Avery noticed the ring on her finger stopped its series of bright pulses and began to glow with a vibrant molten red. She felt something responding to her.

Avery stroked the ring with her finger before speaking, “...Ira.”

The Godsteel ring and the Godsteel weapons in her possession were things that came about from her desires and her divinity itself. For the weapons, her Divinity chose a form that was the most adequate for itself which led to a longsword and a shield. The rings were part of a subconscious desire of Avery’s. It may have been some type of concern for Ira and a need of reassurance that he was alive since he often fought without care.

Raveria was sleeping on the bed next to Avery and constantly turned about. Avery gently caressed Raveria’s face before moving to stand up.

They were back at the Valkyries Hall and were in the process of moving all of their essential items. If it was something important, they would take it to the spatial door which led to the desert. From there, the Dark Elves would transport it to the teleportation array that led to the Free City where the arrays that lead to each country were stationed. It was quite a long process but it would be difficult to have the Valkyries fly all their things to the Underground City.

…

Ira took a step inside the ruined temple but the ring on his hand began to glow brightly before slowly dimming and maintaining a molten reddish color. He was confused and then seemed to realize its purpose. Although he couldn’t quite remember the exact location of the continent due to his mind going out of control, he could easily return with wind manipulation and a bit of guessing. He would’ve left at that moment but he saw the Lares as the biggest possible threat. They could teleport and could see into the future which meant they pose a threat at some point.

Then, a loud and pained roar caught his attention as some emerged from the debris of the temple.

“MORTAL!” A large dragon with dark blue scales and greenish eyes that voiced its fury with a bellowing shout that echoed through the city.

As it took to the skies almost everyone dropped to their knees and began praying for the Dragon God to calm down and show mercy, though such a thing was unlikely. Most Dragons were arrogant and prideful beings that were quick to anger. If only half the city was destroyed it would be considered a blessing.

Ira stretched his arm out and made a swiping motion and then a black line cut through the air. It caused distortions in the space around it but it arrived in less than a second. The Dragon which served as a symbol of power was beheaded without being able to resist. Its head and body plummeted to the ground and landed with a heavy impact.

Ira kicked the severed Dragon’s head, that was at least three times his size, away. Gathered inside of the temple were worshippers who bore witness to the horrific sight of their "God" being killed in front of them. Not only that, but they also suffered through the destructive tempest that demolished the entire Temple.

Among the group were several children who had familiar features to the dragon Ira killed. They were still processing what happened and didn’t seem to fully comprehend it. Ira approached them with a smile on his face but they backed up against the wall in fear. He didn’t seem to care and stopped in front of them before kneeling so he was eye level.

“So that was your dad? Well, here...cheer up.” Ira waved his hand and produced a handful of pastries from thin air before giving the kids one each.

He then stood up and leaped through the broken ceiling of the temple, leaving the bewildered and frightened temple inhabitants behind.

…

A day later and some incredible news was spreading throughout the continent. A young man had stormed a temple and killed a Dragon without the slightest bit of trouble. There were doubts at first but there were also too many eyewitness accounts to disregard it. The strangest part was the fact that the young man had no connection with the Heretics who were in the middle of an uprising against the Dragons. Even though the Dragon killed was quite weak compared to the others in the Dragon’s Heart Province, it didn’t allow them to relax.

Even the heretics who wanted to topple the Dragons felt tense when thinking of how to deal with the dangerous individual.

Inside of a rundown wooden building, the leading figures of the heretical movement had gathered together.

A man with a heroic face and short black hair was at the head of a meeting table. He was known as Virgil and someone who was seen as the leader of the humans who were part of the uprising as well as one of its main figures. To the right of him was a beautiful woman with silver hair and blue eyes as well as a pair of fox-like ears on her head. She served as a representative to her ancestor who assisted the uprising. To his left was an extremely tall, muscular, red-headed man with tanned skin that was covered in scars. He was from a race called the Haykul. They were most known for their strength and eagerness to fight which often led to Dragons using them as forms of entertainment.

In attendance were several Valkyries native to the continent, a handful of Sidera, and one Naiad. Although most of the Higher Races were pretending to be Gods it was natural others disagreed. The Valkyries were different though, they only wanted to fight and better battles were to be found on the losing side in their eyes.

“So...What you’re saying is...Your ancestor has already seen the one who killed the Dragon, correct?” Virgil asked carefully.

“It’s as you said, Human.” The Vulpes woman answered.

“Didn’t you say it was the same for you, small one?” The towering Haykul man questioned Virgil.

“Yes...If her story is true then one of my contacts received him in a mining town on the Dragon’s Wing province. He killed a Blessed One and caused the entire town to flee out of fear of persecution but no one has spared a thought toward them since he killed a Dragon.” Virgil answered.

“Hmmm...I’d be eager to fight with him if only once. There aren’t many among us who can kill a dragon so easily.” A Valkyrie spoke with a fervent desire to battle with Ira.

“I feel a bit similar, small winged one. This human over here said that he crushed the head of a Blessed One and I can tell you, most of them have strong skeletons.” The Haykul man said as he grinned, flashing his teeth.

“That isn’t wise...Even my ancestor didn’t want to deal with him. There’s also the fact that he’s said to be able to make storms that can tear through a God’s Temple.” The Vulpes woman interrupted.

“If he’s that great, then why isn’t he here?” A Valkyrie asked.

“...Well, not only did the people in that mining town I mention try to get him killed but he may have killed several of the people we had stationed in the Dragon’s Wing Capital.” Virgil spoke with a darkened expression.

“So?” The Naiad finally spoke.

“So, that means he probably sees us and those Dragons in the same light. He could be a great help to us or a huge threat depending on how we approach him.” Virgil sighed to himself.

There was a period of silence where each of them contemplated how to get Ira on their side but nothing came to fruition.

“For now, I’ll see if some of my people can track him though it’ll be hard.” The Vulpes woman spoke.

The others nodded and the meeting concluded soon after. It was impossible for them to know that they had a few things wrong with Ira’s motives and his view of them. His hostility could best be described as something that was subject to change in an instant. For example, he didn’t need to kill the Dragon after he gained knowledge of the continent but he did it because he simply felt like doing so.

…

Back in the Grenitian Kingdom, the Fourth Prince was busy contending with a huge amount of reports. On the outside, it appeared as Ira had gone missing or even died in the desert and the Valkyries movements made the latter very likely in the eyes of others. It was clear the Valkyries would no longer stay inside the Grenitian Kingdom and without them, any sense of security against invaders was gone. Now, all the Kingdom had was the artifacts and rare materials they received from other countries but no one like Ira who could act as a natural deterrent.

Of course, there was a young man named Randolph who was said to have the blessing of a God but it would take time to train him. After the fight with the Behemoth finished, Cyprian Aurell came back to the capital to train Randolph.

Though the most important piece of information was Ira’s possible connection to the Black Pillar. After witnessing him lose control in the desert it was harder to call it a possibility and more of a definite. There was no way to get the Valkyries to confirm it but the evidence was present.

Leonard leaned into his chair and rubbed his eyes exhaustedly before moving onto the last piece of info. The First Prince Hayden who had lost most of his support base after being confined to his room had finally been let out. Many expected him to be distraught but the First Prince was completely calm, often seen walking around with a satisfied grin.

“I’ll have to watch him,” Leonard spoke to himself. He was suspicious but he had no way of knowing the First Prince was constantly maintaining contact with the Tel’vians.