05.

*shock*

*chirp*

The sounds of the clash between two weapons could be heard throughout the training ground, the little red sparks were like fireflies to behold.

Today all the children, no matter what group they belonged to, were present today, as well as their instructors and Director Gwan.

Today an exhibition was made of the advances that the different groups have had to date, everything was being done under a kind of dueling tournament.

Reinhard was standing in one of the three rows of his group, as he watched the duel between a child from group 'C' and another child from group 'B'.

"¡I, admit!"

Reinhard didn't have to get too bored when the boy from group 'C' gave up while he had big wounds on his arms and legs, which were done by the twin swords of the boy from group 'B'.

Today's little exhibit was that once you won a match, you would have three minutes to rest, before choosing your next opponent or having someone challenge you of their own volition. Each battle won gave you one point, while for each battle lost, two points were deducted.

All so that in the end there is no reward.

"¡YOU!"

'Hmm?'

Reinhard was tired of standing around in this boring drama, however, he snapped back to reality when he felt several eyes on him.

Seeing that he was lost, he realized that the person in the middle of the training ground was pointing at him.

'Time to stretch my muscles~'

With a smile I held my spear, as I walked towards the dueling area.

'Hmmm~, Victor, commoner, rank #32'

***

"¡It's time for your protégé!"

Ilonka listened to Gwan's words in silence, his gaze was focused on Reinhard who was going to fight, he had no time to respond to the discontent of a bunch of fools.

*swoosh*

Reinhard moved quickly in a few steps, arriving in front of his opponent, while he made a great thrust with his spear that seemed to drag the wind with his huge body.

Even when the spear was bigger than Reinhard, Reinhard wielded it like a conventional short sword.

Victor's eyes widened in surprise at how fast Reinhard was moving, so he was barely able to arm his guard with his two swords, only to destroy him and take several steps back.

'His progress is absurd as always'

Ilonka thought, as he watched as with each thrust Reinhard made, he twisted the shaft of the spear giving it a drill-like motion.

Victor was able to compose himself to grab his twin swords and charge at Reinhard, his advantage lay in being quick and being able to wield two light weapons from multiple angles.

Thinking that Reinhard would have trouble in close combat due to his large weapon, he was wrong to see how his movements changed.

From quick and powerful thrusts, he switched to longsword-like sweeps and slashes. Victor had trouble dodging the attacks since even if he dodged them the air around the spear would end up colliding with his body.

"Tch!, your brat is a full-fledged monster"

Pete said with disgust written all over his face, which served to make Ilonka so happy that she couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from turning up.

"Mm~, I wonder how strong it will be a year from now"

Said Mason, in his bored, monotonous tone of voice. His words only served to make the others' eyes shine.

'Monster? First, you have to wait for him to have talent'

Ilonka thought as she hid her clenched hands behind her back.

***

*Steps*

"Your Holiness!"

Gregor walked through the halls of the imperial palace, servants and guards moving out of his way, all the while kneeling before him with bowed heads. A unique and glamorous sight that he abhorred.

Gregor Solaris, was his identity of him within the empire of the 'Black Sun', being the second son of the ten sons of the emperor.

His identity as the second son of the emperor was a prestige that made him walk under the sun's rays, always attracting attention wherever he passed, as if that were not enough he had two more identities that made him shine even more.

He is the most talented son of the emperor, being able to reach the rank of 'Battle King' at only 50 years of age. As if that were not enough, he himself joined one of the three religious cults on the continent.

'Cult of the Virtuous Goddess'.

He joined at the young age of 30, it took him just over a decade to work his way up through various positions within the church. From a small 'Acolyte', he was able to quickly rise to a 'Bishop'. Due to his rapid rise, it is no wonder that in a few more decades he may become 'Cardinal' or even 'Grand Cardinal'.

Gregor walked through the halls of the imperial palace, sunlight filtering through the windowpanes giving a holy aura to his body.

He was wearing pure white robes decorated in gold and a kind of cape that gave the impression of a pair of retracted wings, while a pair of white gloves covered his hands, which were holding a black leather book.

His golden-silver hair shone like a river of stars due to the sunlight, while his face with sharp and carved features showed what it was like to have the beauty of a saintly figure. His ocean blue eyes showed an unparalleled calm as if nothing could disturb them.

After walking and turning a few times, he was finally able to arrive in front of a large gate in a restricted part of the imperial palace. He didn't even stop to knock and hint to whoever he was inside about his arrival.

Opening the black wooden doors, Gregor entered with slow steps that seemed to have been silenced.

"Greg~!"

He couldn't take more than two steps into the room, when a soft, low-pitched voice reached his ears, breaking the frost that covered his face.

Gregor didn't look at the beauty and lavish decorations of the room, for his attention was captured by the large bed covered by a canopy of purple silk. Although the silk was transparent, hardly any features of the person sitting on the bed could be seen.

However, due to how slim the figure was, as well as having delicate curves, one might have thought that it was a woman. Gregor stopped his footsteps at the side of the bed, placing his book on the small nightstand.

He just raised his hand to snap his fingers, and make any clothing he was wearing on him disappear.

"Theo"

***

"Handsome!"

They were the words spoken by one of the top three existences of the religious cult 'Virtuous Goddess Cult'.

Aromeo Scariote, is one of the three 'Supreme Pontiffs' of the church, as well as the one with the largest number of followers among his peers. To date, no one knows what rank he has reached, as he assumed his current position from at a very young age, so he began to be seen less and less in the public eye.

He had long silky white hair, as well as a well-groomed beard the same color as his hair. His face was the only thing that betrayed his antiquity due to the few wrinkles on his face, as opposed to his large bearing and his eyes resplendent with vitality.

The three religious cults of humanity have a background of several thousand years, and since they mysteriously arose, no one has been able to shake their foundations. Their power is something that could not be measured by mere words, as even the two empires had to think at least twice about going to war with them.

Aromeo wore the clothes befitting his position, as well as the same set of colors as Gregor's clothes.

His word was directed at the beautiful statue crafted from one of the rarest minerals to be found, 'White Glazed Silk Stone'.

The statue was the image of a beautiful woman dressed in a long toga and cape, as well as a golden crown and sword. As she walked in on gold-colored skulls.

The figure portrayed in the statue seemed so vivid and real that even the finest detail could be seen.

The woman portrayed was none other than the main existence to whom they surrendered their prayers and faith, the 'Holy Virtuous Goddess'. However, the portrait of said Goddess had nothing to do with her title. She indeed looked like a Goddess of war and slaughter walking on the skulls of her enemies

"How much longer do we have to wait, Mother, for your son to descend into this world and cleanse it of all sin"

Out loud, Aromeo expressed his feelings of sadness and weariness. It seemed that he had been yearning for something with all his will, only to finally be slapped by him.

His gaze could help but get lost in nothing, while he remembered those words that made his soul tremble.

"The golden dragon will descend and purify all walking sin, those who have believed in me will be able to find salvation, those who share their feelings with me will find peace, and all evil will be erased from the world to start a new one of prosperity and purity"