Chapter 13 —
Mirea twisted her hair awkwardly with an embarrassed face. Rivielo narrowed her eyes and looked at her friend with a mixture of exasperation and pity.
“You’re getting what you deserve for casually abusing Lord Sephiros’ authority until now.”
“Do you think if I barge into the chairman’s office and throw a fit on the floor, he’ll fix everything for me?”
“He’s already looking for you, by the way. I dropped by the headquarters for something earlier, and Paulo asked me where you were. Lord Sephiros told me to let you know to come straight to his office once you return. I guess our paths didn’t cross properly.”
“Oh, really?”
Mirea’s face lit up with relief — she no longer had to come up with an excuse to meet Sephiros.
“But still, Lord Sephiros can’t possibly be handling every little issue himself.”
Determined to find a backup plan, Mirea gripped Rivielo’s shoulders firmly.
“Don’t you have a spare room at your place?”
“If you’re thinking about seeking shelter at our temple, you’ll have to convert.”
“I’m not really one for religious commitments…”
Mirea dropped her head, disheartened.
“If you’re that desperate to stay in the dorm apartments, you should change your situation to meet the new eligibility. What exactly changed in the dorm policy that disqualified you?”
At Rivielo’s question, Mirea mumbled hesitantly before answering.
“First on the exclusion list… people who own property in Roxan under their own name.”
“…”
“It’s not like I can sell my house…”
Of course not. Rivielo could easily guess the rest of Mirea’s fading words. She pressed her fingers to her forehead.
“Mirea… well, since it’s come to this—”
Before she could finish, Mirea quickly slapped her hand over Rivielo’s mouth, cutting her off.
“My beloved friend, Rivielo Ram. I think I know what you’re about to say. But if you love me even half as much as I love you, please don’t say it.”
Rivielo let out a dry chuckle at Mirea’s firm stance and relaxed her brows. Mirea sighed and changed the subject.
“Anyway, Sephiros is looking for me? Why?”
With nowhere to stash her luggage for the moment, Mirea left her things in the hallway and pressed the down button at the elevator.
“I don’t know. I’m just relaying the message.”
Rivielo stepped into the elevator with her. The iron-barred gate clanged shut, and the lift began its descent with the sound of metal gears grinding.
“He could’ve just called… Ah, but I guess I wouldn’t have picked up the home phone anyway. Sephiros is probably talking to Ludekias right about now. Why would I get involved in that?”
Rivielo shrugged. Her presence didn’t seem like it was just to deliver a message, and Mirea asked suspiciously,
“Are you tagging along?”
“I’m curious. It’s the infamous Black Wing, after all. If someone has received a whisper from such a great goddess, I at least want to see their face in person.”
Rivielo spoke lightly with a smirk, but her golden eyes remained calm and unreadable. Mirea’s expression also stiffened awkwardly in response.
“Ah… I see. Just don’t treat the person like some kind of spectacle.”
“I’m allowed to, in their case.”
Rivielo’s confident tone made Mirea let out a helpless laugh.
“Still.”
“You worrying about them like this… You two must’ve gotten close.”
“Yeah.”
When Mirea nodded without denial, Rivielo’s face darkened with deeper suspicion.
“Really? You got close?”
“Well… this much?”
Mirea held her thumb and forefinger just barely apart — enough space for a sheet of paper.
“…”
“What’s with that look? We really did grow close, even if just a little! We even hugged!”
“When did that happen?”
“Don’t be so jealous. You’re still my number one, Rivielo.”
Grinning, Mirea spread her arms and pulled Rivielo into a big hug. Rivielo couldn’t help but laugh at her antics.
At that moment, the elevator arrived on the first floor with a cheerful ding, and the door opened.
About 100 Years Ago…
Monsters — now known as Beasts — began to appear out of nowhere. At first, they were simple in form. The earliest beasts discovered looked like single-celled organisms and were so small they didn’t even seem threatening.
People just thought they were some strange new species. But after a few months of observation, it became clear they fed on the ambient spiritual particles emitted by the land and atmosphere.
These spiritual particles are the basic essence that all living beings carry — the core unit of the soul. It is the energy that forms consciousness and sustains life. Some call it soul, some call it will. Thus, it’s classified as a type of mental-energy matter.
Though invisible to the eye, the world is saturated with this substance. The planet of Lashuon, teeming with life, is itself like a living being that fuels the cycle of nature and serves as the source of life.
In just a few years, the beasts evolved rapidly by feeding on these particles and multiplied. They spread into the seas, the plains, the forests, the mountains, and even the skies.
But as their numbers grew, the meager spiritual energy in the natural environment wasn’t enough to satisfy them. So they began devouring living creatures — beings dense with high-purity spiritual energy.
The areas stripped of this mental-energy matter began to decay, eventually becoming corroded wastelands — uninhabitable even for the hardiest lifeforms. The beasts were devouring the planet Lashuon.
Thus began the war between the native inhabitants of Lashuon and the beasts. It was a desperate battle to protect their world, lasting 18 years — a painfully long time filled with endless bloodshed.
But then… hope appeared.
A warrior with pure white wings emerged. Though he had the body of a man, he possessed immense magical power far beyond anyone else in the world. The magical energy that overflowed from his body manifested as wings on his back.
He became known as the first Derkaid White Wing, Nicolaus.
Following Nicolaus, more winged humans began to appear across the world. They too had tremendous magical energy — powers that ordinary humans could never attain. Nicolaus led them, standing at the forefront of the war against the beasts.
Eventually, the war ended, and humanity reclaimed its land. While the beasts were not entirely eradicated, their remaining numbers no longer posed an existential threat. People believed the blessing of the Frost Goddess had returned, and Nicolaus disappeared. That was in the year Tenarik 2906.
—
And so, 100 years passed.
An uneasy peace lingered. Though one crisis had been averted, both sides were still holding tightly to the rope, pulling in a tense stalemate. If that balance of power ever tipped, everything would collapse in an instant.
Despite the passing of a century, the world remained unstable. The winged beings known as Derkaids — once heroes of the Beast War — became feared once peace was restored.
Why? Because, absurdly enough, they were now believed to attract beasts.
The act of drawing in spiritual energy and manifesting it physically is called magic. The mental-energy substance consumed during this process is mana.
While all living creatures contain mana, most of it is used simply to sustain life. Transforming it into other forces is extremely difficult without tools, catalysts, or mediums. Until 100 years ago, the scholarly consensus was: Humans can’t use magic without assistance.
But Derkaids were different.
Though born human, they could freely manipulate mana with no tools or consequences. When using magic, wings sprouted from their backs — a phenomenon believed to be a bodily response to mana conversion.
Being saturated in spiritual particles, Derkaids naturally attracted beasts. The link between beasts — who feed on spiritual energy — and Derkaids — who wield it freely — was hard to dismiss.
It was inevitable that fear and suspicion toward Derkaids would grow.
For a century, the world remained in chaos — a daily struggle, perched on the edge. Looking back on this history, Ludekias came to a conclusion:
This world is doomed.
Not in an immediate sense. But steadily, inevitably, the world was heading toward its end — and would reach that point without much resistance if nothing changed.
The signs were obvious: a hundred years of unrest, riots, slow growth, and beasts still roaming free.
If that wasn’t a bad omen, what was?
Peace was hanging by a thread.
