Day 4

…

The Loser (?)

…

Inside the Residence, Caislean entered the kitchen, where Amy worked overtime on a certain mix. The black hair (former) maid with a heart of darkness was dressed in a black attire resembling an office worker made by Ciel. She wanted to complain about the relocation, but given how impressed she was with Ciel-made black sweater and pants, Caislean instead spent her time working on her hair. In the end, she settled in a braided ponytail.

“Amy, the supply Betty sent has arrived,” Caislean said in a rare moment of seriousness.

The red-head was busily stirring the pot of yellow liquid, “I know. I am sorry, but I’m pretty much winging this on instinct.”

Caislean wasn’t happy, “[Instinct] is your literal skill.”

“I am trying,” Amy frustratingly went over the book. “You know how hard it is to make a Flameseed oil too flammable on purpose. It is supposed to be a very expensive and delicate spice, not explosive!”

Caislean made a face. From the second Ciel got on the drawing board, the accelerated planting and harvesting of Flameseed beans became the massive cornerstone of his Anti-Slomrath plan — Operation Burning Slimeball. They were using the [Garden] to boost growth speed and harvest cycle to hoard a massive quantity of Flameseed. Luckily, unlike other magical fruits, Flameseed’s maturation time was pretty short. With Amy’s [Heart of the Hearth] operating at full power, they were expected to meet the required estimate Ciel calculated within the time limit.

But that doesn’t mean Amy and her automated kitchen were free from a frantic, high-pressure chaos of overtime.

…

The Victor

…

Xia was dumbfounded when Ciel presented her a white linen dress. It was a simple dress, flawlessly crafted and woven. There wasn’t any pattern nor unnecessary addition, but Xia could feel the effort put into it. The weirdest thing was it fit her body perfectly.

“How did you get this?” Xia said, awestruck. “And how did you know my measurement?”

This time it was Ciel who blushing, “Well, I had to take care of you for two days. One of my natural ability allow me to calculate information at high-speed.” Ciel couldn’t believe what he was about to say next. “After seeing your,” he paused, “body, for so long, your measurements couldn’t get out of my head. I planted some flaxes weeks ago, and I doubt you want to stay in your underwear forever, so I asked Amy to turn those flaxes into linen. After that, it took some practice to weave them using [Construction].”

“Wait,” that one caught Xia by surprise. “You know how to weave?”

“Not at all,” Ciel stated shyly. “I need to reinvent the method from scratch and extrapolate it with [Calculative]. It took a few ruin clothes, but I think I get it in the end.”

Xia needed to admit seeing Ciel out of his element is new, and she didn’t dislike it, “You know. I believe you enjoy seeing me in your dress over the underwear.”

“Stop it,” Ciel said. “It is already awkward enough for three days.”

Xia gave him a warm, picture-perfect smile as she hugged the dress tightly like it meant a world to her. Days of rest and recharge in this little cave worked wonders for the shambling, overwork mayor. Despite the lack of sunlight, Xia’s skin brimmed with health. Her long platinum-blond hair finally receive some cares in years, and while far from its peak, they were no longer a fray mess. The depressing ring under her eyes practically vanished under the emotional support and affection in this ever-expanding cave.

Under that tiny candlelight, Xia smiled were nothing short of angelic.

“I think it is perfect,” Xia said, trying to suppress the jubilant feeling in her heart.

That night, after Ciel finally finished checking the material he requested from Betty and completed the routine Xia created to train his Aura, he went to rest on his usual couch and slept.

Suddenly, Ciel felt someone tugging on his sleeve. He opened his eyes and saw Xia.

His cohabitant was in the linen dressed he gave her earlier. Her brilliant blue eyes shone like a star. “Hey, I-I,” she struggled to put her needs in word, “I have a nightmare. Can you—”

Ciel couldn’t believe what was about to happen, “Are you serious?”

“I am!” Xia’s face was deep red. “I take a long time to build the courage, okay?”

It was then Ciel realized Betty might actually be projecting. Xia operated less on emotion, but more toward the starvation for companionship.

That night, the two slept together. Ciel was wide-awake from sheer nervousness, while Xia slept with a cherubic smile by his side.

…

Day 5

…

It was the day the reinforcement, dispatched from the capital, finally arrived at Cutler. It was a vivid cerebration. Captain Morn, joked jovially with the capital’s youth, as the army drank themselves into the night.

Lord Cutler joyfully greeted the soldiers. With the two-hundred men reinforcement, combined with his personal force of a hundred, he believed the investigation of this strange coincidence was simply a formality. It was a time to be rid of this troublesome disappearance case.

It was obvious none of them had the clue about the true terror awaiting them.

…

Meanwhile, deep inside that cave that had transformed into a paradise for two. Xia was teaching the philosophy of Mana to the young man who, if she admitted honestly, might be closer to the first-base than he realized. And if Caislean wasn’t so busily handling the Flameseed oil’s operation, she would point out that things could cascade pretty quickly once you got past the first-base.

“Each color of Mana is more than a mystical power,” Xia lectured Ciel, who was assembling the raw material (provided by Betty) into a functional catapult for Operation Burning Slimeball. “They represent different philosophies. Each mage is born with a specific leaning toward a color or more, and the greater they practice their Magic, the more intense the philosophy affects them in both its strength and weakness. That is the reason it is impossible to master every single color of Mana, the contradiction will tear your psyche apart.”

Ciel finished the catapult, “Just a question, but is every mage also an Aura user too?”

Xia smiled with pride, “As expect, you notice how a mage can further augment their ability. Truth is, it requires dedication most don’t have. There is a hard-cap on how much the body can take mystical energy. Taking two colors is bad enough for the mage to progress with each. Two colors and Aura will impact your gain in both fields. You can only load up to three mystical powers without the mental condition. Let takes Betty for example, she can never use Aura because she already has access to Red and Blue,” she made a face, “and, if my guess about her hiding a trick behind my back is right, Black.”

“Wait, Betty is a Tri-color?” Something inside Ciel clicked, and he had an idea the identity of the the mysterious Dark Witch, but those knowledges weren’t producing any fruit today.

“Publicly, she is a Duo,” Xia said. “But I never buy it. Betty always has this thirst to be the best. She will try to learn Aura to maximize her potential if she can, but she doesn’t.” Xia mused. “I always see her borrowing books on other Magic to cover this secret, but given her streak of self-interest, I know it is a charade. The fact she won’t allow anyone to see the all perfect princess as a Black mage just lend it more credibility.”

“Black is governed by self-interest?” Ciel asked.

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” Xia spoke with disdain. “The entire color is parasitic. Carolina Westerna is the number one exhibit for it. The bitch couldn’t say no to more power.” Xia fumed. “She is shameless. A corrupted wild-card who always gets ahead because she plays dirty all the bloody time.”

“Really,” Ciel spoke jovially. “Quite great actually, at least you see her coming from a mile away.”

“What?” Xia was shock. “You actually like that!”

“Xia,” Ciel’s word was stern. “The worst Lord, from my opinion, is a man who insists everyone want the world he rules with an iron fist. The dude is out to lunch, and he can’t see that he can be wrong. He will justify his method in the name of greater good.” Ciel breathed with tiredness. “Compared to that, unabashed evil is a decent change of pace.”

Xia took that with a strange feeling, “You speak like my father. I never really got him.”

“Oh, what did your father tell you?” Ciel was getting interested.

“He said that I shouldn’t let my color influence me too much,” Xia spoke softly. “I don’t get it. White is supposed the best color.” It was then Xia’s childish streak reared its head. “Red is freedom, emotion and destruction. Blue represents knowledge, deliberation and perfection. Green embodyies nature, spirituality and the wild. Black — the worst — stands for self-interest, death and lawlessness. White is better than all of them combine.”

“So what does White stand for then,” Ciel’s eyes narrow at the blatant bias.

“Peace, order and being selfless,” Xia nodded. “Obviously, the color of good.”

“And right there, that is your problem,” Ciel stated dryly. “Those are the exact thing you ran on, and it got you sent to Springsong.”

“Hey, Ciel, back me here!” Xia launched a complaint. “Back then, I was trying to do the right thing.”

“You did,” Ciel nodded. “But I believe I now understand why your father advocated against following your color to the grave, but those are a subject for tomorrow. Xia, justice doesn’t work like that. Anyway, how do I learn the spells?“

Xia was miffed, but she still gave a helpful answer, “Mages learn the spell by deciphering the will in each color. That is why they easily got influenced by its philosophy. It is like cracking the code. The more you delve, the higher Rank of spell, the color’s abilities, becomes available.” Xia suddenly caught something interesting. “What is the highest Rank the Lord reaches anyway?”

“You probably know more about that than me. I just enter this world a month ago,” Ciel replied. “So, what is the record?”

“Well,” Xia tried to recall. “The dragon and elder raced reached up to Rank 7, with rumors of Rank 8 out there. Even in Curtis, we consider Rank 6 the ceiling and award anyone who hit it a noble title. Rank 1-3 is considered beginner, while 4-5 is advanced.”

“What about you?” Ciel asked.

Xia suddenly developed a keen interest on her foot.

“Cold feet,” Ciel pushed.

“I am on the edge of Rank 5 before plateauing,” Xia said, embarrassed. “To be fair, only one guy in Curtis hit Rank 6, and managing Springsong hardly gives time for me to practice.” Xia’s cheek turned a little redder. “I am considered a genius for mastering Rank 1-3 before I turn twelve, while learning Aura.”

Ciel realized why Xia might hate to talk about that, “What about Betty?”

Xia turned silence for a long time before quietly squeezed the painful truth. “She is publicly a Rank 5 in both Blue and Red. I don’t know what is her Rank in Black?”

Ciel got only one comment, “Ouch.”

“She has a head start!” Xia’s sibling rivalry refused to take it lying down. “I will surpass her soon, I feel it.”

Ciel stared at her stalely.

Little did they know Xia’s prophecy was fated to come true soon.