Damian caught the weapon effortlessly, a wicked laugh escaping his lips. "Shit! I didn’t know you were this fun!" he taunted, eyes gleaming with excitent.
In the next instant, I was already beside him, activating my Spectral Seal—an unexpected move that caught him completely off guard. I closed the gap between us swiftly, my fist clenched with all my strength. "Just returning the favor," I muttered through gritted teeth as I delivered a powerful punch aid at knocking him out cold.
The blow connected with Damian’s cheek with a sharp, resounding impact, causing him to stumble backward, his feet gouging into the dirt beneath him. His smirk faltered for a mont, surprise flickering across his face. "What the fuck was that..." he muttered, shaking his head as he raised his hand, aiming to unleash a magic strike in my direction.
Before he could cast his spell, a sudden presence materialized out of nowhere, halting him in his tracks. The mysterious man I saw last night stepped forward, grabbing Damian’s arm firmly and pulling him back.
"L-Let go! I can still kill that b-bitch!" Damian protested, staggering and trying to keep his balance as he struggled against the man’s grip.
The man sighed with obvious irritation, then swiftly knocked Damian out cold. He hoisted Damian over his shoulder with ease, his gaze turning cold and threatening as he stared back at .
I imdiately retreated, positioning myself to shield Cypher, my dagger still at the ready. Every muscle tensed, alert for any further attack.
"Thanks to you, he won’t be so arrogant next ti," the man said, his voice calm but edged with nace before he began dragging Damian away.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~
"It’s been a while, traitor," a cold voice pierced through the air, cutting sharply into the tension as it called out to the mysterious man carrying Damian.
The man paused in his tracks, about to leave the amusent park when he suddenly stumbled upon soone. He didn’t need to turn around to recognize who it was; just hearing the voice was enough to send a clear ssage. It was Thorne Vex.
"Thorne, fancy seeing you here," the man said, his tone calm despite the tension in the air.
"Well, I’m not exactly thrilled to see you," Thorne replied coldly, his voice dripping with disdain.
"That’s fine with ," the man shot back smoothly. "Anyway, where’s that brat?"
"He’s not here," Thorne said straightforwardly, his gaze narrowing slightly. "I’d rather have boss alive than let him see you again."
"Oh? Don’t tell you’re here because you missed ," the man teased, a hint of mockery in his voice.
"I’m just here to check if you’re still alive and apparently I was disappointed to see you walking just fine," Thorne replied as he look to the unconscious man on his shoulder. "I didn’t know your into kidnapping these days, have your taste completely changed? Your into boys now?"
The man only smiled at Thorne’s obvious attempt to provoke him, a cold glint in his eyes. "Tell your boss I have a new disciple, although he’s just like that brat—always trying to kill ."
The man turned around slowly, his silhouette casting a long shadow as he began to walk away. His voice was calm, almost dismissive. "Bye now. We’ll see each other again. Soon."
Thorne didn’t step back or show any sign of retreat. Instead, he remained firm, eyes narrowing as he called out, "Did you know that a Tiger was hired especially for you?"
The man continued walking, unfazed.
"Didn’t you et Tigris inside?" Thorne pressed, a hint of satisfaction in his tone.
Only then did the man stop, though he didn’t turn to face Thorne. A wild smile spread across his face as he recalled the earlier confrontation. Watching the fight, if he could even call it that, he noted how easily his disciple had been knocked off balance by just one punch from that girl.
"I wish her the best of luck then," the man said, his voice laced with amusent before he disappeared from Thorne’s view.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~
The sirens blared in the distance as the police and heroes finally arrived, swiftly moving to arrest the people involved in the illegal weapons trade within the amusent park. I couldn’t believe it—illegal activities right here, hidden among the crowds, and I had been oblivious until now.
That man—he must have been the mastermind behind this entire ss.
I glanced over at Cypher, who was leaning weakly beside . Thankfully, I had quickly given him the potion I bought from the system shop. I nudged him softly, concern etched in my eyes. Cypher turned his head and offered a small, grateful smile.
"Are you okay?" I asked softly.
"Yeah, thanks for the potion you gave . I’ll pay you back as soon as I can," he replied with a faint but sincere smile.
I shook my head gently. "There’s no need. Just focus on recovering."
Then, I hesitated for a mont, glancing at him with curiosity. "By the way, how are you related to that man?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. I already knew the answer deep down, but I wanted to hear him say it—just in case the story had been rewritten again, or if the author decided to change their relationship.
Cypher looked away, his expression distant. "He’s... soone I know... back then," he murmured.
"I see," I said softly, choosing not to press further. Instead, we both fell into a comfortable silence, gazing up at the night sky, the stars twinkling quietly above us.
After a mont, Cypher broke the silence. "Remi..."
"Yes?" I responded, turning to face him.
He turned to face directly, and in his eyes I saw a flood of emotions—confusion, regret, sothing hard to put into words. I sensed what he was feeling, a deep ache of loss and longing, yet I couldn’t fully grasp it. Losing one’s ho, their place of belonging. Unlike , Cypher didn’t have the hope of returning to it.
I sohow understood what he was feeling, yet I couldn’t understand it at the sa ti. Losing one’s ho. But unlike , Cypher doesn’t have the hope of being able to go back.
In the end, Cypher shook his head, dismissing whatever thoughts had crossed his mind. "...Nevermind," he said, his voice trailing off.
"Boring~" I teased, poking his cheek playfully, which brought a smile back to his face. I was glad to see his mood brighten, even if just a little.
"By the way, you’re the one who defeated that guy, right?" Cypher asked, a hint of admiration in his voice.
"Nope," I replied, shaking my head.
"What do you an?" Cypher said.
"I didn’t defeat him; soone else did and carried him away," I explained, trying to keep my tone light. Although I did most of the damage.
I got up and ruffled his hair affectionately. "I’ll be leaving now. Make sure to see the doctor if you have any wounds left, okay?" Without waiting for a reply, I gave him a reassuring smile before turning to head back to my inn.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~
Sunday
I returned to my room alone since Macaron and Glacier teleported back here. I sank onto the bed, feeling the fatigue settle into my bones. Almost instantly, Glacier and Macaron appeared beside , snuggling close for comfort.
As I stared at the ceiling, my gaze drifted to the calendar hanging on the wall. In just five weeks, a new year would begin. The thought made pause briefly—ti was moving faster than I realized. I began to fill my schedule ntally: attend school, study, sleep, and spend quality ti playing with Macaron and Glacier.
There were also missions to accept from the Nightjars, which kept on my toes. I needed to plan with Robert, Christian’s father, to upgrade the restaurant, ensuring it would be able to handle the influx of custors and the new plans we had in store. Additionally, I had to sign contracts related to my company, especially since Stephen was on the verge of collapsing so I had no choice but to help him.
Days blurred together as I remained imrsed in my work. Currently, I was in the midst of Arithmancy II. With the upcoming exams, most students had reverted to their zombie-like states—barely sleeping, just studying and training their bodies to prepare. As soon as classes ended, half headed to the library to cram, while the other half made their way to the training facility to refine their skills.
For , I was entirely ignoring the lectures. My focus was on my laptop: on one tab, I was drafting the final proposal plan to send to Robert; on another, I was reviewing the contents of the contracts. I had to leave the academy for an appointnt today, so I made sure everything was in order before I had to go.
The professor’s voice echoed in the background, "Next week, you won’t be having classes, so feel free to focus on reviewing everything we’ve learned this sester." I quickly finished sending the proposal to Robert and ssaged Stephen that I’d be continuing to read the remaining papers. With that, I prepared to leave, knowing I had a busy day ahead outside the academy.
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