Chapter 118: Will You Tell Me?

Érica walked through the academy dining room and approached the table where Leslie, Dalia, Clémentine, and Nicole were sitting.

“It’s nice to be back,” she muttered, giving an inevitable sigh, and sat down with them.

“Is it? Why doesn’t it seem so?” Leslie asked, looking closely at Érica’s figure.

“You look like someone who hasn’t slept for weeks,” Nicole added with a strange expression.

Érica blinked at those words and in response gave a half-smile.

Perhaps if it were earlier, she would have focused on fixing those imperfections so they wouldn’t be noticeable, but right now, it was impossible to take the time to devote to her appearance.

Still...

“Do I look that bad?” murmured Érica doubtfully and pulled a mirror from her space ring.

In the reflection was a young woman with a frazzled expression, obvious dark circles under her eyes, and slightly unkempt hair.

It was obvious to the others that she was exhausted and the reason was simple when one thought that she used to devote a lot of time to her appearance.

“It’s the academy backlog’s fault. No, it was my fault, too. If I wasn’t enrolled in so many classes I wouldn’t end up like this,” Érica explained with a long sigh.

She had signed up for several classes and that meant that when she got back; she had to catch up on them.

Doing the experiments in the alchemy class, solving the magic problems in the magic class, and catching up with the other classes and their respective projects and assignments, all in just a few days.

Missing a month of classes at the academy was undoubtedly too stressful and more so in some heavy or hands-on classes, like the alchemy class was.

The academy let her delay pass, as it was personal training, however, the responsibilities were not taken away from them, but delayed and now she needed to catch up, reducing her sleep hours.

“Do you want a little help? Maybe I can cheer you up a bit using magic,” commented a voice at their back and as they turned, Cithrel giving a smile added. “It’s just a trick to revitalize your body so you won’t feel tired.”

“Please...” Érica asked in a respectful tone.

She had met the Princess of the Falion Empire when she arrived a couple of days ago and even though she was introduced to her, she still wasn’t used to this woman.

It wasn’t the beauty, manners, or status that caused some nervousness in Érica, it was the prestige of an Archimage of S-Rank and greater than an entire Terranovian.

Cithrel was not skilled in single magic but could use multiple magics and the control, coupled with the ability, was very high, leading to her being an expert among experts.

Pure talent that was admirable, and Érica watched as Cithrel waved her hand, spreading a gentle breeze.

The way the breeze surrounded Érica revitalizing her body and filling it with energy as if she had had a wonderful dream, was as perfect as it was wonderful.

“I infused magical energy into your body directly, allowing you to regain your energy,” Cithrel explained with a smile as she saw Érica looking at her, intrigued.

Excellent control over a third party’s body... At that thought, Érica nodded, realizing that Cithrel was an S-rank healing mage.

Quite normal for Terranovians whose world was dangerous and they couldn’t always get items to heal themselves.

“Aurora and Alice aren’t coming today, either. Though if they wish, I can help you train. Venali and Edward seem to train with another group, and I’m sure they’ll be busy to give you guys a turn,” Cithrel said and calmly asked. “How about, are you guys interested in training with me?”

Such words surprised the listening group, and Érica looked at her companions, encouraging her to agree.

Edward and Venali were the ones in charge of helping the students train and since there were many students, it was difficult for them to train everything.

Which meant that an opportunity to face someone like Cithrel was unique and would help them with their training.

Unlike what Érica expected, her classmates were slightly reluctant, especially Dalia and Nicole, who were hesitant.

“Is it okay for us to fight you?” Dalia asked with a hard expression.

Was it okay to fight against a princess of the Falion Empire? Such a doubt Dalia was having.

What if they hurt the princess of the mighty otherworldly empire? Would there be tensions? While such doubts were normal, the problem was that to have her; they had to be able to hurt the princess.

And Érica doubted the group could hurt a Terranovian Archimage of S-rank.

“If I’m honest, I’m bored,” Cithrel replied and with an amused smile, she assured. “And I’m confident in my abilities.”

A simple answer that made the whole group nod and retreat to prepare their equipment and strategy, after all, it wasn’t as if they could back her into a corner.

While Alice was missing, who was the strongest member of the group, no one wanted to depend on her and it was for that reason that they wanted to test their limits.

Érica liked the effort they were putting in and she put on a smile until the students left, leaving her with Cithrel.

Left alone, she couldn’t hold her curiosity.

“Do you know when Aurora will be back?” Érica asked with a curious tone.

Aurora was someone who kept secrets and during the month of practice, everyone in the group realized that she and Alice kept secrets and were more than they seemed.

That she took a few days after the official announcement from the church was a matter that caught the attention of the group and since they respected both sisters, no one dared to ask them directly about the reason.

They did not want to force them to talk and even though they were friends; they were no longer part of the mercenary group and classified matters could not be revealed so easily.

Asking her and putting her in an awkward position was not pleasant, and no one wanted to do that.

This was the fourth day they had been absent, and it was already approaching the day of the tournament and the visit the Cosmos Company, as well as the official announcement.

“I don’t know. Actually, these days we’ve been living in Africa and although I see her frequently, she’s always working,” Cithrel explained and, with a half-smile, murmured. “It’s hard to ask her when she has that serious look on her face.”

Érica could understand what she was referring to.

The serious look Aurora had when she worked made anyone feel like an underling, not daring to ask her what was going on or if she needed anything.

She had to admit it was tricky to question someone with that expression.

Receiving a message from the group that they were ready, both moved.

******

In Zerzura’s meeting room, Aurora was present, listening intently.

“We have already started the project to upgrade our homing devices. If anything happens within the city’s area of influence, we will know about it,” General McLean said and with a sigh, added. “However, it will take time for us to identify it as effectively as we do temporary dungeons or randomly appearing creatures.”

“It’s normal. We are facing new portals...” Cardinal Brousseau added with a sigh.

Portals.

That was what humanity was about to face.

Portals that could appear anywhere in the world and of which they did not have enough information to locate.

According to the little information the church could get, these portals would be related to ‘Chaos’ and would be an issue that mankind would have to face.

The problem was that they did not know where they would appear or where they were directed, and the possibilities were endless.

The arrival of the ‘Abyssal Portals’ was near, and the name in itself was ominous.

“The response from the God of Time and Space was simple, ‘The Abyssal Portals are inevitable.’ That was what the Supreme Pontiff informed us. I’m sure the other churches have gotten the same answer.” Cardinal Brousseau said earnestly.

Aurora, who was listening, put on a solemn expression.

That answer she had just given her was not in the reports that had reached her and it was obvious that it was confidential information from the core of the Church of Time and Space, which the Cardinal was sharing with them.

“The dimensional barrier of this world is slowly weakening. The number of dungeons appearing every day is more frequent and the magical energy is slowly rising without us noticing. That is a sign of what is coming. That we will connect to other worlds is inevitable, just as it happened when the demons arrived some time ago and these ‘Abyssal Portals’, regardless of where they take us or what they bring, will be a situation we must solve,” a gray-white-haired man intervened, looking at those present, he announced. “Let’s stop talking about ‘gods’ and get to work.”

The dimensional barrier covering this world was weakening.

Such information was a fact and the biggest proof was the frequency of dungeon spawns year after year.

Before humanity had connected with other races, whether it was the demons who came through the portals or the Terranovians who came through the guidance of the Church of Time and Space.

“Just as James says. Let’s leave the questions and reasons for those who have time. It doesn’t matter if it’s a test, a sign, or whatever it is that those above are doing.” Said the Minister of Zerzura, pointing to the sky and with seriousness, determined. “Now we are facing portals whose names are not pleasant and whose danger we do not know. We must prepare ourselves for any circumstances.”

The problem was present regardless of the reason and now they had to prepare to prevent that any danger.

They all nodded and took their leave to go about their own tasks.

They had already arranged the jobs they were each to perform and preparations appropriate to the situation were being made.

It seemed simple, but it was a complex task that would mobilize most of Zerzura.

Aurora, who had been at the meeting since it had started, could only sigh for these hard-working individuals.

“Exhausted?” Cardinal Brousseau asked when they were left alone.

“Yes. It was exhausting, but worth it,” Aurora replied with complete honesty.

The individuals who had been at the meeting were the ‘heavy hitters’ of all of Zerzura and they held enormous authority.

The plans, preparations, and projects that were discussed at this meeting would determine the future of the city and what Aurora liked was that these people didn’t beat around the bush and were looking for efficiency.

Although the meeting was long, different topics were discussed and among them, Aurora could get some benefits of her own.

“Did you think they would refuse your request?” Cardinal Brousseau asked.

Aurora had a goal in participating in this meeting and such a goal it was to help.

The army, adventurers, and mercenaries protected Zerzura City, however, most of the African continent had no such protection.

The countries that were still standing could withstand such burdens and, like Kenya, there were places where cities still existed under the rule of some hero, company, adventurer’s guild, or peaceful warlord.

If those portals were as dangerous as their name sounded, then those individuals would not have the strength to resist.

Aurora was only one person and even if she counted her sister and Liam, she could not intervene in such large matters and, for such a reason; she sought a way to get what she was looking for.

Her request meant that Zerzura had to distribute resources and manpower in other areas, which meant that they would be less mobile to protect the city.

For such a reason, Aurora was nervous about being turned down and now could only give a half-smile in response.

“You belittle your importance,” Cardinal Brousseau said and with a sigh, muttered. “Besides, I’m sure they would have some Plan B if we rejected you.”

What if they rejected her and gave her no help? Aurora would not give up on her goals and for such a reason instead of responding, she gave a smile.

Even if it was just one person, as long as she had her sister and Liam, she was confident she could plan something to move... Or move recklessly.

Cardinal Brousseau sighed as she watched her, as if realizing her thoughts.

“Stop putting extra weight on your back. You’re too young for that,” the Cardinal said, giving the impression of a kind woman scolding someone young.

“...”

Aurora’s response was silence and the Cardinal only had to see her expression to realize that was what she was thinking.

To her, helping was not an extra burden, and neither was there someone or something forcing her to carry burdens that were not her responsibility.

It wasn’t a sense of duty; it was a desire to want to help, and if it was necessary to work hard to achieve her goals, she would.

Perhaps if the higher-ups in Zerzura rejected her, she could not help those she desired, but on her own, she could offer a hand and she would help.

The important thing was to begin.

“Just don’t try too hard,” Cardinal Brousseau said with some concern and a serious look.

She wasn’t scolding her and it was impossible for her to scold her after knowing each other for years; she was just showing concern.

Aurora understood Cardinal Brousseau’s concern and although she knew others had the same concern, she would not stop.

She was always someone who followed her own goals, no matter how misguided or dangerous they were, and this time was going to be no different.

Right now, all she was doing was waiting for everything to happen while protecting Cithrel and Venali, fulfilling Urfin’s favor.

Though to her, this favor felt more like a vacation than work, and inevitably, this vacation would one day have to end.

*****

The buildings passed one after another, and Aurora drove slowly through the streets of Zerzura City.

“Can you send a message to Urfin? I think it would be good to look for information about those Abyssal Portals,” Aurora asked and, after thinking about it, murmured. “What is it about? How does it work and if it ever happened on Terra nova or in some universes they know about.”

—Ready.

Her holographic watch glowed dimly as her system finished her order.

Driving back to her home, her holographic clock lit dimly again.

—Urfin mentioned looking for traces in the church of knowledge and Terra nova. He also reports that he will monitor the various changes around him.

Aurora smiled at that answer.

He had promised to keep her informed, and she was grateful for how admirable Urfin was in taking care of his tasks.

—If you want more information, you can ask your masters for it. They may have an idea on the subject.

Hearing those words, Aurora just laughed.

“Yes, I had forgotten about them,” she muttered in a strange tone.

It was normal for her to forget about her master, since he always claimed to be in a small dimension in the middle of Africa.

Despite her master’s deficiencies for lies, she had to admit that his enthusiasm to keep his words ended up working.

Looking at the building that was practically her home, Aurora hesitated for a moment and, in the end, muttered. “If something important happens someday, will you tell me?”

Silence stretched for a brief moment, as if her feeble question had taken her system by surprise.

Of all the questions she could ask about her mysterious system, that was the only one that came out of her mouth.

So she could solve many doubts related to her and her surroundings with a couple of questions, but she preferred to continue without asking them.

This question only sought to calm her anxiety about the future full of uncertainty and the answer would not change her ‘relationship’.

That her ‘system’ that was always by her side, remained as reliable and continued to support her as it always did, would calm that anxiety.

Hiding that anxiety that appeared before the ‘people’ she trusted the most, Aurora stopped her car before reaching the building.

—Yes. I’ll tell you.

He made no excuses or answered ambiguously or refused.

He had so many ways to refuse from saying he had ‘limits’ or simply answering that it was impossible.

It was a simple text, revealing a little about her mysterious system, however, for Aurora, it was a comfort that gave her strength to keep moving forward.

Knowing that she was not alone.

“Thank you,” she murmured with a charming smile.

Her journey continued