A family stayed sleeping and slumbering in a small cottage at the edge of Paragon. The Strauss family were all slumbering in the same room, peacefully, for the first time since their parents died. Meanwhile, Vera had taken to the kitchen, the dusk sky peeking through the windows as he finally had a chance to reflect over the stove.

'Thank you...'

His movements were robotic as he used a wooden spoon he found lying around to make stew out of the herbs Lisanna had brought by herself and prepped the medicine Mira got herself so he could give it to Elfman, whom they had to take care of by themselves. All because the shitty villagers were too blind or stupid or scared or all of the above to just help them. They thought the better option was to scare the Strauss siblings so severely that they almost...

Vera was brought out of his angered daze by the sound of wood snapping, his head slowly moving down as he saw half his wooden spoon float into the stew. Vera sighed as he mentally prodded Sho, who reached into the concoction from the nearby wall, grabbed half of the spoon, and set it nearby. Vera did the same with his half as Sho used a sharp finger to stir the stew since Vera had accidentally broken their only utensils, "Thanks, Sho..."

'Tug'

Vera let out a controlled breath at Sho's answer; his eyes closed as he stood before the stove and tried to calm himself down. The villagers' thoughts and what they did to the Strausses and how bad it had gotten floated in one ear and out the other because he didn't have time for that.

I need to get them out of town.

This place wasn't safe for them.

Don't give a shit about the villagers...

He had to make sure they went somewhere else; Magnolia, Oak Town, he'd take them to Isvan if they asked; it didn't really matter.

They aren't worth your time.

It didn't matter where they went as long as they didn't stay here-

'Tug' 'Tug'

Vera stiffened as he looked up from his brooding to see Sho, who finished the stew but was now staring at Vera stoically. Vera watched Sho make a few hand signs before pointing outside, out the window, and towards the town.

"Oh..."

Vera looked out the window with a forcefully dead expression; his eyes lidded as he forced his body to remain calm, even at the sight of a crowd of men from the village, maybe ten or twenty, marching towards the small cabin. Torches were in their hands, and other makeshift weapons were in their grasps, shovels, and all that; all the while, Shin was leading them toward this old cabin.

"Sho..."

Vera had to remain calm because he was a Phantom Lord mage. Attacking civilians with his magic, nonmages especially, would get him and his guild in a lot of trouble.

"Don't do anything."

So he had to control himself. Even as the crowd's footsteps got louder and louder and the villagers got close enough, he could see the anger, fear, hesitation, and hope in their eyes.

"Just give me the sheathe."

Vera had to remain calm, so he only watched as they got closer before turning to his partner and holding out a hand. He watched as Sho looked at him quietly before taking out the deep green sheathe, with the blade still in Sho's world.

"Thanks."

Vera held the sheathe lightly as he turned to the door, padding as he heard the marching and Shin yelling, "Boy! Are you alive!? Come out if you are! We don't want to burn the house with you in it!"

Vera probably would have laughed at the irony if he wasn't so vehemently angry. He probably would have laughed if it didn't mean letting his control of his emotions slip, "Sho, can you feed Elfman the stew and watch over them?"

Vera gave Sho a loan of magic and then turned to look at his shadow. Vera watched as Sho looked at him, a silent understanding passing between them as Sho nodded and took the stew and medicine into his world. Then, he slithered away to the room while Vera turned to the door and walked up to it. His hand trembling so hard he felt like he could rip the knob off if he gripped it too tightly.

"Just stay calm..."

It then opened the door to greet the mob outside the Strauss cabin.

Shin honestly expected the boy to be dead when they got there; they hadn't heard anything all day. Only collapsing trees and demonic yells would suggest the boy had lost the battle.

It was a relief to Shin and all the non-disabled men he'd gathered from the village when the boy opened the door and walked out. An empty expression on the boy's face as he walked out with what looked to be the sheathe of a sword in hand.

He doesn't look too injured... besides the arm.

Shin felt his shoulders sag in relief a bit, the implications washing over him and the rest of the crowd as he talked to the boy; even if the boy was alive, he had to make sure.

"Did you kill the demons?"

Shin watched in baited, breathless silence along with the rest of the crowd—the demon that terrorized them for so long and the ones it infected. The people of Paragon had to know they were dead; they couldn't sleep right until they heard it, until they knew that the nightmare was over.

Their expectations were graciously met.

"I did," the boy replied blandly, shifting the sheathe to his shoulders as the crowd breathed a breath of relief.

"Finally..."

"It's over..."

"Thank heavens..."

"The demons are dead..."

"We can go home..."

The crowd's murmurs echoed through the forest, sung with praise, gratitude, and relief. Everyone was celebrating, except for the boy, who let his mask slip and a slight frown take his lips, only for a second, when one of the older men in the group let out a burst of loud, joyous laughter, "Good riddance! Hahaha!"

It was a cry of joy and relief, and it planted a minuscule frown on the boy's lips that no one except Shin saw, "Boy..."

Shin saw it because he didn't celebrate; he watched the boy to ensure he wasn't infected, "Where are the bodies?"

To make sure that the demons were indeed dead.

"Oh?" The boy said with an uncaring glance, his voice dipping into a sarcasm that was as cutting as it was pointed, "Well shit, how stupid of me. I destroyed their bodies entirely."

"How?"

"Confidential; mage's secrets and all that."

Shin narrowed his eyes as the crowd stalled to look at their exchange in tender silence. A moment later, the boy stayed unmoving and unbending, standing firmly in front of the shed that housed nothing but hateful memories for the villagers.

"Alright then, boy..."

This was something Shin didn't let slip his watchful gaze. "Your job is done now."

If the boy had killed the demons, he'd have no reason to stand guard over an empty house, "Return to the village for your payment."

Shin would have to test if the boy was indeed possessed or not.

"So we can burn this demon's dwelling."

Shin watched as his declaration echoed, the silence long and tense as his words reached the boy's ears. The boy's eyes narrowed before he sighed and spoke with a dull tone, "They're not demons, you know..."

Without the mask the demons had infected him with, "Figured I'd tell you that before you did something you'd regret."

"BULLSHIT!" Shin shouted, his roar furiously echoing through the forests as he turned to the group of men he'd brought with him and rallied them with as much pent-up rage and anger as he could muster because he had been waiting for so long for those demons to die. They were still alive, "DEMONS HAVE INFECTED THE BOY!"

That boy was protecting them.

"BUT HE IS ALONE AND WEAK FROM FIGHTING THEM!"

That meant they must be weak.

"THAT'S WHY HE IS USING A WEAPON!"

Shin would never get a better chance to kill those demons that took his love from him with his own two hands, "HE'S TOO WEAK TO USE MAGIC!"

Shin would kill those demons with the help of the villagers, who were just as bitter and furious as he was. So Shin watched with burning eyes as his words washed over the crowd, the murmurs of confusion going to righteous anger and falling towards bravery.

"The boy was infected..."

"The demons got another one..."

"They aren't dead..."

"Why aren't they dead!"

"We have to kill them!"

"Before it's too late!"

"WE CAN'T LET THEM RECOVER!"

"THEY'LL GO BACK TO THE VILLAGE!"

"THE BOY WILL HELP THEM!"

A cacophony of growing yells and curses flew from his group toward the boy and the demons inside the house. Shin turned back to the boy with eyes that could burn metal as he spoke with a finality he could bet his life on, "Move, boy..."

A finality he would bet his life on.

"Before we move you."

Shin watched as the boy looked at him with fiery red eyes that seemed to burn hotter and hotter with each passing second. With every restless and enraged yell from the crowd, the boy's mask of indifference slipped, and the demon's natural face was revealed with a light chuckle, "How funny..."

It was sinister enough to make Shin's skin crawl, the way the boy seemed to give up and take his sheath off his shoulders. Lowering it in a single hand with a voice so cruel it couldn't have been humans, "You're all so lucky you're not mages."

As Shin and the other villagers surged at the boy and the demons hidden behind his back, Shin concluded that the boy must have been a demon; Shin knew it with utmost certainty.

"That's the only reason you'll get to see tomorrow."

A smile of true and utter malevolence accompanied every word he uttered.

Mira woke with a groan, her eyes blinking open to the bright moonlight leaking into the room from outside as she murmured with a wince, "Ow..."

What happened...

Mira winced as she felt her nose pulse, her eyes closing momentarily before the moments before he slumbers back into the forefront of her mind. Her eyes shot open as she sat up with the force of a bullet, "NO-"

Mira's eyes widened as she felt a weight by her side. She looked down, her heart falling back into place, as she saw Lisanna sleeping soundly next to her, eliciting loud snores like she always did and a bit of drool that had leaked onto the pillow. "She's alive..."

Mira felt her heart beating normally again, and there were tears in her eyes as she glanced around the room and saw Elfman sleeping across from them. Her medicine boxes and what looked to be an empty stew by his bed, "And Elfman's looking better."

Mira gulped as she raised a small hand to Lisanna's hair, touching it to ensure it was real. To ensure this was real, she wasn't just having a good dream, "You're alive..."

The boy hadn't killed her or her family.

"Thank goodness you're alive."

Mira held a hand over her mouth to muffle her cries as she watched Lisanna sleep. The loud snores filled the room as Mira just basked in it; she had been so scared when she met the boy. She thought the villagers had hired him to kill her. She thought... she thought it was over.

Where-

Suddenly, a scratching sound echoed in the room and caught Mira's attention. Mira stiffened as she curled protectively around Lisanna, her eyes trembling and muscles tense as she searched for the source of the noise.

Then she balked in utter confusion once she saw the shadow on the wall carving a message with his sharp finger. Mira blinked in surprise as she saw the shadow thing stall before glancing at her and crossing its arms, waiting for her to read the message if she had to guess.

Are you Mira?

Mira only nodded, watching with caution and suspicion as the shadow carved a new message under the old one.

You attack Vera again. I will break you.

Mira shivered involuntarily at the message; her voice caught in her throat as the shadow seemed to glare at her. Meanwhile, Mira tried to make sense of what she was looking at.

What is that thing... and who's Vera?

Mira didn't know the first one, and, trying as she might, she doubted she would ever figure it out, but the second one came to her soon after. The boy she had fought was a mage, yet looking back on it, he hadn't used any magic during the fight.

Is this the boy's magic?

Mira wasn't sure, but her curiosity wasn't at the forefront of her mind; it was regret. She and her family were still alive, which meant the boy wasn't lying. She felt awful; no wonder the shadow was mad at her; she had acted like an idiot, even if it had been a moment of our utter desperation.

"I'm so sorry-"

Mira paused in her words as she heard the shadow scratch another message, this one stunning her so badly she almost fell off her bed.

I was kidding. Nice punch.

Mira blinked in confusion as she saw the shadow silently cackle at her. Mira couldn't voice her confused thoughts and stared at the laughing shadow until a stray idea came to her: "Is he still here?"

I have to apologize.

She was pretty sure she had broken his arm; she needed to apologize. She needed to apologize and beg him for forgiveness because she was desperate.

"Can I talk to him?"

She had met a mage who wasn't willing to kill her, a mage who had cared for her and her family when she was asleep. She had to ask him to take her and her family to Magnolia.

"Please."

She had to try, at least.

Mira watched with lingering hope as the shadow shrugged and scratched a new message. Her eyes widened with gratefulness as she read it in its entirety.

He's out front. I will watch your siblings.

Mira nodded, her voice hoarse as she spoke softly, "Thank you," before shifting out of bed. Her movements were careful not to wake Lisanna or Elfman as she walked past the shadow, who gave a parting wave that she returned with only a bit of hesitance before walking towards the closed front door of her house.

I have to get him to take us to Magnolia.

She couldn't stay here for much longer, just because she had gotten lucky and he hadn't killed her; she didn't know if the next one would. She had to take her family and leave, and now that Elfman was looking better, she had no reason to wait.

How am I going to do that though?

Mira was desperate; that painful nap had been the first time she'd slept for more than a few hours in months. Ever since her parents died, she'd always been sure to keep a vigilant eye at night in case the villagers tried something; she didn't think she could keep that up for however long it took another mage to arrive and save them, "I'll just have to try."

I'll beg for hours if I need to as long as he takes us away from here.

Mira firmed herself as she moved her demonic arm towards the door and opened it with a slow turn. Her mind was full of scenarios and wayward thoughts on how to get the boy to help them.

I'll do anything for my siblings-

Then, all those thoughts fell dead as she opened the door and saw the outside of her front yard. A surprised gasp escaped her lips as she witnessed the scene highlighted by the moonlit sky overhead.

What happened...

The front yard was littered with unconscious bodies of almost 20 male villagers of varying ages. Some were bloodied, and others had limbs broken, but all were alive, and all were heavily breathing. They were all laid out next to stray torches that had died under the moonlight or weapons that had been haphazardly thrown about the yard; only one person was still standing.

Did he do this?

It was the boy, holding a loose sheathe that was covered in blood that wasn't his own. He had a few glancing injuries, cuts and scrapes, and some minor bruises, but nothing worse than what she did to him. He was standing in the middle of the aftermath, his eyes furrowed in confusion as he stared off in some random direction like he was searching for something vaguely in the distance.

What's he looking at?

Mira didn't know, but she didn't dare ask. She didn't breathe, but she must have been heard even then because the boy stiffened before shaking his head and turning to her, and in a moment of fear, she shifted her demonic arm away from his prying eyes. An action he didn't seem to notice, "Oh?"

He seemed scarily calm.

"You're awake."

His red eyes were like the cooling embers of a fire; they terrified her. His steps towards her were controlled and measured, as if the twitching and groaning bodies around him didn't matter, "They should wake up in the morning... probably."

Mira didn't speak; she didn't know how to. She could only watch in tense silence, a slight flinch escaping her as the boy walked past her like she didn't exist before tossing his sheathe to the side as he collapsed on their dusty old couch. Mira dared to look back before she heard him say a few words that left her breathless.

"Do you want to leave this place?"

Mira felt her eyes widen, and her thoughts left her, the cascading hope hitting her chest as she watched the boy, Vera, glance at her patiently. Even in her weary and slightly cautious state, she couldn't stop the words that escaped her lips, "Yes..."

Mira wanted nothing more than to leave this place.

"I can't stay here anymore. They hate me. They hate my family! I," Mira grit her teeth, her face hooded as she glared holes into the ground. Her voice came in a shaky breath as she spoke, "I hate this place."

Mira would do anything to leave. She would do anything to escape and keep her family safe, so she lowered her head and asked in a heartbeat, "Can you please take me and my family to Magnolia?"

She didn't care if she was being rude or greedy. He was a mage; he was a strong mage, and he could guide them to Magnolia. She desperately needed his help; she would ask a thousand times if it meant-

"Sure."

Mira's thoughts stalled at the boy's words, only able to blink as she raised her head and saw Vera either not notice her surprise or not care about it and close his eyes. The boy melted into the old couch and mumbled some sleepy words that confused her because he shouldn't have agreed that easily.

"I was planning on going to Magnolia anyway."

She was a monster, a demon. He shouldn't be helping them, but he was, and she didn't get it. The villagers never helped them; no one ever helped them. She didn't understand why he was doing it.

"We can leave in the morning."

She didn't understand it, but she was grateful nonetheless.

"Thank you," Mira said with a shaky breath and tears in her eyes, her shoulders sagging with relief because it would be over soon. They had a mage to take them to Magnolia, where they could be safe and sound. She wouldn't have to be worried about the villagers anymore; she wouldn't have to worry about being treated like a monster anymore.

"Thank you so much."

Mira thanked Vera with a shaky breath and a sincerity that made him think she had only been a few days, a few hours from breaking. It was in the way her entire body seemed to relax, tears of relief streaming down her face as if it was the first time in a long time she had allowed herself to cry, "Don't mention it..."

Vera glanced at the old window instead of Mira, who was stewing in her emotions. Vera let Mira catch her breath while he watched the moon outside, idly speaking once he heard her calm down slightly, "It's only a few days to Magnolia by train. We can head to Ashanti in the morning and-"

"NO!"

Vera blinked in surprise at Mira's outbursts; his eyes quirked at her as he saw her face lined with panic. Mira gulped in trepidation as she saw his confused glance before putting her demonic arm behind her and asking with a downturned gaze, "If. If it's possible..."

Mira was already asking for a lot; she knew that.

"Can we please avoid trains?"

She knew it, but she still desperately wanted to avoid being seen by people. She had already had enough of the looks they all threw at her in whatever town she went in; it was the worst in Paragon, but other cities weren't exempt from it, "I'm sorry, I know I'm already asking for a lot, but I don't..."

She was a freak everywhere she went, "I don't want to go into towns."

She wanted to avoid that feeling for as long as possible, "Maybe we can just walk and-"

"It's a week and a half walk at the very least to Magnolia," Vera said with cold practicality as he watched Mira flinch back and shrink in on herself, guilt and shame flashing across the oldest Strauss's expression for a brief second, "It'll probably be two weeks because we'll be carrying your brother until he gets completely better."

Vera watched the realization flash across Mira's face; a few seconds passed as Mira seemed to swallow her fear and open her mouth to take back her plea before he cut her off because he didn't actually care if they walked or not; he had just wanted to make sure Mira knew what she was getting herself into.

"I'll do it on one condition."

Vera ignored Mira's astonished look as he glanced at his arm, which he still hadn't had time to wrap yet, "I want whatever bandages you have left."

The bruises won't be able to hide them much longer...

Vera glanced at Mira, who quirked her eyes in confusion before spotting his arm and letting out a gasp. Her eyes were wide with a frantic and apologetic look as a rush of words spewed out of her mouth, "Oh, your arm! I'm so sorry! I'll get you some right away!"

Mira dashed out of the room so quickly that Vera almost missed it, a surprised expression on his face as Mira rushed back with a set of bandages, "Here. If you want, I can wrap it because I was the one who-"

"No thanks," Vera said quickly as he sat up and snatched the bandages out of her hands; ignoring her surprised expression, he turned with his back facing her and started wrapping his arm. The process was slow but easygoing until he heard her speak from the other side of the room, "I'm... sorry for attacking you."

Repeatedly... and unsuccessfully.

Mira wallowed in shame and embarrassment as she watched Vera give a dry chuckle from his place on the couch. Vera turned back a second later with a freshly wrapped arm and tossed her the leftover bandages, "It's not a big deal. You didn't break it or anything."

"I didn't?"

Mira asked with surprise and confusion because she was sure she had broken it. She had to be extra careful with her arm because of Lisanna and Elfman; she knew the strength needed to break an arm, and what she did to Vera was enough, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Vera said with a roll of his eyes, laying back on the couch with a teasing wave of his not-broken arm, "Don't look so disappointed."

"I'm not disappointed!"

Mira said heatedly, her hands on her hips as she saw Vera chuckle and give an off-handed shrug. His teasing expression halted as he glanced at his arm before looking back at her, and to her surprise, zeroing in on her demonic arm with a casual interest instead of the disgust she usually saw from others, "Hey, that was your first fight, right?"

Mira could only blink in shock, bewildered by his question and how he seemed not to mind her demonic arm as she nodded, "Yes... technically."

"Technically?"

"It's complicated," Mira said with a guilty glance to the side as she shifted her cloak to cover her arm. She had technically fought the monster that gave her this arm, but it was more like it attacked her, and she hit it in a panic. It disappeared, and she passed out and woke up with a disguising arm; the rest was a painful history she didn't want to address at the moment.

"Why are you asking?"

Mira watched as Vera tilted his head, probably noticing her move her cloak but choosing not to mention it. Instead, he shrugged and spoke with an off-handed offer, "You want to learn how to fight?"

Mira blinked in surprise for the hundredth time that day, "Huh?"

Mira looked at Vera to make sure she didn't imagine what he said, her ears confirming she hadn't imagined it as Vera spoke with a slight smirk, "Fighting. Punching, you know, not getting your ass beat. I can teach you how to do it, or at least the basics."

"Why?"

"What else are we going to do for two weeks in the woods," Vera replied sarcastically, ignoring how Mira's eyes narrowed in return. Vera gave an innocent smile as he spoke with a slightly more serious tone, "Alright, jokes aside, I'm asking because I know you'd be great at it."

There were three reasons Vera wanted to give training Mira a shot. For one, Mira was S class in the story, and after getting hit by her, Vera could a hundred percent guarantee that it was well deserved, but she was naturally a brawler, at least in the beginning. She was really good at the hit harder than she got hit method, so imagine if she trained a bit in hand-to-hand combat early on. It might not be a significant change, but it would be lasting; Vera didn't see a reason not to try it out.

"Besides..."

Vera's second reason was that he was worried about what Jose would do to him if he found out Vera nearly got his arm broken by an 'amateur'; teaching Mira how to fight as soon as possible was the best solution to that problem "It would be a waste for you to have that arm around and not know how to use it."

"It's not my arm!"

Mira growled with a venomous hiss, watching as Vera ignored it with the grace of a buffalo and continued like he hadn't stepped on a landmine, "Regardless, you have a badass arm that isn't doing anything."

Vera saw Mira blink at him in surprise, a flush hitting her face before she buried it and frowned. Vera watched in amused silence as she started opening her mouth, probably to tell him her arm wasn't 'badass,' which was a lie because it totally was, before he cut her off, "Why do you think I won our little spat earlier?"

Vera watched as his words settled over the room; Mira closed her mouth and looked down with a slight frown as she muttered begrudgingly, "I didn't know what I was doing."

"Exactly," Vera said smugly, making Mira want to try her chance for round two. Her irritation faded soon afterward as she saw Vera speak with a genuineness that made her think twice about the offer, "Look, you want to protect your siblings, and that's great and all, but you can't do it right now, and I'm not gonna be around to protect you guys after Magnolia."

Isn't it better for you to know how to protect them yourself rather than relying on someone else?

Vera let his spoken and unspoken declaration settle as he watched the gears turn in Mira's head, her jaw setting at his mention of her siblings and her eyes steeling with determination. Knowing he had her hooked, Vera watched as Mira nodded and asked with a more analytically focused gaze, "Alright, I'll do it... but will two weeks be enough time to teach me anything?"

Mira was curious, but she would try it out even if it weren't enough time because she wanted to protect her siblings, and Vera was right; he knew more about how to do that than she did. That's why she waited for Vera's answer. To her surprise, she saw him openly chuckle at her before shaking his head and laying back on the couch, "Two weeks will be plenty of time."

Mira watched in confused silence, her confusion shifting to a belated unease as she felt a shiver crawl down her spine. She felt like she had just made a deal she would regret later, and the way Vera was smiling excitedly wasn't helping, "You're strong already, so you should be able to handle it..."

Mira gulped as Vera closed his eyes and relaxed on the couch. A pleasant sigh left his lungs as he began to doze off. Leaving Mira with a few ominous words before he drifted into a pleasant dream that Vera attributed to the third reason he was willing to teach Mira how to fight.

"I'll just teach you how I was taught."

Vera was really looking forward to not being the punching bag for once.