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Chapter 26
“Anyway, since it was lunchtime, I did what you said and went out to grab lunch. On the way back, I spotted a flower shop and asked them to connect me with a skilled gardener. I ended up hiring one. Sure, I could’ve pulled weeds myself, but I don’t know the first thing about tending a garden, so I figured I needed an expert. Mireia, money isn’t everything in the world, but there are still a lot of things it can do. Like getting a garden into shape in just three hours. I just hired a lot of workers, and it worked out. Lucky the garden was small.”
Aris chattered away, resting the back of her head in both hands.
“And the cost—just like you said—I put it all on Sephiros’s account. Tell him I spent it for my mental health. You should’ve seen me pulling those weeds. It was horrific.”
Aris noticed the slow crease forming under Mireia’s chin as she quietly listened and gazed at the garden. He wondered if now was the time to change the subject or make an exit. But her lips, firmly pressed together, soon softened into a faint upward curve. Mireia blinked slowly, then locked eyes with Aris. Suddenly, she closed the distance between them so quickly that Aris flinched.
“Thank you.”
When Mireia smiled with a clear, untroubled face, Aris was caught off guard. Honestly, he thought she might get sentimental or even shed a tear. The mood a moment ago had certainly suggested as much.
But Mireia felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest. She felt free, light. The thorny vines that had wound tight around her heart and spread out from the garden—Aris had cut them away for her. So, she didn’t cry, and even if she felt emotional, it wasn’t the kind of emotion that came from grief or loss.
Looking straight into Aris’s blue eyes—chilly like Roxane’s skies and seas, yet somehow warm—Mireia spoke her true feelings.
“Really, thank you.”
Aris gave a relieved, awkward laugh, trying to excuse himself.
“All I did was pull weeds and then show off with someone else’s money. And the plants and trees still haven’t taken root properly—it’ll take some time before it feels natural.”
“No, that’s not it. Without you, this wouldn’t have happened. In just a few days, you’ve surprised me so many times.”
Then, in a small voice, she murmured:
“I’m glad I met you.”
Because Mireia turned away right after, Aris pretended not to have heard. Mireia looked back at the garden for a while, then clapped her hands.
“Oh, right.”
With a face as if she were about to announce something important, she told Aris:
“I’m back.”
The belated greeting was so over the top that Aris tilted his head and laughed.
“Welcome home.”
Chapter 3: The Alliance
Gunshots rang out one after another at the firing range. Shio removed his earmuffs and looked at the target with a defeated voice.
“How can anyone be that hopeless…?”
Every single bullet had missed the bullseye, clustering in all the wrong places. Shio shook his head as Aris reloaded the cylinder of her revolver.
“Didn’t you ever learn to shoot?”
“I did, actually.”
“Then why are you this bad?”
“As long as I can handle the gun, what does it matter?”
Unlike earlier, Aris slouched casually and pulled the trigger without aiming. This time, five bullets in a row hit dead-center, without the slightest deviation. Blue sparks flickered from the barrel and vanished. Aris lifted her chin smugly.
“As long as I can pull the trigger, I can adjust the bullets’ trajectory with magic.”
“Ha! You’re insufferable.”
Shio cursed in a tone that almost sounded like praise.
“It’s a bit of a cheat, but if I can do it, why shouldn’t I? So why bother learning to shoot manually?”
“Aris, Mireia and Paulo are both swordsmen too, but they’ve trained to at least an above-average level with firearms. The more weapons you can handle, the better. Who knows what we’ll face ahead?”
“Hmm…”
Aris was about to brush it off, but then reconsidered, thinking of her own plan. In the end, she had decided she would personally retrieve the Demon Sword. Since Sephiros already had a lineup in mind, the expedition team list came out quickly.
In typical blunt fashion, Sephiros named the group the Klein Expedition. No complicated explanation: they were heading to the Klein region of the Ruad Empire. The name was so corny that several people almost protested on reflex, but since the mission was top secret, it wasn’t like outsiders would be gossiping about it. So, in the end, no one really cared what they called themselves.
And that was exactly why, when Aris chose the alias surname “Kleinshard,” everyone—Mireia included—secretly worried about her state of mind.
Because “Klein” was the very place that had been turned into a wasteland when the Demon Sword Fenidran sealed away the beasts. By adding the now-dead Roamena dialect suffix “-shard,” the name meant:
The one who stole Klein.
Metaphorically, it wasn’t wrong. But to name herself that so boldly felt shameless, even brazen. Aris had been cursed endlessly because of the Klein incident anyway, so she figured she might as well claim the place as her own.
Departure was in two weeks. Sephiros said details would be covered in an upcoming meeting, and until then they were to collect weapons or replacements. With that, Shio escorted Aris to the tech division building to receive supplies. Laila, upon seeing Aris, lit up and immediately tried to pull something for her own personal benefit—only to be stopped by Shio.
Aris could’ve just bought a cheap sword from any smith, but since Sephiros had extended the courtesy, she decided to ask Laila for a custom blade. She expected it to take a few days, but to her surprise, Laila said she already had one that fit the specs and went to fetch it.
So, while waiting, Aris and Shio killed time at the training range, testing out the armory’s firearms and chatting idly.
“You know, shooting is about predicting a bullet’s trajectory by reading every subtle change in my senses and the environment, and hitting exactly where I want. That’s the real thrill.”
Like anyone talking about their weapon of choice, Shio grew excited, rambling details no one had asked for. Aris could’ve gone on for three straight days about her Demon Sword Fenidran, but unfortunately, Shio’s rifle-anthem left her no room.
As she spun a pistol idly with her finger, Laila appeared in the distance, carrying a sword.
“Took me a while to balance the blade for aura use, but how about this? Like you asked, it absorbs and converts mana really well. I first made it as a prototype, but no one’s used it yet—it takes dragon-level mana control.”
The sword was plain, with no decorative flair—built purely for function. Its simplicity was its defining feature. But its length was just right, similar to Fenidran, and felt suitable for Aris. She gripped it, spinning it in quick figure-eight arcs.
“The balance leans a little to the back, but it’s not bad. I’ll get used to it.”
“Want me to adjust the pommel?”
“No need. Better to adapt myself than fuss over something so minor.”
Aris swung at the paper target she’d been shooting at. With a sharp whip-crack, the target split cleanly in two. Blue sparks glimmered along the cut, then faded.
“Yeah, not bad.”
Nodding, she let aura flow into the blade until it shimmered blue, then sheathed it. It wasn’t familiar yet, but the weight felt good in her hand.
Even for someone skilled with aura, a weapon still had to resonate with them before they could channel it freely. It was rare to unleash aura immediately with a new blade. But Aris had done just that, right before their eyes. Laila stared, wide-eyed.
“You’re getting that much aura output already, before the sword even attunes to you?”
“A true master never blames her tools.”
Both Shio and Laila smirked crookedly.
“You really are insufferable.”
Aris was striking a cocky pose when she heard quick, lively footsteps. Mireia came running over, her face flushed. Without waiting for greetings, she burst out:
“Let’s duel!”
“…All of a sudden?”
“I heard you got a new sword. Spar with me to break it in.”
“I knew you’d use that excuse sooner or later. Where’d you even hear that? The rumor spread fast.”
Laila shook her head, exasperated, but Shio looked delighted.
“Mireia, good timing. Put this brat in her place.”
“Oh? Confident, are we? That makes me want to cross blades even more.”
Egged on by Shio, Mireia drew both swords and swung them in the air. One was the blade Aris had borrowed before. Her twin swords were unusual compared to typical double-edged blades—the base near the guard was noticeably thicker, narrowing sharply like an hourglass just before the cross-guard, then tapering into triangular points.
