There are two ways to eliminate trauma.
The first is to distance yourself as much as possible from the related experiences until the bad memories fade.
The second is to face a similar situation to the trauma and overcome it head-on.
And the plan I devised to erase Lumia’s trauma fell under the latter.
As I discussed the matter of Serena and the criminal organization, Lumia suddenly intervened in a hurry.
“J-just a moment… Why is my name being mentioned here?”
“What about it?”
“Who’s Noirn? And what’s this about taking down a criminal organization? I’ve never heard of this!”
“Then listen carefully now. It’s fine; I’m only explaining this for the first time today.”
I was planning to take Lumia to a place dominated by criminals.
I would make her endure all kinds of hardships and push her to her limits.
Dangerous enough to risk her life? That would be even better.
In fact, for my plan to succeed, it had to be that way.
It breaks my heart, but there’s no choice.
If I don’t resort to such extreme measures,
I can’t guarantee her safety in the long run.
“I—I can’t possibly do something like that! Please leave me out of this…”
“Just so you know, this is about repaying Serena for her help, so don’t take it too seriously.”
I cut off Lumia’s protests, intentionally weighing her down with guilt.
Serena spoke.
“If it’s about repaying a favor, there’s no need for such a dangerous method. Noirn’s criminals are no joke, even for skilled people.”
“You, are you looking down on Lumia’s skills right now?”
“I’m not looking down on her; it’s just the truth. Lumia is barely passing as it is. Going in with her current skills would only lead to a pointless death.”
Despite my scolding, Serena simply shrugged.
Lumia, though effectively being insulted to her face, actually looked relieved that Serena was saying this.
But I wouldn’t have it.
I shook my head stubbornly and placed a hand on Serena’s shoulder.
“No, Serena. You truly don’t know anything.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It’s just that we haven’t discovered it yet, but Lumia has immense potential. Dismissing her like this isn’t fair.”
“But didn’t she just admit it herself?”
“Think carefully. We’re going with Kalian, the most skilled person in Arcana. What danger could we possibly face? And besides, there’ll surely be lighter tasks, right?”
“No matter how you spin it… Huh?!”
I grabbed Serena’s face and brought it close to Kalian’s.
“What are you doing?!”
“Look closely. The man standing before you is personally moving to repay a favor. Are you really going to turn down this opportunity?”
“Well, that’s…”
“Haha, well, as expected of a Bronze-tier member. Even after preparing a feast, you can’t be bothered to pick up a spoon. Fine, let’s forget it ever happened.”
“Wait! Hold on!”
Serena grabbed my hand and made her decision in an instant.
“Alright. I’ll take the help of Kalian, Wade, and Lumia for the Noirn issue.”
“Wise choice.”
“There’s no such thing as a completely safe task, but assign her something less dangerous. Promise me that.”
“Don’t worry. We just want to repay the favor. Who would willingly put themselves in danger?”
As I made light of the situation, I glanced at Lumia.
She looked at me with a face that was about to burst into tears.
It must feel unfair, having everything decided without her say.
But bear with it a little longer.
This is all for you!
“Oh, and one more thing.”
“What is it?”
“I want to bring someone else for this mission. They’re quite capable, and I happened to cross paths with them recently. Is that okay?”
“Who is it? It better not be just anyone.”
“It’s not just anyone. They’re pretty skilled. I figured you’d be curious, so I already called them over.”
I gestured, and a figure who had been sitting in the corner of the café stood up and approached us.
With a gentle smile, she greeted us.
Her violet eyes and hair gleamed softly in the light.
“Hello, Serena. Kalian, Lumia, it’s been a while.”
It was Elia.
The very person who had tormented Lumia’s family and caused this situation.
She spoke to me.
“I thought Wade hated me after my previous mistake… I never imagined you’d call me here.”
“I can’t hold grudges forever. We’re at the same school; wouldn’t it be nice to get along?”
“Thank you. I’ll do my best to make amends. Even though I’m a magician, I’ll ensure none of you get hurt.”
What an insidious performance.
Kalian glanced at me, unable to ask outright but clearly questioning how this had come to be.
The reason I brought Elia into this matter wasn’t, of course, to gain support from a brilliant magician.
In a place already fraught with danger like Noirn, her presence would only escalate the risks.
But that was precisely my intention.
I planned to use Elia to create the ultimate crisis—a peril so severe that Lumia would have no choice but to overcome it.
As Lumia headed home, she was lost in thought.
It was a relief that her family issues had been resolved, but now, a new problem had arisen.
And it was a problem created directly by Wade, the one who had helped her family.
She couldn’t refuse Wade’s demands.
After all, she had received his help and owed a debt to Serena, which made the reasoning behind it all seem perfectly legitimate.
But still…
“How can I possibly be of any help?”
That was her main worry.
Facing dangerous criminals?
She was sure she’d be useless again this time.
Maybe she’d even end up showing Wade another disgraceful side of herself.
Although Wade’s memory wasn’t intact, which meant her previous mistakes were forgotten, the incident still weighed heavily on her heart.
If she made the same mistake again… she doubted she’d be able to endure it with her sanity intact.
As the sun set, the area where she lived, part of the slums, began to stir.
This was the time when thugs emerged to empty the pockets of the vulnerable.
Sure enough, she noticed some troublemakers today as well.
Down a narrow alley, a group of men surrounded some children, threatening them.
“Hey, kids. We’d like to grab a drink. Got any money on you?”
“No, we don’t…”
“Don’t lie. I heard the jingle of coins in your pocket earlier.”
One of the children, trembling with fear, hesitantly offered a piece of candy.
“This is all we have.”
“Candy? Are you messing with me?”
“No, we’re not.”
Smack!
The man angrily knocked the candy to the ground.
The children instinctively cowered, afraid they might be hit again, as they so often were.
What money could these kids even have?
Lumia, initially ready to step forward and scold the thugs, suddenly froze when she noticed something.
“…Huh?”
An alley that had only contained the thugs and the children now had an unexpected figure.
A man wearing a mask had appeared out of nowhere.
His white mask and suit were strangely familiar.
“What the hell?!”
The thugs, startled by the sudden appearance of this stranger, became visibly flustered.
However, the man exuded a calm authority as he spoke in an even tone.
“Hmm… What do you think?”
“Are you with the guards? There’s no way the guards would come to a place like this. W-who are you?”
“From the way you’re bringing up the guards, it seems you’re aware that what you’re doing is wrong.”
“That’s not what I meant! Who the hell are you, and why are you butting in? We weren’t even doing anything wrong!”
The thugs were clearly intimidated by the masked man, but they raised their voices, trying to mask their fear.
One of them turned back to the kids they had been bullying earlier and asked,
“Hey, kids, did we bother you?”
“It’s okay. Be honest. Just tell the truth.”
The children, unable to resist the unspoken threat, hung their heads and answered,
“N-no, you didn’t bother us. We were just playing together.”
Hearing this, the masked man replied calmly,
“I see.”
Then, without hesitation, he grabbed the wrist of the thug who had asked the question.
Snap.
He broke it.
The thug let out a reflexive scream, but the masked man clamped a hand over his mouth.
The other thugs flinched, preparing to flee, but froze in place under the stranger’s piercing gaze.
“Listen carefully,” the masked man said, his tone composed but commanding.
“From now on, don’t do things like this. Live a decent life. When you see children in trouble, extend a helping hand instead. Understand? If you understand, nod your head.”
“Mmph… Mmhh…”
“Good. If you break this promise, I’ll come back to break your necks next time.”
Only after the thug, with tears streaming down his face, nodded did the masked man release him.
The thugs fled in terror, while the children bowed in gratitude for being saved.
Lumia, who had been watching the entire scene as if entranced, froze when the masked man turned his gaze to her and asked,
“Just standing there and watching?”
Even though she had been hiding herself at a distance, he seemed to have noticed her presence all along.
Lumia stammered nervously,
“Ah, uh, no… I was about to step in, but then I saw you…”
“Is that so?”
“Y-yes…”
What was this?
What should she say?
A whirlwind of thoughts spun through Lumia’s mind before dissipating.
This masked stranger… He had saved her once before, on the day she had abandoned Wade and fled for her life.
When she had been cornered, about to die, he had appeared out of nowhere to save her.
She had so many questions for him:
Who was he?
Why had he helped her?
How was he so strong?
But there were too many questions, and her lips refused to move.
“You seem to be doing well, Lumia Sorel.”
“Eh? Oh, uh, yes… Yes, I am…”
“Then, I’ll take my leave.”
“Wait, what?”
Before she could gather her thoughts, the masked man turned his back and started to walk away.
“W-wait a moment!”
“What is it?”
Startled, Lumia shouted after him.
She didn’t know what she wanted to say, but she felt an inexplicable urgency—like letting him leave now would be a mistake.
“Um, um… Do you, uh, like cake?!”
In her panic, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.