It was the end of the day at Celestia Academy. The skies were completely red, like everything was bathed in glowing blood. It felt like the perfect prelude.
Inside the Celestia Academy, everything was drowned in silence. In the central plaza, that day, a dozen Mannaz were chained at the center of a stage, bound by hundreds of runic chains.
All around them, nearly every Summoner who had taken part in the abyssal nest mission was gathered. They watched as High Elder Vahnu stepped onto the stage and activated a golden, pulsing rune.
The ones chained up felt the bindings heat up like burning metal. Within seconds, the chains shifted and pierced into their bodies. Their eyes bulged, and all of them roared in pain and agony.
A minute later, a black mark appeared on each of their chests — right in front of everyone's eyes.
"There it is. That's the mark of a Risen Lord. That proves everything!" Vahnu roared, filled with hatred.
She had figured it out inside the nest, with Darian's help — who the traitors were. As soon as everyone returned to the academy, she had them captured.
It took two days to convince the other High Elders to use the inscription that powered the academy's core. That inscription was connected to all the planets, to the whole galaxy — it was the same one that created the barrier stopping powerful Risen from entering the galaxy.
Only one person knew exactly how it worked and could manipulate its full power. That inscription had the ability to repel the densest and purest form of corruption — the enemy's power.
Just one single rune from that inscription had been activated and used. That was only possible if all the High Elders joined forces. Once it was used, it identified the corrupted mark in them and purified it in front of everyone.
After that confirmation, they were all sentenced to death — and executed on the spot.
But...
No one watching felt much anger. No one really celebrated.
That was because all the Summoners who had taken part in the successful mission inside the nest... would soon stop being Summoners.
For the academy, it was a heavy blow. After all, every Summoner was precious. But only a limited number of powerful people had entered the nest. Losing them wouldn't really affect the overall power of that universe.
Once it was over, people turned to leave. They'd thought seeing the traitors' blood would ease their pain a little, but... it didn't change a thing.
Until...
Everyone suddenly felt like lightning had run through them.
"!"
Every Summoner who had returned alive from the abyssal nest felt something shift inside them.
The first thought that ran through all their minds was that the Risen Lord had killed their partners. But then they realized everyone else was feeling the same thing — and that was odd.
Didn't take long before someone shouted, "Fiely! The contract! It switched to paused connection!"
Everyone heard it — and their eyes went wide as they noticed the same thing. Immediately, everyone froze, stunned to see it was happening to all of them — every single Summoner was going through the same thing.
In an instant, that cold and grim end-of-day turned into cheers and celebration.
Vahnu felt the same change in her — and was left speechless. When a Spiritual Guardian returns to their own universe, the Summoner's contract switches into paused connection mode.
That only happens in that exact case. If the Spiritual Guardian dies — no matter where they are — the contract loses all energy and the connection vanishes completely.
The High Elder ran. She checked the phenomenon across all Summoners. There was no doubt: the captured Spiritual Guardians had somehow returned safely to their homelands.
In a few months, they'd be able to return straight to the academy.
She searched for one person, but couldn't find her. Then she pulled out her emblem and tracked her location.
She was in a forest near the academy. Vahnu moved quickly in that direction.
When she arrived...
She found the Dragoness sitting silently on a peak, watching the last moments of the sunset.
"Niara! Your partner... didn't you feel it?" Vahnu asked, a little confused.
The amber eyes slowly turned toward her. They were a bit unfocused and strange.
"Hm? Yeah... I felt something shift... I guess it finally happened," she said, painfully.
"What?" Vahnu narrowed her eyes and rushed to her side, "Let me check the connection."
Niara didn't care. When both sides form the contract, their souls get linked. It didn't matter if she was the Summoner or not — the connection was the same for both of them.
Vahnu focused on Niara… trying to find that subtle paused connection…
Nothing.
There was nothing connected to her. Before, everyone still had an active link, though weak and fading because of the huge distance between them. But now… it was like it had vanished from her...
Exactly like when a Summoner loses their partner.
"This… how is this even possible..." Vahnu could only mutter, confused.
Then came the shock.
Niara sighed, feeling a pain she couldn't even describe as she understood the look on Vahnu's face: "He told me he'd figure something out… I have to trust him..."
She said it while desperately trying to hold herself together, but... even she didn't believe it anymore.
Vahnu heard that in complete shock.
If everyone came back… and only that slug died...
Did he actually pull it off?
***
In the Universe of Heaven's Will — more specifically, on a blue planet curiously called Earth by its inhabitants.
Up north on one of the continents, in the empire known as New Arcadia, it was early morning.
In one of the many abandoned cities, inside a small building overtaken by nature...
A beautiful woman with long golden hair was silently holding two objects in her hands — they looked like fist-sized stones. They pulsed in different colors, making it clear they weren't natural.
She was focused. In her mind, she was listening to secret messages, paying close attention. After a few minutes, she sighed and squeezed the stones in her hands.
With a dry crack, they shattered into dust.
"It's all ready. This is the perfect moment. We're not likely to get another shot like this for many years," she whispered.
"Yes, I agree." Suddenly, a male voice came from behind her. No one was visible — it was like her own shadow was talking. "But… those people can't be trusted... honestly, no one involved can be trusted. Maybe waiting for the next chance and making sure the people involved are actually trustworthy would be the smarter choice."
"True," she replied softly. "Unfortunately, it's rare to find people like that. Whenever I do, I recruit them into our clan. Even if we had ten more chances, odds are nothing would change. We're risking everything now — we can only rely on Heaven's Will."
The voice behind her sighed but didn't say anything.
Until...
*Buzz*
The woman pulled a card out from inside her clothes — it was the one making that faint buzzing sound. She looked at a strange message and narrowed her eyes.
As she read, she muttered: "Hm, he's back… what, wait? How is that even possible?!"