Several weeks had passed since the shocking incident. The event, which appeared to be a massive disaster, had only occurred in the Republic of Ascaria, where the creatures of the Chaos Realm had destroyed the stakes they had placed to suppress the wave of magic.
Other countries had not experienced anything similar and were reluctant to approach Ascaria, keeping their distance. They did not want to get close, whether to seize an opportunity for invasion or to offer assistance.
This reluctance stemmed from their lack of knowledge about the true nature of the threat in Ascaria. Following the riots that had caused many serious problems, countries worldwide were still busy dealing with their stability issues. They understood that what had happened in Ascaria was somehow related to the anomalies occurring in their nations. Instead of lending a helping hand, they chose to observe from a distance, contemplating whether they could benefit from Ascaria's turmoil.
These nations were unaware of why suddenly all these events had ceased abruptly. Satellites confirmed the presence of a black cloud over the skies of Ascan City, the capital of the Republic of Ascaria. However, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the black cloud vanished into thin air. Satellites were unable to capture images of Ascan City due to severe signal interference, leaving them in the dark about the details of what had truly transpired.
General Lennard, as it turned out, was among the hundreds of people who became living shields for Ozynk and were transferred to the pocket dimension owned by Aerchon. Upon their return to this world, General Lennard and his companions appeared utterly bewildered, unaware of what had happened to them.
The General immediately took action, resuming his role as a military leader. He promptly sought information from Adrien, Billy, Conrad, and Thomas to understand the true nature of the situation. Thomas had hidden his camcorder, which had recorded nearly all of these events. He believed that it needed to remain a secret for the time being and couldn't be shown to anyone without the consent of those involved, fearing it could endanger his life.
There was not much time for the four of them to rest. They couldn't even return home to their families at that moment because there were numerous matters to attend to. It was only after three days that they could finally go back to their respective homes.
~~~
Unlike his two friends, Erend didn't feel tired at all in his body, even after enduring days without rest. The stamina of a Dragonborn was indeed extraordinary, and over time, Erend became increasingly convinced that he was no longer as human, as he used to be.
Erend stood on the balcony of his room, gazing towards the bright night sky. The events had occurred several weeks ago, but their aftermath still lingered heavily for the citizens of the Republic of Ascaria, especially those residing in Ascan City.
Even now, ambulances and military vehicles continue to pass by, dealing with numerous matters. However, the clear sky that Erend beheld appeared strikingly contrasting to all the mess.
Erend's thoughts drifted back to the Chaos Realm. That horrible place was the dwelling of many even more horrible creatures. They had been a threat before they were all eradicated. However, Erend knew that he couldn't possibly destroy them all. That Realm was where all those strange creatures resided, and they were born from the negative emotions of beings throughout the multiverse. There was nothing he could do to eliminate all those negative emotions. What he could do was prevent anything from escaping from there. And that was Eccar's job. He had said that it was what he had to do for an unspecified amount of time because that was what he wanted to do after the death of his family. However, Erend knew that Eccar couldn't do it all alone because there were simply too many of them. The three creatures that had managed to escape and wreak havoc in this world were evidence of that.
Erend sighed. There were already plenty of things he had to do, but now he found there was something else he had to do.
Erend chuckled, considering what had befallen him somewhat amusing. "Maybe I'll be of great help if I meet another Dragonborn."
He had already met Eccar, the Earth Dragon, by chance. That meant there were other Dragonborns he might encounter in the future. Erend hoped he could meet them sooner given what was to come.
"The Great Calamity..."
Erend decided to dismiss that thought for now and entered his room. He dropped himself onto his bed and began to close his eyes. Despite not feeling tired, Erend attempted to sleep, as doing so would allow him a momentary escape from those problems.
~~~
A month passed by just like that. Stability in the Republic of Ascaria began to return to its former state, although there were still traces of damage and destruction in various places.
Finally, some neighboring countries began to take action to assist Ascaria with its issues. Financial aid, volunteers, and military support were deployed to help this nation. However, they also came with another intention: to gather as much information as possible about what had happened during those events.
Since President Julius was still unconscious, General Lennard, the vice president, and several ministers had to answer their questions. In the end, the responses provided by the General and the ministers were ambiguous because they, too, couldn't comprehend what had occurred. What was clear to all was that they agreed it was something of a supernatural nature. They couldn't deny it any longer.
"Do you have some kind of documentation about the events, General?" a representative from the country of Zestria asked.
General Lennard shook his head wearily. "No. Unfortunately, no," he replied.
The representative from Zestria turned to delegates from other countries. They exchanged glances indicating they felt the same way. They didn't trust the General's answer.
Of course, General Lennard was aware of their suspicious looks. He said, "You're free to think whatever you want, but I'm telling the truth."
"Uhh, no, General. I'm sorry. We're not implying you're lying, but... Well, this issue is something new, and we want to gather as much information as possible," the Zestrian representative said with a guilty expression.
General Lennard sighed. He was already quite tired of dealing with the problems he had to manage, and now he had to contend with them. General Lennard felt like he wanted to snap. However, he couldn't do that because he still needed their assistance.
"I understand. I'm sorry. These past few days have been very exhausting for me," General Lennard said.
~~~
Meanwhile, in his new laboratory, Thomas was alone, staring at his computer screen. His eyes, usually perpetually tired, were now intensely focused. His forehead furrowed in confusion as he observed something perplexing.
Not long after, Thomas shook his head, accompanied by a long sigh. 'I never imagined I'd actually see something like this.'
Now, the magic that he had only seen in a fantasy world had come to life, and Thomas could witness it firsthand. He had been experimenting with Magic for months, but he couldn't help but feel fascinated each time he saw it.
What was even more surprising was when he learned that there were others who could use magic besides Conrad. They claimed that their magical abilities had awakened within them because of these recent events, and Thomas knew that to be true.
However, the two soldiers seemed to be able to use Magic as if they had been highly trained in it for a long time. Their fighting style indicated this. This meant that the magic within them had awakened before these events, and they might have been practicing with the elves.
'They are very suspicious.' Thomas thought.
Somehow, Thomas was reminded of the attack on the secretive facility located in a remote location, a place that should have been unknown to anyone.
'Except... people within the military.'
Thomas turned his gaze back to his computer screen. Now, he was looking at a still image from a video that was paused. In the image, Adrien and Billy were engaged in combat, surrounded by silver light in various parts of their bodies.
As a scientist, it was only right for him to consider all possibilities. Because the involvement of Adrien, Billy, and Erend in these events did not appear to be mere coincidence.
While Thomas was staring at the computer screen, in another part of the room, specifically in his own bedroom, Conrad was sitting and staring at an empty wall. He had tried multiple times since waking up this morning to contact Eliriel, but he hadn't succeeded yet.
Conrad had previously been so desperate because he thought he could no longer contact Eliriel. However, now that his magic had returned, he should be able to reach her again. Yet, here he was, sitting silently in his room, unable to do anything.
"What is going on? Why can't I contact her even though my magic has returned?"
~~~
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