Long before she met Tanaka, long before the light sphere, long before the town burned and people screamed her name in fear…
Zarestia lived alone.
After killing the humans who had tricked her and stolen her power, she flew far away from human civilization. Far beyond roads, beyond villages, beyond places where smoke rose from chimneys and people laughed and fought and lived their small, fragile lives.
She chose a mountain.
A tall, lonely mountain where the wind never stopped blowing and the clouds sometimes drifted lower than the peak itself. There were no houses, no roads, no voices, only rocks, sky, and endless wind.
It was quiet.
Peaceful.
Empty.
She liked it.
Days passed.
Then months.
Then years.
She didn't count time, but if someone had, they would have said nearly a decade passed like that.
She slept when she wanted, flew when she wanted, watched storms from above the clouds, and sometimes just sat on the edge of the mountain, hugging her knees, staring at the horizon.
No one came.
No one bothered her.
No one tried to trick her again.
It was lonely.
But it was safe.
Then one day, she saw something strange.
From the top of the mountain, she noticed movement far below — a small caravan moving along a narrow road that passed near the base of the mountain.
Large ground dragons pulled wooden carriages loaded with goods, while merchants walked beside them, talking and laughing.
Zarestia watched them silently from above.
They were humans.
Her expression slowly darkened.
Without a word, she raised her hand.
Wind gathered instantly.
A powerful gust slammed into the road, overturning one of the carriages and sending boxes flying everywhere.
The ground dragons roared in panic.
The merchants screamed.
She descended from the sky like a storm.
Wind blades cut the ground in front of them, barely missing their bodies.
She wasn't warning them.
She was trying to kill them.
"Run! Run!!"
They abandoned the carriages and ran for their lives down the road, stumbling and screaming.
Zarestia watched them run away.
She didn't chase them.
She just stood there, wind swirling around her.
"…Cowards," she muttered quietly.
After that, caravans stopped passing for a long time.
The mountain became quiet again.
Silent again.
Lonely again.
Then one day, someone came.
Not a caravan.
Not merchants.
Just one man.
He walked up the mountain path alone as if he were taking a casual stroll in a garden.
He was tall.
He had silver hair that moved gently with the wind, icy blue eyes, and a face so well-shaped he looked more like a sculpture than a human. His clothes were simple but elegant, and his posture was relaxed, like he wasn't worried about anything in the world.
Zarestia appeared in front of him without a sound.
Wind exploded around her instantly.
"Die."
Wind blades shot toward him from multiple directions.
They hit him directly.
Or at least, they should have.
The wind passed through him like mist.
His clothes didn't move.
His hair didn't move.
He didn't move.
He just stood there, completely unharmed.
Zarestia's eyes widened slightly.
She attacked again.
Stronger this time.
A massive gust slammed into him, strong enough to tear trees from the ground.
Nothing happened.
She attacked again.
And again.
And again.
Wind blades.
Pressure blasts.
Storm currents.
Every attack passed through him as if he didn't exist.
He simply looked at her calmly the entire time.
Finally, he spoke.
"I came here," he said casually, "because I was told there was a crazy woman who kept trying to kill the merchants passing by this mountain."
Zarestia's eyes narrowed.
"But you're a spirit, right…" he continued, tilting his head slightly as if examining something interesting.
"Die!"
She sent another massive wind slash toward him.
It passed through him again without leaving a single mark.
He looked down at himself, then at the destroyed ground behind him, and let out a small thoughtful sound.
"Hmm."
Then he held his chin and started thinking.
Actually thinking.
Right in front of her.
Zarestia stopped attacking.
She just stared at him.
He walked a few steps to the side, still holding his chin, mumbling quietly to himself.
He nodded to himself.
Then suddenly, as if he had reached a conclusion, he snapped his fingers.
"Alright."
He then walked toward the mountain wall.
Zarestia frowned slightly, watching him.
He stood in front of the rock wall for a second.
Then he slammed his head into it.
BAM.
He stepped back, touched his forehead, looked at the small amount of blood on his fingers.
"…Not enough."
BAM.
He hit his head again.
This time harder.
Blood started running down the side of his forehead.
Zarestia just stared at him in complete silence.
Then he grabbed his own robe, a clearly expensive robe, something a noble or royal would wear, and tore part of the sleeve.
Then he rubbed some dirt and blood on the fabric.
Then he kicked a rock, then punched the wall once, scraping his knuckles.
He stepped back and looked at himself.
Messy hair.
Torn robe.
Blood on his forehead.
Scratched hands.
He nodded in satisfaction.
Zarestia finally spoke, completely confused.
"…What are you doing?"
He looked at her like the answer was obvious.
"I need to make it look like the fight was hard."
Zarestia blinked.
"…Huh?"
He then turned around and started walking away.
"In any case," he said, waving his hand lightly, "I'll come by again tomorrow. Goodbye."
Then something strange happened.
His feet slowly lifted off the ground.
He began floating in the air as if gravity didn't apply to him.
Then he calmly flew away into the sky like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Zarestia just stood there, staring at the sky where he had disappeared.
For the first time in many years...
She was flabbergasted.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Violence.
Flames.
Chaos.
Just an hour ago, the town had been peaceful.
Now it looked like the end of the world.
People were fighting while buildings burned behind them. Some tried to put out the fire, others took advantage of the chaos to steal. Some were crying, some were screaming, some were stabbing each other for no reason at all.
And every minute that passed...
It got worse.
It was spreading like a plague.
And At the end of the burning street.
Through the smoke and heat distortion.
Tanaka saw a figure standing alone.
Just standing there.
Holding a sphere of light about the size of a football.
It glowed softly, a radiating white light, but the mana radiating from it was so dense that even from this distance Tanaka could feel the pressure on his skin.
The figure holding it had milky-white shaggy hair with a lime-colored strand, white eyebrows, and sharp almond-shaped eyes.
But the eyes were wrong.
They were red.
Deep, intense red.
Seeing that scene, Tanaka felt his chest tighten.
He couldn't help but whisper one word.
"…No."
Why? Why now?
The worst possible scenario was unfolding right in front of him.
Why were people losing control and fighting each other before Zarestia even got the orb?
Why was the city already collapsing into chaos?
Then a thought crossed his mind.
as if, every small irritation was turning into rage.
Tristan stepped forward, looking relieved.
"Tia-Sama! I'm going to assume that's the light ball you were talking about. In any case, come help us..."
Tanaka grabbed Tristan's arm suddenly and stopped him.
"That's not Tia."
Tristan looked at him like he had just said something insane.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The figure ahead of them looked exactly like Zarestia.
Same face.
Same hair.
Same height.
Same kimono.
But Tanaka noticed one small difference.
The colors of the kimono were different.
Subtle.
But different.
The figure didn't say a word.
She simply looked down at the light sphere in her hands.
The light began to intensify.
The mana leaking from it became heavier, denser, suffocating.
Tristan tensed immediately.
"This mana… I feel like I'm going to collapse…"
Suddenly, a voice echoed in Tanaka's mind.
"Get out of there."
Tanaka's eyes widened slightly.
"…Cepheus?"
"What?" Tristan asked.
"…Nothing," Tanaka said quickly. "We need to get away. That person is not Tia."
"Explain! She clearly looks like Lady Tia, and what is that light ball!? The mana it's radiating is insane!"
"We don't have time for explanations right now!"
But something felt off.
The woman holding the sphere wasn't attacking.
She wasn't moving.
She was just standing there.
Releasing mana.
Like a signal.
As if...
As if she was calling someone.
Then Tanaka felt it.
Wind.
A gentle wind began circling around them.
Then it grew stronger.
Dust and ashes began to swirl.
Tanaka's eyes widened as realization hit him.
"…No way."
The wind intensified suddenly, becoming violent.
He tried to move.
He couldn't.
The pressure in the air pinned him in place like invisible hands holding his body.
The woman holding the sphere suddenly stopped increasing the mana output.
Then she raised her hand slightly.
A vertical blade of wind shot upward so fast Tanaka barely saw it.
There was a slicing sound.
Then...
Blood drops fell through the air.
When the wind calmed down, Tanaka finally saw what happened.
A body fell to the ground.
A young woman.
Short dark-brown hair.
Light blue eyes.
Now lifeless.
The Oni girl.
Reize.
Dead.
Tanaka's pupils shrank.
And then...
Another figure appeared where the wind had gathered.
Milky-white shaggy hair with a lime strand.
White eyebrows.
Sharp almond-shaped eyes.
But this time...
Her eyes were bright yellow.
Not red.
Even though she looked identical to the woman from a moment ago, this was clearly a different person.
This time, the person standing there was unmistakably...
The Great Spirit of Wind.
Zarestia.
She looked around for a moment, then smiled brightly when she saw Tanaka and Tristan.
He couldn't help but whisper one word.
"…No."
Why? Why now?
The worst possible scenario was unfolding right in front of him.
She raised the glowing sphere happily.
"Jay!! Tris! I found it! My light ball!"
Tanaka's heart dropped into his stomach.
"Zarestia!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "Take that thing out of your hands!"
It was a desperate scream.
A useless scream.
Because it was already too late.
And Tanaka realized he had realized it too late.
Tristan's expression suddenly changed.
His ears twitched.
His eyes widened.
Then his body moved before his mind even finished processing the danger.
He dashed forward at incredible speed and slammed his shoulder into Tanaka, pushing him out of the way.
"AGH!!!"
The impact was so violent Tanaka felt several ribs crack instantly as he was thrown across the ground, rolling through dust and ash.
He groaned in pain, barely able to breathe.
"…You… what the hell..."
He raised his head.
And what he saw froze his blood.
Tristan was still standing.
But only half of him.
His body had been cleanly sliced vertically from shoulder to waist. The upper half slid off slowly, blood spraying into the air like red mist.
Behind him, everything in a straight line had been cut apart.
People.
Stalls.
Walls.
Even the ground itself.
A massive trench carved through the street, like the world itself had been split open.
For a few seconds, there was complete silence.
Then Tristan's body collapsed.
Tanaka's mind went blank.
"…Tristan?"
No answer.
Only fire, smoke, and the smell of blood.
Tanaka slowly lifted his head and looked toward Zarestia.
That was when he saw it.
Her eyes.
Her golden almond-shaped eyes—
Were turning red.
Not glowing.
Not reflecting light.
Changing color.
Like ink spreading through water.
Her expression had changed too. The gentle, curious, slightly mischievous expression she usually had was gone.
Her face was empty.
Cold.
And full of killing intent.
She's been corrupted.
Before he could move, she raised her hand again.
Wind gathered instantly.
Tanaka forced himself to react.
"Huma!"
A massive wall of ice erupted in front of him, thick and reinforced with multiple layers.
The wind slash hit the ice wall.
For a fraction of a second, it held.
Then it shattered instantly.
But the ice had slightly deflected the trajectory.
The wind blade still reached him.
And cut his arm off.
Tanaka screamed.
"AAAAAAAGH!!!"
His right arm fell to the ground several meters away as blood sprayed violently from the stump. He collapsed to his knees, grabbing his shoulder, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.
His vision blurred from pain.
His ears rang.
But the nightmare wasn't over.
Behind him, some civilians who had been watching in horror started screaming and throwing stones.
"It's her fault!"
"Her wind is making the fire worse!"
"She's the one causing this!"
"Monster!"
Zarestia slowly turned her head toward them.
Her red eyes locked onto the group.
Tanaka's heart sank.
"No… stop…"
But she had already raised her hand.
Wind exploded forward.
Screams.
Blood.
Bodies torn apart like paper.
She killed them instantly.
Indiscriminately.
Men.
Women.
Anyone in that direction.
Tanaka stared in horror.
"Get out of here!"
"This has never happened before…" he whispered.
Reize killed herself.
She stole the light ball, came to the center of the town to lure Zarestia and then killed herself...
Cepheus' voice echoed in his head again.
"This is worse than I thought, you need to get out now!"
"If you know something then say it! The way people are going mad..."
"It's similar to what happened to me, it's the phantom curse, isn't it? But how!?"
Sonia was dead, was there another shaman lurking around?
"In any case, get out of there. This is very bad."
Tanaka gritted his teeth.
"You're telling me to run for my life? Seriously? After all these people died without me even trying!?"
"You don't understand," Cepheus replied. "You must not Return by Death here."
Tanaka froze for a brief second.
But he didn't run.
Instead, he slammed his remaining hand on the ground.
"Dona!"
The earth rose in front of him, forming a thick stone barrier as another wind slash struck, carving deep into the rock but stopping just short of him.
He stood up slowly, bleeding heavily, barely able to stay conscious.
"Zarestia!" he shouted. "Listen to me! I know you don't want to hurt people!"
"Die."
Her voice was cold.
Another wind blade came.
He dodged sideways.
Another.
He raised stone walls, ice barriers, anything he could cast while moving, barely surviving each attack.
"Die."
"Die."
"Die."
She kept repeating the word like a broken doll while attacking him again and again.
But Tanaka noticed something.
The closer he got—
The slower her attacks became.
The less precise they were.
She was hesitating.
He was now only a few feet away from her.
Slowly, he removed his mask and let it fall to the ground.
"What did I tell you?" he said, breathing heavily. "When we find your light ball and you feel like killing others…"
He stepped closer.
"I want to be the first one you kill."
He stopped moving.
He didn't prepare a spell.
He didn't try to dodge.
"There you go," he said quietly. "Here I am."
Zarestia raised her hand.
Her red eyes locked onto his neck.
A simple wind blade would be enough to decapitate him instantly.
Her hand stopped just a few centimeters away from his throat.
Nothing happened.
Her hand started shaking.
Her eyes trembled.
Then tears began falling down her face.
"Jay… run away… please…"
Her voice was trembling, broken, desperate.
"I can't run away and leave you here," Tanaka said softly.
He stepped forward and hugged her with his remaining arm.
"It's okay… I'm here… I'm not going to let you die…"
"I swear it— Agh…"
His words suddenly stopped.
Something cold pierced through his back.
Then through his chest.
He looked down slowly.
A blade was sticking out of his chest, covered in blood.
"You didn't have time to treat my son," a voice said behind him, full of hatred. "But you have time to fool around here, huh?"
Tanaka's eyes widened slightly.
Will.
The boy's father.
The knife had pierced straight through his heart.
Blood filled Tanaka's mouth and spilled down his chin.
Zarestia's eyes widened as she saw the blade coming out of his chest.
Her expression broke.
Her emotions exploded.
Her killing intent surged violently.
The wind around them became a storm.
Tanaka's vision started turning dark.
The last thing he felt was Zarestia holding him as the world disappeared into black.
Then...
He died.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Castle of Solitude
Wind moved gently across the endless green hills.
The sky was impossibly blue, clouds drifting slowly like time itself had no meaning here.
Tanaka opened his eyes.
He was lying on the grass.
"…Again?" he muttered quietly.
Frankly, he didn't expect to be summoned here again so soon — especially after what he had said to Cepheus the last time they met.
He had Ignored his warnings.
And died for it.
He slowly sat up.
"Cepheus, I—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Cepheus was standing right in front of him.
With his back turned toward Tanaka.
That alone was strange.
Cepheus usually sat under the parasol, calm, composed, like a king watching the world from afar.
But now he was standing.
And more importantly...
He was standing in front of Tanaka, blocking his view.
Like he was shielding him.
Shielding him from someone.
Or something.
Cepheus didn't turn around.
He didn't speak.
But his voice reached Tanaka anyway.
"Stay behind me."
Tanaka frowned.
"…What's going on?"
Then he felt it.
A presence.
Cold.
Heavy.
Ancient.
A shiver ran down his spine, the kind of instinctive fear that came before a predator revealed itself.
Tanaka slowly looked past Cepheus' shoulder.
Across the endless grass field, a figure was standing.
Completely still.
Not moving.
Not walking.
Just standing there as if he had always been there.
He looked like a man in his twenties, maybe older, maybe younger — it was hard to tell. His hair was dark, slightly messy, moving gently with the wind. He wore simple clothes, almost like a traveler, nothing particularly remarkable.
Except for one thing.
On his forehead were two strange marks.
They looked like scars.
But too symmetrical.
Too precise.
Like symbols carved into his skin long ago.
As Tanaka tried to focus on them, he suddenly felt a headache, like his brain was refusing to process what he was seeing.
Then...
The man started laughing.
"BHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The laughter echoed across the entire field, loud, unrestrained, almost joyful.
He bent forward slightly, holding his stomach as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
"For a mere human," he said while laughing, "you have always been a sore throat, I will give you that… but this..."
He looked up directly at Cepheus, smiling widely.
"This surpassed my imagination, Cepheus! Hahaha!"