The God's Folk

Archie's head hurt from all the mysteries that he had to resolve. 'Where should I begin?' he wondered.

He had a lot of things he would like to address: Sid's presence and how to free him; how to go back to earth; where did his parents come from and why did the phantom pursue them; why did he lose his memories; and what he needed to do in Elysium.

While Aurelia was escorting him, she did not explain or speculate on anything in fear of misinformation. She was also surprised to hear that Archie was related to the High Priest and the elder of God's people.

'He might be the chosen one.' Aurelia thought. She kept all her speculations to herself and maintained a stoic, indifferent expression.

But the more she dwelled on it, the more she felt embarrassed for abandoning Archie at the cliff to fend for himself while searching for an entrance to Astral.

He ended up displaying a perilous moment that might level Astral altogether. It was God's Folks headquarters. If it were destroyed, the wraiths would raid the place to its devastation.

Aurelia shook her thoughts away. She could not imagine if the phantoms really took over one of the god's people's sanctuaries.

Archie could not handle the silence any longer. He needed an explanation from the supposed damsel, who was hurt but managed to regain her strength and flew away while he was distressed.

"Why did you abandon me at the bottom of the cliff after I gave you a lift to the cliff to make sure your injuries did not worsen? After all I had done, I did not ask for payment in return. But I certainly did not deserve betrayal."

"My injuries were fully healed halfway through our journey." Aurelia responded sheepishly.

"So, you decided to take full advantage of me until the moment we reached the cliff and abandoned me? Was that the way to repay your savior?" Archie yelled a little louder as his patience thinned.

Aurelia shuddered at Archie's direct confrontation. She knew Archie would reprimand her, but she thought he would be gentler with his words since he was infatuated by her.

But Aurelia did not know Archie well enough. He was a brutally honest person, especially towards his closest friends, and this confrontation was considered mild and gentle by him.

"I was testing you to see if you had the mana to enter through the cliff. It turned out you had it in abundance." Aurelia responded softly, with a hint of a matter-of-fact tone.

Archie was absolutely annoyed by Aurelia's shameless responses, yet in an embarrassed tone.

"What a fake b*tch!"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me! You could have just told me that I needed mana to enter and we would just part ways there and then. There was no need to treat me like a fool, watching me struggle to climb the mountain wall looking for the random mana door opening."

Archie was furious. He initially thought he looked like a fool, but he was determined to enter the oasis. Now that he had a glimpse of his memories, his emotions were overwhelmed.

Archie continued, "I thought I was being nice to you, tending a damsel in distress and giving you a piggyback ride, only to be thrown into danger."

"Hey, if I had not done it, you would be powerless for longer. So, you should thank me for throwing you into the hot water and surviving unscathed."

"What if I die? Will you come and save me from peril?"

"Of course, I would!"

After listening to Aurelia's shameless retort, Archie was really fed up with this prideful phoenix. If she would just apologize, everything would be swept under the rug. He would have forgiven her.

But Aurelia had the audacity to turn it around and take credit for his success, which started as a misfortune.

"Look, now that you have mana, you are one of God's people. We can enroll you in a magic academy to help you control the mana that you have and perhaps regain your memories."

"I am not sure if I should trust you."

Aurelia was hurt that she lost Archie's trust so quickly. Now that she knows that he's powerful, she cannot miss the opportunity to stand by his side.

Archie, on the other hand, thought her attitude was disgusting. She kept her distance at the beginning and was unpleasant throughout their journey. Now she is trying to mend things with him like nothing happened.

Both of them went silent as the awkwardness filled their surroundings.

"Who are God's Folks?" Archie asked, breaking the silence once more. Although he had a hunch who they were, he still needed to confirm it.

The God of Light and Order bestowed gifts on the beings known as the God's Folk, who are essentially four races. The elves, who now live at the north of Elysium, the dwarves at the south of Elysium, the phoenix at the east and the humans at the west."

"There are humans living here in Elysium."

"Humans without mana don't exist in Elysium. They all vanished at a certain point in history. We do not know where they went. But there are other humans, who were talented and could harness mana or had mixed blood, who remained in this realm."

"So, that means I have mixed blood?"

"Or simply talented."

"Here we are. We reached the dining hall. Unfortunately, I am not allowed to proceed further." Aurelia remarked in disappointment that her interest in Archie was piqued.

Archie, on the other hand, would like to keep a fair distance away from her. 'She may be beautiful, but her heart does not reflect her appearance. As the saying goes, 'Do not judge a book by its cover' applies accurately on her.'

"I just walked straight ahead; there is a huge golden door with a phoenix and a dragon. Enter the dining hall through there. His grace is waiting for you."

"Thank you." Archie gave Aurelia a perfunctory thanks without making eye contact. Aurelia noticed his indifferent expression and was crestfallen. But there was nothing that she could do at the moment. Her gaze was on Archie as he walked further away from her, and suddenly she had a lump in her throat and misery written all over her face.

Aurelia made a mental note to apologize to Archie properly after his meeting with the high priest, Blaise.

Archie walked as quickly as he could. He was glad to be away from Aurelia, as he was still mad at her for being an opportunist, high-headed b*tch.

As he walked closer towards the huge golden door, he tried to push the door open to enter the dining hall, only to find that the door stayed in its position.

'It is locked.' Archie looked at the door, perplexed and annoyed.