"Hello, Sylvia." Amara said warmly, her smile genuine.
Then, her gaze flicked back to the ornate wall clock. "Alright now," she announced, a hint of impatience entering her voice, "we’ll give Christopher ten more minutes. Not a second longer."
Katherine, however, frowned, her eyes fixed on the digital display of her wristwatch. "But Mum," she pointed out, "there’s still fifteen minutes left."
Amara folded her arms, her earlier smile vanishing. "That doesn’t give him an excuse to be late," she stated firmly, a slight furrow appearing between her brows.
[Back To Christopher.]
An immense wave of raw energy exploded outwards from Christopher, slamming into the four Beasts and sending them skidding back a good five feet.
"Phew..." Tiamat breathed, a small, relieved smile gracing her lips as she watched Christopher slowly open his eyes.
Christopher stared at his clenched fist, a look of utter disbelief washing over his face. "I can’t believe it," he murmured, "I actually got all my skills back."
"Indeed, a wonderful development," Tiamat added, her gaze softening slightly. "And you even managed to acquire two of my more... interesting abilities."
Christopher pushed himself to his feet, his eyes sweeping across the dimly lit cave. "Why don’t we put them to the test?" he suggested, a confident smile spreading across his face.
Tiamat’s spectral form solidified slightly, a hint of exasperation in her voice. "You utter fool! You have precisely ten minutes to get to dinner! Are you truly prepared to face your mother’s wrath?" A visible shiver ran down her spine.
Christopher’s smile widened into a smirk. "Oh? Are you perhaps... scared of her?" he teased.
"Your mother may dote on you, but her temper is legendary," Tiamat countered, a genuine tremor in her voice. "I still remember that incident with the-"
"Alright, alright," Christopher interrupted, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "This is perfect! I can test out one of the skills I just got from you."
He took a deliberate step forward and stomped his foot firmly on the cave floor. Instantly, water surged upwards, swirling and coalescing around his body like a protective shroud.
"Come on," he said, his smile now radiating confidence as he turned to the four beasts behind him. "Let’s go."
The four dissolved into streaks of vibrant light, flying directly into the rings on his fingers. With one last look around the ancient cave, the swirling water completely enveloped Christopher.
The water crashed back down onto the cave floor, leaving no trace of Christopher.
"That pigheaded fool!" Tiamat grumbled, her spectral arms crossed. "He just left without me!" She then turned, her ethereal gaze drifting around the cavern. "Hmm... I suppose I will miss this place, in a strange sort of way."
With that, she too vanished, leaving the cave in profound silence.
[Valhalla family’s estate.]
"That boy!! Where in the seven heavens is he?!" Amara’s voice echoed through the elegant sitting room, her eyes glued to the ticking clock on the wall.
"Two more minutes!" she exclaimed, her frustration palpable.
Sylvia leaned towards Advika, a perplexed expression on her face. "I don’t understand," she whispered, "why is she so worked up?"
Advika whispered back, equally puzzled. "I have no idea... This dinner must be incredibly important."
Katherine, who was sitting closest to them, offered an explanation. "Yes... To my mother, it’s more than just important."
Sylvia’s curiosity grew. "What will happen if Christopher is actually late?" she asked softly.
Katherine chuckled, a knowing glint in her eyes. "Fufufu... She’s not really upset, not in the way you think. She’s just... missing big brother. The moment she sees him, you’ll see how quickly her expression can change."
"Oh," Sylvia and Advika said in unison, a flicker of understanding dawning on their faces.
"It seems the madam is angry," Ricky, the head of Christopher’s personal guard, muttered, leaning casually against the white fountain in the villa’s compound.
One of the four bodyguards beside him offered a different perspective. "No, not angry. Just... worried."
"Maybe," Ricky conceded with a sigh, then turned his attention to the ten heavily armed individuals standing a few meters away. "Those guys are security from Sky Auction, right?" he asked.
The only woman in their group nodded in confirmation.
Ricky rolled his eyes dismissively. "Low Elite level tamers? What can they possibly do? I’m stronger than most of them." He scoffed and looked away.
"They’ll only be here for a day or two at most," another bodyguard commented. "Besides, the boss isn’t exactly someone we can... protect in the conventional sense, or even keep tabs on."
"True," the fourth bodyguard agreed. "Ever since he woke up, he’s been disappearing without a word. Makes you wonder why we even bother trying to follow him."
"Exactly!" the fifth exclaimed. "How are we supposed to guard someone who can suddenly shoot into the sky riding an eagle? I say we just stand here, look intimidating, and collect our salaries."
The five bodyguards and ten security personnel all snapped their heads to the side, their eyes widening as a column of water materialized out of thin air near the villa gates, shooting upwards like a geyser.
And then, as the water cascaded back down, there he was. Christopher stepped out from the dissipating three-meter-tall pillar of water, his arms casually folded behind his back, a serene expression on his face.
"Why do we even bother?" the female bodyguard repeated with a sigh of resignation.
"If he can do something like that," another bodyguard muttered in disbelief, "how in the hell are we supposed to guard him?"
Ricky straightened up, a newfound sense of acceptance in his eyes. "Alright, new plan. We stand here, we look alert, and we only act if he specifically asks us to. If he doesn’t say anything, we enjoy the peace and quiet and the hefty paycheck."
"How are you all doing?" Christopher asked, a friendly smile gracing his lips as he approached them.
"Oh. Hmm... Good, Boss," Ricky replied, then couldn’t resist asking, "Boss, how did you...?" He gestured vaguely towards the disappearing water.
"Oh, that?" Christopher chuckled. "Just a new skill I was testing out."
He smiled at them again, gave a brief nod to the ten security personnel, and then turned to walk towards the grand entrance of the villa.
"One more thing," he said, stopping and turning back to the Sky Auction guards. "You guys can head out. I already used the item."
With that, he disappeared inside, leaving the ten men staring at each other in utter confusion.
"Did you four sense anything... different about him?" Ricky asked his fellow bodyguards.
All five nodded in unison.
"He’s... significantly stronger than us," they said, their voices filled with a mixture of awe and bewilderment.
’What sort of pressure was that?!’ the captain of the Sky Auction security team thought, his heart still pounding. ’I didn’t even see him properly, and I felt like a demon was staring right through me.’
He addressed his team:
"You heard him. Let’s move out and report back to Madam Sky."
He climbed into the armored vehicle waiting behind them, and the rest of the team followed, their minds still reeling.