A few moments passed after the battle ended and still, No one spoke.
The clearing remained completely silent as dust drifted through the air and the last remnants of Dominic Velcrow disappeared into nothingness.
William stared blankly at the massive scar stretching across the forest.
His mind simply refused to process what he was seeing.
The corruption was gone.
The inter dimensional gate was gone.
The strange device beneath it was gone and an entire section of the Onyx Veil had ceased to exist.
All because one person had swung a sword.
"…"
For perhaps the first time in his life, William genuinely had no words.
Beside him, Ana wasn't doing much better.
The spear in her hand trembled slightly.
Not just from fear, From disbelief.
She had encountered quite a few things since the apocalypse. She fought monsters, Survived Incursions and seen Ascendants clash.
Yet everything she thought she knew about power had been shattered in the span of a few minutes.
Meanwhile Luka simply sat on the ground.
His eyes remained fixed on the colossal trench that stretched far beyond his vision.
"…"
"…"
"…"
Finally, he spoke. "What." Ana glanced at him. "What?"
Luka slowly pointed toward the destruction and spoke again, his tone dripping with disbelief. "What?!."
William nodded. "Reasonable question."
"Agreed" Ana said admittedly
The brown-haired adventurer rubbed both hands over his face. "No because seriously."
He pointed again. "How does that even happen?"
Ishmael honestly didn't know how to answer that.
Because he was wondering the same thing. The difference between him and Dominic had already felt enormous.
The difference between Dominic and Ezekiel felt impossible, as though they existed in entirely different worlds.
Nearby, Ezekiel appeared completely unconcerned with the existential crisis he had just inadvertently caused.
Both hands rested comfortably inside his pockets as he stared at the devastated landscape.
"Hm." His expression remained thoughtful. "I really did overdo it."
The faces of the three adventurers collectively twitched.
Overdid it?
Overdid it?
Before anyone could respond, a ripple appeared nearby causing the adventurers including Ishmael to tense up.
Shadows converged and a tall humanoid figure came into view.
The newcomer wore immaculate black attire complete with white gloves untouched by dust or ash. His slicked-back black hair remained perfectly neat despite the ruined battlefield around him.
Piercing yellow eyes swept across the clearing. The devastation, The trench, The missing forest.
The lingering traces of void energy.
And for the briefest moment Alistair Graves was impressed.
Extremely pleased.
Internally of course. Years of service of the Bane Family has taught him to only display emotions he wished to be seen.
But inwardly?
He was staring at the aftermath of a battle that would have made most Ascendants question their understanding of reality.
'Young Master Ezekiel truly takes after his father, such power so soon is unprecedented.'
His gaze shifted toward the white-haired young man standing casually at the center of the destruction.
'Actually…'
A tiny pause.
'Perhaps a little worse.'
The thought remained firmly internal.
Alistair stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"It is good to see you again, Young Master Ishmael."
Ishmael blinked.
"Old man Alistair?" Ishmael asked, his tone filled with doubt, who could blame him?, the old butler looked different.
The butler smiled warmly. "Indeed. Good to see you're still in one piece"
Meanwhile, the three adventurers froze.
Young Master?
Luka slowly turned his head, glancing back and forth between Ishmael and the Butler that looked anything but an old man.
"…Young Master?"
William's eyes widened.
Ana immediately connected several pieces together.
Overwhelming talent and combat effectiveness beguiling his youth.
The older brother with ridiculous power
The butler.
Everything suddenly made sense.
Well.
Not everything.
Nothing about this family made sense.
But enough of it did.
William looked toward Ishmael.
"…You're a noble."
Ishmael hesitated.
"A little."
"A little?"
Luka looked like he might cry.
"A LITTLE?"
Ana pinched the bridge of her nose.
"He's not just a noble."
Her gaze shifted toward Ezekiel.
Then toward Alistair.
Then back toward Ishmael.
"…You're from one of the Great Houses."
The silence that followed was answer enough.
Luka immediately flopped backward onto the ground.
"I knew it."
"No you didn't."
"I absolutely did."
"You tried to appraise him on the first day."
"Details."
Before the conversation could continue, Ezekiel suddenly raised one hand.
Blue light appeared.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Lunaris went silent.
Then—
A massive magic circle unfolded across the sky.
Everyone froze.
The formation stretched for kilometers.
Countless runes rotated within its structure while intricate geometric patterns spread outward like an enormous celestial formation.
The entire forest was illuminated in blue.
William stared upward.
"What…"
Ana's eyes widened.
The spell formation alone dwarfed anything she had ever seen.
Even Ishmael found himself staring.
Because this wasn't spirit energy.
Not entirely.
Lunaris spoke quietly inside his mind.
"That…"
His voice carried genuine surprise.
"That isn't spirit energy."
Ishmael narrowed his eyes.
"What is it?"
"Mana."
The answer stunned him.
Lunaris continued.
" Mana is another kind of energy. Like Demonic energy, like spirit energy. "
" It's best suited for casting spells."
Above them, the gigantic spell activated.
The world began moving backwards.
Literally.
Broken trees reformed.
Ash returned to branches.
Destroyed earth rose back into place.
The massive trench stretching through the forest slowly closed.
Countless fragments of matter reversed their movement.
The corruption disappeared.
The landscape rewound.
Time itself obeyed.
The process continued for nearly a minute.
When it finally ended, the forest looked untouched. As though the corruption, battle and eventual destruction had never happened.
William stared.
Luka stared.
Ana stared.
Even Ishmael needed several seconds to process what he had just witnessed.
Meanwhile Ezekiel lowered his hand.
"Hm."
Satisfied.
"Much better."
Alistair adjusted one of his gloves.
"A remarkable spell, Young Master."
Ezekiel shrugged.
"It was bothering me."
That answer somehow felt worse.
Nearby, William finally recovered enough to speak.
"I don't think I'll ever get used to this."
"That's normal," Luka replied.
"I don't think anybody gets used to this."
Ana simply nodded.
There wasn't really anything else to say.
After another moment, Ezekiel raised his hand again.
Spatial mana gathered before him.
Space ripped apart and a circular portal formed.
A city could be seen through the opening. Beyond it lay Heliodor.
The familiar city appeared peaceful compared to everything they had just experienced.
Ezekiel glanced toward the three adventurers.
"This goes back to the city."
The three immediately understood.
Their mission was over.
William stepped forward first.
He looked toward Ishmael.
Then offered a small smile.
"Guess this is goodbye."
Ishmael nodded.
Ana approached next.
"Thanks for saving our lives."
There was no hesitation in her voice.
No pride.
Just honesty.
Without Ishmael, they would have died days ago.
Without Ezekiel, they would have died today.
Luka scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Yeah… thanks."
A brief pause.
Then he grinned. "Next time, maybe tell people you're terrifying beforehand."
Ishmael laughed slightly. "I'll consider it."
The three adventurers stepped through the portal.
One after another.
Before disappearing, William turned back.
"Good luck."
Then they were gone.
The portal closed.
Silence returned once more as only three people remained.
Ishmael immediately turned toward his brother.
Questions flooded his mind.
Where had he been all this time?
How had he become this strong?
What was mana and how can he use it instead of Spirit Energy?, does he even have a bond?
What exactly was the Bane Family hiding?
And perhaps most importantly—
Why had he disappeared for years?
"Ezekiel."
The older brother already knew what was coming.
He raised a hand.
"No."
Ishmael frowned.
"No?"
"No."
"I have questions."
"And they'll still exist in an hour."
Ishmael opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
Unfortunately, that was a fair point.
Ezekiel's expression softened slightly.
"Questions can wait El."
His gaze shifted toward the horizon.
Toward home.
"We should go back first."
For the first time since arriving, Ishmael noticed something beneath Ezekiel's casual attitude.
Relief.
Subtle.
Barely visible.
But there.
As though seeing him alive had eased a burden.
Without another word, Ezekiel lifted his hand.
Purple spatial mana flowed outward.
A second portal formed, larger than the previous one and beyond it, Ishmael could see a familiar scenery.
The Bane Estate.
Home.
Ezekiel stepped toward it first.
Alistair followed.
Ishmael glanced back at the restored forest one final time.
Only a few hours ago, he had nearly died here.
Now it looked as though none of it had ever happened.
"…"
He shook his head.
Then stepped forward.
The portal closed behind them.
And the Onyx Veil became silent once more.