Chapter 29: The Rift

  "If you want to leave, leave by yourself! I’m not going anywhere!"

  Mark violently shook off Zoe’s hand. He turned to glare at her, his eyes devoid of any familial warmth. It wasn't the look of an uncle for his niece; it was the look of a man interrupted in the middle of a prayer.

  Zoe stumbled back, her face a mask of disbelief. "Uncle...?"

  "Don't you see it yet?" Mark stepped forward, his hands clamping onto Zoe’s shoulders with bruising force, physically wrenching her around to face the twisted corpse in the center of the hall.

  His voice was low, vibrating with a feverish intensity. "That thing... it’s a treasure!"

  He released her and walked toward the corpse with a near-religious reverence. He knelt, his breath hitching. He didn't dare touch it yet, but his fingers hovered inches above the grey, mottled skin, twitching with excitement.

  "Such a magnificent find, and all you can think of is running?" His voice was thick with a frantic, impatient disappointment. "Stupid! Utterly pathetic!!"

  Wolf and Vivian both scowled, their gazes shifting simultaneously toward Ethan. "What does he mean by 'treasure'?" Wolf asked, his voice low and dangerous.

  "Tsk." Ethan adjusted his spectacles, his expression a complex mix of disdain and professional curiosity. "It seems I underestimated him. This hedge-mage has a sharper eye than I gave him credit for."

  He paced forward, his gaze cutting through the air like a scalpel. "There are traces of mana on this corpse. It’s a signature I’ve never seen, never even heard of. But it isn't the chaotic stain of a random mutation. It’s structured. It has a pattern. It’s a magical effect."

  "And?" Vivian pressed, her arms crossed. "What’s the connection to 'treasure'?"

  "I don't claim to know every spell in existence," Ethan said, his voice dropping as if he were sharing a forbidden secret. "But the architecture of this imprint is fundamentally different from modern magical theory. I am eighty percent certain that this is a new, unrecorded magical phenomenon."

  "If I am the one who discovers it, the one who deconstructs it... my name will be etched into history!" Mark looked up, his eyes burning with a near-fanatical fire. "The whole world will know the name Mark Johnson! If this magic can warp a man into such a beast, its power... its value... is worth more gold than ten lifetimes could spend!"

  He spread his arms as if to claim the very air around the body. "Don't anyone touch it! This discovery is mine! I’ve waited my whole life for an opportunity like this!"

  Ethan looked at Mark with blatant disgust, rolled his eyes, and let out a long sigh. He turned back to Wolf, his expression turning grave.

  "This is exactly why I suggested we set this aside for now," Ethan said, his words slow and deliberate. "If this mutation is man-made, then the caster is a master capable of inventing their own branch of magic. If it isn't man-made... then we are facing a calamity beyond our imagination."

  He looked past Mark at the monster’s remains. "As for the body, I suggest we finish the investigation of the tower and then immediately evacuate with it. We report everything to the Mages' Association. Let the high-lords deal with it."

  "You should have told us this earlier," Wolf said, a layer of suppressed anger in his voice.

  "A lapse in judgment," Ethan admitted, adjusting his glasses. "I was concerned that members of the team might react like Miss Zoe and demand to leave... or..." He glanced at Mark, making no effort to hide his contempt. "...like our 'magic enthusiast' here, and become so obsessed that they compromise the mission."

  "Uncle, we have to go!" Zoe rushed to Mark again, her voice breaking into a sob. "You heard him! This isn't something we can handle! We should leave it to the Association!"

  "Useless girl!" Mark shoved her away, his eyes no longer holding the protective warmth of the previous night. They were cold, filled with a grotesque, singular focus. "If you want to go to the tower, go. I’m staying here to study this magic."

  When Zoe tried to grab him again, he pushed her hard. She stumbled back, nearly falling until Mary caught her. Mary could feel her friend shaking uncontrollably.

  "Mary... please... help me..." Zoe gripped Mary’s sleeve, her eyes glazed with panic. "Something is wrong here... we have to go back. Back to the White Star Tower. We have to find help..."

  Mary looked up at Ethan, who gave a slight, dismissive shake of his head. She turned back to Zoe, patting her back gently. "Don't panic yet. We’ve only seen one monster. It doesn't mean the whole region is infested. Maybe... maybe it’s just an isolated case."

  "Even if you went back for help, the Association wouldn't listen," Wolf said, his voice cold as he leaned against the wall. "What would you tell them? That you found a man-shaped monster in the far north? That you found a new spell that turns people into beasts?"

  "You’re an apprentice. Do you really think the Association is going to dispatch a high-level team based on your word alone? At best, they’d send another squad just like us. Nothing would change."

  "If you want to quit, I won't stop you. I respect your choice. But even if you quit now, how do you plan to get back? No one has the time to escort you all the way to Glory City and then come back here."

  Mary squeezed Zoe’s cold hand, her voice soft and encouraging. "Zoe, listen to me. We’re going to the tower today. If things go well, we’ll find the cause by sunset! We could be on our way home by tomorrow morning."

  "Miss Zoe, please rest assured," Ronen added, his voice calm and steady. "No one here is looking to trade their life for coin. If we encounter a threat we truly cannot face, we will evacuate before you even have to ask."

  "But would that count as a failure?" Ethan interjected.

  "If we prove the threat is beyond our capacity, that is the result of the investigation," Wolf explained. "Investigation jobs are called 'easy' because we only have to find the truth, not fix it. If we find a monster we can't beat—that is a definitive answer."

  He turned his gaze back to Zoe. "Instead of thinking about how to run, think about how to finish this safely. The breach-of-contract fee is ten sovereigns. Plus the ten you were already paid—that’s twenty. I heard you spent quite a bit at the Lapis Moon Inn the other night. Can you afford to pay it back?"

  Zoe was silent for a long moment. She let out a long, shuddering breath and finally unclenched her fists. "...Fine," she whispered, clinging to Mary’s hand. "But you have to promise me... if we find more danger... you’ll leave with me."

  Mary looked at Ethan, who had clearly lost all patience and was no longer even looking in their direction. She gave Zoe a warm, resolute smile. "If we find something we can't handle, I promise I’ll be right beside you when we leave."

  "Enough."

  Wolf’s sharp command drew everyone’s attention. He looked at the still-shaken Zoe, his brow furrowed. "We’ve wasted far too much time on this."

  He turned to the group, his voice regaining its command. "I agree with Master Ethan. This monster, however strange, is not our objective. Our mission is the Eye of the Blizzard, not this corpse. Whether they are connected is a question for later."

  Ethan nodded. "It is a distraction. We must not lose sight of our goal."

  "The plan stands," Wolf said with finality. "Eat breakfast. As soon as the sun is up, we head for the tower. As Miss Mary said, if we’re lucky, we’ll be done today. At most, we stay one more night and head back at dawn. Any objections?"

  "I’ll say it one more time—" Mark’s voice rang out, vibrating with suppressed mania. "You go to your tower. I’m staying. There is too much to learn from this body. I don't have time to follow you around."

  Wolf’s eyes narrowed. "Mr. Johnson, we are a team. I expect you to act like it."

  "A team?" Mark snorted, meeting Wolf’s gaze without flinching. "Do you really think the Lapsus Circle would be more interested in a few missing mages than a completely new branch of magic? The Circle knows value when they see it."

  "Our contract is for the tower."

  "Then report me to Miss Alice," Mark said, lifting his chin with a defiant glint in his eyes. "See if she cares more about my 'insubordination' or the fact that I’ve found something worth a thousand times our fee."

  "If you want to call it quitting, fine. Twenty sovereigns? Once I deconstruct the spells on this body, I’ll be able to pay two thousand!"

  Ronen glanced at Wolf and saw the flash of anger in the older man’s eyes.

  Wolf pinched the bridge of his nose, a look of deep exhaustion crossing his face. "This is exactly why I hate these open-recruitment teams."

  He took a deep breath, and when he looked up again, he had forced a mask of artificial cordiality onto his face.

  "It seems we cannot reach a consensus... Fine. We split into two groups. To be honest, we don't need everyone at the tower anyway."

  "Me!" Zoe raised her hand instantly, her voice thin. "I’m staying here with my uncle."

  "I’ll stay as well," Vivian said, crossing her arms. "The village needs someone with combat experience, just in case another one of those things shows up."

  "Ronen, you stay too." Wolf looked at the young mercenary, a subtle shift in his gaze. "Stay with them. And while you’re at it... see what else you can find out about this village."

  "...Understood." Ronen sighed inwardly. He was curious about the tower, but he understood Wolf’s unspoken command. This mission was getting stranger by the hour; they needed as much information as possible.

  Wolf finally turned to the two silent observers. "And the Library?"

  "I will go to the tower," Shen replied, as brief as ever.

  "Then I shall stay," Jiu said with a soft smile, his fingers tracing the edge of his notebook. "I find myself... quite interested in this village. And the people who live here."