Just as Hyōen was assured of the light, blue ball’s hostility was equal to 0.012% or something like that, he found this request on the door flap from a guy named Dacol Lubex. The first name was similar to the friendly guy who took care of Dex yesterday; yes, it was a day ago that Hyōen, his feathery friend and Dex discovered the blue sphere. Already a day after that event, he was contacted by curious figures. “Huh…” the Fire Wizard yawned as he picked up the request from the flap, “… Hey, how did he know that I live here?” Coda began flapping with her wings and sing as Hyōen was shocked that people just knew where he hung out for the night.

Well, the person behind left the request to that specific mage from Lamia Scale, so Hyōen found it more than necessary to complete it. His guild was sure to become famous around these areas after his journeys have calmed down, but right now, he had to focus on this quest. On the way towards the center of the town, he stepped into a guy that appeared to target him specifically. “O-Oh, is it you..?” the strange voice spoke even before Hyōen had a change to open his mouth, “Finally, I found you! So is it a yes? Will you help me?” Sweating a little after the bump, the Fire Mage scratched the back of his head and assured: “Yeah, yeah, I’ll help you..!” With a teeth-revealing smile, Dacol eased down again and asked Hyōen to follow him. The Fire Mage nodded as he strived across the streets with the client.

“Even you look scared… what’s so worrying about this ball, anyway?” he asked while resting his hands behind his head. Dacol turned his face towards him for a brief moment, then turned it forward and spoke: “It’s just… it’s very strange to occur in this town. We’ve still yet to fathom Magic fully, and then mysterious occurences such as this happens…” He sounded a bit tired in his voice, so he must’ve been worried all night after hearing the story from Dex- wait, if the so-called detective was to tell him the details, then what exactly did he tell him? Thinking about that, Hyōen sweated intensely and Coda could see that as she flapped her wings to try and wipe the sweat off. “…D-D-D-Did Dex… tell you something s-special..?” he struggled to ask the male. Dacol turned his head up and replied: “The ball is supposedly hostile at contact. He told me that we can’t touch it without suffering… he also told me to take care of you; something weird happened to you while you were near the ball, no?” Being reminded, Hyōen simply looked down with a worried face, which Dacol could notice as he shut it.

“The ball appeared to have a more… humanoid form, though,” Dacol mentioned. Turning up, Hyōen put question marks all over his head as he asked: “W-Wait, what kind of form? Who did it look like..?!”

Dacol felt a little pushed, but replied: “Oh, well, it was a very short person. Perhaps a child-like figure… it just turned into that out of nowhere. That’s why I sent you the request.” It didn’t suit his mother’s appearance, though, in which Hyōen calmed down again. Why was his mother in his vision, though? He still asked himself that as they reached the destination. The night had already fallen, and Hyōen and Coda could clearly see the humanoid form as a little child, all cyan and lighting up the waters. Hyōen began approaching it again, stepping onto the waters like yesterday, all while Dacol followed up closely. T-This voice…, he thought as a certain call prompted him to approach it even more. While the streams were a little stronger today, he managed to get closer to the entity as he turned towards him; its face was humanoid and kind of round in it. “… Uhm,” Hyōen stammered as this was kind of unexpected; yesterday, he didn’t even think of talking with a ball, and now? Things sure were to change in the blink of an eye. Before he could continue, though, the spirit spoke: “I am Ao.” Hyōen sure as hell stepped back in fright as it spoke for a second. All comically looking, he couldn’t but continue listening to it: “I’ve been locked here since I died several years ago. My magic makes me semi-tangible.” The words spoken were calmer now, so Hyōen stood a little more formally and asked: “… Uhm, if it’s a problem of sorts, then what’s the deal? You didn’t talk yesterday, and… what just happened to you?” The Fire Mage continued, but Dacol patted his shoulder a little. “H-Hey, tell me what it says,” the male spoke, “I can’t hear its voice.” Nodding quickly, Hyōen turned towards the spirit. “… Please,” the spirit suddenly begged with a despaired voice, “You have to help me. A great danger is nearing you all… promise me to put a stop to it when it occurs.” Hearing the warning from a deceased person, Hyōen simply nodded slowly in somewhat understanding, while Coda looked around as if nothing was going on. “… Also, if you may be gentle, will you find my dear again? Since my departure, I haven’t got the chance to see my beloved’s face again…” the spirit informed. It was as if he really felt hurt by the separation despite being dead already; Hyōen could feel the pain too. To lose someone that you held so dearly… it was a dark faith for those who met it. The Fire Mage was determined to move on, but... why was he always reminded of the most painful events? The spirit suddenly dove into the ground, disappearing and leaving the informed Hyōen with a strong headache. “Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch,” the boy repeated in pain, flailing around the river with an annoyed look on his face.

After having been told the informations, Dacol closed his notebook. “I… I didn’t see this. It must’ve been through a lot,” he spoke up, “Listen, if you hear or see anything else from the entity again, feel free to contact Inspector Nilan. He’ll help you.” “Oh, really? A literal detective, this time..?!” Hyōen spoke up in amaze. This time, it wouldn’t be like that with Dex; a legit, respected detective from Dacol’s side. The future promised him more than he could ask for…