The next morning, Elima arrived to Susbok’s inn. The ambient was as cheerful as always, as the different creatures kept talking about the battles from the previous day.

-Hey, don’t make me talk about that worm thing. There’s no way anyone can win against that!- said a hyena-human hybrid with a robotic arm and googles on their head.

-I wouldn’t be so sure about that...- said an old creature with scales like a fish. -That fella with the mask… shouldn’t be underestimated…

-And what about...- was saying a golem creature when Elima passed by. -Hey, commander, what are your bets for the round of 16?

-Sorry, no comments- said Elima with a smile and approached the bar where Susbok was working. -Hi Susbok!

-Good morning Elima!- greeted Susbok. -You sure are early today. You here to check your participant?

-You could say that, yes- said Eliman. Then, she looked around her and, with confused eyes, she asked Susbok. -Where is Natsume now?

-Oh, she’s on the back area, practicing again- answered Susbok while pointing out to his back. -Seriously, that girl doesn’t take a break, eh? You still worried about her? Don’t try to do more than you can. Remember what happened when…

-I know, I know, I just… can’t help it- said Elima while sighing. -I’ll check on her. See you later.

Elima left the pub through the back door and arrived to a small interior patio. Since nobody was using it yet, Susbok adapted it so Natsume could practice a bit more. And there she was, moving around some practice puppets with a ball. Looking at her face, Elima thought she looked more tired than usual. Still, the commander tried her best to smile.

-Working hard so early in the morning, I see- exclaimed Elima.

Hearing her voice, Natsume stopped her practice and looked at her while recovering her breath.

-Oh… Elima… What are you doing here?- asked Natsume.

-Don’t you remember? I told you I’d come to explain the next round. You know, it’s tomorrow, so you should save your energy for the big match- explained Elima with worry.

-I’m fine...- said Natsume, but for the commander, it was hard to distinguish between her sadness and her tiredness.

-Still, it’s your first time in this world! I thought, instead of talking here, I could show you around the kingdom a bit and then find a quiet place where we can talk about the rules. What do you say?- asked Elima happily.

The girl seemed reluctant, but the commander extender her hand towards her. Feeling pressured, Natsume nodded, accepting the invitation.

The two of them left the inn and began their exploration of the capital. As usual, the city was crowded with creatures here and there, but that was not all. Elima led Natsume first into a museum that displayed art pieces from different worlds.

-It’s impressive, don’t you think? How art is perceived so different in each world. Do you have art like this in yours?- asked Elima.

-I’m… I’m not sure… There is a lot of art styles though...- answered Elima in low voice.

After that, the commander took Natsume to the commercial district, which was full of all kinds of stores. There was clothing and books, which looked familiar for the human girl, but there were also weapons and ingredients she never heard about. Taking notice of her concealed conditioned, Elima made sure to take the girl to stores where she could buy things, although Natsume didn’t show any special interest towards anything. Some time later, they walked into a street with restaurants and food stalls. Just like the food she got in the inn, the meals offered in the different stores looked strange, using meat, fish and vegetables unknown for the girl. Elima took the lead towards a stall and she ordered two trays of dumpling-like dishes. Then, both of them sat down in a nearby bench.

-Well, I hope you like them! These are really popular among townsfolk- said Elima smiling.

The commander took a first bite, muttering “Mmm, yummy” and finishing the first dumpling in an instant. However, Natsume stayed still, looking at the tray she had on her lap.

-Sorry but… the rules? What about them?- asked Natsume.

-Rules?- asked Elima in return. -Oh, yeah, the rules. They are actually simple, it’s a standard one on one battle, just in a bigger arena. 10 minutes as usual, no harming, you move to the next round after winning, you already know them. Nothing special in this round.

Elima said all that while eating, but Natsume didn’t feel good.

-Why?- asked Natsume.

-Mmm? Why what?- asked Elima innocently.

-Why are you doing this?- inquired Natsume. -If that was all, you could have said that at the inn and I could be training right now. You… wanted to take me out of there.

Elima’s happiness vanished as the situation became more tense between them.

-Sorry. I thought I could take you out and relax a bit without noticing, but I guess I’m not a good actress- said Elima. -The truth is…

-You don’t want me to win- interrupted Natsume.

-No! Well...- replied Elima, but she became agitated. She sighed and said: -It’s not that. I admit I partly wished you would lose, but it’s not that I hate you. I wouldn’t want anybody to lose in normal circumstances but… I’m worried about you… and about that wish of yours.

-My wish? Why do you care about that?- asked Natsume.

-Why wouldn’t I? Not everyday someone comes to me saying that they want to “erase their mind”. Seriously, why do you want something like that for you?- asked Elima worried.

-You promised you wouldn’t ask about it- replied Natsume.

-No, that won’t work again, young lady- commented Elima while negating with her hand. -I promised I wouldn’t ask anything more THAT night. But this is a completely different day, so I can ask all I want. Of course, you are free to answer or not.

After those words, nobody said anything. Passersby went back and forth in front of them, nobody minding their conversation. Natsume looked sad as she looked down at all time and the commander was worried.

-I imagined you wouldn’t say anything, so I’ll talk- said Elima. -The way I see it, it’s quite obvious that something happened to you. I don’t know what nor I can imagine what it could be, but it’s something so… painful for you that you pretend to destroy yourself because of it.

-I don’t want to… destroy myself, just… my mind- replied Natsume.

-No, no, that is mostly the same. Your power is a good proof of that- added Elima, making the girl turned towards her. -Remember when I told you about your “random power”? I said it adapts to the user, but more specifically, it adapts to the heart and soul of the user. Now, each world usually classify powers and skills with different categories, but the most basic one is that there are two kinds of powers: creation and destruction. For example, producing any element, moving things, power up something or befriending beasts are considered “creations”, while “destruction” is more limited and usually refers to harm, poison, reducing morale or even stealing. Your power, from what I saw during your battle, is the power to “destroy magic”, which is very rare. What you know as “magic” is the energy that flows in all of us, and you can destroy that. So I did a little research because, as I said, that power comes from your heart. It took me a while but I found the answer: “destroying magic” is one of the few powers born from the desire of destroying oneself. Right now, that is your driving force: an intense wish of destroying yourself.

Natsume’s eyes opened a bit more than usual, but the girl remained silent. Thinking about that, there wasn’t any difference as Elima said. Even during her battle against Durbenfor, she didn’t care about dying as it wouldn’t imply any difference.

-So what if that’s what I want?- asked Natsume in low voice.

-That I can’t understand why! Why such a young girl would want to destroy herself? What happened that was so horrible for you that you would wish for such a fate? Others and I have seen death very close, and even some accepted death as something inevitable in very specific circumstances, but you… you are walking towards death! That’s why I’d like to know, because if you have any kind of problem, I can help you! We can find a solution together! I mean, the prize is any wish you want. I’m sure that wish can fix whatever problem you have- explained Elima.

-There’s no other way…- murmured Natsume. -This is the only solution. It’s… what I deserve…

Those few words produced a chill that spread through Elima’s body. She was shocked at hearing the young girl saying something so sad and painful.

-Nobody deserves such a horrible fate- said Elima. -What about your family and friends? What would they say if you take this to the end?

Natsume closed her eyes halfway, as if in pain, and said:

-I have nothing… at all…

Elima felt devastated. She didn’t know what to do, but it was obvious that there was nothing she could do. No matter how hard she tried, Natsume closed herself, holding onto that dangerous wish as the only thing she had, and there was no way of taking it away. The commander sighed and said:

-Would you… like to go back to the inn?

Natsume simply nodded. Both of them stood up, threw their trays into a garbage can and walked slowly through the streets back to the inn. None of them said anything else, as the commander felt she said everything she could and Natsume didn’t want to talk at all. Soon after, they arrived at the inn.

-Rest well, Natsume. Tomorrow will be a big day- said Elima. Natsume nodded again, but before she could go inside the inn, the commander exclaimed: -Wait! Ehm… I just want to say… if you ever change your mind… I’m here to help, OK? Good luck tomorrow.

Saying those words, Elima turned around and left with sad face. Natsume went inside the inn, which was as crowded as ever. She walked past through all the creatures, some of them recognized them, but she didn’t pay attention. The girl sat down on her usual spot in the bar. She looked around her: everybody was talking happily or with emotion. And there she was: even inside all that noise and cheer, she felt empty. Then, the commander’s words came to her mind.

“If you have any kind of problem, I can help you! We can find a solution together!”

Immediately after, the scenes from her nightmares appeared once again, and then, Lishon’s scared face as well.

-No…- muttered Natsume while crossing her arms on the bar and resting her head on them. -There’s no way out of this…