Meanwhile with Rei...
After Lyria, Lyria², and Orchid managed to slip into the illusionary world where Rei was trapped, the three of them were joined by Ferry, Tiamat, and Rosetta. Together, they used their powers to help Rei break through the illusion that had held him for an entire year.
Despite their combined efforts, Rei still struggled to shatter the illusion, as familiar faces tried to hold him back. His parents, his older sister, the neighbors he had known since childhood, and all his friends—they all begged him to stay, their voices filled with desperation. But Rei knew they were just illusions, lingering shadows of a past that wasn't real. In the end, he bid them farewell, his resolve unwavering, and managed to tear down the illusion entirely.
Now, they found themselves back in an empty void, surrounded by nothing but silence.
With no clear way out, they began to walk forward, each step echoing softly in the vast emptiness. Lyria, Lyria², and Orchid had no idea how to escape this place, but they pressed on, hoping a path would reveal itself.
After Ferry, Tiamat, and Rosetta disappeared upon their arrival here, it was just the four of them, alone in the void.
"This place is the same one Lucilius used to bring me to when he wanted to talk," Rei said, looking around at the bleak landscape. "We usually use this empty space just to have a talk until we decided to created some building at least."
"Talk? You mean you actually spoke with him… often?" Orchid asked, clearly surprised.
"Yeah, sometimes he'd bring me here while I was sleeping. I never understood why, though."
"Why didn't you tell us that you were talking to him all this time?" Lyria asked, a bit hurt and worried.
"I… didn't want to make anyone worry. Nothing ever really happened during those conversations until now. I thought maybe he was just… bored and looking for someone to talk to."
"Well, next time, if anything even remotely like that happens, you'd better tell us. Of course, we're going to worry, but we'd also be there to help you find a way through it!" Lyria said firmly, her voice resolute.
"Hmm, I agree with what she said," Lyria² chimed in, nodding. "If I ever have a problem, I'd tell Gran and the others, and we'd all help each other solve it."
"I understand…" Rei nodded, and they continued walking into the void, each step pushing them into the unknown.
Rei kept a watchful eye on their surroundings, alert to any potential threats. Suddenly, Orchid broke the silence again.
"By the way, judging by everything we saw… were you really trapped in that place for a year?"
"Yeah… but not exactly." Rei's face softened, uncertainty flickering in his eyes.
"What do you mean?" Lyria asked, noticing his hesitation.
Rei then explained what he'd experienced. Though he'd been in that illusionary world for just a year, he recalled vivid memories as though they had spanned far longer. Memories of meeting Ferry as a child, of encountering Tiamat in isolation, unable to speak due to her unique condition. He remembered laughing, playing, meeting each other's families, sharing meals, even bathing together—every moment felt as real as if he'd lived it.
"Wha-!? So basically, you've been with both of them for fifteen years?" Lyria exclaimed, taken aback.
"But I only had sixteen months…" Lyria mumbled, sounding slightly disappointed. She had been proud of the time she had spent with Rei—sixteen months. Djeeta had only been with him for three. Even though he had met Djeeta and Vyrn first, Lyria had been with him longer, and Orchid too… But now it was Ferry, Tiamat, and Rosetta…
"That's what you're concerned about?" Orchid muttered, shaking her head at Lyria's reaction.
"That's right—both of us have been with Rei for fifteen years," a smug voice echoed from somewhere ahead.
Moments later, figures began materializing in front of them, gradually coming into focus. As they fully appeared, they were instantly recognizable.
"Everyone!?" Lyria² gasped, her eyes widening in disbelief.
Standing before them were Ferry, Tiamat, Colossus, Leviathan, Yggdrasil, Luminiera, Celeste, Rosetta, and finally, at the front, Lucifer himself with three pairs of pure white wings unfolding gracefully behind him.
-----
As they appeared, Lyria realized the smug voice came from Ferry, who now wore a confident expression aimed directly at her.
"That doesn't count! Those are just fake memories you felt!" Lyria said, frowning at Ferry.
"Heh, they're not just fake memories. Like Rei said, I remember everything clearly from when we were kids," Ferry replied, smiling at her.
"I remember waking him up in his room, pretending we were husband and wife, running together in the garden… I'm sure Tiamat remembers, too, right?" Ferry looked over at Tiamat beside her.
Of course, the other primal beast Tiamat, Colossus, Leviathan, Luminiera, and Celeste—were not using their true forms. They appeared in their smaller, chibi-like forms, floating around except for Tiamat, who maintained the human form she'd taken inside the dream.
"Ring~" Tiamat nodded, making a sound of agreement with Ferry's words.
Seeing this, Lyria's pout deepened before she finally said, "That still doesn't count!" and turned away with her arms crossed.
Everyone was silent for a moment, watching their bickering, until Lucifer finally laughed. "Haha, I'm going to miss seeing this."
"Lucifer, what are you doing here? I thought you were… death? And everyone else is here too!?" Lyria² asked, looking at Lucifer and the others with surprise.
"I am dead, Lyria², but my entire existence was absorbed by Rei, and now, with what remains of my power, I can linger inside him," Lucifer explained.
He then looked at Rei. "And I want to thank you, Rei. You managed to use my power to help Sandalphon reach her true potential."
"There's no need to thank me. I was just doing what I was supposed to do," Rei replied, scratching his cheek.
"I see." Lucifer smiled before turning serious. "Besides that, there's something we need to discuss."
"Discuss? About what?" Orchid asked him.
"With our power, we prevented Rei from being erased by Lucilius, but we used all of it to do that, so we couldn't interfere in the dream. So we decided to send Ferry, Tiamat, and Rosetta to stay with you until help arrived."
"We also worked hard to erase your memories of the Sky Realm and preventing you to remember about it too, making Lucilius believe you were still trapped without knowing anything. Unfortunately, Rosetta arrived late compared to Ferry and Tiamat, but it no longer matters," Lucifer explained seriously.
"What now, then?" Rei asked.
"We've done our part, Rei. Now it's your turn to finish this battle, You with Girl in Blue and The Dainty White Girl" Lucifer looked at him, then glanced toward Lyria, Lyria², and Orchid.
Everyone grew serious as they listened, even Lyria, who'd been pouting moments ago, now focused on Lucifer.
"What are we supposed to do? We're wandering around this empty place with no way out," Lyria² asked in frustration.
Hearing this, Lucifer and the others turned their gaze to Rei.
"Huh?" Rei looked confused as Lucifer and the others focused on him. Suddenly, whoosh—a powerful gust of wind surged from Rei, and in an instant, three pairs of dark wings appeared on his back.
"What the!?" Rei gasped, surprised to see his wings manifesting again and feeling his power returning.
"Your wings are back!" Orchid exclaimed in shock.
"Right on time~" Rosetta said, her eyes fixed on Rei's wings.
"It's not just you, Rei. Everyone outside is also helping, trying to get you out of this place. It looks like their efforts paid off; your power is returning," Ferry said.
Rei clenched his fists, feeling the energy flowing through his body. His power had returned, though only half of what he normally felt—but at least now he could act. However, he still couldn't feel the powers of the other archangels—Sandalphon, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, or Uriel.
"Now, it's time, Rei, to end this final battle." Lucifer's six pure white wings began to glow with a radiant energy.
One by one, the others besides Ferry also started glowing, transforming into orbs of power in their respective colors. These orbs swirled around and then flew toward Rei, merging with his wings.
Rei's six dark wings began to glow, each shifting into a distinct color: green, blue, red, black, white, and gold. As his wings transformed, his appearance changed too—a crown of roses and thorny vines appeared atop his head, entwining with his silver hair.
"Whoa, your wings are changing again!" Lyria² said, awestruck.
She'd seen Sandalphon's wings change before, but Rei's wings now held shades of gold and black that Sandalphon's did not.
"…Thank you, everyone," Rei murmured, feeling the surge of energy flowing through him.
He raised his right hand and called upon the weapon that Lucifer have.
"Efes."
A golden light appeared over his right hand, materializing into a sword made of golden stone. Rei gripped it firmly.
[IMAGE]
"A stone sword?" The others looked puzzled, never having seen such a weapon.
But Rei knew exactly what it was. This was the weapon Sandalphon had used in the side story when they fought against the Omnipotent Phoenix. Rei didn't know how Lucifer had it, but he wasn't going to question it. Despite its appearance, this sword felt stronger than any weapon he had wielded, even surpassing his regular Opus weapon.
"Are you all ready?" Rei asked, turning to the others.
"We're going to end this and go home." He looked at them, his determination clear.
Lyria, Lyria², Orchid, and Ferry exchanged glances before nodding, each face resolute.
"Of course we're ready!" they replied together.
With nothing left to say, Rei looked forward, gripping his sword tightly.
"Optimus Exalto Luminis," he invoked, and his sword responded, gathering radiant energy.
Rei's wings glowed, channeling their power into the sword, which grew brighter, trembling with the energy. When the power reached its peak, he swung the sword forward, slicing through the air before him.
Immediately, a rift appeared from the cut—a portal to where the culprit awaited.
Without a moment's hesitation, Rei stepped into the rift, with everyone following close behind.