Ronibo arrived at a small cabin located in an empty field. After he knocked, the door began to open when suddenly someone's hand grabbed his arm. The person then hurled him inside, slammed him into the ground, and pressed a knife to his throat.
"Careful as always. You haven't changed at all, Ranika."
The person who attacked Ronibo was a black-haired woman wearing glasses.
"What a surprise. You're the last person I expected to see," Ranika said, pulling the knife back and allowing Ronibo to stand up. "So what happened that you decided to visit me after all these years?"
"You immediately assume something happened. Can't I visit my friend from time to time?"
Ranika sat down on the couch, crossing her leg over the other. "I thought you were still holding a grudge after I turned you down back then."
"Let's not reopen old wounds. Besides, I came to you with a request. Do you know anything about a man called Borner?"
"Why do you think I would know anything about him?"
"Because you were one of the best spies in the world," Ronibo pointed out. "If anyone would know something about someone, it would be you."
Ranika narrowed her eyes at the mention of her former profession, then stood up and replied, "I haven't done that for five years, and besides, the name alone means nothing to me. Actually, why are you interested in him?"
"He's currently in the capital of Kasegi. I'm afraid he may be connected to the Black Blood group and is planning something bad," Ronibo explained the whole situation.
"Hahahahahahahahaha, you must be joking."
"What's so funny?"
"I never would've thought that you could take someone as a student. Poor kid."
"I can be a good teacher. Never mind that so will you help me with this matter?"
Ranika thought for a moment, but eventually agreed. "Alright. For old times' sake, I'll help you."
"Thanks. I knew I could count on you."
As soon as Derivan regained consciousness, he was dragged by knights toward the town hall. The people he passed stared at him like he was some kind of criminal.
"What's wrong with them? They're looking at me as if I'd killed someone close to them," the teenager thought.
After a moment they reached the town hall. King Maroke stood on the palace balcony.
"We have all gathered here because during the last magical exam an unpleasant incident occurred, in which this boy, Derivan, attempted to steal the Kinotro crystal."
Derivan's eyes widened at the king's accusation, and the rest of the citizens were equally shocked.
"Listen, Derivan. Since you ultimately did not steal the crystal, I will treat you leniently. Instead of imprisoning you, you are banished from Kasegi with no possibility of return."
"What? I didn't do anything like that!"
"Keep your explanations to yourself. It will be better if you leave Kasegi as soon as possible."
Derivan ran to his apartment to take the most essential things. However, he was shocked to find the entire place ransacked everything was destroyed, and some items had been stolen.
"Those bastards."
At the same time, Borner approached two men and whispered something into their ears. The two men then went off somewhere.
"Is everything alright?" Karona asked.
"Perfectly. Everything is going according to plan. We got rid of the only person who could have stood in my way. What about the Vision Dome?"
"It's ready. Over the last few days we've managed to gather more than enough choki from the citizens," replied the academy's secretary.
Borner smiled slyly. "Excellent. Gather all the residents at seven. At that hour we'll activate the dome."
"Understood."
Meanwhile, Derivan was already outside Kasegi when he sensed something and avoided an attack at the last moment. Two men stood before him the same ones Borner had spoken to earlier.
"What do you want?"
"As it happens, our boss wants you dead. So behave, and you won't suffer too much."
"I guess there's no point in talking to you any further."
One of the men drew a blade and lunged at Derivan. The teenager dodged the strike, then placed the hand in which he had previously concentrated choki against the attacker's stomach and released lightning, shocking him and blasting him backward a considerable distance.
"Jack! You'll pay for this, you brat!" The second attacker rushed in.
Derivan blocked his blows with ease. At one point he jumped backward, performing a flip. Then he pushed off the ground with his hands and ran toward the attacker.
"Die!" the man shouted, drawing another blade and waiting for the teenager to come close enough.
However, the man was shocked to see Derivan leap over him, performing another flip while grabbing the attacker by the head and slamming him into the ground.
"You weren't very strong. If I were your boss, I'd fire you," Derivan said before moving on.
"W-wait…" the attacker tried to stop him, but he couldn't move.