The wind had died down on Europe. The moss still glowed with the last embers of the setting sun, and the air carried that distinct metallic scent.
Angel, Rhea, Yabal, and Leopold remained motionless, still wrapped in that strange lucidity that erases fear and sharpens instinct. Their calm was somewhat inhuman; it was as if their souls were floating slightly above their bodies.
Then, a sound slipped between the branches.
Yabal was the first to open his eyes, pupils contracted in alert.
Leopold followed, instinctively placing a hand on the ground, reading the vibrations like a living seismograph.
Rhea inhaled slowly, Garma hovering over her shoulder like a suspended white flame.
Angel… remained perfectly still. His breath followed the rhythm of the forest.
The noise transformed into a metallic purr, then into a deep, rhythmic beating, almost military in nature.
"Looks like we have visitors..." Brest grumbled, looking toward the east. His face had hardened.
The shadow approached, and from among the trees emerged a gigantic man, clad in a white coat embroidered with gold threads. His skin was pale as ice, his hair a fluorescent white, and his pupils were a deep, almost enchanting black.
Behind him, two other men advanced, armed with spears thin as needles and wearing white fabrics knotted around their shoulders—the sign of local authority.
The man stopped a few meters from the four students and observed them for a long time.
Then his voice, deep and grave, vibrated through the air.
"Good evening to you all. I am Emrite, a member of the Europe Army... We are here to arrest one of you: the boy with the long blond hair."
Yabal immediately became a wire ready to snap.
Rhea took a discreet step toward Angel, placing herself slightly in front of him.
Brest raised an eyebrow, ready to intervene if necessary.
Angel raised a calm hand.
"I am Angel. May I know why you are trying to arrest me?"
Emrite bowed slightly, like a man who does not wish to fight but has no choice.
"We have no explanation to give. By order of the Royal Court of Europe... you are under arrest."
A heavy silence fell.
Yabal exploded first.
"You just show up like this and think he's going to go with you?!"
Emrite didn't flinch, but his two guards tightened their grip on their spears.
"Scouts reported your presence in the Ryu Forest. The description matches." His voice was as neutral as the surface of a frozen lake.
"Matches?" Rhea hissed, her tone icy.
The giant fixed his gaze on Angel.
"I am not authorized to divulge the reason. The Royal Court merely wishes to question him. Nothing more."
Yabal took a step forward. His aura pulsed around him, mixing with the fox's sacred violet aura, creating a crushing atmosphere.
"You're kidding us! You barge in with your metal toys, grab the first person you recognize, and refuse to explain why?!"
Emrite replied dryly:
"Orders are orders. I am not here to argue. I am here to take your friend! Do not force me to use force."
Brest tapped his cane on the ground.
"Calm down..."
His tone made the air vibrate like a silent shockwave.
Angel then stepped forward, as if carried by a gentle breeze.
"It will be alright, my friends," he said simply.
Yabal turned to him, eyes burning with refusal.
"Angel, you're not... you're not going to follow them just like that!"
Angel placed a hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Do not worry, I will return. I promise you."
A faint smile crossed his lips.
The giant nodded.
"Thank you for cooperating."
The guards encircled Angel.
Rhea wanted to protest, but Angel's gentle gaze stopped her. Leopold grit his teeth, helpless.
And Angel was taken away.
***
The journey was silent. Angel was surrounded by men white as statues, draped in immaculate fabrics, their faces as neutral as a blank page.
Crossing the first arches of the kingdom, Angel witnessed the strangeness of this world. Houses shaped like teardrops, entirely white, as if sculpted from liquid crystal. The inhabitants walked slowly, almost floating.
Finally, the castle appeared.
It resembled a gigantic stalagmite made of white glass, polished by millennia. Luminous filaments circulated within the walls, like veins of light.
Emrite pushed open a heavy door, and the sound resonated throughout the entire structure.
They led Angel down a spiral staircase. The light became colder and the air denser as they descended deep into an ancient underground level.
They arrived in a round, slightly damp chamber, lit by torches with white flames. In the center sat an old man with a gigantic beard, white as snow, reaching down to his knees. His eyes, however, were an icy blue, so clear they seemed transparent.
But behind him stretched a colossally detailed mural.
Angel stood frozen. The fresco was immense.
It seemed divided into two parts. The left side depicted hundreds of soldiers, dressed in the style of Europe's royal guards, advancing with weapons raised toward a floating silhouette. This silhouette, on the far left facing the soldiers, wore symbols of the four elements around its waist: Fire, Water, Wind, Earth.
On the right side of the mural, a gigantic meteorite split through space, poised to crash into what looked like a planet.
Lower down, in the center, a young girl knelt in prayer, facing those viewing the mural. To her left, dark shadows, drawn like a tide of ink, from which dozens of arms emerged reaching toward another group of soldiers who seemed to be fighting these shadows.
To her right, a radiant sun, in the center of which burned a white flame. This sun cast several rays down onto a book resting on a pedestal.
On the book, a single word was inscribed: TIME.
Along the periphery of the mural, inscriptions in an ancient, indecipherable language ran along the walls.
The old man finally spoke.
"This mural was painted by our ancient princess, MARIA..."
He paused solemnly.
"According to our historians, it depicts the event that changed our civilization... and explains why Europe is a 'closed' celestial body. Invisible from space. Invisible even from Saturn."
The soldiers stood around Angel, nervous without wanting to show it.
Then, one of them brought out a package wrapped in immaculate white cloth and placed it on a small pillar. The old man delicately removed the cloth.
It was a book. An ancient book whose edges were rimmed with blue crystals pulsing like a sleeping heart.
The atmosphere shifted around the object.
"This book is the work of Maria herself. For centuries, we have only been able to decipher a single phrase. The only one that never fades."
The old man brushed the crystal, and a white glow spread across the cover.
"The inscription read: *'Who is this young boy with immense power?'*"
Angel didn't understand everything that was happening, nor what the royal guards were getting at. He stepped a little closer to the book and set his eyes on the cover word.
The word TIME seemed to glow faintly.
Suddenly, a sharp pain pierced his skull.
He screamed.
A raw, uncontrollable scream that stunned the royal guards.
He fell to his knees, clutching his head. The soldiers recoiled in panic, while the old man took a step back.
Angel screamed again.
Then his body exploded with white light.
The entire room became white, like the void.
And the world tipped over...
...
In the temple, Rhea, Yabal, and Leopold had bowed to Brest to thank him. Thanks to their training, they had managed to track Angel's aura since his departure; indeed, Angel had begun to emit his aura the precise moment the guards took him, like a beacon.
Brest, however, remained perfectly still. His eyes lit up.
"It is time for you to fly on your own wings..."
Yabal raised his head, fists clenched.
"Thank you, Master..." said Rhea.
"Save your friend!" Brest replied in a grave voice. "As an oracle, I have something to tell you. When you go to Saturn, Rhea, someone will be waiting for you west of the city. As I always say, time is wise and reveals all things... Yabal, as for you, trust your heart, for it is your greatest ally... Leopold, your destiny will depend on your emotions. Sometimes, it is better to accept reality and move on."
Leopold, exhilarated, whispered:
"The Sacred Flame... Is it true that it can heal what no medicine can?"
Brest turned to him. A rare smile cracked his face.
"The Phoenix can create one... only one... every thousand years."
They turned toward Garma.
The sacred fox replied: "Indeed. I have two left. I hope it will be useful to you."
Leopold burst into nervous laughter, tears in his eyes.
"Mom... Mom is going to live..."
Rhea placed a reassuring hand on his arm.
Brest tapped his cane on the ground.
Bolt, Leopold's gigantic lightning dragon, burst from the sky above the temple, his scales sparkling like a nascent storm.
The three students climbed onto his back.
"To Angel!" shouted Leopold.
Bolt let out a roar that shook the pillars of the temple, then launched himself into the sky, cleaving through the clouds toward the capital, EuropeUnys.