Before we could talk further, the air shifted lightly, and a familiar presence revealed itself to me. But the world didn’t freeze. The sound didn’t cease.

She appeared to everyone this time, not just me, walking through what looked like an invisible door, its edges shimmering for half a second before dissolving. A haze of faint, crystal-like light trailed behind her, fracturing in place like glass.

She paused. Looked side to side. Our stares met her like spotlights.

“Oh... I thought...” She furrowed her brow, voice airy but uncertain. “One second.”

She waved her hand, and for the briefest moment, the world obeyed.

Then, well, it all resumed just as before. Goldmanes stinking up the air. Bristle running around. The moment gone.

“I think it didn't work,” I offered.

She frowned, seeming more irritated than confused. “I can tell Peter!”

Thump.

A massive frame dropped to his knees. “Impossible,” Griffith mumbled. “You are—”

“A Traveler,” she cut in before he could finish.

But reverence couldn’t shut down the man of great knowledge. “The Guardian.”

She blinked.

I glanced around, trying to gauge if anyone else understood that reference, but apparently not. Everyone wore the same look of confusion... except Miss Star, who, while not kneeling, but stood in a wide-eyed daze. At the Guardian.

“I’m sorry, what? No one’s ever called me that. You know what? Never mind.” She turned her attention to me. “One: This is your fault. Two: Come with me.”

Everyone’s focus shifted to me like they'd been waiting for a reason.

“My fault? What’d I do?”

Maybe the lizards were her's? Luna offered.

What? My pulse jumped. Could that be true?

But my wondering didn’t last long. The Traveler answered sharply, “Showing you your home. Now I can’t—” She waved her arms in frustration, each pass causing another flicker-freeze of time. “THAT!”

I had no idea how her decision, based on gratitude, was somehow my fault. But arguing with someone who could usually freeze reality didn’t seem like the smart move.

“Sooo… what do you need me for?”

Her request really threw me off. Not long ago, she’d seemed more than happy to ignore me, or maybe just uncomfortably watch me from wherever. And, considering that she saw the vision in the Pearl Dragon Vein too... the second seemed more likely.

She exhaled sharply. “I need someone young from my territory. You qualify.”

I glanced at Elric, face heating with ideas I knew were impossible.

Thea tugged my sleeve. “Who is she?” she whispered.

Before I could answer, the Traveler spoke again, showing our Phantom Whisper useless. “I just said. A Traveler.”

“Do I have to go?” I asked.

She scrunched her nose, visibly annoyed. “No.”

“Can I?!” Trevor blurted, way too excited.

“No. Obviously not,” she shut him down flatly. No remorse.

“I think,” Elric stepped in smoothly, “we’d be a little more comfortable letting Peter go with a total stranger if we actually knew who you were.”

A whisper slipped from Sia’s mother. “We couldn’t stop her anyway.”

The Traveler sighed. “I’m not here to kidnap anyone. But unfortunately, everyone else is too old.” She pointed at Elric. “You were second on the list. Then some girl from another place. But none of you are as good as that older brother of yours. He’s aged out. Peter’s the closest option left.”

Even Griffith turned to Drake with clear pride. Probably a very rare occurrence. I swear, the man nearly teared up.

Drake just shrugged. “Of course I’m great. But Miss I don’t remember—”

“You people have to be the worst. Not him!” the ethereal woman snapped, immediately stomping on his moment.

Thea clung to my arm more tightly now, her voice thick with worry. “Please. If we can go too, then it’s fine. Just, don’t take him away.”

The woman sighed, glancing between us. “Serith. That's my name. Do. Not. Tell. Anyone,” she warned.

Trying to be polite, or maybe it was just habit from her upbringing, Vel gave a small nod, stepping forward. “I’m Velea. That’s my sister, Thea.”

Serith stepped closer, ignoring everything else around us. “I know. It’s nice to meet you, Vel.”

“You sound a lot more serious than… well, than any other time I’ve heard you speak.” Usually she sounded like someone my age. Carefree and light. But now there was frustration, even urgency.

“The other—let’s say, Guardians—decided to ruin my day and spring this on me. One of them even set restrictions, forcing me to rush and find someone new,” she explained, her voice tinged with desperation.

“Anyway. Uhh. I don’t know, I guess—” She glanced back at Elric. “You and the other boy can come with Peter. No one else.”

Thea let out a relieved breath. “Thank you.”

“But,” Serith continued, her tone sharpening again, “you are not to cause problems, speak out of turn to others of my status… Actually, just don’t speak. It can be hard to gauge who's who.”

“Do they all look as pretty as you?” Vel asked.

Serith smiled, deciding instantly. “You’re my favorite now.”

Trevor, taking the opportunity and jumped in to further humiliate himself. “I also think you’re pretty!”

She turned and gave him a brilliant smile, one that may have stopped his heart for a beat. “Unlike you, she had no motives in saying it.”

“My motives are pure,” Trevor insisted.

Say what you will about Trevor. He wasn’t stupid enough not to realize Serith was something extremely powerful. We’d all seen her arrival, but still, he took his shot. Failed miserably, but I respected him a little more for trying. And also thought he was very dumb.

“Wait!” Griffith burst forward, not kneeling anymore, but head bowed. “Please, can you share any knowledge? Anything!”

“Um. Uhhh.” She seemed briefly thrown by the scholar’s reverence. “Oh! There’s a bird in the place you call Voxter that can fall asleep while flying. But only when it’s heading south to your country.”

I didn’t think that was what Griffith had in mind, but judging by his reaction, I was completely wrong.

“T—thank you. I will remember this for all my life.”

“Sure!” she replied brightly, slipping back into the giddiness I’d seen before. Maybe the problem felt solved now. “Now let’s go.”

She placed her hand on my shoulder, and a faint burning sensation spread through it. “You’re my new champion now. Ready?”

I didn’t even get the chance to answer.

At first, the process was slow, gradually twisting into that horrible, familiar sensation I’d grown to hate.

We didn’t walk through any portal or doorway, but instead my vision was simply swallowed by a bright white hue that devoured everything around me.

Then came the movement. Up and down. Diagonals. Probably twisting and turning. I think I spun a few times too, though I’d felt the same with gates, so it could've ben my imagination.

Did she invent them? Or the idea for gates? Should I refuse to help her now?

Finally, it stopped.

Sound returned. Thea’s hand gently rubbed my back, grounding me. I could tell Elric’s touch apart now. His hands were softer. No way to confuse them anymore.

I still didn’t get up, probably looking like a half-dead man, but the bustle around us hit me hard.

And of course, the mockery followed.

“Seritha, please tell me you didn’t pick that dead fish as your champion?” The voice dripped with ridicule. “I know the new rules made it… difficult for you, but still.”

Rrr. That familiar sound I've heard from Thea reached my ears. But this time coming from our Guardian.

A growl.

“What right do you have to say anything? Haven’t you already been losing for generations?” Seritha snapped back.

A low chuckle followed, but it was inviting, not offended. “Of course, you’re right. But only because the rules were always skewed in your favor.”

This place is massive… and full of even more rude people, Luna informed.

“I know,” I muttered. “Morons like this just enjoy stirring up trouble.”

I’ll handle it again. Don’t worry, she comforted me as gasps of shock rippled through the room.

Then, my body moved. My voice followed, and I stood. But it wasn't me moving my body.

Luna?! Please wait! I begged, trying to will my Beast Force into action, but nothing moved. I panicked.

Wyrem, get her to stop! I can’t control myself!

But instead of helping, Wyrem only sighed with what could only be described as pride. I told her Spiritual Refinement was the way to go. Don’t tell her, but honestly, I had no idea. Still, her abilities seem to be… stronger than I expected.

*Please—*I started again, but Luna spoke through me before I could finish.

“Please tell me you weren’t just sitting here waiting for a chance to annoy our mighty, beautiful guardian?” Luna took a breath, then continued, “Seriously. God can’t be this free, right? Don’t you have something better to do? Are you all-powerful yet? Can you even challenge The Great Ancestor?”

Murmurs echoed through the vast chasm surrounding us, the space divided into countless compartmented rooms, each sectioned off by opaque walls, and lit by neon-colored energies lining the edges of each.

Thea stood nearby on the see-through, glass-like floor showing countless celestial bodies below, stunned. But even in her shock, I could tell she was fighting the urge to smirk. She probably already knew it wasn't me.

“Such a low-life dares to—”

“Of course I do. What are you going to do about it?” Luna stepped noticeably behind Seritha, using her as a shield. “I bet my boss can beat you up!”

Seritha finally spoke again, but not to scold. “Well? What are you going to do?”

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