“Alright, so in that case, what the hell should we do if those things come to the bastion?” Tucker stared at Charles, searching for an answer.

  It was a good question—one that made Charles pause to think. Realistically speaking, they didn’t know the full extent of the new war machine’s capabilities. All they knew was that it was extremely durable and that when one appeared on the battlefield, everyone should run.

  “Quite frankly, I have no clue.” Charles chuckled and shrugged his shoulders. “If we’re being honest here. I don’t believe you have the capabilities to do so. It would be futile, to say the least.”

  “But if I had no choice, what should I do?” Tucker asked.

  “As… grim as this sounds, lad. If you were placed in a situation where you had no choice but to fight such a monstrosity… I would say to equip a memory device and record what happens on the battlefield to the best of your capabilities.” Charles did his best to sound cheerful, but such a thing wasn’t possible. Right now, they lacked information on the war machine. The only thing they knew was that the machine needed someone who was a five-star aura user at least to damage it.

  “Then let’s say I do manage to record the battle... how would I get the device out?”

  “That’s the neat part, you don’t. You would either stash it and mark it with spirit essence, a sigil of sorts, or have someone else take it and run while the rest buy time.” Charles sighed and held out the original report that was covered in blood. “The officer that wrote this report to us had died in the battle. His junior was the one who brought it back.”

  “Is there… no other way for everyone to make it out?” Tucker sat down and stared at the page with his hands cuffed on his lap.

  “I’m afraid not lad… sometimes it’s more important to die for the cause. A notion that is greater than oneself.” Charles cleared his throat and stared at the rookie. “If you don’t mind me asking, when are you supposed to leave?”

  “I’m not sure. I just found out that I was being sent to the front lines today.”

  “Is it because of…” Charles glanced at the way Adira and Daniela, to which Tucker nodded. “I see… I was surprised to see a child that had been turned into a mana capsule walking around the corridors of the Order.”

  “Yeah, Blaire wasn’t a fan of it, that’s for sure.” Tucker forced a dry laugh. “But since we’re talking about Adira, would it be too much to ask of you to dispel the mana circles on her wrist?”

  “That…” Charles’ words trailed off. He slowly shook his head, but upon seeing Tucker’s troubled expression, caved in. “I’ll see what I can do with the other scholars, but since it’s against the law for human experimentation. No one has tried to dispel a mana circle that’s been tattooed on someone’s flesh.”

  “Would it be painless if you were to try?”

  “I honestly don’t know… I try my best to not do anything that would taint my hands.” Charles stared at his palms before pushing his circular glasses up. “I worry that if we try such a thing, it’ll open up living experimentation once more in the nation.”

  “I see... then leave it—”

  “No!” The voice pulled Tucker and Charles’ gaze at the same time. Both of them stared at Adira, who bravely stood before them. Her eyes seemed to burn with a light that refused to yield. “Please remove these things from my body!”

  Tucker’s eyes lingered on Adira as she held out her wrist, revealing the shackles and magic circle. “Adira, there’s no guarantee we can do it and even if we tried…” He glanced at Charles, who shook his head. “It most likely won’t be painless—”

  “I can endure it!” Adira placed her hand over her heart. “Please, if it means you can find a way to remove it from my body, then I want you to try.”

  The words that came from Adira caused his heart to ache. He felt like everything was slowly falling apart and now he didn’t know what to do. No matter how Tucker thought about it, he didn’t want Adira to be a subject for the scholars to dissect. The only reason he thought that Charles would be able to do something for her was because he trusted the old man’s character. But now that the child was advocating for it, a part of him felt like it was wrong. Tucker took a deep breath to calm his racing heart, but before another word could escape his lips. Charles held onto his shoulder.

  “I’ll see what I can do, but can I ask why you want this to happen?” Charles stared at Adira, examining her posture as she held her head down.

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  “I want you to rescue my friends.”

  “Your friends?” Tucker looked at Adira in confusion. “Are there more children like you brought to the front lines?”

  Adira nodded.

  “Wait, Tucker, how did you stumble upon Adira?” Charles asked.

  “I found her in one of the carriages belonging to the Emerald tower,” Tucker replied. “We were supposed to steal a barrier artifact but instead found Adira.”

  Charles fell deep into thought. “Young miss, how many of your friends were with you in the Emerald tower before you left?”

  “I… I don’t know. It was dark and we were all put to sleep in our cells.” Adira clenched onto the fabric of her dress. “They said we wouldn’t feel anymore pain after that night and that we would be free if we listened to their instructions.”

  “Instructions? What instructions did they give you?” Tucker asked.

  “They just told us to drink something, a green liquid in a bottle…” Adira’s body swayed as she tried to stand still.

  Her hands loosened their grip on the white fabric, and her balance wavered. Before she knew it, her consciousness was already slipping and her body fell back, yet Tucker was the first to react. Rushing forward and grabbing her arm right before she hit the ground in a panic. He carefully held the child in his arms and stared at the other two.

  "It's most likely exhaustion," Charles said with a conflicted light in his eyes. "But what exactly did they give her?"

  Daniela stood behind Adira with a horrified expression. She tightly held onto her arm to stop the trembling sensation in her hands, drawing the attention of Tucker and Charles. “If it’s a green liquid in a bottle, it’s most likely a potion to increase the efficiency of conducting mana flow.”

  “In that case, we would need to tread carefully. There’s no telling what other substances they used on them.” Charles slowly walked closer to Adira, who rested in Tucker’s arms and gently lifted her wrist to examine the tattoo. “It’s commendable that she volunteered, but we can't rush ourselves until we know what exactly they did to her.” The light in Charles’ eyes grew dim. “For now, my apprentice will take care of her.”

  “Is there anything I can do?” Tucker asked while handing Adira over to Daniela.

  “I’m afraid not. Maybe you can write letters every so often for Adira to read. Otherwise I wouldn’t focus on that.” Charles placed both of his hands on Tucker’s shoulders. “Trust us to look after her and just focus on getting back to us.”

  “I’ll try my best to do so.” Tucker forced a smile, but right before he could say another word, Charles grabbed a book from the table and handed it to him. The smooth green leather that bound the book's hard cover fell into his hands. On the surface was an engraving of several words and a pristine tornado drawing. “Elementary wind techniques for… simpletons?”

  “That’s correct! You see, I figured that since you’ve been going on missions nonstop, you haven’t had the chance to do any proper training. Now this should give you an ample opportunity to.”

  “Right… but would this be enough? All I’ve been able to do is create a single thread of essence.” Tucker flipped the book over, examining the back cover. It felt like the words blurred together, meaningless symbols instead of sentences. But seeing the librarian in front of him, he smirked and forced himself to utter the first sentence. “An easy-to-understand book covering the basics of thread manipulation and tactics… that’s an interesting introduction.”

  “Indeed, I enjoyed this book quite a bit myself.” Charles grinned and quietly chuckled. You see, I believe it’s important for one to be constantly improving. Whether it’s their physical or mental wellbeing.”

  “Mental wellbeing?” Tucker stared at Charles and raised a brow.

  “You see Tucker, unlike Alex who doesn’t understand mental health that well and Blaire who just doesn’t care. I, for one, put a heavy emphasis on such things.” Charles gazed at the direction Adira and Daniela went. “And I see that you’ve been pushing yourself a bit too much.”

  Tucker’s lips parted, releasing a weak laugh. “Trust me Charles, I’m fine. I know my limits.”

  “Perhaps, but pushing one’s limits isn’t necessarily a good thing either.” Charles lightly tapped on the table with the stacks of books and papers. “It’s like this table. It can only hold so much weight on its four legs, put enough weight on it and one of them is bound to break. The same concept applies to us.”

  The rookie held the book and skimmed through a few pages. “So you’re saying I need to take some time off and relax? We’re not exactly in a situation where we can do that.”

  “Yes, but besides training it’s best to find other hobbies as well. Getting in the right mindset allows one to improve beyond leaps and bounds.”

  “I see… then I’ll have to do that.” Tucker nodded and closed the book. He adjusted the hat and took a deep breath. “Thanks Charles, I’ll keep what you said in mind.”

  “No worries lad, I just hope you get the rest you needed.” Charles watched as Tucker gave a subtle nod. “If there’s anything else you need before you leave, feel free to ask and I’ll be happy to provide.”

  “I will.” Tucker lingered for a moment, thinking back to everything that had happened. A part of him regretted having to leave so soon, but Adira, his biggest worry, was safe with Charles. He was grateful to his friend and knew that he had left behind a heavy burden, but there was nothing he could do. “Make sure to take care of yourself as well, Charles.”

  “Don’t worry about me, I’ll always be here.”

  Charles’ words were comforting, but Tucker knew the road ahead was anything but. His steps echoed throughout the chamber, and as he left the room, a heavy sensation filled his heart. There was little time left before he had to leave, but that time was precious. Finding a way to properly utilize it was a difficult task, but for now, Tucker knew he needed to rest. His body was battered and his mind in disarray. For now, sleep was his only escape.

  Navigating through the long stone corridors of the Order, he returned to the place it all started. The living quarters that he and the other rookies returned to after completing their missions. Entering the winding staircase to the third floor, through the countless rows of doors and lanterns that lit the way. Tucker stood before an old wooden door, one with a bronze nameplate that read, “Tucker Welford”.

  A surname that he despised with every fiber of his being.