Dani woke up. His head was still throbbing, but at least the bandage was still on. He had no idea how many stitches he got, but Mr. Karyo had told him to rest.
His left eye immediately caught Neir having breakfast.
Dani sighed. "Oh, she definitely knows I'm awake."
Ignoring that, he reached for his phone which hadn't been touched in days. As the screen lit up, his thumb instinctively scrolled through social media.
Neir, who was initially engrossed in eating, glanced over.
"What is that he's holding…?"
The small object shone like a TV—but smaller. Neir frowned, her curiosity rising.
"What's that?" she finally asked.
Dani glanced briefly. "Oh, this? A phone."
Neir grew more confused. "A phone? What kind of object is that?"
Dani thought for a moment, trying to find the simplest explanation. "Hmm… it's like a letter, but instant. You can use it to talk to other people from far away."
Neir's eyes sparkled. "So… like communication magic?"
"Yeah… something like that." Dani shrugged.
Neir leaned in a little. "Can I see it?"
Without a second thought, Dani turned off the screen and put his phone away. "Nope."
"Eh?! Why not?!"
Dani sighed. "Pointless. There's no signal over there."
Neir clicked her tongue in disappointment. But clearly, her curiosity wasn't gone.
Dani hurriedly changed the subject. "So, any news from Mr. Gharrick?"
"Oh, right!" Neir immediately remembered. "He found a book about our sensory exchange! He said it's related to Etherium—"
"Whoa, hold on," Dani raised a hand, stopping Neir. "What's Etherium?"
Neir fell silent, trying to arrange her words. "Err… it's… it's like mana, but not mana?"
Dani massaged his temples. "You're making me even more confused."
"Argh, I'm confused about how to explain it too!" Neir ruffled her hair in frustration.
Dani let out a long sigh. "Never mind, we'll talk when we understand. For now, just focus on school."
Neir nodded, though she was still annoyed at failing to explain.
Dani added, "And don't think too much about what Jaron said. That kid is just a passing breeze."
Neir was quiet for a moment, then gave a small smile. "Yeah…"
But in her heart, she knew yesterday wasn't just ordinary mockery.
---
After a while, Dani spoke up again. "So… we need a solution so we don't see each other during private moments like bathing or changing clothes, right?"
Neir nodded quickly. "Yes! I already thought about closing my eyes during those times, but…" She sighed. "I also have to go to school, I can't just walk around with my eyes closed all the time!"
Dani thought for a moment, then pointed to the plaster covering his left eye. "Then, for now, I'll be the one to cover up. At least for now, so I don't disturb you."
Neir looked hesitant. "But if that's the case, then I won't be able to see?"
"Well, we only need a solution for specific situations. We'll think of something more practical later."
Neir let out a soft huff, then stood up while smoothing her clothes. "Then I'll think of another way later. I have to go to school now!"
Neir nodded quickly. She still hadn't found a better solution, but for now, she had to leave.
After Neir left, Dani leaned his head back on the pillow. At least, for the time being, he didn't have to worry about seeing things he shouldn't.
---
A Terrifying Morning in Beysolun
That morning, an unexpected uproar broke out around Beysolun's open school and town hall. Residents and volunteers were startled by the discovery of the guards' corpses in a horrifying condition.
At the town hall gate, their heads were neatly displayed, like a gruesome warning, while their bodies were shattered—some body parts separated from their places. Blood flooded the main street, overflowing into the nearest drains.
A crowd began to form, whispers of fear filling the air.
"What happened? Who dared to do this?"
"We've never had a problem this big before!"
"They didn't take anything, nothing is missing! But why… why like this?"
They were all stunned, and for the first time, a fear they had never felt shook Beysolun, a place known for its safety.
Beysolun was indeed not a crime-ridden city. Though there were thieving syndicates, their crimes were usually limited to stealing goods—not brutal massacres like this. Even compared to Clyvanor, the birthplace of great witches that often experienced brutal battles and mass killings, Beysolun was far more peaceful. Here, crimes like this almost never happened.
Rising Debate
As officials began to move to handle the situation, shouts and tension escalated.
"What should we do? We must uncover who's behind this!" a middle-aged man shouted, his eyes filled with anger.
However, Santi, a senior volunteer, quickly tried to calm the atmosphere. "We don't know who the perpetrator is yet. Don't panic, we must stay calm and work together."
"Stay calm?!" a female resident screamed, almost crying, "Their blood is on the street! Should we just let it be? This isn't an ordinary problem!"
That shout silenced many, their eyes filled with fear. Santi tried to control the situation, but the voices of insistence grew louder.
"Are we safe?" shouted an anxious young man. "Beysolun isn't a place like this! No one would dare come here to do something like that! If this isn't the work of a specific group, then who could have done it?"
The debate grew heated, with some residents starting to protest. Some wanted to demand the authorities to conduct stricter inspections, while others began to doubt if they were truly safe.
"This might not be an ordinary group of thieves," said Tadric, the head volunteer and manager of the open school, firmly. "If someone is targeting the school, we must be on alert."
However, soon, the tension turned to panic as some people started talking about a larger attack. "Maybe this is a sign of something bigger to come," said one of them, his voice trembling. "Who can guarantee this won't happen again?"
Amid the chaos, some residents started running away from the location, afraid of what was to come. Yet, some remained brave enough to stay, trying to find a way to handle this situation.
Evacuation and Escalating Tension
Nirea, an Etherium witch who had previously helped organize the school with her magic, stepped in to clean the blood flooding the street.
She raised both her hands, and a greenish light began to glow from her palms, forming a large circle in the air. With smooth movements, she drew intricate patterns in the air, controlling the Etherium around her.
"Etherium, cleanse the stain of evil, return the street to its origin," she whispered.
The light shattered into small fragments, then floated to the ground. Slowly, the blood flooding the street began to disappear, absorbed by the magic that evaporated it into the air. Within seconds, it was as if there had never been a massacre there.
However, even though the blood had vanished, tension still hung in the air.
"This isn't something easy to ignore," said another volunteer, staring at the clean yet fear-filled ground.
Yet, even though most residents tried to calm themselves, some continued to feel anxious. "We must be vigilant. If this starts here, what will come next?" said an older man, unable to hide his fear.
Meanwhile, Tadric reported to the town hall. "We need more officers. The situation is starting to get out of control."
Soon, medical and security teams began to arrive and clean up the location. Some officers started calming the residents, giving assurances that they were safe, even though the situation grew more chaotic. Residents were forced to calm down with persuasion from officers saying everything would soon return to normal.
However, even though some volunteers and residents tried to soothe things, some students coming to the open school felt something different in the air—no one spoke, but a sense of alertness hung in their minds.
Beysolun might return to normal for now, but everyone knew… something far darker was lurking behind this incident.
---
Neir arrived with Tira. This time, she wasn't too disturbed by Dani's vision because she had covered it with plaster as before. Even so, she could still faintly hear Dani's breathing. It seemed Dani was asleep… or maybe just silent, resting.
As usual, Tira chatted with her along the way.
"Neir, are you feeling better?" asked Tira, her voice slightly hesitant.
Neir gave a small nod. "I'm fine," she answered, though her mind was still filled with other things.
She felt she had overreacted about Jaron yesterday. But what bothered her more was Mr. Gharrick. What was the continuation of that problem? Maybe after school, she could persuade her mother to forgive Mr. Gharrick a little.
They arrived at school as usual.
But something was strange.
Usually, several volunteers stood at the gate, greeting arriving students. But today, it was empty. Not a single person.
Neir glanced around. Silence.
Tira also sensed the oddity. "Why is it so quiet?" she murmured.
They looked at each other, but there was no answer.
Around them, students kept walking in as usual. They didn't know… that something terrifying had just happened in Beysolun.
---
Emergency Meeting at Beysolun Town Hall
Inside the town hall meeting room, the atmosphere was so tense the air felt suffocating. People spoke in high tones, talking over each other, and some even nearly lunged at one another.
The long table in the center of the room was the focus, where volunteers from the open school, city security officers, and local officials had gathered. But the most striking presence was that of Eldain Corvus, the regional leader of Beysolun. His figure was upright with sharp eyes that radiated an undeniable aura. He didn't speak, only observed—and that was enough to make some people feel intimidated.
At the end of the table, Tadric knocked his fist on the wooden surface. "This isn't just murder. This is an execution! And until now we don't even have a clue who did it!"
The local security chief, a large man with a stern face, leaned back in his chair. "We've combed the surrounding area, used tracking magic, interrogated witnesses. No trace. This isn't amateur work."
"Then who?" The sharp voice came from Santi, one of the female volunteers who looked both angry and anxious at the same time. "Are they targeting the open school?"
Edric added, his voice serious. "Or the town hall? Their heads were found at the gate here, not at the school. It's like... a warning."
Eldain Corvus finally moved. He crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair. His eyes observed everyone in the room with an assessing gaze. "If it's a warning," he said in a deep tone, "the question is: for whom? And... why now?"
A moment of silence.
A town hall administrative officer—a middle-aged man with a thin beard—let out a heavy sigh. "We've checked the archives, no documents are missing. No indication of robbery. If this is about politics... the motive is still murky."
"Murky?!" Tadric almost slammed his chair as he stood up. "We've lost five lives, and you call it murky?! This is more than just politics, this is... a message in blood!"
"Wait a moment." Alarisse, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. Her voice was calm, but cold like a blade. "You're too busy looking for who did it, but not considering how they did it."
Everyone's gaze now turned to her.
She continued, "These murders happened without a sound. Without a trace. Without any witnesses seeing the perpetrator."
"We're not fools!" The security chief glared at her sharply. "We've considered that. But if tracking magic doesn't work, it means we're dealing with something... beyond our expectations."
"What do you mean?" asked Santi with a suspicious tone.
"Look at the facts!" Tadric interjected again. "If this was the work of a criminal group, they would have left something—whether a symbol, a message, or even a claim for their action! But this? Nothing!"
"So you're saying this is the work of shadow assassins, is that it?" mocked one of the officials.
"Do you have a better theory?" Tadric challenged.
Then suddenly, Eldain Corvus let out a soft laugh.
Everyone immediately fell silent.
He looked at everyone in the room, then said, "Fools."
The entire room tensed.
"I've been sitting here listening to you shout at each other without direction." Eldain leaned back in his chair, his eyes glinting sharply. "You're busy looking for who did it, how they did it, or why they did it." He then raised one finger. "But you forgot the most fundamental thing."
He leaned slightly forward.
"What do they want?"
The room fell silent again.
"What do you mean?" Edric finally asked.
Eldain sighed as if annoyed at talking to children. "This murder isn't random. Not spontaneous. Not merely a show of power. They sent a message, yes. But more than that..." He looked sharply at Reynard, who had been silent in the corner of the room all this time.
Reynard did not return the gaze.
Eldain observed his expression for a moment before speaking again.
"If we can find what they're after, we can find the perpetrator."
The debate erupted again. Some started agreeing with Eldain's logic, while others remained adamant with their own theories.
However, one thing was clear.
No one could find a definite answer.
And in the corner of the room, Reynard remained silent.
Yet, his mind was working hard.
From the way he observed every word, every reaction, it was clear he had already started assembling something in his mind. Something more dangerous than the others realized.
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