My heart skipped. Fifty gold was a small fortune. New armor, better weapons, supplies, I could finally upgrade my gear properly. But trusting these two felt like walking a tightrope over a pit of spikes.

"You won’t be punished if you’ve been holding back," Yua added, reading my hesitation. "You have my word."

I exhaled slowly. "Alright."

"Aha! I knew it!" Yua clapped her hands excitedly. "Come here, then."

I stepped closer, heart pounding. "Just... tell me when you want me to stop, ma’am."

I raised my hand toward her shoulder, preparing to lower my mental barrier. Right before I made contact, a sharp knock echoed through the room. The door swung open without waiting for permission, and a guard strode in, dropping to one knee in the center of the chamber.

I quickly lowered my hand and stepped back.

"Your Majesty," the guard began. "Captain Tornhawk and I captured an elf sneaking near the academy grounds."

"Near the academy?" The Queen’s voice sharpened. "Outrageous. How close are those vermin getting to our students?"

"The Captain wishes to execute the elf in the same district as a warning. Today."

The Queen considered it for a moment, then shook her head. "Keep the creature imprisoned for now. We’ll hang it publicly when I visit Northwood for the tournament’s practice matches."

"As you command, Your Majesty." The guard bowed. "I shall inform the Captain. There’s... there’s this one matter as well, Your Majesty."

"What is it?"

"The elf... I... I feel... something weird from him. I’m Martyn-Blessed, Your Majesty. So I..."

"The thing you’re feeling is the elf itself. And their retched aura." She muttered. "You may leave us now."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

As the guard turned to leave, I caught sight of that man waiting outside. When he saw me still alive and unharmed, visible relief washed over his face. He quickly wiped the sweat from his brow.

"You are dismissed, Ace Walker," the Queen said. "It seems I have other matters to attend to."

"Aw," Yua pouted, then gave me a little wave. "Don’t look so worried, Ace. We’ll see each other again very soon."

"Yeah..." I whispered as I turned back. "I hope not."

ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎

I looked to my left, where the Elder Tree stretched its massive branches toward the uppermost floor. I had to admit, there was something almost... intoxicating about being near it. It felt as though the tree possessed a lingering magic of its own, a silent, ancient ability to draw the tension from a person’s bones and replace it with a strange sense of calm.

Ah, focus.

I needed to test the limits of this power properly. How strong was it? How long could I hold the mental cap? And for that, I needed a willing participant, someone who didn’t hold power over me. Definitely not someone like Yua.

A brothel seemed like the safest option. Garmonna’s Lair was the most obvious choice, but the entrance fee was steep, and I didn’t want to waste my hard-earned coins. That left only one real option: telling the truth about my Ambly blessing to Garmonna. But would she even believe me? Or would she just laugh and throw me out? Worse, spreading that information was dangerous. The fewer people who knew about my power, the better.

"Just where the hell can I find someone willing..." I muttered.

"Hey," a familiar voice said.

"Hmm?"

Mio pulled out the chair across from me and sat down. "How are you?"

I exhaled. "Good. You?"

"Seen better days," she replied, her voice flat. "I heard what happened during the test. You really have affinity for every class?"

"Looks like it," I said. "What about you? What’s your combat class?"

"Ranger."

"My roommate’s a Ranger too. Too bad I suck with a bow."

Mio leaned back in her chair. "You have the affinity, Ace. If you actually try, I’m sure you could get decent with one."

The break was nearly over. Students were already heading back toward the classrooms. I noticed Mio’s gaze drifting repeatedly to the glove on my hand.

"Still curious about Ambly’s powers?" I asked, breaking the silence.

She nodded. "Who wouldn’t be? It’s not exactly a common gift."

"Hmm."

She leaned in slightly, her eyes searching mine. "You used your powers on Jelda, didn’t you? Her friends were gossiping about how you cast some kind of ’calming spell’ to help her gather her senses. But that was a lie, wasn’t it?"

"I had to," I said, shaking my head as the memory surfaced. "The situation was spiraling. I just... managed to settle her nerves without making it weird."

"Anyone else?"

"No one," I replied firmly. "Just... you and her."

"Wow." She leaned back, looking genuinely impressed. "I honestly thought you’d be a creep, using a power like that on every random woman you passed. You’ve actually managed to improve my opinion of men, to be fair."

"Just what kind of guys have you been hanging out with?" I muttered. I pushed myself up from the chair, brushing off my clothes. "We should move. Class is about to start."

I kept my expression neutral, but my heart was thudding. I had almost asked her to be my guinea pig right then and there. Bad move, I scolded myself. Definitely not the right time.

My mind shifted to the rest of the day. I’d head to the Guild after hours and check if Garmonna had posted a new quest. A job would be the perfect cover, granting me free access to the building. Once I was inside... well, I’d have to improvise.

But for now, I had to survive History class.

ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎

Where was I?

I stood in the middle of a narrow street, the apartment building just to my left. The cracked pavement was still wet from the earlier rain, small puddles reflecting the dim yellow glow of old streetlamps. Trash bags sat piled near the curb, and somewhere further down the alley, glass shattered followed by drunken laughter.

Same neighborhood. Same miserable place.

Looking up, I saw her standing behind the living room window.

My mother.

Even through the glass, I could recognize the look on her face immediately. Disappointment. Exhaustion. Disgust. Like I wasn’t her son anymore, just another burden life had dumped onto her shoulders.

"Mom..."

My throat tightened.

I tried not to cry. I really did. I gritted my teeth so hard my jaw hurt, trying to stay strong the way movie heroes always did after losing everything. But those people weren’t real. They didn’t know what it felt like to have nowhere to go.

I felt hollow.

Like there wasn’t anything left worth fighting for anymore. Part of me wanted to just sit down in the middle of the road and wait. Wait for morning. Wait for someone to hit me with a car. Wait for nothing at all.

The curtains suddenly closed. Just like that, she disappeared from sight. Leaving me alone in the rain-soaked street.

"Mom..." I wiped at my face with my sleeve. "Why... I’m your son..."

"Hello?"

I turned toward the voice.

It came from the first-floor apartment nearby, the one new people had recently moved into. Behind the barred window sat a girl around my age. Eight, maybe nine years old.

She had long brown hair tied into a neat ponytail, soft eyes, and a slightly pointed nose. Unlike me, she looked warm. Kind.

"Why are you crying?" she asked quietly.

I walked closer to the window.

"I’m..."

The words got stuck in my throat. How was I supposed to answer that?

"I’m not."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

Then her voice suddenly sounded different.

Distant.

"Come on, man. Wake up."

"Huh?"

My eyes snapped open.