The excitement and power that radiated from Maris could be felt even now on Mira's skin. She had no idea what had happened, but Cain had definitely done something. Seeing Maris reveling in her newfound power had made both Mira and Kiyomi more than just a little curious.

Mira took a deep breath to calm her own nerves before stepping forward herself. "You were the one to help me keep my forge open without forcing me to sell my body to do so. Honestly, if not for you, I don't even think I would have been able to keep forging the same. It would have been... impure. It would be against everything I stood for."

Her words carried weight that even she had not expected, and the moment they left her mouth, the air grew quiet.

Maris and Kiyomi froze, both of them staring at her as if she had grown a second head. They knew Mira's forge was struggling. They had seen the late nights, the lack of customers, the way she sometimes skipped meals while claiming she was not hungry. They knew things were bad. But this?

"Mira… you should have told us," Maris said softly, her usual energy tempered by a rare stillness. "If it was that bad, I would have chipped in. I would have done whatever I could."

"Same here," Kiyomi added without hesitation. "You know I always have your back. If I had known you were that close to losing everything, I would have handed you the coin myself."

Mira shook her head immediately, almost sharply, cutting off any further words before they could gather momentum. "No. Absolutely not. I would never take your money to keep the forge alive. That would have been charity, and my dream does not deserve to survive on life support. It has to stand on its own or it is not worth anything at all."

Both Maris and Kiyomi fell silent at that, exchanging looks but saying nothing. It was not that they disagreed. They just hated hearing how far things had really fallen before Cain stepped in.

Jayden, who had been quiet up until now, tilted her head in confusion. "Wait. How would you even run a business if you don't take people's money? Isn't that how businesses work?"

Maris actually nodded at that, her expression half torn between agreement and exasperation. "Jayden's not wrong. It sounds like you were refusing the very thing that would keep your doors open."

Cain let out a slow sigh then, drawing their attention. His expression carried a weight that made it clear he understood in a way the others did not. "She means she wanted her work to be sold because it was worth paying for. Not because of friendship or pity or guilt."

Mira gave him the faintest of nods. "Exactly."

The words seemed to linger for a moment before Cain's gaze softened. He raised one hand, and a faint sphere of violet light flickered into existence above his palm. It pulsed softly, casting eerie yet comforting light across the space between them.

Cain turned his eyes back toward Mira, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "All right then. Since you understand what you're asking for… what are you going to put on the line for this contract?"

The question hung there, laced with curiosity. Even Cain himself was not sure what she would say.

The violet light floated closer to Mira as if it had a mind of its own, brushing against her chest before slowly sinking into her skin. She closed her eyes as the energy merged with her, almost as if it was weighing her soul itself.

For a moment, no one spoke.

Then Mira opened her eyes again. Her gaze locked on Cain's, filled with a calm determination that had not been there before. She raised both her hands in front of her slowly, the faint tremor in her fingers the only sign of the choice's gravity.

"My hands," she said firmly.

The words were like a hammer blow in the silence that followed.

Maris stiffened beside her, eyes wide. Kiyomi inhaled sharply, about to speak but stopping herself at the last second. Even Jayden looked taken aback, though the tilt of her head never left.

Cain studied Mira's face carefully, as if searching for any sign of hesitation. He found none.

"Your hands," he repeated, almost tasting the words. "You mean the very thing that lets you forge. The one thing you cannot replace."

"That is exactly what I mean," Mira replied without faltering.

For a long moment, the two of them simply stared at each other, the contract's energy humming faintly around them both.

Maris finally broke the silence. "Mira… are you insane? If you lose your hands, then what? The forge, your dream, everything would be gone."

Kiyomi's voice followed right after, sharper, angrier. "You can't forge without them! You can't fight without them either. This isn't just reckless, it's—"

"It's mine to risk," Mira interrupted, her tone steady. "The forge is my life. If I am not willing to risk my own hands for it, then I have no right to call it my dream."

The conviction in her voice left no room for argument.

Cain regarded her for another long moment before slowly nodding. "Very well. Your hands it is."

The violet light around them began to pulse faster, the air growing heavier with the promise of the contract about to form.

Maris and Kiyomi exchanged one more helpless look, but neither tried to stop her again. They understood now.

This was Mira's choice.

A heat foreign to Mira flooded her arms. She who had practically grown up surrounded by flames felt a blaze just beneath her skin. She had no idea why but she could innately feel that the next piece she forged would be even greater. She looked at Cain in wonder, only to see a hazy green mist beginning to waft from his body.

Cain was shocked. Envy was on the move now too?!

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