The clamor of the marketplace continued around Seliana. The Dawn Market—the most vibrant place in Seraphim Alta. Since Hannah had taken her in several days ago, Seliana had been earning daily wages through odd jobs here. Stacking vegetables, carrying customers' parcels. Simple work, but it was more comforting than anything else. Moving her body without taxing her mind. Focusing only on the present without remembering the past. As the morning sun climbed higher, the market grew even more lively. The calls of street vendors, haggling over prices with customers, children's laughter—all of it flowed together into a single stream of sound that reached Seliana's ears. "Over here." Hannah pointed to a new load. A basket filled with pumpkins. Seliana lifted it and carried it to the neighboring stall. The weight of the basket transmitted through her arms. She loved this sensation. A certain, unchanging weight. That was when it happened. The air of the marketplace shifted, ever so slightly. It was not a change in temperature, nor a change in the quality of light. Yet Seliana sensed it with acute sensitivity. Someone had entered the marketplace. And around that someone, there drifted an air distinctly different from all else. Seliana set down her load and turned her gaze toward the source. A man walked through the crowd, parting it as he moved. A black overcoat. Not merely black, but a jet-black coat that seemed to absorb light itself. The man stood roughly 185 centimeters tall. His back was straight, his shoulders broad, and his frame radiated a quiet, oppressive presence. The moment Seliana saw his face, her breath nearly stopped. Short jet-black hair, with bangs that slightly obscured his left eye. The lustrous strands were clearly kept in meticulous order. Among his refined features, what struck her most were his eyes. Eyes of an icy blue-gray. As if gazing upon a landscape from another world entirely—cold, transparent, crystalline eyes. A small, old scar marked the outer corner of his left eyebrow. As the man walked through the marketplace, the crowd instinctively drew back. Not consciously, but unconsciously. Around him, there drifted something unmistakable. An air entirely different from luminous essence—something cold and sunken. Shadow essence. Seliana understood in an instant. He had come from the west. From the Dispelsia Autonomous City Alliance—a dark mage. And then his gaze turned toward her. In that moment, Seliana's entire body froze. Not with an icy sensation, but with something far more visceral—the rigid tension of acute anxiety. Something ran down her neck, across her back. The sensation of being caught in that man's gaze. The man stopped walking. About five meters from Seliana. "You are Seliana." His voice was cold, resonating like struck metal. Polite, yet utterly devoid of warmth. Merely the sound of factual confirmation. "...Who are you?" Seliana asked in return. Respectfully, though her voice trembled faintly. The marketplace's clamor seemed to recede into the distance in that moment. "Walter Neustadt. Former professor of the Noctirica Abyss Academy." The man—Walter—advanced slowly. His gait was quiet, predatory. Seliana unconsciously stepped backward. "I will take you as my apprentice." It was abrupt. Not a question, but a command. "I...?" Seliana was at a loss for words. Her understanding could not keep pace with what was happening. "I sense your power. An aptitude for luminous essence, and more than that." Walter's gaze fixed upon Seliana's left wrist. Upon it, a faintly glowing mysterious pattern had surfaced. Seliana was aware of it. That pattern had become far more pronounced since her expulsion. "Signs of fusion. You possess a forbidden power." "No." Seliana spoke quickly. "I have no aptitude for shadow essence. I am of the luminous—" "You were a saint. I know." Walter cut off her words. In his eyes lay colorless, penetrating clarity. "But you were cast out. You lost your seat as saint. From that point forward, you are no longer an asset of my nation, but merely an individual. There is no choice. I will take you as my apprentice." "This is unreasonable. I—" "Be silent." Walter's words were brief, yet absolute. In that moment, the gazes of those around Seliana shifted as well. Until now, the marketplace people had regarded the former saint with something like sympathy. But now, through Walter's presence, Seliana had become "one marked by a western dark mage." "Summon Hannah Ruthel." At those words, Hannah appeared from the edge of the marketplace. She approached Walter with unhurried steps, her expression showing no surprise whatsoever. The face of a 47-year-old woman betrayed no agitation. "A visitor from the west." Hannah's voice was carefree. "Do you know. This girl was the saint of light." "I know. And now, she is." A brief exchange passed between Hannah and Walter. There was something unspoken between them—something Seliana could not fathom. "Are you going west?" Hannah asked. "Yes. To the Black Wedge Tower in Gründel." "Be careful. The Verna Range is turning toward winter. The passes are dangerous." Hannah murmured. Then she looked at Seliana. "Seliana. Will you go?" It was a question. Yet whether Seliana truly possessed a choice remained unclear. "...I will go." Seliana answered. For there was no other option. --- Preparations for the carriage were swift. Seliana possessed almost nothing. A change of clothes borrowed for a few days—that was all. The carriage, parked at the edge of the marketplace. The horse was large, black-coated, its eyes holding an intelligent light. Walter's horse for travel, surely. As Seliana moved to board the carriage, Hannah placed a hand upon her shoulder. "Be strong." That was all. Yet within those brief words, Seliana sensed profound meaning. Walter, without a word, handed Seliana a new overcoat. Black. Fine cloth, still new. And provisions for the journey as well. Dried meat, cheese, hard bread. His manner was cold itself. No explanation. Simply giving. When the carriage began to move, Seliana looked back toward Hannah. The marketplace keeper raised her hand in silence. --- The interior of the carriage was wider than expected. Seliana gazed out the window at the passing landscape. The buildings of Seraphim Alta gradually receded. White stone structures, streets lit by luminous essence lamps, and in the distance, the towering form of the Grand Cathedral Claritas rising high. In that place, until two weeks ago, she had been a saint. Standing before the people, bestowing the blessings of luminous essence. Now she was merely the cast out. "Listen." Walter's voice resonated within the carriage. Seliana turned. Walter sat by the window, tapping the back of his left hand's glove lightly with his right index finger—a habit, perhaps. He continued this motion. "Shadow essence and luminous essence are two sides of the same coin. Where there is light, there is shadow. Where there is shadow, there is light. Yet the Church refuses to acknowledge this. It teaches that only luminous essence is sacred, that shadow essence is corruption." Walter's words were textbook-like. Part sermon, part mere statement of fact. "I have no aptitude for shadow essence." Seliana attempted to object. But Walter raised his hand. "Listen without speaking." "...Yes." Seliana fell silent. Walter's piercing gaze fixed upon her, as if searching for something deep within. "The pattern on your wrist. What is it?" Seliana looked at her left wrist. The faintly glowing mark. What it was, she herself did not know. "...I do not know." "That is the problem." Walter settled back into his seat. "Three months from now. Or perhaps half a year. At the Black Wedge Tower in Gründel, I will train you. During that time, you will come to know your own power." As evening fell, the carriage departed Seraphim Alta. The road curved gently westward. Soon, Seliana's eyes caught sight of a distant, forbidding mountain range. The Verna Spine Range. The great backbone of the continent, dividing east from west. Beyond those mountains lay Dispelsia. Seliana gazed upon those peaks. She had left her past in the east. Now she was moving westward. What did Walter intend to do? What did he mean to make of her? Seliana understood nothing yet. --- At nightfall, they made camp at the foot of the Verna Range. Walter kindled the fire with practiced efficiency. His movements were those of one accustomed to such tasks, as if he had camped countless times before. Indeed, he likely had. For a mage who traveled between east and west, camping would be routine. A simple meal—dried meat and cheese, hard bread, and spring water. Seliana ate in silence. "Are you tired?" Walter asked. It was less a question than a confirmation. "A little." When Seliana answered, Walter wordlessly handed her an additional blanket. "The mountains grow cold. Do not catch illness." His words were brusque, yet his actions contradicted them. Seliana noticed this. Cold words, yet genuine care. That contradiction seemed to reveal something of Walter's complexity as a person. The flames of the fire swayed and flickered. Seliana wrapped herself in the new overcoat. It was warm. Fine quality. "What happens tomorrow?" Seliana asked. "We cross the mountains. After that, we head for Gründel." Walter's answer was brief. Yet afterward, his expression softened—only barely. "Drawing out your power will take time. Prepare yourself." Those were the last words of that night. Seliana lay wrapped in blankets, gazing at the fire, feeling the beginning of a new life. What would she become? What did Walter intend to make of her? The answer was still distant. The next morning, Walter spoke to Seliana. "From this day forward, you are my apprentice. Escape is not permitted." "...I understand." Seliana's reply was quiet. Yet in that voice, something was beginning to change. Fear remained. Anxiety remained. But at the same time, a new flame was kindling within her. Walter prepared the carriage and turned westward once more. The mountains were vast, forbidding, and beyond them lay a world entirely unknown. Seliana moved toward that unknown. The former saint was being reborn as a new apprentice. In that process, what would she learn? What would she lose? And what would she gain? The story that followed would reveal all.