Dean Delfond Apollyon

Squinting at the figure as it got closer and closer, William concluded, "This mana signature coupled with the sheer pressure they are radiating. It has to be Apollyon."

"Surely you jest, William," Ed gasped with a bit of fear and unpleasant memories replaying within his eyes.

Soon the figure elegantly landed and became visible for Raz to see. The man that his father called Apollyon was dressed in seemingly formal wear as his robes were incredibly long and elegant, with various runes and symbols spread throughout.

The one that was the most notable was the seven stars that were designed on the center of the robe in a circular shape that no doubt represented the Seven Star Academy that his father had mentioned before.

The figure glanced at William and Ed before he boomed in a relatively coarse voice that seemed to have experienced life to its fullest, "I see you've continued to develop yourself, disciple William and I see you still look like a ruffian, disciple Ed. Have you been behaving recently, or are you still causing trouble, like when you got caught peeping in the girl's baths?"

Turning as red as a tomato, Ed stammered in a higher-pitched tone than usual, "It was a misunderstanding, I tell you! A simple accident. Why do you only have it out for me and not William?"

Chuckling, the voice continued, "Well, one of you was wholeheartedly devoted to his studies his entire time as a student, and the other chased women around like a dog that chases its toy for three years before being caught peeping in the girl's baths instead."

While Ed continued to murmur and curse under his breath, the figure unveiled the hood that had been concealing his face, and soon, a battered, tanned face hit the light. He had gray bushy brows with long gray hair that flowed almost to the ground despite his rather tall height being well over two meters tall.

In his hand lay a long staff that appeared to be used for walking and spell casting as a deep ocean blue gem rested at the top of the staff with numerous strips of silver and gold reinforcing it. In contrast, the staff itself was made of a bluish iron that had a wavelike pattern atop it that constantly flowed like the never-ending waves of the ocean.

A long pencil-like mustache and beard stemmed from his face in white hair that made it more noticeable as it contrasted with his normal gray hair, and his eyes had a galaxy-blue hue to them that made him seem even more mystical.

"Can someone give me a report or rundown?" Apollyon inquired.

As Ed continued to curse under his breath, William gave a general run down from his tracking from the site of the ambush all the way to the tunnel until he explained the mana lake and the Lurls that had been greatly strengthened.

He then mentioned how he fought the Lurls and extensively emphasized the danger Raz might have been in and how the Lurl mage had used magic imbued with its life force that would have killed them all, bar the expensive trump card he used.

Apollyon wasn't stupid and picked up on what William was trying to imply in his report as he sighed, "I'll send appropriate remuneration and rewards."

"That's good and all, but I also have another favor to ask," William responded as he walked closer and whispered something to Apollyon, whose eyebrows went up in shock before having to confirm again with William, who nodded vehemently.

Apollyon continued to sneak glances at Raz before handing William a similar stone to the one he used earlier, but this one seemed a lot more elegant and expensive.

"Just message me when the time comes, and I'll personally make the trip to you as fast as I can. It seems with age I have really seen everything," Apollyon sighed as he started to float away before slowly turning into a blur across the horizon.

Although he had a good idea of Apollyon's identity, Raz still asked, "Father, who was that?"

William replied, "That right there was the head dean of the Seven Star Academy that Ed and I attended as Apprentices. However, he was only the vice dean at the time. He is someone with considerable influence and connections while retaining the same Middle Stage Magus rank as your grandfather.

"He is a completely obsessed man who would drool over new magic and the such, but he truly is a good man and teacher. Though, his actual origins before he came to the Seven Star Academy are not known besides his first name being Delfond."

Ed also added, "Don't believe your father. That old geezer must be a demon sent from the hells itself to torment poor students."

"You are only saying that because he always punished you for misbehaving, and I can't blame him considering how many times he caught you breaking academy rules," William chuckled.

Before he could retort, Raz also joined, laughing in his cute, high-pitched baby voice as the father and son duo continued to laugh nonstop.

Embarrassed and red, Ed started to mutter as he gave William a death glare before hopping onto his greatsword to return to the manor.

As Ed started to disappear on the horizon, William picked up Raz before he whispered with a cheeky smile, "Don't tell Uncle Ed this, but I'll tell you some of his legendary and famous tales as a student during our lessons."

Raz could only clap with his chubby hands together while giving a thumbs up before the father and son pair started to fly back home.

Soon night had begun to touch the sky, as the sun was nowhere to be seen with the cool air smothering Raz's chubby cheeks.

By the time the pair made it back to the manor they called home, the sky had turned dark, with only the various lamps and torches giving off the necessary light to see.

Before William could say anything, his face turned into horror as he saw his wife sitting on a bench in the garden with a metal mallet in one hand and a dagger in the other. She simply sat there, silent and smiling with squinted eyes like the most terrifying monster to exist as she watched her husband and son arrive.

Soon she stood up and gently strolled towards William, who had begun to sweat bullets, and whistled whilst trying to appear nonchalant.

Trying to defuse the situation, William started to turn around as he walked backward, blurting, "Well, look at the time. I have an important meeting and an errand to run, so I'll be on my way."

Before he could run or start to fly, a delicate but firm hand anchored him to the ground as Fay seethed in a calm but horrifying tone, "I heard that you took our beloved one-year-old son on an adventure with dangerous monsters and potentially life-threatening dangers."

Practically staring at his worst nightmare, William couldn't help but exclaim, "H-how do you know that?"

"So it's true," Fay observed as a mysterious glint appeared in her hazel eyes as she played with her instruments of doom.

With no way out, William started to run as Fay chased him around with her mallet, taking large swings at her husband, knowing that she couldn't do any real damage, but the pain would still be real.

William knew this deep down and could tell that his wife didn't really mean to strike him from her movements, but the terror of his angry wife made him lose all consciousness as he ran around screaming in the garden.

Raz, who had been laid down on the bench, sat up as he watched this unfold before he caught his Uncle Ed, who had been watching the whole thing unfold while laughing his heart out. The man had even fallen to his knees in his laughter while slapping the ground.

Soon, William also saw Ed and realized it was he who had exposed everything!

While running, William exclaimed, "Ed was also there and took Raz there as well!"

Fay's head seemed to turn around like a possessed woman as she started to chase both men, who had both started to squeal and run around the courtyard as if they were still children rather than some of the most influential men in the area.

Laughing at the spectacle, Raz clapped his hands at the entertainment as the moon and soothing, crisp night air descended onto the chaotic manor.

After a minute or so, Fay stopped chasing and started to tear up as she bawled, "Don't ever do that again! Especially not without letting me know!"

William went over and embraced his beautiful wife as he promised to never do it again. She still wound up pinching him by the ear for doing something so reckless and dangerous without telling her anything or consulting with her, but she walked over to Raz and picked him up while comforting him.

In a soft tone, Fay soothed, "Don't worry, my little angel. Your mother is here now. Everything is fine now."

A loving, comforting warmth seeped into Raz that made his body which had been physically pushed, feel sluggish as his breathing became regular and soft, with a dribble of drool seeping out as he fell asleep with a smile.

Unknowingly, he had gotten used to this warmth over his year with the Aldens, which made him develop an unshakable and unbreakable bond that had never happened in his last three lives when he had no one he could truly call his family.