* * *
It was pure white.
A stark, blinding light swallowed everything, dyeing the entire visible world in white.
Aside from the building at the epicenter of the event, all the dense dust, the surrounding rubble, even the trees—everything was swept away cleanly.
In that white brilliance, the only thing vividly distinct was a man brushing back hair nearly as pale as snow-blond.
When his eyes, previously shut, slowly opened, they revealed irises as clear as ice, glittering like gemstones.
Waves of immense power surged endlessly from his center, rippling outward.
Though it was something one shouldn’t be able to see, the way he stood in the heart of that radiance made him appear heartbreakingly solitary, and the shimmering white glow on his back—blindingly brilliant.
He looked like an angel with his wings unfurled wide.
The soft snowflakes brushing against Ben’s cheeks felt like countless feathers.
He stared in a daze at Haimar, who stood like a figure out of myth, only snapping out of it when the man gently brushed a finger under his nose.
Then Ben straightened his posture and blinked.
“…So, what should I do next?”
“…Sorry?”
Haimar’s question, asked with a gentle smile in his eyes, left Ben bewildered.
At least he wasn’t being asked, “Should I kill them?”—that was something.
But he had no idea why Haimar was asking him in the first place.
“When have you ever asked for my opinion? Just do what you want—”
“Oh? What I want to do?”
That gentle smile curled on his crimson lips—it felt vaguely threatening.
Ben quickly backtracked.
“No, I take that back.”
“Then?”
He wanted to say, “Just go easy on them,” but who could possibly define what “easy” meant by Haimar’s standards?
And really, this wasn’t something that could be solved just by saying it aloud.
More pressingly, they didn’t have time for back-and-forth.
Even now, it was clear that the woman across from them was barely restraining her fury.
Once the ring of light faded, only one person remained standing in its aftermath—a red-haired woman.
But beneath the crushing silence that blanketed everything, her fists trembled, lips twitching.
The creeping sensation starting from her fingertips was her instincts sounding an alarm.
‘This is dangerous. Prepare for what comes next.’
It felt like she stood in a wasteland.
On this empty, silent terrain, the only sound was the man’s voice—an unbearable presence.
She had the ominous feeling that if she broke this silence and spoke, the atmosphere itself would grow fangs and tear into her.
Crack.
The sound of her clenched teeth grinding was loud.
This situation—and everything about it—pointed to one single truth.
Irregular.
A being that only manifests at Guide Level F.
Someone capable of matching an Esper of Haimar Eilec’s caliber.
She had seen it once before during an experiment meant to gather data.
Back then, she thought it was a cheap trick. She was ready to laugh at it.
But him?
That man?
Why would he—of all people—need something as pathetic as a Guide?
“…You should know when to stop making such disgusting jokes. Since when has the almighty Haimar Eilec ever acted like a loyal pet following orders?”
She couldn’t accept it.
She couldn’t understand it.
She was perfect on her own.
That was the truth.
Why, then, would she need anyone else?
Her face twisted with rage.
“It’s because you got yourself some damn Guide that you started acting weird.”
“And isn’t it weirder to be a junkie without a Guide, throwing tantrums like you are now?”
“What’s so important about a Guide anyway? You can be perfect alone.”
At those spat-out words, Ben flinched.
What the woman had just said directly denied the central doctrine—the very foundation of Esper-Guide relationships.
It was a dangerous belief that sought to redefine everything.
The idea that Espers need Guides—this was a natural law.
Just as the sky is the sky and the ground is the ground, this truth had never once been denied since humanity took root in the world and began forming society and history.
There had always been those who questioned why Guides were necessary.
But no one doubted that they were necessary.
People only ever sought their own answers as to why.
Ben had never searched for that answer himself.
But there was one thing he could refute with certainty from her words.
“…That’s not necessarily true.”
“What?”
“I’ve never seen someone who calls themselves perfect actually be perfect. Just like you.”
“You—you’re saying the same thing that damned Hoaphilen Legius said? Disgusting.”
Her bloodshot eyes turned sharp and fixed on Ben.
Click.
And the still barrel of her gun lifted and aimed at him.
“Listen carefully. Espers can be perfect without Guides. That’s the truth I pursue. If the ‘natural order’ that everyone talks about means Espers need Guides, then I’ll prove it wrong. Weakness is a sin. The weak cannot reign above the strong. A mere Guide, nothing more than an ordinary human, cannot stand above me! That’s the truth according to me, Roilnia Lanilgraph.”
‘Rumble…’
In response to her words, the sky—previously still like a coiled serpent—began to writhe.
And soon, a new wave of destruction prepared to unfold.
This time, she seemed deadly serious.
A black-hole-like void vomited out massive chunks of destroyed buildings—far larger than before.
They could be mistaken for meteorites.
No way… she’s going to drop all that?
Watching the debris gradually fill the sky above, Ben went pale.
Some words had brushed past his ears just before, words he couldn’t afford to ignore—but the sheer scale of the crisis before him was overwhelming, leaving no room to think about anything else.
Meanwhile, Haimar, standing next to him, looked like he was watching a boring TV show.
All he did was slightly tilt his head toward Ben.
“Are you scared?”
“Not exactly. More like… it’s so surreal that it doesn’t feel real—”
Even a doomsday movie wouldn’t be this realistic.
But this was real.
On top of that, being the direct target of such blatant hostility was not at all pleasant.
But Haima—wasn’t he a little too relaxed?
Ben could only hope that whatever plan Haimar had, he’d include him in it.
“Both of you—just die here.”
Roilnia shouted, eyes flashing, and flung her hand toward the sky.
At her command, the wreckage above them began to fall.
Evading it wasn’t even the issue—being near the impact zone or even grazed by it would mean instant death.
The distance was too short, the time to dodge nonexistent.
“Have you said everything you wanted to?”
But Haimar’s calm question, spoken as if nothing was happening, gave Ben a strange sense of relief.
If that man could still talk like that, maybe there was a way out.
And then—
Flash. The sky blinked.
KA-BOOM!!!
The thunderous roar made Ben instinctively duck and cover his ears.
Was this what it felt like for the world to shut off and then turn back on?
What he just witnessed was even more unbelievable than before.
Wide-eyed and dazed, he turned to Haima.
Was that… lightning…?
Countless bolts of lightning pierced through everything, mercilessly striking the ground.
If someone said it was divine punishment from the heavens, they’d believe it.
Fragments scattered like snow and sparks crackling through the air were proof of what had just happened seconds ago.
Some of the charred remnants were falling to the ground, trailing smoke.
“This is too boring to even entertain.”
Haimar spoke with a tone laced with apathy in response to the attack prepared by Roilnia.
Thanks to him being right next to Ben, it wasn’t difficult for Ben to catch what he said.
But the deafening blast had pounded his ears, leaving behind a ringing, muffled sensation.
When Ben tapped his ears in discomfort, Haimar seemed to finally notice something was off and slightly furrowed his brow.
“Oops. Guess I scared my little guide.”
“I didn’t say I was scared!”
He heard everything just fine, thank you very much!
When Ben glared at him with fierce eyes, Haimar smirked.
Annoyed by that smirk, Ben dropped his hands from his ears and turned to look at Roilnia.
All the attacks that had surged moments ago had suddenly vanished—enough to kill anyone’s fighting spirit—but the woman just curled her lips a few times and smiled.
“Yes, this is more like it. You’re finally back to your old self. I was about to get bored.”
Her reaction suggested she was relieved it wasn’t too disappointing.
Though her voice sounded calm, the bloodlust and hostility woven into it couldn’t be hidden.
Contempt, inferiority, hatred—those were the emotions Roilnia always felt whenever she thought of Haimar Eilec.
She was determined to surpass him no matter what.
If he had been someone easily disposed of, she wouldn’t have spent years sharpening her blade and returning like this.
Even if her grudge failed to provoke any real reaction from him—even if he treated her like she wasn’t even worth his time—it didn’t matter.
The world would revolve around her eventually.
It wasn’t too late to celebrate once her goal was achieved.
Her red eyes, burning with venom, met the man’s icy ones.
Piercingly.
‘I swear, Haimar Eilec, I’ll—’
“—kill you. Is that what you were about to say?”
-————–!!!!
Roilnia’s red eyes went wide, unable to contain the shock.
* * *
