Sharkai Bai, granted one last chance by his fiancée Cecilia Xuelian, stood once again before the vending machine under the dorm building. A second before inserting the bill, he glanced around to ensure that certain someone hadn’t suddenly appeared to cut in line. Only then did he carefully slip it in.

"Yo, Sharkai!"

A familiar voice sounded in his ear.

(Sigh...)

Sighing inwardly, Sharkai Bai turned with a dark expression. Sure enough, Xia Feina sat on a bench, grinning like an idiot and waving at him.

"Tch. But since you didn’t cut in line this time, I’ll forgive you!"

Even Sharkai Bai didn’t understand why he could be so chatty with a girl he’d only met twice that day.

"Oh? You’re really generous!"

"Thanks for the praise, Xia Feina."

As they chatted idly, Sharkai Bai gripped the can of black tea in his hand. This time, he couldn’t afford to forget it.

"Hmm—you’re still out this late? What for?"

Xia Feina had only come hoping to run into this interesting guy by chance. That was all.

"Thanks to you, but I don’t have time to chat now."

Sharkai Bai, stepping onto the stairs, looked back at Xia Feina with a cold tone.

"Ah... I see. Sorry, Sharkai."

Right, they were just ordinary classmates who’d only met twice...

At that moment, Sharkai Bai, watching Xia Feina closely, caught a fleeting trace of disappointment in her eyes.

"Well, well, no time only means tonight. You can find me later when you’re free."

(So troublesome...)

Unable to stand seeing the girl look like that, Sharkai Bai walked back to the vending machine. He grabbed a familiar can of orange juice and tossed it to Xia Feina.

"This time, it’s on me."

He turned away, muttering under his breath.

"Eh—? Th-thank you! Sharkai!"

Xia Feina fumbled to catch the casually thrown juice. She looked up, surprised, at the retreating back already climbing the stairs. It wasn’t about the free drink. From his words, she understood something else.

The figure vanished around the stairwell corner.

Afterward—

Silently, tears slid down from the corners of her eyes.

"Goodbye..."

Sniffling, she wiped them away. Xia Feina walked out of the dorm building, disappearing alone into the night. Having bid farewell to Sharkai Bai, her only friend at the academy, she returned to her father’s side—in that filthy laboratory.

Her father, the mad doctor Xia Yuan, still stood before the workbench, engrossed in his experiment.

"By the day after tomorrow, the Ten Attendants experiment should be complete! Next is your part."

Xia Yuan stopped his work, turned, and tossed a bottle of green liquid to Xia Feina.

"I... I’m fine."

"I heard the Five Dragon Kings of the Northern Kingdom have already provoked Holy Carthus. If so, let’s use them as test subjects for the results."

"Okay..."

"Hmph, when the time comes, Dishi is yours to handle. Don’t disappoint me! Hahahaha!!!"

His maniacal laughter echoed through the lab.

—Northern Kingdom.

"Next time I meet that white-haired guy, I’ll avenge you for sure! Don’t worry, Wei!!"

"Thanks..."

Days later, Haruki Seiko picked up Minhai Wei after her hospital discharge, comforting her. Minhai Wei, her right arm still in a cast, remained completely expressionless. Who would believe him? If the other three said it, maybe. Whenever she recalled the force of that punch, her arm throbbed faintly. Though clearly not a combat mage, he possessed such immense power. Watching Haruki Seiko’s confident expression, Minhai Wei held back her true feelings to avoid discouraging him.

Just then, a middle-aged man with messy hair rushed toward them, bumping into Haruki Seiko’s shoulder. He didn’t stop.

"Hey, stop! At least say sorry!"

Haruki Seiko turned and quickly blocked the rude man. As he reached to grab the man’s shoulder, a figure dashed over and seized Haruki’s wrist.

"Huh?"

Xia Yuan, lost in thought, snapped back to reality. He looked up to find Haruki Seiko blocking his path.

"Hmph! Want a fight? Think twice before messing with the Five Dragon Kings in the Northern Kingdom!"

Seeing several figures in black cloaks closing in from the crowd, Haruki Seiko’s eyes darkened. Beside him, the silent Minhai Wei readied herself for battle.

"You claim to be one of the Five Dragon Kings? Hahahaha!!"

Excitement gleamed in Xia Yuan’s eyes.

"What’s wrong? If you’re scared, just apologize properly!"

"Ten Attendants, attack!"

Boom!!

A fierce battle erupted suddenly on a street in the Northern Kingdom.

—

"Ahhh, so weak. The famed two of the Five Dragon Kings are nothing special."

After the fight, the Ten Attendants returned behind Xia Yuan. He lazily scanned Haruki Seiko and Minhai Wei, lying in pools of blood. The once-bustling street was now a wasteland of ruins.

(Such... powerful... strength...)

Ten flawless fighters—an organization Haruki Seiko had never even heard of on the continent. Lying in blood, his consciousness fading, he heard the middle-aged man’s last words before blacking out.

"The Five Dragon Kings are just trash. Let’s go! To Holy Carthus to meet those adorable geniuses!"

—Celestial Engraved Magic Academy, Headmaster’s Office.

"The weather’s quite nice today, isn’t it, Xia Feina?"

Standing by the window, Dishi gazed at the cloudless sky, his tone flat.

"I can’t hide anything from you, Headmaster."

A lazy voice came from Dishi’s chair. The office, empty except for Dishi moments before, now had Xia Feina lounging with her hands behind her head, feet crossed on the desk. The academy’s No. 2, in a highly disrespectful pose, appeared behind the headmaster.

"Have you truly made up your mind, Xia Feina?"

Dishi turned and asked.

"...Decided. This is my choice."

After a second’s hesitation, Xia Feina replied.

"This might be your last chance."

"Cut the crap! I... won’t regret it! For me, whether failure or success, it’s the best ending, right? You know about my situation—don’t you?"

"..."

Dishi fell silent. He respected every decision his apprentices made.

"Don’t worry~! As long as you don’t act, Headmaster, I won’t either~. After all, I don’t want to overstep my bounds!"

Xia Feina laughed, as if mocking herself.