Michael looked at him with a solemn expression. "Yes. Everything I told you was true—at the time."
Nolan shook his head. "Then why? Why is this happening? Why is this different from what you said?"
Michael's wings shifted, golden feathers scattering faint sparks of light into the void. "Because this was written long before either of us could see it. The Creator Himself spoke to me the day I granted you the SSS-rank ability of Time Manipulation. He told me why you were chosen and what your path would be. Even then, I doubted it. I thought it was impossible for a mortal.
He took a step closer, his eyes glinting with something like pride, something like awe.
"But you've done it. The mana you carry, the essence of time in your veins—it has surpassed anything even I could imagine.
Nolan's hands trembled as the weight of the words pressed down on him. "I… surpassed you?"
