Mitsuki sat at the edge of the platform and continued staring at the ruined city. A strange melancholy invaded his mind, so he lay down on the broken ground and looked up at the clear sky. The wind blew softly between the collapsed buildings, dragging small traces of ash across the area. In the distance, tilted structures, shattered windows, and streets covered in cracks could be seen. The silence was so deep that even the faint sound of Mitsuki’s clothes brushing against the concrete felt too loud.

’I definitely said something I shouldn’t have. Well, I’m the one who should feel offended. After everything she put me through, helping me heal my soul and my arm should be the bare minimum.’

He sighed tiredly.

"Women... Who even understands them? Even my manager used to act like that," he said, raising his hand as if he wanted to grab the sky. "Looks like I have terrible luck when it comes to attracting aggressive and weird women..."

Clouds drifted slowly overhead. The sun illuminated the ruins with a dim, dusty light, making the shattered crystal fragments gleam among the ash. Mitsuki remained motionless for a few more seconds, listening to the distant murmur of the wind passing through the empty alleyways.

Whatever.

Thinking about it wasn’t going to benefit him in any way. The only thing he could do now was wait for Jeanne to convince Ellegaard. If everything went well, there might still be a chance to heal.

He stayed there for quite a while until a thought crossed his mind.

’What can I do to kill time?’

Then, as if the universe itself had answered him, he heard a crunching sound. He immediately jumped to his feet and looked behind him. On the other side of the bridge stood one of the ash beasts: a cat over a meter tall. It was far too large to be a normal cat, obviously. On top of that, it looked far more ghostly than the other specters.

The monster walked slowly across the broken concrete. Its paws barely made any sound, but every movement left behind small trails of ash floating through the air. Its white eyes glowed like cold embers amidst that dead landscape.

Ash-colored fur, white eyes like spectral flames, claws and fangs sharpened for slaughter. It was a killing machine made of ash, lurking from the distance.

Seeing the creature, Mitsuki raised an eyebrow.

’I completely forgot I’ve got an entire city as an XP farm.’

The shotgun appeared in his only hand.

’How many levels could I gain if I kill all of them?’

Before he could answer that question, Mitsuki appeared right in front of the ash beast. He pointed the shotgun at it and erased it from existence with a single shot. The cat didn’t even have time to meow out a curse before disappearing, consumed instantly by blue fire.

The explosion echoed across the bridge, and the sound traveled through the empty streets of the city. Fragments of burning ash floated in the air for a few seconds before slowly fading away.

Mitsuki spun his shotgun as if showing off and jumped from the bridge toward the city.

The system seemed to be working perfectly this morning.

[ You have defeated an A-Rank Specter. ]

[ You have obtained XP. ]

[ You are becoming stronger. ]

As he ran through the streets searching for creatures to kill, Mitsuki thought:

’This would feel satisfying if only I could actually feel the satisfaction of becoming stronger.’

He jumped over a rusted car and then crossed through a narrow alley filled with rubble. On both sides stood buildings destroyed by ancient explosions. Some still had remnants of signs and advertisements burned away by time.

Even so, he continued searching for the power he lacked.

***

Far from there, Ellegaard returned to the old ruined house where Mitsuki had been resting. She stopped in the hallway and took a deep breath to calm herself.

The inside of the house was dark and cold. Cracks spread across the walls, broken furniture sat beneath layers of dust, and a strong smell of damp wood filled the air. The silence was interrupted only by the sound of her footsteps.

At that moment, Jeanne appeared behind her.

"Hey."

Ellegaard’s shoulders tensed, and the irritated expression from before returned to her face.

"What do you want, Princess? I’ve already had enough dealing with that stubborn idiot, so don’t come bothering me right now."

"And I think he’s already had enough dealing with you. I mean, isn’t this the first time someone we traveled with has actually said that to your face? Normally everyone’s scared of you."

But since Mitsuki couldn’t feel fear, he had spoken that truth without hesitation. Being near him in that state meant dealing with constant honesty from the young Herald.

"Honestly, Mitsuki went easy on you. He could’ve said far worse things, don’t you think? So you should apologize to him—not just for what happened that night at Lulu’s inn, but also because you tried to kill him even though he hadn’t done anything wrong."

The elf looked down in frustration. Her fingers slowly curled into a fist, and her ears twitched faintly. Normally, she was the one lecturing and scolding the "children," but hearing all of this from the spoiled princess of the Sardonyx Kingdom wounded her pride, leaving her unable to respond or even move.

Jeanne smiled.

"Come on, woman. Don’t act like the world’s ending just because someone finally told you what they think about you to your face. Use it to improve yourself and become nicer. You’re already cute—you just need to fix your attitude."

Ellegaard sighed. She rested her head against Jeanne’s armored chest and closed her eyes.

"You’re irritating, Jeanne."

"We both are, and that’s why we’re friends. There’s a reason people call us the Mad Princess and the Witch of the Road."

"I hate that nickname. I’m not a witch, I’m a mage."

Jeanne wrapped her arms around Ellegaard’s shoulders and gently stroked her hair.

"You’re not a witch, but you act like one half the time. All you’re missing is sacrificing goats and praying to demons to become a real witch. So if you don’t want people calling you one, try being kinder—especially to Mitsuki. Even after you kicked his ass and humiliated him, he still asked for your help in exchange for forgiving you. Shouldn’t you take advantage of that opportunity?"

"But he’s the Herald..."

Ellegaard’s voice came out much quieter this time. There was doubt in it, something she normally hid behind arrogance.

"And has that Herald actually done anything to the world to deserve being hated? You already know the answer. This time, when you see Mitsuki, apologize to him and help him heal. Once he goes back to being his old self, talking to him will be easier."

The elf thought about it seriously. She closed her eyes tightly as if the thought itself annoyed her, but then separated from the princess, crossed her arms, puffed out her chest proudly, and declared:

"S-Shut up, spoiled princess. Nobody tells me what to do. B-But I’ll help him because that’s what I want. Nobody’s as kind as the great Ellegaard. You should all be grateful to have me around."

"It’s the least you can do."

Ellegaard snorted and entered one of the rooms. Her cloak swayed sharply as she slammed the door behind her.

The princess watched silently for a moment before shaking her head with an amused smile.

"Sometimes I wonder which one of us is actually older."

She walked back outside the house. Now that she had done the right thing and stopped this elf from being so cruel to Mitsuki, Jeanne placed her fists on her hips and looked proudly toward the sky.

The breeze gently moved her hair.

Despite the ruined state of the city, the sky still looked unbelievably clear.

***

During his extended slaughter of ash creatures, Mitsuki noticed that the area he was passing through had fewer monsters. It was as if something else was hunting them at incredible speed, leaving silent streets behind.

With every block he advanced through, he found more traces of battle. Spectral bodies were disintegrating into ash, walls had been destroyed by recent impacts, and deep sword marks scarred the ground.

’There are fewer creatures than before...’

It was far too noticeable, so he stopped atop the roof of a ruined two-story house to figure out what could be causing the shortage of monsters in this area.

From up there, he could observe a large part of the city. The streets resembled a gray labyrinth covered in dust and the remains of collapsed structures.

Soon, he heard the sounds of metal clashing behind him. He could also hear the voice of someone fighting nonstop.

"It’s coming from over there."

Mitsuki disappeared into ash and moved by jumping across rooftops until he reached his destination. Broken tiles cracked beneath his feet, and small clouds of dust rose each time he landed.

Once he got close enough, he stood atop a small tower and silently observed.

’Marco.’

That knight in dirt-stained armor was fiercely fighting against what appeared to be a group of A-Rank specters, and since Marco himself was only S-Rank, he seemed overwhelmed by the ash creatures.

His armor was covered in scratches and blackened marks. Sweat ran down his neck as he breathed heavily, but even so, he continued gripping his sword firmly.

Among the enemies was a massive warrior clad in heavy armor, carrying a giant shield and an enormous axe. There were also swordsmen, spearmen, archers, and a mage responsible for enhancing the others. In short, it was a small squad of spectral soldiers.

The creatures moved with terrifying coordination. The spectral mage raised its staff, and small ash-colored lights surrounded the other soldiers, increasing their speed and strength.

At the center of them all, Marco gripped his sword tightly. The expression on his face showed exhaustion and frustration.

Suddenly, Marco became a blur that appeared in front of one of the skeletal archers, displaying incredible movement speed.

The sharp blade tore through the air, and the creature was cut apart instantly. Fragments of ash scattered everywhere as the archer disappeared.

However, behind him, that armored colossus moved with unbelievable speed, positioning itself at Marco’s back while raising its heavy axe to kill him.

The weapon descended with brutal force. Even the air itself seemed to tremble from the impact.

Marco reacted instantly and blocked with his sword, but the ground beneath his feet shattered into pieces.

A cloud of dust and debris exploded around both of them. The impact made the nearby walls shake violently.

"No... You won’t."

He gathered enough strength to push the colossus away and charge toward the mage.

Every movement Marco made looked desperate, yet determined. His legs already seemed exhausted, and his arms trembled slightly, but he kept fighting without retreating.

From Mitsuki’s perspective, this was nothing more than the training of someone who wanted to become stronger—exactly like him.

But Marco was living through a different story.