It was noon when Mane opened his eyes. It took him less than a second to get accustomed to the bright light peeping through the blinds.
"How long has it been since I slept so well?" Mane wondered. Since he was young – even during the times it was recommended that he sleep several hours so he could grow properly – Mane hadn't been one to sleep for long hours. He slept an average of 6 hours each day and seldom awoke after the sun had fully revealed itself. Yet today he had awakened much later than he usually preferred. And he reckoned that he had been asleep for at least 9 hours.
"Yes. I was actually quite impressed that you were able to sleep that long." Hildegarde flew over to Mane's side with a slight smile on her face. In her hands was a regular-sized lollipop. Of course since Hildegarde was tiny, the lollipop was as tall as she was.
"So how was it? Do you feel refreshed?" Hildegarde asked as she settled on the bed, right next to Mane.
While wielders generally didn't need any rest, it still brought tremendous benefits to allow oneself the sweet embrace of unconsciousness once in a while. For while Edict and Chaos could nourish the body and strengthen the mind, sleep was the nourisher of the soul. And a refreshed soul always led to an active mind and power-filled bones.
"Yes. I feel alive. And my mind is much sharper than usual." Mane admitted with a small smile.
It wasn't that he didn't like to sleep for long. Rather, it was an old habit that had attached itself to him like his beard. From the moment he became a wielder, he built a schedule for himself. It was necessary so that he could balance his classes with his training. And that included waking up on time to practice before class as well as staying up late to train some more. Before long his body had grown so used to it that Mane couldn't get himself to sleep past the required hours. And it became even more difficult to fall asleep when he became a Scholar since his practice required that he kept his senses alert at all times. However yesterday, he had subconsciously turned off everything. So now he was like any normal man.
Mane yawned quietly and turned his head to face Hildegarde. And his eyes flashed with surprise when he saw the large lollipop in her hands. He couldn't help but chuckle and ask, "Where did you get that?"
Mane didn't remember bringing anything like that to the room. And he couldn't recall seeing it here last night. Sunflower wasn't that much of a sweet tooth either meaning that she wouldn't be one to buy a lollipop. So it was quite a mystery that Hildegarde was sucking on one. Well it was more accurate to say she was licking it since the thing was much bigger than her head.
"I went down to the kitchen," Hildegarde confessed with her attention still on the lollipop.
Mane smiled and shook his head slightly. Then he turned his attention to the Elemental sleeping soundly in his bosom. Sunflower was a late riser, so Mane didn't know when she would wake up. And he would hate to be the one to disturb her rest. So he just lay there without doing anything.
"Might as well check on the others," Mane mumbled and turned his senses back on. And a flood of information pushed him into temporary confusion. For when Mane turned off everything almost all of Amalgamation was within his range.
The first people Mane located were the twins. Lam and Lily were in Lam's room. And Silver whom Mane hadn't seen for some time was also present.
"That reminds me: where is Sasha?" Seeing Silver reminded him of how long it had been since he last saw Sasha. But he wasn't overly concerned. Sasha was a vagabond. Because she never had the chance to wonder in the Tower, whenever they were out she roamed as much as she wanted. She always did return on time though. It was almost as if she always knew when to return.
Anyway, the twins were eating what seemed to be their lunch and talking about a number of things. But the main issue had to do with Mane. The two were wondering when Mane would deal with Ancestor Origin.
"That should be today. I want to leave latest by tomorrow after all." Mane resolved to settle everything today so that he could leave as quickly as possible. There was no need to stay in Amalgamation much longer than he ought to.
"I must say though that it was pretty careless of Lily to not erect a barrier before discussing such a sensitive matter." Mane sighed and chalked up the Elemental Princess's oversight to how overwhelming the entire situation was. Once he was certain of what his friends were up to, he moved to the mansion of the ancestors. And the first was Ancestor Ice's home.
"Oh? She's alone?" Mane muttered with some surprise. He was under the impression that neither Ancestor Ice nor Ancestor Storm liked to be away from one another. According to the rumors Mane had heard, many suspected that the two were having an affair. Even Ashera thought it was strange that they were so close yet claimed they were only friends. But Mane believed that they were just that. After all, as Ancestors they had no reason to lie to the public. Their words were akin to Law here.
Ancestor Ice wasn't doing anything particularly interesting. She was just reading a book. So Mane screened her house briefly to find out if there was anyone else. When he confirmed there was no one, he moved to Ancestor Storm. The handsome ancestor was busy training.
"He's very good," Mane was very pleased with what he was receiving. Ancestor Storm's manipulation of lightning and wind was at a level that was slightly above Mane's, and Mane couldn't help but indulge the man's training just a little bit. And he gained great insights in the process. Mane spent about an hour focusing on Ancestor Storm, and only retracted his attention when he sensed that his body was subconsciously trying to mirror the older man's movements. That would have to wait for later; for when Sunflower was awake.
He went on to screen the other Ancestors but found nothing particularly interesting. Ancestor Bold's residence was still empty, but once Mane screened Ancestor Origin's home, he found the impatient Ancestor there.
"Oh? Ancestor Bold is back?" Mane smirked playfully when he sensed that the atmosphere in Ancestor Origin's place was far from jovial. He could feel great worry and anger from Ancestor Origin. And from Ancestor Bold he sensed a great amount of fear.
"That would teach you to try to kill someone I love. Sparing you is mercy." Mane's eyes flashed with murderous intent briefly, and he almost reconsidered his decision to spare Ancestor Bold. But a promise was a promise. He wouldn't take back his words.
Mane was absolutely confident in Crystal. Someone previously called the Chaos Witch was never going to fall to an Ancestor of this world. Though Crystal had been weakened greatly, she had gained a lot from Mane's breakthrough and now Mane reckoned that only Ancestor Origin could resist her. He also reckoned that Crystal had let Ancestor Bold off on purpose. For if she had wanted to kill the murderous scumbag, he wouldn't have been able to escape. As for why Crystal wasn't back, Mane knew it was because she was going to escort Dan all the way back to Dark Valley. She would only return once her mission was complete.
"You fool! Why didn't you conceal your face?!" Ancestor Origin raged and he slapped his wrinkly palm towards Ancestor Bold. Ancestor Bold was able to put his arms up on time, but he had barely summoned his own power when Ancestor Origin's power came smashing down, sending him crushing into the wall behind.
*Bang*
*Cough*
Ancestor Bold grimaced slightly from the powerful blow. His eyes were still filled with fear but he dared not go against Ancestor Origin.
"Of course he didn't cover his face. Why would he? After all, he assumed it will be easy to kill Dan."
Which Phenom would be wary of a Pseudo Phenom? Ancestor Bold was no exception. Logically, there was no way Dan should have been able to survive a Phenom's assassination attempt. So one couldn't blame Ancestor Bold for such a decision. As for Ancestor Origin, he was only venting. There was no way he would have worn a mask if it were him. Besides, it was easy to tell Elementals, Barbarians and Ancients apart based on the way they fought. There was no way Ancestor Bold would be able to hide his identity as an Elemental Ancestor once he attacked.
Mane took pleasure in their misfortune. For now that Dan was aware that the Elementals tried to kill him, the Ancients would be made aware of this as well. And this didn't spell well for them. As for Crystal she could just reveal her identity to Dan as a kind passerby. He didn't need to know who she was. And he wouldn't dare ask a senior many questions.
"I did enjoy that," Mane smirked in delight. For much of his anger towards Ancestor Bold dissipated along with Ancestor Origin's ruthless strike.
"We must prepare to give them a suitable answer," Ancestor Origin frowned and said.
"I know what I must do," Ancestor Bold coughed up some blood but wiped it off resolutely. He had to take the blame for this – individual blame. He had to confess that it was all his fault and that he was willing to bear the consequences. That was the only way to leave Elementals out of this mess they had created.
"You will make a trip to Babylon. Be sure to take some precious materials and artefacts with you to compensate them. Because of Pazuzu they wouldn't kill you although they would very much like to. So make sure they are pleased. You must leave today." Ancestor Origin ordered and waved Ancestor Bold away.
Babylon was the true home of the Ancients. And Ancestor Bold was about to be their newest guest.
"Yes Ancestor," Ancestor Bold dared not go against the orders of his superior. He bowed slightly and swiftly exited the premises.
"Such great luck I have," Mane chuckled seeing things working so well in his favor. Without Ancestor Bold, Ancestor Fire was Ancestor Origin's only ally.
It would be impossible for the old man to use the Nature Barrier now. While Mane gloated at how great his luck was, he felt some movement on his chest. And he knew that Sunflower was waking up. So he panicked slightly remembering how last night ended. Hildegarde sensed his anxiety and couldn't help but roll her eyes. How was someone whose name could shake several universes be this terrified because of a kiss?
"Relax. If she didn't like it, she wouldn't have slept in the same bed with you. Jeez you guys even cuddled throughout the entire night. So annoying" Hildegarde snorted with displeasure. Her words did help however. For Mane was calmed greatly by them.
"You are right," Mane smiled before looking into the slightly disoriented eyes of the woman he had fallen for.
"Good morning Sun."