Everything felt sudden, Yannick had stormed out of the dojo, and now, unexpectedly, Yu or rather, Shion had appeared.
Lucid wasn't fazed as he was well-acquainted with change, and with the feelings that came along with it: stress, anxiety, and the element of surprise.
Amid all that, Alice too, had her attention snapped toward Shion. Looking up, she blurted something so abrupt it nearly shattered the tension in the air.
"That's Yu from the wanted poster—he turned into a woman!"
As strange as it sounded, Alice had her reasons.
Back when Lucid and Shion helped the family escape the sector, Shion known as Yu had spent a couple of days at Andrew's tavern, quietly observing Lucid, watching what he would do next all the while hiding behind her fake persona.
She didn't speak with the group, nor did she grow acquainted, Alice had noticed her—and noticed the resemblance to the person in the wanted poster.
She knew it was Yu.
The very person they had been sent to track down… and maybe even kill.
However, seeing that Lucid was acting so casual, almost like they were partners in crime—Alice stayed quiet.
After all, she didn't doubt Lucid's judgment. He was always right in her eyes, even if the world said otherwise.
Shion, taken aback, didn't speak at first. She simply looked at them—gracefully, almost bewildered too. When she finally did speak, her voice was calm and steady, like someone who hadn't spoken in a long while.
"You're not too wrong," she said, offering a gentle smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
Lucid stepped closer, examining her more carefully.
Despite her calm demeanor, her body betrayed her condition. One of her hands was bleeding, her knuckles raw and torn. Blood trailed down the side of her face, matting her hair—evidence of a blow to the head. Her posture was tense, as though holding herself together through sheer will.
Noticing all of this, Lucid raised one hand either to stop her, or to tend to her wounds. It was unclear, even to him.
But before he could reach her, Shion intercepted his hand mid-air in a swift, practiced motion.
"It's okay. I've suffered worse."
Her voice carried a heavy, remorseful tone—one that hinted at more than just physical pain. It spoke of the loss of her leader… and perhaps the fall of everything she once believed in.
Lucid looked at her, saying nothing—but he understood.
He knew about her past. The sister she never got to meet. The village that cast her aside like she was nothing. The cause she fought for, now crumbling in her hands.
In her, Lucid saw a reflection of himself. A version of him that might have been, or perhaps still was.
Shion noticed his gaze and turned her eyes away—maybe out of embarrassment, maybe from exhaustion.
"Please," she said quietly. "Spare me the pity. You don't have to look at me like that."
There was no anger in her voice but oddly enough there was a sense of resignation.
Lucid hesitated, then asked her a question not too deep, but not too empty either. Just enough to open the door without pushing her through it.
"What happened?"
A simple question.
But sometimes, the simplest ones cut the deepest.
Alice handed Shion a flask of water, which she accepted gratefully. She drank as if she were parched, nearly emptying it in one go.
When she finally stopped, she let out a long sigh—one of relief, exhaustion, and barely-contained anxiety.
Then she continued, her voice a little steadier now:
"Everything is gone. My purpose. My revenge. My leader."
"You don't mean–" Lucid began.
She nodded.
"Yes… After my successful mission to steal the scroll from the Celestial Archives, I was supposed to lay low. That was the plan. But then I ran into you… and then the chaos in Sector 8. I couldn't just stand by and watch those nobles do whatever they wanted. So I stepped in. We also had a word from a spy—the upper council, Circle of Nine were planning to wipe out an entire sector. Just after I stole that scroll, we didn't expect them to take such drastic measures."
Lucid quietly pieced everything together in his head.
'That's why she was asking about the sectors.' he realized, his thoughts were quiet and heavy at the same time.
Shion went on.
"But… My leader never intended to fight back in the first place. When I returned, he had already paid everyone off. He sold most of the belongings tied to the creed. He was… waiting. Waiting for someone. Or maybe provoking someone."
She took a breath.
"It was an Archmage. And not just anyone… It was Themenos accompanied by another Archmage and 30 guards."
The name echoed strangely in Lucid's mind. It felt familiar, like he had come across this person, but he couldn't dwell on it. The weight of the situation pressed down on him, pushing aside that passing thought.
"It's like my leader betrayed me," she murmured. "But I can't bring myself to hate him. Or feel angry. I just…"
"It's okay, Shion. Breathe," Lucid said softly almost as if remembering something, the words falling from his lips like a quiet memory.
"One piece at a time."
It was a phrase Andrew had once told him. A piece of advice he never forgot.
Shion looked up at him, her gaze drawn to the glass mask he wore. A gentle smile crossed her lips.
"Still… I can't leave you like that. I have to patch you up."
Without hesitation, Lucid summoned a card—but not one of his usual cards.
This one was different.
A red diamond card, gleaming faintly with seven diamond symbols, materialized in front of him. He reached his hand through it, and from within, he pulled out a small medkit and a few basic provisions—supplies he had likely stored long ago, maybe even before this world.
The diamond card was part of Lucid's power; its ability allowed him to store objects and retrieve them later. But unlike his other cards, this one wasn't summoned on instinct. It had to be searched for, almost pulled from memory, as if it didn't quite belong.
It was, for lack of a better word...
"A weird card," Lucid thought.
A few moments passed. Despite some initial resistance, Shion finally relented and allowed Lucid to treat her wounds. She flinched occasionally at the sting of rubbing alcohol or the pressure of his touch, but otherwise, she remained surprisingly calm—something that quietly surprised Lucid.
Meanwhile, Alice was silently watching them, her eyes fixated on Lucid's hands—watching him work with care and precision.
"You… you're good at healing people," Shion said, her voice tinged with curiosity. "Could you be an apothecary?"
Lucid shook his head.
"No. I'm just someone who had to look after others. That's all."
Shion's words lingered in the air.
Surprisingly, they sent Lucid into deep thought.
'How odd… It's like my hands know what to do, but my mind doesn't. What could I have possibly been doing before I arrived in this world?'
His hands continued wrapping the last bandage around Shion's palm with quiet precision—almost automatic. Muscle memory, perhaps. But whose?
Shion leaned back slightly in the chair, her posture softening. Her eyes, for the first time in a while, weren't guarded. They followed Lucid's movements as he worked.
"I feel… better. Thank you."
Her voice was quiet, sincere.
By the time they finished, the sky had gone completely dark. The lanterns around the outskirts flickered with dim mana, and the streets outside had grown quiet.
Lucid stood and wiped his hands on a cloth. He had something he needed to do—he had to find Yannick. But the thought of leaving Shion in her current state gnawed at him. She was calm now, but fragile beneath the surface.
Maybe I should send Alice with her to Andrew's tavern, he thought.
"I'll go with you," Shion said.
Lucid turned to her, surprised. She hadn't even hesitated. It was like she'd read his mind.
"But you're hurt," he said.
Shion brushed it off.
"It's fine. I'm an assassin. I've had worse."
Alice stepped forward suddenly, gripping her hands close to her chest, eyes wide with determination.
"I'll go too!"
Shion looked at the girl. Her expression was unreadable at first, then softened into something faintly sad.
"Are you sure, child? This world will eat you up and spit you out like you're nothing. If I were you, I'd go home... live in peaceful ignorance while you still can."
Lucid turned his gaze toward Alice.
Strangely, he wasn't against the idea. Not anymore. These past two weeks, he'd trained her—taught her how to move, how to think, how to protect herself.
She wasn't the same defenseless girl he'd found in the forest.
He walked over to her and knelt down, meeting her eyes.
"Are you sure?"
Alice nodded firmly.
"Mhm! I'll put into practice everything I've learned, big brother!"
Shion opened her mouth, about to protest.
"Are you sure? She's just a kid—"
But then she looked at the two of them again.
There was something between them. A quiet bond. A rhythm in their exchange she couldn't quite define.
She closed her mouth and said nothing.
Lucid, noticing her silence, spoke for her.
"It's okay. I can't always shelter her."
Shion crossed her arms, one still loosely bandaged.
"Are you sure? From the looks of it, you were about to go after someone. Could it be the one who passed me in a hurry earlier? Is he heading to Sector 12?"
Lucid nodded slowly.
"We're after him. And based on what we've seen, it's likely he's headed that way."
Shion looked away, fiddling with the edges of her bandage, her voice more serious now.
"Sector 12 has completely fallen."
She paused, then met his gaze again.
"I doubt he'll be able to get in. From what I've seen, it's far more likely he's heading toward Sector 11."
Lucid tilted his head.
"I see."
The weight in her voice was enough to convince him this wasn't just a hunch.
"If you'd like," Shion offered, "I could guide you there. I know the slums of Sector 11 inside and out. Every back alley, every safe path. I used to live there before moving up to sector 9."
Lucid nodded once, without hesitation.
"Sure."
Shion smiled faintly at his answer, though her eyes remained deep in thought.
She turned away, hiding the way her fingers trembled slightly beneath the cloth.
The night was getting colder. But the path forward had never felt so alive.