Demosthenes left Yuki and Yumi alone as he went ahead. The dungeons in the Pace were naturally heavily restricted. Yuki’s mere presence as an aplice to Eudokia’s schemes made it very difficult. The soldiers guarding the entrance had stristrus regarding Yuki.

  Once alone in the hall, Yumi’s face went a little more red than it had been. sidering her proximity to Yuki the whole time, she had been doing very well to keep her emotions in chebsp; But aloh no og them, it was hard not to fall into fantasy. Especially given what she told him.

  However, it did sort of bother her. Something she never really got crity due to the situation at the time. ‘I don’t know how he feels about me. It seemed that my fession snapped him out, but he’s never said nor did anything to aowledge it.’ She stared over at him. Naturally, his mind heavily weighed ouation of his friends, a that she didn’t pn to ignore. However, she didn’t know when her ce might be. ‘I o know… Is it all just one sided?’

  The thoughts and uainty made her even more nervous. Just the thought of the fession made her blush. ‘I ’t believe I did something…so…bold…I never would have dohat before…’ At the time, she was desperate and wasn’t sure if she was going to live or die. She didn’t care much about how she acted. She just didn’t want to have it end unsaid.

  Yumi had been staring at Yuki for so long that she lost track of time. A full face of red and sweat building made it look like she had a fever. She had an almost unblinking stare. It was only a matter of time before Yuki actually noticed. She wasly being subtle about it, despite her efforts to the trary.

  “Yumi? Something on your mind?”

  “YU-ki!” She nearly choked on her words as she jumped. Knocked out of her own world was a far more jarring experiehan she expected. “Sorry, I mean…what?”

  He looked at her fused. It made him jump a little startled by her near screaming voibsp; “You okay? You’ve been staring at me for quite a while. You don’t have to worry about me. I’m feeling a lot better today.”

  “Huh?” Her mind locked herself hard into a sih that she had fotten that he was still rec. “ht, no!” As bad as it sounded, it was an unimportant subject to her immediately. “You definitely seem to be able to walk around on your own today, u night.”

  “Yeah, my body is actually cooperating with me today.” He flexed his arms a little to show off his fidenbsp; “So what is it then?”

  Yumi pushed her fiogether only deying things further. “I have a question for you...” She wasn’t sure what she wanted suddenly even though she was so set on things a moment before. Actually saying it was impossible. “…or maybe answer…I mean from you…”

  “An answer? You’re not making a lot of sense, Yumi.”

  ‘Please don’t be this dense, Yuki! You know how hard this is for me?!’ She wao sp him for just not uanding what she wanted. Yumi ched her fists up as a small sign of resolve. “I want to know your ao what I told you before!”

  Yuki tilted his head, staring at her. ‘Answer?’ He tried to think about when Yumi wanted an answer from him. It had to be somethi, but he couldn’t e up with something. “What are you talking about, Yumi? Things have been a little crazy the st couple of days. Maybe if you refreshed my memory.”

  Her whole face wehinking about her fession. ‘Repeat that to him!? I ’t do that! That’s not something you just repeat!’ Yumi felt her legs bug. It seemed that he fot or maybe never heard her in the first pbsp; A sudden pain struck her heart that felt worse than any injury.

  However, all she was doing was deying again. She o tell him something. A part still hoped he would remember if she jogged his memory. The reality was that he was brainwashed at the time. So maybe it was just buried under everything. “Well you know, during yht with Eudokia. Or rather before.”

  “Before? The first thing I remember from then was seeing you colpsed on the floor. Everythiween the end of my fight with Demostheo that point is a blur. I’ve tried to remember, but it was like I wasn’t even awake.”

  Yumi sank back against the wall. ‘So he really doesn’t remember.’ She felt defeated. Even though it wasn’t Yuki’s fault, she just wao punch him for not remembering. ‘I’ll never be able to tell him again!’ It felt like it was all over.

  “So what was your question?”

  Demosthenes returo the hallway. “I rearrahe guard duties to people that I trust. But you don’t have much time. So hurry quickly.” He motioo them, despite her moving in any meaningful way.

  Yuki stared at her, not pnning to leave her hanging on an answer. However, she didn’t have the guts anymore. The moment was gone and would never appear again. “It’s nothing. If you don’t remember, don’t worry about it.” She turned away from Yuki, needing to see something else other than him. She o get her emotions in trol.

  “…okay…”

  Chapter 279 – The Other Side of the Wall

  The prisons were about what they expected. The Pa the surface looked extremely well maintained. And it was, for those that were meant to live and work in it. Those not meant to be there, the criminals had ditions worse thahose in the underground slums of the Capital. A feat that actually surprised Yuki.

  Most of the cells remaiy and in severe disuse. Being that they were designed for criminals, it was uhey really worried about the care or maintenance so long as it held them. However, it surprised Yuki to see that the cells holding Fumiko and Haruo looked brand new and didn’t even look like they belonged with the rest of the prison.

  Haruo’s cell seemed very normal pared to the others. It just looked like it was made today. The metal a that ran around had no age to it pared to those around. The signifit difference was the amount of metal used to reinforce the cell. Even the t around the walls looked to be supported by metal framing.

  o him, Fumiko’s cell was the ohat looked pletely out of pbsp; It was sealed up with no holes anywhere, despite that somehow air still reached her, as she was alive. A clear thier of some sort seemed to be attached as the cell’s door and wall with thick metal bars running through for more strength. Then inside faint lights of a strange writing that didn’t look like anything Yuki had seen before hovered on all sides.

  Yuki turo Demosthenes for some answers. “What the hell is this? Why are they being treated so differently?”

  “Because they are not normal humans,” the General answered. He pointed over to Fumiko’s cell. “She makes use of magiamely fmes, but also metal. They’ve specifically crafted the cell to pletely e any magic use. It’s a general catch all since we don’t know what type of magic it is to specifically cel it. So on top of that they structed a cell that withstand her fire and any impact from the inside.”

  Moving over to Haruo, the more simplistiature of the cell became apparent based on his previous description of Fumiko’s. “His has been strengtheo hahe signifitly greater physical strength he possesses. Any of our normal cells they’d be able to escape from. So it’s insurance, extreme as it might seem.”

  He leaned forward to the wall that divided their two cells. With each eye, he could see one of the cells. It frustrated him that they were left in such a dition. ‘Damn…’

  “Also, I trust that you uand the current situation you are all in, that making any aggressive as could only make things worse. The entire prisos the usage of our powers. The special restrictive seal prevents our powers from altering anything in here and a sed yer of prote es the activation of our powers as well.”

  “Why are such extreme measures needed?”

  “Most of the criminals that the cil handles are MPs, not normal citizens. Oraordinary cases that involve the state when involved with normal humans are these cells used.”

  “Don’t we still present a risk?” asked Yumi. Everyone else oside also had special powers. Which meant that they could still break them out.

  “You’re all under my prote right now, tenuous as that is, since I have my position thanks to the previous King. I’ve aligned myself with the cil to maintain my position in the Pabsp; So any as you might take affects me. I’ve assured them that I’ll handle problems that you present to the try.” Despite his often stoid emotionless face, he very easily knew how to create a dominating presence when he wanted. He had been nothing but strid professional in front of them. Yet it was clear that his goal was the safety of Atntis and his loyalty sat there.

  “Even though I’ve beateop two MPs Atntis has to offer,” Yuki ented as though to stir the pot in an unneeded fashion.

  “For which, you’ve sustained signifit damage to your body. It’s going to still be a bit before you’re at your peak. Right now you're less of a threat than your friends.”

  Yuki gred back at Demosthenes in a duel of wills. It seemed to be mere p on his part, but Yuki had his reasons. It told him where Demostheood. He had trouble trusting or uanding someohat he didn’t know where their loyalties lied. It gave him what he o know.

  Shrugging the whole thing off quickly, Yuki turned away from the old man. “Well, it’s not my pn to break them out of here and run. Though it did y mind initially. Unfortunately, things here in Atntis aren’t resolved yet. If I just leave now, my new problems will just follow me home. I pn to leave here whehing has beeled. So you trust us not to make any aggressive as.” Yuki immediately rethought his promise, remembering who his friends were. “Well I won’t. Just don’t show Saki or Seiji this. If they do anything I’ll stop them myself. I’m not ied iing anymore of an iional i, even if no one knows this try exists.”

  “I’m pleased to hear that.”

  With things made clear with Demosthenes, Yuki walked in front of Haruo’s cell. He knocked oal bars. Inside, Haruo seemed asleep or at least his eyes were closed. Yuki suspected that the guy really didn’t care about his situation to try to escape. He would just wait. “Hey, Haruo, you awake.”

  Slowly moving his body, Haruo stood up aowledging. As anyone knowing Haruo would expect, he didn’t try to do anything overt. He casually approached the end of the cell. “Yuki.”

  “Still bad with holding a versation I see,” he joked. Unfortunately, it went over about as well as he figured. “Just hang tight in here. I know it’s not ideal, but I’m w oing you guys out. Things are just sort of plicated right now. But I’m not pnning on giving up.”

  “I know.”

  A ft, almost disappointed expression came over Yuki’s fabsp; Even if it was expected he still hoped for something more out of Haruo. “You really know how to show your fiden me, Haruo. You’re even more stiff than the old man.”

  “Yuki!” Yumi reprimanded. She smiled nervously at Demosthenes in the hopes that she softened any offensive Yuki caused. Sadly, there was no clear sign if it succeeded. She didn’t even know if he was offended by Yuki’s ent.

  He dismissed Yumi’s with a hand wave. “If any of Eudokia’s stories she told me were accurate, this guy is loyal to a fault and as long as you don’t insult the King or the try, he’s not going to take any personal offense.”

  “You should still be more polite!”

  “It’s fine. He’s had to deal with etricities of the st King, he’s used to being called stiff at this point I’d imagine.”

  Things reached a nail biting point for Yumi. “…Yuki…” Yumi stared up at the Atntean, nervous by how unresponsive he was to anything Yuki said.

  “You would be corre your assessment. In many ways, your personality does remind me of the te King.”

  “See, it’s not a problem.”

  “I’m really sorry, Demosthenes!” apologized Yumi, since Yuki clearly never po do so.

  Demosthenes deed her insistenbsp; “It’s alright. I suspect part of it is also an outlet for him to vent his aowards me. It’s perfectly reasonable for him to be angry.”

  “Tch, way to kill the fun.” Yuki moved oo Fumiko’s cell. He poked his head around trying to figure out how he was supposed to talk to her. “Hey.” Motioning over to the old man, he poi the clear wall. “ she hear me through this?”

  “Yes, you will be transmitted through to her.”

  “Hey, Fumiko! It’s me! Sorry it took me so long to get dowo see you. It’s been a plicated couple of days.”

  Fumiko approached the edge of the cell. Her eyes briefly gnced beyond Yuki, but then snapped ba. It was only for a moment, but her expression ged harshly at what she saw. “I know about most of it already.”

  “You do?”

  “Yori’s kept me informed on what’s happening up top, both of us.”

  Yuki knocked his hand into palm, uanding why Haruo seemed to uand everything going on. He did give some of the credit to Haruo as he seemed like an intelligent guy. “Expins a few things. So then you know that we’ll be w to do everything to get you out of here. We’re not leaving until all of this is settled and we have an apology from those cil bastards!” He knocked his fists together as a promise to Fumiko.

  She smiled a little gd to see him lookier. Too much had ged sihey all started. ‘Some things never ge at least…’ However, things quickly made a ge for the worse as she got a new message from Yori. “What?! Are you sure?”

  fused, Yuki wasn’t sure why Fumiko was so upset. “What’s wrong?”

  “I just heard from Yori. The cil has decided to move up the trial to this afternoon!”

  “What?!” shouted Yuki and Yumi, equally in surprise. It was supposed to have been tomorrow. They barely had any time to recover. Things just kept getting worse.