The next morning, sunlight streamed through the tall windows as the trio sat cross-legged in a circle on the bed. The white sheets rustled softly with each movement.

Nova kept his eyes closed, focusing intently on the subtle energies around him. Across from him, Annelie's face scrunched in concentration as she attempted the invocation. Millie sat between them, fidgeting slightly as she practiced her meridian cleansing exercises.

"I think I can sense you now, Annelie." Nova opened his eyes slightly, shielding himself from the bright sunlight. "Is your Soul Power close to twelve thousand?"

Her posture relaxed as she gave him an impressed nod. "Oh, you're really getting good if you're that accurate. It's eleven and a half." She stretched her arms above her head, working out the stiffness. "You'll need to practice it when you walk the streets to get a proper sense of it. I'll tell you how close you are."

"Oh, I can just use the Assess skill to check." Nova tapped his temple with a small finger.

Annelie gave him a flat look from across the bed. "People might find that rude."

"I'm four." Nova spread his hands innocently. "What are they going to do?"

"Fair enough..." Annelie shifted on the sheets, readjusting her legs beneath her. "Tell me one more time the sequence of runes."

Nova sighed, conjuring the runes in the air between them for Annelie to see. "I'll need to write down all the runes I know so you can study them. This is like learning how to move your fingers instead of reading notes when playing music."

Annelie squinted at the floating symbols, like she was determined to remember them. "As long as you demonstrate how they work, I'm sure I'll manage to retain them. Right now, I don't see any logic behind it."

"It's easy!" Millie burst out, eager for a chance to stop her fruitless attempts. "That first one turns the essence into boomy, then the next one takes the boomy and splits it into ping and putt. The next one takes the putt and flips it to a tupp, then the—"

"Yes, thank you, Millie." Annelie pinched the bridge of her nose. "But that makes even less sense. I can't hear the sounds, remember?"

Millie's shoulders slumped. "But the sound only explains the magic, it's not important!"

Nova watched the exchange with a smile. "Millie, try not to teach anything before you understand the magic properly. Right now, you can only understand a magic skill after seeing how it works. In the future, you'll be able to make your own."

Millie lifted her chin defiantly. "I already did make my own."

"Yes, but you didn't know what would happen." Nova's voice softened. "And no one wants that to happen again. We learn step by step, right?"

"...Right." Millie's eyes dropped to her hands folded in her lap.

A sharp knock at the door cut through the tension, making all three heads turn toward the sound.

Nova assumed he knew who it was. And if he was right, it was time to say goodbye to this city. "I'll open it," he said, sliding off the soft mattress and padding across the cool marble floor.

He opened it slowly, one eye pressed to the narrow gap. Just as he expected, Sar stood outside. Her grey hair was pulled back in its usual severe bun, and her expression matched the firmness of her posture. "Are you going to let me in?"

"Do you bring gifts?" Nova kept his small hand on the doorknob, keeping the gap just wide enough to speak through.

"I do. One soul stone, and one sphere of holding." Sar's voice dropped lower as she glanced down the empty corridor. "I wasn't allowed to look inside, so I have no idea what they contain. But I'm guessing you do?"

"That sounds about right. I guess you can come in then." Nova stepped back, swinging the heavy door open wide enough for her to enter.

Sar's robes rustled against the doorframe as she stepped inside. Her eyes swept across the sunlit room before settling back on Nova. "We can leave whenever you feel like it. But I guess you want these before we go?" Light shimmered around her hands as she conjured two crystalline spheres, balancing one in each palm.

"You know Animo is joining us as well, right?"

"I've been told." A hint of amusement crept into Sar's stern features. "I personally can't wait for the two of you to wreak havoc in Taurel."

Nova put his hand on the soul stone first, eager to see what remained of the corrupted soul. The moment his skin touched the smooth crystal surface, the soul within rushed into his core like water finding its level, as if eager to escape its cramped prison.

'Yes! The Soul Power is lower than I had hoped, but the two legendary traits are no longer corrupted. That was the important part. The compatibility is still so low… If I absorb it, I'll only get about twenty-three thousand. But how good are these traits?"

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He pulled up another window, eager to see how they had changed from their corrupted versions.

'...God damn it. That's completely useless to me. Lets me remember things and learn quicker? I already know too many skills, and I have no problem remembering them. And wandering the void? What's stopping me? My mythic trait already lets me walk around with no issue, other than the others living there.'

"You seem disappointed," Annelie said, sensing the sudden fall in his mood.

"...It's good. But the traits are nearly useless for me. I'll have to think about what to do with it." Nova stared down at his empty palms where the soul stone had been moments before.

"But surely the Soul Power is nice?" Annelie leaned forward on the white sheets, searching his face.

"Yeah, but I don't want to waste the legendary traits by absorbing it. Anyone else would find a use for them."

"…Now you're making me curious."

"One gives great memory and learning ability, the other lets you walk around in the void without being affected."

Annelie fell back onto the bed with a burst of laughter. "Ahah, that's such a perfect overlap! It could be great for the other student you have, though." She nodded at Millie, trying to avoid letting her know she was the subject of discussion.

"Yeah, but it's too powerful..." Nova's eyes flickered to Millie for a moment. "I'll have to consider saving it for later, for that student."

"Can you take the materials as well?" Sar asked, getting impatient with holding the other sphere out for him. The sphere of holding was much smaller than the soul stone, but other than that, they looked very similar.

"Sure, let me have them." Nova put his hand on the sphere, pulling the contents to his core. Four new chunks of material swirled around his soul, along with the hundreds of sparkly souls already there.

'Let's see what the generous Signus values his city at…'

[Drake Heart (Legendary) {Grade 7} x1]

[Milennium Tree Soulwood (Legendary) {Grade 7} x1]

[Sylph Wing (Epic) {Grade 8} x1]

[Tears of the Mermaid Princess (Epic) {Grade 8} x1]

'...The Signus is an alright guy! This is material worth tens of thousands at the very least. But who knows how strong it will make me?'

A small smile played across Annelie's lips. "You seem appointed," she said with an attempt at wordplay.

"I don't think that's the opposite of disappointed."

"It should be." Annelie shrugged. "You seem pleased, then."

"I am! I don't know how pleased just yet, but once I have some time, I'll figure it out."

Sar smiled down at him, hiding a clever glint in her eye. "So the trip wasn't totally wasted, then?"

"...You know, despite all the shit that has happened, I'm very glad I came. And so should you be, right?"

"Being the one who brought our new hero to the city has its advantages." Sar straightened her robes with practiced dignity. "I'll do my best to find a shelter for your children. I owe you that much."

"How kind of you to follow our contract so you don't die." Nova's voice carried a sharp edge beneath its lightness.

"It's the least I could do." Sar adjusted the tight bun of her grey hair. "Are you all ready to leave?"

Nova looked at the two girls, seeing two cautious but eager expressions. "I think we are. Lead the way, Sar."

Nova followed Sar through the cathedral's winding halls, with Millie and Annelie close behind. Morning light streamed through tall windows, casting long shadows across the white marble floors.

"Say goodbye to the baths, Millie." Nova pointed at the doors as they walked past. "When we return, you'll have to make do with a small tub for a while."

Millie stared longingly at the bathroom doors, passing them one final time. "...Goodbye, great bath. Goodbye, sweet soap. Goodbye, hot waterfall…" Her voice was filled with melancholy, but she took it well, all things considered.

Nova chuckled at her dramatic tone. "I'll show you a spell to make a small waterfall. And soap can be bought. Maybe even the one that smells like strawberry."

Millie hugged him tightly from behind. "Nova is the best!"

'Well, I do what I can. And when it takes so little, how can I not?'

"Nova! Animo!" Helen's voice echoed through the entrance hall as they approached the massive front doors. She rushed toward them, her blonde hair bouncing with each step.

Nova and Annelie both stopped, letting the others walk ahead. "Helen. How are you this fine morning?"

"I'm good! But…" Her eyes darted between Nova and Annelie. "I never got to thank you properly for saving me that time."

"It was nothing." Annelie smiled warmly. "We're just glad you're okay."

Helen clasped her hands together. "I heard you're both leaving... Will you come back?"

"Maybe someday." Nova kept his response vague. He had no plans to return, at least not for a long time. And he expected Shivere to return before him.

"Well, thank you again." Helen bowed slightly before stepping aside. "I'll pray for you both."

Annelie nodded in appreciation as they passed the teenage girl. "Stay safe, Helen."

They walked out into the bright morning sun, passing the guards who were back to work. The streets below bustled with life as people emerged from their homes, free from the rift's influence. Children played in the streets while merchants reopened their shops. The city was returning to normal.

'The people are bouncing back surprisingly fast. I expected everyone to be stuck by grief after losing so many.'

The group climbed the winding path toward the teleportation formations on the cliff overlooking Damascus. A cool wind swept across the rocky outcrop, carrying the scent of the tropical sea.

"Ready?" Sar asked, stepping onto one of the circular platforms carved into the stone. Glowing runes marked its surface in intricate patterns.

Nova paused at the edge, taking one final look at the white city spread out below. Sunlight gleamed off golden domes and spires rising above the clustered buildings. From this height, people moved through the streets like ants, going about their lives as if nothing had ever happened.

But unbeknownst to him, a wondrous story lifted the people's spirits. They had been saved by a tiny angel soaked in blood. Their lord had finally given them a sign that they were loved. They even had proof—a roof with a hole, a floor with a tiny, blood-red silhouette, and a young boy who spoke of the angel and how he had closed the rift.

The great cathedral confirmed this, telling of a tiny hero who saved them from the chaotic rift in the sky—precisely as the rumor had said.

"Yeah, let's go." Nova stepped onto the formation, followed by Millie and Annelie.

Sar's essence flowed into the runes beneath their feet. Light flared around them as the teleportation began.

And finally, Damascus vanished in a flash of white.

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