Fujimaru Raijin

"That kid with the Lightning Element was the last to join Operation Zeus's program. It was a secret mission to find out the cause of storms throughout the area of the Teuton Domain. That place wasn't supposed to have many thunderstorms until one year."

"That year was confusing. It was also my first ever independent program thrown by Old Man Pond. I was asked to find every Lightning Mage in the area, test out their powers for both auditions, and find out who'd been sending lightning bolts everywhere."

"But, of course, Raijin was the one pulling the strings. I was surprised that a small little boy was strong enough to cause so much wreckage and disaster compared to the many seasoned Mages in the group. However, from what I remember, Old Man Pond's instruction was simple."

"Either sign the Lightning Mages on as members of the Congregation. Or execute them because they were trying to destroy the Teuton Domain with their powers. At first, I thought it was an insane thing to do, but the Old Man Pond had his reasons for the call."

"If we were to choose the second choice, the Congregation could be counted as a neutral organization with the thought and feeling to kill their comrades when they disrupt the peace of the society. It was quite a brilliant move but not recommended in my mind."

"But I needed to exhaust all options before it can come down to that ultimatum. During those options, I thought to convert the Lightning Mages' powers to something useful for the common folks of Teuton. This program lasted for ten years before the Husks shut it down."

"In that Wave, the Husks started to appear in the Teuton Domain, and I was forced to halt everything and destroy the land which had the most Husks. And the person, the Mage to first get infected by the Corruption is none other than the boy you've got right in front of me."

"I am damned sure that he is dead because I used everything I had to kill him and ensure the casualties remained low. It was a minor wave, so the big people like Z or Baldwin had no clue about this thing happening. I never liked to be flashy in my decisions, so no one knew about it."

Hm... So this kid was infected by the Corruption Element, yet he is still alive and walking around? This thing is going to be enjoyable to handle. But be it a horde of the undead or a small man on the battlefield, one thing is sure. I will have no fear of facing such troublesome enemies.

But Raiyen's recount about how the previous Congregation had functioned gave me chills downs my spine. That group was not built to care for the Mages or humans. Instead, it was created by a power-hungry Mage that couldn't be bothered if lives were lost.

As I wanted to ask Z a question, I looked at a very annoyed and pissed Galaxian Mage staring at the Time Boy.

"Uhm... Z? Are you alright there?" I squeaked, not wanting to blow the mountain's cap.

"I'm sure that word about Operation Zeus falling apart had hit our desks even amongst the chaos of dealing with the Husks. And I'm damned sure that Fujimaru Raijin did not die under such circumstances. In fact, Raijin was only Corrupted because he died a year before the Wave."

"You tried your best to tell a lie woven by the truth, but some things can't go under my radar, especially when I kept track of all the significant events within the Congregation. Moreover, Raijin was under my special care since he was counted as an Unknown Child."

"So why are you hiding the truth from all of us? Or is there something else behind the scenes that we should know?" asked Z, with a glare that could kill several grown adults.

I made a mental note not to keep secrets from my higher-ups if I had valued my life in this world. Also, Z had made an excellent point about Raiyen's cracks in the story. How could Raijin be in another project if he had belonged to Z's project in the first place?

Or was the kid being thrown into Operation Zeus before Old Man Pond could find him? Ah, so many questions, but I've got only one mouth to use. And I didn't dare to voice out with Z looking like he would kill someone.

"Yes, but he was never taken from his home. His file was only in your possession, but his physical being was at my side. And you are right; I'm not telling the whole truth about his death. Because I don't want the little Valkyrie to know what I did within the Congregation," answered Raiyen.