August quickly moved aside, narrowly avoiding the explosive inferno. Once he was a few metres away, he paused to watch the flames rain down on the Grasper. But it was all in vain—the creature had already split its body again, darting off in multiple directions.
'Okay. That's disturbing. Looks like we're dealing with some unpredictable nonsense,' Young thought, rolling his eyes. Eventually, his gaze settled on the one responsible for the flames.
She was striking—slender and around 5'10". Her grey hair was styled into a high bubble, and she wore an ordinary summer outfit, much like theirs. For a fleeting second, Young felt something strange—affection for a real person, not just the drawn, imaginative characters he was used to falling for. The mysterious girl scowled and chased after the corrupted soul, hurling fire from her hands with reckless intensity, each missed shot destroying more of their surroundings.
Carla, Young, and August exchanged a glance before leaping to their feet. In a flash, Carla phased beside the girl, throwing her a quick side glance. The stranger paused briefly, then Carla charged once more towards the Grasper as its body began remerging.
Young decided it was time to act. He sprinted off, searching for a small rope and any kind of paper. Once retrieved, he handed the rope to August and pulled out a pen he had taken from the school earlier. Swiftly, he sketched the corrupted soul onto the paper. When finished, he punched a hole through it and threaded the rope through.
His only skill was ritual-based, and obviously mutual in connection.
First, the user must observe the corrupted being closely and draw a symbol or representation of it. This image acts as a "vessel" for binding. Next, the drawing is punctured and tied with a rope to link it spiritually with the creature. Once connected, the ritual requires a symbolic severance—typically destroying the paper to deal damage to the target in real time. However, for the ritual to work, the rope must touch the actual corrupted body, serving as the bridge between symbol and soul.
August reminded himself that he, too, had a skill to restrain a corrupted soul. Still, he wasn't ready to reveal it—not yet. Grow in silence was his mantra for now. Instead, he figured out another method to get the rope on the Grasper.
The unnamed girl hesitated, confusion flickering across her face as she watched them. But she seemed to decide—maybe they've got this. Without a word, she sprinted off, not in fear, but as if something more pressing awaited her elsewhere.
'Who the heck was that?' Carla wondered, phasing again to avoid a lashing limb, then retaliating. She halted when she noticed what August and Young were doing. The soul hadn't noticed.
In a well-timed feint, August drew the Grasper's attention, luring its limbs towards him. At the last possible moment, he sidestepped with precision and looped the rope around one of the limbs.
In an instant, Young snatched the axe from the ground and sliced the drawing in half. It crumbled into ash.
The Grasper's body split down the middle. One half—the weeping side—disintegrated, shrieking as it dissolved into nothingness. The other half tried to escape, but August caught the thrown axe mid-air and cleaved the remaining head off.
[Soul vanquished]
[10 Render rewarded]
The familiar voice echoed in his mind:
"Due to assists in the battle against the corrupted soul, the reward has been adjusted. Taxation has been applied."
August tilted his head in confusion. "Taxes? This ridiculous floating screen has a tax system? Like... penalties??"
Carla snapped him out of his thoughts with a light tap on the shoulder.
"Well, we got it. That was a bit tough—if not for…"
"Young? Yeah." Young interjected, racing over with a victorious grin. He leapt at Carla for a celebratory hug, but she phased out, sending him sprawling onto the ground, narrowly avoiding a full face-plant.
"Haah! That was close…" he laughed, brushing the dust off his clothes as he stood up.
August stood silently, his eyes drifting back to where the mysterious girl had stood.
"I wonder who she was… she had some seriously impressive skills," he murmured.
"Yeah, though she ran off. Maybe she got scared?" Young added, also scanning the spot. Carla simply watched in silence.
Their gaze shifted to the school building, now a shattered wreck. Fortunately, the area was mostly quiet—no witnesses, no questions. Not for now.
"Think we should call the handler?" August asked in his usual tone, tossing aside the axe and settling on the pavement beside Young.
Carla nodded and dialled Reeds to report the situation.
"So… does that mean we've just earned ten grand from this kill?" Young asked with a smirk, shielding his eyes from the bright sky.
***
Moments later, a black executive SUV arrived to collect them and return them to the quarters, while the aftermath and destruction were swiftly handled by the clan's clean-up unit. It was clear that every clan maintained a connection with the government of their federation or monarchy—allowing large-scale battles or damages to be discreetly concealed from public view.
The school was issued a closure order for undisclosed reasons, and the headmaster or founder of the private institution was generously compensated. They were even offered a new building elsewhere in Camden should they wish to continue running the academy.
Naturally, Reeds was astounded they had managed to eliminate a Ferits-ranked soul unaided—something he himself might have struggled with, despite his greater experience. However, much of their success could be attributed to teamwork, along with sharp instincts and quick thinking.
Everything else was resolved that same day, and Reeds personally validated their kill. That said, the trio questioned him about the mysterious girl, whom Young described in detail. Reeds confirmed she was one of the external assists requested by the clan.
Although she had arrived in this foreign land approximately two months earlier than them, she had already achieved three successful kills, earning a total of thirty thousand pounds—untaxed, and available for personal use without restriction.
The three insisted their kill was a collective effort, but to their surprise, they were each awarded ten thousand pounds. Strangely enough, they had no immediate idea how to spend the funds.
The money was deposited directly into their clan-issued bank accounts, specifically created for them with all relevant personal information pre-filled. They had also been given the key access credentials.
Now en route back to the quarters, Reeds sat beside the driver, immersed in his phone, while the trio argued animatedly in the back seats.
"…Did you see that ridiculous new system update from the floating screen?" Young asked Carla and August in a dumbfounded tone. Only Carla gave a silent nod of agreement, while August pretended not to have heard, feigning ignorance. As far as they were concerned, they'd been robbed.
It's worth noting that every Exalted was equipped with a system to aid them on their journey, so August wasn't unique in that regard—though his newly acquired Soul Core Type remained an enigma to this day.
"Oh, you mean the tax system? Hahaha," Reeds chuckled, finally joining the conversation after overhearing Young's question.
The trio turned their attention to him as he spoke. August, however, feigned indifference, preferring to keep the fact that his system had been activated a secret. If the others found out, they might deduce his soul had already been mended—something he intended to keep hidden until he had grown stronger. Only Mask knew the truth, and he had warned him in an indirect manner — a veiled warning tied to the evolution of his mantra, though August was quick to grasp the meaning beneath it.
"The tax system," Reeds explained, "acts as a form of penalty issued by the system. Sometimes it's a deduction of Render, but other times, the consequences are far worse—death, or even things darker than endless void. It's existed since the beginning, but most Exalted never encounter it until they face a corrupted soul. That's why you lot were never told about it."
He laughed again, looking back down at his phone, still chuckling.
August remained silent, betraying nothing. Carla and Young, on the other hand, exchanged a glance and said "Wow" in unison, with a shared look of disbelief.
And with that, the matter was settled. Their planned exploration had been postponed, as protocol demanded at least a day's pause after an emergency engagement. By tomorrow evening, they could resume their activity across the streets of London.