The runes on the teleportation circle shimmered to life, casting a pale blue glow that wrapped around us like a fragile shell. For a heartbeat, I watched the dome flicker, its edges tracing the same smooth walls that surrounded us. Then, in a blink, the world dissolved, and I was left blinking into the harsh, unforgiving glare of the summer sun. The sudden heat pressed against my skin, almost as if the world itself was trying to burn away the last traces of cold.
We landed in the middle of a sprawling cobbled plaza, the stones still warm from the sun. All around us, teleportation circles pulsed with fading magic, each one now crowded with noble families and their entourages. Beyond the plaza, a high wall loomed, its shadow falling over us like a warning. Soldiers stood along the parapets, their armor glinting, crossbows and scorpions at the ready. It all felt oppressive, like a cage.
The soldiers weren’t really there to guard the circles. Everyone knew that. Their real job was to stand as a silent threat, just in case someone tried to use them for an invasion, or if a noble decided to stir up trouble. But no one here was foolish enough to test them. It was all just for show, a reminder of who held the power, and who was expected to behave.
I barely had a moment to take in the parade of nobles or the soldiers’ silent dick-measurement contest. None of it mattered, not when the air was suddenly split by the raw, heart-shattering wail of a child. The sound cut through the heat and the noise, leaving everything else in its shadow.
"WHAAAA!"
For a moment, I thought it might be one of the twins in my arms, or maybe Teresa, but their wide eyes mirrored my own shock. The pain in that scream was too sharp, too real. I could feel the twins tensing, their little bodies bracing for tears of their own. It was only a matter of time before their cries joined the chorus.
Heads turned, necks craned, and the crowd parted just enough to reveal the source of the heartbreak. A little boy, barely four, stood trembling in silks now ruined by splashes of red. He clutched the place where his right hand should have been, blood spurting from the unaturally clean cut, splattering the stones beneath him. Each pulse sent fresh, hot crimson trickling down his arm, drenching his clothes and pooling at his feet. His face twisted in agony, mouth open in a wordless scream, eyes wild and unfocused. The air was thick with the metallic tang of blood. Behind him, his mother stood frozen, her hands pressed over her mouth, eyes wide with horror, terror etched deep into her face.
Without thinking, I pressed the twins into Janus’s arms. He blinked at me, confusion flickering across his face, but understanding came quickly. But before he could stop me, I had long slipped away, already weaving through the sea of onlookers, my heart pounding with every step.
I caught sight of priests trying to push their way through, their faces tight with worry. The nobles barely budged, too wrapped up in their own importance to care. I didn’t bother with politeness. I shoved past silk and lace, ignoring their ire, until I was close enough to feel the panic in the air.
The boy sagged in his mother’s arms, his skin already shockingly pale, his lips turning blue. Her dress was soaked with blood as she desperately pressed it with her trembling hands against the stump, but nothing could staunch the flow. The boy’s breathing was ragged, each gasp a shallow, wet rattle. The priests were finally breaking through the crowd, but every second felt like a lifetime. I could have healed him, could have given him back what he’d lost, but the thought of the uproar that would follow held me back. The ache in my chest was sharp, but I had to wait.
If I stepped in now, the church would never forget that I, a nobody, an outsider, was showing them up in front of all these people. I couldn’t give them any reason to dislike me, not with the possibility of negotiations looming on the horizon.
Then why did I even come so close?
I hadn’t come just to watch. I needed to make sure the boy didn’t slip away before help could reach him. When I was close enough, I closed my eyes and let my mana flow, spinning a thin, nearly invisible thread toward him. I let it snake along the ground, weaving through the crowd, trusting my senses instead of my eyes. No one noticed, though someone with keen eyesight might still catch a glimpse.
Over the past months, I’d learned to stretch my mana further, to shape it into threads as thin as spider silk. My senses had grown sharper, letting me feel the world in colors and pulses, even when my eyes were closed. Everything around me blurred into shifting shapes of blue and green of mana and vitality. This way,, I couldn't just see what was in front of me, I could also see everything within a ten-meter radius around. Just like when Felicia used her earth sense to look for tunnels underground.
Over the past months, I’d learned to stretch my mana further, to shape it into threads as thin as spider silk. My senses had grown sharper, letting me feel the world in colors and pulses, even when my eyes were closed. Everything around me blurred into shifting shapes of mana and life, a secret world hidden beneath the surface.
I looped the thread gently around the boy’s ankle, letting my mana seep in to dull the pain and slow the bleeding. His cries softened, fading into quiet whimpers. If they notice, they would chalk it up to adrenaline, maybe even declare it a miracle of the gods. I couldn’t fix everything, but at least I could give him a little relief.
Suddenly, I could feel a strong hand touch my shoulder, and when I looked behind me, I could see Janus standing behind me, looking down at me in exasperation.
“I should have known what you would do.”
“Sorry, I just…”
Janus leaned down near my ear, giving me a light kiss on my cheek, before we changed our conversation to a whisper.
"Don't apologize. At least you didn't overdo it. Neat trick by the way.”
Janus said, his fingers brushing over mine, tracing the place where the thread of mana curled around my finger.
“Where are the kids?”
“Don't worry, my mother and Bella took them.”
“You like it?”
I asked, and with a quiet thought, let the thread wind around our hands, binding us together.
“Now I won't be so helpless anymore.”
I waited for him to smile, to say something sweet, but instead his brow furrowed, and he whispered an apology.
“I'm sorry about what happened with Rodrick. If I had executed him back in Aldmoor, he wouldn't have…”
“Stop thinking about it. We can't change the past. It made sense to keep him alive back then. You needed to know his accomplices. Besides, he was your friend and comrade, your teacher; feelings don't vanish overnight.”
But Janus only looked away, unconvinced, as if my words were just another list of excuses he’d already heard a hundred times.
The priests finally reached the boy, closing the wound and easing him into a quiet, dreamless sleep. His mother clung to him, her grief spilling out in silent sobs. I wanted so badly to do more, to make it right, but I turned away, swallowing the ache in my chest. I promised myself, quietly, that he would be my first patient in the capital.