Blood splattered out in tiny droplets that were immediately swept away by the tornado’s winds. The reddish drops vanished into the swirling ash before they could even touch the ground.

The voices began screaming and laughing even louder. Now they sounded like they were mocking them.

Some came from far away while others seemed to whisper directly behind their ears. It was an uncomfortable sensation, as if dozens of invisible people were watching them from the darkness.

"They... they’re trying to confuse us," Marco muttered.

If they couldn’t hear where the bone bullets were coming from, they wouldn’t be able to dodge or block them in time; honestly, it was a smart move.

This was most likely the Elder Wendigo’s doing.

The two of them waited for several seconds. They looked around cautiously; the tension kept rising while the tornado spun faster and faster, lifting broken particles from the ground. Mitsuki’s clothes fluttered violently in the strong wind.

Ash constantly struck against their bodies. Even breathing was starting to become irritating.

’Where’s it going to attack from? Do those projectiles have a limit?’ Mitsuki thought.

With so little information, it was difficult to even guess anything about the Wendigos’ full abilities.

’What should I do? Should I try breaking through the tornado? Maybe I can leap out using ash propulsion, but if I leave Marco alone, they’ll kill him before I can even land again.’

There were very few options.

His eyes scanned the tornado over and over again, searching for even the slightest opening.

Suddenly, a loud crack echoed out. One second later, the tornado vanished. The ash fell together with the wall of wind as it slowly dispersed.

The ash drifted down like gray snow around the battlefield, and what lay on the other side revealed itself before the confused eyes of Marco and Mitsuki.

There was an elf standing there. At her feet lay the remaining beasts, reduced to piles of ash. The largest mound held a massive mana crystal that she picked up and made disappear with magic.

Tiny arcane sparks surrounded the crystal before vanishing alongside it. The scene made Ellegaard seem completely out of place within that dead landscape.

Her cape swayed softly while she held her staff with arrogant confidence.

"Ellegaard...?"

"Hmph! You’re wasting my time, tick," she said while striking her staff against the sky.

"Witch..." Marco muttered tiredly. Even then, his dislike toward nobles remained stronger.

Ellegaard looked at Blondie like she wanted to kill him, but then sighed and calmed herself down. Her long ears twitched slightly while her brows furrowed in obvious irritation.

’Could it be that Jeanne actually managed to convince her?’ Mitsuki wondered.

The elf stood before him. She raised a hand, grabbed Mitsuki by the collar of his coat, and dragged him off to who knows where.

’Huh?’

Mitsuki was confused; he looked like a street sign being dragged away by an adorable girl. Even Marco stood there dumbfounded because, while he had already looked annoyed about being saved by Ellegaard earlier, now he understood absolutely nothing about what was happening.

The scene was strangely absurd. Mitsuki barely let his feet touch the ground while being hauled away by the grumpy little elf.

He raised his hand and waved goodbye.

"We’ll train another time. Go get some rest," he said.

Marco sighed and rubbed his head. He looked at the slaughtered beasts scattered among the ash piles with a blank expression, but then closed his eyes in frustration.

The exhaustion was finally beginning to show on his body. Blood still trickled from several wounds, and his shoulders looked much heavier than before.

When he opened his eyes again, he clenched his fist seriously.

"I hate when this happens."

***

Ellegaard dragged Mitsuki along in silence without even trying to look at him. She frowned as if she were angry while taking large strides to cover as much ground as possible.

The sound of her boots echoed through the empty alleyways. Every so often, bits of ash and dust crunched beneath her feet.

Mitsuki, meanwhile, didn’t question anything the elf was doing. Truthfully, he didn’t care much whether what came next would be good or bad. Still, he looked up at the sky hoping it would be something good because, despite being an emotionless nihilist, he still understood that good things were, in fact, beneficial for the future.

So he waited.

The mage led him through the farthest alleyways. Some specters watched from the darkness of the ruins because the King of the Void, the Master of Cinder, stood submissive before a young elf.

The spectral creatures observed from broken windows and dark corners. Their eyes glowed faintly as they followed the strange procession.

Many showed confused expressions on their ethereal faces because, despite being corrupted versions of the people they once were, a trace of rationality still remained within minds dominated by eternal lethargy.

Some even slowly stepped aside whenever Ellegaard walked near them because the one accompanying her was the Master of all ash creatures.

Once they stopped, Ellegaard let go of Mitsuki as though he were a sack of vegetables and said:

"Why do I have to drag you around? You have legs. Walk!"

Mitsuki straightened himself and walked beside the elf. With no real curiosity, yet a lingering expectation that kept him moving forward, he asked:

"What exactly are we going to do?"

"I’m going to teach you how to control the concepts of the soul. That way you can heal your broken soul and continue being an annoying tick."

"I see..."

Ellegaard looked away.

"But don’t think I’m doing this for you. Jeanne asked me to. If I didn’t do what she wanted, she’d become as annoying about it as a stupid goblin or an unbearable gnome. So you should feel grateful for the kindness of the great Arcane Mage who trained you and now pities your pathetic situation."

As she spoke, she puffed out her chest slightly with pride. She even brushed her hair back with an arrogant gesture.

"...I see. Then thank you very much. Though it’s not like you really had much of a choice. If it weren’t for you, I never would’ve become the Herald of the Unnameable."

Those words struck like a sharp dagger straight into her ego.

Ellegaard briefly stopped walking. Her eyes widened slightly, and a trace of discomfort appeared on her face. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"If you had simply left without saying anything to me, it honestly never would’ve crossed my mind to continue down this path," Mitsuki added. His emotionless tone made him sound cruel.

Truthfully, the cold honesty in his voice was far more damaging than an insult.

He walked ahead of Ellegaard with his head held high.

"If all of you had disappeared overnight, I would’ve tried to continue on my own, but more calmly. I wouldn’t have desperately chased strength just to stop being pathetic. Honestly speaking, your words affected me too much that night. In the end, faced with the shadow that used my past against me, I accepted becoming this world’s Armageddon. And that’s how I sealed my fate..."

As he spoke, his steps remained calm and steady. There was no anger in his voice, nor any obvious resentment. That only made his words feel heavier.

Ellegaard grew thoughtful after hearing Mitsuki’s words. That boy truly didn’t seem like the kind of person who would talk about such personal things with someone else. He had always been reserved, timid, and pathetic, but now that he was detached from the emotions that created that fragile personality, Mitsuki seemed more approachable and... empty.

It was like listening to a completely different person.

Mitsuki continued.

"But don’t misunderstand me. Just because I chose to become the Herald of that prophecy doesn’t mean I plan to fulfill it; I’m not that kind of person. No matter how much hatred I carry within me, or how much sadness overflows from my heart, I would never hurt someone who’s done nothing to me."

The wind swept through the alleyway and lightly stirred Mitsuki’s black coat.

He stopped and, with those dead eyes and dark circles that made him look like a walking corpse, said:

"I’m just some guy from the city staring at a screen in the dark. My past is just as boring as that; what I am is boring, and there’s no reason for me to want to destroy a world I don’t belong to. The only thing I could really say I want is to return to those days and get away from this constant life-threatening danger I keep being thrown into."

His words felt strangely heavy amid the silence.

He turned his gaze back toward the road and kept walking while speaking.

"I should also say that I feel strange because I never would’ve been able to tell someone this before. What I mean is, I was never the type to talk with anyone besides Ayaka. I never had friends I could speak to about this stuff with, and I separated from my family many years ago. You could say I was born accustomed to loneliness, and in loneliness, there’s no one you can talk to about... things."

Mitsuki showed a faint smile and thought:

’When I get my emotions back, I know I’m going to regret this for the rest of my life, but...’

He listened to Ellegaard walking behind him. Her magical staff kept tapping lightly against the ground while the elf’s large boots scraped softly over the pavement.

The sound was strangely relaxing amid the silence.

’I think this is probably for the best. As long as we can understand each other, I don’t mind putting up with her insults a little longer.’

The elf sighed.

She seemed to be carefully thinking about how to respond.

"You talk too much. Let’s hurry up so you can get your pathetic personality back and shut your mouth for at least five minutes."

Even though her words were still aggressive, her tone no longer sounded as hostile as before.

"As you wish, Professor," Mitsuki said.

For some reason, today he felt a certain warmth in his chest, as though a great weight had been lifted off him. It was a small and distant feeling, but enough to make him think that maybe he was still Mitsuki Kirishima despite having a broken soul and mind.