UTAH BOLTAIRE
The journey home had taken longer than expected, but I finally arrived at my destination. The familiar scent of my garden filled the air as I approached the mansion, though my steps were slow and deliberate. While I knew my father would be eagerly awaiting Vestiron's message, I wasn't in any particular hurry to deliver it.
Then—something felt off.
I froze, my hand instinctively reaching for my sword. The mansion was eerily silent, devoid of the usual presence of maids or butlers. No one had come to greet me. My grip tightened on the hilt as I cautiously turned the doorknob, stepping inside to find only hollow silence.
An attack? Or are they hiding? The thought barely formed before—
Whoosh
An arrow whizzed past my head, embedding itself in the doorframe with enough force to make the wood splinter. I barely had time to react before a barrage followed, forcing me to leap back outside with mana-enhanced speed.
"Who are you?!" I shouted, scanning the garden for threats. My gaze snapped upward—a figure stood atop the mansion's roof, silhouetted against the sky.
"Lieutenant Utah," the woman called down, her voice cold and mechanical. "Comply with our demands. Your family is our hostage."
The light made it hard to see her clearly, but her build was undeniably strong—a Eukaphrotian, and a powerful one at that. I channeled mana through my body, bracing myself.
"What do you want, Eukaphrotian?"
She leapt from the roof, landing gracefully behind me. Up close, her pale skin and crystalline white hair were striking, her eyes almost hypnotic—until I forced myself to focus.
"I am Leyten Pristine Carolinus," she stated. "My general has ordered your presence. We are simply here to keep peace."
I scoffed. "Peaceful? You shot at me."
"A defensive measure."
"Sure. A defensive measure," I muttered before igniting my mana.
"Fire Step: Second Form."
The world erupted in flames. Heat roared around me, incinerating everything within thirty feet in an instant. As the fire cleared, I scanned the charred remains of my garden—only to find another figure hovering above me.
"Lieutenant Utah," the man said casually, his face eerily familiar. "We offered salvation, and you spat on it. A disgrace, especially when your own king has already surrendered this nation to us."
I didn't wait for him to finish. A searing beam of fire shot from my palm—but he dodged effortlessly, retaliating with a fireball ten times the size of mine. I barely rolled clear in time.
Circling him, I demanded, "I've seen you before. Who are you? Another Leyten?"
He smirked. "Indeed you have. At the academy, of course. My name is Raphael. And I have no regrets."
I didn't give him time to gloat. With a swing of my sword, I unleashed a storm of fire arrows, each one streaking toward him from all directions.
Yet when the smoke cleared, he stood unharmed, grinning.
"You can come out now, Carol," he called. "Seems our intel overestimated this one."
Then, two more figures materialized from the shadows—Pristine Carolinus and...
Him.
Kreg.
The man I'd fought before smirked. "We meet again, Lieutenant."
My grip on my sword tightened. Three against one.
This wouldn't end well.