The feeling of wind against his face was amazing.

Azel hadn't realized how much he'd missed this kind of freedom until now.

The air brushed through his hair and filled his lungs, it reminded him of when Selene had given him that first blessing of wind back in Lycas.

That same sense of weightlessness… He really loved the Wind affinity.

"We're getting down here," Sybil said, pointing toward a field below.

From above, the Academy looked distant… the buildings were like miniature toys, the training fields no bigger than patches of sand.

The meadow she pointed to was far on the outskirts, where the grass glowed under the sun and wildflowers swayed in the breeze.

"Why are we still up high when we're supposed to be going down?" Azel asked, squinting.

"Oh, I just want to drop you." Sybil's grin spread wide.

"Wait, wha—"

She let go.

Azel sighed as gravity took hold.

Wind rushed past him, tugging at his clothes and hair. He folded his arms across his chest, his expression completely unimpressed as he fell like a rock through the clouds.

A fall from this height couldn't kill him.

Not even close.

"Come on, I was just teasing you a bit!" Sybil's voice called from above.

She flicked her wrist, and a gust of wind curled around him like invisible ribbons, slowing his descent.

The force eased gently until he landed on his feet in the soft grass.

A breeze followed and then Sybil herself landed right beside him with a playful twirl, her boots barely touching the ground.

"How do you like it?" she asked, spreading her arms proudly. "I spend time here when I need to calm down."

'So… basically every day,' Azel thought but kept his mouth shut.

Before he could even comment, Sybil grabbed his wrist. "Come on! I'll show you my favorite spot and then we can do experiments."

"Experiments?" he asked dryly. "For what?"

She turned, her eyes flashing mischievously. "How thick you are down there. I'm dying to know."

Azel exhaled through his nose and resisted the urge to groan.

He liked Sybil's straightforwardness… she had a blunt, no-nonsense way of speaking but sometimes that same honesty made her completely impossible to deal with.

Still, he followed as she dragged him through the sea of grass.

Wildflowers brushed against their legs as they walked, and sunlight danced over the meadow like liquid gold.

They stopped before a large boulder sitting in the middle of the field, it was covered with moss and smooth from years of wind.

It was actually quite beautiful but there was already someone sitting there.

Flare.

She was leaning against the rock, reading a book.

One hand held the pages open, the other lazily brushed through her crimson hair. Her usual fiery expression was softened by the glasses perched on her nose.

Azel blinked. 'Since when does she wear glasses?'

It only made her look cuter, though he'd never say that out loud.

"Wh–why are you in my secret spot?!" Sybil's voice cracked furiously, her finger shooting out like an arrow toward Flare. "And on my boulder too?!"

Flare didn't even look up from her book.

"I don't see your name on it, Sybil," she said flatly. "Besides, it's quiet out here. I can see why you like it."

"Idiot…" Sybil muttered under her breath, pouting hard enough to puff her cheeks.

For a moment, it looked like she might actually fight her fellow heroine right there… her fingers twitching as wind started gathering around her but Azel was still holding her hand.

His calm touch seemed to remind her to behave.

"I'll forgive you this time," Sybil said finally.

Flare flipped another page and said with a sigh, "Thank you. Now, what are you doing here with Azel?"

Sybil grinned, completely unbothered. "We wanted to fuck."

Flare's eyes widened instantly, her face turning a bright shade of red. "Wh–what?!"

"You know," Sybil continued with a straight face, "if you do it in nature, it's more fun that way."

Azel pinched the bridge of his nose. "We weren't about to do anything, pervert."

"R–really?" Flare muttered, half hiding her face behind her book.

Before Azel could respond, Sybil's ears twitched.

Her expression changed in an instant.

"Hey," she whispered, "did you hear that? Heavy footsteps..."

Azel's brow furrowed.

He strained his hearing but he couldn't hear anything out of the ordinary. There was the sound of the wind, of the birds and the grass moving but there were no footsteps…

"You sure?"

Sybil didn't answer, she looked around and sighed.

"There's someone else here. In my meadow."

She shot forward like an arrow, wind spiraling beneath her feet.

"Sybil, wait!" Azel called, but she was already gone. He exchanged a glance with Flare, who looked just as startled, and they both took off after her.

The meadow blurred around them… it was a rush of color, petals scattering in their wake as they sprinted through the field.

"Sybil, slow down!" Flare shouted, but the wind witch didn't respond.

They followed her until she finally came to an abrupt stop near a cluster of tall trees.

Her entire body went still.

Azel slowed to a halt beside her. "Sybil? What's wrong—"

Then he saw it.

His words caught in his throat.

The tree ahead was covered in bodies.

They hung from its thick branches by ropes tied around their necks. Limbs dangled limply in the wind.

But that wasn't the worst part.

Every single one of them had been skinned.

Their flesh was stripped away entirely, leaving only muscle and tendon exposed to the air.

The coppery scent of blood and decay filled the meadow, sharp enough to burn the back of his throat.

Flare's hand shot up to cover her mouth.

She took one step forward and then stumbled to the side, throwing up violently into the grass.

Azel stared.

'So the second minor arc is starting,' he thought grimly. 'Fucking Skinbutcher.'

Behind him, Sybil trembled.

Her fists clenched so tightly her nails dug into her palms.

"What the fuck…" she muttered, her voice shaking with rage. "Who the fuck dares to do this in my meadow…"

Her mana surged violently. Wind howled across the clearing, ripping through the grass and kicking up dirt in swirling patterns.

A crater began forming around her feet as the energy gathered.

Azel reached out, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down."

"Calm down?!" she snapped with tears of fury burning at the corners of her eyes. "They were killed here! In my space! I won't fucking forgive them! Never!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.