Although is the middle of the night in this Realm , the streets are extremely crowded . There are people everywhere , all the shops look to be open, and the atmosphere is way ... calmer than I thought it would be ...
I mean we are in the Purgatory Realm ... I expected blood and bodies to decorate the streets and the chaos to be the only rule here but ... Not to mention chaos , there is not even a drop of blood in sight ... Furthermore, everyone is extremely polite with each other ...
"Hey Gargran , why is everything so peaceful around here ? " [Andel]
Gargran is back to his cat form resting on Mea's shoulder ... No idea why , but it looks like Mea has no problem carrying around a devil cat that can transform into an enormous macho guy ...
"This is Tartarus master . There is no one here that is not a big shot in the Purgatory Realm . This is why everyone is reluctant from disrespecting others . " [Gargran]
I see ... This is why everything is so peaceful around here . Interesting !
Right now we are walking down a street towards that Sovereign's place . It looks like , during the war against the Heaven Realm , Gargran , for his 'heroic' actions received the title of Executioner together with a medallion that gives him the opportunity to meet this Sovereign once .Still , he was always too afraid to come here so he postponed that meeting until now .
Well , this is our chance as we can see that guy without having to use force . I mean we are a little pressed for time here ... From what Hecate said , the war against that Emerald Clan or whatever is going to start in less than three days ...
Finally, we arrived in front of the black tower covered in blue flames . From afar it was quite imposing , but when you get close you finally realise just how mighty it truly is . I approach the tower until the heat of the flames starts burning my skin . The temperature emanated from that fire is way bigger than any flames that I've seen before .
Although it is burning me a little , I get closer step by step . Gargran said that those flames could burn anything and everything in this world ... I wonder if that is true or not .
Just to be sure , I generate a black sword in my right hand while extending my left hand towards the tower . If things get out of control , cutting my own hand is always a solution . Restoring it latter should not be a problem .
"Andel – sama , w-what are you doing ?!?" [Hecate]
I can hear Hecate's voice in the back, but I decide to ignore her for now . While my left-hand gets closer and closer to the flames smoke, start emanating from my fingers while an intense pain rushes towards my brain . I didn't even touch the fire, and there is already this kind of effect ... But this doesn't stop me .
This is an experiment . In the worst case scenario, I'll lose an arm , so what's there to be afraid of . Three more centimetres ... Two ... One ...
Before I get to touch the flames a gentle palm hits me in the chest sending my body a few tens of paces backwards ...
"What the hell ?" [Andel]
In front of me stands an ancient , wrinkled man . He is completely bald , with no teeth in his mouth and with all bones being visible to the naked eye ... To be honest , he looks like he walked right out of the graveyard not too long ago .
"Are you insane ? Do you really wish to die ? Even if you are a soul , Balcifer – sama's flames could still kill you !" [Old Man]
He looks angry ... No ... Worried ...
Why would a guy that I've never met before be worried about me ...
"Thank you for your concern , but I can take care of myself !" [Andel]
"Hahh ... The teenagers these days think that just because they have a bit of power, there is nothing impossible for them ... " [Old Man]
.... Do I really look that young ?
Before I get to say anything else , Gargran that is back in his macho form comes near me and kneels down .
"It's a pleasure to meet you Great Sovereign Valdar . This one over here is your lowly subject Gargran . The man whose life you just saved is my master Andel – sama, and we are here to seek an audience with your excellency ! " [Gargran]
Wait a second ...This fossil over here is the Sovereign ? He looks like he is about to die at any given moment ... Well ... You can't always judge a book by the cover I guess ...
"Ho ho ... I see .I see ... All of you follow me inside where we can talk properly . " [Valdar]
Unexpectedly , he seems like a really nice guy . Well , this makes things easier .
Valdar raises his hand and the flames on one side of the tower shifts their original position revealing a door . He opens it and urges as to follow him .
The inside of the tower is ... Unexpected . There is a forest with green grass and big trees . In the middle of it stands a small hut made out of wood with a small lake in the back .
Valdar just goes to a nearby tree and sits down cross legged ...
"Have a sit . It's better to stand down while talking. " [Valdar]
We get a little closer and sit down . I am in the middle with Hecate on my right and Mea and Gargran on my left in this order .
"So , what can I help you with ?" [Valdar]
Straight to the point eh ? I like it !
"We want to find a way out of the Purgatory Realm, and back to the Divine Realm we originate from ." [Andel]
"Hmmm ..."
He frowns a little, and his expression goes solemn .
"Unfortunately , that is going to be extremely hard . There are a few ways to do it , but it will take a lot of time and effort . Furthermore, a high price must be paid to leave the Purgatory ." [Valdar]
Uhhh ... And here I thought that it would be simple ... Unfortunately, we don't have that much time left ... Maybe he is lying ... No ... My guts tell me that he is sincere ...
"We are quite pressed for time right now so ... Is there any fast way to exit this Realm ? " [Andel]
He frowns again ... Next, he shifts his gaze from me to Hecate that stands on my right .
"The reason why you want to exit this Realm as fast as possible is because you are worried about that Arachne's clan , am I right ? " [Valdar]
"How do you know that ?" [Andel]
I blurted that out without even thinking ... He seems to know a little too much for someone that we just met today .
"Ha ha ha ... So that really was the case .To be honest it was more of a lucky guess than anything, but it looks like I am right ." [Valdar]
His gaze shifts back at me ... This old man is not as simple as I thought him to be .
"Andel , do you know how many members of that girl's clan comes to purgatory daily ?" [Valdar]
"A little over five hundred ." [Mea]
The one answering his question is actually Mea ... Still , five hundred disciples from the Arachne Clan dies daily ... What the hell is their situation ?
"Don't be alarmed Andel – sama ! Our clan has over three hundred million disciples . Five hundred dying daily is not because of the war ; it's only the norm . Old age , disease , accidents . There is nothing special about that number . Even in this conditions , the natality is greater than the mortality . " [Hecate]
I see ... So that was the case . I never realised just how big her clan truly is ... Its population is on the same level as a fully fledged Empire ... Amazing !
"Now that this has been clarified , I would like to add that , because of my role as a Sovereign over a third of the Purgatory Realm , I have access to all the information that those in my territory possess . " [Valdar]
"If that's true than you know about the war that is going to start between the Arachne clan and that Emerald whatever clan ." [Andel]
"Yes I do know that there was this threat in the past , but right now I can assure you that there is no danger to the Arachne clan ." [Valdar]
No danger ? What changed ... There is something fishy here ...
"You still looks to be suspicious of my words ... Well , I can't blame you . Let's just say that all five digits and higher clans in the Forth Divine Plane where you are from have been united under a common banner to deal with a significant threat . " [Valdar]
"And why do you say that there is no danger considering that you just mentioned a threat that needs all the clans uniting together to deal with ?" [Andel]
Actually, this makes things even more attractive . An opponent so strong that all the clans had to band together to deal with is something that I would actually love to confront .
"Ha ha ha ! Believe me, when I'm telling you that the Arachne clan is in no danger . If you find out that I lied to you , you can come and kill me anytime . I won't resist whatsoever !" [Valdar]
I can see in his eyes determination and sincerity ... But , I still can't trust him completely ...
"Still , there is ..." [Andel]
"Andel – sama , I believe him . If Sovereign Valdar – sama says that my clan is in no danger , then it must be true ."[Hecate]
... Very well ... If you feel like this , then who am I to say otherwise . Furthermore, he actually seems like a good man . I don't know why , but I started to trust him a lot ...
"Very well ... Hecate trusts you and I have no reasons to doubt your words . So , what now ?" [Andel]
"There is a way to allow you to leave the Purgatory Realm : The ten thousand years Celestial War . If during the war you manage to get one million points , then you will be given a wish by Balcifer - sama ." [Valdar]
The Celestial War huh ... That sounds fun, to begin with ... But there is still a problem ...
"You know , I said that there is no problem in staying a little longer here if Hecate's clan is truly safe , but we can't wait for ten thousand years ... " [Andel]
"Ho ho ho .That is not a problem ! The next war is going to begin in exactly seven months . So all you have to do is to explore and enjoy the Purgatory until then ." [Valdar]
Seven months eh ... That is not a problem for me as it seems that this Realm is quite fun , but let's ask the others as well .
"Hecate , Mea , what do you think about this situation ?" [Andel]
"Considering that my clan is safe for now , I don't see any problem in staying here for a few more months Andel – sama." [Hecate]
"My opinion is irrelevant as I will only follow and protect miss Hecate !" [Mea]
Well , is not like I did not expect those answers .
"Very well then , our seven months holiday in the Purgatory Realm shall start today !"