That night in the hospital. The scent of herbal medicines and Etherion-infused salves designed to accelerate patient recovery filled the air of Beacon Union Hospital, one of the finest medical facilities within The Walls.
Ryze Nacht, an A-rank Ice Elemental Luminary, leaned back against his bed, his chest tightly bandaged with green crystals emitting a faint greenish-white glow. He had survived, but the scar from Quadryth's slash would remain—a reminder of how close he had come to death upon entering the Rift.
Elias Regalith sat beside him, now conscious, but his face was pale, his eyes red from tears—he still couldn't accept Raven Grimir's death. The others—Evren Valestra, Irelyn Malphas, and Vale Calestair—stood nearby, their expressions a mix of relief at surviving and the lingering horror that clung to them.
Elias gripped the edge of the bed, his voice barely a whisper. "Raven... He shouldn't have died... I was the one who led us into danger. I just wanted to grow stronger by conquering the Rift without any casualties... This is my fault..."
"It's not your fault, Elias. From the start, we all knew the risks of being paid Luminaries—it means prioritizing your safety. We also had no idea something like that would happen. There was something wrong with that Rift from the beginning..."
Ryze comforted Elias while placing a hand on his shoulder.
Evren nodded in agreement with Ryze's words.
Elias looked around, searching for someone.
"Han Yu! Where is he? He was injured earlier too, right?"
"Han Yu left as soon as we arrived. He said his wounds weren't too severe. Han Yu... that guy's a bit strange... I can't sense anything from him."
Vale answered Elias's concern while glancing at the door.
Hearing that, Irelyn crossed her arms. "Strange or not, he's one of the people who saved us. If he hadn't frozen and shattered that darkness and captured Quadryth, it would have been impossible for us to defeat it."
"What did you say?! Freezing the darkness and capturing that creature? He really did that?!"
Ryze was shocked and full of questions about the information.
"Yeah, at that moment, I sensed it with my senses when Han Yu froze the entire darkness and moved incredibly fast, even surpassing the speed he showed when he met us this morning..."
Vale answered casually. This left Ryze stunned and silent, his mind racing with questions. "That means... you defeated that Aberrant thanks to Han Yu's help?!"
"Not just Han Yu, but Elias too. He attacked Quadryth in its shadow form and created an opening, and at the same time, Han Yu rose up and pulled us all out of the darkness. And it was Elias who ultimately destroyed that creature."
Hearing Vale's explanation, Ryze shifted his gaze to Elias. "Elias, did you really destroy an Aberrant that was nearly S-rank? How?! Your rank is still C... It's impossible for a newly awakened Luminary to do that!"
"I don't know the specific details myself... But what I felt at that moment was everything slowing down. I could see my opponent clearly, and for some reason, the Etherion in my body was raging. At that point, I realized that in my condition, I might be able to defeat the Aberrant, but the side effect was that I became exhausted quickly because my Etherion depleted drastically... It's only natural, since I forced myself to erase a space..."
Ryze fell silent again, trying to interpret Elias's explanation.
The door to the room opened, and two people entered simultaneously. One was a tall man in slightly eccentric doctor's attire—his name was Drake Algor. The other was a female nurse.
"That's because he's a Mystic Luminary. Did you forget that information?"
Drake's words left Ryze silent for a moment until he finally realized it, then he laughed quite loudly.
"That's right. Elias is a Mystic Luminary, so don't question it anymore—especially since he's the son of *that* man."
"That's correct. This is normal for Mystic Luminaries."
Mystic Luminaries differ from Physical and Elemental Luminaries. There's a reason why this type is so rare and the strongest compared to others. Mystic Luminaries can ignore rank disparities because their abilities are the most powerful and rare—so facing an opponent superior in rank doesn't mean a Mystic Luminary will lose.
Mystic Luminaries can enter a flow state, where they can tap into a percentage of their peak potential—regardless of whether they're inexperienced. If they enter this flow state, their power increases dramatically, making rank differences irrelevant to Mystic Luminaries.
"Ah... I forgot. What about Han Yu's ability? Earlier, he said he didn't know what his power was, but you said he froze the darkness created by the Aberrant?! Isn't that an Elemental Luminary ability?"
Elias, Vale, Irelyn, and Evren, upon hearing the question, suddenly realized that Han Yu could manipulate ice.
"I-Impossible! A Luminary who masters all abilities?!"
"But... His Mystic ability is still unknown... Actually, what is Han Yu's power?!"
They all fell silent, countless questions swirling in their minds.
"You don't need to overthink it. It's normal for some Luminaries to master multiple abilities. On average, the strongest Luminaries in the world control more than one ability. Including your father, Ragnar Regalith, Elias!"
"What?! There are Luminaries with more than one ability?! My father... is one of them too?"
"Yes, that's right... If you want specific details, why not ask your friend named Han Yu directly about his ability."
Elias fell silent for a moment upon hearing that, realizing it made sense. If he wanted answers, he had to ask directly.
Then Elias stood up, looking at his friends. "We must honor Raven's sacrifice. Let's hold a memorial ceremony tomorrow. I'm sure Han Yu should be there too!"
They all nodded in agreement.
____
Outside The Walls, Han Yu walked into the forest, heading to his home. His face showed no expression, as if the earlier events had never happened.
"I've never cared about anyone or anything. I'll only express myself like a normal human in front of others. His death did save us all, giving me extra time to adapt to my ice ability."
"I'll attend his funeral. Even though I feel nothing about his death, I don't want them to think I'm strange."
He paused for a moment, beginning to ponder a few things. He suddenly remembered touching Quadryth earlier, which had shadow manipulation. Han Yu was confused—unlike when he touched Ryze, where his body felt an extraordinary coldness, he felt nothing now.
"Was my hypothesis wrong? I don't feel my body like before... Or can I only copy once?!"
Han Yu thought hard to find the answer... As he imagined copying Quadryth's shadow ability and creating a darkness area like before, it suddenly happened. Shadows from his body formed an area, exactly as Han Yu willed.
"Huh?! That means... I successfully copied the Aberrant's ability from before?"
Han Yu smiled faintly.
"Interesting."
"I managed to copy two abilities in one day, and these powers are very useful to me... The rest is just figuring out if there's a limit to how many abilities I can copy. But I mustn't choose abilities carelessly. Everything is getting more exciting. By becoming stronger, I can uncover the secrets of my dreams—no... even further, this world!"
The darkness area Han Yu had created vanished instantly as he decided to continue walking home.
The next day. A dark morning shrouded in black clouds, with rain beginning to fall.
Inside The Walls, Elias, Vale, Irelyn, and Evren attended Raven's funeral. Behind them stood a 41-year-old man with a thin beard and mustache, and a vertical slash scar over his right eye. He was Ragnar Regalith, attending Raven's funeral as a sign of respect for sacrificing himself to save his son, Elias Regalith.
They all paid their final respects to Raven.
After everyone left, leaving Elias alone there, Han Yu arrived—he stood beside Elias. Han Yu stared at Raven's grave for a few moments, then left, ignoring Elias's presence beside him.
Elias didn't turn as Han Yu departed, his gaze still fixed on Raven's grave.
"Han Yu... Will this happen to us someday?"
"Who knows? It all depends on fate. But every living being will eventually return to death, in different ways and places."
"I see... Ability... Has your Mystic ability been identified?"
"Pretty much. Copying the abilities of Luminaries or Aberrants that make physical contact with me. That's roughly my power."
Hearing that, Elias fell silent. He believed there were Luminaries with diverse abilities.
"This will be our last meeting, Elias. I'll become stronger, stronger, and even stronger! There's something I must uncover. I'm telling you this because you're my first friend. I hope in our next meeting, you've surpassed your current self, Elias!"
"Can't we grow stronger together?"
Elias asked with a flat expression, his gaze still on Raven's grave.
"I just prefer to be alone and free."
"I see... I have no right to stop you. One thing I want: don't die, my friend."
"Thank you. Someday, if we meet again, prepare yourself—because when that time comes, I don't know if I'll be your enemy or your friend."
Hearing that, Elias's eyes widened—he spontaneously turned his gaze toward Han Yu. As their eyes met, Han Yu gave Elias a faint smile. Elias was speechless at Han Yu's words, Han Yu's body slowly fading into shadow. Elias continued staring at Han Yu's departure, clenching his fists and biting his lip—this time, he showed an expression of disbelief at Han Yu's statement.