In the hotels near the Stella Star arena, there were medical rooms for those who were injured in the Seven Star Tournament.
Retsuya used those, putting Miyako, Saya and Emika in care.
Outside of the medical rooms, Retsuya sat with his head down. He was frantically shaking his leg while clasping his hands together. Ayato stood against the wall opposite him with a frown on his face.
"You didn't stop them. Why? Why didn't you come to tell me?"
"I... I don't know... I thought that if I did... you wouldn't be able to stop them either way but... that's just an excuse. Perhaps, because I wanted to fulfil a duty."
"A duty?"
"She said... I should protect them. I've never been asked to protect someone. Not even Lady Yukina has asked me to protect her. I thought... I thought I could."
Ayato didn't say anything to him. Retsuya was already suffering. He knew that anything that would come out of his mouth would only scar him further.
"What happened?"
Kiara walked down the corridor with a quizzical look on her face. Ayato had called her. It seemed like she had just finished exercising since she was wearing a black vest and shorts and had a towel around her neck.
"Sorry for interrupting your training, Sis."
Ayato said.
"What's wrong? This isn't like you."
She asked.
He looked at the depressed Retsuya and her gaze followed.
"They came across the Mage Killer. One girl has lost an entire arm and had temporarily lost the feeling in the other. Her mana meridians have also temporarily lost effectiveness. Another girl has suffered severe blunt trauma. The final girl should be fine since she was only knocked out. They're all girls from our school."
Kiara broke into a cold sweat despite the warmth she felt.
"You ran into him? Are you okay?"
"Yes... If you want, I can tell you my opinions on the Mage Killer. It's the only way I can be useful."
"Ah, first we should call Anti-Magic—"
"No,"
Ayato said. Kiara tilted her head in confusion.
"If they hear about this now, they'll stop the tournament. I know it's dangerous but this happened in the next district over. We can tell Akari Chiori after. I'm sure she'll share the same opinion as me."
The girl sighed.
"If you say so,"
She turned back to Retsuya.
"So, what were these opinions you had? Tell us about the Mage Killer."
"The Mage Killer was around 5"9. He had black hair but it seemed like a wig. He wore a white mask which filtered his voice. I don't think it's accurate to think that the Mage Killer is a male. The mask would already filter his voice so I think there's no point in a filtered voice. That means that he could be a woman or it's to mislead us. Perhaps he's someone well known."
Kiara soaked in the information. She laid against the wall alongside Ayato.
"That just makes the Mage Killer even more mysterious. How about abilities? I want to know what managed to take that girl's arm off."
Retsuya furrowed his brow just remembering what happened.
"It was... I don't know. He can use multiple Magic Seals. Not only that but he can use some mysterious power. I don't know what it was though—"
"Aether."
Ayato cut in while averting his eyes. They both looked at him in confusion. The boy sighed and addressed them directly.
"That's what it was, right, Retsuya?"
"Y-yeah... But how do you know?"
"Aether is a theoretical element. Unlike mana, we don't know where it comes from. It doesn't abide by the same laws that mana does."
He explained.
"This is my first time hearing about aether. How do you know about it?"
Kiara asked him.
"There are only a few people in the world who are able to control aether. Those who can, are called World Magicians."
"...!"
As soon as Retsuya heard this, his head dropped once more. He clutched his head tightly. It was a hopeless battle from the beginning. They were fighting someone on the same level as World Magicians.
"Retsuya, remember when I argued with Miyako? The reason I was arguing with her was because I knew the Mage Killer was as powerful as a World Magician."
"Why didn't you say that until now?! If you said it, then this wouldn't have..."
"Retsuya, is it?"
Kiara began talking with a loathsome look on her face. She looked at Retsuya as if he were a bug.
"Don't blame other people for your own mistakes. He warned you either way, didn't he? Yet, you still decided to go."
She was right. He was blaming it on Ayato now. He was no better than Miyako when she flipped out at Ayato.
"I'm sorry..."
"It's fine. I'm sure you couldn't have stopped them even if you tried."
This wasn't Ayato's true feelings. He was being considerate, unlike his usual blunt personality.
"Ayato, so, what will we do now?"
"Well... When they wake up, they still won't listen to me, no matter what I say. If possible, Sis, could you tell them?"
Kiara raised her brow, unsure of what he meant. A moment later, when she saw his serious look, she became nervous.
"Wait, you want me to tell those girls that? Why? I thought you didn't want anyone to know other than the details you shared at the Midnight Banquet."
"Those girls are people that I see as my friends."
Ayato said to her.
"I'm sure Miyako has had a tough life too but she's too focused on looking at herself as the victim. If I tell the story, there'd be no depth to it. I take back what I said about as soon as they wake up, on the final day of the tournament, could you tell them, please?"
The older sister facepalmed, tired of her brother's methods. It seemed sad to her.
"You're doing this so that they don't do something stupid again, right? The last time you told someone the full story, they stopped being your friend."
"It's fine, it's their choice."
He dismissed his sister's worries.
Retsuya was the only one out of the loop.
"Story...?"
"The story I told at the Midnight Banquet was the truth mixed with lies."
"Ah, you mean about the life you led?"
Ayato nodded with a faint smile.
"My life was far crueler than that."