Sol's legs felt a little unsteady as he made his way toward the secluded area reserved for his magic teacher. After his earlier time with Milia, he couldn't help but wonder if she was secretly a succubus, considering how thoroughly she had drained him in just a few hours.
Focus, Sol. Focus.
His destination was the domain of Edea Asmodeus, the Witch of Time — often referred to as the Witch of the West. She had been his instructor in magic long before his awakening, despite the fact that he couldn't manipulate mana at the time. Even now, much of her knowledge remained out of his reach; true witchcraft was something only those born as witches could wield. Still, Sol valued her guidance deeply.
The path from his quarters to Edea's domain was a long one, and after his earlier exertions, fatigue clung to his steps. Eventually, he stopped in front of what looked like nothing more than an ordinary wall — so ordinary that any onlooker would be baffled by his next move. Drawing a deep breath, he rapped three times against it in a precise rhythm — a secret signal shared between him and his teacher. To outsiders, it would look like nonsense. To Sol, it was a small ritual marking each visit to study under her.
As he finished, a faint turquoise light swept over him, scanning his form from head to toe. The wall shimmered and shifted into a black door etched with the emblem of a scarlet serpent devouring its own tail — the sigil of Asmodeus, one of the fourteen divine beasts, honored in this land as the emissary of Goddess Luxuria.
"How long do you plan to stand there like an idiot? Come in already."
Her lilting yet authoritative voice snapped him out of his thoughts. With a sheepish smile, Sol straightened his clothes, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.
—––
What lay beyond was no simple chamber, but a breathtaking world of its own. A boundless green meadow stretched endlessly toward the horizon, bathed in sunlight and stirred by gentle winds. At a white table in the distance, a girl who looked barely older than Sol sat sipping tea. Her appearance seemed plucked straight from a fairy tale — pale skin, flowing white hair that reached the ground, and a dress as dark as a night sky. Her eyes, however, were what held the most power: one glowed gold like the sun, the other burned red like blood.
Despite her youthful appearance, this was no ordinary girl but Edea — a being far older than the kingdom itself and one of Lustburg's founders. To Sol, though, she was simply his beloved teacher.
"My, my. Are you still going to stare at me like a fool?"
Flustered, Sol approached, knelt before her, and kissed her hand with a playful grin.
"Teacher, you know your beauty is the stuff of legends."
An amused smile touched her lips. "What a charmer. You're just like your ancestor — it was that same silver tongue that tricked me into this tower in the first place."
Sol could only give a wry smile. He knew she bore no true resentment toward his lineage, though if their positions had been reversed, he doubted he could have been so forgiving.
"Don't make that face," she chided, gently pinching his nose. "I've never regretted what I gave Jupiter. Not once. Now, enough of the past. Sit. Share some tea with me."
Obediently, Sol sat across from her, warmed by the affection in her gaze. She reminisced softly about his childhood — the day he had first stumbled into her domain with Setsuna after a minor accident spilled his blood on the enchanted door. Back then, he had stood protectively in front of Setsuna despite shaking with fear, facing the overwhelming presence of a being far beyond mortal comprehension.
Sol grimaced. "Teacher, please don't remind me of that day."
Edea only chuckled, then steered the conversation elsewhere. They talked idly until Sol asked a question that had long weighed on him.
"Teacher… what was my father like?"
Edea stirred her tea thoughtfully. She had expected this question ever since Sol's recent encounter with Lilith. Choosing her words carefully, she finally said with a smile, "Your father was a charismatic fool."
She recalled how Mars had first found his way to her — guided by a curious young Lilith. Like Sol, he had faced her overwhelming aura with trembling legs, yet still shielded Lilith from harm. From that moment, she had recognized that he was different. By fifteen, he had already contracted with Blaze Dragona, daughter of the divine beast Tiamat. By twenty, he had become the strongest king Lustburg had ever known.
But beyond his unmatched power and achievements, it was his ability to draw people to him that stood out most. Friends, allies, even rivals — all were won over by Mars. His charisma was so great it seemed inevitable that Lustburg would have become an empire under his reign, had he lived.
Yet, with all his brilliance, he was hopeless when it came to women. Edea's tone turned teasing. "He could face gods and monsters without flinching, but the moment a woman showed interest, he turned into a stammering boy. Honestly, I suspect Blaze was the one who proposed, not him."
Sol's lips twitched at the contrast. Every time someone exalted his father's legend, they seemed just as quick to drag out his embarrassing flaws. Whatever grand image he tried to build of Mars shattered instantly under such revelations.