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"I have, but why would she take it away..."

"I believe this is a friend of yours, who has lost her memories. This is what I managed to understand from her visit to the city. However, you kept treating her as if she was the same person that you always knew."

"I did not blindly trust, never did," Arthur shook his head. "However, I had no reason to think she took the child. After all, she should know better than anyone that it would result in a war against Freda."

"Maybe that was their plan all along," shrugged Shinva. "It is not the first time that a superpower favors the big picture over a momentary sacrifice."

"It was not momentary," said Arthur with a shake of his head. Rae was now standing above the child, and she waved her hand to wrap it into her scarf. "Those lives will forever be lost, and the damage will never undo itself."

"You are one hell of a complicated person," sighed Shinva. "You don't feel guilt for the lives that were taken because of you."

"It was not because of me," he interrupted.

"Because of you or for you, it does not matter. What matters is that you were involved, whether you liked it or not. Are you trying to convince me that you couldn't have avoided this?"

"I..." muttered Arthur as memories resurfaced. Rae disappeared into the forest of crystals, going toward the destroyed city. As for Shinva, she waved her hand. "I did not kill her before..."

"You had no reason not to kill her,"

"I thought she would be useful alive more than dead. My arm would have lost all of its spirituality without her ability."

"You wanted her to live in fear, but you failed to install it properly. Their blood is on your hands, Seika of Living Beings. You killed them by not killing their killer."

Arthur was silent, and he simply closed his eyes. It did not occur to him that his actions of keeping Larza alive would result in so many deaths. This was not a novel where they could move past a tragedy and forget the consequences. Their lives cannot be marginalized.

"I wanted her to experience the same pain that I did," Arthur admitted. "I didn't want to kill her because it would have been the easy way out for her. Instead, I wanted to find her one day and make her go through the same pain she made me go through, the same humiliation."

"And did you?"

"I was here, building a city."

"I am not here to judge you, Seika. I just believe that we all need to take responsibility for our actions. We need to return to the present because I am at my limits."

The world crumbled around them, and they were pulled back into the tunnel again. Arthur reappeared in the present, where the hydra's attack was midair.

"My debt has been repaid," she said with a sigh. "I didn't want to train forever, and you proved to me that it wasn't enough."

"Why did you need to train anyway if you have this power?"

"We had a bet, and I lost to her," Shinva smiled. "After her death, I had to prove that she was right. That we are all born equal."

"That is some idiotic ideology," Arthur couldn't help but exclaim. "We are never equal. That is why there is suffering, and there is pain. Your friend was simply looking away from reality."

"Maybe, but it is nice to live a dream once in a while," stretched Shinva. "I am leaving now."

"There is more I want to know," Arthur hesitated. "Your ability can answer all of my questions."

"Your greed is showing, Seika. I am not omniscient, nor can I be. I am the traveler through time. I told you before. I am the observer. We are fortunate for meeting here, but this is the end of it."

"I see," nodded Arthur. "Thank you for helping me."

"You are a fine specimen, so it was a pleasure. Well then, farewell. The world will resume in one minute. Handle it well, Seika."

After saying that, Shinva disappeared. Arthur looked around, but she was no longer there. It was a bit bittersweet that he lost one of his best knights, but he would have never suspected she was an ancient character wandering around.

"I am still naive," sighed Arthur as he thought about Rae. "There is no way that she doesn't know how much trouble she caused. But, unfortunately, I became the scapegoat of their agenda."

The world was still unmoving and a bit gray. There was rage on the face of the hydra. Arthur walked away from the serpent and stood in front of her.

The minute was coming to an end, and he needed to find a way to stop the hydra from destroying his city. Arthur took a deep breath before the world resumed moving.

Boom!

An explosion occurred behind him as the serpent struck empty air. The sounds resumed in stark contrast to the muted world from earlier. Arthur's hair fluttered forward as shock appeared on the hydra's face.

"How did you dodge..."

"Do not attack before I say what I have. I know where to find your son."

"You did not know a moment ago. Are you trying to deceive me again? I trusted you because you were the Seika of Living Beings, but you are nothing other than a liar."

"I am not lying," sighed Arthur. "I realized that the person who has your son is someone I know. I did not suspect them before, but I was foolish."

"Your people deceived you?" frowned the hydra. "It seems you are also a victim of the human heart."

"A victim of circumstances," Arthur answered. "I will bring your child back. I don't want to fight you, nor do I want my city destroyed. These people sought shelter within my walls, and I cannot fail them."

"A true leader," muttered the hydra with a sigh. "I will trust your words, but I am staying in this city until you bring my child back. I will hold it as a hostage in case you were lying."

"I am not lying," Arthur bowed slightly. "Thank you for believing me, and welcome to Hidden City."

"Hmph," the woman waved her hand, and the countless serpents disappeared. "This city will disappear if you don't bring my child back."

"I understand," Arthur nodded. "Please follow me into the city," Arthur led the way from there, and they walked together into the city.

The land around the walls was soaked with water because of the serpents. By the last attack, a large portion of the grassland has turned into a valley. Arthur could only imagine what would happen if this monster attacked his city.

"Manger Ma," Arthur said into the hand mirror. "There will be a change in missions for the team I sent out. Call them back, and assign them a new mission. Ask Eleven to head toward the capital along with Lusica and have them stay with Diana."

"Are you calling back the team you sent to bring my child?" the hydra questioned.

"I am going to bring it back myself. This is the only way for me to convince them to cooperate."

"I will come with you then," said the monster. "This is my chance to bring my child back, and I will not sit and wait if you are going yourself."

"I understand," pondered Arthur. "Then we will have to pay the Council of Recreation a visit."

"Ah, those people," the woman gritted her teeth. "They asked for my help a long time ago, but I refused since their plan was too dangerous. So instead, it seems they wanted to make sure I attack the kingdom."

"They reached out for you?" Arthur stopped walking. "Why did they want you to attack the kingdom?"

"I refused the moment I learned of their demands. It was too dangerous, but they warned me about losing my child. That is why I did not think they would be the culprits."

"They are not," Arthur shook his head. "The Council hunts down the corrupted ones, and the ones who took your child are corrupted. Unfortunately, the Council seems to have used this chance to fuel the war between the Mernars and Freda."

"I do not understand why they want to do that?"

"We will find out ourselves," Arthur looked into the distance. "It seems we have to pay The Council of Recreation a visit."

***

The letter with the invitation said to contact The Last Straw if Arthur wanted to reach out for the Council. It was hard to know what that is without the expert help of a traveler.

Eleven affirmed that she knew of this place, as it was a famous inn south of the kingdom. However, it was on the periphery of the calamity gates, so it was the resting spot for those with the bravest of hearts.