Revanio truly did not believe Lizzy was an evil person. Her innocent expression, her gentle aura, her bright presence — none of it carried even the faintest hint of danger.
And yet, the moment he recalled how she defeated a Mothman with a single strike, unease stirred within him. That was not something that could be brushed off as coincidence. A creature like a Mothman usually required five fully grown men to subdue.
But Lizzy… Lizzy was different. Though she was taller than most girls her age, she looked like an ordinary teenage girl — except for that faint sense of something unusual about her.
"Huft…" Revanio let out a long breath. He was overthinking things. Morgana was right. Lizzy wasn't dangerous. She must simply have some hidden physical talent. Or maybe she used some kind of magic that enhanced her strength. Yes. That had to be it. Surely.
Midnight had already crept upon the house, yet Revanio still couldn't sleep. The strangeness surrounding Lizzy gnawed at him. The girl had promised not to cause trouble, but his thoughts refused to settle unless he confirmed with his own eyes that everything was truly fine.
He tried to close his eyes — he really did — but eventually he found himself walking toward her room.
Once he reached her door, he froze. His pride as a man scolded him, reminding him that it was improper to knock on a woman's door at this hour, especially someone who wasn't family and shared no blood relation with him. It would look suspicious for him to visit so late at night.
So Revanio turned around, forcing himself to step away. Yet the silence of the house only intensified his unease. It felt… empty. As if there was no sign of life anywhere.
Even then, Revanio held back again — that stubborn pride of his still whispering rules into his ear.
Eventually, he returned to his room. Lizzy's room was on the same floor, separated only by Morgana and Milliane's rooms. Before entering, Revanio glanced at Lizzy's door once more, that restless feeling still scraping at his chest.
"Meow…"
Moriga greeted him the moment he stepped inside. Revanio frowned. How did the round orange cat get in here? He was certain he had closed his door when he left.
After checking the room, he discovered the truth — he had forgotten to lock the window fully, leaving a small gap big enough for Moriga to slip through.
Realizing his carelessness, Revanio cursed himself. What if a thief sneaked in? What if someone discovered Lizzy in this house?
The thought made him laugh bitterly. Of all moments, why was he thinking of her?
He shook off the thought and approached the window to shut it. But before closing it, he caught sight of something outside — movement, noises, a faint commotion in the distance.
Moments later, the bell of the Lighthouse Tower, standing upon the middle of Emeraldy Lake, rang out across the night. A sound that only echoed when danger loomed over the city.
Revanio's eyes widened. A cold premonition wrapped his chest like ice.
Without thinking — without caring about pride, propriety, or appearances — Revanio sprinted toward Lizzy's room. This time he didn't hesitate. He didn't knock. He barged in.
And his heart dropped.
The room was empty.
"Damn… damn… damn…" he muttered, panic clawing his throat.
He rushed to his mother's door and knocked frantically until Morgana, still half-asleep, appeared with disheveled hair.
"She's gone!" Revanio shouted.
"That girl disappeared!"
⊱⋅ ────◇✦◇──── ⋅⊰
Lizzy had never been interested in stars or astronomy back on Earth. Looking up at the sky had never crossed her mind for years.
But here… this world's sky was different. Its unusual colors, its shimmering layers — something about it drew her gaze upward, stealing her breath.
The countless stars scattered like spilled crystals across the heavens, and the crown-shaped celestial object floating far above looked almost like a palace of gods.
After walking for so long, Lizzy finally sat on a small bench in a narrow alley. This city's structure was impossibly complex — layered, winding, dim. With no electricity, only a few lampposts lit the larger roads, glowing faintly with what Lizzy suspected was magic.
Twice already, she had gotten lost. Twice, she had almost bumped into armored patrols searching the area. Her only saving grace was her physical stamina and training as a martial artist.
Lizzy sat there for a while, watching the sky, letting her racing thoughts settle.
But then — footsteps.
Panicked, she quickly pulled her blanket over her head, ready to flee before being discovered. She took five hurried steps before a firm hand grabbed her shoulder.
"Who are you? Why are you wandering around at this hour?"
Lizzy's heart nearly leapt out of her chest. A man in iron armor stared down at her suspiciously while she desperately avoided showing her face.
"So suspicious… Show me your face. Now."
Lizzy flailed in panic as he tried to pull off her blanket. "W-wait! Don't! I—I have a skin disease! You might get infected!" It was the first excuse that came to mind.
The man recoiled, letting go — but his doubt lingered in his voice. "If you're sick, why wander the streets? Where's your home?"
Lizzy shook her head. "I don't have a home."
"A homeless troublemaker, huh?" he muttered. "There has been a report to the Kavaliro Unit — someone strange has been wandering this district. Even the Gardisto Department gave up trying to chase them off. That must be you!"
"Eh?! N-no! You've got the wrong person! I'm not crazy!" Seriously?! How did Lizzy end up being labeled insane?
This can't be happening!
Unfortunately, the man didn't believe her. This time, he grabbed the sleeve of Lizzy's blanket cloak and began dragging her away.
"Stop making excuses. No lunatic ever admits they're crazy. Your appearance alone is enough proof you're the one causing trouble around here!" he snapped, pulling her roughly.
"I said it's not me!" Lizzy shouted back. Out of reflex — because he was yanking her so forcefully — Lizzy swung her fist toward his face.
Wham! Shush! Thud!
Eh? What was that?
Lizzy was certain she barely swung her hand — yet the man was sent flying, crashing into the wall with enough force to knock him unconscious.
This isn't right. I didn't even use full strength… Why did it have that kind of effect? This is bad.
Without wasting a second, Lizzy bolted away, her heart pounding. Only when she was sure the man was truly unconscious did she dare look back. A moment later, the owner of the house burst out and screamed in terror after discovering someone lying on the ground in such a miserable state.
Everything quickly turned chaotic.
More people in iron armor rushed out from nearby houses. Some of them caught sight of Lizzy's silhouette fleeing through the street — and immediately gave chase.
"Hey! Stop! Criminal!"
Oh no… how did everything suddenly turn into a disaster?! Because she got lost earlier, Lizzy had forgotten the patrol-free paths she marked. Now she had run straight into more of them — and this was the result.
In her rising panic, Lizzy sprinted aimlessly through the dim streets, looking back every few seconds. She wasn't paying attention to her surroundings at all — not even realizing she had reached a wide main street lined with closed shops.
And because she wasn't watching where she was going, Lizzy slammed straight into someone who had just exited a storefront.
"Hey! Watch where you're going!" The unmistakable stench of alcohol hit her nose as the man barked at her. When Lizzy looked up, she saw the sign above the building.
A bar.
No wonder it's still open… a gathering place for drunkards wasting their money. Just my luck. Great. Of course. Lizzy cursed internally. Perfect.
"Hey! Wait! Where do you think you're going?!" The drunken man, offended, tried to grab her.
Lizzy attempted to flee — but the man managed to snatch her blanket, yanking it off her head.
"Huaaah! M-Monster!!" The drunk man shrieked at the top of his lungs, fear twisting his expression as he scrambled backward. "A monster with black hair!" he cried again, pointing a shaking finger at her.
Because of his scream, everyone inside the bar rushed outside. The moment they saw Lizzy's black hair, the crowd erupted — some screamed hysterically, others fled in terror.
It was exactly as Revanio had warned her. Everyone here saw the color black as an omen of curses — a symbol of calamity.
Lizzy froze for several seconds, stunned by the overwhelming fear in their eyes. Her mind went blank — so blank that she didn't even notice the armored soldiers from earlier had already arrived and were now pointing their weapons at her.
"She must be the creature that came out of the Black Gate! Form up! Eliminate her!"
Those words snapped Lizzy out of her daze. She instantly realized she was surrounded. The soldiers were closing in from every direction — she couldn't find even the smallest opening to escape.
W-what should I do? Am I going to be captured? What am I supposed to—?!
As Lizzy's thoughts spiraled, a thin soldier in heavy armor appeared right before her, sword drawn, blade pointed at her neck.
Thanks to her sharp reflexes, Lizzy dodged the strike — and the sudden movement awakened her fighter's instinct. Her right leg shot forward on its own, slamming into the soldier's stomach.
Smack! Syung… Thud!
Once again, the soldier was hurled far away — his landing so violent it carved a deep crater into the ground.
Eeeh? Am I really that strong?! Lizzy panicked internally. But when she saw the soldiers momentarily frozen in shock, Lizzy seized the chance and darted away.
"High alert! A super dangerous creature has been spotted!"
"Sound the warning bell!"
"Evacuate the civilians!"
"Call reinforcements!"
"Mobilize all units!"
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Lizzy no longer understood what was happening. Everything spiraled out of control. Armored soldiers and navy-uniformed troops began flooding the streets from every direction.
This is it. This is the end of me.
⊱⋅ ────◇✦◇──── ⋅⊰
"How could she disappear?" Half-awake Morgana jolted fully conscious the moment she heard that Lizzy was gone.
"I don't know either. Her room was completely empty!" Revanio replied, panic rising in his voice.
"This must be because you kept scaring her. She probably thinks this isn't a safe place!"
"Scaring her? How? Isn't it a fact that her black hair and eyes are believed to bring curses?!"
Both Morgana and Revanio were already too frantic to think clearly. Their hearts pounded, their thoughts tangled — and when a sudden knock echoed from the door, both of them went pale.
Upon opening it, a junior officer from Revanio's workplace stood at the entrance, expression tight with urgency.
"Captain, all members of the Gardisto Division have been ordered to gather at the Square along with the Kavaliro forces," he reported. "The creature suspected to have emerged from the Black Gate has been found."
He then glanced toward Morgana. "All citizens are instructed to head to evacuation points. The entire city is now under high-alert status."
All the color drained from Morgana's and Revanio's faces. It wasn't the warning they feared — it was the identity of the supposed monster.
They feared the possibility that the one everyone mistook for a Black Gate creature… was Lizzy.
"Are you sure it's a Black Gate creature?" Revanio asked, struggling to steady himself. "If we misjudge this, the consequences will be fatal."
"Major Willis of the Kavaliro Forces confirmed it himself, and several eyewitnesses in the city said the same," the junior answered. "The creature is described as a teenage girl with long black hair and black eyes. There is no doubt — she must be the monster from the Black Gate."
Revanio pressed his lips tightly, silent for several long seconds. In the end, he could only nod in grim understanding.
"…I see. I'll prepare myself." He spoke with resignation, but inside, his heart was boiling. He wanted to lash out at the Kavaliro Forces — at their arrogance, at how they loved deciding things on their own.
Just because they were under the Royal Family's command, the Kavaliro always acted superior to the Gardisto Department.
After the junior left, Revanio finally turned his gaze toward the window, watching the chaos unfold in the city below. The warning bell at the Lighthouse Tower continued ringing without pause. Panicked citizens fled through the streets in frantic waves.
The scene mirrored the crisis earlier that day, when the Silver Sibling Moon phenomenon struck. Everyone was terrified. Everyone was confused.
"What do we do now?" Revanio asked quietly, staring at Morgana's face — darkened by worry, pale from fear.
"Mother? Brother? What's happening?" A sleepy Milliane, awakened by the clamour, approached them while hugging her teddy bear.
Something in Morgana's expression softened, her pupils widening as an idea sparked in her mind.
"I know what to do." She turned and quickly walked away. Revanio and Milliane had no choice but to follow her.
"What are you planning?" Revanio asked, increasingly anxious as Morgana rummaged frantically through the shelves of her magic equipment shop.
She didn't answer.
Only when she found what she was looking for did she finally smile — wide and knowing.
"Revanio! You will go search for Lizzy. Milliane and Moriga will head to the evacuation site. And I… will take your place as Captain of Gardisto Division."
Revanio frowned, confused. "Explain the plan first."
But Morgana only gestured for him to be quiet. Then she took Milliane's teddy bear and a mysterious concoction from the shop's counter.
"We're going to put on a very convincing performance."
Revanio still didn't understand — but he trusted his mother. Morgana had never betrayed them, and she would protect everyone, no matter what.
So after a brief discussion, all of them prepared to take their assigned positions.
The performance was about to begin.