Lord Satoshi has returned.
The ache in my chest sharpened. I needed to see him.
I had spent the last few hours lying here, trying to piece everything together, but none of it mattered if I didn't talk to him myself.
No one followed him. No one knew why he left.
But he was back now.
And I was done waiting.
Slowly, I shifted, pushing myself upright despite the exhaustion weighing me down.
Reilan's gaze flicked toward me immediately, sharp and knowing.
"Chiori." His tone was calm, but I heard the warning in it.
I met his eyes.
"I need to see him."
Reilan exhaled sharply. "No."
I narrowed my eyes. "Excuse me?"
"You're in no condition to go anywhere." He didn't even hesitate, his posture shifting slightly as if preparing to stop me. "You can barely sit up. You won't make it to the study."
I clenched my jaw. "I'll make it."
"You'll collapse."
"Then I'll crawl."
His eyes flashed with irritation. "You're being reckless."
"And you're in my way."
[Warning: Physical strain will delay recovery. Recommended course of action—rest.]
Not now. I forced the thought down. I don't have time for this.
[Clarification: Recovery time will increase if you continue exertion. Probability of collapse—79%.]
Shut up.
I forced myself upright, ignoring the way my limbs screamed in protest. My vision blurred for half a second before adjusting.
"You don't get it," I exhaled, voice tight. "Something's wrong. He left without a word, and no one stopped him. He—"
I swallowed hard. "I just… I need to see for myself."
Reilan's expression flickered. Just barely.
I could tell he was thinking through every possibility, every reason to stop me.
"He'll call for you when he's ready," he said finally. "Wait."
[Notice: If Lord Satoshi wishes to speak with you, he will call for you. Otherwise, interrupting him may have negative consequences.]
I don't care.
Reilan crossed his arms. "You shouldn't go."
My hands trembled slightly. I clenched them into fists to force them to stop.
"I'm not waiting."
Reilan didn't respond immediately. His jaw tensed slightly, his fingers curling at his sides. I knew that look—he was considering physically stopping me.
The air between us felt heavier.
He wouldn't move unless I did.
The attendant's posture remained rigid, her eyes flicking between us.
She had delivered the message. Now, she was waiting to see what I would do.
Mother doesn't want me to go.
She didn't forbid it outright, but she didn't have to.
That didn't change anything.
My father had returned.
And I was going to see him.
I shifted, swinging my legs over the edge of the bed.
My entire body screamed in protest. My limbs felt too heavy, too slow, but I forced them to move.
Reilan moved, too. Instantly.
Faster than me.
His hand caught my wrist, his grip firm—not painful, but enough to keep me in place.
"You're not going."
The words weren't a warning this time. They were final.
I clenched my jaw. "Let go."
He didn't.
"Chiori." His voice was measured, steady, but there was something underneath it. Something sharp.
"You can't stop me." I exhaled, forcing myself to stand.
I barely made it a step before my legs buckled.
Too slow. Too weak.
Reilan caught me easily, his hands gripping my shoulders to force me back onto the bed.
"Enough." His voice hardened. "You're going to break yourself before you even reach the door."
I grit my teeth. "I don't care."
"I do." His grip tightened just slightly, frustration leaking through. "I'm not letting you walk out of here like this."
My breath came shallow. I could feel my pulse hammering in my ears.
He's stronger than me right now.
I can't win like this.
I needed to move.
I needed to get out of this room.
I needed to see Father.
And then—
Something shifted.
A flicker of mana stirred inside me—weak, unstable, barely enough to sustain movement.
Not enough.
But my tails still reacted.
Two of them flickered to life, sluggish and unstable, barely holding form.
[Critical Mana Reserves: 2%. Current stability: Weak. Warning: Attempting movement will result in forced Hibernation.]
I exhaled sharply. Override.
[Override denied.]
My vision blurred for half a second. My body felt wrong. Like a hollow vessel moving on reflex rather than willpower.
I have to move.
My tails trembled but braced against the ground, shifting my weight forward.
Reilan's grip tightened, but my tails shoved against his hold, propelling me just enough to break free.
His expression flickered—just for a second. Not surprise. Not fear. But realization.
"Your—"
[Final Warning: System Integrity Failing. Initiating Hibernation]
My breath hitched
No.
My vision sharpened for a fraction of a second—long enough to see the door.
Just a little more—
Then—
My tails trembled. Flickered.
They buckled beneath me.
The support vanished in an instant, like strings cut from a puppet.
Weightlessness. Then—
Collapse.
Reilan caught me before I hit the ground.
"Chiori—!"
I couldn't answer.
My mind was still aware, still trying to fight—
But my body wasn't answering me.
Damn it.
The last thing I registered was the warmth of Reilan's hold, the sound of his voice—
Then—
Darkness.
Her body slumped against him, her breathing shallow.
Rei pressed two fingers to her pulse. Weak. Slower than it should be.
His jaw clenched.
Idiot.
"Get the Lady," he ordered sharply.
The attendant hesitated. He barely flicked his gaze toward her, but that was enough.
"Go."
She obeyed this time, vanishing through the door.
The silence she left behind was suffocating.
Reilan exhaled through his nose, forcing his breath steady. Think.
She had been pushing too hard—he'd seen it the moment she sat up.
She could barely stand, and yet she still tried to fight past him.
And now?
Now, she wasn't moving at all.
His grip tightened slightly around her shoulders. Not enough to hurt.
Just enough to steady his own breathing.
This wasn't just exhaustion.
He had seen her worn out before—after sparring, after training, even after reckless stunts.
But this?
This was different.
She wasn't even trying to move.
"You're a damn fool," he muttered under his breath, not expecting an answer.
He didn't get one.
But someone else did.
A slow clap. Lazy. Drawn out.
"Damn. That was dramatic."
Reilan's head snapped up. Calamitas was already inside, unbothered, uninvited.
Loose posture. Hands crossed in front. Smiling.
Like she wasn't the cause of this. Like she wasn't responsible.
His fingers twitched against Chiori's shoulders.
"…What do you want?" His voice came out cold. Even. Controlled.
"Oh, relax." Calamitas waved a hand lazily, stepping further inside. "I just wanted to see if the little monster finally hit her limit."
His grip on Chiori tightened.
"You think this is funny?"
His voice came out sharper than intended, words cutting through the air.
Calamitas' smirk didn't falter—but she had noticed.
He never snapped. Not like that.
"Touchy," she mused, tilting her head. "Didn't peg you for the overprotective type."
Reilan barely heard her. His focus was on Chiori—on the way she hadn't even stirred since collapsing.
She should have moved by now.
Even just a flicker of resistance. But there was nothing.
"Damn," she muttered, finally stepping closer. "She really did burn herself out, huh?"
Reilan bristled. "You did this."
That made her pause.
It was brief. Fleeting. But the moment her gaze flicked down at Chiori—there was something.
Not guilt.
Not amusement.
Just a moment of quiet calculation.
Then it was gone.
"I pushed her," Calamitas admitted, tone unreadable. "But she's the one who decided to keep going."
"Because she doesn't know when to stop," Reilan snapped.
"And what, you do?"
Reilan's breath came short. Frustrated. His grip twitched against Chiori's shoulder.
Damn her.
Damn both of them.
"Relax." Calamitas' voice was lighter now, too casual. "She'll be fine."
"You don't know that."
Calamitas crouched slightly, resting her arms over her knees. "Sure, I do."
Her gaze flicked to Chiori again.
"She's still breathing, isn't she?"
Reilan exhaled sharply through his nose.
Arguing wouldn't wake Chiori up.
He adjusted his grip, carefully shifting her against his chest before easing her back onto the bed.
The moment her head touched the pillow, she barely stirred.
Still deep in sleep. Unmoving.
He pulled the blanket over her, hands lingering just for a second.
This shouldn't have happened.
He clenched his jaw and turned back to Calamitas.
"Why are you here?"
Calamitas quirked a brow. "What, can't I check in on my favorite little disaster?"
"Cut the act." Reilan's patience was running thin. "You don't just 'check in' on anyone."
He folded his arms, tilting his head slightly.
"And you've got a reputation for only showing up when there's something to gain."
That got a reaction.
Not shock. Not irritation.
Laughter.
A sharp, genuine laugh that caught him off guard.
"Oh?" Calamitas grinned, leaning against the bedpost. "And what do people say about me, then?"
He indulged her.
"They say you answer to no one, but you work under someone important."
She hummed. "Mysterious."
"That you're a wanderer, but you always seem to be exactly where you need to be."
A slow grin. "Convenient."
"That you've been exiled from more places than most people have visited, and yet no one can say for sure where you're from."
Silence.
Brief. But there.
Then—Calamitas laughed again.
"Damn," she mused. "That's a lot of storytelling."
Reilan narrowed his eyes. "A lot of stories come from somewhere."
Calamitas leaned forward slightly, her smirk widening.
"Do they?
Then she sighed, rolling her shoulders like this entire conversation had started to bore her.
"Fine," she said, like she was indulging him. "You want to know the truth?"
Reilan tensed.
"I'm not some wandering nobody," she continued, voice light. "And I'm not some exile."
She tilted her head slightly.
"I'm #7 of the Grand Sorcerer Citadel."
Silence.
The words hit harder than he expected.
#7.
Of course.
He exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing.
The Brimstone Witch.
That got a reaction.
A glimmer of amusement in her eyes. "Took you long enough."
A name that carried weight—not just in whispered rumors but in real, undeniable history.
Her reputation wasn't built on fear alone. It was built on brilliance and destruction in equal measure.
A force of chaos. A mage who disregarded conventional wisdom in favor of raw innovation.
Reilan inhaled sharply. Now he understood why Asmodeus had called her a "crazed witch."
Because she is.
"You don't follow rules," he said slowly. "You break them."
Calamitas grinned.
"Now you're getting it."
"You rewrite what already exists." His voice sharpened. "And you destroy what doesn't fit."
"Why do you think they keep me around?" She softly shrugs.
Reilan clenched his jaw.
"Then why are you here in Dayton?"
"Right, a 'great question'." She stretched slightly, casual, unbothered. "I'm here to check the balance of mana."
His fingers twitched. "Explain."
Calamitas' expression shifted—just slightly.
The amusement never fully left, but something steadier settled behind it.
"I can tell Mana is shifting here," she said simply. "Something is off."
"Off?"
"Disrupted."
She tilted her head slightly. "And when things like that happen, I take notice."
"You mean the monsters?"
"I mean everything." Her eyes gleamed. "Chiori is just one piece of a much larger picture."
Reilan said nothing.
He should've had something to say—some retort, some way to cut through the suffocating weight of her words.
But for once, he didn't.
Because he understood what she meant.
Mana is shifting.
Not just Chiori. Not just the rumors. Everything.
He clenched his jaw.
Finally, he exhaled.
"If the balance of mana is shifting, then what's causing it?"
Calamitas hummed, crossing her arms. "That's the question, isn't it?"
Reilan's patience was running thin. "And?"
"And," she drawled, "if I had a direct answer, I wouldn't be here."
"So you don't know."
"I have theories," she corrected. "Strong ones."
He narrowed his eyes. "And they are?"
Calamitas studied him for a moment, then smiled like she was considering whether or not to humor him.
"It's complicated."
"Try me."
"Tch." She smirked. "You wouldn't like the answers."
Reilan straightened. "That's not your call to make."
Calamitas exhaled, but she wasn't teasing anymore.
"Mana shifts naturally over time, but the scale of what's happening now?" She shook her head. "Too fast. Too unnatural."
"An outside force?"
"Maybe. Maybe not." She shrugged. "But I don't believe in coincidences."
Neither did Reilan.
His gaze flickered toward Chiori's unconscious form.
"And you think she's connected."
"I think she's a symptom," Calamitas corrected. "Not the cause."
That distinction sent a chill down his spine.
Reilan opened his mouth—to push further, to demand more—but then—
"You should probably ask him."
Reilan froze.
Calamitas smiled. But it wasn't directed at him.
She turned her head slightly, toward the far side of the room.
"You've been here long enough, haven't you?"
Reilan's breath caught.
He followed Calamitas' gaze, his breath stilling as his eyes landed on the figure standing just beyond the dim candlelight.
Lord Satoshi Tomaszewski.
Chiori's Father.
Watching. Listening.
How long had he been there?
Reilan hadn't noticed him—not once. Not even a flicker of his presence.
That fact alone sent an uneasy chill through him.
Satoshi didn't move.
Didn't blink.
He simply stood there, his sharp gaze locked onto them, weighing the entire room with an unreadable expression.
Reilan forced himself to breathe evenly.
He was an attendant. A trained observer. Someone who was supposed to notice things before anyone else did.
He wouldn't let it show—how much that unsettled him.
Then finally—the lord moved.
One step forward. Slow. Unhurried.
His gaze flicked to Calamitas. Cold. Calculating.
Then, at last, he spoke.
"You talk too much."