Chapter 5: Resolution (1)

After the funeral, Ariel returned to her daily life, yet she grew increasingly gaunt as time passed.

Her platinum hair, which should have shone like sunlight, turned dull and brittle. Her skin lost its color, growing pale, and her eyes grew dim, resembling the lifeless eyes of a dead fish.

It was almost embarrassing to say she looked like a living person. Karma, Ariel’s closest friend and colleague, watched her deteriorate until, finally, she could no longer hold back. She forcefully dragged Ariel, who insisted she had no appetite and refused to go, to a restaurant and sat her down at a table.

“How long are you planning to starve yourself? The living have to live!”

“…”

Ariel only sighed a few times, not feeling much of anything, until her eyes suddenly widened as she looked at the prices next to the menu items. She gaped in shock, barely able to catch her breath.

“Why is it so expensive? How could I even eat this? That’s an entire day’s wages for me!”

The price was nothing like what she’d expected. It looked as if an extra zero had been added to the typical amount in her mind. Ariel couldn’t believe the numbers.

Yet Karma’s reaction, despite her plans to buy the meal, was calm. She flipped through the menu with a casual wave, replying nonchalantly.

“If I’m going to force you to eat, it should at least be something good. It’s worth the cost. Don’t worry.”

“Are you just swimming in money?”

“Yeah. I’m pretty loaded; you know that well enough.”

“…”

Ariel was at a loss for words.

The food came quickly. Although she had no appetite, the price was too high for her to just let it go to waste, so Ariel reluctantly picked up her spoon. As she picked at the food, a memory flashed in her mind—a vision of Jin Kreutz standing before Aynkel’s grave.

Compared to Aynkel’s death, it was a relatively small matter, but the thought of Karma being of the same rank as Jin Kreutz suddenly raised a question.

“There’s something I’ve been curious about.”

Since Karma held the same rank, she might know something about him.

“Jin Kreutz came to my brother’s grave. How would the two of them have known each other?”

“What? Who? Jin Kreutz?”

“Yeah.”

Karma’s brows knitted briefly as her gaze sharpened. She shook her head, as though in disbelief, questioning her.

“Are you sure you didn’t imagine it?”

“Hmm…”

Ariel let the words trail off as she recalled the radiant, silvery hair that glinted in the golden sunlight by Aynkel’s grave.

“Do you think I could mistake him? It’s not like I’m color-blind. Who else has that kind of hair?”

That shade was known to be a unique color achievable only by those who had reached the pinnacle of magic.

While it might sound similar to an elder’s white hair, it was unmistakably different upon seeing it in person. White and silver-white were worlds apart. Ariel realized that herself when she saw him up close.

Currently, Jin Kreutz was the only mage in Dantera known to possess that color, so as long as she wasn’t blind, she couldn’t have mistaken him for anyone else. His silver hair was an unmistakable hallmark of Jin Kreutz.

Karma also knew this very well. After a brief hesitation, she slowly shook her head.

“…No, impossible.”

However, her expression remained skeptical, as if she couldn’t quite believe it. Ariel shared her doubts but refrained from pressing on it, instead asking more questions.

“What are the chances Jin Kreutz, of all people, had any sort of connection with my brother, a regular soldier?”

“None. Unless he went out of his way, it’s impossible. Sure, he visits the northern territories frequently, but he usually moves alone. I doubt he has any close personal connections. Even among senior military officers who regularly meet him, he only speaks when necessary. He’s so strict that there’s no room for small talk. Ordinary soldiers probably haven’t even seen his face.”

Karma replied decisively. Then, looking slightly puzzled, she added,

“I’ve never heard of him being close with anyone. If he were, there would’ve been rumors. Impossible.”

“So, I wasn’t wrong to find it strange, was I? Even Aynkel… he never hinted at having any connection to him.”

“Yeah. To be honest, I wonder if you dreamed it.”

“A dream…”

Ariel had considered that possibility. But the timing was just as she had washed her face and was fully alert, so she had quickly ruled it out.

It had definitely not been a dream.

Just as Ariel was about to say that aloud, a sudden, loud noise erupted from Karma’s pocket. The noise was so loud that it cut through the chatter of the bustling restaurant, drawing the attention of everyone nearby. Startled, Karma quickly pulled the source from her pocket.

It was an intricately crafted gold ear cuff, the exclusive communicator used by the five elders of Dantera. When attached to the ear, it silently conveyed messages, but when detached, it sounded an alert to notify the owner of incoming news. The louder the alert, the more urgent the matter.

“Oh, what now?”

With a deep scowl, Karma hurriedly placed the communicator in her ear, and the noise ceased instantly. The moment it touched her ear, a mechanical voice whispered an urgent message with a clear monotone.

[A meeting has been called. Please try to make time today or tomorrow if possible. As soon as you receive this message, send your available times to the Pantheon.]

“Oh, why now…”

A reluctant sigh escaped from Karma.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

The Great Hall Pantheon

The Pantheon, named after the grand temple of Zenith, was every bit as large and magnificent as its namesake. Inside the towering building of pale marble, polished smooth like a mirror, time seemed to have left it untouched for hundreds of years.

From the glass ceiling that revealed the sky, a crystal chandelier cast a silvery light, akin to moonlight. Around the edges of the circular building stood statues of Dantera’s legendary heroes, poised as guardians.

Inside, large, tiered tables arranged in three levels faced the center, where a cogged scribe recorded the elders’ proceedings.

At one in the morning of December 26, 2879, when most of those in the light were asleep, the five elders sat around the circular first-tier table.

Present were Jin Kreutz, representative of the mages; Karma Fereshte, representative of the witches; Eden Jeriem, representative of the military; Casper Zed, representative of the clergy; and Dianta Envis, representative of the common citizens.

“Apologies for gathering you so late and so suddenly.” 

Eden, the military representative, began with his heavy voice, signaling the start of the meeting as the gears of the scribe clicked and turned.

“Oh, I’m sure it’s urgent if you’ve called us here.”

“I agree, though I may doze a bit. I hope you’ll excuse that.”

“I’ll be behind on my work, but since Sir Jeriem has requested the military’s understanding, I don’t mind,”

Casper responded kindly, his usual gentle nature evident, while Karma replied with a hint of drowsiness, and Dianta nodded calmly.

“So, what’s the reason?”

The crystal-clear yet emotionless voice was Jin’s, forgoing the usual formalities and getting straight to the point. The other four elders were accustomed to this.

Eden continued naturally, carrying on the conversation.

“In short, the military needs a full reorganization. We must completely restructure it.”

“Reorganization?”

Casper’s calm voice echoed the word. Eden nodded.

“Yes. While the general corps may remain as it is, we need more mages. We must increase the number of mage corps, as well as the mages within each corps.”