The sun is rising... The crops are illuminated by the beautiful rays of light... also managing to illuminate the kingdom of Ystir. Time passes, and people prepare for a new day in their lives... cars pass by on the streets, people walk on the sidewalks... The palace opens its doors. We see Kassie waking up and getting out of bed in a room with blue walls, a window in front of the bed, and a desk by the window... Meanwhile, Ririam and Ann are together at a window ledge, having breakfast; Ririam is drinking coffee, and Ann blows into his ear, catching him off guard and causing coffee to spill on him. Ann, trying to help, uses her magic, creating a big commotion in the place... Xitlari is at the entrance of the PT agency, about to go in. We also see a tall man from behind, wearing a gray jacket and short white hair, walking along a path illuminated by the sun's rays. The paladin Reck exits the palace while talking to a knight; we see King Jens asleep in his bed and the paladin Rays reading news on a holographic screen while drinking coffee; Louis waking up and starting his morning exercise routine; Professor Maxwell drinking coffee while reading a newspaper, with Hanks leaving him a plate of cookies. Finally... we see Mei entering the agency.

" 'Sigh' Again?" Mei asked as she entered the research room, leaning against the wall.

"You know I like to work alone," Xitlari replied as she tried to open the seal of the scroll using needles with her four arms; she also had glasses on.

"Xitlari... you need to work with others," she mentioned, approaching her and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I don't want any mistakes, I hate having to fix something that wasn't my fault," Xitlari said, focused.

"The same thought, that's why I don't put you on missions," Mei replied while observing a crystal sphere in her hand.

"You should, I always complete them without any errors," she mentioned as she took a finer needle from a box to her right.

"Yesterday, you did an amazing job, and we were all there," Mei teased.

"Yes... but I prefer working alone," Xitlari emphasized with a slight smile of self-sufficiency.

"I won't assign you a solo mission; at least do one with Kassie or... Hmmm, see you later." Mei left the room with an idea in mind; Xitlari watched her leave and then continued working.

Mei entered her office after greeting Canbel; afterward, she sat in her desk chair, and a hologram appeared as she pressed a key on the keyboard on the desk.

Then we move on to Louis, who was delivering many packages throughout the kingdom; some people recognized him and greeted him, while others watched him run. Some murmured, "How is it that I never see that guy sweat?" said a man who received his package and watched Louis run off to deliver another. "A paladin as a delivery boy! How strange! Ha, ha," mentioned another. "I love seeing him, he seems very cute to me," commented a woman. "He’ll never pay attention to you," added another. Louis was heading to a bookstore with the last package in his arm.

"Good morning, Amelia!" Louis said excitedly, placing the package on the counter and breathing with slight exhaustion.

The store had a counter near the entrance and a large window in front of it; further inside, there were several shelves with books and a blue-silver cauldron kept in a glass case. The walls and ceiling were wooden, with various details and decorations.

"Hello, Louis! Thanks for bringing my package. How have you been? Did the potions work?" Amelia asked respectfully. Her hair was black, curly, and slightly messy, tied back a bit with a few loose strands; her skin was dark, her eyes brown, and she stood 170 cm tall. She wore a long-sleeved white shirt with closed cuffs and, over it, a fitted black vest. She wore a necklace with a small pendant and round glasses. She also had long silver earrings.

"Yes, I haven't had any more dreams, and actually... I haven’t heard anything since yesterday; maybe it’s already gone," he expressed with gratitude, surprised that he hadn't heard Dark anymore.

"I'm glad to hear that... You know... I’ve been researching your case, and I haven’t found anything; I’ve read up on curses from ancient times and nothing," she mentioned, bewildered, taking the package and placing it under the counter.

"How strange... I wonder what it could be... Well, at least I don't have those thoughts anymore, so I'll just keep doing what I’ve been doing," he said, feeling relieved and at peace.

"I hope those thoughts don't return. If you need more potions, don’t forget that mine are the best," she expressed proudly with a slight smile of confidence.

"Of course! I’ll always come to your shop, goodbye!" Louis said, raising his hand and heading out the door.

"Goodbye!" Amelia replied as she watched him leave through her window beside the counter.

Louis returned home after greeting many people who recognized him on the street.

"I'm back!" he said, entering the house and closing the door.

"I'm glad to see your progress, Louis," said Professor Maxwell, appearing on the entryway stairs, hiding his arms behind his back.

"Professor... were you waiting for me?" he said with slight surprise.

"Yes, here, I figured you'd go straight to the agency," he replied, handing him his katana and the blue bag.

"Thank you, professor... I appreciate everything you’ve done for me," Louis expressed sincerely, hugging the professor warmly.

"Don't worry... I'm happy to have met you," he replied with surprise and joy at the sudden hug.

"Goodbye!" Louis said, heading out the door.

"Goodbye... Hanks! Are you ready? We need to continue with the project," he mentioned as he went to find him.

"I'm ready! Just putting away the teapot," Hanks replied.

Louis headed to the agency, and this time, he noticed a woman looking at jewelry that Canbel was showing her. One piece caught Louis' attention; it was a necklace with a golden heart.

"I wonder how much one of those costs," he thought as he walked through the door next to the register.

Passing by the research room, he noticed Xitlari was there and, gathering courage, he entered to talk to her. As he entered, Xitlari glanced at him briefly and hid two of her arms.

"Good morning..." he said a bit nervously, trying to approach her.

"Good morning," she replied simply, focused on the seal of the scroll.

"How’s it going?" he said, attempting to make conversation but unsure of what to say.

"Fine."

"She likes people to approach her, doesn’t she?" he thought. "Have you... managed to open it yet?" Louis kept thinking of what to say as he got closer to her, positioning himself beside her.

"I wouldn’t still be trying to open it, would I?" she replied, raising her right eyebrow.

"Right..." he said, lightly tapping his forehead with his fist. "I don’t know what else to say... Maybe if I help her..." he thought, trying to find a solution. "Have you tried pressing here?"

"Don’t touch it!"

Xitlari tried to stop him, but when she raised one of the arms she’d hidden, she hit the table, and the scroll lifted and began to shine white. A creature with horns and white fur emerged from the scroll, destroying the wall; it then started running through the car area.

Xitlari covered her hands with blue magic, jumped, grabbed the scroll, and, using two needles, pressed firmly to seal the scroll.

"What are you doing? Let’s go!" she said angrily, going after the creature while pressing the needles into the scroll to prevent it from sealing again.

*Mei’s Office*

"I’m telling the truth, Zthur is a nerosma, sir," Mei said respectfully to a church leader on the holographic screen.

"Miss Mei... they were expelled from the land years ago, and all those who remained have already been exterminated," said the leader of the church with an indifferent attitude.

"I know what I'm telling you! I clearly remember what they looked like," Mei replied.

"You’re no longer a paladin, miss... You’ve probably been left with scars like the others. I wish you the best; I must leave," the leader responded, completely distrustful.

"I'm not crazy! Zthur has people with illusion magic and white magic! The kingdom is in danger!" she said, completely annoyed.

"Of course, you're crazy! No one has white magic other than the priest," he said angrily, cutting the transmission.

"Damn it! They never listen!" she expressed in frustration, standing up and slamming her desk.

"I see things are not going well..." said Reck, appearing at the window of the office to Mei's left.

"Reck! What are you doing here?" she asked, surprised to see him at the window.

"The king supposedly gave me permission to go out and relax, but what he's actually doing is hiding the kingdom's money. The good thing is I know where he's hiding it, but we need the priest here," he responded, irritated, leaning against the window with his arms.

"I doubt he’ll come... Now they think I'm crazy. Can’t you call a leader?" she said in frustration, sitting down in her chair.

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"He has me monitored by Rays; I don't know what the hell is wrong with him helping that guy," he replied, frustrated.

"You could make a call here," she said, thinking of a solution.

"I already tried... Some of them even laugh at me. 'Sigh' The priest won't come unless Jens calls for a meeting... and he already confirmed there's no need for one this month." Reck turned around and began looking at the sky until they heard a loud crash.

"What was that?"

"The scroll... go through the roof!" Mei expressed, surprised, standing up, grabbing her scimitar, and leaving the office as Reck jumped and began running at great speed across the roof.

"Why did you have to touch it?" Xitlari shouted as she ran, pressing the scroll with the needles to prevent it from sealing again with three of her hands.

"I'm sorry... I just wanted to help," Louis responded, feeling guilty but showing a bit of seriousness as he ran alongside her.

"Move, everyone!" Xitlari shouted, and all the people began to rush into their homes or find shelter; some even flew with their rune companions to avoid the creature. "You stop it, and I'll put it back in the scroll!"

"Alright!" he replied, picking up speed and propelling himself off some houses. Xitlari focused, and her legs released the blue aura of her magic.

Cars swerved, and others crashed; some, about to crash into walls, activated a system that surrounded the car with a white foam that cushioned the impact. Louis was about to catch up to her, but the beast kicked a pole that was heading towards a car with a family, and Louis stopped the pole using both his hands. The beast kept running until it received a powerful punch from above, which buried it into the ground and raised a curtain of dust. Xitlari was surprised to see Reck on top of the creature; she covered herself from the dust cloud, approached, opened the scroll, and forced the creature inside. Reck moved aside and watched as the creature was absorbed by the scroll. When it was over, Xitlari removed the needles, and the scroll sealed itself.

"What was that? What happened, Xitlari?!" Reck asked angrily, approaching her.

"It wasn't my fault!" she replied, immediately defending herself.

"Of course it was! You always want to do everything alone," he retorted, taking the scroll from her.

"Wait! It’s not her fault! I caused this..." Louis said firmly, stepping in front of Xitlari, giving Reck another small surprise.

"What did you do?" Mei asked, arriving at the scene with Clara by her side.

"It was my fault, I’m sorry... I’ll pay for all the damages," Louis said quickly when he heard Mei’s voice.

After hearing Louis's response and thinking for a moment, Mei said, "Come, Xitlari." Mei gestured for Xitlari to come closer, and she did so, crossing her arms. "What happened?"

"Sigh. I was working, and he arrived and touched what he shouldn't have. You should put the door back in the research room," she replied, trying to justify herself.

"I won't do that, and... what did I tell you? Don’t work alone, wait for the others, and please... your justification is not valid. You have four hands! You could have prevented him from touching the scroll," Mei said with a mix of patience and firmness.

"Fine... What will the punishment be?" Xitlari replied reluctantly, remembering that she hid her arms when Louis entered.

"Hmmm... Sure! You two, come!" Mei said after thinking for a moment and remembering her idea.

"Don't feel bad, kid. No one got hurt, but if you don't know about something, it's better not to help," Reck said, trying to cheer him up, seeing how bad Louis felt. Louis stayed silent as they walked toward Mei. "What's it like being half-demon?" he asked, a bit awkwardly, as if unsure how to talk about these things.

"Do you know? Are you Mern?!" Louis asked, surprised.

"What? No, I’m Reck. I’m Mei's companion, and the only one, aside from another, whose paladin title wasn’t taken from us," he said, resigned as he mentioned the other.

"I see..." Louis said, finally reaching Mei.

"First... Give me that," Mei took the scroll from Reck when they arrived, and Reck raised an eyebrow at the action. "Second, let me introduce you to Reck Mortz, Louis, the strongest paladin in the kingdom... at least until I get my position back," she said with a challenging smile.

"Ha, what are you saying? I’ve always been the prime..." Reck said, as if he couldn’t help but smile slightly.

"Third! You two will deliver a jewel that was commissioned by Donquichua," Mei said, interrupting Reck with her sweet and soft tone of voice.

"What? But I don’t..." Xitlari said, disagreeing with the punishment.

"No buts. You will also help Mern; he always goes outside the kingdom delivering jewels," Mei interrupted Xitlari and turned around. Xitlari sighed and handed the needles to Mei and left the place while hiding her arms.

"Miss Mei... I think all the blame should fall on me," Louis said with a tone of frustration, guilt, and a hint of fear.

"Maybe... but I know Xitlari, and her perfection won’t get her anywhere. She was months away from becoming a paladin, which means you’re superior to her, and you must train her," Mei said, understanding Louis and remembering all the good things before the king died.

"Me!? Train her? I... I can't do that!" Louis said, extremely surprised and a bit nervous.

"I’m leaving; I don’t want the count bothering me. Let me know if anything important happens tonight," Reck said, parting from them.

Many tall cars, carrying large containers with stones and people on top, arrived, along with other long cars transporting many people in blue suits.

"Who are they?" Louis asked, curious, watching them arrive at the scene.

"They are architects and helpers. They repair damages and assist those involved in accidents. I pay them, though. I found out Jens doesn't notice much of what’s happening in the kingdom," Mei replied, whispering when she said she paid them. "Let’s go!" Mei said, starting to walk toward the agency, and Louis followed her while watching how they repaired the street and helped people. Louis felt guilty about everything that happened and showed frustration on his face.

"Don't feel bad... People are fine, the cars have an anti-damage system, and repairing the road is no big deal, but you'll still have to pay for the damages," he said, noticing the mood Louis was carrying, and he just sighed.

"How can I not feel bad...? All of this is my fault, just for trying to get closer to her," Louis still felt guilty and realized his last words.

"You want to get closer to her...?"

"That's not what I meant..." he said, being interrupted.

"It's not easy. She's very closed off, and although she talks to me, Kassie, and the others, new people... they're not her thing. But you might end up liking her because you're different," he said in a calm tone, trying to give him some perspective and hoping his words would help.

"Different?" Louis asked, confused, as they continued walking toward the agency.

"Yeah, I mean... you're a hybrid. She always supports them because they're different... like her," he replied, messing up Louis's hair with one hand. "That aside, I wanted to ask you... Does it hurt when you use your magic?"

"No, why the question?"

"Curiosity. With you, only three people have been recorded with that magic worldwide, although... in the church system, they have you listed as having fire magic," he mentioned while Clara flew around her.

"Heh... My teacher probably did something," he said immediately, confidently, with a slight smile.

"Rei, huh..." Mei thought when she heard the name.

After the walk, Louis was sitting in the waiting room on a sofa, resting his head.

"When will I stop making mistakes...?" he thought, looking at the glass skylight.

The door to the room opened, and there was Kassie.

"Hello," Kassie said lightly.

"Hello, Kassie..." Louis replied, feeling down.

"I wanted to apologize for revealing your secret yesterday..." she expressed sincerely, showing guilt on her face as she sat on the sofa across from Louis.

"Don't worry, they had to find out, and I don't like lying. My parents taught me it was something I should never do, at least with people I know," he said, trying to ease Kassie's guilt and sitting properly on the sofa.

"Thank you... And you, why are you feeling down?" she asked, trying to help him, but Louis wasn't sure how to respond. "Come on! I can help you, we're both hybrids, you're already like a brother to me," she insisted, showing a small smile.

"I think... I like someone," he said with a bit of hesitation, covering his face by resting his arm on his forehead.

"Oh... I see... Well, I've never had a relationship, so I don't have much to say other than just be yourself," she mentioned with mild surprise, trying to offer some help.

"*Sigh* Today I tried to be myself, and... I totally messed up," he replied in frustration without showing his face.

"Yeah... I heard you opened up the whole... thing..." she said, analyzing the situation a bit. "No way! You like Xitlari?!", realizing it, she made a surprised sound with her mouth, completely astonished.

"Don't mention it, please... She's already mad at me, if she heard that, she'd never speak to me again, I think..." he said, not wanting to show his face due to the embarrassment he felt.

"Come on! Don't be shy, maybe I can help you, remember, I'm her friend," she insisted, sitting next to him and tapping his arm with her finger several times.

"I don't know... I've never felt anything for anyone before, I don't know how to act," he replied, removing his arm from his face and putting both hands on his knees.

The door to the room opened again, with Ann entering and Ririam behind her.

"Louis, Kassie! Hi! I'm glad to see you, but even more so, Louis. Tell me, how does it feel to have lava in your hands? Does it burn?" she said with excitement, approaching Louis and touching his hand. Then she paused, as if something occurred to her, and with a sigh added, "Do you feel heat?"

"Uhm... No, no, and... well, it feels like water, but thick and viscous, like it has a life of its own," he said, trying to answer her questions while she took off his glove to check for burns. Louis noticed that Ann's hands only had four fingers.

"That's amazing!" Ann said upon hearing his responses.

"Take a step back, Ann, and you should too, Kassie, if something happens, only you can stop the lava," said Ririam, pushing Ann away.

"What do you mean? I won’t do anything bad...", Louis said, a bit annoyed by Ririam’s words.

"Maybe, but... I still have my precautions," Ririam mentioned, showing that the right side of his coat was filled with water and ice items, and the ice ones emitted a cold air.

Louis, surprised, said: "Aren’t you cold?"

"A little... but saving the kingdom is worth it," he replied, stopping showing his items.

"Don’t be like that with him. Hey, do you want to go have lunch at the El Dorado restaurant? It’s new and right across from here, and you can tell us more about your abilities, Louis," Ann said with a radiant, cheerful attitude, eager to learn more.

"Yeah, because I doubt we’re going back to the Prilias restaurant after what happened this morning," Ririam murmured.

"What? Are you still mad?" Ann said, turning her gaze to Ririam and showing a little sadness on her face.

"No, it’s fine," he replied, showing a slight anger that he was trying to hide.

"I don’t know..."

"We’ll go!" said Kassie, gently pushing Louis. "It’ll help lift your spirits," she whispered to Louis.

"Let’s go then!" Ann said excitedly.

As they exited the agency, Ann wondered, placing a finger on her right cheek: "Hmm, should we invite Xitlari too?"

"To have her say no? She likes to be alone," Ririam responded, opening the door.

"True... I wish I could talk to her more," Ann said a bit sadly, walking out the door, followed by Ririam, Kassie, and Louis, who was being pulled by Kassie by his coat.

"You could also tell us about the guy with white magic," Ririam mentioned, showing some interest as they walked to the restaurant.

"Sure, no problem," Kassie replied, continuing to pull Louis.

Entering the restaurant, Ann greeted everyone with a cheerful and excited "Hello!" The restaurant had many tables, the walls were red with golden squares, and there were small golden lanterns on the ceiling. There were two small windows next to a table, and they chose that one. Next to the entrance, there was a brown wooden piano with several golden details.

"Thank you for coming to our restaurant, my name is George. You’re some of the first customers today, and if it’s not too much trouble... Could I have your autograph, Miss Ann?" said a man dressed in black with short hair on top and semi-shaved sides, handing them the menu.

"Of course!" Ann said, taking the notebook and signing it.

"Thank you very much!" the man said as he received the autograph.

"What a beautiful piano," Louis thought, fascinated by the piano.

"Do you play the piano, Louis?" Kassie asked, noticing how Louis was staring at the piano.

"Yes, my teacher taught me. He’s an expert; I could never reach the way he plays... and I doubt I ever will, he has six fingers on each hand, that gives him an advantage," he said with great pride and appreciation for his teacher.

"Six fingers! Whoa," said Kassie, imagining the speed with which he must play the piano.

"Hey! Choose what you’re going to eat. I want boiled potatoes and grilled litia chicken with Riz cream," said Ririam, closing the menu.

"I want yellow rice and Marfron meat with a cheese sauce on top, thank you," Ann replied with a slight smile on her face.

"I’ll have a litia egg salad," said Kassie, closing the menu.

"Don’t you have sandwiches?" Louis asked, looking through the menu.

"Sandwiches?" George said, frowning.

"Louis... they don’t have that here," Ririam said, crossing his arms.

"Oh, don’t they? Well... give me the suitsequer dish," Louis said, and he left with the order.

"You don’t even know what it is, do you?" Ririam asked, staring at him.

"No, but it looks good," he replied.

"‘Sigh’... Never mind, tell me, how strong was that Tai guy?"

"I’d say he had strength equal to mine, and he could create katanas with his right hand," Louis replied, recalling the fight.

"Yeah, and he could control them to fly around him or launch a bunch of them. I used an ice shield that spun to protect us from them, but with one of them, he easily pierced my shield," Kassie said, remembering how the katana pierced Louis.

"I remember that when I pulled out the katana, it had a white mist aura. I think that’s what makes them stronger. He also had the ability to trap us in a totally covered area with black mist," he said, recalling when he pulled the katana from his stomach and Tai covered the area with white mist.

"The last part was probably illusion magic, but the rest... That guy really has a lot of abilities: illusion magic, creation magic, and white magic. It’ll be a big problem facing him," Ririam said, trying to come up with a plan for Tai. "Well, I’ll go wash my hands before the food gets here."

"I’ll go too," added Kassie, going with Ririam.

"I’ll also go..." Louis thought, taking off his gloves. "Aren’t you going, Ann?"

"Of course, but I want to ask you something... You like Xitlari, right?" she said cheerfully and directly.

Louis, surprised that she already knew, dropped one of his gloves. "How do you know? Did Kassie tell you?" he asked nervously and blushing.

"Did you tell her? Haha, I found out just yesterday... When she came up to you, I noticed your expression, and I knew I wasn’t wrong, because I felt the same way with Ririam when I fell in love with him," she said cheerfully, blushing at the end of her words.

"I see... Don’t tell anyone, please," Louis said, picking up his glove with a slight blush and heading to wash his hands.

"Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone," she said with a smile, standing up as well while Ririam was already coming back.

After Louis washed his hands, he headed to the table and only found Ririam.

"Are they still in the bathroom?" Louis asked, warming his hands, and Ririam was about to take out an ice weapon. "Hey! Calm down."

"Sorry, I’m just being cautious," Ririam said, pulling his hand out of his coat.

"I think you’re overdoing it..." he said, sitting in the chair.

Suddenly, the lights went out, leaving only two that illuminated Ann. Kassie quickly sat in her chair.

"What’s going on?" Ririam asked Kassie.

"It’s to cheer up Louis, and also... the song is for you," Kassie whispered.

Ann lifted Louis from his chair with her yellow wind magic and placed him at the piano. Louis hesitated; his fingers barely touched the keys, but George gave a thumbs up, showing his approval. The first chord resonated with warmth that filled the whole place. The melody flowed with great harmony. Each touch was like a ray of sunlight lighting up the place. Ann began to sing, and her voice was like a great sun that covered the skin with its warm glow, each word full of affection and softness.

Every single day with you,

Is like sunshine

I feel the sun when I hug you,

My life changes when I meet you

Always... I want to... stay... with you...

I want to stay with you, my yellow love! My life shines like the golden color, you're everything for me, my yellow love.

Don’t be shy, don’t go away from me,

I can't live without you.

Don't go, my yellow love!

I am not complete if I don't have you.

When the light of the sun touches my face, I can feel, like I'm with you!

I want to stay with you, my yellow love! My life shines like a diamond.

We were destined to be a yellow couple.

When I see you, I feel the radiance of the sun.

The sunrise with you, when the leaves fall in the autumn season!

You change my life, you change me, my yellow love.

I want to stay with you, my yellow love! My life shines like a rainbow.

You're my boy, I am your girl, and I always want that... my yellow love...

As Ann sang, Louis began to play with more confidence. His fingers moved calmly over the black and white keys, creating a melody that connected directly from the hearts of both. Each note resonated with depth, from the lowest to the softest marking the rhythm, to the high notes that shone like rays of light.

In the last words of the song, Ann raised her hand, pointing to Ririam, and Kassie gave her a slight push. Ririam looked at her for a second and then saw Ann with her beautiful smile; he immediately got up from the chair and gave her a warm and emotional hug.

"I love you... So much. There will never be anyone or anything that can give me what you’ve given me... and keep giving me," he said with great feeling, placing his hands on her face and giving her a long and gentle kiss.

Louis finished the song by playing a soft final low chord, like the last gleam of the sun... in a sunset.

End of the chapter.