— 1 Emi 418 HC (Horizon Calendar)
Infori and Nathan fell from the sky, the tornado that had dragged them away. However, the downside was that gravity was causing them to freefall downwards.
"WAAAAAAAAA!!!" Infori and Nathan screamed.
They broke through the clouds in the sky, finally gradually seeing the ground clearly. This made them panic, as they knew they might die.
"Hey! Don't you have any magic to save our lives?!" Nathan exclaimed, his voice almost drowned out by the roar of the wind.
"Unfortunately…" Infori replied, his hair and robes fluttering wildly, his eyes briefly glancing down—the dark expanse that was drawing ever closer. Their bodies continued to freefall, with no safety net, no magic circle lit, no sign of a miracle coming to their rescue. "...NO!"
The word broke apart with a stronger gust of wind, making Nathan's stomach feel as if it were being ripped out of his body.
But at the same time—
WHOOSHH!
A dagger shot at incredible speed toward Infori—it resembled a black dagger with asymmetrical green patterns on each side, and a kind of energy snaking along the blade's edge to the top of the hilt symmetrically followed the blade.
Lilith and Iris, who were in the plaza, sensed a familiar aura. "...?! Wait, this is...?!" Lilith said, her words only partially slurred due to her shock.
Iris then looked at Lilith, who was also confused. "Lilith, isn't this..."
"This... Could it be...!" Lilith exclaimed, then looked up to see a dagger shooting toward the two people in freefall. "It's Mr. Infori!"
On the other hand, Infori had almost completely resigned himself to his current situation. He didn't want to die here, but unfortunately, he hadn't even considered having a savior.
Infori asked himself. (Is this... The end...? A foolish death from freefalling from the sky...?) Then he closed his eyes.
The dagger, or—the Blades of Mirage, quickly attached themselves to Infori's back. The dagger suddenly glowed, even emitting an aura, and a vast energy flowed freely.
WOOSHHH
The energy even seemed to create large wings made of aura and artifact energy that continuously flowed from all parts of the dagger.
Nathan, realizing this, was shocked, as was Infori, who felt the same.
The dagger seemed to be connected to the world tree—Everness.
In Infori's eyes, it was brief, but very quick.
He saw it for himself (again).
The giant sacred tree, the axis of the cosmos in Orleans, guarded the boundaries and connected the dimensions between the upper and lower worlds. Often referred to as the "Tree of Life," Everness supported all life and the two worlds: the Overworld and the Underworld.
This time, Infori had an additional vision—a glimpse of the lush Overworld, filled with lush green grass, teeming with life.
But not only that, but the Underworld—he also saw it, a dark world filled with monsters like Morak, stronger and larger than himself, with a red-gray sky and black clouds watching.
"What—?!"
The aura from the gauntlet created a connection between this rare artifact and the world tree, with Infori's soul and information acting as the intermediary.
(Again... The same vision...!)
In an instant, his soul seemed to tremble. Although it wasn't directly visible, Infori felt it. It wasn't pain, but the warmth of life.
He had felt this same thing many times before, and it still calmed him.
A familiar word appeared in his mind.
"BELIEVER"
Until Infori regained consciousness.
"...?!"
Infori realized that the dagger had helped him, and he used it to descend safely.
Below, Flynn, watching, was stunned and speechless after seeing with his own eyes the wings created from purple energy mixed with green.
"..."
Lilith and Iris, who were also watching, were shocked to see Infori now possessing wings and flying without the effects of gravity.
Up in the sky, Nathan, in freefall, didn't think about how he would survive, but could only pray for rescue—just as Infori had.
Without thinking, with a single flap of his wings, Infori's body shot upwards and then quickly shot back down to save Nathan.
"Hang in there, buddy!"
Infori was now like a flash of light, carrying Nathan down at supersonic speed, soundlessly.
Then, he headed downward, and upon touching the Storm of Road—his light body returned to its original state, and Nathan collapsed, lying limp in panic and shock.
"..."
Infori lost his balance, his right foot hitting the ground from the excessive weight.
"..."
The wings behind his back disappeared, and the Blades of Mirage that were attached to them fell to the ground. Infori's breath hitched, and he tried to calm himself and regain his breath.
"Haah... Haah... Haaaa... Hah.."
Infori then got up and stared at the Blades of Mirage lying on the ground. Deep in his heart, he desperately wanted to hold the dagger, but he knew it would fly back if he held it.
"Thank you for your help," Infori said to the dagger, and now he desperately wanted to hold it. "I really wanted to hold you, but... I shouldn't have done the same thing again."