It took only a few minutes, but when Mr. Sage emerged from the illusion, four others now stood around him. He ignored them all and fixed his gaze on Leo alone.
"Do you really expect me to believe all of that?" he asked coldly.
He had seen fragments of an ancient war, the God of Light attempting to open the gates of hell, and a goddess standing against him to save the world. Leo had filtered much of the truth, but even what remained was difficult to accept. The goddess who created the Shadowland, the one who condemned his people to generations of suffering, was supposed to be benevolent? To him, it felt like mockery.
"It doesn't matter whether you believe it," Leo said calmly. "If you want to save your people, this is the only path."
Leo turned and looked toward the massive figure behind them. The monster stood motionless now, like a lifeless statue. Arthur's spear had vanished, but the damage remained. The creature was dead. The core of the Shadowland's corruption had been destroyed.
"That monster was the source of most of the corruption here," Leo continued. "This doesn't end everything, but the Shadowland is far safer now."
He turned back to Mr. Sage. "Come with me to the City of Hope. See the truth with your own eyes."
Mr. Sage studied him in silence, his expression unreadable. After a long moment, he closed his eyes.
This was his only real option. Even if he wanted to fight, killing everyone here was impossible. At best, he could take one or two of them down before escaping with a fatal wound. Going with them, however, gave him time, and opportunity. If the city proved to be a lie, he could always strike when they least expected it.
For now, he would watch, and wait.
"Are you sure we can bring him back?" Arthur asked. His voice sounded distant and ethereal, as though it no longer fully belonged to him.
Leo nodded once. "If he decides to attack, I'll kill him myself."
Mr. Sage showed no reaction. He slowly straightened, his expression unreadable. "I will see your city with my own eyes," he said at last. "Then I will decide."
"That's enough for now," Leo replied. "Let's return."
As he spoke, the radiant form around them began to fade. Arthur's wings dissolved into light, his armor thinning until it vanished entirely. Luciana's transformation followed more violently. The power drained from her body all at once, leaving her pale and unsteady. Sweat ran down her face as her knees buckled.
She nearly collapsed, but a large hand caught her arm.
Luciana turned her head and found herself looking up at Paul's massive frame. For a moment, she just stared.
"Thank yo… oh," the words died in her throat.
Before she could react, Paul slipped one arm behind her knees and the other around her back, lifting her off the ground as if she weighed nothing.
"Hey, what are you doing?" she protested, her voice sharp, though heat crept into her face.
Paul didn't even flinch. "You can barely stand," he said calmly, adjusting his grip to keep her secure.
Luciana opened her mouth to argue, then closed it again. After a few seconds, she gave up and rested against him, avoiding everyone's eyes.
With the battle finally over and the shadowland falling silent, the group began their return. Together, they moved back toward the City of Hope, leaving behind the corpse of the monster and the echoes of what had been decided.
…
Atop the fallen monster, another Leo, shaped through creation, sat on its massive head, watching ahead in silence. Only when the group vanished from sight did he move. A faint smile touched his lips as he raised his hand. A sphere of creation formed, and a moment later, an orb tainted with the monster's corruption appeared in his grasp.
It was one of the orbs of the Goddess of Nature. Aside from this one, only a single orb remained, hidden within the City of the Future.
Leo had chosen not to retrieve it with his real body. Mr. Sage's presence still posed too many uncertainties. Ally or enemy, Leo had yet to decide.
He did not hesitate. "Obscurae."
The corruption peeled away from the orb, dissolving into nothing. Clean power surged outward, flowing straight into his domain. Once the purification was complete, he sent the orb itself into the domain and erased the monster's body, leaving no trace behind.
Within his domain, Leo's consciousness already waited. He walked forward with the orb in hand, watching as the light of the great tree at the center grew brighter, its branches humming with renewed strength. On the bridge ahead, Ilandra stood in silence, facing her own tree.
He stopped beside her.
"I reached S2," she said calmly, without turning.
Leo handed her the orb. "I'll retrieve the last one soon."
Ilandra raised an eyebrow and finally looked at him. "You intend to destroy that city."
"When the time comes," Leo replied, "I will."
She smiled faintly. "Then the distance between me and the one I pledged to will only grow wider."
Leo returned the smile, steady and certain. "Not for long."
…
On the way back, Arthur never once took his eyes off Mr. Sage. Even as his wings of light had faded and his armor returned to its former state, the pressure he radiated had not lessened. To Arthur, this man was still an enemy, one who had bent time itself and nearly killed Leo. Trust was not something he could afford.
Mr. Sage noticed it, of course. He felt Arthur's gaze like a blade resting against his spine, ready to fall at the slightest movement. Yet he said nothing and walked in silence.
When the City of Hope finally came into view, Mr. Sage stopped.
His eyes widened slowly, not in shock but in something deeper, disbelief.
Beyond the dark horizon of the shadowland rose walls covered in living vines, glowing faintly with natural mana. Trees taller than towers swayed gently in the wind without withering. Even the ground beneath their feet felt different, alive, warm, resisting corruption through sheer vitality.
"This…" Mr. Sage murmured, his voice barely audible.
He had lived his entire life believing the shadowland was beyond salvation, that survival meant domination or sacrifice. Yet before him stood proof that the land itself could heal.
As they entered the city, people stopped to watch.
Children ran through the streets laughing, their bodies free of the deformities so common outside the walls. Soldiers stood guard not with desperation in their eyes, but with pride.
Mr. Sage's steps slowed.
Everywhere he looked, there was life, real life. He could feel it in the air, thick with balanced mana rather than forced control. It clashed violently with everything he had believed, everything he had done.
Luciana watched him carefully, blood threads subtly woven beneath the ground, ready to bind him in an instant. Paul walked slightly ahead, his massive presence a silent warning. Dave adjusted his grip on his book, prepared to cast the moment things went wrong.
And Leo, Leo said nothing, simply walking forward with calm certainty, as if this outcome had been inevitable.
When they reached the castle yard and joined the others, Mr. Sage finally stopped again. Uncertainty clouded his face.
For the first time since they had met him, his arrogance cracked. His shoulders slumped slightly, and his breathing grew heavy, as though the weight of centuries had finally caught up to him.
He stood there for several minutes, lost in thought, replaying the illusion Leo had shown him, comparing it to what now stood before his eyes. If this city existed… then maybe his path had never been the only one.
Slowly, he looked up.
His eyes met Leo's, no longer burning with fury, but filled with conflicted resolve.
"…Tell me," Mr. Sage said at last, his voice low and strained, "how did you accomplish what even gods failed to do?"
Leo studied Mr. Sage for a brief moment before answering, his tone firm and unambiguous.
"With the help of the Creator."
"Creator…" Mr. Sage repeated under his breath. The word lingered as if it carried weight he did not yet accept. After a short pause, he lifted his gaze. "Even if I bring my people here, where would they live? This city alone is not enough. Even empty, it could never hold all of them."
Leo's lips curved into a faint smile.
The world shifted.
In an instant, they vanished and reappeared atop the castle roof, high above the city of Hope. The wind rushed past them as Leo stepped forward and raised his hand. His sphere of creation expanded outward, spreading so far that its boundaries disappeared beyond sight. The air grew heavy, dense with mana.
Then Leo clenched his fingers and the ground trembled.
Far in the distance, the land began to change. Stone rose from the earth in massive sections, streets forming as if guided by an invisible hand. Walls followed, then towers, then rows upon rows of houses. A city took shape at a terrifying speed, its layout similar to Hope's but broader, with wider streets, more homes, and a smaller castle at its center.
Red and white fog wrapped around Leo's body, surging through him as he sustained the creation. The power bent the air itself, pressing outward in waves.
Within minutes, the work was done.
A new city stood whole and silent, separated from Hope by a wide stretch of land nearly a thousand meters across. As the last structure settled into place, Leo dropped to one knee, his breath ragged. Elna rushed to his side and caught his arm, steadying him before he could fall.
Mr. Sage stared at the city, his eyes wide and unblinking. Only after several seconds did he turn back toward Leo, who stood with Elna's support.
"What do you want in return for all of this?" he asked.
Leo straightened. "When the time comes, stand on the side of creation, not destruction. That is all."
Mr. Sage searched his face, as if weighing the meaning behind the words. Then he closed his eyes and nodded once. "I accept."
"Do you need help bringing your people here?" Leo asked.
Mr. Sage shook his head. "The main source of corruption is already gone. I can handle the rest."
With that, his body lifted from the roof, mana carrying him upward. He faded into the darkness without another word.
"Can we really trust him?" Arthur asked, his gaze still fixed on the place where Mr. Sage had vanished.
Luciana crossed her arms. "He's an S2 enchanter. One mistake, and he could put all of us in danger."
Paul stayed silent for a moment before speaking. "I felt sorrow coming from him," he said slowly. "Real sorrow. Not something fake or forced."
Arthur turned to him. "How can you be sure?"
Paul clenched his fist, his expression tightening as old memories surfaced. "Because I carried that same feeling for most of my life. You don't mistake it once you've lived with it."
Leo nodded in agreement. "I sensed it too," he said. "He doesn't seek power for himself. He just wants to save his people."
He looked at the group, a calm smile forming on his face. "Even if he is dangerous, that only means one thing."
The others waited.
"We need to become stronger."
For a moment, no one spoke. Then, one by one, they smiled.
"Let's hold a meeting tonight," Leo added.
Briva tilted her head. "Why not now?"
"I still have a few things to take care of," Leo replied, his smile lingering just a second longer than usual.
…
Leo returned to his room and stepped fully into his domain. Now that he had reached a higher level, he could exist in both the real world and his domain at the same time, but what he intended to do required his full presence.
He appeared above the domain, standing on the long bridge that connected the gathering hall to the massive tree at its center. The air here felt calm, filled with steady mana that responded to his will. From within the tree, Ilandra emerged, her steps slow and composed as she walked toward him.
"I want you to accompany me," Leo said, his voice firm.
Ilandra tilted her head slightly. "To where?"
Leo met her eyes. "To see one of your old friends."
She paused, studying his face, then her expression shifted as understanding settled in. Without another word, Leo closed his eyes and whispered a quiet prayer. At his permission, shadows entered his domain and gathered in front of them, twisting and folding into a dark portal that pulsed with unfamiliar power. Together, they stepped through.
The world around them vanished.
They reappeared in a vast, endless space, only an immeasurable darkness stretching in every direction. Sitting before them was a woman dressed in dark clothing, her presence calm yet overwhelming, a faint smile resting on her lips.
Leo inclined his head in respect. "I kept my promise."
Lilith nodded once. "You did."