Arizona raised an eyebrow, a faint smirk on his face as he asked, "So what's the team for?"
Rei, without skipping a beat, replied, "For demon killing."
Arizona blinked. "Demons?"
Rei nodded solemnly. He began explaining the situation to Arizona, carefully choosing his words. He concealed the secret of the thousand records, instead fabricating a story rooted in prophecy.
"A man once made a prophecy," Rei began, "about three fate demons coming to kill three specific individuals. According to him, one of those demons would appear in our time. The man's prophecy was eventually deemed false, forgotten by most... but no one truly knows if the demons might still come. So, I'm preparing a team, just in case. If they show up, we'll be ready to face them."
Arizona crossed his arms. "That's brave of you. But demons aren't what you think. Even if we tried to fight back, we'd die the moment their hexes touch us—especially those of the fate demons. Not even saints can stop the hexes cast by the higher ones."
Rei's voice didn't waver. "I know about hexes, and I know only saints can nullify them. But that's not what I asked you. I asked whether you'll fight with me or not."
Arizona stared at him for a long moment, then exchanged a glance with Alya. She touched his arm, her voice concerned. "Dear... are you really sure?"
He smiled reassuringly at her, then looked at Rei with a serious expression. "I'll fight with you—but only on one condition."
Rei raised a brow. "What's the condition?"
"I want an attack," Arizona said slowly, emphasizing each word, "with attributes neither seen nor heard of in this world."
Alya's eyes widened. Even Emilia and Ben exchanged glances of disbelief. Creating such an attack was unheard of—perhaps even impossible. But Rei's eyes glinted with determination.
"I'll make it for you," he promised. "Just wait till I finish it."
Without another word, Rei turned and walked back to his mansion. He spent the rest of the day and deep into the night studying magical circle symbols, flipping through pages and drawing connections, mapping out ideas in his notebook. When night finally fell, he drifted off to sleep surrounded by open tomes and unfinished diagrams.
The next morning, Rei awoke early and gathered Levi, Luc, Emilia, and Ben. Tenko, perched on Rei's shoulder, let out a sleepy yawn, blinking lazily as they made their way through the quiet streets. On their way out of town, they ran into Arizona and Alya.
"Hey, where are you going?" Arizona asked casually.
Before Rei could answer, Alya's eyes sparkled at the sight of Tenko. "Oh my, what a cutie!"
She reached up and patted Tenko gently on the head, who responded with a low purr. Rei smiled faintly and replied, "We're going to visit a blacksmith."
Arizona tilted his head. "Mind if we come with you?"
"Sure, I don't mind," Rei said.
Together, the group made their way to the eastern gate, where a man waited for them: Colt, a muscular figure with an earthy presence.
Rei called out, "Show us your workshop, Colt."
Colt nodded. "Sure. Follow me."
The path Colt took led them out of the town and toward a looming volcano. The party exchanged confused glances as they followed him up the steep slopes. Arizona, Alya, Emilia, and Ben were soon huffing from the climb. As mages, they weren't used to intense physical exertion. Luc and Levi, both trained spies, showed no signs of fatigue, and Rei, a battle-trained wizard, climbed with steady steps.
At last, they arrived at a large cave nestled in the volcano's side. The heat radiated in waves from the stone, and a crimson glow pulsed from within.
As they entered, their eyes widened.
The entire volcano... was the blacksmith's workshop.
Molten streams coursed through carved channels, illuminating the cavern walls with a fiery hue. Tools and partially forged weapons were scattered around. The air thrummed with residual heat, and the smell of iron lingered thickly.
"This volcano," Colt began, gesturing around, "used to erupt frequently. I used its lava to forge my weapons. But recently, it's gone dormant."
Rei folded his arms. "So we have to make it erupt again?"
Colt nodded. "Yes. No matter what you do, I want a volcanic eruption that lasts for at least an hour."
Levi rubbed the back of his head. "How are we supposed to do that?"
Ben shook his head. "That's impossible. We've tried everything."
But Rei's expression didn't change. He stepped forward, his gaze focused. "I have an idea for an artificial eruption."
Levi asked, "What is it? What can we do?"
Rei pulled his chaos scepter from his belt and handed it to Colt. "Get ready."
He knelt and placed both hands on the heated stone floor. Closing his eyes, Rei channeled seismic energy through his body, concentrating it downward.
The magma chamber must be down there... he thought, gritting his teeth.
Despite his efforts, the waves couldn't reach deep enough. Rei stood up, panting. "I can't send my seismic waves the whole way. We'll need water attacks. Lots of them."
Ben blinked. "Water magic? Will it even work?"
"Yes," Rei said firmly. "Water will cool the surface, creating pressure. That pressure, if timed right, will cause an artificial eruption. Everyone—get ready. Use your strongest water attacks on the lava!"
Without hesitation, they prepared their spells. Luc and Levi raised their hands.
"Oh water," they chanted in unison, "rain terror on our foes and make them tremble from our power—Water Crash!"
Ben and Emilia followed.
"Oh water, make my foes submit to my power—Waterfall!"
Arizona and Alya invoked their silent magic, mouthing the words together: "Water Flood."
A massive cascade of water crashed onto the lava, steam erupting into the air. The earth trembled beneath their feet as pressure built rapidly inside the mountain. Then, with a thunderous roar, the volcano exploded in a controlled eruption, lava spurting into the air like a geyser.
A string of volcanic Lava suddenly came from an open tunnel into a small bowl. Looking at it, Colt said, "Time to forge this sentient weapon."