A/N: Some of you may have noticed that this fic has reached 100k words. But since ao3's word count is slightly lower, I'll do the formal thank you next chapter where both sites will show 100k. Still, thank you for your support.

Weeks later at the crack of dawn, a man with a scarred cheek is looking at a computer screen. He takes out a small switch, clicks it and then buries it back deep into his clothes. Then it shows that somebody else has connected and the man straightens up.

"Report," the deep voice commands.

"Yes Sir," the man curtly responds with a slight bow, although they cannot see each other. "Following up on our leads from the Eylstadt magic project, we've interrogated the lab guards that were around during its entirety."

"And I trust you got all the information out of them?"

"Yes. Even when we killed their family members one by one, their story didn't change. Up to the last one's dying breath, they kept screaming the same things. Every single person, even the girl that showed promise for years, has lost this magic, at least to their knowledge."

There is a beat of silence. Then the deep voice speaks, "Get out of Eylstadt then. Tell your men to pack up and get ready to leave."

The man bites his tongue. "Pardon me Sir, but it feels to me as if we just wasted our time and effort then…"

"What do you want to do then? Investigate every single person that participated in the project before? Even the records gleaned from years back were never open about who had this magic injected into them. If there is nothing concrete connecting the White Agent to this project, then we have no more reason to spend resources here than any other country's confidential projects."

"S-Sorry Sir… It's just that our men were killed or captured when they attacked the tallest tower. I wanted to avenge them, not just leave Eylstadt without accomplishing anything…"

"…The time will come, but your efforts will make the difference elsewhere. Remember, we do not need to uncover the White Agent's identity. If we could, and exploit his weaknesses, great. But there are far too many projects all over the world for us to be scrutinising, if he even came from a project that we know of. What's important about these projects isn't who's subjected to them, but the mutations done, the objective results and stopping their progress. The White Agent may have lifted the unease we created by freeing the Royal Children, but even he will be no match once the serum is completed. Nobody will be."

"I understand, Sir," the man takes another small bow.

"Good. Now get going. The Eylstadt Royal Service will come at us harder after we've killed those people. But if you have to, you have those bombs. They are the ones that have to preserve the landscape, not you."

The man grins, making his scar apparent due to his cheeks protruding, "That, you don't have to tell me twice."

The White Agent is hovering across the top of a canyon while his hands and feet flare green. Due to his shaky posture, the flight path is unsteady. Underneath the helmet, Izetta is heavily breathing as sweat rolls down her face.

The microbot incident in Texas from weeks ago still gnaws at her. She thought that she was getting stronger, only to be unable to completely resolve the issue and getting worn out in a day. And her progress, or lack of it, is another source of concern. Despite months of training, she is still only able to hover, a far cry from flying, much less bringing Finé along for a ride.

'Come on!' Izetta grits her teeth, 'Push more! I can't just stagnate here!'

Then the pulse on her hands give out. Letting out a yelp, Izetta flails around as she drops. Her eyes widen as the ground continues to approach despite her struggles to regain control.

Sucking in as much as air as she can, she turns off the magic at her feet and falls even faster. Then right as she is about to hit the ground, her magic bursts forth once again to envelop her in a protective barrier. Cracking the ground upon impact, Izetta rolls to distribute the force, stopping at some distance away with her head barely over the ground.

With quaky arms and legs, Izetta slowly pushes herself up but only manages to get on her knees. The green glow flickers out and she slaps her helmet a few times to retract the visor. Her wheezing becomes louder. Sweat trickles out from within the helmet onto the ground, in addition to the multiple drips from her now exposed face. Her hands and feet clench repeatedly, trying to shake off the heat they feel.

Izetta continues to hyperventilate as she moves her limbs slightly. 'Okay… nothing… hurts… too much… I should… check… underneath… though…' Izetta moves a shaky hand to the back of her neck, but it quickly slams back down onto the ground as she retches out some saliva. Slowly wiping her mouth, she rolls over to lie on the ground. '…After I… rest… a little…'

After a long period of panting, Izetta manages to get her breathing a little under control. Sluggishly making herself sit up, she takes another deep breath. She makes the visor come back down and transforms back into her normal clothes. Cautiously looking over herself, she lets out a sigh of relief as there are no visible injuries. 'Thank goodness… I don't know how much Finé would have worried if she saw that I hurt myself…'

Izetta looks to the pod that brought her here. Pushing herself up, she trudges towards it while still breathing heavily. Plopping down into the seat, she takes out her bottle and chugs it down. Dropping the bottle back into place, she takes her towel to dry her drenched face and hair. Burying herself into the towel due to her aching head, she frets, 'I can't let Finé see me like this… I'll rest more before going back… Then I'll need to change suits as well as I probably stained it…'

Laying back into the seat, Izetta looks at the sky while she continues to heave.

Izetta exhales as she sits on the bed. She looks to the old White Agent suit that she dumped into laundry bag after coming out from her shower earlier.

'I hope nobody noticed that I didn't feel like eating a full meal so I just stuffed down some food bars on the way back…' Looking at her hand, she clenches it a few times. 'At least I feel better now, and my magic is recovering well… That was way too close, what if I had a mission right then? Ugh, I'm still not strong enough…'

After moping for an extended period, Izetta gets off the bed and picks up the laundry bag. As she is about to open the door to pass it to the guards, her phone's message tone goes off. Stopping to unlock her phone with one hand, her eyes go wide as she reads the message. Quickly pocketing her phone, she flings the door open to see groups of people briskly going through hallway.

Izetta swiftly passes the laundry bag with to the guard outside. Then she strides through the hallway, following the general flow of the Royal Guards.

Izetta sees Bianca with another group, all of them engaged in discussion as they scroll through tablets. Izetta decides to stop at the side to quietly wait for them.

Izetta cannot hear what they are talking about clearly, but she does pick up some words. 'Platoons? Abandoned area? Terrorists? Just how big is this operation?' Izetta racks her brain, her curiosity piqued even more.

The others leave Bianca and Izetta steps up. "I trust you're here with regards to my message?" Bianca says as she continues to tap at the tablet.

"Bianca, please," Izetta implores, "Tell me what is happening. All you said was that there's an operation and you wanted to talk to me about it. It's not normal for so many Royal Service members to be rushing about. Are you calling on behalf of the Secret Service?"

Bianca puts down the tablet to look at Izetta directly. "Okay, but do know that I am telling you as a friend. I am not asking for the White Agent, but I am telling you these things because I know it would eat at you from the inside if you found out later."

Izetta blinks a few times before swallowing. "Okay. Please do."

"We found out where more terrorists are hiding. It is very likely that they are connected to the ones that attacked the tallest tower. When we capture them, it is also possible that we can learn more about the ones that kidnapped Princess Finé."

Izetta takes a step back at the revelation. Then her eyes narrow, "I'll get ready immediately."

"Now hold on," Bianca puts up a hand. "Like I said, I am not asking for your help yet. Don't get me wrong, having the White Agent would be very assuring when going up against these people that may be connected to the masterminds of the royal kidnappings. But we and the Secret Service have assessed the situation and it is not that critical that we need you to come in."

"But…" Izetta looks down. Then she looks back at Bianca. "I…"

Bianca smiles as she pats Izetta's shoulder. "I never said that I was against you coming. But I want you to promise me two things before we bring you along. First, contact the Secret Service and make sure that there isn't something more pressing that needs to be dealt with. Second, talk to Princess Finé about going on this mission."

"Huh?" Izetta slightly jolts, "You think Finé will object to me going?"

"Probably not, but I want you to calm down by talking to her before confronting this enemy."

Izetta knocks at the open door of the office. "Finé?"

Finé immediately looks up from her desk and walks over. "Izetta, come in. What did you want to talk about?"

Izetta goes in and meets her in the middle. "Well… I don't know if you saw… but the Royal Guards are assembling for a mission right now…"

"Oh… Uh… Did Bianca tell you already?"

"Yes, I know. That's why, I wanted to tell you that I'm going as well."

"Huh?" Finé blinks a few times. Then she grabs Izetta's hands to try to pacify her, "Izetta, you know you don't have to right? We agreed that the White Agent was not needed for it. Bianca told me that she would inform you, so you wouldn't think that you have to go."

"But I want to," Izetta grips Finé's hands in response, "These people caused so much harm, I want to make sure that they are brought to justice swiftly. I'm not doubting the Royal Guards, but if I can guarantee that we catch the masterminds sooner, I want to do it. And…" Izetta looks away slightly, "They threatened your country and tortured you, Finé. I can't take that lying down."

Finé looks down at their hands to see that Izetta's are tense. Then she looks back at Izetta softly. "This is your own choice? Nobody's asking you to go?"

Izetta shakes her head. "Bianca also told me that she was not asking for help when she informed me. This is solely my decision, Finé."

Finé leans in to embrace Izetta tightly. "Good luck then. I get that you feel strongly about this, but please don't lose your cool and charge in recklessly. You don't have to avenge me. I know you're unbeatable, but please promise me that you'll be careful and come back safely."

Izetta feels the tension dissipate from her body. Then she returns the hug firmly. "I promise, Finé."

Finé rubs Izetta's back soothingly. "Go get them. I'll be waiting for you to return."

Izetta walks up to Bianca who turns around. "Did you speak with Princess Finé?"

"Yes," Izetta nods, "And you were right, I needed to talk to her to collect myself. I was ready to just run in by myself before she reminded me. That she did not care about how badly they hurt and traumatised her, she just wanted me to be safe."

"Good, but there's another thing," Bianca straightens up. "As the leader of this mission to an operative, I need to make sure you are clear on this. Do not show these people any mercy. I do not mean that you should kill all of them on sight as we do want to interrogate them, but even if they look like they are about to surrender, take them down swiftly and completely. They will use dirty tricks, like faking emotions to get you to lower your guard before launching a sneak attack. I do not doubt your abilities, but it has been some time since your last real fight due to the peace you brought."

Izetta takes half a step back. "…Um… okay…?"

"Last night they kidnapped a group of families. But they did not demand any ransom and killed all of them. We speculate that they were interrogating the guards from the magic project."

Izetta's eyes widen as her hands clench tightly.

"But your secret is safe as they only knew you as another failed experiment, along with every other participant over the years. What you need to take away from this is that these terrorists are ruthless monsters and will continue to severely harm people. Imagine if they killed Princess Finé's father right in front of her. I want the White Agent that stormed the fortress here, not the one that shows compassion. If you are not prepared to get back into that mindset, I will not send you into the fray."

Izetta looks down for a moment. "I don't care about my secret…" Then she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Slowly looking back at Bianca, she acknowledges, "But I see the big picture now. These people are heartless and rotten to the core. Since they're asking for it, I'll show them what a real monster is like."

Terrorists are patrolling the border while the people within are scurrying about, packing and loading supplies. Then groups of the patrolmen drop dead, barely making a noise as they hit the floor. The nearby terrorists stare in disbelief, before their eyes go wide with realization as blood pools out from the bullet holes in their heads.

"Ra-" their cry is cut off as the next volley claims its victims.

"Raid!" the terrorists in the inner circle catch on.

Gunfire erupts as the Eylstadt platoons charge in, suppressing the terrorists' position even more. But the terrorists do not try to fight head on as they know that the snipers would pick them off if they expose themselves. They run deeper in where there are abandoned buildings and while some of them take cover, most of them keep going to the center of the area.

Then a black streak blazes across the landscape. The terrorists that peek out barely make out the blur before the figure is upon them. Without looking at them for more than a fraction of a second, the White Agent, in stealth mode, nails all the nearby terrorists with knifes. As the terrorists pass out from the pain, the White Agent is already on the move, surging towards the next building. They are not even aware that a stream of Royal Guards were trailing behind the White Agent, infiltrating the enclosure as well.

The White Agent continues to bounce from building to building, taking down the terrorists that were hiding in them. Royal Guards follow soon after, making sure that there are no stragglers and the downed terrorists are well shackled.

Soon the White Agent rounds back to the building they started at. Nodding at the guards stationed there and tapping his helmet to communicate back to Bianca, he turns to face the lone building the center that they have not yet subdued.

"Royal Guards have taken over all the surrounding buildings," Bianca's voice goes over in his helmet, "We are ready to support you. Go at will."

The White Agent leaps out and rushes the last building. Now that the multitude of terrorists in their last bastion know that the White Agent is here, they do not question the blur and unleash a hailstorm of bullets. But this only gives away their positions for the Royal Guards to dwindle them down, allowing the White Agent to focus on weaving through and shrugging off the bullets that do connect.

The White Agent enters the building to see a group huddling around a crate that is chest height while reaching into it. Without a second thought, volleys of knifes fly out to incapacitate them, causing them to drop miniature devices. But a man with a scar on his cheek just happened to see the White Agent and started to move immediately, causing the knife to just graze him.

"Ha!" he smirks through the pain, making his scar more obvious, "You-"

He is silenced four more knifes fly out, all of them directed at him. The next thing he knows, each of his limbs are pierced. Then the White Agent grabs him by the neck and ploughs him into the wall. But even as he loses consciousness, his lips curl up ever so slightly.

The White Agent spins around to scan the surroundings for more hostiles. He deactivates stealth mode, but does not move far from the man, shielding him as well just in case the terrorists decide to silence the man for good.

Royal Guards barge in next, encircling the area with caution. When all remains silent, they split up to have most of them comb the upper floors while the remainder restrain the fallen terrorists in the middle.

"His scar matches, he's the suspected leader," the White Agent informs the guard that approaches. Earlier, he had recognised the scar from the mission briefing and identified the man. They were told that it was very likely that the leader would have information on the masterminds, so they wanted to have at least him alive for interrogation.

The guard nods as she cuffs and picks him up. Even as the guards gather up the terrorists, the White Agent remains on guard as he moves to the centre where the guards are putting back what the terrorists dropped when they were attacked.

There, Izetta is stares hard at what is in the crate. She had caught a glimpse before, but now she is sure that the devices have two chemicals separated by a slit. And this big crate is full of these bombs that were used when the terrorists attacked the tallest tower. 'Thank god they aren't primed, even the Royal Guards told me they aren't used to defusing this new type of bomb yet.'

Then all of the miniature bombs in the crate start softly beeping. The people nearby, including Izetta, jump at the realization.

Izetta cannot help but let out, "What-"

"A crate of bombs is about to go off!" the communications explode in her helmet.

"How big?!"

"Every building here and then some at least!"

"How long?!"

"Don't know, everybody not in the middle run!"

The guards tear off their bottle caps and dump water on the nearby terrorists, slapping them awake. They start yelling at the terrorists to turn off the bombs, but all of them refuse to let anything slip. Then the guards resort to beating them up, but even that does not loosen their mouths.

The man with the scar smiles as he spits out blood, knowing that the bombs were automatically primed when he did not click the small switch deep in his clothes in time. "Let's all die together," he snickers.

"Check the other crates!" Bianca roars over the chaos.

The guards hurl the terrorists onto the ground and dash to the other crates. Izetta runs around as well, using her strength to rip open any sealed crates.

"Only one crate has the bombs!"

"White Agent! Take the scarred man and run as fast as you can!" Bianca commands, "The rest of you there, mitigate the blast, by," her voice cracks, rendering her unable to complete the order.

"Understood, it's been an honour," the nearby guards nod without complaint. They start piling anything they can find onto the crate, making no attempt to run away.

"Wait, what?!" Izetta screams, realizing that they would stay until the bombs go off, to make sure that as much time as possible is given to their allies and friends. "No! I refuse!" she snaps as she charges and grabs the crate.

"White Agent! What are you doing?!"

Izetta seals the lid back on by using her knifes as nails. Then she holds it tight and runs out of the building. "I'll hurl it way into the sky! Everybody take cover!"

"Then you'll be right in front of the blast!"

"I'll be fine!" Izetta retorts as she scales the building with blades through her feet.

"Stop! You don't know when it'll go off! If you mistime it it'll just land back down and blow up!"

"Then I'll blast it after I throw it!" Izetta assesses as she reaches the roof and bends down to charge magic into her legs, "Then either the bombs vaporise or go off up there!"

"…Godspeed, White Agent."

Izetta bursts upwards, causing the roof to shatter from her launch. Green light flares from her entire body, keeping her shield at maximum strength. With a mighty yell, she hurls the crate and it shoots upwards. As it becomes smaller and smaller, Izetta puts a hand up while using her other hand to support her aim. 'Just like I did before, unleash magic in a beam…'

Right as she is about to fire, the bombs go off and her world becomes white.