The morning sunlight shone in the royal gardens. Androma stood near the lake in the center of the garden. Her ocean-blue eyes seemed distant as she kept her gaze on the mirror.
Looking at her reflection on the lake, she could see her solemn expression. Her lips were pursed, her head was lowered, and her eyes had no light in them. Her violet hair caught the sunlight with a lustrous shine.
"Sofamy... ah, Sofamy..." She sighed. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she didn't do anything to stop them from falling as her vision grew blurry.
Charlie had told her everything. How Sofamy was not only the leader of the rebels, but also that Sofamy wasn't truly Sofamy. It was actually a demonic phantom who took over their daughter's body the moment she was born.
They had been raising, caring for, pampering, and spoiling a phony. In the end, all their love was for nothing, as the person they considered their daughter was actually a malevolent being who had slaughtered many.
And not just any malevolent being, but a spiritual being. An actual spiritual being. The worst part was, no one could tell. No one could tell at all.
The queen's lips quivered as her fingers curled into fists till her knuckles turned white. "Did... did you truly not love us?"
Of course, her question was left unanswered. Slight tremors could be seen in her form as she lowered her head further. She gritted her teeth, trying to contain herself, but to no avail.
"You... I never revealed your involvement with the rebels... just so that you could do this?"
She remembered that night well.
***
"Sofamy! Stop siding with the rebels this instant!" Androma's voice wasn't loud, but it carried throughout Sofamy's private quarters.
"Mother, I understand your anger, but you must trust me on this. Aethelgard is falling. Even if Father stabilises the kingdom, he won't be able to do much, and after his time is up, the kingdom will fall again. Heck, it might even fall during his time, for all we know!"
"Such blasphemous claims, you—!"
"We both know that Marcus will be the next king after Father's reign ends. He doesn't want to bat an eye at the issues Aethelgard has, let alone resolve them. How do you think the empire will survive then? We don't even know what will happen in the approaching battle against the kingdom of Broshasa."
Sofamy's eyes seemed to sparkle as they grew moist. She cupped one of Androma's hands with her own and looked up at the older woman.
"Mother, you cannot deny that we need this rebellion. I didn't want to believe it either, but the grandmaster truly opened my eyes. I... I just believe this will bring a positive change. Either the rebels will reshape this empire into something far more prosperous, or it will open the kingdom's eyes, brother's eyes, even father's eyes, and thus allow the empire to start making efforts to truly reform. To truly recover. To truly rise to the peak without the risk of falling."
***
Looking back, Androma had accepted Sofamy's decision because she firmly believed that it would open Charlie's, Marcus's, and the rest of the empire's eyes regarding how Aethelgard should be. She believed that the rebellion would cease to exist, and that Sofamy would also stop going against the kingdom.
She had never imagined that the girl who told her about her siding with the rebels with a tearful face was actually the very grandmaster she claimed to be inspired by. Sofamy's true identity as an evil spiritual being wasn't something Androma could've fathomed even in a million lifetimes.
"Why, Sofamy...? I let you support the rebels because... because I believed you weren't lost to us... Why were you never with us to begin with?" Her voice was cracked as her body shook with silent sobs.
She collapsed to her knees, unable to hold her sorrow in. Placing her hand over her mouth, she began to sob loudly, closing her eyes tightly as she curled inward, her figure appearing small in the vast gardens.
From the edges of those gardens, a figure stood. His emerald-green eyes shone as he observed her figure.
To think you could have told us this, Mother...
***
"I can't believe a week passed like the wind. It feels like only yesterday we finally ended Athyma." Augustus sighed.
As he stood in an open field just outside the walls of Dimrath, he was accompanied by Vekas and Sierra, who had settled their gaze on some distant horizon, as well as Revan, who was currently eating a burrito Augustus had cooked.
"Mhm!"
"Sir Revan, please finish eating first," Vekas said in a deadpan tone.
"Meh, you worry too much, Vekas," the man shrugged in response as he finished his burrito, licking the residue off his fingers.
"You really are going, huh..." the chef asked as he looked at Sierra.
The woman smiled. "Indeed. I feel that moving to the Spirit Realm is the best course of action."
"You know, as I've said before. You could stay with us. Not only are the rebels completely dealt with, but your name is also cleared. In the end, you are free to explore this vast kingdom." Revan tilted his head as he directed his gaze at her.
Sierra looked back at him. "I am aware, Revan. However, I believe that I should explore the Spirit Realm instead. It is where I, a spiritual being, ultimately belong. My time in the Mortal Realm has ended... for now, at least."
"For now?"
She nodded at Revan's question before turning to Augustus. "I might return here to see you, or for any other purpose."
She stepped closer. "Regardless, I hope you will be there when I do return."
The chef chuckled. "Don't worry. I will."
Her smile widened at this. She turned to the general. "Being with you was not an uncomfortable experience, General Vekas... mostly. I hope you have no qualms with me."
"None. We don't have a reason to be hostile with each other after the recent events." Vekas smiled; his eyes softened.
Sierra nodded before turning to Revan. "You are still a mystery to me, Revan. I hope to learn of your origins soon."
"Oof! That 'soon' won't come soon. Hehe, get it?" He winked at her with a cheeky smile.
She sighed, shaking her head slightly. "Anyhow, I hope we meet again. I wouldn't want this to be the last time we ever meet."
"Me neither." He laughed and stretched out his hand. "See you some other time, then."
Sierra nodded and shook his hand firmly. Yet, as their skin made contact, she noticed something rather... odd.
His hands are extremely warm... but also extremely cold.
It was a weird sensation. There was no neutrality, but equality. Both warm and cold were in equal abundance in his hand.
Although she had [Temperature Cancellation], as well as a plethora of other Techniques and Authorities from her evolution, she didn't have it activated at this moment. Hence, she could feel both the warmth and the cool in his hand.
Thanks to [Accelerated Perception], it took her less than a millisecond to comprehend all this as she retracted his hand. Her gaze lingered on his ruby-red eyes, noting how they had a certain luster that held a charm of its own.
She turned away and sighed. Stretching out her hand, she grabbed at the space in front of her with her fingers. Goodbye... Augustus.
Her body faded away the next moment. She was gone.
"She's in the Spirit Realm now." Augustus sighed. "Never did I think I would see this day for myself."
"I did." Revan chimed in. "She definitely had potential. I could see this moment from a mile away."
The chef sighed, but didn't reply. He kept his gaze at where she once stood, his eyes narrowed. Goodbye... Sierra.
"By the way," Revan began, "what are you gonna do?"
"Huh?"
"Don't 'huh' me. Your arch-nemesis is dead, and the woman you took care of also ascended to the Spirit Realm. What's still tethering you to this world, exactly?" He asked with a tilt of his head.
Augustus smiled faintly. "Tethered, eh? I don't know. To speak the truth, I mainly came to this kingdom because I sensed Athyma's presence. As for the rebellion, I wanted to investigate purely because I was curious."
He sighed. "Now... I am not really sure what to do. Perhaps I could accompany you. You're still an enigma I'd like to learn more about."
"Heh, I was about to suggest to you the exact same thing!" Revan beamed with a wide grin that flashed his white teeth. "This way, I can continue eating your burritos as I continue to wander this huge kingdom."
The chef sighed, this one heavier than the one before. "I guess so..."
"Hey, you aren't exhausted with me, are ya?"
"Nope." He denied it without hesitating, stroking his long beard as he looked away.
Revan squinted his eyes for a while before turning to Vekas. "You're gonna join us as well, right? It would be even more entertaining if all three of us explored Aethelgard together."
Vekas blinked. "Pardon me, Sir Revan, but as you already know, I have regained my position as the Military General of Aethelgard. Because of this, my schedule would be too busy to—"
"Bah! Don't worry about it; I'll talk to Charlie about giving you more free time. Besides, you can just teleport using Spatial Magic if you are needed somewhere, so there's no problem." Revan shrugged, disregarding the general's situation as a small matter.
He placed his hands in his pockets as he turned to him. "I didn't come to Aethelgard to solve rebellion problems, you know. That was only a side project I found interesting. My true goal is to explore this entire kingdom that's as large as a continent."
"Explore? Right, you are a wanderer..." Vekas muttered as he narrowed his eyes. "I guess I could indulge in your journey if it makes you feel better."
"Nice!" He patted the general's shoulder with force, making the general flinch.
"I still don't get why you're merely a wanderer, kid. I mean, you're clearly very strong, perhaps even stronger than Sierra and Athyma. Why not do something more... grand?" Augustus spoke as he narrowed his eyes.
"Though I should stop calling you kid since you're probably older than me..." He lowered his gaze momentarily, recalling how he frequently called him that. "Perhaps I am too used to being the oldest one in a group..."
"Hey! I am as young as a beautiful flower." He pouted and looked away, squinting his eyes.
"..."
"..."
It was safe to say that, judging from both Vekas's and Augustus's deadpan expressions, the scene wasn't amusing.
The man sighed before turning to them with a smile. "Why am I a wanderer? Because I exist."
He laughed softly. "To exist in this world is to wander in it. None of us truly have a purpose except for what we give ourselves. In essence, all beings are wanderers."
He gazed up at the vast sky. "As for me, I simply choose to accept it, for I find the idea of wandering to be sufficient for my existence."
His smile was soft and not as wide as usual.
The other two men remained silent, their gaze fixed on him. Their eyes widened as their thoughts churned, as they felt they had finally gained a level of insight into the enigma before them.
To exist in this world is to wander in it... They both repeated his words in their minds. They looked at each other for a moment, realizing they seemed to share the same thoughts.
He then smiled cheekily. "Very well, then! Let's get moving, shall we?"
He patted Augustus's shoulder. "I need more burritos, by the way. My hunger has not been satiated yet."
The chef's eye twitched. "Aren't you immune to hunger?"
"Hunger doesn't have to be literal." He countered as he walked ahead.
The other two sighed, looked at each other, before nodding. They followed Revan closely as they could only wonder how their journey would go from here with such a man in their lives.
As Revan walked forward, a crow appeared by his side. He stopped, offering his finger for the crow to sit on, which it did.
He smiled, his gaze fixed on the bird. In the end, judging by the crow's mood, Revan could see that it wasn't displeased.