Arman: "Valeria, how are you?"
Valeria smiled warmly.
Valeria: "I'm doing great. What about you? You look like you've grown a few inches."
Arman smirked.
Arman: "Well, what can I say? I had to grow a few inches for you, since you refused to grow any taller."
Valeria was not a very tall woman. She stood at only 5'1", while Arman was 6'2". Among the Berserkers, he was the second tallest, surpassed only by Jhon Camus, who stood at 6'7".
Valeria immediately punched Arman in the stomach.
Arman placed a hand over his stomach and looked around dramatically.
Arman: "Man... did a fly just hit me? Where did it go?"
Valeria's face immediately turned red with anger.
Valeria: "You're still as rude as ever!"
Arman laughed.
Arman: "Hey, hey, don't get angry just because I teased you a little."
Valeria's expression suddenly changed. The anger in her eyes faded, replaced by something more emotional.
Valeria: "I'm not angry because you teased me."
She stared directly into his eyes.
Valeria: "I'm angry because you didn't contact me for eight years."
Arman's smile slowly disappeared.
Arman: "Hey... even if I wanted to, I couldn't contact you."
Valeria: "Why?"
Arman scratched the back of his head.
Arman: "My Spirit Pearl broke."
The Grandmaster's eyes widened.
Grandmaster: "What? You brat! Do you have any idea how much it costs to make a Spirit Pearl?"
Arman immediately raised his hands.
Arman: "Sorry. Trust me, it wasn't intentional."
Valeria sighed before looking toward the crowd surrounding the training ground.
Valeria: "Father, Arman, let's go inside. Everyone is watching us."
She then smiled mysteriously.
Valeria: "And I want Arman to meet someone."
Arman raised an eyebrow.
Arman: "Meet who?"
Valeria: "You'll find out. Let's go. Reina can bring your sister and her friends inside as well."
The Grandmaster stepped forward and faced the massive crowd.
Grandmaster: "The spar is now over! Everyone is to return to their posts immediately!"
The crowd slowly began to disperse.
Grandmaster: "And as for the Heads of the Houses, we shall meet again on the day of the EON Festival."
The Heads of the Houses nodded before leaving the training ground. The Berserkers also returned to their respective squads.
Arman, Valeria, and the Grandmaster left the Main Hall and began walking toward the Grandmaster's residence, which was also located within the Main Pavilion.
MEANWHILE
Reina turned toward Lisa and her friends.
Reina: "Come. We're going to the Grandmaster's house."
Sakura's eyes widened.
Sakura: "What?! We're going to the main boss's house?"
Shinji looked confused.
Shinji: "Why?"
Reina smiled.
Reina: "The Captain says we're invited."
Lisa immediately turned toward Reina.
Lisa: "What? When did my brother tell you that? You were with us the whole time!"
Yuta's eyes widened in realization.
Yuta: "Don't tell me he used that One Eye thing again!"
Reina immediately shook her head.
Reina: "No! It's just a technique. I'll explain it to you later."
With that, Reina led Lisa, Sakura, Yuta, and Shinji toward the Grandmaster's residence.
ON THE WAY TO THE GRANDMASTER'S RESIDENCE
Valeria glanced at Arman.
Valeria: "So... how did you break your Spirit Pearl?"
Arman's expression became serious.
Arman: "Well, I gained Enlightenment at that time."
The Grandmaster and Valeria immediately looked at him.
Arman continued.
Arman: "I placed the Spirit Pearl in front of me and asked the spirit inside it to guard me while I entered Enlightenment."
He paused for a moment.
Arman: "When I opened my eyes... the Spirit Pearl was broken."
The Grandmaster suddenly stopped walking.
Grandmaster: "Enlightenment?"
His expression changed completely.
Grandmaster: "But Berserkers don't gain Enlightenment unless..."
His eyes widened.
Grandmaster: "Don't tell me..."
Arman looked away.
Grandmaster: "You opened the Death Gate?"
Valeria froze.
The Grandmaster stared at Arman in complete shock.
Arman: "Yeah."
He spoke casually, as if he had said nothing unusual.
Arman: "But I still can't fully control it."
The Grandmaster's expression became even more serious.
Grandmaster: "Wait. If you opened the Death Gate, then why doesn't the Order or the other Berserkers know about it?"
Arman shrugged.
Arman: "Well... when I knew I was going to gain Enlightenment, I left my planet and searched for a dying star."
Valeria stared at him.
Valeria: "You performed your Enlightenment on a dying star?"
Arman nodded.
Arman: "Yes."
He smiled slightly.
Arman: "The planet absorbed the Aura that was released from my body."
The Grandmaster's eyes narrowed.
Arman: "And, well... what do you know? The planet's ecosystem began to recover, and the dying star wasn't dying anymore."
For a few seconds, there was complete silence.
Then the Grandmaster slowly turned toward Arman.
Grandmaster: "You knew when your Enlightenment was coming..."
Arman immediately knew where this conversation was going.
Grandmaster: "Don't tell me you forced the Death Gate open... just like you forced the Life Gate open!"
Arman looked away.
Arman: "Well..."
He tried his best to look innocent.
The Grandmaster's face darkened.
Grandmaster: "YOU IDIOT!"
Arman flinched.
Grandmaster: "Do you have any idea what happens when someone forces a Gate to open?! IT CAN KILL YOU!"
Arman remained silent.
Grandmaster: "And yet you did it again!"
The Grandmaster pointed furiously at him.
Grandmaster: "The Mystic Orbs choose a Berserker only once in a millennium! And you thought it would be a good idea to force the Gates open?!"
He took a deep breath.
Grandmaster: "You idiot... and here I thought you were the smart one!"
Arman awkwardly smiled.
Arman: "Well, I knew I could do it."
The Grandmaster glared at him.
Arman immediately pointed ahead.
Arman: "Oh, look! Your house!"
He stared at the beautiful residence.
Arman: "Ah... no matter how many times I see it, it's still beautiful."
Grandmaster: "DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT!"
Before the Grandmaster could continue yelling, Arman suddenly grabbed Valeria's hand.
Arman: "RUN!"
Valeria's eyes widened.
Valeria: "Wait, what—?!"
Arman immediately ran toward the house, dragging Valeria with him.
Grandmaster stood there, staring at the two of them.
He slowly shook his head.
Grandmaster's thoughts:
"I thought he was a genius..."
He looked toward Arman's disappearing figure.
"But I was wrong."
His expression became complicated.
"He's a monster."
The Grandmaster remembered Arman's words.
"Forcing the Gates open... not once, but twice... and surviving through both."
His eyes narrowed.
"So it wasn't just luck that allowed him to survive the first time."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"Brat... just how much more are you going to surprise this old man?"
MEANWHILE
As they continued walking toward the Grandmaster's residence, Lisa turned toward Reina.
Lisa: "Hey, Reina?"
Reina: "Yes?"
Lisa looked back toward the training ground.
Lisa: "What was that glowing green form my brother and Mr. Ichiro were using during their spar?"
Reina nodded.
Reina: "It's a form that is exclusive to Berserkers."
Yuta remembered what had happened before the two Berserkers transformed.
Yuta: "They shouted something like, 'Open... Soul Gate,' before unlocking that form. What was that?"
Reina stopped walking for a moment.
Reina: "A Berserker can achieve only three forms."
Everyone listened carefully.
Reina: "These forms are achieved by opening the Gates."
She raised one finger.
Reina: "The first is the Soul Gate."
Then another.
Reina: "The second is the Life Gate."
Finally, she raised a third finger.
Reina: "And the third..."
Her expression became serious.
Reina: "The Death Gate."
Shinji looked toward Reina.
Shinji: "So, up to which Gate has Mr. Arman opened?"
Reina answered without hesitation.
Reina: "The second Gate."
Shinji nodded.
Shinji: "The Life Gate."
He thought for a moment.
Shinji: "Then... has any other Berserker opened the Death Gate?"
Reina became silent.
Reina: "Currently, no Berserker has opened the Death Gate."
Lisa and her friends stared at her.
Reina: "It is said that the Death Gate will not open unless you are truly ready for it."
Unbeknownst to them, Lisa's brother had already done something that no other current Berserker had achieved.
AT THE GRANDMASTER'S RESIDENCE
Valeria stood inside the residence with a mysterious smile on her face.
Arman looked around.
Arman: "So... who was this person you wanted me to meet?"
Valeria smiled.
Valeria: "I have someone I want you to meet."
She looked toward another room.
Valeria: "Ray!"
A small child suddenly came running toward her.
Arman froze.
His eyes landed on the child.
Valeria smiled proudly.
Valeria: "Arman... meet my son."
Arman's eyes widened slightly.
Valeria placed a hand on the child's shoulder.
Valeria: "His name is Raynard Vernars."
She gently pushed the child forward.
Valeria: "Go on. Say hello to your uncle."
Arman slowly bent down to the child's level.
For once, the Dragon Berserker's face softened completely.
A gentle smile appeared on his face.
Arman: "Hey, kiddo."