Chapter 12:

  Moli sat deep beneath the water, motionless as a statue forgotten on the ocean floor. His heavy hair drifted around his head, stretching and undulating among fleeing fish, while air bubbles slipped slowly from his nose, rising in broken trails toward the distant surface.

  The veins in his neck suddenly tightened, as though something had been pulled from within. In the next instant, a raw, violent pink light erupted from his chest, surging like a newborn wave through the mighty ocean currents. The water around him shuddered. The fish scattered, and the blue of the sea darkened, growing ominous, as if the depths themselves were watching him.

  The light ceased as abruptly as it had begun.

  Moli stood and rose slowly, cleaving through the heavy water until he emerged from the sea. His clothes clung to his body, weighing him down, as though the ocean refused to let him go. He lifted his head and brushed his hair back—and Sez came into view.

  Sez lay sprawled atop a rock overlooking the ocean. Behind him, the forest rose like a silent third companion, and between its peaks, the roof of Rin’s house appeared—small, distant, watching everything in quiet witness.

  Moli sat beside Sez, water dripping from him, and murmured absently,

  “The knot… it won’t come undone. I can’t open it.”

  Sez pushed himself upright and fixed his gaze on the horizon.

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  “Of course not. A knot forged to contain your magical energy for thousands of years… it wouldn’t yield easily.”

  Moli repeated the words under his breath, mocking the very tone. Sez then added, deliberately provoking him,

  “Being right doesn’t mean you’re stupid.”

  Moli’s features tightened, and he growled,

  “Yeah.”

  Then he added with a crooked smile,

  “Let me kill you, my friend.”

  Sez stared at him wide-eyed, feigning innocence.

  “But Rin would be sad.”

  Moli drew a deep breath, then let out a short, bitter laugh.

  “I can’t beat you in a fight of words.”

  Sez replied at once,

  “And you can’t beat me in a fistfight either.”

  Suddenly, Moli sprang to his feet, lunged forward, wrapped Sez in a crushing embrace, and leapt with him toward the sea, shouting with childish fury,

  “I’ve had enough!”

  ............

  They lay sprawled atop the rock, gasping for breath. Light bruises stained their faces, and the ocean below them had returned to calm, as though nothing had happened at all.

  Sez looked at Moli—this time with a seriousness he rarely wore.

  “So… what now?”

  Moli furrowed his brow. Sez continued in a dry tone,

  “Why are we here, Moli?”

  Moli stared ahead. The question seemed to open something inside him—a door he hadn’t been ready to face. He nodded slowly, then said with clear resolve,

  “To save humanity.”

  He turned to Sez with a focused look.

  “But we’re weak right now, Sez.”

  “I know—”

  Moli cut him off immediately,

  “No. We’re weak even compared to the strongest humans.”

  He fell silent for a moment, then added in a cryptic voice,

  “That’s why our ultimate goal doesn’t matter for now. All we need to do… is untie the magical knot and reclaim our full power.”

  Sez stood, staring out at the sea. Dark clouds were gathering in the distance, heavy and foretelling a coming storm. He took a deep breath, then said,

  “Still… I want you to remind me why we’re here.”

  Moli answered in a deep, steady voice, as though anchoring the truth within himself,

  “To defeat the Father of Demons... Lousenfeer”