To sorcerer Refnred's eyes, Chise is a sad girl, being duped by a mage. But no matter what Elias' true motives are, Chise has no intention of leaving him. Elias was the first person to value her, after all. As she walks towards the epicenter, she learns of the truth behind it. The sight of a boy appears behind the tragedy.

Chise and Selkie climb aboard a dragon's back to meet Lindel, to have her own mage's staff made. Frustrated by Chise's acceptance of her being kept as a pet by Elias, he describes the time he found Elias in the darkness. Meanwhile, Elias, who had stayed at home by himself, receives a letter from a sorcerer's college.

Stella, a young girl Chise encountered while Christmas shopping, finds that her brother, Ethan, has gone missing and her parents have forgotten he exists.

While watching over Lucy, Chise discovers her connection to Seth and their family's tragic history. While a professor seems to have been the victim of a user of a banned book, a mysterious killer seems to resurface...