BAMMM!!!

The shockwave of an explosion shakes the walls of the little hiding place of the strange duo.

And then Est can barely stop coughing as smoke fills everything.

But the little girl feels even worse when the smoke clears. She spots her old toy in the mix of strange things...

“Ughhh... I’m sorry... but I have to do this... for Mattheus,” she murmurs while touching the blackened toy, though she flinches a second later.

She didn’t realize that everything became hot when she used the previous spell, not to mention the strange energy oozing from the objects.

Est pushes away the ominous feelings and continues, determined to do everything she can.

“Urghhh... I don’t get this next part...”

“Maybe if I...”

“Nghh... Ouch!”

“Ack! I’m bleeding!”

“No! I have to continue no matter what! It’s already late.”

And the childish experiment goes on just like that... ending up with fearsome results.

Est holds a dark red rock in her hands at the end, feeling a bit proud and light-headed.

However, guilt returns to her mind when she sees the remains of her old toy from the corner of her eyes.

It has lost all its warmth and innocence... It’s no more than a dark shadow of its old self.

Still, Est only shakes her head, focusing on her little project.

And she reads through the book again, making sure that she hasn’t left out or messed up anything.

However, the door behind her opens before she can reach the end of the instructions.

“I’m home, Est.”

“Mattheus!!!”

It's the same as years ago... Est immediately jumps up and runs to Mattheus, hugging him eagerly.

But the hug she receives has less strength than in the old times. And the older fairy’s smile doesn’t reach his eyes.

And the smile disappears the moment Mattheus notices the ash and dirt covering the little girl. A frown replaces it when he realizes their home turned into a mess.

Something isn’t right... are the exact words running through his mind.

But he has trouble bringing it up when Est is looking up at him so happily. 

Instead, he takes his time leading the girl back to her spot in front of the fireplace and putting down the food he has brought.

The fairy doesn't want to be hard on the rowdy girl... maybe he won't even mention it... and he starts to clean up quietly while also preparing dinner for both of them...

However, Mattheus freezes when he spots the strange books and remains of the magic spell on the ground.

At that point, he can’t help but walk up to the girl.

“Est, what happened here? It’s like there was a battle or something.”

“And... there are some strange things over there...” he asks slowly and carefully.

“Ah! T-that’s-”

“P-please don’t look at them! I wanted to finish it before you came home.”

It's as if Est has forgotten what is around her. She suddenly jumps up and starts to stutter and explain rapidly.

That makes Mattheus chuckle lightly. He’s feeling a bit relieved, but there is a nagging voice in the back of his mind.

“You are preparing a surprise for me, huh?”

“I’m glad... but you are not doing well at hiding it, haha...” he responds calmly and playfully.

“Hehe...” When Est sees that Mattheus is in a pretty good mood, she can’t help but laugh.

And there is no way Est would hide anything from the dearest person to her, so she answers honestly.

“Actually, it’s not a surprise. I’m just not sure it’s ready... And I really wanted to finish it for you.” the little witch says as she grabs the fairy’s hand. Then she leads him toward the fireplace.

And Est starts to explain what she has been working on, proudly showing the red stone she has created.

However, Mattheus’s smile and good mood slowly fade as the little girl keeps talking.

And the expression that he wears now is something that the little girl has never seen on his face. She’s surprised and confused by the fairy’s reaction...

Especially since Mattheus doesn’t utter a word until Est finishes talking, staying silent for several minutes...

“....................”

“W-what are you... t-talking about, Est?”

“You used black magic...?”

He finally breaks the silence, unable to form coherent sentences.

“H-haven’t I taught you that it’s dangerous?!”

“... that you should learn to control it? And... and...”

And the fairy becomes more and more agitated. His mind is in a state of chaos. He can’t even look straight at Est and see the innocent expression on her face.

“Huh? But I did control it.”

“Actually, it was a really hard magic spell... but I think I managed to control my magic perfectly.”

“I mean... if I didn’t, I couldn’t have made this!” Est explains while feeling a bit confused, though still smiling.

But she only gets a headshake from Mattheus as a response.

“But I’m glad I worked hard! All the studying helped me do this!”

“Now I can save Mattheus and help everyone!”

“I can fix everything and we can be happy!!”

“Right, Matthe-”

“STOP IT!!!!”

It feels like the room shakes when Mattheus suddenly starts shouting, making Est flinch in surprise.

“S-save... help... f-fix everything?!”

“As if!”

“M-Mattheus...?”

Mattheus starts ranting while covering his eyes with one hand and clenching the other one... and Est starts to tremble too.

Suddenly, she can’t recognize the person in front of her. It’s not the Mattheus that she has known for so long.

“B-but...” She can’t do anything but shiver and whimper in front of this stranger.

“STOOOPPP!!!”

And fear bubbles in her chest when the person shuts her up by planting his hand on her shoulders and screaming.

“Black magic can’t make anyone happy!!!”

“Much less save anyone!!!”

“You should have just learned to control it and locked it away, never letting it out!!!”

“B-but you are doing THESE things!”

“I... I... I don’t get it... What should I have done differently?!”

“I thought I could help you... and you were doing so well, using only the safe types of magic...”

“I thought you wouldn’t end up like those others... was I just stupid?”

“Was it stupid to think... that witches wouldn’t turn out to be monsters just because there is black magic in them...?”

“Is it impossible...? Will black magic pull you in no matter what I do...?”

“...................”

This time it’s Est’s turn to stay silent. The word ‘shocked’ is not enough to describe her current state.

“M-Matthe...”

And she slowly starts to back away as Mattheus shakes his head again.

The fairy isn’t looking at her anymore... Maybe he isn’t even here anymore...

Well, until the stone falls out of Est’s hand...

... it lands on the ground with a loud thump.

That finally makes Mattheus snap out of it.

However, when he turns towards Est with that haunted look in his eyes, the girl unconsciously flinches and backs away.

“UGHHH!!!”

In turn, Mattheus also flinches and cover his mouth with a hand. His eyes turn to the ground as his whole body starts shaking.

Then...

Before either of them know what is happening, he jumps to the door and runs away...

... leaving Est alone in their home.