The next morning, Caelum and Erta went to meet Reynor in the same café as before.
The gazes of every single person were directed at them. Some even tried to walk up to them to strike a conversation, but neither of the two were in the mood. They were already a pair of antisocials, but today, the atmosphere around them was especially heavy.
The moment they arrived in the café, Reynor was already waiting for them.
"Good morning, my lord, my lady. I hope you had a good rest."
"Good morning. What did you want to talk about?"
The two sat down and ordered tea. Just from this alone, it was obvious to Reynor that they were not in the best of moods. The other customers, however, did not.
They continued to watch Caelum and Erta with great interest, with some even taking pictures a little more blatantly than before. Reynor just sighed and proceeded with their talk.
"There is a matter that you might find troubling, my lord."
"What is it?"
"The GA wants to inspect the island that remained from the dungeon. And by that I mean they will excavate and study it like dissecting a frog."
"So what does that have to do with me?"
"Well, that island is yours, my lord. Everyone who had seen your battle would agree that you have claim over it. But the GA had already positioned themselves around it to prevent anyone from approaching the island. They say it was to protect the world."
"Protect the world from what? A flower growing in the middle of a river? How stupid..."
Erta, who was usually silent, could not help but retort. She was not angry about the fact that someone was trying to lay claim on what should be theirs. Instead, she was annoyed at the pathetic excuse of a justification they provided.
"Well, they can go ahead and try. In the first place, the island isn't mine. That's the remnant of Morgan le Fay's Avalon. It contains a large portion of her power. No one will be able to set foot on it unless they are permitted to by Morgan le Fay herself."
"What? There's such a thing? …But how were you able to?"
"Because I have Morgan le Fay's power. I may not be in control of it, but Avalon at least recognizes its master's power. It's the same for Erta."
"Good. Then there's no need to worry about it. This matter truly is very peculiar, my lord. I'm afraid a simple bodyguard like me wouldn't be able to handle everything."
"You're doing a good job, Reynor. To be honest, I owe you a lot for acting as my manager. I'll definitely repay you some time in the future. Is there anything else?"
Caelum finished drinking his tea while they talked about the dungeon. He realised that it was not the only thing Reynor wanted to talk about since he asked to meet.
Reynor even wanted to meet in private, away from the prying eyes of the public, but Caelum could not be bothered. Just when he thought that a more troublesome topic was about to come up, Erta asked a question.
"How are the avatars that entered the dungeon?"
"You mean the Chosen? They are all fine now, my lady. In fact, they were asking to meet you since they never got to thank you last night."
"That's good to hear. Thank you."
Caelum was a little surprised to see her speaking to someone else other than him, but he was happy nonetheless. His happiness was short-lived, however, as Reynor began speaking again, this time with a more serious expression.
"My lord, do you still remember the lineage of the House of Grace?"
"Of course, I do. It's one of the only things I remember clearly. We are descended from an ancient Queendom. That's why even until today, the House of Grace is matriarchal."
"Correct, my lord. But allow me expound on that.
The history of the House of Grace extends much farther back than that of any organisation in this world. It survived for countless years while remaining in relative obscurity.
The House of Grace had no intention of conquering other lands, only to survive and thrive. After long years, their territory had grown small and many vassals had left and forgotten about them, becoming what it is now.
But somewhere along that history, royal families from the many nations of this world had been connected by blood through the House of Grace. Do you understand what I'm saying, my lord?"
"We're royalty. We've known this for a long time, so what's the point?"
"The point is that the Aegon royal family is currently tugging at some very old strings. More specifically, the Crown Princess Margaret Aegon."
Caelum felt his head growing heavy. No matter how this conversation went, he was sure that what awaited him was only more headache.
"So they found out who I am…. Do I have to meet her? We don't even know each other?"
"The decision is yours, my lord. Though if I may give my opinion on the matter, it would probably be easiest if you met her once and ended it there. Otherwise, they may keep pestering you and even Lady Ceres."
"Alright, fine. Damn them. They're not even letting me take a break."
"My lord, the power of Halo and all the vassals of the House of Grace is at your disposal if you so need it."
"Good. Then set the date for next week. I have things to do in the meantime."
Caelum and Erta left immediately after their talk. They did not even bother hiding their identities as they spread out their wings and flew away right in front of the café.
The world had already heard their names anyway. Their destination was the island that remained after the destruction of Morgan le Fay's dungeon. They did not have any business with the GA soldiers who were barricading the perimeter so they just landed right on the island.
[You there! Stop what you're doing and leave! This area is under the jurisdiction of the Global Alliance! If you do not comply, we will be forced to subdue you.]
Caelum and Erta did not even glance at them. They were focused on the island, what was left of Avalon. Even now, they could not fathom how the dungeon had managed to both create an entirely different world and even hasten the flow of time within.
Such things should be impossible for a mere dungeon. The only thing they could of that could do that are realms, but that was far beyond their current levels.
They walked around as they felt the power within the island. The flower at the centre seemed to have the greatest concentration of Morgan le Fay's power, or more accurately, that strange energy that flowed through the dragon veins.
Judging from what Caelum had obtained from Morgan le Fay, they had a good idea as to what that energy was. But it was still a wonder how someone like her managed to acquire the ability to wield it.
As Caelum reached a hand out to the flower, it reacted. Like a sunflower, it faced toward him and seemed to resonate with something within him.
"That's a tremendous amount of power. Even with the power she used to summon the dragon, it can't compare to what she stored here. Do you think you can use it?"
"I think so…, but not now. I need more time to grow my own strength fully digest the power I took from her."
"Her soul… it seems there are things that cannot be shared even with the Life Covenant."
"I'm sorry. I might learn how someday."
"No, I'm not saying that to make you feel bad, Honey. In the first place, the power of the Divine Obelisk isn't suited to controlling souls, but nurturing them. So that soul will forever remain with you."
[If you don't leave the island in the next five seconds, then we will open fire!]
The voice of an angry man rang out. The two finally looked at the soldiers on either side of the river. They were all aiming their guns, probably created through mana engineering, at them. Sighing, Erta asked Caelum with a low voice.
"Which side do you want?"
"I'll take the idiot shouting at us."
Erta was certainly quite angry as she immediately flew toward the side near the ruins of Sylven. The soldiers did not even have time to realise what was happening as they got beaten up.
Caelum thought she was dancing beautifully even though she was really holding back just enough not to kill them. The soldiers on the other side seemed to have realised that they could not talk it out anymore and began shooting bullets made of monster materials at Caelum.
He was initially planning on just beating them up like Erta, but since they actually shot at him, he got even more furious.
His colourless wing covered his entire body like translucent armour. The bullets were all absorbed into it and disappeared without even reaching his clothes.
When the soldiers stopped firing either because they were reloading or they realised that it was futile, Caelum's black wing appeared and swept the air in front of him.
The hundreds of bullets that disappeared within his white wing appeared once again. This time, they flew toward the soldiers that shot them.
Not a single person was left uninjured by his counterattack. They all had their hands, feet, arms or legs pierced by a bullet. Caelum quickly flew over to the man who shouted angrily at them earlier and grabbed his neck before speaking even louder with mana.
[If you want to talk, be more polite. We won't be so merciful next time. The Global Alliance has no claim to this island. But you may try to study it if you want. That is if you can even set foot on it. Be careful not to die. It's quite sensitive to intruders.]
Once he was done talking, he threw the man toward his soldiers. That alone would have broken a few more of their bones so Caelum was satisfied.
He had no qualms about hurting or even killing these people. In the first place, the moment they pointed their guns at him and Erta, they were already considered traitors by the two.
That was because avatars are the representatives of the world anchors. And being the only avatar with a direct connection to the Imaginary Tree, Caelum status was like that of a True Avatar.
Caelum and Erta quickly left the scene and returned home. Unfortunately for the Global Alliance, there were people who saw what happened. Word spread fast and the GA was criticised heavily. They were forced to give up on the island and even made a public apology at a press conference.
Of course, the main characters of this minor incident were not even paying any attention to it. They had more pressing matters to deal with.