In the Sun Demon Palace, this small "pocket realm" according to the very words of the Shadow Branch Sect...
There was a small group of islands where Ducanor's trial had taken place. It was actually much larger than the sect had claimed.
The small region Ducanor had explored was called the Scorched Earth, or the Ash Domain.
A place abandoned by the various intelligent species of this realm, it was practically a site where only groups of scavengers and the lowest scum among the True Spirit race roamed.
Although they called themselves by other names: they called themselves Aksumites. Or, translated from their language, "Children of the Garden."
The Aksumites lived on the only continent in this realm, a continent without a specific name or distinction.
In this place, the history of mortal races—like in the Mortal Realm—did not exist; there were no mortals here.
But, unlike the True Spirits of the Mortal Realm, the Aksumites possessed longevity.
In this place, Tahurasio Matatyr had become a warlord, or as he preferred to be called: the Corsair King.
He was a lean-looking man of the Aure race, with crimson skin and golden hair, dressed in a black and purple tunic, covered in jewels as well as a silver crown.
That was the glorious presence of the Corsair King...
"Who says he died?" the king asked lazily, opening his eyes from his golden throne.
Around him were several servants and slaves tending to him, scantily clad or outright naked, as they served and entertained their king.
Frowning, Zhao Ren felt insulted, but even so, he didn't dare disrespect Tahurasio; he hadn't dominated the waters of the Scorched Lands for decades out of sheer arrogance alone.
His power and his army in themselves were terrifying.
"My older brother, Zhao Tang, Your Majesty," Zhao Ren said, bowing deeply, trying to hide the hatred and sadness in his heart upon learning of his death.
His beloved older brother was dead. Dead. Dead. Dead.
Unconsciously, the needle he always hid in his ring buried itself deep into his flesh, waking him from that state of rage and madness.
"Ah, the astrologer. A pity. Give my condolences to the family," the corsair said with a wicked smile.
Zhao Ren's expression didn't change as blood dripped from the tip of his finger.
"Tsk, how no fun you are, my dear advisor," Tahurasio replied as he rose from his throne, brushing off the half-naked women.
"I apologize, my lord," he replied indifferently. "I wasn't too fond of my brother, but he was a valuable asset to you. After all, you sent him to capture the fragment."
Zhao Ren's words seemed to awaken Tahurasio's emotions somewhat. He frowned, showing a bit of annoyance for the first time.
"So that was what was bothering me. Right, right, I had completely forgotten about that little bitch," the Aure murmured in annoyance as he walked to one end of the room, grabbed a jug of wine, and drank from it carelessly.
"It seems they were attacked by some Guards," Zhao Ren added insidiously.
"The sect dares to meddle in my territory," the Corsair King growled with anger for the first time, involuntarily making the bodies of the women present tremble. They tried to hide in the corners of the room, well aware of the extent of his wrath.
"I suspect they intend to interfere with your ambitions, Your Majesty," Zhao Ren murmured in a polite and accommodating tone.
"My ambitions..." the corsair murmured with a new smile, but this smile was no longer cheerful; it was bloodthirsty. "This realm will be mine, it will no longer be a simple servant of the Hegemony. I will be the new Hegemon of this realm!"
And with burning eyes as his face changed, his appearance suddenly deformed, taking on a demonic look: his snout elongated while teeth protruded from his mouth, and his skin was covered in crimson fur matching his complexion, while a metallic gold mane covered his head.
The creature Zhao Ren had in front of him was no longer a mortal, but a demon. A true demon.
...
The training had lasted a whole week, during which he had done nothing but obsess over essentially exercising as well as meditating, plus, of course, forcing Voltia to train with him for hours...
He had practically slept no more than twenty hours the entire week, but despite that, his body remained full of energy, as if his will were enough to force his body to gather energy from the deepest corners of his being.
And now in the morning, as the early dawn chill permeated the air, Ducanor left his room and walked down the sect's hallways.
"Damn it, why did you get up so early again, Ducanor?" Voltia said with an expression full of exhaustion and weariness, floating behind him and dragging her feet.
"Hurry up," he reprimanded, indifferent to her fatigue. "Master Alana summoned us to the training courtyard; it's probably to notify us of our new departure to the palace."
As he advanced through the sect's corridors, Voltia kept complaining continuously the entire way, almost unwinding.
"You're a monster... forcing an innocent girl to stay awake all night and then dragging her out of bed into the darkness..." were Voltia's scandalous words.
They made the corner of the expressionless Ducanor's only eye twitch with anger, but he still didn't refute her, despite the strange looks from the few people walking down the sect's hallway.
And with no other option to appease her, he had to bribe her.
"I'll buy you snacks if you shut up," Ducanor replied.
"Snacks?" As if those words were a mysterious spell, she immediately floated to his side, while the mysterious figure of a crow appeared out of nowhere and sat on her head.
"Huh, where did you come from, Ellen? Didn't you fall asleep?" Voltia said curiously as she looked at the strange bird.
"Crow, crow," Ellen exclaimed in a high-pitched tone.
"Huh, seriously... you're right, I had forgotten," Voltia replied in surprise, leaving Ducanor dumbfounded.
"Huh, what thing?" Ducanor asked, confused.
"Let's negotiate, Ducanor," Voltia said as she crossed her arms arrogantly.
Frowning and looking in confusion at the damn bird that had suddenly moved into Voltia's arms...
"What do you want?" he said with a sigh, feeling his heart bleed at Voltia's absurd multitude of requests until he finally managed to appease her.
...
Finally arriving at the training courtyard, after buying Voltia new clothes, as well as a new cushion for Ellen.
They reached the meeting point, catching sight of Alana's figure, but she wasn't alone.
In front of her were two people besides Alana herself.
He recognized one of them, but the other...
"Ducanor, you finally arrived," Alana said with a kind smile, but he managed to detect guilt in her eyes. A great deal of guilt.
"Hello, Master," Ducanor said, trying to be a bit friendlier, though he didn't know where to begin.
"So you're the legendary Ducanor, nice to meet you." Suddenly, a young man with metallic orange hair and golden eyes appeared before him with a lively smile, moving from side to side as if sparring with his own shadow. "I assume you've heard of me."
"..." Ducanor remained silent.
"I am the great Lukan. Haven't you heard of me and my exploits? I am at the top of the lowest eighth percentile of the sect," he said proudly.
Dumbfounded, he couldn't help but grunt: "That's practically being a damn average Guard candidate."
"Of course not, I'm a genius. It's just that my weaknesses counteract my strengths, which is why my grades are low," Lukan quickly excused himself with a sigh.
And as if echoing Lukan's own enthusiasm, a second figure emerged, stumbling, bowed, and with a lively smile said:
"Nice to meet you, my name is Anjou and I am also a Guard candidate. Please take care of me," the unknown girl with snow-white hair mixed with coal-black strands said with a cheerful smile.
"My name is Voltia and this is Ellen." Echoing the duo's enthusiasm, Voltia joined the fun, leaving a silent Ducanor frowning and looking doubtfully at Alana.
"Who are they, Master?"
To which she smiled. A sincere smile, the first time since they had both gone to the Sun Demon Palace.
"They are your new teammates, Ducanor. Welcome to Team Beta."