The room, occupied by only three people, now felt suffocatingly tense as Suna’s amber eyes bore into Torveth’s face, partially hidden beneath the hood of his cloak.

  Silence quickly engulfed the room, so complete that the three of them could hear the beat of their own hearts. The agonizing stillness was finally broken when Suna spoke.

  "Since the head of the Cloaked Sentinel Division isn’t present… we’ll move directly to—"

  "And who would even want to share a room with that deranged woman?" Torveth interrupted. Valoric instantly stood, his voice sharp and furious.

  "Who do you think you’re speaking to, huh? Answer me, Torveth!"

  The emotional weight Valoric had been carrying finally burst forth in his voice, ced with raw anger.

  Silence fell again. All eyes were now on Valoric. Torveth peeked from under his silver hood, unfazed.

  Suddenly, the sword at Valoric’s waist lifted on its own, flying straight toward Torveth’s heart. The leader of the Angel Hands Division stood frozen, unmoving—only his eyes widened, fixed on the sharp point of Valoric’s sword.

  “Mira, stop!” Suna commanded.

  The sword halted, mere inches from Torveth’s chest—any closer and it would have pierced through.

  From the sword’s hilt, Mira’s arm began to materialize, formed by countless tiny violet cubes that hovered in the air. The cubes shaped her hand first, which gripped the sword, then slowly continued forming her body.

  “Tch… why do you care so much about trash who dares to break the rules of this chamber?!” Mira growled, her hand trembling as if barely restraining the urge to end Torveth’s life.

  “We cannot take the life of someone still of value, Mira,” Suna replied calmly, even though it was his own sister who had nearly sin a high-ranking member of the Aegis Order.

  Valoric, still standing, finally found the strength to speak. Though his voice was cautious, it couldn’t mask the fear looming within him.

  “Forgive me, Lady Mira. But every living being’s life matters, and we mustn’t—”

  “Spare me your pathetic words!” Mira snapped, her gaze now locked on the knight.

  “Words like that mean nothing coming from someone who chose to protect a common civilian over a fellow high-ranking Aegis officer!”

  Valoric’s eyes reflexively met hers—disbelief etched across his face. He couldn’t comprehend what he was hearing from someone supposedly on his side.

  “Remember?! You chose to save a child over the leader of the Escariot Division who was fighting by your side at the time!” Mira’s words now tore open a wound in Valoric’s heart that had never truly healed.

  “I only did what my conscience told me to do!” Valoric fired back, unable to suppress the surge of emotion within him any longer.

  Mira fell silent for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle—the kind of ugh that sounded as if she couldn’t believe such words had come from a knight living in this filthy world.

  "Alright then! It seems I just can’t argue with someone who still possesses... ah, what was it called again? Oh yes! A conscience." Mira covered her mouth with the back of her hand in a graceful manner as she let out another light ugh.

  Watching her, Suna was suddenly reminded of another woman who always obeyed his orders. But then, he realized... he had never once seen Yoei ugh.

  Feeling the tension beginning to dissipate, Suna exhaled. All eyes shifted to him.

  "Since the situation has somewhat calmed down, let us continue this discussion..." he sighed once more, now directing his gaze at Mira.

  "I request the leader of the Cloaked Sentinel Division and the Grand Marshal to take their seats..." said Suna. Mira tossed the sword back to Valoric, then promptly walked to her seat near him.

  Both leaders sat down. Valoric tried to compose himself, breathing deeply over and over, while Mira sat with her arms crossed over her chest.

  "Thank you..." said Suna, his eyes gncing toward Mira. Realizing she would likely remain silent for now, he decided to stick to the original pn.

  "Very well... I want a full expnation—free from any falsehoods, regarding the absence of the Angel Hands Division during the attack." Suna’s gaze now returned to Torveth, who had remained silent throughout the earlier chaos.

  "Therefore, I ask the leader of the Angel Hands Division to expin everything."

  The leader of the Angel Hands stood, his hood still concealing part of his face.

  "Thank you for the permission, Your Majesty. As I was about to say earlier at the door—this attack came without warning. At the time, I was located in the western district of Aurathis."

  Torveth paused to swallow the saliva building up in his mouth, as if each word might bring death closer.

  "I had already received reports about the attack... about how they were able to enter the city undetected. There’s a possibility they used a magic called Gmour Veil, which allows the user to disguise their physical form and identity. It also conceals their magical presence. Very few people can detect users of Gmour Veil, including your sister, Lady Mira. I also suspect she may have been involved in this attack."

  All eyes turned to Mira, who still sat with her arms crossed. She immediately averted her gaze, showing no desire to deny the accusation.

  "And regarding their horses..." Torveth continued,

  "They most likely used summoning magic to bring forth their mounts. Due to the sheer number involved in the assault, I fear there may have been outside interference."

  Valoric slowly raised his hand, as though asking to speak. He looked toward Suna, silently seeking his permission. After a confirming nod from Suna, Valoric began to speak.

  "Though I’m no magic expert, why would they need such an immense reserve of mana? Isn’t every person responsible for themselves, including the horses they ride?" His voice now sounded calm, as if all his earlier rage had been reined in.

  "Regardless of the advantages Gmour Veil grants its users, it also carries a steep price. The mana consumption increases drastically, especially for this branch of Metamorphancy magic, when multiple users are close to one another. The initial explosion happened due to unstable mana flow when they gathered right before unching the attack..."

  Valoric nodded. Though his lips remained sealed, the look in his eyes conveyed his respect and gratitude for Torveth’s thorough expnation.

  "Your expnation is sufficient. I appreciate it, even though you expined it as if feeding a baby," said Suna. His attempt at humor failed, as his tone cked even the slightest warmth.

  "Very well, you may sit down again, Sir Torveth. And don’t forget to swallow all that saliva you've been gathering," he added, accompanied by a small chuckle that subtly undermined Torveth’s dignity.

  Torveth immediately sat back down without a word or gesture, silently realizing that Mira had been watching him the entire time with her piercing stare.

  Valoric, noticing the tension between Mira and Torveth escating again, could only sigh and mutter something under his breath that no one else could hear.

  "I believe all the pieces are now in pce, even though there are still some gaps..." Suna paused.

  "Alright then. I ask everyone to return to their respective positions. We don’t want to linger in this room waiting for one of us to die, do we?" said Suna, now more aware that bringing Mira and Torveth into the same room had been a bad idea from the start.

  Suddenly, Mira stood up, stretching her body like a cat waking from slumber, then leaned in and whispered to Suna.

  "Brother, may I punish Torveth for breaking the etiquette of this chamber?" she asked, her elegant yet terrifying smile once again gracing her face.

  Suna merely nodded, trusting that Mira wouldn’t take Torveth’s life after his warning earlier.

  Mira slowly walked toward the chair where Torveth was sitting, a smile still painted on her lips. She then approached him and, in a fsh, gripped Torveth’s mouth tightly.

  "This is punishment for interrupting my brother and for being disrespectful to him," said Mira, her grip digging in deeper.

  She then released her hold, only to yank back Torveth’s hood violently, causing the leader of the Angel Hands Division to fall backward along with his chair.

  Valoric stood up in surprise, anticipating what might happen next. Meanwhile, Suna remained calmly seated, resting his chin on his hands.

  "And this is for still wearing your hood even after entering this chamber!" said Mira. Her tone, though restrained, did not match the harshness of her treatment toward Torveth.

  Suddenly, Torveth’s hand reached for Mira’s right ankle and hurled her away from the round table. Mira, caught off guard, couldn’t resist and ended up dragged across the floor by the throw.

  Before she could fully stand, her body grew heavy. A golden light appeared beneath her, forming a symbol that made Mira feel as if an invisible building had colpsed on her.

  "Arghhh w-what is this?!" Mira protested. Despite her mastery of forbidden magic, she couldn’t escape the golden light’s grip.

  The unseen force was apparently being channeled by Torveth, who now stood with both arms extended toward her, jaw clenched as though he could no longer hold back. His mouth began uttering a forbidden incantation:

  "Per lucem iudicii, vinci te—"

  But Torveth’s voice was cut off just before he could finish the spell.

  Valoric stood in stunned silence, not even reacting when Suna’s finger flicked something sharp that pierced through Torveth’s vocal cords, stopping him mid-incantation.

  Mira slowly stood up, panting heavily as though her body had endured to its limits in those brief seconds.

  Torveth now writhed on the floor, both hands clutched at his bleeding throat. He could no longer speak—or even scream. Only pain remained, in utter silence.

  "You should be ashamed of yourselves…" said Suna, his tone dripping with disgust at what he had just witnessed.

  "Adults fighting like this… Pathetic. I want all of you out. Now," he added.

  Not wanting to be involved any further, Valoric gave a silent nod and slowly made his way out of the chamber.

  "Your Majesty, I’ll take my leave first…" Valoric said, gncing occasionally at Torveth, still lying on the floor, blood now pooling beneath him.

  Suna gave no response—nor did he move to check on Torveth’s condition. Instead, he walked toward Mira, who was still struggling to stay on her feet.

  "Broth—"

  Before Mira could fully speak, Suna struck her left cheek with a harsh sp. The blow left Mira frozen in pce, her eyes widening in shock and disbelief.

  "You're no different from that man who's barely clinging to life," Suna said, his voice sharp, each word aimed to shatter Mira’s pride.

  Mira could only clutch her reddening cheek, as if the sp had shaken something deep within her—an awakening to the fact that she, too, had crossed a line.

  Her blonde hair partially veiled her expression, preventing Suna from seeing her face clearly. Then, without another word, he turned and walked out of the chamber, leaving them both behind.

  Peeking from behind her strands of hair, Mira slowly lifted her head. A faint smile returned to her face.

  "So, you do care about me... in your own twisted way," she murmured. Her voice was soft this time, as if everything that had happened before was simply a product of another self entirely.

  —

  Author’s Note:

  It’s not the pain that hurts.

  It’s realizing who’s still smiling when it happens.

  -Cyruka ?