Once they were seated, Baalbel began to reveal what had really happened. As they were leaving the Academy City and had nearly reached the port of Vernice, a distortion ripped through the sky directly above them—a rift opened by the Goddess Ophelia. A massive army of angels descended and launched an immediate assault on the convoy carrying Julius, Edmund, and Abel. The Raven forces fought back, but they were completely outmatched by the celestial host.

That was when Baalbel and Xeria appeared to rescue Abel and his men. While the demon forces held off the angels, they moved to pull Abel, Julius, and Edmund to safety. But suddenly, Edmund changed. His eyes turned pure white, and his voice was abruptly layered with the booming, thunderous voice of a woman. He lunged, grabbing Abel and Julius by their necks from behind, and chanted an incantation to place a curse on both of them.

Baalbel and Xeria, realizing too late what was happening, turned back to attack Edmund. Xeria managed to slash Edmund across the chest, inflicting what should have been a fatal wound, but the injury healed instantly without leaving a scar. Then Edmund, seemingly unconscious and possessed by something, sprouted a pair of white wings from his back and took flight.

"This man is my chosen champion. From this day forward, the world shall kneel before him."

A woman's voice echoed through the sky. Immediately after, Edmund sped off toward the capital, leaving Abel and Julius behind in that state. Xeria sent several of her subordinates to go undercover and infiltrate the capital. According to her scouts—who were spiders and therefore nearly impossible for the enemy to detect—the moment Edmund returned to the capital, he locked up his father, Emperor Ellard III. He claimed the Emperor's chronic illness had flared up and took over his duties as temporary ruler.

After that, he banned anyone from entering the Emperor's chambers, insisting on caring for his father himself. This continued until the day his father was declared dead, and Edmund was officially crowned as the new Emperor. His first act after the coronation was to announce his plan to level the Kingdom of Ateras and then move on to Fredonia. He also gave Durnhill an ultimatum: join his "world revolution" or suffer the same fate as the kingdoms he planned to attack.

This war would not just be between the living; the heavens themselves were now fighting on the side of the Orthus Empire.

"That is why I lied and said Edmund knew Lady Eva was in this kingdom," Baalbel said. "My goal was for you all to leave this place and stay in Rellios for a while. You need time to build your strength for a counterattack. Fredonia will be hit with everything they've got right after Ateras, and we both know that once the heavens open up, no kingdom on earth can withstand it."

"Hmm... I see. This is too much. I should have finished him off in that underground cave without a second thought," Ard muttered, clenching his fists until they shook.

"I am sorry, Your Majesty. Xeria and I were incompetent in protecting your family," Baalbel said, bowing his head.

"You did the best you could. I don't blame you. It's time for me to awaken the power of Azroth once again, and I will head to the elf village to find a way to break my brother's curse," Ard said.

"Understood, Your Majesty. I will continue to pose as your brother to fill the void while you are away," Baalbel replied.

"Okay. Do that, and gather as many demon forces as possible. Inform Count Dimitri as well; it looks like we're going to need his strength. Hold this kingdom until I return. After the elf village, it's time I met with the Dragon God once more," Ard replied.

"Understood, Your Majesty. The demon army is ready to defend this kingdom. Please, leave this place immediately and entrust everything here to us. Oh, one more thing... please take this letter back," Baalbel said, bowing as he pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Ard.

"Hmm... what's this?" Ard asked, taking the letter and turning it over in his hands.

"That is the letter Lady Mirea wrote to Prince Nikolai. Xeria was disguised as the servant Mirea entrusted it to. She intentionally held onto it because it could have compromised the situation. So rest easy, Your Majesty—not a single one of your friends or your fiancée has betrayed you," Baalbel explained.

"Alright, I understand. I'm going back upstairs; I need to speak with all my friends and my fiancée," Ard replied, pocketing the letter and standing up.

"Very well, Your Majesty. I will keep you updated on everything. Xeria's subordinates will follow you on your journey—not just to protect you, but to relay intelligence as it comes in," Baalbel said.

"Good. Thank you, Baalbel," Ard said, placing a hand on Baalbel's shoulder with a smile.

"It is only my duty, Your Majesty," Baalbel replied with a respectful bow.

Ard turned and walked out of the room. He saw Mirea still buried in books, desperately trying to find a lead on the curse affecting Abel and Julius. Ard walked up to her.

"Mirea, we have to go back up. There is something I need to discuss with you and everyone else," Ard said.

Mirea looked up from her reading. She saw the grim, dead-serious expression on Ard's face and immediately stood up.

"What is it?" she asked.

"The situation is far more critical than I thought. I'll explain everything upstairs. Let's go," Ard answered.

"Alright, let's go," Mirea replied, closing her book.

Ard glanced at Xeria, who was standing silently with her head bowed, looking weighed down by guilt. He approached the massive spider-woman and took her hand, startling her.

"Your... Your Majesty," Xeria stammered.

"Thank you, Xeria. You did everything you could. Now, please, look after my brother. I will be back," Ard said, smiling as he held her hand in both of his.

"Th... thank you, Your Majesty. I will serve you faithfully until the very end. Thank you," Xeria sobbed, using her arm to wipe away the tears from her four eyes.

"I'm leaving now, and when I return, we will fight together to crush the Orthus Empire," Ard declared.

"I will be waiting for that day, Your Majesty," Xeria replied with a smile—one that looked terrifying, yet sincere.

Ard turned back to Mirea, who was smiling as she wiped away her own tears. He put his arm around her, and they headed back upstairs. As they walked, Mirea looked up at him.

"You've finally become a King again... just like a thousand years ago," Mirea whispered.

"Yes. It's time I woke up from my sleep," Ard replied, his eyes fixed forward.

Ard then pulled the letter from his pocket and handed it to Mirea. She was stunned to see the very letter she had written. She looked at Ard, who was smiling at her.

"After this is all over, we'll send that letter to Nikolai together, okay?" Ard said.

"Yes... thank you, Ard. I thought I had made a fatal mistake by writing that. I'm so relieved now. Thank you, truly. We'll send it together," Mirea said, brushing away a fresh tear.

She turned and pulled Ard into a deep kiss, which he returned warmly. After a moment, they continued upstairs and exited through Abel's bedroom. Hand in hand, they headed straight for the palace lounge where the rest of the group was waiting. When they entered, Eva, Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Pyria, Claudia, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin all turned toward them. They were taken aback by Mirea's reddened eyes and Ard's dark, intense expression.

Eva immediately stood up and walked over to them. "What happened?" she asked, her voice full of worry.

"We all need to talk," Ard answered.

Ard locked the door and gathered everyone around. Without holding anything back, he told them the entire story. Their faces, which had started out curious, slowly turned grim as they listened to his report. Finally, Ard turned to Eva, who was sitting beside him, watching him intently.

"Eva... it's time," Ard said.

"Yes, I understand. Once again, Azroth and Evelina will return to lead the world," Eva said, her eyes burning with a fierce light as she gripped his hand.

"Now, we prepare. Our first stop is the elf village, then we head to the Kingdom of Rellios. It's time we all met the Dragon God and received his blessing," Ard said with absolute conviction.

Hearing Ard's words, Geoffrey broke into a wide grin and gave a firm thumbs-up. Ainsley pushed up his glasses with a confident smirk, while Irwin crossed his arms and nodded deeply, a broad smile on his face. Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Mirea, Pyria, and Claudia immediately stood up and crowded around Ard and Eva.

Their eyes burned with a fierce, renewed spirit, and smiles spread across their faces. Every single one of them was ready to fight for Ard and Eva as they reclaimed their destinies as Azroth and Evelina. Now, instead of fighting amongst themselves, they were finally working together as one.

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