Death... and me



Roan, who was watching from inside the Dimensional Realm, fell into deep thought. 'Have you noticed, everyone? These Angels from Aelrie's Clan don't seem as altruistic and selfless as the others I have interrogated.'

Luan nodded as his pupils looked at the world outside the Dimensional Realm as well. 'Indeed, Father. They don't give that weird sensation we got from the other Angels.'

Rean heard them but didn't comment. Instead, he followed Spiegel. "Say, Spiegel. If you had to go on a dangerous mission to save an Angel that you don't even know, would you go?"

"Uh?" Spiegel looked at Rean as if he was looking at an idiot. "Why the hell would I do something like that?"

Yet, Waremis stopped in his tracks and looked back at Rean. "You are quite perceptive."

Rean smiled and didn't say anything else. 

At the same time, so did Roan and the others. 'Father, did you hear that?'

Roan nodded at Luan. 'I did. That's the difference between Aelrie's Holamenor Clan and the other Angels we have seen so far. They do not share the same self-righteous train of thought as the others. That's what you should expect when talking to anyone in the Realm of Gods or the Underworld. Yet, you can't find it here in the Heavens except for this clan of theirs.'

Rean obviously understood it since he was the one who asked Spiegel. 'Do you think this is what they meant by their clan being a special case in the Heavens?'

'Perhaps...' Roan could only consider it.

"We are almost there." Before Rean and the others could continue their conversation, Waremis called Rean's attention.

Rean noticed that the bright light that was present everywhere in the Heavens so far began to disappear. Even though the angels also counted the days, there was no such thing as night in the Heaven Realm, or Angel Realm, if you prefer. This was the first time the constant light seemed to change.

He noticed they were getting close to an isolated district of the city with almost no Angels around. Obviously, the entrance was restricted, which was quite rare in this place. The light gave space to more shadows while the sky dimmed down.

[There is a formation here... I don't know what type it is, though. It's just that it is connected to the skies.] Sister Orb warned Rean through the Soul Connection.

Yet, Rean didn't need Sister Orb to guess what it was. 'It's fine. This should be a formation capable of making our path to space possible. Don't forget the invisible barrier separating the Higher Realms and their Great Void. Otherwise, there was no need to come to Arcadia. At Spiegel's level, he can use Spatial Gates. Why come here, of all places? We might as well go straight to the Ruins.'

'Ask Spiegel, just in case.' Roan still preferred to confirm it.

Rean didn't see a problem with it either. He simply used his Divine Sense and asked Spiegel directly.

'Only Archangels, Elder Devils, and Divinity Realm beings are capable of piercing through the barrier separating the three Higher Realms from the Great Void. If our clan had someone at that level, we wouldn't be here. But we don't, so we need that formation to exit the Angel Realm,' Spiegel explained.

[So that's how it is, uh...] She knew about the barrier but not the cultivation to get out of it.

'Thank you, senior Spiegel.' Rean was satisfied with the simple answer.

Near the center of that district, several angels at the Elemental Space Realm could be seen, all guarding the formation. When Spiegel approached, they came forward to receive him. "Hello, friend. If it is not a problem, could you tell us your identity? Unfortunately, this Great Void Formation is restricted to non-authorized Angels."

Spiegel nodded before taking a badge out of his Pocket Dimensional Realm. It was different from the badge Rean and Roan got from Hastian or Abdiel. Even the badge Rean got wasn't the same. It had a star shape at its center, shining with the silver light of space power. "Here you go, my friend. Thank you for all your effort guarding this place." The way Spiegel talked seemed quite weird, though. Rean had never seen him that polite.

The Angel smiled and quickly took Spiegel's Badge. Following that, he put it on a small altar near the center of the formation, which quickly absorbed it inside. Nothing went wrong with the verification. A few moments later, the Great Void Formation activated, shooting a ray of silver light to the skies.

Seeing that, the Angel in charge of the formation looked back at Spiegel. "It is done, friend. You just need to step on it, and you will be sent just past the Higher Realm Barrier. From there, you will have to travel on your own, though."

"That's not a problem," Spiegel said as he walked to the formation with Waremis and Rean.

However, just as they were about to enter, another group of Angels appeared on the other side of the formation. "Hey, it's Spiegel."

Spiegel looked at the origin of the voice, and his face saddened for a moment. It only lasted a moment, though. He quickly reverted to his old smiling self and complimented the other part. "Oh! Patris! Haven't seen you since the rules to enter the Ruins of Stars were decided."

Patris was the same as Spiegel, an Angel in the Space-Time Realm. "Indeed. My clan suffered quite a bit to find a way to harmonize with the barrier protecting the entrance of the Ruins." 

Spiegel was surprised. "So you found a way to get inside? Could it be you got one of those Minokawas of the Realm of Gods?"

"As if," Patris shook his head. "The Realm of Gods put so much protection around those birds that even our entire Angel Realm's forces might not get past it."

Spiegel already expected that. Not that he cared anyway. "I see... Whatever, shall we go together?"