Misfires Don’t Count

EPSILON

I was tearing through the dark forest, pushing my pace to the limit. I’d probably managed to ditch the Cult’s grunt-tier soldiers, but something massive was gaining on me—a wave of magic power so heavy it felt like the air itself was thickening.

Is her physical ability really that much higher than mine?

Dragging this out into a battle of attrition was a losing move. At this rate, I’d hit my limit and run out of steam long before she did. I was just about to skid to a halt and stand my ground when Kai and Omega burst through the trees to join me.

“Raid successful,” Kai reported, not skipping a beat.

“We’ve thinned the Cult’s numbers,” Omega added, glancing back. “Wait—who’s the girl on our tail?”

We kept up the sprint, all three of us casting a look behind.

“She’s the Cult’s sin,” I said. “And by extension, she’s Shadow Garden’s sin, too.”

I finally stopped. Kai and Omega followed suit, turning back to face the encroaching threat.

I’d been there when Olba was killed. I’d read the reports about Alpha finishing off Milia. I knew better than anyone that the Cult was the root cause of everything, the ones who had ripped that family apart. Somewhere deep down, I guess I’d been hoping that Milia, at least, could find some scrap of happiness.

But I wasn't naive. I knew that "mercy" here was just a way of postponing a tragedy.

“The cycle of hatred has to be severed here,” I declared.

The three of us readied our blades. Milia was closing the gap with terrifying speed, but right as she reached us, the world seemed to fracture under the weight of a sudden, gargantuan surge of magic.

“—Atomic.”

A voice resonated from somewhere deep within the abyss, and everything—the trees, the sky, the air—was dyed in a brilliant Bluish-purple Light.

Then, nothing.

When I finally came to, I was facedown in the dirt. I’d only been out for a few seconds, it seemed. The Bluish-purple Light had faded, but the atmosphere was still vibrating with the lingering traces of an impossible amount of magic power.

“...Did I miss?”

That voice made me whip around.

Standing there, his back to me, was my beloved master. He stood tall, his black longcoat fluttering in the wind. I hadn’t felt even a hint of his presence until the very moment the Bluish-purple Light had swallowed us. It was an absolutely unavoidable, ultimate strike—an attack that felt like it had manifested out of thin air.

If I’d been the target, I would have evaporated before my brain even registered the threat. I started trembling, caught between the sheer terror of being caught in such overwhelming magic and the profound awe of a master who could pull off such a feat as if it were a casual afternoon stroll.

“Master Shadow…”

I had a thousand words of praise ready to go, a monologue about his unmatched greatness, but the words died in my throat. As he turned around, he looked… shaken?

No, surely that was just my imagination. He was probably just staring down at Milia’s scorched remains.

Wait—it wasn't a corpse.

“She’s still alive…”

The girl’s vitality was nothing short of staggering. It was then that I realized what he meant when he asked, “Did I miss?” To a man who transcended the very concept of perfection, a target surviving at all was, by definition, a failure.

Master Shadow gathered Bluish-purple Magic Power in his palm and began walking toward Milia.

He’s going to deliver the finishing blow.

He understood everything. Milia’s past, the horrific experiments she’d endured, and the bottomless pit of hatred she carried… He knew it all. And just as I had intended to do, he was going to break the cycle of hatred right here.

“W-Wait! Please!”

I threw myself in front of him before I could talk myself out of it.

“Please, leave her to us! We can treat her! We can save her!”

My voice was shaking. The last thing I ever wanted to do was incur my master’s displeasure, but this was Milia’s final chance at a do-over. It was her version of the moment Master Shadow had saved me all those years ago.

“I understand how you feel, Master Shadow. I really do. But… she’s a victim in all of this, too.”

I looked down, too terrified to meet his gaze.

“Of course.”

His voice was unexpectedly gentle. The Bluish-purple Magic Power didn't strike; instead, it washed over Milia like a soft rain, healing her broken form.

“I’ll leave her in your hands, then.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

He reached out and gave my head a gentle pat. I think I’ll carry the warmth of that gesture with me for the rest of my life. And then, just like that, he vanished into the darkness.

“Incredible…” Kai whispered, sounding breathless.

“That magic power was just… insane,” Omega added, staring blankly at the spot where he’d been.

“Move it! We need to get her to Alexandria immediately!” I snapped, shaking off the daze.

Master Shadow had healed her, but I was still worried about the lingering trauma from the experiments. A full recovery was going to take some serious time. Kai and Omega hoisted Milia up, and I led the way as we disappeared into the heart of the forest.

SHADOW

A short while later, after the girls had cleared out, the forest was finally empty. Or it would have been, if I wasn't still standing there.

“It was a misfire, so it doesn't count, right?”

Smack.

“Ow.”

And with that, the forest fell silent.