CREAK
The door bursts open. A familiar face steps in — Teruki. Her long silver-blue hair cascading down her back. White robes with silver outlines drape over her. She's wearing oven mitts. A small pendant is woven into her hair. Her deep blue eyes shimmer with concern.
"They're here," she sighs. She's barely paying attention.
Before I can respond, she's already turning to leave. Reyna cuts her off.
"What are you making?" Reyna asks. She glances at Teruki's hands.
Teruki blinks, as if just now noticing the mitts.
"Muffins," she answers with a large smile.
A small spider descends from the ceiling. It skitters down on a thread. I instinctively grab it in my hands, ready to crush it.
"Don't kill it!" Teruki blurts out, her voice sharp with urgency.
I sigh. "Fine. What should I do with it?"
"Put it outside," she says quickly.
She hurries off before I can say a word.
Reyna watches her leave, then turns to me.
"She's worried about her muffins," she says dryly.
Sera steps forward, her masked face revealing little, but I can tell she's smiling beneath it. She turns to Reyna.
"I'll find it, guild master," she says emotionlessly.
Before I can ask what's going on, Reyna jolts up from her chair.
"Follow." she commands.
I obey without question.
We walk toward the teleport circle in the center of the floor, surrounded by glass.
"What's Sera looking for?"
"An artifact," Reyna replies, her tone formal.
"An artifact?" I echo.
We step into the circle, and the runes flicker to life, the rune beginning to descend.
Reyna's face is tense. A rare sight.
"What's wrong?" I ask.
"Nothing," Reyna says. "Just nerves."
"Are you sure we can trust them?" I ask quietly.
"I'm positive," she replies firmly. "They're a reputable guild, and Viri spoke highly of their leader."
"We're putting a lot of faith in someone we barely know," I mutter.
"In truth, they're our only hope," Reyna says. "Their guild is the only one willing to ally with ours."
"Ascend," a voice whispers faintly in my mind.
"In all likelihood, we shouldn't have made that deal," She says softly.
"You're right," I admit. "We held all the cards."
"But we did," she counters. "And we can't change that now."
"Even still," Reyna says, her tone steady. "If we lose... then we face it when it comes."
"Do you really think this guild can help us?" I ask. "A guild that doesn't even use magic?"
Reyna sighs. "I believe so."
The door to the guild hall gleams brightly — polished wood with intricate carvings of swords and shields woven into the design.
The spider in my hand has not moved. It's cold and still, like an empty husk.
I'd heard good things about this guild — stories of crusaders, of honor and loyalty — yet doubt gnaws at me. I've never met them before. The only one I had encountered didn't seem like someone I'd trust. But if Reyna believed in them, I would too.
This time, it isn't just a single person like before — it's an entire guild. A group of people.
The door swings open. For the first time in what feels like ages, sunlight — pure and unfiltered — floods in. I lift my empty hand to shield my eyes as they adjust. I kneel placing the spider outside. It scurries away down the steps.
PULSE
A wave of mana surges through the air, sharp and sudden. My stomach turns, and the world tilts beneath me. I stumble, falling to the ground.
When my vision clears, I see them — a hundred or so players and NPCs alike, lined up in pairs across the street. At the front stand two men, their presence commanding.
One of the two men towers over us, his presence making us seem like dwarfs in comparison. He's clad in red and white armor with their guild's logo prominently displayed on his chest plate. His face is hardened, his stance firm — a seasoned warrior.
The other is younger, no older than eighteen, with brown hair and striking golden eyes. He wears the same red and white attire, though the way he carries himself is far more casual.
The pulsing sensation worsens. My stomach churns, and the overwhelming pressure of mana makes it hard to breathe. The taller man slips a ring onto the boy's hand — his fifth ring — each one noticeably tighter than the last.
As soon as the fifth ring is secured, the suffocating pressure vanishes.
"How much mana does this boy have?" I wonder to myself.
"No need to bow," the boy laughs, his voice lighthearted.
I straighten myself. I still feel unsteady.
"It's nice to finally meet you." He extended a hand.
I shake it firmly. My gaze shifted to the armored man and back.
"I assume you're Adrian's second-in-command?" I ask.
"No," the boy laughs again. "I'm Adrian."
"You?" My disbelief is clear in my voice. "Aren't you a little young?"
"You must not have been at the last summit," Adrian chuckles.
"No," I admit. "Teruki attended in my place."
"Regardless," Adrian continues, "it's an honor to meet the most famous person in the tower."
I blink in confusion. I'm unsure what he means. I glance at Reyna.
"Come," she urges quickly, clearly eager to change the subject.
"I'm Reyna," she introduces herself as we walk. "This is Eli."
"I'm Adrian," the boy says with a smile. "And this is Tank."
"And you're Adrian's right hand?" I ask.
The armored man. He's still silent. He gives a slight nod. The only sound is the faint clinking of his armor..
"Indeed," Adrian replies, his tone shifting to something more professional.
We step onto the rune elevator. It begins to ascend, silence hangs heavy between us.
"I apologize for earlier," Adrian says at last. "It's hard to know when our mana is getting out of control."
"That's what the rings are for, then?" I ask.
"Exactly."
"Don't worry, we didn't feel anything," Reyna says calmly.
But that isn't true — I did feel it. That oppressive mana weighed down on me, worse than anything I'd experienced before.
I've always believed Sho's mana far exceeded mine, yet I've never felt anything like that from her. Was this the difference? Was this what it felt like when someone controlled their mana with precision — when their flow was so tightly contained that the slightest leak became suffocating?
Is this what having little mana feels like?