Cale sat silently on his horse, gazing out over the surroundings. Weak sunlight filtered through the treetops - awakening nature. The first blossoms opened, and Cale spotted two squirrels searching for food on a horizontal tree trunk. In the distance, the rustling of leaves could be heard, followed by a soft horse's whinny.

  The rest of the group seemed to have arrived, which Julius also noticed. Everyone present turned their heads in the direction from which the newcomers were coming. The first of them raised his arm and greeted them, but Cale's attention remained fixed on the second man.

  "Have you been waiting long?", the first man - Sir Borsch - asked, pulling on his horse's reins to bring it to a halt. Julius and the others, who were standing on the ground next to their mounts, all stared up at him, which was an unusual sight.

  "We've just arrived a few minutes ago. Did you find out anything useful?", Julius spoke up, before noticing the second member. "Did you get beaten up?"

  "We got caught up in a brawl", Sir Dastre announced dryly, also coming to a halt in front of the group. "Since we didn't want to attract unwanted attention, we refrained from using our swords."

  "There were quite a few of them, and we had a good lead, which is why we stayed on site. One thing led to another", the first soldier added calmly, as if he wanted to defend his friend.

  "Definitely the better decision. Were you able to find out anything?", Cale interjected, causing the rest of the men to turn around.

  "Unfortunately not. The effort was unnecessary. How about you?"

  "Same, but Sir Venlan found something useful", the dark-haired soldier to Cales side answered.

  "Whether it's really useful remains to be seen. Zod and I will head for Lezeben, I'll leave the other two places to you", Julius explained, striding over to his horse. "We shouldn't waste any time, we can discuss the details on the way."

  As if on cue, everyone climbed onto their horses and followed Julius out of the small clearing toward the north, telling each other about their experiences. Cale brought up the rear, listening with only one ear, because something completely different had caught his attention.

  It was Velence.

  <"Goddess Parousia spoke to you?">, Cale repeated the dragon leader's statement. <"Is she back?">

  <"She visited the island">, Velence explained calmly and matter-of-factly. <"To tell us that she had found God Mellontikos and spoken with him briefly.">

  Cale did not like this statement at all.

  <"What came out of the conversation?">

  <"Not much, at least she didn't tell us much. Apparently, there is a bigger problem, which is why she will be staying in Mellontikos for a while.">

  <"In the future, you mean?">, Cale asked more precisely.

  <"That's right">, Velence confirmed curtly. <"However, she gave me a mission. Goddess Parousia wants us to keep an eye on you and the humans.">

  <"Did she explain why?">

  <"No">, Velence replied dryly.

  Cale suddenly became pensive and rubbed his neck. He couldn't understand why the goddess was now interested in humans and had sent her followers to human regions. She heard and saw everything that happened in the world. What reason did she have to use the dragons as her eyes when she hadn't done so before?

  <"We will not approach your cities">, Velence continued. <"She has expressly forbidden it. The cities of humans remain in your care, Apostle Caleb Leuen.">

  "In mine?" Cale repeated aloud and suddenly tensed up, realizing he had spoken the words out loud without realizing it. Julius was the only one who turned around, even though Cale was sure everyone had heard him.

  "Did you say something?", he asked.

  "I was just thinking out loud, sorry. Continue", Cale urged him with a supportive wave of his hand. With a skeptical look, Julius turned back around so that Cale could concentrate on the dragon again.

  <"She didn't mention why she's leaving the cities in my care, did she?">

  <"No. But she... she casually referred to you as the representative of humanity.">

  <"Representative of humanity?">, Cale repeated, confused. <"Because I'm human and in contact with you?">

  <"Possibly, yes. As mentioned before, I only convey information.">

  <"Thank you... even though I'm having a hard time understanding what she expects of me. Did she have any orders for me?">

  <"None that are new.">

  <"I see...", Cale muttered thoughtfully. <"I don't want to seem pushy, but I have two requests. Will you inform me if you approach humans? I would like to... prevent problems before they arise.">

  <"That can be arranged. What is your second request?">

  <"Keep an eye on the events on the creature plaines.">

  <"We do that anyway.">

  <"Thank you, Velence. For everything you do for the people and for me.">

  <"I'm just following orders">, Velence said calmly. <"Until next time, Apostle, with the gift of rebirth.">

  <"Take care, Velence.">

  As soon as she said this, the dragon's mana completely dissipated, and Cale sighed inwardly. As if he didn't have enough problems already, now he had to focus on the dragons' activities. He had actually hoped that the goddess would keep the peace, but now she was pushing the work onto him without explaining why. But Cale wasn't that blind. He could guess that the goddess had a bigger plan, even if she didn't say so. The action itself spoke for itself.

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  Annoyed, Cale rubbed his temple and closed his eyes to take a moment to breathe. He mentally went through all the unresolved issues he needed to focus on. First and foremost was his current mission and the missing children. The meeting with the Magistrat would advance his plan to gain influence in Sylve so that he could concentrate on preparations for war. Since the Eldest had relieved him of his concern for Altona, he now had to wait patiently until Grischa could achieve notable success and his crystal could be used. He would promote cooperation between the three major countries behind the scenes, but here too he relied mainly on the Eldest and the leaders themselves. For now, at least, the dragons will watch the Thormods. His own interests were slipping far into the background. He found it difficult to concentrate on William, Ben, Aletta, and Philippa at the moment, even though he wanted to put them before everything else. Fengari also slipped into the background unintentionally, but her interest in school and music would relieve him of his concern for her in the future.

  Cale was so preoccupied with his worries and problems that he didn't realize how time was flying by. The group of six had been riding through the dense forests for a good hour, making their way to their next destination without stopping their conversation about their impressions of the area. It was only when they crossed a small stream that Cale perked up again and turned his attention to the men in front of him. One of them pointed east toward the mountains where Ideran was located. He exchanged a few words with his colleague before Cale turned his gaze to Julius Venlan. The man rode at the head of the group with his unusual hairstyle and listened to the others' conversation without saying a word. From his posture and the sudden effort to sit up straight, Cale noticed that the man was struggling not to show how exhausted he was.

  After half a hour, their group split into two. The four soldiers set off for their originally planned destinations, while Julius and Cale were forced to ride on a longer distance to reach Lezeben. A few meters after their paths had separated, the first clouds appeared in the sky. Cale caught up with his companion and rode alongside him. To his left, the slope descended steeply, and he noticed some bushes growing up against trees and bearing small fruits.

  "Is everything alright?", Julius' voice could be heard, prompting Cale to turn around. "You're so quiet."

  "Just thinking. What about you? You look sleepy."

  "Observant as always. No one else seems to have noticed."

  "They probably just didn't ask, Julius."

  "Possibly", Julius replied, hiding his yawn behind his hand. "Maybe I'll lie down for an hour or two later."

  "I won't stop you."

  "I know."

  After the statement, things remained quiet between them. Cale took the reins in one hand, leaned back, and watched the sky as he thought about Grischa and Aaron. It was nice that at least Aaron would be coming to Bellator, but at the same time, it made him sad that he wouldn't be able to see Grischa. He hoped he would be able to spend at least some time with Aaron, even though he didn't know if they would have time for it or if Aaron himself would be interested.

  "Tell me something", Julius interjected.

  "Tell me something? What?"

  "Any interesting story."

  "An interesting story, hm, let me think", Cale replied, assuming that Julius needed something to keep him awake. "I could tell you a story from the past, long before we were born."

  "Let's hear it", Julius urged.

  "Have you ever heard of the war between the nobles and the commoners? If I remember correctly, it's called the Great Tsuke Uprising."

  "I know about that event, yes. A war that lasted almost 10 years and was triggered by the supposedly accidental murder of a commoner. For decades, the people had been dissatisfied with the government system and the upper class, which was clearly exploiting the poor population. According to tradition, many of them were treated like animals and had no rights whatsoever, which brought them to the brink of despair."

  "I would have been surprised if you didn't know about this historical event. But do you also know how the nobility won the war despite being outnumbered?"

  "Thanks to their education and possessions, they were simply superior to the people. I have read that they systematically attacked and decimated the citizens until they finally had no means of defense left and gave up."

  "That is only part of the truth that is taught here in Sylve. When you are in other countries, you hear and read all sorts of things, all of which point to a certain detail."

  "A detail?"

  "Among the nobles, there were people who had the ability to destroy mana cycles. In the past, it was called the Wrath of the Gods."

  "That's the first I've heard of it. Sounds terrifying."

  "It's not surprising, after all, the name and the truth have been forgotten, and certain people don't want the information to be revealed again."

  "That almost sounds as if there are still people - who have inherited this ability - alive", Julius interjected, dismayed, which made Cale give him a weak grin.

  "There are, though not many."

  "Are you serious? Surely there are no people left in this day and age who are capable of something so dangerous. We would know about them."

  "There are many things that humanity is unaware of. This ability is one of them."

  "Have you ever met such a people?"

  "Yes, I have."

  "And you've seen them use this ability?"

  "You could say that."

  "I didn't expect that. So they are descendants of this noble family? Where are they currently located?", Julius asked cautiously, but Cale only shrugged. He deliberately left out some details so that he could build on this knowledge in the future when he revealed the truth about the Thormods.

  "Good question, I can't tell you exactly. But you can be sure that they want nothing to do with this past. They would never harm humans."

  "If you say so, then I trust you on that. People who can destroy mana cycles... There's everything in the world, isn't there?", Julius muttered his thoughts aloud before a flash of inspiration struck him. "What happened to the people who can no longer use mana? According to your stories, they weren't killed."

  "They weren't, they survived."

  "Really?"

  "Yes", Cale confirmed, causing Julius to fall silent for a moment.

  "There's one thing I don't quite understand. What kind of ability is that? If it's not learned but inherited, then it's not a simple application of knowledge."

  "That, my friend, is an excellent question!"

  "Is it?"

  "Absolutely, yes. It's quite sad how little people concern themselves with the origin of mana. Even if I have to include myself in that."

  "The origin of mana? Are you talking about the mana of nature?"

  "The mana of nature. The mana of the gods. Pure mana. Holy Mana. Igrikum. Igrikum means something to you, doesn't it?"

  "The ability of High-Magicians, which they receive after their third expansion of consciousness. Is that the same ability?"

  "Yes. Wrath of the Gods used to be something like Igrikum, which was passed down to descendants."

  "How fascinating. So these nobles were once High-Magicians?"

  "High-Magician is just the title that the Eldest created. I can't tell you if they had their own names before, but that's how it is", Cale confirmed. "The Igrikum can be inherited and become a part of a person. There are stories from the past about people who were capable of extraordinary things that couldn't be explained."

  "For example?", Julius asked curiously.

  "Shapeshifting. You've probably heard that some people are able to change their hair or eye color if they want to. That used to be a simple ability that had been passed down through humanity."

  "I've only ever heard rumors about that, but I never really believed it."

  "They're all true, even if the ability is more pronounced in some people than in others."

  "Could you recognize them?"

  "A shapeshifter?", Cale specified, and Julius nodded. "It depends on the person. Normal people like you probably can't."

  "What about you? Have you ever met a shapeshifter?"

  "I know one, yes. And no, I can't tell either. But since the world is so big, the gods have found a solution to this problem as well. The ability to see mana with the naked eye and thus see through shape-shifting is called the All-knowing Eyes. Shall I tell you more about this ability?"

  "Now that you've brought it up, I'd like to hear more about it."