The group sat in a loose circle near the remnants of their battle. Sylra sat stiffly with her arms crossed, though her injuries looked less severe than before. Runebelle’s healing magic had stabilized her.

  Sylra side-eyed the young girl before muttering, “...Thanks.”

  Runebelle only gave a small nod.

  Sylra took a deep breath before speaking again. "I didn’t want to believe it. I was angry at you, Roselle. You and everything you stand for."

  Sylra’s gaze darkened and her eyes took themselves to the ground. "I was always taught that technology was the root of evil. That scientists and their creations were the ones who started everything wrong in this world.”

  Alan rested his hands on his knees. “The Headmaster has been sacrificing low-tier mages. She’s been draining them dry to increase her own power."

  Sylra’s breath hitched, but she didn’t speak yet.

  Alan continued, "I know at least two mages who can confirm this. They escaped the Academy after figuring it out. I overheard them talking about it—about joining up with Kintovar of all people." He let out a dry chuckle. "Imagine that. They’d rather risk death with her than stay under the Headmaster’s rule. Arlysa was responsible for gathering the mages to be sacrificed."

  Sylra was silent for a long moment. Her fingers trembled slightly before she clenched her fists.

  Arlysa had known. Her mentor—the one who had trained her, molded her, led her—was nothing more than a monster.

  "That bitch…" Sylra whispered while trembling. Then she struck the ground and caused dust and ash to scatter with her teeth gritted.

  "I’m going to snap her neck!"

  Alan smirked. "Not alone, you’re not."

  Risebelle narrowed her eyes. "Hold on, we’re seriously trusting her now?”She looked to Roselle. "You’re okay with this?"

  Roselle nodded. "They’re helping us take down the Academy. That’s what matters."

  Risebelle frowned, but she didn’t argue.

  The group all began to get off the ground. Roselle was the first to rise. She dusted off her clothes. Risebelle stretched with a small grunt before fixing her gloves. Alan stood lazily and cracked his neck.

  And then there was Runebelle.

  She stood taller than the rest in her transformed state. Her emerald-green gaze swept over the group.

  Then, she spoke. “We should move now.”

  The others turned toward her.

  Runebelle’s fingers curled slightly. “Alan is on our side. Abner’s gone. Aliana was defeated. And Arlysa? If she retreated, then she’s in no shape to fight. They have no more elite mages, right?”

  Risebelle raised a brow. Runebelle continued, “With a good plan, we can get inside the Academy and take out the remaining mages.”

  Silence. A moment of processing.

  Then—

  Risebelle crossed her arms with a smirk. “Well… looks like someone’s been reading my mind.”

  Runebelle turned to her with a confident smile. “More like great minds think alike.”

  Alan huffed a chuckle.

  Roselle, who had been quiet finally spoke. “Alright guys. Let’s go and blow up that Academy!”

  Runebelle suddenly raised a hand.

  "Actually, before we go…I should heal you all first."

  Roselle and Risebelle stiffened.

  Then, like a ghost creeping out from the depths of their memories, they remembered.

  That massive needle.

  That piercing sensation in their butt.

  That unholy smiling face.

  Runebelle summoned the Needle and held it with both hands.

  Roselle and Risebelle’s faces darkened at the exact same time.

  Risebelle instinctively took half a step back with one hand raised. "Y-you know… maybe I’d prefer the cannon healing sh—"

  She stopped mid-sentence.

  Oh. Right.

  Runebelle didn’t have the cannon in this form.

  And then, Runebelle moved and the world knew pain.

  [System Message]

  LifeForce Restored: 125%

  Note: LifeForce is currently above its normal capacity, which may provide additional endurance. This increase is believed to be linked to the influence of Project Rune's Magic.

  Roselle blinked. The bruises, the cuts, the dull aches—gone in an instant.

  Risebelle rolled her shoulders, then clenched her fists. She let out a low whistle. “You know, despite the way she does it, I still feel really good."

  Sylra looked almost unsettled by how quickly the pain had disappeared. However, when she reached inward to draw on her magic, her face tensed.

  Alan did the same. His usual smirk faltered slightly.

  "Body’s good, but magic’s still pretty drained," Alan admitted while shaking his head. "Guess healing doesn’t fix everything."

  Sylra exhaled through her nose. "Makes sense. We burned through too much in our fights. Even if our wounds are gone, magic recovery takes time."

  Suddenly, sounds of footsteps were heard by the group. Slow at first. Measured. Then, they grew louder.

  Alan stiffened. Risebelle’s gaze sharpened and Runebelle shifted closer to Roselle.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  From the entrance of the untouched Magic Academy, a wave of figures flooded into view. Their robes billowed in the wind. Their eyes were cold.

  The battlefield was now lined with an army of Five hundred mages.

  The formation parted slightly, and a single mage stepped forward. It was a man clad in ceremonial Academy robes. His gaze landed directly on Alan.

  "Elite Mage Alan," he said loudly, "you have been branded a traitor by the Academy as a result of your own actions."

  Alan scoffed. "Figured."

  "You will be eliminated along with the rest of them." His eyes shifted to Sylra. "As for you… You are to be taken into custody."

  Roselle stepped forward. Her blue eyes glared at the man.

  The man's face remained cold. His speech carried over the battlefield like an executioner's verdict. "Creations of Kintovar, you will be shown no mercy."

  The moment the words left his lips, the assembled mages raised their staffs.

  Risebelle swung out her medium-sized cannon. "You filthy humans are going to regret ever crossing us."

  She fired.

  The first shot ripped through the front line as an explosion that sent a mage flying back without a head left on it. His body hit the ground.

  The battlefield erupted into chaos. Flames ignited. Ice spears tore through the air. Blasts of magic collided in bursts of blinding light.

  Alan weaved through spells with ease and let off fireballs that detonated like miniature suns.

  Roselle darted forward with her massive cannon in hand and began firing at the enemies, taking out mages one by one.

  Sylra unleashed her earth magic and created spears that launched the mages. “I ain’t goin back with you bastards.”

  Runebelle raised her two compact guns and began picking off mages with pinpoint accuracy. Their bodies fell one by one. They were unable to react in time to her swift strikes.

  In the midst of the havoc, Risebelle’s sharp eyes caught something unusual: A group of mages standing at the rear of the battlefield had begun chanting in unison.

  "Wait a second," Risebelle muttered. "They’re up to something."

  She immediately turned her cannon towards the chanting group, locking in her aim but before she could fire—

  A dark shadow swept across her line of sight. A tall mage in dark robes stepped forward. The mage whispered. “Dark Gate!"

  Before Risebelle could fire, a massive swirling vortex of shadows appeared and expanded into a towering portal that blocked her view entirely.

  Risebelle took a step back with a bead of sweat trickling down her temple. "Dammit!”

  The ground trembled beneath the collective power of the mages who were chanting in a chorus. In perfect unison, they shouted:

  "Advanced Magic: Holy Sanctuary!"

  A massive blinding pillar of light erupted from the center of their formation that expanded outward. The ground cracked beneath its brilliance as it reached its full size—a gigantic sanctuary of pure energy.

  Risebelle, Roselle, Runebelle, Alan and Sylra were all caught in its wake.

  Alan surveyed the encroaching Sanctuary. "A Unified Holy Sanctuary? That’s definitley not good for us."

  The light around them pulsed with a force so potent that it pushed back the other mages surrounding it. The Sanctuary rose higher to encase the five of them in its divine glow.

  The radiant light of the Holy Sanctuary intensified and then, golden symbols began forming in the air around them. At first, they hovered harmlessly, but then they locked into place in a circular formation.

  Afterwards, Keys of Magic materialized that were shaped long with engravings. Each key pulsed with overwhelming magical energy that suffocated the air itself.

  Sylra took a sharp breath. Her instincts screamed at her to move. She lunged forward and attempted to push through the blinding barrier—

  SHHHRRRK!

  A sickening sound of burning flesh echoed through the air as a crackling golden chain shot out from one of the floating keys and wrapped around her wrist.

  Then came the pain.

  A deafening surge of raw energy ripped through her body that was hot and merciless. Every nerve felt like it was being seared away. Her legs buckled and she choked on a breathless scream.

  She barely managed to stumble back before another chain nearly lashed around her ankle.

  She fell to her knees with smoke rising from her arm.

  "Haaah…haaaah…" Sylra’s breath was ragged. Her vision blurred.

  Footsteps echoed from beyond the golden barrier. Two figures stepped forward through the radiance.

  One was a brown-haired girl with a cold, analytical look. She adjusted the glasses perched on her nose,.

  The other was a red-haired girl with long hair.

  The brown-haired girl spoke first. "Sylra," she said smoothly while tilting her head. "You know how this works."

  Sylra’s fingers dug into the dirt.

  "You can’t brute force your way out of a Unified Holy Sanctuary," the red-haired girl added with a chuckle. "Especially not one fueled by multiple high-tier mages."

  The brown-haired girl adjusted her glasses. "This spell is layered. The Keys of Magic act as enforcers. The moment you try to break free, they trigger a purification response—one designed to strip away magical interference and force compliance through sheer pain."

  The red-haired girl smirked. "In simple terms? You’re trapped. Any move you make against it is just going to hurt. Badly."

  Sylra’s fingers twitched. Rage burned in her gut, but she was still recovering from the excruciating pain that had nearly killed her just now.

  Risebelle gritted her teeth. "Oh, great. We’re stuck inside a big, glowing cage, and if we move, we get zapped into submission. Fantastic."

  Roselle’s blue eyes studied the floating keys.

  Runebelle kept her gaze locked on the two new arrivals, analyzing them.

  Alan exhaled through his nose. "Well… this turned into a major pain in the ass."

  [System Message]

  Lifeforce: 125%

  Magic Reserves: 10%

  Roselle frowned while reading the glowing text she brought to her vision. This amount of magic wasn't enough to unleash a Thunderclap Surge; however, she could push herself to 200% of her magic and launch it.

  But if she did that…

  Risebelle, standing at her side caught the look on her face and immediately shook her head. "Nope. Don’t even think about it."

  Roselle turned to her. "I wasn’t—"

  Risebelle gave her a deadpan stare. "You totally were. If you push your systems to full power and you don't have the magic for it, you'll end up breaking apart your system and enter the negatives. Then you'll be at risk of magical rupture all over again."

  Roselle fell silent.

  "Listen," Risebelle continued while crossing her arms, "we don’t know how strong this thing really is. Throwing a full-powered attack at a spell reinforced by five hundred mages? That’s far too risky."

  Roselle’s gaze flickered back toward the glowing barrier surrounding them.

  Then—

  "…My journey with you two has been eventful."

  Roselle and Risebelle turned toward the unexpected voice.

  Runebelle was smiling. This smile was warm. Genuine.

  Her glowing emerald eyes softened. "I’ve… really enjoyed this time with you both."

  Roselle’s eyed her curiously. "Why are you talking like that?”

  Runebelle tilted her head slightly. “Just…Promise me something, Roselle."

  Roselle’s fingers twitched. "…What?"

  Runebelle smiled again and placed a hand over her chest.

  "Take care of my body after this."

  The green glow of Project Rune’s energy pulsed violently around Runebelle’s body. The keys of magic—those cruel, binding symbols of judgment—lashed out at her the moment she stepped forward.

  One embedded itself in her shoulder. Another sliced deep into her side. More rained down and tore into her body.

  But Runebelle didn’t stop. Her emerald-green eyes burned.

  She had to get them out.

  She had to make sure Roselle and Risebelle survived.

  Runebelle staggered forward and summoned her massive needle to her hands. Then—she drove it into the ground.

  Ice, fire, and stone rushed outward, fusing together in a violent fusion.The ground beneath them fractured. Tremors roared through the battlefield like an unchained beast. Flames burst from the cracks.

  Runebelle gritted her teeth. Her body trembled under the strain.

  More.

  She grasped the needle’s handle and began to spin it.

  Faster.

  The ground churned violently. The mages outside the Holy Sanctuary scrambled backward.

  Runebelle’s smile turned wild.

  "Didididi…!"

  The energy swelled.

  She threw her head back and roared,

  "CHEMICAL CATACLYSM!"

  A storm of raw destruction ripped through the battlefield. Hundreds of voices cried out as mages were flung like ragdolls.

  In the Aftermath, the Holy Sanctuary collapsed.

  And in the center of it all—

  Runebelle stood. The once-brilliant glow of Project Rune flickered.

  Then—

  She reverted to her child-like form. Her body collapsed.

  Roselle was the first to move.

  "Runebelle—!"

  She barely caught her before she hit the ground.

  Risebelle rushed over next and pressed her palm to Runebelle’s chest.

  Silence.

  Then, the System Message appeared:

  [System Message]

  Lifeforce: N/A

  Magic: N/A

  Systems: Offline

  Roselle’s vision blurred. She was crying before she could even get out words.

  “Runebelle…” Her voice cracked.

  The body in her arms didn’t stir.

  Risebelle’s jaw was clenched so tight it looked painful.

  The battlefield went eerily silent.

  Project Mage