Honor

They reappeared in the academy corridor, where Marco and Maria were still waiting.

"Welcome back, both of you," Marco said gently.

Aizis offered a small smile. Raizel remained silent, as always.

"So you guys actually came back," Aizis remarked lightly.

"We were waiting for you to return," Maria replied, crossing her arms.

"Well, it's over now. We should head out," Aizis said.

"What happened to him?" Marco asked.

"Nothing much," Aizis replied. "He'll disappear soon, along with his empty threats and rumors."

"Speak clearly, Aizis," Maria said, annoyed. "Your poetic tone isn't helping anyone understand what you mean."

"Fine," Aizis sighed. "After taking him into the secretive world, Raizel used a sealing spell. He's now trapped, and his magic power is being drained. Once it's gone... he'll die."

"How did you guys even manage to do this?" Marco asked with curiosity.

"I believe he's stronger than both of you guys. My eyes are telling me clearly that his magic power is far stronger than both of you guys'," he added after taking a casual breath.

"Well, that's the point of us sealing him," Aizis replied.

"Even though he is much stronger than our current state, it was never really hard for us to trap him in a trick," he added.

"Last night, after you guys left, I was walking toward my home."

Aizis remembered something from last night. Something after Raizel and the other two left.

He was walking away from there slowly, step by step. In that moment, something appeared behind him.

It was a person—a familiar face. It was actually none other than the sacred spirit.

Aizis instantly teleported a bit away from there and hid himself beside the wall of the academy. 

His eyes seemed to focus on the unknown guest.

After saying a few sentences, the sacred spirit teleported away from there.

Aizis smiled a bit.

Back to the present.

"It was never hard for me to figure out his identity. I instantly planned something to make him fall in the trao and seal him there," Aizis said calmly.

"I managed to anticipate his movements right in that moment. He was actually intending to backstab Raizel at the right time and eliminate him," he added.

"The sealing magic I used is actually a magic-absorbing seal, which will completely turn him magicless. And then, the magic it absorbs is going to reach me and fuse with my own magic to form a superior level of magic," Raizel said, taking a breath. 

"So his appearance is just to amplify your magic power? That's so hilarious," Marco said, smiling a sarcastic smile.

"You can say that. It's the same story over and over," Raizel replied.

Marco smiled, and so did Maria.

"I shall take my leave now. I have something to do," Raizel said.

"As you wish, Mr. Supreme Ruler," Marco replied, smiling.

Raizel drew a dark blue magic circle and vanished from there along with the circle.

"Hmm, I didn't assume that you guys were going to do this to stop him," Marco said with a long breath.

"Maybe it was surprising, but it was an interesting move, wasn't it?" Aizis replied, smiling.

As soon as he said this, he drew a blue magic circle and disappeared instantly.

"It's pretty much impossible for me to understand their words," Marco said, bored.

Maria smiled. 

"You don't understand them? Or you're just trying to prove you're ignorant? I wonder how much a Sacred being can hide himself," Maria spoke up, wearing a mysterious expression.

"Let's just wait for that. Wait for the game to get more interesting, more intense and deep. Time will tell you everything—even the thing that's hidden beneath their past," Marco replied, smiling a mysterious smile.

Marco instantly teleported away—even without the presence of a magic circle. It was a different type of teleportation than usual. Perhaps, rather than being teleportation magic, it was actually his physical speed.

"Joker, it's been a while since I've seen you. Is it really that hard to meet you one more time?" Maria spoke up, staring toward the sky. 

The moon barely appeared, hinting at its full appearance soon enough.

The next morning appeared as always, displaying a bright sun and fresh sky.

Someone woke up with a smile on their face.

It was a girl with very deep, dark, and adorable hair. She was wearing a long white gown.

She woke up inside a garden filled with endless flowers around her. The garden was very calm. Some birds seemed to be singing—not really loud, yet nice. Her eyes were deep blue and gentle. She smiled a bit and stared toward a butterfly that was flying toward her and calmly sat down on the index finger of her left hand.

Even though her face wasn't clearly visible, there was a gentle and adorable appearance coming from her.

In a street in Zeldia, a loud and lively realm, someone was walking along the path.

It was a boy with deep red hair and a lone face, trying to smile—a fake smile. It was Raizel all along. He was walking, wearing his academy uniform.

Someone joined him from behind. Actually, it was multiple people.

Maria, Marco, and Aizis joined Raizel and kept walking along the street with him.

"So you guys were actually waiting for me here? I was expecting to meet you at the academy," Raizel said, smiling.

"Yeah, just thought—why not meet you in the middle of the road?" Marco replied.

"After all, we should greet our honorable leader," he added, smiling a bit.

Raizel smiled back in reply but didn't speak.

Following the street, they entered the academy.

Almost one year later…

Raizel and the others continued their daily life casually, without displaying much activity in the upper worlds.

The sacred spirits kept themselves silent for a while, showing no reaction to Jarid's death. It was pretty much a hint of a stronger disaster—a huge plan to eliminate Raizel one more time—but it was yet unclear what exactly they were planning to do. 

The sky was clear, with pieces of clouds scattered all around, smiling toward the world, the realm, and every single living being.

A gentle breeze kept the world calm, hinting at the presence of winter once again.

Raizel lay down in the middle of a huge garden filled with countless types of trees, flowers, and a gentle environment that created a calm and refreshing atmosphere.