"Mom... make sure you don't cry too much after we're gone," Klaus said to his mother, hugging her one last time before he and his friends set off for the academy.
The last few days had been spent with her. During that time, she had changed Klaus's hairstyle nine different times. Clearly, she was going to miss him dearly.
Luckily, today, two other mothers were present with him. Cynthia Ross and Grace Felin had decided to come to say their goodbyes to their children before they left.
Because of their presence, Klaus's mom refrained from crying her eyes out. However, Klaus, who was hugging her, could sense the subtle shifts in her body. She was definitely going to cry as soon as she got the chance.
"Make sure you come to visit me soon, okay?" his mom said, brushing her hand through his hair.
"I will, Mom. You don't have to worry too much. I'll be back before you know it," Klaus said, breaking the hug.
"Mothers-in-law, glad you're all here," Klaus said, looking at the two beautiful women before him. Just like Lily, her mom wasn't very voluptuous but was quite cute for someone her age.
She was a Sage, just like Cynthia Ross, but from the look of things, she didn't have any combat experience, unlike Cynthia Ross.
"Please help take care of my mother. She's a big old softy—ouch..." Klaus hadn't even finished speaking when his mom smacked him.
"Who are you calling an old softy? You'd better hurry and leave before I drag you to the academy myself," she said in a rather dull tone. Clearly, she was already missing her son.
"Fine. I'll leave so you can have time to cry," Klaus said before turning to Miriam and Ohema.
"You ladies shouldn't miss me too much. I know you're all obsessed with me, but it'd be best if you don't miss me too much," Klaus added with a grin.
Ohema had once again disguised her appearance, so besides Klaus, his friends, and his family, nobody else realized the richest person on Earth was standing beside them.
"Just leave..." Ohema said, turning her back to him. She was clearly holding back her emotions for now.
Klaus laughed and turned to Nadia, who was glaring at him with the eyes of a tigress. "Well... don't slack off if you want to get the good stuff soon."
Nadia's cheeks immediately turned red at his shameless remark. Klaus, of course, didn't mind her reaction. He then addressed the maids and security.
"You're all free to leave and pursue your ambitions if you wish. But since you've chosen to stay, I'll ask you to help take care of my old lady for me. She's a good woman, so make sure any old pervert with stupid ideas doesn't get to see the light of day."
"Don't worry, young master! We'll smack any pervert who tries to get funny ideas about Auntie," one of the maids said, clenching her fist.
"That's the spirit, Ren," Klaus said, pointing at the maid who'd spoken.
Everyone laughed at the shameless exchange.
While it might have seemed like a joke, it wasn't far from the truth. After the Oracle opening at Stone Valley, when Klaus's mom's identity had been made public, some men had indeed tried to court her.
In Klaus's eyes, no one was good enough for his mom. If any man dared to have funny ideas, He wouldn't hesitate to break every bone in their body.
Klaus had already made provisions for the maids and security. If they didn't slack off, some would become Sages, and even a few might ascend to Great Sages when they returned.
"Your two shadow demons should guard her well," Klaus said to Luna and Nuna, standing beside Nadia. They gave him a slight nod.
"Then we will be leaving now," Klaus said before kissing Ohema, Miriam, and Nadia. He climbed into the jet after hugging his mother and kissing her cheeks. Soon, Kofi took off, heading toward Union City.
Once they were gone, Miriam, Ohema, and Nadia moved to hug Klaus's mother, ensuring the woman didn't break down immediately. While they were trying to be supportive, they themselves were struggling emotionally.
Cynthia Ross looked at Grace Felin and smiled. "Looks like we will have to stay a little longer than anticipated."
"I guess so," Grace Felin replied.
Thus, without the two ladies knowing, they will end up spending half a year instead of the two weeks they originally planned.
Klaus, using his divine senses to observe the happenings from 150 kilometers away, smiled before withdrawing his senses. Clearly, his aura was a little too contagious.
"So this is it, huh? We're finally going to the academy," Danny said, his smile beaming with excitement.
"Yeah. Who would have thought we'd make it into the most prestigious warrior academy in the world?" Daniel added, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Well, from the way I see it, all of this was possible because of Klaus. Everything changed when we met him," Mark said, prompting the others to nod in agreement.
"What are you lunatics talking about? I wasn't the one who took the trials for you… You took them yourselves. This is your achievement, not mine," Klaus said, shaking his head. He couldn't believe his friends were trying to suck up to him.
"You don't get it, do you? Let me explain why we said that. From the day we met you, everything changed for us. Even though thousands of people called us geniuses, deep down, we knew we were nowhere near your level.
To us, you were someone we all wanted to measure up to.
Our so-called talents felt insignificant compared to your abilities. So, we started training harder, pushing ourselves beyond our limits, hoping that one day, we could stand on equal ground with you.
Of course, that was just wishful thinking. Every time we took one step forward, you leaped a thousand. But the point is, your presence in our lives made us stronger—far stronger than we ever thought we could be."
"Glad I could help. While you can never reach my level, I will ensure you all rise above everyone else. As my friends, it's only natural that you all become terrifying powerhouses," Klaus said with a teasing smile.
"Shameless... very shameless," Hanna said, shaking her head.
Even Kofi, who was piloting the jet, couldn't help but shake his head at his young master's shamelessness.
"So, what is the plan? The moment we enter the academy, we'll come face-to-face with the geniuses on Earth. Do you have any idea how you're going to approach it?" Daniel asked.
They all wanted to know.
"Glad you asked," Klaus started with an evil grin. "While I did promise Mom I'd take it easy, I think we all know that won't be the case, especially with all the talk about the mischief waiting for me.
"So, here's what I'm going to do. I will rule the entire academy, from the Outer Area to the mysterious Celestial Area.
"That said, you all will be joining the Yin-Yang Palace with me."