Emperor's Reckoning

The next day.

At the entrance of the Alchemy Union was Elder Anna with Nit by her side. She sighed before she looked up at the sky. The sun was hiding behind a large white cloud and the chilling wind whispered against her skin.

"Where are they?" asked Anna as she furrowed her brows.

"He was never the punctual type," a cold bassless voice was heard.

Anna turned before her eyes widened. Her goosebumps rose as the cold crept up her spine to her nape the moment her brain realized who it was.

Ivy was looking her mother straight in the eyes, but her brave look was belied by the race of her heart. The person in front of her was the one that gave her warmth when she was but a mere crawling baby.

"Sorry we're late," Mavis came with Lyon by his side, and behind them, both were the latter's group.

Anna regained her senses before she turned her glance and answered Mavis with a smile, "It's alright young master Mavis, we didn't wait that long."

"Alright then," Mavis smiled with a nod before he scratched his cheek as he asked, "I was wondering yesterday, what transportation are we going to use?"

"Oh? I must have forgotten to tell you, young master Mavis, please forgive me," said Anna as she lightly bowed. "We are going to use the fastest griffin of the Alchemy Union."

"Hah, I knew it," said Lyon as he crossed his arms with a proud smile before the beast came down and landed right in front of him.

The beast was huge, bigger than Griffie. Its wings were gloriously opened as the sharp eagle eyes looked down on Lyon. Yet, the latter showed no fear even when its talon possessed the power to rip half a town.

"He seems to take a liking to you," said Mavis as he chuckled.

"It's not the first time," Lyon smirked before he jumped under their gazes. He landed straight at the beast's nape before taking a nap.

"Let's do this!" said Kesya before she followed her young master.

"Hah~" Hilde sighed, "I hope nothing happens this time."

"Better not jinx it," said Cherie with a wry smile before both of them followed suit.

"Haha, let's go!" Mavis laughed before he jumped.

Cecile smiled seeing the rest of them jump to the back of the massive beast, but a lone cold woman was standing alone with her eyes fixated on Anna. Cecile snorted before she grabbed her shoulder, "Don't rush, treat it as a vacation."

Ivy glanced at Cecile's wink before the latter jumped out, leaving her facing Anna and Nit, alone.

Anna was looking at Ivy with tremendous hesitation. She knew just from the glance alone, that her daughter had over a thousand questions piled up at the back of her mind.

Nit shook his head before he spoke softly, "Let's go, elder."

Anna raised her brows before she nodded. She took another glance at Ivy before she smiled and said, "Let's go."

Ivy had her pupils shrunk for a second before she regained her focus. She looked up with furrowed brows before she jumped, leaving Anna's face slightly dejected.

On top of the large griffin's back, Anna was the last member of the party going for the hunt.

Lyon opened his right eye and looked at Anna before closing it and then opening the left one to see Ivy. Both mother and daughter were separated by quite a distance. The awkward tension between them was too apparent for him not to chuckle.

"Hmm? What did you find funny?" asked Mavis who was sitting with his legs crossed.

"You wouldn't understand," said Lyon as he closed both eyes the moment he heard Mavis's voice.

The beast made a loud screech before it leaped off the ground. Everyone in Alchemy Union looked up and saw the massive griffin flap its wings before breaking the wind.

"And there he goes," said Elise as she crossed her arms.

Meanwhile, Renduval let out a sigh. "Seeing him riding a griffin brings nothing but bad memories."

The kunpeng incident had brought his heart to undergo cardio, but he couldn't complain about the fortune that came with it. He shook his head before preparing himself for the upcoming test. The opportunity given to him might have cost his entire suffering, thus why he balled his fist as his eyes turned sharp.

Tamuh shook his head, "I wonder if it is still worth the risk, gaining a behemoth as an ally would be amazing, but I never thought that he and Mavis are friends."

The headmaster looked at them departing from the window of his little isolated room. His weary eyes opened as his focus lay on the griffin. Most of the Alchemy Union's problems were now riding on the griffin as seconds went by. Anna and her daughter then Lyon and Mavis. The four names made the three-wide lines on his forehead reproduce the fourth one.

"I cannot believe it, the First Hall of the Alchemy Union would fall during my time," said the headmaster as he sighed. "I wish it didn't happen in my time, but who am I to face fate."

Cecile noticed the silent duo of mother and daughter before she let out a smile.

"Are you sure you're just going to let them be?" asked Lumina. "I noticed how you are trying to help the two."

"You just noticed?" Cecile asked with a smile.

"That's not what I meant," Lumina shook her head, "It's very unusual of you to help someone up to this stage."

"Is it?" Cecile raised her brows.

"You're the cold empress, remember," said Lumina as she furrowed her brows. "Everyone in the Mortal World knows your infamous title."

"Not everyone," said Cecile. "There are those experts that don't care about worldly affairs anymore."

"That's not the point," said Lumina as she rolled her eyes. "You even kill both siblings back in Afurnae, why now?"

"You think a sob scene would stop me from killing them?" Cecile smiled. "They may shed a tear for all I care, and their death was for my mother's family anyway."

"Does the Cold Empress feel sympathetic for some reason?" asked Lumina.

Cecile smiled before she drank reached out a glass provided by Assid and drank it. "Perhaps you can say that, and you should know already that the title meant nothing to me, and I already dethroned myself as the empress."

Lumina speak no further noticing that Cecile won't share her reason for helping Ivy.

Cecile snorted with a smile, "I can be a kind person too, you know."

"The benefit of the doubt," replied Lumina.

Cecile took no offense and drank some more before approaching Ivy.

Ivy furrowed her brows watching the auburn-haired woman approaching her with a smirk on her end. "What do you want?"

"Drop the coldness," said Cecile before she sat right beside her. "I bet you can feel the awkwardness between the two of you."

"I won't deny that," said Ivy, "But what do you want?"

Cecile smiled, "What are you so stiff, I just want to sit here beside you."

"You of all people?" Ivy squinted her eyes, "I know you, Cecile, you always take the most efficient steps regardless of your emotions, you are colder than I am."

"It's just me being a ruler. I'm not anymore, so, I can be a warm person," said Cecile with a smile.

Ivy snorted but replied no further.

Cecile turned her glance back at Anna before she uttered, "Have you met with your matriarch?"

"I did," said Ivy.

"Good job," Cecile smiled before offering her a drink which the latter refused.

"What? You don't want the taste of delicacy that Assid prepared for you? It has the same spark as the last time when we went on a picnic."

"You mean in Adamrest Mountain? That place was supposed to be a measure of one's strength, it was you guys that made it a picnic."

"What makes you think that the pillar there is used to measure one's strength, my dearest husband said it's the perfect place to have a date," said Cecile with a chuckle.

Ivy shook her head seeing how Cecile seemingly sided with Lyon. She looked at her, "What kind of monster is he anyway."

"He is a human, just like you," said Cecile with a nod, "Forget about him, why don't you start opening up with your own mother, or should I do it for you?"

"You dare?!" Ivy frowned.

"I wouldn't?" Cecile laughed. "I'm just joking, why are you so serious? Hahaha! It's always fun making fun of a cold-hearted woman like you."

"You!" Ivy glared but Cecile stood up and left instead. She gritted her teeth as she watched Cecile's back go further away before returning and sitting beside Lumina.

After some time went by without any problems, Mavis stood up with a smile. His eyes were looking against the horizon before an island came into view.