The Pillar shall hold Grace above all the heavens. The Pillar of Grace forever defies the heavens.
This was the passage carved onto the ancestral tablet of the House of Grace. It sat at the very centre of the entrance hall of the main mansion of the estate.
At most times, this tablet was nothing but a relic of the past. Its weathered stone seemed ready to crumble at the slightest breeze and yet the moment Caelum appeared, it began glowing.
Like a lively forest in a spring evening, a slight fog of light seemed to flow outward.
And with every step closer that Caelum took, the words inscribed upon the tablet would shine brighter and brighter until it looked no less than a holy sacrament.
Reynor's words echoed out from behind him as he still stood by the entrance along with Erta and Ceres.
"There has only ever been a few times that the ancestral tablet had been stirred awake in the history of the House of Grace. And the very first time was when you were born within these walls, my lord. And every time you would walk to the ancestral tablet, it would awaken."
Caelum stared at the tablet as he listened to Reynor's words.
This tablet was calling to him. It was a very intimate call that felt so close to the heart… no, to the soul. But why? Reynor's words seemed to imply that it only ever called to him. He felt as though the answer should be obvious, but it was just not clicking for him.
"There has only ever been one Pillar of Grace. And that has always been you, Lord Caelum. Your name is the symbol of our resolve and loyalty."
The voice he was used to hearing suddenly sounded shaky as though it was holding back emotions that threatened to burst out. Caelum was confused so he turned his head to look at Reynor only to find him kneeling.
Ceres and Erta had already moved further into the mansion and stood by the side as they too watched in surprise as not only Reynor, but several other people appeared to his back and knelt down. They seemed to all be servants of the House of Grace.
Then footsteps rang out from deeper within the mansion. Through the few doors that led to different parts of the main house from the entrance hall, many more people appeared.
There were more servants, yes. But there were also others who were not dressed like servants at all. In fact, their bearings were dignified and confident. And yet the moment they saw Caelum, they all knelt down not even sparing a glance at Ceres and Erta.
This was a truly shocking thing since everyone present should know that the House of Grace is matriarchal, yet not only did no one look at the current Matriarch, they even knelt to someone else in her presence.
Caelum had suddenly shifted back to his sharp coldness seeing this. Respect was something he valued highly despite how arrogant others may see him as. However before he could lash out, Reynor spoke again, seemingly sensing Caelum's thoughts.
"The House of Grace has always been led by the Matriarch for only a woman could care for the world like they were her own children. But the Pillar of Grace is the King who will lead us to our true purpose. The House of Grace was built in service of the Pillar of Grace, he who bears the weight of all while defying the very heavens themselves. We greet The Once and Future King."
""We greet The Once and Future King!""
Every single person who knelt down greeted their King with the greatest enthusiasm they could muster. They had all been waiting a long time. Even when they heard the news that Caelum had fallen into a coma, they never once doubted he would return.
After all, he was The Once and Future King.
Caelum remained silent as his gaze swept across everyone. His mind replaying the events of the Avalon dungeon. When he and Erta killed Fafnir, the knights of Camelot called him Arthur.
And when he met Morgan le Fay, she called him Arthur, The Once and Future King.
Could it be a coincidence? He quickly threw away the thought. How could such fantasy be in any way related to what was happening now.
"Rise. Tell me everything I need to know. The rest may return."
Everyone rose as one and left respectfully leaving only eleven people behind excluding Ceres, Erta and Reynor.
Reynor nodded to the group of eleven as he walked to Caelum's side. And the group, in turn, walked toward Ceres and Erta and bowed before them, finally showing the respect they had failed to give earlier.
Or more precisely, they could not afford to pay respects to the two when the Pillar of Grace had been their priority. Reynor spoke for them as he saw Caelum's coldness dull a little.
"Your Majesty, the ancestral tablet is a relic created by the Ancestor of Grace."
Hearing these words, Caelum turned an inquisitive gaze toward Reynor.
According to Ciel, the Ancestor of Grace has never been born in the Myriad Worlds before. This was why they found it troublesome that Ceres' abilities will be practically crippled until the Ancestor of Grace is born and baptised her.
And yet Reynor was contradicting this very same fact. He knew that he could trust Reynor's words, but at the same time, he trusted Ciel with all his heart.
If a father could not give his absolute confidence to his own daughter, then who else in existence will? And while Ciel was deeply moved by this sentiment, Caelum could only doubt Reynor. Or at the very least, he doubted whether he knew the difference between the ancestor of the House of Grace and the Ancestor of Grace.
"I understand your misgivings, Your Majesty. But I assure you, your questions will be answered."
Reynor faced the ancestral tablet and clasped his hands together as though in prayer. The glass that encased the tablet for protection suddenly lowered into the gaps of the podium it sat upon.
And as the ancestral tablet felt the air once again, it shone even brighter than before. Caelum could feel its call to him growing stronger, but not forceful. It was something familiar, a feeling that he himself had felt before. It was like the tablet wanted to return home.
Unable to stand the urge, Caelum let his hand reach for the tablet. His skin gently brushed the surface of the aged stone which he expected to be cold yet felt so warm instead.
And then, the light of the tablet seemed to rush toward him. They carried emotions and visions that he found intriguing. And Reynor's voice seemed to guide his mind into seeing what it was he needed to see.
"The House of Grace was created by the Ancestor of Grace who travelled from a distant abyss in order to bring blessings and miracles upon the mortals of the Myriad Worlds. They created this tablet to be the guiding light of the House of Grace.
The words inscribed upon it are not wishes or prophecies. They are a promise. The Ancestor of Grace left to shower blessings upon the Myriad Worlds, but their promise remained with us.
The Ancestor of Grace shall return to lead the House of Grace to our true purpose. To fight in the war against the very heavens themselves. The tablet contains a wisp of the power of the Ancestor of Grace which will only stir and awaken for the Pillar of Grace.
Because the Pillar of Grace is the the Ancestor of Grace."
Caelum saw fragmented visions. They were memories of times long passed. Despite not having been there, everything he saw was familiar to him.
An expanse of black littered with more clouds of red, blue, yellow and everything in between that even the ones he saw in the Imaginary Space might pale in comparison. It slowly drew farther and farther away as though in an escape… or perhaps exile.
Then there was a darkness that seemed to devour even the blackness of space itself. He could not see anything beyond it, but the memory brought with it both guilt and resolve.
Then there was a memory of a star being plucked out from the vastness of space. It shone so brightly that he felt his heart swell with unconditional love and joy. And from that star, he created beings who shone just as bright. Their very presence became a light that blesses all. And he left them with nothing but a stone tablet and a promise to return.
His heart was again gripped by deep ache. There were many more memories in between, but those three stood out the most to Caelum.
At some point, he had already accepted the memories as his own. His mind that had once been washed clean by eternity had now been filled with memories he could not believe he had lost.
He did not feel as though he had changed even with the recollection of these memories. In the first place, he knew quite well that the memories were incomplete. Not to mention memories of after he left the tablet to the first generation of the House of Grace, even the memories before that time were fragmented.
But it felt to him that even if that was not the case, even if he had gained the full memories, he would not have changed at all.
It made him wonder why when the Red Moon recognised him as its master did his disposition change while this did not. He felt that the answer lay in something still greater than the revelation of his past life, or lives, something rooted in the existence of the Red Moon itself.
But that was something for him to find out in the future. Because at that moment, although he had not changed, it did not mean that he was not affected by the memories at all.
In fact, he was livid.
In an instant, the bright golden light of the tablet seemed to have dulled as a thick black mist leaked out of Caelum's body. Erta already noticed his odd reaction the moment he touched the tablet, but something told her not to interfere.
Her senses were telling her that even if it was her, Caelum would not hesitate to harm her if she ever tried to stand in his way at this moment. And Ciel's words, which echoed throughout the estate, only proved her instincts correct.
[Warning! The fourth wing has been forcefully unsealed.]
[Requirements for unsealing have not been met.]
[The Wing of Immolation is rampaging. Evacuate immediately.]
Erta immediately took action, grabbing Ceres' arm and flying out of the estate. Noticing her movements, the group of retainers followed right after her with grim expressions. The rest of the House of Grace present within the estate all rushed outside as well.
The boundary of the estate itself was protected by a barrier that acted like a wall. No attacks of a certain power could reach inside, and no attacks from inside could reach outside if they did not permit it.
Erta watched as all members of the House of Grace gathered outside quickly, clearly showing their abundance of training. However, even then she found it odd.
She did not believe that not even a single one of them would have been able to escape in a timely manner, not with the amount of power and danger that Caelum was exuding. Erta did not know what had happened, but she was certain that he would have erupted before even half of them could reach outside the barrier.
The fact that he did not only told her that he still had control over himself, that this was not him fully breaking down and succumbing to his madness. And when she noticed that Reynor was not among those who had escaped, her heart tightened.
For a moment, she felt extremely disgusted with herself for actually running away from her own husband.
Her instincts told her that she would die if she interfered, but would she really? Would Caelum ever hurt his own wife? No matter how dangerous he was, Erta always knew the answer.
Even without the Life Covenant, he will never harm even a single hair on her body. And that fact only made the realisation hurt her more.
All this time, she thought she trusted him completely. She thought she had left her life in his hands. But no. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she never managed to completely give herself to him. She gave everything… except for that last sliver of trust because she feared the betrayal that might come from doing so. The very same betrayal that she had been so furious about just hours ago.
But now, she realised that it was not that Caelum had betrayed her. Even if he never said it out loud, Erta knew that he must have figured it out a long time ago.
And perhaps that was why he looked at her with pity. Because from the very beginning, she was never really committed. She had deluded herself into falling in love with him to justify her actions, and he let her do so.
And even when he trusted her with his everything, he never really expected her to do the same. He already knew that it was not going to happen. He had accepted it just as he had accepted the pain that the world was causing him.
Erta had betrayed Caelum from the very beginning. The moment it hit her like an avalanche, she shot back into the estate leaving a trail of golden flames behind her.
Meanwhile, Reynor stood worriedly to Caelum's back. He too had heard Ciel's words. And although he feared for his life, he did not dare leave Caelum alone.
He did not know what happened to Caelum after the latter touched the ancestral tablet, but he did not have the leisure to guess. He could only remain by his side in case something bad happens. And that was when he heard Caelum's cold voice echo out.
"You are a mere wisp. How dare you run away from your owner."
The dull light of the tablet seemed to tremble within the dark mist. Then Caelum pushed his outstretched arm forward slightly.
Space cracked before his hand. It shattered like glass, the noise of which seemed to grate at Reynor's very soul.
Caelum's hand reached forward and disappeared through the crack before coming back out. In his grasp was a golden light that seemed despondent and weak. Reynor quickly recognised it as the wisp of power that the Ancestor of Grace left behind.