- The Wanderers are here!
Ravina and Freya spoke at the same time.
They remembered what Evo had told them earlier — that they were planning an invasion on that very occasion.
When Freya first heard it, she had been skeptical. She dismissed the information as yet another one of his insane ramblings.
Seeing it confirmed now was just more proof of how unfair they had been to him.
He had tried to warn them, tried to give them exactly the information Freya had been searching for. But all he received in return was distrust… to the point where Freya even attacked him.
- I don't deserve him…
Freya muttered, lost in her thoughts.
- What did you say, Freya?
Ravina asked, not having caught her whisper.
Freya only shook her head, as if saying it was nothing.
- Nothing…
- Since there's nothing we can do, let's just watch what happens from here on.
And so, the events of that catastrophe began.
Ravina and Freya tried to go outside, but the two members of the Order on the rooftop stopped them.
The infiltrated students began attacking the other students.
And then Freya launched her surprise attack on Baltazar: a laser that fell from the sky.
The laser was a security device created by Freya in case, for some reason, magic usage was ever disabled.
It only needed a trigger — a small trace of her energy — for the artifact to fire in her direction.
Ravina and Freya watched everything, but they still weren't convinced of certain things.
They would have sensed their presence from far away before they ever approached.
So that sudden appearance was… strange.
But that didn't change the fact that both were furious seeing their enemy doing whatever he wanted inside their academy.
And with the audacity to do it while both of them were there.
- Are they underestimating us?
Freya asked, pure hatred in her voice.
She bit her lip while watching her copy crush Baltazar's head under her boot.
- Baltazar's name was on that paper he gave us.
- Yes, Freya. It was.
- He grafted parts of different dragons onto his own body. Exactly as written in the document.
Freya said, looking at the man on the rooftop above them.
- That must be the accomplice Evo mentioned.
Freya pointed upward. Ravina followed her gaze and nodded.
- Most likely.
- The paper said he was a relatively skilled mage.
Ravina adjusted her glasses, returning to her intellectual tone as she spoke to Freya.
- Ravina, what do you think happened to Evo… for him to have lived through all of that?
- Was all of that just a nightmare… or did he actually live it — in flesh and blood?
It was the most enigmatic question of all.
Neither of them could answer whether that was a dream… or something real.
- I don't know. There are too many inconsistencies. Dates that don't match… events that shouldn't have happened that way…
Freya nodded. It was something they both desperately wanted to understand.
Then, with surprising gentleness, the Goddess offered half an answer.
"'It is not physical, nor a nightmare.'
'It is a bit more complex than that.'
'I will explain the rest later.'"
Freya, now fully attentive to the Goddess's voice, simply nodded and stayed silent, observing everything.
Ravina followed her example.
Shortly after, both looked toward the place where Evo was speaking with his copies.
"You two! Deal with his accomplice.
I'll help the instructors protect the students."
Freya looked toward the back of the hall — and felt her throat tighten.
The academy's students were being slaughtered mercilessly by the infiltrators.
She clenched her fists and growled, warning Ravina:
- Let's go after Evo. We don't need to worry about Baltazar's accomplice!
Ravina agreed. She preferred to watch everything Evo was doing rather than face a weak enemy.
They saw him helping the instructors while wielding his sword, cutting down enemies without hesitation.
He was ruthless. His fighting spirit was blazing, his will to crush anyone in his way burning fiercely.
- Beautiful…
Both whispered together, admiring the way Evo fought.
Nothing extravagant — just pure efficiency.
Refined, deliberate movements.
Soon, he stopped beside the instructors, shifting his stance and raising the sword before his face.
It began to shine in silver and gold, releasing tiny particles of energy.
The two witches understood instantly.
- An Authority!
- It looks like the sword turned into an artifact with an Authority…
Ravina confirmed Freya's comment.
Their eyes sparkled with curiosity.
Moments like this were extremely rare — Authorities were as uncommon as they were.
- What do you think it does?
Ravina asked, genuinely intrigued.
The answer came soon.
The sword's glow spread across the floor, slithering like a serpent until it reached the invaders.
The power climbed up their bodies, infiltrating them.
And then a Golden Scale formed above their heads.
The Scale of Judgment.
- A Judge?!
Freya whispered, already imagining what was coming.
- Freya, do you know what that does?
She nodded.
- I think this Authority inflicts a debuff. But it seems to have specific conditions.
- What kind?
- I don't know.
Ravina bit her lip anxiously and returned her eyes to the scene.
The Scale fell toward the side holding a black orb.
The invaders' bodies weakened instantly. Their powers became useless.
They writhed in sharp, unbearable pain.
The massacre began moments later — members of Freya's Order moved in and destroyed all the now-crippled enemies.
Easy targets. Inevitable.
- Well… looks like it's over.
- Evo did well.
Freya announced the end of the fight.
She then turned her attention to two specific people:
Kalistro, speaking with Elizabeth, and Umbra, silent beside the Order members.
- Could it really be true…?
She wondered, glancing back and forth between them.
Ravina noticed her doubt.
- You're wondering if they really are traitors?
Freya let out a tired sigh.
- To tell you the truth… yes.
- Everything Evo said has proven true so far.
- I don't have the courage to doubt him anymore… especially after everything. But…"
Ravina finished her thought for her:
- But it's still hard to swallow, right?
Freya nodded.
- I know. I try to deny it internally too. But it's the truth.
The Goddess herself confirmed that Evo didn't lie about anything.
Freya stayed quiet for a moment.
-Yes. You're right.
She said Evo didn't mention what was, in fact, the lie.
What do you think that lie is?
Ravina shrugged — she had no idea.
Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the place they had been earlier.
Both turned and saw the unknown enemy collapsed on the ground, completely destroyed.
- Looks like the two of us took out the trash.
Predictable.
Ravina simply nodded.
Evo walked past them and went to his copies.
- Let's go too, Ravina.
The two followed him to where the copies watched the dying invader.
Evo repeated what needed to be done and began the interrogation.
While listening to the answers, both women realized how Evo had found the hideout — and why they had never managed to locate it.
- An artifact made by dragons, huh?
Freya understood why her searches had failed so miserably.
- I'm not surprised we never found it… even after passing near that island several times,
Ravina commented.
- Evo's magic is different… I've never seen anything like it.
Freya murmured, uneasy at the strange ability he used to force the enemy to speak.
The two remained silent until Ravina touched Freya's arm.
- F-Freya…
Her voice carried urgency.
Freya turned — Ravina looked nervous.
- What is it, Ravina?
Ravina pointed at Evo. Specifically… at the hands he hid behind his back.
- E-Eylam's fingers…
Her voice broke.
Freya looked at Evo's hands — and then she saw it.
Faint cracks glowing softly at the fingertips.
Small pieces missing. Others beginning to fragment.
Freya narrowed her eyes, analyzing it.
On the outside, she kept her composure.
Inside… pure panic.
- What is that?
- Why are his fingers crumbling like that?
Her heart raced.
The answer came instantly.
"'IT IS THE SIDE EFFECT OF HIS SPELL.'"
The Goddess spoke directly to her.
Goddess of Magic. Goddess of Spells. She understood exactly what was happening to him.
Freya grew alarmed.
He was using something so dangerous… so carelessly…
And trying to hide it. Hiding it even from his own copies.
He slid his hand into his pocket to conceal it better.
He was keeping his suffering entirely to himself.
Enduring the pain in silence.
- That idiot…
- Why does he never care about himself?!
Freya bit her lip, frustrated.
Of course he was hiding it.
He didn't want them to worry.
He knew exactly how they would react.