"Need a hand?" Rilian said, extending his hand to her.
"Thank you," she replied. "But I can manage."
As soon as she stood, Rilian suddenly felt a surge inside him. His whole body convulsed, his eyeballs rolled up until only white showed. Then he collapsed to the ground.
Rilian's sight turned pitch black, but he could hear Yarin's muffled voice calling his name. Her voice slowly faded—replaced by the sound of beautiful orchestra music.
The music swelled into a crescendo, and Rilian saw a hand lifted up with a baton. Then with a swift motion of the hand, the music ended, echoing in the hall.
It was Mr. Chavez. He clapped his free hand against the arm holding the baton.
"Good job, everyone!" he said, smiling.
"Just a few bars to polish, but—excellent work."
He set the baton on the music stand. "Before everyone packs up," he said with a nervous voice, "I have one important thing to announce."
He pulled out a small box from his pocket and walked toward a cellist with long black hair.
"Leonora," he said, kneeling. "Will you… marry me?"
The cellist's face lit up. She nodded, and the orchestra hall erupted into cheers and applause.
Adrian Chavez was a conductor. Six months after his proposal, he and Leonora got married.
It was a happy marriage where music was at the center of it. Leonora loved teaching music, especially to kids, so she worked as a schoolteacher and part-time cellist.
But one day, everything changed. Leonora was diagnosed with a rare skin and bone disease that eventually she could no longer stand.
"Adrian, can you please replace me in school? I really want to know how my students progress," Leonora said in a very weak voice.
"I will," Adrian replied.
It was her last words before the disease got worse and she wasn't able to speak anymore.
Adrian took the job as her replacement as the music teacher, abandoning his conducting work.
The disease worsened until her eyelids thickened, as though erasing her eyes. Her brows faded, her lips dried and the tissue fused, sealing her mouth.
The bills piled up, but Adrian never abandoned teaching as promised to Leonora.
When Leonara's case became life-threatening, he reached out to the school principal.
"Principal Wells, please," Adrian said. "Just one more loan. Leonora is in critical condition."
"Adrian…" the principal sighed. "Leonora already had several unpaid loans before you replaced her. And you still have multiple loans ongoing."
"Please, sir. I'm begging you."
The principal's phone rang. He answered it, turning away from Adrian.
"Sir..." Adrian tried again, but the principal motioned for him to leave.
"Sir, I really need your help—please help," Adrian said desperately.
The principal lowered the phone, his brows furrowed. "Go away, Adrian. Before I call security."
Adrian went back to the hospital, only to find that Leonora had been transferred to a cheaper facility because he could no longer afford the bills.
One night, Adrian woke up to her groaning. And though she could no longer move even a finger, the sound told him she was in terrible pain. It went on for hours. The doctors did what they could, but by two in the morning, she was gone.
Adrian sobbed over Leonora's lifeless body on the hospital bed. Without him knowing, a dark purple energy slipped out of her—born from deep suffering. It flew out of the hospital window, as though pulled by some similar energy, until it descended behind the school auditorium.
The purple energy turned into a goo and solidified into a Corrupted Aether. A girl with impossibly long hair and arms. It lifted its head—revealing the faceless girl.
Rilian jolted awake, gasping for air.
"Are you okay?" Yarin said, kneeling on one foot beside him.
Rilian nodded, still catching his breath. "How long was I out?"
"A minute or two."
"It felt like… a month." He slowly stood. Stared at Mr. Chavez's body then walked toward the tomb where they had found him.
"I'll show you something," Rilian called Yarin.
Three roses rested on the tombstone and the name etched read: Leonora Chavez.
"Do you know Mrs. Chavez?" Rilian asked quietly.
"The wife of Mr. Chavez," Yarin replied. "He replaced her as teacher when she got sick."
Rilian put his hand at the edge of the tomb. "After the smoke entered me, I saw everything. The Corrupted Aether—the faceless girl—came from Mrs. Chavez's suffering."
"Oh…" Yarin's expression softened.
"Mr. Chavez begged for help from Principal Wells during his wife's critical condition," Rilian continued. "But because of all their loans, Principal Wells refused."
"And that refusal cost her life," Yarin said. "The rage that followed… the Corrupted Aether fed on it."
Rilian exhaled sharply.
"And we finally know why the faceless girl kept on leading us to Mr. Chavez."
They stood there for a moment, staring at the tomb.
Yarin glanced at her watch, then tapped his shoulder. "Come on. It's already past three."
"They're finally free."
"But what about his body?" Rilian asked, turning at the teacher.
"I'll call James," Yarin replied. "He'll take care of him."
"Who's James?"
"Our family butler. Right now, he's probably cleaning up our tracks at school and wiping the CCTV. He's also a sorcerer—a Realityweaver."
"You have a butler? And… a sorcerer… a sorcerer butler?"
Yarin didn't respond and started walking.
Rilian stared once more at the body of the teacher, feeling sorry for what had happened to him. He bowed in goodbye and respect, then followed Yarin.