30 seconds earlier, somewhere underground in the fortress…

"Heh, we've got em trapped. This is the guy Galo was having a hard time with? Pfft," one of the Sight Killers laughed.

"Haha, as long as we work together, we're unstoppable. These unsuspecting losers are in for a big surprise!" The other exclaimed as they hid in a dimly lit hole under the ground of the forest.

One of the Sight Killers had the ability to highjack the sight of any non-intelligent living beings and give that eyesight to any intelligent life form that he wanted. In conjunction with his partner, who had the ability to kill by sight, this was a perfect combination. As long as he looked at the person for 1 minute without being noticed, that person would die.

"Haha, look at them squirming around! This is fuckin hilarious!" One laughed.

"I can't see them since I gave you all the eyesight, but I bet it's funny as fuck!" They simultaneously chuckled at Clyde's efforts to find them.

"The white-haired dude doesn't look phased at all though. What do you think his problem is?"

"Meh, ignore him. He's probably just scared shitless that he doesn't know what to do," he remarked to his friend, making them burst out into another fit of laughter.

"Who's scared shitless exactly?" They heard a strange, calm voice emerge from the hole they were in, making them jump up from shock.

"Wh- Wha?! How did you get in here! I swear you were just standing over ther—"

Suddenly, Rein flew his leg into the man's face, blowing his head off instantly with no hesitation.

"Sorry, no time to talk," Rein said as he put his leg down after kicking the man into the afterlife.

His partner suddenly shrieked in fear, cowering in the corner of the hole from the white-haired boy, whose yellow eyes glowed in the darkness of the hole.

"Y- you monster!" He screamed in horror.

"You're the one who can hijack sight then? Hm, your ability might be useful," Rein approached him, outreaching his arm to his face.

"St- stay away! I'm warning you! Master Roki won't let you get away with this!" The man tried threatening, Rein ignoring his words and continuing ahead.

Rein set his hand on the mans face and copied his inverted Spring.

[Inverse Copied!]

Original Effect: Allows the user to hijack the eyesight of any creature weaker than them.

Inverted Effect: Allows the user to hijack the hearing of any creature weaker than them.

"Oh? So it's not only for unintelligent creatures but for anything weaker than you?" Rein laughed. "That was just a lie because you're so weak, right?" Rein exposed him.

"Wha… How did you know that! I was going to take that secret to the grave!" The man fearfully stated, his voice trembling as Rein's grip tightened on his face.

"Aw, and you were so close. If you had kept it for a few seconds longer, you would've taken it to the grave," Rein chuckled maliciously.

"What do you mea—"

Rein clenched the hand he had on the man's face, crushing it like a grape, a layer of fire engulfing his palm and arm so no blood would splatter on him.

"Sheesh, these guys were pathetic. But I did get some nice Springs from them," Rein sighed as he teleported back to Clyde using the Spring he obtained from the teleporting devices, which allowed him to set up a path of warping that only he could use.

"I'm back. I dealt with our visitors, so we should be fine to continue now," Rein waved as he returned, Clyde staring at him in awe, his eyes widened and his mouth gaping in amazement.

"Incredible…" Clyde uttered, the curtain from the carriage suddenly opening, revealing the 2 girls who were glued to it with worry.

"You're both okay..?" Xenia asked with tears in her eyes.

"Somehow… It's all thanks to Rein though," Clyde replied, wiping the sweat forming on his forehead away.

Chloe suddenly flung forward and put her arms around Rein, forcefully hugging him out of relief.

"Thank goodness… I had no doubt that you'd live," she said as her chest pressed up against his, a breath of relief coming out of her mouth as she said that.

"Haha, then why's your heart beating so hard? It's okay to feel relieved," Rein patted her on the head, Chloe instantly pulling away from him in embarrassment, slightly annoyed at his remarks.

Quint looked at the scene unfolding with the corner of his eye, jealousy building in his heart as he saw what was happening.

"Thank god they're alright, right Quint?" Reggie sat back down beside Quint after his tense fuss, Quint not responding to Reggie's question. "Quint?" Reggie sounded again, this time catching his attention.

"Huh? O-oh, yeah. Rein is awesome, so I expected nothing less. That guy is so inspirational…" Quint said as he turned his head away from the scene, a look of loneliness invading his eyes.

"I get what you're going through man… The guy you respect the most, and the girl you like. You know she likes him, and you can't help but root for him, right?" Reggie consoled, Quint scratching his head, not knowing what to say.

"I've never felt like this before. It's really confusing, you know?" Quint uttered as he scoffed to himself, laughing at his situation.

"Don't worry dude, you've got a shoulder to lean on in me," Reggie reassured.

"No thanks, I'm not into dudes. Besides, you're one to talk after keeping everything pent up for 3 fuckin weeks," Quint retorted, Reggie guiltily laughing as the 2 girls entered the carriage again.

Rein looked at Quint with a troubled expression, then hopped back up to the roof of the carriage.

Clyde whipped the cart back into motion, the sound of crickets now beginning to fill the night as they rid through the small forest south of Alh.

"So Clyde, have you thought about what Quint said to you?" Rein sparked a conversation.

"Yes…" Clyde replied, staying silent right after.

"And? What do you make of it?" Rein pressed, being able to feel Clyde's frown without even seeing it.

"It evidently pained me to do. And I will most definitely not lie to her at my own leisure. However, that lie was necessary," Clyde answered as the carriage went over a bump in the road, which was mitigated by the tiger's expert riding.

"You prioritized the promise you had to me, huh?" Rein sounded.

"That's correct. You knew that this situation would arise, didn't you?" Clyde interrogated, Rein laughing at his accusation.

"Haha, what do you mean?"

"You told me to tell her about it. That put me in a situation where it would be impossible to avoid telling a lie. You wanted to see how I would act in that situation. Isn't that right?" Clyde deduced.

"Heh, you caught me. And in the end, you chose to prioritize me over her. Why's that? Is it because you view me in a better light than her?"

"No, it is because I made the promise to you much earlier than I met her. That's all there is to it," Clyde claimed.

"That simple, huh? You really are a good guy," Rein said again, which caught Clyde's attention.

"That's the second time you've said that. Was there something that made you doubt my values or my honor?" Clyde posed, Rein thinking back to what Core told him about the future.

"N-nah… It's nothing really. Just an observation I made," Rein stuttered as he spoke, laughing to hide his choppy speech. "So then, what do you think of her?" Rein asked.

"Of Xenia? What do you mean by that? I think she's a wonderful person, with a strong sense of justice and tenacity," Clyde answered, Rein cackling at his response.

"That's not what I meant. Surely you've noticed how she acts towards you," Rein stated, Clyde freezing up at Rein's sudden question.

"..."

"So you have then? Are you playing dumb on purpose? Or do you just not see her the same way?"

"I'm not someone who should be in that kind of relationship…" Clyde uttered. "I appreciate how she feels about me, it truly is an honor, however, I do not deserve any of it, and I wish she would stop. For her own sake," Clyde painfully acknowledged.

"I see. So you chose not to see it, and let her toil away in her own feelings?" Rein remarked, irking Clyde in a wound of guilt.

"Y-yes… I believe that is the best way to avoid any development."

"Hm, maybe so. That might be the most efficient way. But just know that what you're doing will eventually hurt her more than you ever wanted," Rein remarked as he took a deep breath, loosening his muscles as he stared into the pitch-black night sky. "And if it comes to that, then you'd be nothing more than scum. Just keep that in mind."