chapter 1

It had been a few weeks since Harley went missing, and there wasn't a day where Harith stopped looking for the mage. Ever since he found out that Harley just disappeared without a trace, he knew that something was definitely wrong.

Harley was sent on a mission alone to investigate this place that belonged to a certain organisation. His task was just to observe and report back what was happening. But when the academy realised that he was taking too long to return, that was when they announced that Harley went missing instead.

The Headmaster had been sending teams to search for him, but each time they return, there wasn't a single news about them successfully finding him. With each passing day, Harith's hope for the mage to still be alive starts to fade, and it reached to the point where Harith had prepared himself to face the worst—if they end up finding Harley dead. He knew that he shouldn't be thinking of such things, but it was better than not finding the mage at all.

Harith had no idea whether Lesley had heard about the news. Even if she did, she still won't be able to return in another two weeks. She was sent on a mission with Gusion to a very distant country, and it would take days for them to reach back here. Harith had no idea what he was going to do if she ended up returning with Harley still missing—or worst, dead—but he internally hoped that things wouldn't come to that. He had promised her to take care of Harley when they got together, and if the worst happened to him, then, that meant, he had utterly failed as a partner.

But it turned out that there was still hope for Harith. The academy received news, saying that someone spotted Harley wandering around with an unrecognised person before disappearing again. It caused everyone to deepen their search, and, finally, after days of searching for him, they finally found out where the mage was at. Immediately, they sent a group to rescue Harley—with Harith being one of the team members—and words couldn't express how relieved he was to find out that the mage was still alive after all this time.

Harith wasted no time to enter the building in front of him. He had been informed that Harley was held captured at this place, and he was prepared to kill the people who was responsible for taking him. He could feel his magic surging inside him, and he wanted so badly to aim it towards the people who had caused Harley to disappear.

Unfortunately for him, the moment he entered, he realised that the place was abandoned.

Ruby, who was one of his teammates, clicked her tongue in annoyance. She had her eyes narrowed. "They knew we were coming."

"And here I thought we could kick some butt," Claude said, his face grim. He kept his gun at his belt and looked around the place. Then, he glanced at his pet monkey, Dexter. "Come on, buddy, let's search for Harley."

Since the building was huge, they had to split up in order to find Harley faster. All five of them seperated into three groups. Lolita went with Ruby, Claude went with Kimmy, and Harith went alone. His friends had faith that he was strong enough to defend himself. But, if anything happens, they would still come to him if he needs help.

Harith decided to look around while calling for Harley's name. He didn't get a response, and he was sure it was the same for his friends, since he could hear their voices echoing, trying to call for the Mage Genius too. Slowly, he was starting to become worried. What if Harley wasn't here? What if they had taken him with them? But then the academy wouldn't say he was here. Harith shook his head and decided to just focus with searching for the mage first. It wasn't good to have negative thoughts. The more he thinks about it, the more distracted he becomes.

Harith entered a large room and found a lot of crates. It looked like a storage room or something. He took a few seconds to scan the place and came to a conclusion that they wouldn't put Harley here. He was about to exit, when he heard the sound of a sneeze. It was weak, but, with his enhanced hearing, he picked up the sound no problem. Quickly, he started searching thoroughly in the room.

"Harley?" he called, pushing some crates out of the way. The room was so messy, it was a wonder how anyone could bear this mess. There were crates everywhere. "Harley–"

He froze when he spotted something glinting in the shadows at a corner. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he made his way over it, and, just as he feared, it turned out to be a cage. It wasn't big, but it could still fit a person in it if they curl up inside. He crouched to look at what was inside it, and his heart rate accelerated when it turned out to he someone.

And that someone was Harley.

Sitting inside there was the mage, his wrists bound with a cloth and his body all curled up. Harley seemed to notice that he was looking at him, but, instead of calling for him for help, he just stared at him instead. Harith had no idea why the mage was looking at him like he was some kind of stranger, but he would think about that later. Right now, he had to get him out of here.

"Hold on, I'm getting you out," Harith said before focusing onto his magic. With one blast of his power, he was able to destroy the cage without hurting Harley. He called for his friends, "Guys, I found him!"

"Really!?"

"Wait for us, Harith!"

"Hold on, we're coming!"

While waiting for his friends to arrive, Harith helped Harley out of the remains of the cage. He noticed that the mage was reluctant at first, but he still allowed him to help him out anyway. And, now that Harith was seeing Harley under the light, he was horrified to find his cheeks hollow and his body thinner than before. It wasn't helping that the rags he was wearing revealed the bruises and cuts he got on his arms and legs. Harith wasn't sure where the mage's original magician clothes were at, but it seemed that his captors had a fun time wounding him.

"Harley, I'm so sorry I took so long to find you," Harith whispered, embracing the mage. He felt Harley tensed at his hold, and he instantly pulled away to see what was wrong. He noticed that Harley was looking at him in confusion. "Harley?"

Harley stared at him for a while before kneeling on the ground. With a finger, he traced something against the dusty floor, and Harith crouched to see what he was writing. His eyes widened at the words written;

Harley? Is that my name?

"W-What?" Harith said, looking at the mage. Harley blinked a few times before writing with his finger again. Harith continued, "Harley, don't tell me you lost your–"

And he stiffened at the next words;

New master?

Harith slowly lifted his head to look at Harley, and he found the mage staring back at him, his face genuinely curious. The Mage Genius was waiting for his response, and Harith could only stare back at him with his mouth left agape. Why was Harley asking him this question? Is it true that he couldn't remember anything?

What have they done to him?

"Harley! We're so glad you're all right!" Lolita said, entering the room and motioning towards the mage. But the moment she got closer to him, she realised his condition and immediately gasped. "Oh my god! What happened to you?"

Harith looked back at Harley and found the mage gazing at him. Then, he watched as the mage tapped his finger at the question he had traced on the floor. Right now, Harith was in a state of shock. Firstly, what have they done to Harley? Did they really brainwash him to the point where he ended up like this? Secondly, why wasn't the mage uttering a single word? Thirdly, how bad did they hurt him while he was gone?

"Uh, Harith," Lolita said, tilting her head to look at the words written by Harley on the dirt. "Why is he asking if you're his master?"

"What did you say?"

Harith and Lolita turned their heads, and they found Claude, Kimmy and Ruby entering the room. Ruby was supposed to be with Lolita, but Harith guessed that they both seperated along the way. All of them looked relieved when they saw Harley, but their smiles were instantly replaced by frowns the moment they saw how badly hurt he was.

"Harley, what happened to you?" Ruby asked.

"They did something to him," Harith said, his voice monotone. He looked at Harley and continued, "I don't think he can remember us. But... Harley, why can't you talk?"

Harley averted his gaze and just shook his head. His fingers then traced onto the dirt again.

No voice.

Harith nodded, his face growing solemn. He wasn't sure what happened that made Harley lost his voice, but it looked like the mage wanted to dodge his question. He respected that, and he would wait until the mage was willing to open up and tell him the truth.

Harith noticed that that his friends were tempted to ask Harley more questions, but they refrained themselves from doing it. They knew just as much as him that this wasn't the place to do it. Wordlessly, all of his friends gave him a look, and Harith knew that it was a sign for them to leave now. He stood up and was about to help Harley up, but he was interrupted when the mage tugged at his clothes and tapped at the same question again; whether or not he was his new master.

Forcing himself to smile, Harith shook his head. "No, Harley, I'm not your master. I'm your friend. I'm here to save you."

Harley stared at the floor thoughtfully. Then, he used his finger to write again.

Save?

"Yes, save you," Harith said, a faint smile on his lips. He crouched down and extended his arms to carry him. "Come on, we're going to bring you home."

Harley refused to be carried by him at first and silently insisted that he could walk himself. But the moment he was on his feet, Harith could see his legs shaking, and he knew that it was a sign that the mage had no strength to walk on his own. Swiftly, and without the mage's consent, he lifted Harley up in his arms, and he could feel the mage clutching his clothes when he did that. The mage looked at him, surprised, before he peered curiously at his friends, who were standing behind him.

"They're not going to hurt you, Harley," Harith reassured, and he felt the mage shift a little in his arms. When he looked down, he found Harley fidgeting nervously. He couldn't help but ask, "You all right?"

It was a stupid question because, clearly, the mage was far from all right. But Harley just bobbed his head at his question, and Harith gave him a small smile. Inwardly, he hated that the mage felt light in his arms, so he made a mental note to make sure that Harley would eat a lot when they get back.

Harith carried Harley to their carriages. The whole time, his friends just kept silent. He knew that they wanted to talk about Harley, but they didn't want to do it in front of him. So Harith could expect them asking him a lot of questions when they get back.

Harith ended up riding one carriage with Lolita and Harley. Lolita sat at the opposite seat, while Harley sat beside him. Harith noticed the mage's eyes drooping as he stared out of the window, so he broke the silence by saying, "You should go to sleep, Harley. I'm sure they made you stay up."

Harley was surprised when he said it. He stared at him for a while, his eyes seemingly searching for the lie in his words. When he realised that he meant it, only then he leaned back and closed it eyes.

Subconsciously, Harith clenched his fist.

Someone—or probably more than someone—was going to pay for this.

— ❅ —

When Harley arrived at the academy, it proved to Harith that he doesn't remember a single thing. He looked clueless with where he was at, and his face was baffled when people called for him, asking him whether he was all right. But what bothered Harith the most was when Harley looked anxious when he was surrounded by people, and he had to push them aside by giving them an excuse that Harley needed space.

Harley may not say anything, but Harith could see his face relieved when people were no longer crowding around him. Meanwhile, his friends were busy explaining to the other heroes what little information they had about Harley's condition, and Harith was glad that they were settling that.

He glanced at the mage beside him and noticed how his body shivered a little. It must be cold for him because of the air conditioners, so they really need to get him out of those rags soon. But, just as Harith was about to look away, he found his eyes lingering at the cuts Harley had received. It made him frown. Hopefully, he could get them all patched up soon.

Earlier, he had offered to carry Harley again when they arrive. But, this time, the mage was set on walking himself. It seemed that a few hours of rest allowed Harley to regain some of his strength, and he wasn't going to carry him if the mage didn't want him to.

"Come on, Rafaela's this way," Harith said, wrapping his arm around the mage before leading him to the infirmary. He watched as Harley hugged himself in order to lessen the cold. He then added, "Don't worry, we'll get you some new clothes soon."

Harley looked at him and nodded.

When they arrived at the infirmary, Rafaela was horrified when she saw the amount of injuries Harley had endured. Said mage shrinked a little when she started to examine the wounds he had gotten, and Harith could tell that the mage was growing uncomfortable with the support's close proximity. However, as much as Harith wanted Harley to relax, Rafaela was just doing her job. So he had to let the angel do what she must in order to help him heal.

After treating Harley with Healing Spell and some bandages, only now Rafaela spoke, "I've checked him and it seems he had suffered from memory loss. It also looks like he couldn't speak."

"Do you know the reason why he can't talk?" Harith asked.

"I don't see anything wrong with his throat, so I'm assuming that he's not speaking because he refuses to. Something must've happened that made him silent like this."

Harith clenched his jaw. They probably hurt him to the point where he is too afraid to talk again. Hopefully, in time, he would start speaking to him.

"But, don't worry," Rafaela continued, giving him a small smile. Though, it looked more like an apologetic one. "His memory loss is only temporary. Once we find something that can trigger his memories, he will be able to remember again. And, for the speaking part, it's up to him whether he wants to talk or not. But, so far, it looks like he's not ready for it."

"I see," Harith said. He looked at Harley and found the mage with his head lowered. "Is there anything else I should know of?"

"Just get him to rest and eat a lot. I can tell that he had lost a few pounds during his disappearance. And, surprisingly, his condition isn't as bad to the point where I have to admit him. But, if you want, you can still leave him here if you want me to watch over him while you train."

Harith stole a glance at Harley, and he could see that the mage looked nervous with the idea. Maybe it would be best if he returns home with him. He shook his head. "No, it's fine. I'll take care of him."

"All right," Rafaela said, and Harith gave a grateful nod towards her direction. She waved a hand. "Take care of him, Harith. If you need anything, I'm always here."