Port Arrival
Imperial and Erika arrive at the port. The sight that greets them is sobering — many people, wounded and exhausted, litter the area. "I didn't expect this many people waiting for us," Imperial mutters under his breath.
Then four people approach. One of the girls, says, "Lady Erika, where is Master?"
Erika looks toward Imperial. He gestures for patience. "Wait," he replies quietly.
Imperial gestures toward the ship. "Erika, you and the four of you — come aboard. Quickly."
They climb the gangway and move inside the ship's main hall. Erika and her team fall in step behind Imperial. Suddenly, with a wave of Imperial's hand, a dark, swirling circle appears on the floor, and from it rise Ari and the rest of the group.
Erika and the others stare in shock as Imperial steps toward his father, still unconscious. "Is he okay?" he asks Ari.
Ari replies quietly, "I've healed him completely, but he's unconscious due to a binding spell."
Mirae steps closer, inspecting him. "Imperial, someone cast a binding spell on your father — it kept him unconscious, draining his magical energy. I've released the spell, so he's safe now, but he still needs rest to recover fully."
Imperial nods, hoists his father onto his back, and carries him to a bed in one of the ship's rooms.
"Jack," Imperial calls as he emerges, "you're fine now. Bring Ari's parents here too."
Jack disappears with a flash and returns moments later with Ari's parents, placing them in another room. Ari rushes in, tears welling in her eyes, and embraces her parents. The sound of her quiet sobbing fills the room.
Ezren enters the room. "Imperial, it's time to get out of here."
Imperial nods. "Alright."
Ezren and Gray move to the bridge and begin preparations to set sail. Meanwhile, in the ship's hall, silver looks toward Imperial. "How do you know Lady Erika?"
Imperial replies calmly, "She trained under my father when she was a kid. At least, that's what she always told me."
Silver lets out a long breath. "Still… it's unreal. We're getting support from the great Team E, and all of its members are here."
Tracey blinks in surprise. "What do you mean by Team E?"
Vince replies, "Team E is considered the strongest royal army squad across the five empires."
"What!?" Tracey exclaims, stunned.
One of Team E's members replies with a shrug, "It's not a big deal. We've worked together for many years — it's only natural that we're strong as a team."
Dawn adds, eyes shining with excitement, "But still, every member of your team is equal to a captain in strength. And Vice-Captain Heya. An eminence-level captain. And Lady Erika herself… she's comparable to a general, or maybe even stronger."
Erika replies with a faint smile, "And for me, you're unreal too. You survived a battle against the strongest forces of the empires. The hell you walked through is worth every respect."
Another Team E member adds, "And you, Imperial — you've built an amazing team. Having Gray Welhawk by your side? That's unbelievable."
Ari emerges from the room, brushing away a tear, and Erika gives a slight nod. "and a Light Magic user too."
Silver replies, smiling faintly, "Then I guess it's time for all of us to return to our empire. Our people may need us."
Imperial bows slightly. "Thank you — all of you — for saving my father, for putting your lives on the line. I won't forget it. If you ever need help, just call. I owe you."
Ezren emerges from the bridge. "Imperial, the ship is ready for departure."
Imperial gives a nod, and then the farewells begin.
Tracey steps closer. "Is it safe for you all to go like this? Now you're also targeted by the Royal Council for helping us."
Erika replies firmly, "That won't happen. I've already submitted evidence to every royal council across the five empires and released the truth to every major newspaper — that Master Cyrus is innocent and not involved in the lab experiments."
Dawn, surprised, asks, "But… how?"
Heya replies, brushing hair out of her eyes, "It wasn't too hard. We already had rumors about the experiments and started searching for evidence ourselves. When Master Cyrus was framed, it became clear the Royal Council here was hiding something. So, while most of the Empire's strongest warriors were away today, we snuck into the Royal Council chamber and found concrete evidence — including pictures."
Imperial and Gray exchanged a glance, recalling the very picture that had been taken.
Erika adds, "That's why the Council won't target you openly anymore. And the common people trust the CA, so the truth will stand with you."
Jack, with a sharp nod, teleports every CA commander back to their respective empire headquarters. Final farewells and handshakes are exchanged between Gray, Jack, and Silver, and soon enough, the ship departs, cutting a path through the misty waters, carrying Imperial, Ari, and their friends towards their next chapter of the journey .
The ship was now cutting its way through the misty seas, heading towards the Lunaris Empire. Inside the quiet hall, Imperial waved to Ari and motioned for her to step outside for a moment.
Imperial glanced at the faint scar across her eye. "Ari, isn't your mark gone? You're a superb healer now… aren't you able to fix that scar?"
Ari shook her head. "I tried, but it didn't heal."
Imperial stepped closer and gently touched the scar. Suddenly, a faint black flame emerged from the spot, brushing across the surface of the mark. Imperial felt a strange sensation run through him. "As I suspected," he said quietly.
Ari pulled out her communication crystal to look at her reflection—and to her shock, the mark was gone. "How…?" she breathed.
Imperial smiled faintly. "I know how, but I don't know why."
"What?" Ari asked, looking up.
Imperial clenched his hand and said, "I have a new magic now — Dark Magic. And this new magic gives me the ability to heal."
Ari frowned, brushing the skin where the scar had been. "But… it didn't work when I tried. In fact, my own healing magic doesn't work on me as quickly as it used to on others."
Imperial nodded. But in my case, it only works on me… except somehow it worked on this scar too. This raises an even bigger question."
Dawn and the others emerged from the hall just then. "I guess you told Ari about it, right?" said Dawn.
Tracey tilted his head. "About what?"
Dawn smiled knowingly. "About the new magic… the Dark Magic he has. The one I said to you when we met. It's the same Dark Magic Imperial has. He asked me to hide it from you all until he learned to control it properly. It's a Tier 1 magic, and he didn't want to risk hurting any of you. So he only trusted me to keep it a secret."
"I'm sorry for keeping it from you all."
Gray waved a hand dismissively. "It doesn't matter now. Because of that magic, we're all alive."
Ari smiled faintly. "Yeah… Gray's right."
Then Dawn suddenly frowned and glanced down at herself. "Wait… has anyone seen my bag?"
All replied, "No."
Her expression turned tense, panicked. "What?! It means I lost it!"
Tracey waved a hand. "It's just a bag. You can always buy another one."
"Yeah, I know," said Dawn, voice wavering, "but the book I brought for my village was inside that bag!"
Imperial smiled faintly. "Don't worry, Dawn. I have your bag—and your book. I knew it was important for the journey, so I kept it safe with me while we are preparing for this rescue mission."
Then they go inside the hall where all their stuff and belonging are gathered.
Imperial opened his bag and pulled out Dawn's bag which is folded inside him. He reached in further and drew out the two books — his own, and Dawn's book. As he gripped Dawn's book, his eyes fell on a page that had been folded sharply.
He unfolded the page carefully… and froze.
"Huh…? How could this be…?" he whispered, his expression turning serious, brows furrowed as his eyes scanned the page.
Before he could say anything more, the entire ship lurched violently as the deck shook beneath them. Imperial's bag slipped from his grasp, and in the sudden movement, the book he was holding slid right back into the bag, disappearing from sight.
"What is it?" Ari asked urgently.
A Team E member came rushing inside. "It's an emergency! Our ship is being attacked by many enemy ships!"
Imperial clenched his fists and started to move forward. "Let me handle—" But before he could finish, a wave of exhaustion crashed over him. The strain from using Dark Magic surged, making him stumble. He fell to the floor.
"Imperial!" Tracey yelled, rushing to his side and hoisting him up, carrying him to a bed.
Dawn clenched her staff and smiled determinedly. "I can easily beat them on the water."
One of the Team E members tightened their gauntlet. "We'll help too."
Then, together, Dawn and the Team E member surged out to the deck.
Erika watched Imperial for a moment and said quietly, "I guess using that Dark Magic for the first time put too much load on his body."
Ari sank down beside him and nodded. "He needs rest. He pushed himself too hard… and it's because of that we're still alive."
Meanwhile, outside, ten enemy ships closed in. But Dawn stood tall, staff raised high. The seas surged at her command. The water rose, swirling, and twisting until it became a massive, towering dragon.
"Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon!" she called, voice carrying across the waves.
With a roar, the giant dragon surged forth, crashing down upon the attacking ships, tearing apart hull after hull. At the same time, the Team E members leapt into the fray, attacking with precision. In mere moments, the ten enemy ships sank one after another, reduced to wreckage upon the waves.
With the threat neutralized, the ship carrying Imperial and his friends sailed smoothly toward the heart of the Central Empire, the waves whispering their passage under the rising sun.