Vermilion Bird shakes his head with a sad smile, "Wouldn't allow your heart and mind to believe it."
With another deep breath he continued, "The answer had always been with you already. You just didn't want to look at it properly."
With that he turned into his bird form and flew away.
The other six were left in confusion.
"I had been thinking about the events that kept going around us. I myself thought something was amiss about it and the answer had always been in front of me. What do you think is the truth that we kept looking away from, for us to get the answer to all the questions we have?"
After Vermilion Bird left. White Tiger spoke up.
It wasn't only Qirin who had been asking the question of what was being hidden.
All six of them were doing it, just that the rest weren't as open about it as him towards Vermilion Bird.
Qirin had on a reluctant look.
Seeing Vermilion Bird's eyes and hearing his words, the answer that he had been avoiding all this time, just came clear in his mind.
Disbelief followed this reluctant look before pity.
Even though he didn't want to feel pity, he still ended up having one.
Pity towards the rest of these people who was born so unluckily that they became a part of the show that the Dark Lord orchestrated for so long.
"Seriously... Is he really being serious right now?" he couldn't help but ask.
"What do you mean?" White Tiger asked.
"He is right..." Qirin looked at each of them.
"To see is to believe, because the answer I have right now. Is the most unbelievable answer I could come up with."
They were even more confused.
"Those children surely would not believe it if they were just to simply listen to her. It is surreal."
Qirin's words may confuse them but the way he looks tells them that its better for them to wait.
The only one who was close of getting the answer was White Tiger.
But he still chose to keep quiet and not to ask more.
Soon, they returned to their own hosts with their minds filled with questions.
While the beasts were thinking about those questions, the hosts were thinking about how the battle will continue.
All the five elites have appeared, two of which were already killed and the bodies have returned to their homeland.
But just as they lessened the number of higher ups.
The number of dark forces kept increasing instead.
More and more kingdoms and empires kept falling under the hands of darkness.
The once world filled with population are now riddled with two forces the dark and the ones who fight against them.
With how things go, the future was not bright but since there are still those who stood up to fight, it wasn't bleak either.
As for the ones fighting the darkness, they are getting the much needed rest they needed while facing their own matters.
*****
"I told you he is resting," Felix said in exasperation.
When Stormie woke up the next day the first person she looked for was Nixon.
She only heaved a sigh of relief when she saw him sleeping peacefully at his own room.
They were all still in the inn and knowing where they stayed, the king told the owner to serve them accordingly.
The knights with them the day before have all returned and reported of how the eight of them fought, some were moving around the imperial city to ensure that everything is fine while the others went ahead and fought against the ones leading the dark forces.
They didn't forget to mention that the young ones were so hurt that they didn't even dare call for help.
This kingdom was among the kingdoms who felt pity towards them especially after they watched Saphira fought against Draco Empire because of how mistreated her friends were. And the way she broke down after almost every places they had been to, sees them as nothing but puppets or dolls groomed to kill.
Saphira's open emotion, allowed the rest of the world to rethink on the way they had been living their lives. And how they expect others to do their best while they themselves don't do anything.
With all these, the king of this kingdom wanted to treat them well, even though it was just for a bit.
"Do you want to eat? Breakfast is served," Felix suggested.
Stormie looked at Nixon intently, seeing that he was relax and at peace, she nodded her head finally turning to look at Felix.
Since she already knew what she feels, she knew she needed to give Felix a proper answer.
An answer she couldn't give for the past months.
She thought with time she might see herself falling in love with Felix since they so easily clicked with one another after the fight that they had in the beginning.
But she was wrong, the more she tried to get close to Felix and see if it was possible, the more she felt disturbed at the way Nixon drifter away from her.
The thought of them becoming as simple as friends, even without the bickering makes her dread the simple thought alone.
It was funny how they all recognize their emotions and how they realize their mistakes towards the person they love, when they have already hurt them or when it felt like it has been so long since they felt this way, they just didn't realize it.
With how she realized it the night before, Stormie can tell that she must have loved him all along, she just didn't take notice of it.
"I guess..."
She blinked when Felix spoke, they were already seated and she didn't realize that she was already staring at him.
"It is time for us to have a proper talk," he continued with a smile.
While Stormie was staring blankly at him, he can see the emotions within her eyes. She was contemplating and so he knew, it is time to have this talk.