to move, he’ll realize what’s up. Once he does, that dagger will act like a beacon broadcasting your location, and this house and his apartment are too far away for you to reach us before he catches you.”
“And we can’t be there to help,” Abi added reluctantly. “A fight with Mallicent anywhere near civilization needs to be avoided at all costs. It just wouldn’t work…”
Scott’s features tensed in frustration once again, but Ryokumo was pleased by the fact that he clearly wasn’t giving up, for the gears turning in his head were obvious, and he came up with a response impressively fast before turning to address Ryokumo.
“What about distortion?” he asked. “Caeli, you mentioned the other day that there’s a spell to conceal you both physically and magically, yes? Could the two of us sneak in under that spell?”
Impressed that Scott remembered that so well, Ryokumo grinned proudly, but unfortunately had to shake his head. “If distortion worked, I would have done it already. The problem is that distortion isn’t perfect even in our realm. Here, the distorted mana would be much easier to sense, and Mallicent has already proven he can sense my magic.”
“Damn it all…”
“It’s a good idea, Scott, and I appreciate you trying to help,” Ilirianna said in a clear effort to comfort him. “But Abi’s right. You’ve done enough for us by letting us stay here, and feeding us, and clothing us. Honestly, we could never properly thank you, so there’s no reason for you to put your life in any more danger. We’ll figure something out. I promise.”
Scott sighed and nodded. “Yeah, I suppose so.”
Abi placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled, which seemed to ease some of his disappointment, before she turned and excused herself to go to the bathroom. Ilirianna left as well, mentioning that she wanted to lay down for a bit, and soon enough, it was just Ryokumo and Scott in the kitchen. The boy was turning to depart as well, muttering something about having homework to do, when Ryokumo began speaking.
“You know, you’re absolutely correct about the dagger being a priority,” he commented. “Retrieving it would force Mallicent’s hand, and since he knows he can’t come into direct conflict with us given our superior power, he would probably hesitate to harm anybody for fear of retribution. That dagger is the key to turning this all around.”
“Yeah, I just wish my plan could have been useful,” Scott muttered. “I know Ilirianna and Abi are right, but at the same time, I’m getting a bit antsy. I want to do something helpful for you guys… I want to make sure you get home safely, and that Wilham doesn’t get set on fire by this bastard. I wish I wasn’t so powerless.”
“Well, let’s not get too ahead of ourselves,” he said with a chuckle. “You see, I’m something of a veteran when it comes to breaking into Mallicent’s private spaces, and I think your plan is doable, so long as we tweak a few details.”
“W-what?” Scott’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Ryokumo grinned slyly. “I’m saying, why don’t you and I go on a little adventure.”