The door swung open, and a young woman, remarkably resembling him, entered with poise. Elie approached the desk, offering a warm smile as she greeted,
"Good morning, Father."
He reciprocated the smile,
"Good morning to you too, Elie. How is your day unfolding?"
"Good, for the most part," she replied. "I had breakfast with El."
Her father's smile faded slightly, and she noticed the shift. Wanting to break the tension, he spoke first, "How is he?"
She paused for a moment, exhaling slowly.
"He mentioned he had the dream again."
His demeanor turned serious.
"Did he share what it was about?"
A hint of mischief appeared on her face.
"Of course, he can never keep secrets from his most cherished sister."
But seeing her father's serious expression, she sighed, realizing her attempt at levity had fallen flat. She proceeded to recount what El had confided to her. Afterward, an uneasy silence enveloped the room. A fleeting thought crossed her mind: 'Why do I feel such a strange sense of déjà vu?' But her father's voice interrupted her contemplation.
"So, he beheld a formidable tree that seemed to speak to him even in a dream. This must be the foretold event—a being with the power to obliterate the world."
Elie regarded her father skeptically. "From the Book of Prophecy? Dad, aren't you being overly cautious?".
He met her gaze firmly. "This is precisely what your mother warned about. Why would I be paranoid if it's the truth?"
She frowned, replying, "Yes, and that's what led to her demise." For a fleeting moment, his expression turned cold before reverting, but Elie noticed.
"What's the matter, Elie? Weren't you part of the plan? Why the sudden shift?"
Choosing her words judiciously, she responded, "Yes, I was, and I still am. But must we impose this burden on the younger generation? Can't you or we take it on?"
He simply stated, "That's what the prophecy dictates."
Her tone grew more intense. "Prophecy this, prophecy that—I'm exhausted by it! Aren't you? Because of this prophecy, you can't show love to your own son, making him believe he's the issue, making him think he's the reason for Mom's death…"
A heavy silence blanketed the room for a few moments. Then he spoke, his voice tinged with sorrow, "I want to. I want to love him, but you must comprehend—I am a pillar supporting the very continent we inhabit, an extension of the world it stems from—"
She interrupted, "First, before anything, there's family."
This time, the silence was deafening, lingering for several minutes. After a moment.
He sighed,"Let's set that aside for now; we can discuss it another time."
Not wanting to impose further or leave his office in awkwardness, she simply nodded.
"What's the situation in the northern forest?" she inquired, relieved to shift the conversation.
"It's not too grave at the moment," he replied. "The gifted stationed at the boundaries can still maintain control, but if this trend continues, the situation could become critical, and we'll need to allocate more gifted individuals and resources."
"What if you send me? I could handle the problem easily," she proposed, confidence shining in her eyes.
He regarded her steadfast expression before responding, "No, I need you here. Moreover," his words halted as her brow furrowed thoughtfully, and she gasped in realization. "You think something—or someone—is orchestrating this," she uttered softly.
He offered a slight smile. "And if we take an unconventional approach..." They spoke in unison,
""they will push with Optimus Force and attempt to eliminate it.""
"But we would still proceed, wouldn't we?" she asked.
"Yes, let them believe we won't resort to unconventional methods or that we're hesitating," he replied. "And when they reveal their intentions, I'll be there to dismantle them."
"But are you certain you can handle it? There are still formidable mana beasts lurking in the inner zones that could cause chaos if they reach the boundaries."
His smile broadened. "Nothing on this continent can stop me with brute force."
She looked at her father, a grin forming on her lips as she shook her head. 'Thank goodness El didn't inherit this trait,' she thought, realizing she'd finally discovered the source of her own prideful demeanor.
---+---
El sat upright in bed, having dozed off for a while. He felt a tad weary of sleeping. Checking his phone, he noticed the time was 12:07 p.m. There was still time before his training session with his sister. Just as he pondered what to do in the meantime, a call came in from Noah. He answered, greeted by an excited, hurried voice.
"Hey El, guess what!"
'it wouldn't pass a game release'
Without waiting for an answer, the voice erupted, "The 2026 PR: Death Horror Game has just been released!! Ahhh!"
'I knew it tsk'. "Wow, that's fantastic"
"Why do I sense a lack of enthusiasm in your voice?"
El redirected the conversation. "I thought the game wasn't supposed to come out for another year or so."
A brief cough followed. "Well, they decided to release it early…"
"Noah."
"Okay,only for me, but seriously—aren't you happy for me?"
"What did you do?" El interrogated.
The voice turned eerily calm. "I paid some money and did a few favors for them."
El's lips twitched. "How much?"
"...."
"Noah!"
"Okay, just a little over 1.2 million gold[1] ."
"What? How? Why? What is wrong with you?"
"Oh, don't yell at me! I just had to play it! What if I die next year? What if the world ends and I don't make it to the release date? I just couldn't take the chances!"
"Where did you get that money?"
"What do you mean?"
"I asked where you got the money, Noah."
"....From some of my investments."
"What percent?"
"It was only 6%, it's not a lot, okay?"
"That's... about 2.5 million gold! Noah, what happened to the rest?"
The voice grew quieter. "I did mention I had to do a few favors for them."
El sighed. Seizing the moment to shift the topic, Noah said, "So, how are you preparing to return to the academy in three weeks?"
El recognized Noah's attempt to change the subject but chose not to call him out on it. "Nothing much, but since I'm now ranked in the top 10, I can bring a few things I couldn't take last time."
"Yeah, me too. I can bring my console with me!,it gonna be awesome."
They talked for some few minutes when suddenly.
"So, is anything happening right now?"Noah asked.
El suddenly remembered. "Oh crap, I have a training match with Elie! I'll call you back later."
The voice chuckled just before the call ended. "Haha, she's going to be furious for you being late! I should get back to my game, bye! Tell her I said hi!"
----
El dashed out of the room, racing toward the training hall. The clock now read 1:08 p.m. He realized he was already late. As he walked through the corridors, he encountered a maid making her way toward him. Recognizing her as the one who had come to his room earlier to remind him about breakfast, he noted her middle-aged, mature demeanor. She wore a maid outfit that was distinct from the standard attire—she was Meralyn, the head maid.
"Young lord, the young miss awaits your arrival."
"Damn, she's really going to let me have it, isn't she?" El thought. Elie wasn't petty—far from it—but her mood could shift unpredictably. One moment she could be serious, the next playful, making it necessary to prepare for the worst.
--------
[1] gold is the currency used by all three continents, in this world,just think of it as the same dollar e.g 1 gold is same sense as 1 dollar,so 1.2 million gold is 1.2 million dollars