The battlefield was quiet now.
Or maybe it only seemed quiet because Riku's ears were ringing from the chaos a few moments before.
Bodies littered the muddy earth, armored knights sprawled beside charred mages. Broken spears jutted out of the ground like crooked grave markers. The smell of blood and smoke was heavy in the air.
And yet, all eyes were on him.
The "stranger" who had stepped out of nowhere and erased a fireball as if it were a candle flame.
Riku rubbed his temples. "…I really should've stayed in bed."
The soldiers murmured among themselves.
"Is he… a god?"
"No, look at him—he's unarmed. Maybe a sorcerer?"
"Nonsense, no human can do that."
Before the whispers could grow louder, the ground trembled again. A shadow loomed across the battlefield.
From the smoke emerged a beast—ten feet tall, its body stitched together from scales and bone. A chimera, its lion's maw dripping with blood, wings black as ash. Its eyes glowed with a hunger that was not animal but demonic.
The knights raised trembling swords. The mages staggered to chant broken incantations. But Riku only sighed.
"Of course. Why not a giant monster too?"
The chimera roared, charging toward him with claws that could split stone.
Instinctively, the words appeared before Riku's eyes:
[Concept of Beast: Instinct]
"…Instinct, huh?" He tilted his head, lips quirking. "Let's see what happens if I edit that."
The letters twisted.
[Rewrite: Instinct = Sleep]
The chimera's roar cut short. Its eyes rolled back, and with a thunderous crash, it collapsed onto the ground—snoring like a colossal cat.
The soldiers gawked. Silence stretched across the battlefield.
"…Okay," Riku muttered. "This Codex thing is ridiculously broken."
Before he could reflect further, he noticed her.
At the edge of the battlefield, half-hidden behind a crumbling stone wall, a girl was staring at him.
She was slender, wrapped in tattered black cloth that barely served as armor. Her silver-white hair clung to her cheeks, and her crimson eyes glowed faintly in the dim light. But what struck Riku most were the chains—not physical ones, but spectral, glowing shackles that coiled around her wrists and ankles like curses made manifest.
She didn't hold a weapon. She didn't even look afraid. Only… curious.
And perhaps a little sad.
Their eyes met. For a brief moment, the battlefield vanished—the soldiers, the corpses, the monster. All that remained was the silent exchange between him and this mysterious girl.
Then, one of the knights shouted.
"Seize the witch! The cursed half-blood!"
The soldiers charged toward her, blades raised.
Riku blinked. "Wait, her? She hasn't done anything—"
But before he could step forward, the girl raised her hand. The chains rattled, glowing brighter. For an instant, black flame erupted from her palm, blasting the knights backward.
And then she winced, clutching her wrist. The chains tightened, searing her skin with ghostly light. She bit her lip to keep from crying out.
Riku's heart clenched. She's fighting her own curse just to defend herself.
The soldiers regrouped, preparing another charge.
The girl's eyes darted to Riku once more—wariness, defiance, and something like despair flickering in their crimson depths.
Riku exhaled slowly.
"…Looks like story time's over."
He opened his palm, and words burned into existence.
[Concept of Chain: Restriction]
He smirked.
"Let's loosen those shackles, shall we?"
The battlefield was about to change....
The Girl with the Shackled Soul, The soldiers froze mid-step. Their blades trembled as glowing runes rippled across the battlefield. The chains that bound the girl rattled violently, struggling against some unseen force.
The words before Riku's eyes shimmered:
[Rewrite: Restriction = Release]
The spectral shackles cracked, splintering like shattered glass. With a final burst of light, they shattered into fragments that scattered across the ground like dying embers.
The girl gasped, staggering backward as if a great weight had been lifted from her chest. She stared at her wrists in disbelief, then at Riku.
The silence was deafening.
The soldiers broke it with panicked shouts.
"The witch's seal is gone!"
"He freed her!"
"Run—RUN!"
One by one, they fled, dropping weapons in the mud as they vanished into the smoke. Within moments, only Riku, the girl, and the still-snoring chimera remained.
Riku dusted off his hands. "…Huh. That actually worked."
When he turned, the girl was already on her feet—dagger raised, crimson eyes narrowed.
"Stay back," she hissed.
Riku blinked. "That's gratitude for you. I save your life, break your curse, and you point a knife at me."
Her grip tightened. "No one breaks those chains. Not without a price. What are you?"
Her voice carried suspicion, but beneath it, a thread of fear.
Riku raised his palms in mock surrender. "Relax. I'm just a guy who's very good with books."
Her expression didn't change.
"…Fine, fine." He sighed. "Call me Riku. And you are…?"
The girl hesitated, then lowered her dagger slightly. "…Lyria."
Her voice was softer now, almost reluctant, as if speaking her own name felt dangerous.
"Lyria," Riku repeated, tasting the sound. "Good. Now we're past introductions. Next step: you stop glaring at me like I just kicked your puppy."
Her crimson eyes softened for a moment before hardening again. "…Why did you free me?"
Riku tilted his head. "Why not? You looked miserable."
Lyria blinked. It was as if no one had ever given her such a simple answer before. "…You don't understand. Those chains… they weren't just a curse. They were what kept everyone else safe from me."
Riku studied her, noting the way her hands trembled, how she kept her distance even now. "So you're dangerous?"
She looked away. "…Half-blood. My mother was human. My father… wasn't. The chains kept my demon blood in check. Without them, I…" Her words faltered. "…I could lose control."
Riku was silent for a long moment. Then he chuckled softly.
"Well, that's fine."
Her head snapped toward him. "Fine?"
"Yeah. If you lose control, I'll just stop you." He shrugged. "You've seen what I can do."
Lyria stared at him as if he were insane. Then, for the first time, her lips curved into the faintest of smiles—fragile, uncertain, but real.
"…You're strange."
"Trust me," Riku smirked, "I've heard worse."
The chimera snored loudly in the background, startling them both. Riku glanced at the beast and sighed. "Right. Guess we should move before sleeping beauty wakes up."
He extended his hand toward her. "Come with me. You don't owe me anything, but I figure… two outcasts are better than one."
Lyria's crimson eyes lingered on his hand. Her curse was gone, but the memory of its pain lingered. Touch was something she had been denied her whole life.
Slowly, cautiously, she reached out.
Her fingers brushed his. No chains burned her skin. No curse lashed out. Only warmth.
She exhaled sharply, as if she had been holding her breath for years.
"…Alright," she whispered.
Their hands clasped.
And so, in the aftermath of a battlefield, beneath the shadow of a sleeping monster, a human bound to infinite knowledge and a cursed half-demon took their first step together.
A step toward a bond that would shake the very foundation of their world.