"Beautiful, no matter how many times I see it my opinion won't change. I can't use any other word to describe it besides beautiful." Elizabeth said looking at the gigantic azure swirling portal at her front that permits to travel to even another region. "This is a portal beyond what I can currently make, this is a masterpiece made by the founder of my, no, our Society."
"Yes, it is beautiful," Roland said dazed, appreciating the moment with Elizabeth and the illusory flying white beasts around them.
They were at the top of one of the seven towers of Major Castle which Elizabeth received permission of the mayor to bring Roland here.
"When you think in all the possibilities that the teleportation portals can bring to us, which one is the first to come to your mind? Mine is to travel beyond the skies and see with my own eyes where the ones that created the Hybrids come from." Elizabeth looked to the clear starry sky.
"I…" Roland was about to reveal a private and important part of him to Elizabeth, and only hesitated a little before remembering she was his comrade and friend. "I want to see my father once again, he is another stratum and I can't travel to there. So when you say which possibilities come to my mind, this is the first one, I want to make a teleportation portal that permits anyone to travel between strata."
Elizabeth looked over Roland and saw a deep melancholy on his eyes, would she look that when her father goes to the underworld? Just thinking about that, her mood sunk and she shared a sad moment with Roland.
They passed the time silent, only looking at the portal and enjoying each others' company.
"Mother, do you what is happening? This is really strange." August sent to Lucy.
"I also don't know, if they loved each other I would say this is something similar to a date but that is clearly not the case. I can't feel any love between them, there is only respect and fellowship. It surprises me how innocent they can be despite being clearly adults. And Roland's innocence is even worse, I don't see all his memories but I know he isn't virgin, yet he acts so innocently. It's a mystery I won't ever understand." Lucy sent back with a sigh.
"What?! This asshole that is fixated on teleportation portals like an idiot isn't a virgin? Now, this is something I never thought I would hear."
Lucy and August continued to discuss, Lucy could try to see Roland's memories again to discover with who he lost his virginity but he would perceive and that's private story of him, Lucy didn't feel so good about doing that without a good reason.
Someone loudly coughed behind Roland and Elizabeth, interrupting their moment alone.
"Father." Elizabeth ran over to the small man behind them and hugged him. After doing that she began to giggle while spinning him around like a little girl spinning her teddy bear.
He was extremely short like a dwarf, elderly man. HIs black eyes darted around while being spun and he shouted. "Put me down girl, you are going to make me puke."
Elizabeth obeyed him and adjusted the formal attire of him that was a white tunic with a smelting furnace symbol stamped on the right collar, simple black pants, and all in which was covered by a formal red coat with black fur around the edges and also the Lakepoint's symbol, four river connecting in only one point, on the back.
"We don't have met yet, but I know who you are, Roland. And as you have seen my silly girl calling me, I am indeed her father, George Orwell, and patriarch of the Master Blacksmith Society." George after being put down looked like a stern and majestic man because of his powerful presence and Essence belonging to someone that is a Magus Rank 4, his eyes were serious and his back was straight while looking at Roland.
"Why they don't have the same surname? Is she like me that has a family coming from matriarchal roots?" Roland thought and looked more closely at George to perceive a sad truth without help from his masters.
George was almost completely bald with only the outer rims of his head containing white hair and had a thick white mustache and white beard that covers his entire chin. But Roland noted a clear aura, energy, around him that the first word to come to his mind was…
Death.
Roland now understood what the city was talking about the Master Blacksmith Society's patriarch 'whitering', George was reaching close to the limit he can live as a Magus Rank 4 and effects of this were easily perceptible on his Essence.
Talking more seriously than normal, Roland showed the due respect to the man that survived for so long and was able to protect the Society he lived, bowing. "It's an honor to meet you, Patriarch George."
George smiled like a kind old man when the neighbor's small child greets him in the cutest way possible, breaking the stern persona he made to show off his dignification as Patriarch. "Don't need to be so stiff near me, Roland. You are a member of our family, the Master Blacksmith Society, now, I like to treat every one of our Society like a big family despite having castes which is a tradition I don't dare or bear to break in my generation."
"Why did you come here, Father? The reunion with those strange people is already over?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes, it is over and unfortunately the mayor couldn't come here with me, she is a busy woman." George turned back to Roland. "Roland, before officially becoming a member I think that Elizabeth already told you but you need to pass a trial of fire to swear fealty to the Society.
"But the period we search for disciples isn't still near, however, I can't have the Follower of my daughter without swearing fealty for too long. So I will use my authority to open the trial of fire earlier for you and any other person that wants to be part of our Society in three days.
"Please go back to the place where you sleep now to prepare yourself for it. The trial of fire will even be harder for you that is of high age and still in the Essence Reformation. I will send Elizabeth to fetch you when the trial began."
Roland wanted to talk more with Elizabeth about teleportation portals but knowing he will have others chances to do so, he gave his farewell to her and George and left the tower they were.
The only problem is that they and Roland forgot he doesn't know how to navigate himself on Major Castle, he got lost for a long time before the old buttle he met on the entrance found him and saved him.
Meanwhile Roland was suffering, Elizabeth and George were still on the black tower.
"Why didn't you tell the truth to him? It's impossible to him make a teleportation portal to travel between strata, not because he lacks talent or is only at the Essence Reformation, but because the one that rules over Immortal Existence, the final stratum, won't ever permit it. Giving false hope is the worst thing you can to someone you consider a friend." George said with a frown.
Elizabeth wasn't scared of him and answered, puffing up her chest. "Father, let me ask you instead. What did you do when I said I wanted to stop training to focus on my two dreams or when I said I wanted to go beyond the skies? Did you tell it was impossible, rash, imprudent and immature? Or did you support me despite all the elders going against me?"
"I really can't win against you, I hope that Roland won't flee from the Society when you show your true colors as an Oppressive Queen." George shrugged and decided to let the young ones deal with their own dreams without intruding them.
"I'm not that bad." Elizabeth sulked.
"Says the woman that punched in the face the heir and heiress to the Dynasty in Real Existence." George laughed like he heard the best joke in a long time. "Their pride are completely shattered now."
"Let's change the subject, okay?"
"Let's change to Roland then. You that touched his creations, what do you think about his talent to Equipment Formation and Essence Reinforcement?"
"His talent to Equipment Formation is superb and to Essence Reinforcement is even higher, he even knows how to use the God Touch, after all. Never in my life I would thought I would see something similar to what our founder used to create his equipment. Whenever we create equipment Essence spills out from it because it is contaminated with our Energy, but using God Touch it won't happen. Would Roland teach me how to do that if I asked?"
"Who knows? And it can be the God Touch is only possible to him because of the strange technique he trains. If what your manager told us is right, that night he was attacked he was at the fifth layer of Essence Reformation and at the end of the night he suddenly went to the seventh layer.
"This training speed rivalize yours, he probably only began to train when really old. So despite his high age his is talent is even higher than of Shin Ta from Kirin Renascence, if we nurture him he will shine brighter than anyone since different from Shin Ta, Roland has talent in two Great Arts."
"So Roland is your next bet to become the Patriarch in the future after you die? And that's you gave me this amulet?" Elizabeth happiness and light in her eyes faded, she looked indifferently to the amulet without any emotions like a doll, it was as if she wasn't alive.
"Ah… my silly girl. Come here, hug your father." George opened his arms and wondered how his daughter will live after he is gone. "She needs another emotional support soon, she is too fragile. When will she ever grow up to learn how to bear the woes the World's Fate throw at us, humans, as tribulations to improve our ways of living?" He thought.
Elizabeth rushed over, kneeled and hugged stronger than ever her father. "Father! I don't you to die, please don't leave me alone. Why must you die? I don't understand, why would someone give us life just to suffer so much? Is there really nothing I can do to prevent this? Even becoming a Magus Rank 5?" Elizabeth's tears and snot coated George coat, her wails were heartbreaking and the simple make up she put for his birthday got messed up.
She didn't care how she looked or if someone sees her in this state laughs at her for being too melodramatic.
Those are her pure emotions, with the thoughts 'why must you die?' and 'where is the way to increase his longevity?' constantly revolving around in her head, tormenting her.
"No, my child. There's nothing you can do, this is just how life is. You must learn how to let go of things, the underworld is calling me and I will accept its call. I lived a good life, became the patriarch of my dear Society and had such a beautiful and talented daughter. What else could I ask for from the World's Fate?" George let Elizabeth cry how much she wants, some things are better to let out than to let it rot and isolate in your heart. "Although if I have something I regret is that I won't be there to take you to your wedding altar and groom, how I wanted to see you more beautiful than ever in a wedding dress. This is for sure my only regret."
Elizabeth and George stayed together kneeled until the mayor appeared to see the mess on Elizabeth's face.