[Hours later]
On this stormy land, in a crater spanning over more than 200 million square milles lay billions upon billions of horribly mutilated bodies and limbs sprayed about and stored in numerous piles all over the battlefield, remnants of supercharged magic still flickering about in the air, waves of lava erupting from below and washing over the bodies adding to their suffering as they released a multitude of weak, painful and defeated groans.
Their bodies utterly overtaxed and devoid of mana and their recovery all too slow, but more than anything else they were alive, many had faced obliteration more times than they could count in all the time of their existence and across the many battles they had fought in this world, in spite of it all they were alive still.
But their opponent, the one man responsible for inciting such level of carnage and destruction, he lay peacefully asleep atop a random pile, his body guarded once again like always in a film of starry crimson divine essence and with a look of content on his face.
[The Morning after]
Keeping track of time through the daily circle was a pointless thing, as a world that remained in a constant state of chaos at all times there was no difference between night and day here, but above all there wasn't a natural star to revolve around, just an empty void of space.
Only the existence of mana held this world together and safe, it's storms and constant eruptions served as it's natural light bringing about it's eternally deep hue of fiery orange courtesy of Irmir's influence upon the atmosphere of this world of which was once just a brighter shade of blue.
"Yup, there he is, just like mom said".
Sleeping peacefully surrounded by monsters many of which had recovered and left, unbothered by their roars, battles and movements nor by the constant chaos of this planet, surrounded in a stream of crimson divine essence with some adorable little monsters around his body either trying to take a bite off him or playing around with the curious stream of starry crimson floating all over the place.
"Guess it was pointless staying like this to catch him off guard"
Leah commented with Rachel nodding in agreement.
"Yeahh, not so exciting just catching him asleep".
The two sisters could only smile as they revealed themselves and began levitating downwards towards his body, scaring away the little cretins as they instinctively felt an aura similar to if not more dangerous than that of an overlord's emanating from them.
Just as Leah crouched down and reached out to wake him up with a shake his body suddenly reacted as he threw a fist forward which she instinctively dodged but he followed up with a crescent kick using his body as leverage yet still–
Well, that was how this was supposed to go in his head.
Instead reality of a very, very different tale, the moment the slightest twitch occurred he received a hard slap across his cheek from a jumpy Leah with the sound of it echoing for miles and his head turned over to the other side.
His eyes were wide open and they held the purest of surprises, not once in his immortal life, of all the things he thought he would ever receive not once was a slap on the menu, this was amazing.
He turned his head forward to catch Leah with both hands clamped over her mouth, a deeply apologetic look in her eyes and Rachel to the side looking joyful clicking her tongue in mock pity for his scalding hot cheeks.
In retaliation, he sent a little jolt through her body which caused her to jump a little but burst out laughing after for a few seconds.
"Jeez".
Emrys levitated himself to an upright position and gently pulled both sides of Leah's cheeks, he quite would have enjoyed teasing her but she already looked pitifully cute enough as she was right now.
So after comforting her a little and engaging in some light banter with his teasing eldest sister they all left for the outside but not before checking up on Irmir one last time along with Aine and noting that the mana flowing through the volcano was no longer as turbulent although it had grown much stronger and purer in it's feel.
Now back in the main world, Emrys was immediately teleported by his sisters right to the bath
"Don't stay too long, today's your first day of school you know".
"First impressions and all that".
"We'll be at the dining room".
Both of them left right after Rachel had said her piece and Emrys who had for the first time recognized the look of his current state felt a strong wave of nausea wash over him but it only lasted a second right before being overtook by a stronger feeling of obsession which he shook off lest it got any stronger.
Infact thinking of it now quite a bit of blood had spilled by him in this tournament yet his mind never registered it, not even a while after until this very moment. Was there even a time in these eight years that it had ever popped up like this, was he getting indifferent to it all this while and didn't know but now all that progress has been suddenly reset.
He really couldn't tell, if there was one thing he could wish for it would be some consistency or a bit of logic in how and why his body responded a certain way to certain things sometimes.
His bloodied clothes and underwear faded off him leaving just the ring Leah had crafted for him and the rest of his jewelry, Emrys descended down the short stairs into the bath and let himself sink deep into it with his eyes closed and his senses cut off from the world around him.
The blood of those creatures was quite stubborn and difficult to get rid of normally, but here it was easily being broken down to minute pieces alongside the bits of their flesh and fading off into nothing under the power of this bath and soon, strands of divine power began curling around his body to commence the final stage of the cleansing process.
'Hm, it still bugs me but if I can find a way to reach him'.
'It's more than likely I'll be able to find out exactly what I am first before anything'.
'Still, this is quite new'.
Floating a few inches above his head was a little black lion cub with two swaying tails and what seemed to be flaming embers of darkness right at their tufted ends as we're it's paws which were all releasing a steady stream of it.
It had two pairs of starry crimson eyes with vertical pupils and a closed fifth eye poised vertically on the center of it's forehead, the little cub walked into space like it was stepping behind a curtain and vanished from his view, but seconds after a head popped up in the water beside him but was retracted almost as quickly.
Emrys chuckled and let the top half of himself come up to the surface, the little cub appeared once again but this time it was standing atop the waters surface causing a gentle ripple to spread outwards.
He had understood what it was the moment he saw it, felt it clearly that this was the avatar of his;
–
Or at least a glimpse of what would be the true completion of it's form after his evolution, the lack of a mane and the wings showed where his level truly lied at current although one look at his transformation of before wouldn't give such an impression.
There were still some aspects he was missing and he hadn't truly matured yet, but little by little he would grow and so too would the little cub.
He placed two fingers under it's jaws and gently scraped at it, smiling warmly as the little cub leaned into his hands more in contentment.
Though he had some questions as to why his -Dark Spirit- could come alive as an avatar, it wasn't something that bothered him much as the advantages gained by having it in such a form far outweighed any cons he could possibly think of at the moment.
But still, he had only just become even more of an unfair existence so he could only apologize for making things a whole lot more difficult for those who may want to go against him in the foreseeable future.
"Deary me, Aine is so going to love having a new playmate in you".
"Especially since you're both close in size".
Emrys mused to himself with a smile as he picked up the cub and brought it to eye level with himself, his head tilted a little to the side and watched as the cub did just the same causing him to giggle a bit.
"Wonder if I should give you a name".
He pondered upon the idea for a few seconds in silence but in the end decided on something else entirely, there was always a third option and he had found it.
"Right, let's get moving then".
Emrys teleported them right over to his wardrobe first and set the little cub down before walking in to select his options. Had it been a little over two years ago, then his maids would still be tending to him in situations like this but he had relieved them of some of their duties with this one being included.
And now that he had undergone an evolution, his fashion for purple in all it's shades had diminished greatly to the point of feeling non-existent. Now he felt like his wardrobe needed a little....reset, and with a snap of his fingers accompanied by a mental command that was exactly what happened.
White, with maybe a bit gold here and there in whatever form or design but mostly just....white. Well, now he was open to black too so he added that in there. Now this, along with a few variables in-between would be all that could be found in his wardrobe collection with over more than ten thousand clothes and nearly as much jewelry and footwear.
Nodding to himself in personal satisfaction he first put some underwear on himself before moving to select his royal attire, luckily he had been briefed on the way here by his sisters that he had no need sticking to the official uniform of his school anyways, a privilege only the most extreme of the privileged shared and luckily he found himself within that category.
'Mhm, feels good to be me'.
Emrys mentally praised himself as he stood before the mirror to admire his new look, the artifacts fused to him also engraved themselves into the attire becoming one with it and shedding the appearance of before. He adjusted the ring on his right middle finger crafted for him by Leah, tapping the crimson red gem which seemed to pulse with life before smiling and walking out his wardrobe feeling his preparations to be complete.
The little cub surprisingly had stayed put which was appreciated, Emrys made a mental note to spoil it later with whatever the cub considered as food and then lifted it high before teleporting over to the dining room.
Almost immediately they all caught sight of the little cub in his hands, it was kind of hard to ignore considering he held it up so high and of course they got curious
"Emrys?".
Hestia called out as she watched him set the cub down on the table before them and clear his throat as if preparing for a presentation-
"We have a new addition to the family".
"I give you the avatar of my -Dark Spirit- in the flesh".
He took a look at the cub again upon saying that last part and curiously tried touching it again as if to confirm something.
"Well, close enough".
He shrugged and then clapped his hands "now, what do you suggest we name the little cub".
"I'm open to all suggestions".
His eyes were drawn to Rachel who had raised a hand up as if she were in a classroom-
"Argus?" she suggested.
Emrys opened his mouth as if to say something but then held back and fell into contemplation for a total of three seconds before he settled on his answer-
"No".
She shrugged then went right back eating her meal while watching the others and waiting for what they would suggest.
Leah raised her hand next, or at least she was about to but Emrys snapped his fingers and said in the sternest tone possible "No".
"Black isn't an option".
Her eyes opened wide in surprise.
"How did-
She started but he interrupted "You have a very....hmm".
Emrys contemplated for a second how to say his thoughts in the softest way possible and upon settling on the answer he continued–
"A very direct naming sense, yeah that's it".
From the look on her face he could tell that she wasn't convinced and was thinking of ways to counter his statement but eventually gave up with a sigh and opted for a second option.
"Fine then your Honor, do I at least a second try then".
Emrys smiled and looked over to Rachel for a moment "motion denied, if I give you one wouldn't that be unfair to our eldest sister".
Leah lightly slammed her palms onto the table and countered "objection, she didn't ask for one and technically, I actually haven't given my answer yet".
His eyes widened a bit in realisation "ah, good point".
"Carry on then".
"Yes!" She exclaimed while grinning from ear to ear in happiness and celebrated with a small pump of her fists before clearing her throat to proceed.
"Reign".
Emrys raised a brow in pleasant surprise as did the rest of his family and from the way the little cub's tail was wagging, it seemed he would be having no problems with being named that.
"Hm, that's actually a good one, great one even".
Leah smiled in sublime satisfaction at their reactions as she finally took her seat, Emrys shook his head in mild amusement before turning to his mother and aunt.
"Admittedly, I'm already half settled on naming him that but let's see if you can beat that".
Hestia hummed to herself as she placed a hand under the little cub's jaws and gently tilted it upwards, studying it's features and it's essence in silence while treating it to a calming rub.
"Orion" she spoke.
From the way his tail wagged once again, it could be seen quite easily that the little cub had no problems being named this also which was a sentiment Emrys found himself sharing although not as enthusiastically as the first.
"Yeah, that's a really good one".
Her smile grew a little wider as she let go of the cub and watched as Emrys addressed the final participant, his mother.
"And now here we are".
Maeve's gaze alternated between her son and the cub continuously for a few seconds at intervals, only to tilt her head a little to the side and smile warmly as she finally settled on the perfect name.
"Abaddon".
"No".
"Abaddon - Reign".
Emrys snapped his fingers and lightly banged on the table "sold!". He exclaimed, the names were just too fitting for it, he hadn't even thought of giving him a last name nor compromising in such a way but things worked out far better than he had ever expected in the end.
"Sorry auntie and my dear eldest sister".
"This time it's your loss".
Hestia giggled and shook her head lightly in amusement while Rachel simply responded with a sarcastic eye roll right before reminding her family of the situation at hand.
"The clock is ticking you know".
Emrys smiled and picked up the little cub in his arms. "I know, but it should be okay bringing Reign right?" he turned towards his mother as he asked.
She gave a small nod "yes".
"Wonderful" he smiled before going over to his mother's side to place a kiss on her cheek and then turning back to the rest of his family.
"I'll be on my way then, bye".
But before they could interject, Emrys had already teleported away with the little cub leaving them to exchange looks with one another, each having the same thought on their mind.
"Right, terrible mistake".
"How am I supposed to get there again? Wherever that is of course".
Said Emrys as he suddenly popped back in with a slight look of embarrassment on his face, the little cub in the meanwhile kept bringing a paw up to his face as if trying to turn it to other side or push it upwards.
Despite their best efforts if one could even call it that, they broke out in a round of laughter.
"Really?"
"You too mother?".
She instinctively clamped a hand over her mouth and shook her head as if to deny it but was barely succeeding at stifling those laughs while the test went at it unabashed, it went on for a bit before they found themselves slowly regaining their composure once more although the occasional snickers could be heard here and there.
"And are you satisfied now" he asked, his tone laden with obvious sarcasm of which they responded to enthusiastically with innocent sincerity instead.
"Yeah, I think we are". Answered Rachel with a smile.
He rolled his eyes at her and exhaled "jeez".
Hestia gestured for him to come over to her side which he complied to, she raised a hand up to this face, a smile gracing her lips as she set the bangs of his hair at the sides and drew a vertical golden line on his forehead with her thumb.
"This will take you there".
"A guide has already been prepared to welcome you".
She paused a little and stared deep into his eyes "do make sure to enjoy yourself however way you can".
"I know this isn't something you were expecting".
Emrys smiled seeing the look on her face "do not look so down aunty, at least I know that whatever the endgame is for doing this".
"It will only serve to benefit me even if I do not know what it is yet".
Hestia flashed a smile watching as both he and the cub had begun getting enveloped in tiny golden particles making for a field around them.
"Ah, time for me to leave then".
"Byeeee~".
He waved right before shooting up into the air, passing through the palace walls and leaving a trail of golden particles in the air as the spell led him towards his destination.
Back in the palace Hestia heaved a heavy sigh "he's definitely going to be quite inflamed".
They shook their heads in agreement to her words.
"Well, at least it's not like he's forbidden from leaving".
"Just not for too long is all".
Rachel tried mitigating the situation a little just to make everybody including herself feel less guilty but, they knew full well no amount of logic or rationale could help ease what was coming.
Meanwhile high up in the skies on a gigantic flying leaf artifact on the way to their shared destination with Emrys were Avistro, Ishmael, Velkos, Rozaria and Mordred.
But their journey was anything but a joyful one as the latter three looked so tired and entirely drained of life from being forced to listen to Ishmael and Avistro bicker away without a care in the world.
The cause of their argument? Well–
"Just admit that I held back against you and forced a draw".
Avistro grit his teeth in frustration hearing Ishmael repeat the same phrase he'd heard a thousand times in their argument but yet his heart refused to accept it and so he countered-
"That really is rich coming from you".
"When I was the one who held back from using my new ultimate against you".
Ishmael heaved a sigh and shook his head "and I tell you again that it wouldn't have made much of a difference".
"My authority is too great and yours too little for it to overcome".
Avistro was ready to let loose again and present another counter argument but Ismael held a hand up "wait, before you continue, answer me this".
"Did it ever occur to you why my true form never came into play either?".
And as he expected he could visibly see the fire in his eyes die just as it dawned on him, a way too obvious of a point that had entirely slipped his mind and one that surprised Ishmael as he too had expected that Avistro would have considered this in the beginning, but as they went on it became clearer and clearer to him that it hadn't.
He heaved another sigh "do you see now".
"You're still most surely the fifth strongest amongst us".
"But I know for a fact that had I fought that annoying bastard then I'd undoubtedly be forced to enter that state".
A deafening but welcomed silence for some passed between them, lasting for a few seconds only to be broken by the sound of Avistro clicking his tongue in annoyance but it could be felt quite easily that he was ready to surrender now.
"Bah, fine then, you win this one".
Ishmael smiled "I'm looking forward to our next fight then".
"I'm always available, you too Velkos if you want".
Even with his expressions entirely hidden underneath that faceless plain mask, one could feel how drained he was by the act of him barley able to raise a hand to give a thumbs up in response before dropping it down in exhaustion.
"Ah".....The realisation hit both of them like a truck.
He faked a cough and looked down at his surroundings, focusing his powerful eyesight to spot it "oh look, we're almost th-
His words held in his mouth as the artifact crossed over a distance of multiple millions of miles, finally bringing them to their destination before he could even finish his sentence.
"Hm".
The artifact slowed down it's incredible speed as they approached the school which seemed more like an entire kingdom unto itself than anything else, except with even way more available surrounding space than normal for most on account for having less to build and even less inhabitants in comparison.
It's founders were daring enough to build this place right in the heart of a red zone, boundaried by a level 5 dark forest and mountainous plains on the farthest ends all infested with monsters of all kinds.
And yet even though there seemed to be no magical barriers placed between the main mass of land and the forest and all surrounding it, those fearsome beasts, neither those above nor the ones below ever dared make a move to cross that invisible but very clearly defined line nor attack the entities going to and fro from it daily.
It was a wonderful and lively sight, one that they had all the time in the world to appreciate as the artifact glided over to the bustling school grounds filled with all sorts of activities, the buildings here spanning multiple hundreds of meters wide for some and of course with such an entrance they drew a multitude of eyes over to them and then came the immediate recognition as to whom they were.
Putting the weight of their identities aside, the tournament was still a vividly fresh memory in the minds of all who had seen it. Everything about it had only served to reinforce the weight of their identities and to most, inspire a feeling of awe and fear that these beings now walk amongst them.
The main buildings were all floating in the air more than 10 meters above ground along with a few other minor ones, but most remained situated to the earth. Situated at different strategic points on the outskirts were eight statues measuring more than 300 meters in height, three were made in the image of some great mages and five representing some of the most legendary knights the world had ever known.
Avistro tilted his head a little to the side, watching those statues like a hawk "Hm, I'm not the only one feeling it, right?".
Ishmael scrunched his brows a bit and turned to the rest of his peers who caught his gaze for a moment but went right back to stating at the statues, they all felt the same thing without a doubt, no words were needed to confirm it.
EnD.