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Xilian had always thought of White Cliff Town as a fortress on the edge of a dark world.

The towering walls were only part of the evidence. There was also the vast underground storage space, the well-developed vertical farms, and the Town Hall before his eyes.

Time had reduced most of the Town Hall to ruins, and the townspeople had rebuilt those sections as homes. Yet what remained still offered a glimpse of the building's former grandeur.

Its sturdy masonry, labyrinthine passages, and the bones and rusted swords dug from its ruins... White Cliff Town had another history, one no one knew anymore. It was so distant that the townspeople had long forgotten it, leaving only the name "Town Hall" out of habit.

"Teacher must know something."

Nuen, the Torchbearer who guarded White Cliff Town and whose age was a mystery, surely knew its past. Perhaps something in that past was why he had stayed in this small town and lived like an ascetic.

Otherwise, with his strength, Nuen could have crossed the wilderness alone and gone to a thriving city-state to enjoy fine wine, good food, and the privileges of a supernatural.

The mystery will be answered tonight.

Xilian straightened his clothes.

"Xilian, over here!"

Beneath the Town Hall's archway, Ava waved to him in her familiar white dress.

"I'm not late, am I?"

Xilian hurried over with a smile.

"Just in time." Ava looked him up and down. "Not bad. Did you dig out your best clothes for this?"

"I figured I should dress up a little."

Xilian looked into the gloom beyond the archway. Ava didn't know the purpose of tonight's dinner, but he had already guessed most of it.

Becoming a supernatural was dangerous. Even with his supposed resistance to chaos, Xilian might die in the ritual, just as the Soflova Brothers had.

Xilian was more than stubborn. He held fast to a few peculiar principles.

People shouldn't live merely to keep themselves fed and warm. They should aspire to something more, and hold to it even with monsters at the walls and chaos invading.

In this savage, mad world, Xilian still maintained his dignity, wearing a tie over his worn collar.

"Let's go."

Xilian took a deep breath and headed inside. Ava stayed where she was and watched him go.

"You're not coming?" Xilian asked.

"Father only invited you and Teacher Nuen." Ava spread her hands helplessly. "Nothing I can do."

"All right."

Xilian was now certain tonight's discussion would concern supernaturals.

"I can't come, but I can give you my blessing." Ava smiled. "Like you said, I'm practically a saint."

"Of course," Xilian said.

Ava stepped forward, embraced him gently, and whispered,

"I hope everything goes well."

Xilian entered the depths of the Town Hall, brushing his fingers over gray-white stone and the sword scars cut into it at varying depths.

He could picture what had happened here. At some point in the past, a fierce battle had erupted inside the Town Hall. Two forces had fought to the death in its narrow passages, corpses piling high as blood flowed over the steps.

He could almost hear their cries echoing beneath the vaulted ceiling, the wails of the dying and furious roars mingling into a dirge that never seemed to end.

Xilian pushed through one heavy door after another. In the innermost chamber, he found Mayor Boll.

Boll was a refined-looking man with thick glasses perched on his nose. A kindly smile rarely left his face, and his gentle voice put people at ease.

He sat at the dining table, a spread of dishes laid out before him.

Something seemed to be in the darkness nearby. Xilian peered into it before noticing Nuen seated there. Silent and still, he blended into the gloom like a shadow.

"Teacher. Mayor."

Xilian nodded to them both, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Xilian..."

Nuen spoke his name as if he wanted to say more, then hesitated and fell silent.

Xilian understood what his teacher meant to say. He spoke plainly.

"You invited me here tonight to discuss supernaturals, didn't you?"

Boll's smile stiffened, and he glanced at Nuen.

A deep breath sounded from the gloom.

"Yes, Xilian. We want to discuss whether you can become a supernatural."

Xilian was a clever student. Sometimes he was too clever, tearing away every pretense before the adults were ready.

"You must know how dire White Cliff Town's situation has become. We've had no contact with the outside world for more than twenty years. Our Soul Marrow reserves are running out, and my blood alone can't meet the whole town's needs."

Nuen's delivery was stiff, as though he had rehearsed the words over and over.

Xilian understood his teacher's difficulty. Asking him to become a supernatural was little different from urging him to kill himself.

"And even if we ease the shortage of Soul Marrow, that won't be enough. We need to cross the wilderness and reestablish contact with the other city-states. Only then can we truly resolve White Cliff Town's crisis..."

Xilian cut him off, his voice firm.

"I'm willing to become a supernatural."

Nuen froze. Xilian had never dared interrupt him before.

He wasn't angry. If anything, his worry deepened.

"Xilian, I need you to think carefully. Becoming a supernatural is no cause for celebration. In a place as poor and barren as White Cliff Town, attempting it is practically suicide."

"It's all right, Teacher." Xilian did not waver. "I want to become a supernatural. It's the only way I'll be able to set foot in the world beyond White Cliff Town."

Nuen lowered his head and pressed hard against his temples.

Shadows hid most of his face, but Xilian could just make out the pain in his expression.

"Teacher, are you afraid I'll fail?"

Nuen was silent for a long time before he said slowly, "I don't want to cut off another student's head."

"But if we do nothing, White Cliff Town will eventually perish," Xilian insisted. "I'm willing to take responsibility for my decision."

After a moment, Xilian added, "Teacher, you didn't bring this up on a whim, did you?"

Nuen slowly raised his head and fixed Xilian with a searching gaze.

Beneath the table, Xilian pressed his left palm lightly, remembering the molten-gold Ouroboros Mark.

"Is it because I came back alive from the wilderness? Because I survived exposure to the gray mist thanks to... resistance to chaos?"

"Yes."

Nuen looked directly at him. He had never been good with words, and he struggled to find them now.

"Your resistance to chaos might let you survive the ritual and become a supernatural. But there's no guarantee. There's still a high chance you'll be corrupted and turn into a monster."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Xilian said cheerfully. "White Cliff Town doesn't have many prodigies like me."

Nuen understood his resolve and turned to Boll.

Boll had no objections. "There are plenty of ritual materials in the warehouse. Take whatever you need, whenever you need it."

He added, "They're no use to ordinary people. Do with them as you please."

Xilian was a little surprised.

Materials used in supernatural rituals had to be rare. Yet from the way Boll spoke, this remote, impoverished town still had quite a stockpile.

They didn't seem like things White Cliff Town should possess.

"All right. I'll make preparations."

Nuen's gaze lingered on Xilian for a moment. Then he left without another word.

Boll watched him disappear into the gloom and said sadly, "This isn't just a trial for you, Xilian. It's a test for your teacher, too."

"For a teacher, no punishment could be crueler than killing his own student."

Xilian said nothing. The discussion was over. It was time for the real business of the evening.

He picked up his knife and fork and popped a piece of potato into his mouth.

Seeing him dig in, Boll teased him.

"You really are optimistic."

"I'm just confident." Xilian wiped his mouth. "I believe I'll succeed."

"And if you don't?"

"There is no 'if,'" Xilian said seriously. "The moment you start thinking about 'if,' you've already lost confidence."

"Hmm..."

Boll cut off a small piece of beef. "What you just said reminds me of someone."

"Who?"

"Your teacher's first student."

Xilian set down his knife and fork and listened quietly.

"That was decades ago. I was only a little boy then, so short you'd lose sight of me in a crowd."

Boll looked back on those days. "That child was about your age. He sat here too, and while the townspeople discussed it, he firmly believed he could become a supernatural..."

Boll left the story unfinished. Xilian already knew how it ended.

"It hit Nuen hard. After that, he continued taking in children and raising them as his students. But the townspeople could see him growing cold and distant, nothing like the man he had once been."

"Xilian, you must succeed," Boll said encouragingly. "Not just for White Cliff Town's sake, but for my daughter's."

"Ava likes you very much. If you die, she'll be devastated."

Xilian nodded without a word.