CHAPTER 1

The Boy and the Witch

1

The prison was dark and chilly. There were no windows or crevices for a stray shaft of sunlight to slip inside. The only source of light was a few flickering candles, and the damp air carried the lingering smell of rust and dust through its halls. That was the state of the cell where a girl was chained to its wall.

Thump. She heard the faint echo of a footstep.

“Who’s there?” She jumped up reflexively from her prison bed.

She shouldn’t have been able to hear footsteps. There weren’t any guards around. It was an unmanned prison, after all. Of course, there were reasons for that.

First, three layers of video surveillance systems monitored every square inch of the facility.

Second, this prison housed undesirables, or those labeled as “witches” and “sorcerers.” This girl was no exception. Even when caged, witches were considered far too dangerous. No one could guarantee the safety of any guards who would have been staffed there—hence, it was left unmanned.

Then why do I hear footsteps?

Who was approaching her? And for what reason?

“…”

The girl who silently readied herself had been born with the inexplicable energy called “astral power,” meaning she was one of the fearsome witches. She couldn’t fathom anyone creeping up on her with good news.

Maybe they were coming to exact some personal revenge. Or to inform her of her execution.

As the steps drew closer, she did her best to contain her fear and anticipation.

“Shhh, keep quiet.”

“What?”

The moment they saw each other, he said something that made her eyes go wide.

“I’m gonna let you out right now.”

It was a boy. He was a teenager with messy locks of dark-chestnut hair, wearing the battle uniform of the Imperial army. A pair of swords hung from the belt at his hip—one in a black sheath and the other in white.

…Let out? Who are you talking about?

She was the only one in the cell, but it still took her a little while to understand what he was trying to say.

“Don’t move. And don’t get too close to the bars.”

A sword flashed before her. That was all she could make out: a momentary flash of light in front of her eyes.

With one swift move, he’d broken through the prison bars. She finally realized what had happened when the remnants of the bars crashed to the floor and rolled down the quiet hallway.

“…No way.”

Even with her astral power, she wouldn’t have been able to break those bars, which were wrought from a metal alloy of steel and iron. They would have required heavy machinery to rip apart. And yet, this boy had sliced through them with ease. Using a single sword, no less.

However, the most confusing thing wasn’t this incredible feat but his decision to break her out in the first place.

“…Why?” she asked.

“Why? Well, I can’t get you out without hacking through these bars.”

“…Why are you…letting me escape…?”

The hole was just large enough for a single person to slip through. She rapidly blinked in confusion.

“Aren’t you an Imperial swordsman? Plus, that left armband means you’re a Saint Disciple… Why would someone from the Empire’s ultimate military force be here?”

“You sure are well-informed.” As he slid his sword back in its sheath, the boy nodded in a way that could be described only as carefree. “Who would have thought that a Nebulis mage would be familiar with the inner workings of our military hierarchy?”

“…Well.” She cast her face down to avert her troubled eyes, which were filled with uncertainty. “We’re enemies. It makes sense that we’d study things about the enemy country… Why are you letting me go?” She peered up at him once again.

His answer: “You’re about thirteen or fourteen, right? Or are you younger?”

“…What?”

“If you’re twelve, that’d make you three years younger than me. Oh, I guess almost four now.”

Their respective homelands had been engaged in an ongoing war for over a century. In the Empire, witches were mercilessly captured and treated as prisoners of war regardless of their gender or age—and yet, here they were.

“I happened to see you get captured, and you caught my eye.”

“…?”

“I’ve got a thing or two to say about the Empire’s policy of rounding up all the astral mages, especially someone like you. You’re still a kid. Plus, you don’t even have that much power.”

“…That’s just the way your country does things.”

“True. All I can do is sneak you out. This is the first time I’m doing this, but if it works, I’m gonna help other kids escape, too.”

He beckoned to her from outside the cell.

“Hurry. I stopped the surveillance system, but it’ll probably come back online in a few minutes.”

“Ah…” She involuntarily yipped when he took her hand.

Wasn’t he afraid to touch her? After all, her very existence as a witch was despised. Even if he wasn’t scared, didn’t he feel disgusted?

“Quick. We’re gonna book it all the way down that hall.”

His warm hand continued to grip hers as they darted through the deserted passageway. Following his lead, she scurried along the halls with him until they found themselves in front of the emergency exit.

“Go out from here. It’ll take you to the outskirts of the Imperial capital. Follow the flow of people heading downtown. From there, use the directories on the electronic message boards to figure out your next move. I think it’ll be best for you to hop on a loop bus and head to a city in neutral territory. Here, take this. I’m sorry it’s not much.”

He pressed a few silver Imperial coins into her hand along with hardtack, which had been given to him as emergency rations for the troops.

She didn’t even thank him.

It seemed too good to be true. That was exactly why she’d started to suspect that this was all a trap. She’d never heard of an Imperial soldier willing to help a prisoner make a break for it, much less hand them money and a meal.

“Now go.”

“…”

She was skeptical of his motivations, but she eventually scampered off, propelled forward by her instinct to escape the prison—running all the way out of the emergency exit and far beyond the prison walls.

At the gates around the Imperial capital, she hopped on a bus to take her to lands beyond Imperial jurisdiction. From there, she headed to an encampment where others like her gathered before she returned to her home country, the Nebulis Sovereignty.

She needed to check for herself and breathe in the familiar air of her own home before she accepted the truth.

“…He wasn’t lying.” She finally realized his words and actions weren’t a part of some grand scheme to get her.

By the very next day, word of the unprecedented incident in the Empire had reached the ears of those in the distant land of Nebulis.

“Iska, the Youngest Saint Disciple in History.

“Imprisoned for treason against the nation and aiding the escape of a witch. Given a life sentence.”

“No way…” The girl clutched the news magazine in her hands and trembled ever so slightly.

Why? Why would he do that for me, an enemy?

What had driven him to act? She stood absentmindedly in place, grasping at straws.

That had occurred exactly a year ago. It had been a whole year since the incident in question, when a soldier assisted a witch to break out of prison.

Now the world was about to recall his name once again, following a chance meeting between Iska, the Successor of the Black Steel, and Alice, the Ice Calamity Witch.

2

“We have decided to discharge the convict Iska.”

The Imperial Senate came to a resolution, united as the body that held absolute rule of the largest territory in the world.

“Raise your head, Iska. It’s your first time outside in a year. How does it feel to be in the sun?”

“…It’s blinding.” With his arms and legs bound, the boy squinted at the rays of sunlight beaming through a canopy.

On a platform in the center of the enormous Senate chamber, he glanced around at the eight men and women peering down on him. They were the Eight Great Apostles—the eight supreme leaders who controlled the Imperial Senate. Of course, they weren’t physically present in the chamber, but the hazy outlines of their faces were displayed on the monitors along the wall.

“You don’t appear to be in a sunny mood.”

“…Half of me is in disbelief. Are you really gonna release me?”

“Indeed. It seems you understand the severity of your crime. As you know, it was a serious blow to us when you released the witch in captivity.”

“We’ve prepared an opportunity for you to atone for your grave crime.”

“What do you mean?” His eyebrows knit together reflexively.

When he’d been imprisoned and stripped of his position as a Saint Disciple a year ago, they’d sentenced him to life in prison.

…Why were they discharging him? He’d spent only a year behind bars. And he knew the Eight Great Apostles on the monitors in front of him were not so merciful that they’d let him go without cause.

“Are you giving me a mission in exchange for a pardon…?”

“Very perceptive. You’re not a slow thinker, even when you arranged for that witch to escape. I have to give you that.”

The Eight Great Apostles chuckled in low voices.

“But I can only fight using my swords.”

“You’re evading the truth. You ought to rephrase that: It’s not that you can only fight with swords, but all you need to fight are your swords.”

They weren’t being sarcastic. There was a reason that the absolute authorities of the most powerful country in the world had called upon him to give direct orders.

“Let’s get to the subject at hand. We aren’t going to order you to do something that’s a big deal. It’s something you ought to do. In other words, we want you to defeat a witch.”

“A witch?”

“We received intelligence from a sleeper agent in the Nebulis Sovereignty that they’ve decided to dispatch a single witch to an Imperial base.”

“That sounds…like an everyday occurrence on the battlefront.”

“This isn’t any ordinary witch. She’s a direct descendant of the Grand Witch Nebulis. A purebred.”

“A purebred?!” He couldn’t help but go bug-eyed at the term. “…That’s a formidable opponent.”

“That’s exactly why we’re discharging you,” the Eight Great Apostles continued matter-of-factly. “There was a time when the Grand Witch Nebulis turned our very own Empire into a sea of flames. As you know, those from her bloodline are referred to as ‘purebreds.’ I’m assuming you’re aware that incredibly potent astral power resides within their bodies, right?”

“I am. I’ve battled against them before.”

“Your opponent is powerful, even among the purebreds. Her name is the Ice Calamity Witch. During your imprisonment, she broke through the northern front of Yubel alone. It was about a year ago. She managed to steal our latest weapon there and took it back to the Nebulis Sovereignty.”

“…She got through the front by herself?”

He remembered hearing about the incident through the grapevine—that a witch with an impressive amount of astral power had made her debut.

“We imagine it would be a tough fight for even a Saint Disciple, especially if you engage with her in direct combat. Meaning the unit on the front lines would be hopeless against her. That’s where you come in.”

“Iska, you’re our youngest Saint Disciple in history. We’re counting on you.”

“…You mean former Saint Disciple. I was demoted a year ago as punishment.”

By fifteen, he’d shot through the ranks and become a part of the forces that directly guarded their Lord. His unprecedented ascent was going to guarantee his status as a hero…or at least, that’s what was supposed to happen.

“If you put your mind to it, I’m sure you’ll be able to re-earn your position as a Saint Disciple in no time. After all, you studied under the strongest man in the Empire, inherited the astral swords, and became the Successor of the Black Steel.”

The floor below Iska’s feet parted, and a mechanical pedestal rose up from the ground—holding a pair of swords.

One was in a black steel sheath, the other in white.

“Here are the astral swords passed down to you from that man. Take them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Only the worthy may invoke the true power of these swords. They are for you alone.”

The handcuffs and shackles restraining Iska clattered to the ground.

“From this moment on, you are free. We will prepare a military transport vehicle for you in seventeen hours. It will take you to the front lines. Complete any necessary preparations by then. If you need anything, we’re ready to provide it: arms, personnel, funds, rations, medicine. Ask and it will be taken care of.”

They would take care of everything. No prisoner had ever been treated so well. When they made that proposal, Iska didn’t hesitate to reply.

“There are three members I’d like in my unit.”

“We are listening.”

“For my commanding officer, I’d like Mismis Klass. For my sniper, Jhin Syulargun. For my machinist, Nene Alkastone. Could you call the three of them?”

3

Sector Two of the Imperial capital.

This was the commercial district of the capital. Within the thick steel barrier of the city walls, this was the busiest area. At one corner facing the town square was a restaurant, Powder Base.

“Nene, honey, where should we sit?”

“Hey, Nene! We still haven’t gotten our food.”

“Nene—”

“Coming, coming! Geez! Be there in a minute!”

In the back corner of the kitchen, Nene gulped down the final bites of bread she had been nibbling on for lunch. She hastily got up and donned her apron, which she’d left neatly folded, then dashed over to the seating area swarming with customers.

This was the life of Nene Alkastone.

She had her voluminous red hair gathered into a ponytail, which accentuated her large blue eyes. She was fifteen years old and wore a cheerful, lively smile that left an impression on those around her. Her hot pants exposed her thighs, and her tank top complemented her toned body. Overall, this sporty look suited her well.

“Okay, okay. How many people…? Oh!”

A silver-haired boy stood in front of the entrance.

As soon as she caught sight of him, Nene squealed in delight and ran over.

“Jhin?! Whoa, I’m so happy to see you here. Did you come all this way to see me?”

“I saw you just the other day.”

“What? Oh, does that mean you’re here as a customer? In that case, there won’t be as many people in an hour, and the place should be a little more comfortable. Today’s lunch special is, uhhh…”

“Sad to say, but I already ate.” His voice had a calm and sober quality to it—a stark contrast to Nene, who looked up at him in anticipation with her big eyes.

His name was Jhin Syulargun. His silver hair was spiked up, framing his masculine face and sharp gray eyes. He wore a military uniform that incorporated fiber-optic cables in the design and lugged around a rifle case on his left shoulder.

“Okay then, what’s up?”

“I’ve got a message for you.”

“What is it?”

“Our guy has been released. He just returned to the barracks, scrambling to get ready.”

Nene’s eyes darted around, unfocused, as she contemplated his announcement.

“…Oh!” Her eyes glittered as if she’d been struck by an epiphany. “By ‘our guy,’ you wouldn’t by any chance mean—?”

“It’s Iska.”

“Noooooo waaaaay?! What? Really? You’re not pulling my leg, are you?” Oblivious to how loud she was being in the restaurant, she cried out.

“You should get ready before you celebrate.”

“You mean for his welcome-back party, right?”

Even as Nene bounced around in joy, Jhin didn’t change his curt tone.

“We leave tomorrow morning at oh hundred. We’re heading to the front lines aboard a military transport.”

“…Come again? A military transport? To the front?”

“It’s a deployment.”

“What?! Wait a sec, Jhin! I’ve got work till the evening!”

“Give it up. You? Holding on to a decent job? You’ve got to be dreaming.” Jhin emitted a semblance of a sigh, turning his back on Nene. “At least as long as the Empire and the Nebulis Sovereignty continue this meaningless war.”

As night began to fall on the city like a curtain of watered-down ink, a watchtower’s light pierced the darkness, illuminating the front of the city’s military gate.

Iska felt compelled to stare at the night sky, taking in the twinkling stars faintly flickering in the background.

“It’s friggin’ cold.” He shivered as the evening wind trailed over his neck. “…A full year since I last saw the sun. And the stars, too.”

Iska flipped up the collar of his military uniform and let a bitter chuckle sneak past his lips. He’d thought he would never see the sunrise or night sky again.

“Now that I’m free, I’ve got a perilous battle to deal with. Maybe I’ll regret not spending the rest of my life locked up in a cell. It was nice and safe in there… But who knows!”

He dunked his backpack onto the flatbed of the military transport vehicle, where it made an aggressively loud thump. Despite the noise, his luggage was on the light side: His only weapons were the swords he carried. Beyond that, he just had medical supplies and a small communications device. If he’d been a sniper, he would have all that, plus his own gun and a case full of ammunition. If he’d been an information specialist, he would have had even larger equipment that needed lugging around.

“Uhhh, what time is—?”

“We have four minutes and thirty seconds until we need to meet up.”

Iska spun around to find a silver-haired boy coming into view under the streetlamps. It was the sniper, carrying his trunk on his left shoulder.

“Hey, Jhin. You were a lifesaver today. Thanks for getting in contact with Nene and Captain Mismis.”

“I’m used to dealing with your last-minute stuff. Like that time a year ago—when you got carried away with breaking out that witch by yourself.”

“Ack… D-didn’t I apologize for that this morning?”

“You never follow through. The master always said, ‘Whatever you do, make absolutely sure you will succeed. Otherwise, wait until the time is right.’ And yet you still haven’t learned your lesson.” Jhin sighed dramatically and flung his things into the vehicle. “When you were arrested, those two didn’t take it too well. Their reaction was something else.”

“You mean Nene and Captain Mismis?”

“That means they’re just as worked up about your release. Speak of the devil.”

With his eyes, Jhin motioned to the headlights whizzing toward them at a terrifying speed. A dense fog of dust followed the buggy as it peeled forward. The sound of its brakes screeched into the night, shattering the silence. Most of the soldiers were sound asleep.

“Iska, congrats on getting oooooout!” Before the ATV came to a halt, a redheaded girl bounded out of the car. “Congrats, congrats, congraaaaaaaaaaats!” she sang.

“Nene?!” Iska caught Nene as she threw herself into his arms. “I know you’re excited, but… I mean, I feel bad for making you worry.”

“It’s okay. It’s not your fault, Iska. Everything worked out in the end.” She looked up at him with tears welling in her eyes. “Do you know just how worried I was about you?! I couldn’t eat for a month! Like, I lost over six pounds.”

“Yeah, and then you binged on barbecue and gained, like, ten pounds,” Jhin muttered under his breath, thinking back to how she’d gorged herself on meat.

“Jhin, how did you even know about that?!” Nene’s sharp ears picked up on his snide comment, and she whipped around to look him in the eye.

“…Oh, hey. Looks like the captain’s arrived. Hey, over here!” Nene waved toward the direction of the city.