White.
An endless expanse of snow stretched without boundary, swallowing the horizon in hollow silence. Alicia stood motionless, a sense of unease slowly creeping into her mind.
Why is it so quiet…?
She moved cautiously across the frozen plain. This dream had visited her many times before, yet this time something felt wrong. Usually, packs of ferocious Snow Wolves would attack the moment she set foot there. Now, the silence itself felt far more threatening.
Where are they?
Her legs carried her forward until her eyes caught the silhouette of a withered tree in the distance. Alicia quickened her pace, forcing her way through snowdrifts that hindered her steps. As she drew closer, a figure gradually took shape behind the dry, skeletal branches.
There, a girl dressed entirely in white stood still. Her black hair glimmered faintly beneath the pale light washing over the snowfield. As Alicia approached, a familiar yet alien sensation stirred within her—a feeling she couldn't put into words.
"W-who… are you?" Alicia asked, her voice trembling despite her attempt at firmness.
The figure slowly turned. Her gaze triggered a suffocating déjà vu, freezing Alicia in confusion. A faint smile curved the girl's lips—gentle, understanding, yet carrying a sorrow that seeped into Alicia's heart for no clear reason.
The girl rose and stepped closer until the distance between them vanished. But as her fingers lifted, reaching out to touch Alicia, her form began to turn transparent. The smile slowly faded as her body dissolved layer by layer. Alicia wanted to ask something, but her words were locked in her throat.
This time… live well.
The voice echoed softly in Alicia's mind, carrying a warmth filled with care. The girl vanished completely, melting into the falling snow.
"Who was she? Why does it feel like… I know her?" Alicia murmured.
As the snowfall grew heavier, her vision darkened, until she was swallowed entirely by pitch-black darkness.
---
The air around Kalia suddenly grew heavy—and cold. A tremor rippled through the silent dining room. Her heart pounded faster than usual, cold sweat forming at her temples.
"…That's impossible," she whispered.
A surge of Aether energy erupted from Alicia's room on the second floor. The energy was wild, immense—and painfully familiar.
Fragments of the past slammed into her mind. She was dragged back to the moment when the Six-Star Magic Spell had abruptly destabilized. The violent explosion of energy back then had not only injured her body, but also shattered her chance of ever becoming a High-Tier Mage. The trauma she had buried deep within herself now resurfaced, crawling coldly along her spine.
Kalia rushed upstairs toward Alicia's room. But the moment she stepped into the second-floor corridor, the surge intensified, exerting a physical pressure that made her body feel unbearably heavy.
Without hesitation, she conjured a barrier from her Magic Origin to withstand the crushing force.
Shielded by the transparent barrier, she finally reached Alicia's door. Even from outside, the cold was so intense it made her hallucinate—as if she were standing in the midst of a brutal snowstorm.
"Please… don't let me be too late," she murmured.
When the door opened, the sight inside stole her breath. Alicia lay rigid on the bed, barely conscious. Pale blue energy swirled around her body, trying to force its way into her form.
Kalia tried to push forward, but the fluctuating energy seemed to possess a will of its own, rejecting her presence. Panic gnawed at her reason.
Suddenly, Alicia jolted awake. Her eyes flew open—not in full awareness, but in unbearable pain. She whimpered as bluish veins spread across her neck, while her body temperature plummeted toward freezing.
"Alicia! Stay calm!" Kalia shouted, her voice shaking violently, nearly drowned out by the roaring energy.
Amid the chaos, a long-forgotten memory struck Kalia's mind. She remembered herself as a child, lying on a sickbed with a similar glow enveloping her body. It hadn't been an external attack. It had been an awakening—the Lightning Element seeking its host.
Kalia understood.
This wasn't a disaster to be stopped. It was power that needed to be tamed.
"Alicia, listen to Mom!" Kalia yelled, forcing authority into her voice through the storm. "Don't reject it! Absorb the energy into your core. Let it flow—don't let it run wild!"
She continued, "Slowly… feel its current. Make it a part of you!"
Alicia took a deep breath, trying to calm the turmoil in her mind.
Despite her hesitation, she chose to trust her mother's instructions.
Slowly, Alicia closed her eyes.
She focused all her awareness on the raging energy surrounding her.
Miraculously, the chaos began to subside. The once-uncontrolled energy now bent to her will, flowing into her body.
From the doorway, Kalia watched with hopeful eyes. A faint smile appeared on her weary face.
"You're do—"
Her words cut off abruptly.
Alicia's body suddenly tensed. Her muscles stiffened like stone, as if something had forcibly locked her joints from within.
Her breath hitched, then stopped in her throat.
Without warning, pale white frost began creeping out from beneath the skin of her neck. The ice crystals spread rapidly, like thirsty roots.
"Alicia, wa—"
Kalia froze. Her voice vanished, swallowed by horror at the drastic transformation unfolding before her eyes.
Unimaginable pain exploded throughout Alicia's body. It was no longer just a piercing cold.
The blood flowing through her veins felt like sharp crystal shards freezing solid in an instant.
Crack.
A thin, piercing sound echoed from beneath the bed.
A layer of icy frost bloomed uncontrollably from below, racing up the bed's legs before spreading across the entire floor.
Alicia's fingers lost their color. Her hair, once white, became streaked with pale blue.
She stopped moving. Her breathing grew faint.
"Alicia! Wake up! Don't let the energy go berserk!" Kalia screamed hysterically. She knew all too well—an elemental awakening could not be interfered with by anyone else.
"M-Mom… it… it hurts so much…" Alicia whimpered weakly.
The energy within her body had reached its limit. She lost control—and a second later, an explosion of freezing energy erupted.
Icy air filled the room. Furniture and walls froze solid within seconds.
Fortunately, Kalia's barrier was strong enough to shield them both from the blast. She rushed to Alicia's side, where her daughter lay limp.
"Alicia! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Kalia asked, her lips trembling.
Alicia's eyes were unfocused, yet she struggled to stay conscious. "M-Mom? I… I'm okay. Just… tired," she whispered.
Kalia immediately examined her daughter, channeling her own Aether to scan Alicia's internal condition.
Strangely, the energy inside Alicia now felt pure and calm—an extreme contrast to the storm that had just raged.
Alicia forced herself to sit up, though it drained the last of her strength. "M-Mom… can you help me sit?"
Kalia quickly helped her lean against the headboard. But as Alicia straightened, a sharp throbbing pain struck her head.
Her vision blurred, replaced by fragments of strange memories flashing rapidly—scenes she didn't recognize, yet felt deeply familiar to her soul.
Alicia whimpered softly, clutching her pale head. Kalia immediately grew anxious. "What is it, Alicia? Does your head hurt?"
"N-no… I'm fine, Mom," Alicia replied shortly, forcing a small smile despite the confusion churning inside her.
What were those memories?
Why did they feel so familiar?
"You don't need to worry. I'm really okay," Alicia repeated, trying to reassure her.
"Of course I'm worried! If anything happened to you, I'd never forgive myself," Kalia said, tears beginning to fall.
Seeing her mother cry, Alicia felt a surge of emotion. She wrapped her still-cold arms around her mother. "Mom, look—I can still smile."
Kalia went silent in the embrace. The feeling reminded her of her dark past, of someone who had once offered her the same warmth when she had fallen.
Once things finally calmed down, Kalia looked around the room, now encased in ice and severely damaged by the blast. "Alicia, this room can't be used anymore. You'll sleep in Mom's room tonight, okay?"
"But Mom's room only has one bed," Alicia replied.
Kalia flinched, only then realizing the limitation. Before she could answer, Alicia spoke again.
"Mom, you sleep in your room. I'll use the guest room—just please take me there. My legs still feel weak."
Kalia could only comply. She carefully carried Alicia toward the guest room.
As they passed through the hallway, Alicia looked up at her. "By the way, Mom… what actually happened to me just now?"
Kalia paused briefly, staring straight ahead. "It's nothing. I'll explain everything tomorrow. For now, you need plenty of rest."
"…Okay," Alicia replied, though her mind was still filled with countless questions.
Once in the guest room, Kalia laid Alicia down and tucked her in. She headed for the door, but stopped and glanced back.
"I'm really fine, Mom," Alicia said again, as if to reassure her.
Kalia nodded softly, then stepped out and closed the door with a gentle click.
Alone in the unfamiliar room, Alicia lay staring at the ceiling. Her thoughts spun endlessly, searching for answers about the mysterious power and memories she had experienced—until exhaustion finally pulled her into sleep, and darkness claimed her once more.