After the bell was rung, all the students—including the elders and teachers of Elvendria—now stood in neat rows on a stretch of land that extended as far as the eye could see. Far from any settlement or other buildings.
Their gazes carried an aura of hostility toward whoever was about to arrive. Not a single face looked relaxed. Each of them wore an expression as if ready to strike their enemy at any moment.
What they had been waiting for at last arrived. Before them stood the incarnations of wolves with abundant fur on their hands and feet. They were the wolf race, the ones challenging them to battle.
One of the wolf leaders stepped forward. "What have you done to our prince?" From his tone, the fairies could tell he was trying to restrain his anger.
"He himself came and attacked us. Do you think we would just stand by?" Carlos, as an elder, stood in the front line. He assumed a calm expression when facing Bruno, the leader of the wolf race who had just spoken.
Bruno wore a sullen expression. "He would not come here without reason. As a prince, his instincts are always strong. If you had not caused trouble, Xander would not have attacked you."
Darius stepped forward a pace, standing just behind Carlos. "But in fact he did come without reason and attacked Elvendria. Besides, he fled after wounding one of Elvendria's best disciples."
"Nonsense!" Bruno's held-back fury now boiled over. His voice rose and the veins in his neck stood out. "You are the ones who killed Xander!"
At once the four Elvendria knights widened their eyes. Isaura, Evelyn, and Eliot moved up to align with Darius.
"We did not kill him! He ran away after injuring me with his three tails," said Isaura. As the one who had last engaged Xander, she felt she had to correct the misunderstanding.
Besides, who knew whether Xander was truly dead? This could be a trap or simply a misunderstanding, right?
Bruno's gaze now fixed on Isaura with hatred. "So you're the one who killed him?"
Without hesitation, the girl stepped two paces closer to Bruno, as if the wolf commander's earlier warning meant nothing at all. "I did attack him with my sword. But afterward he struck back at me with his three tails, then he fled to the Darkvale gorge."
"Liar!" Bruno snapped. He immediately shifted his staff from left to right, a sign that anger had seized him.
Seeing that, Darius quickly pulled Isaura back and shielded her with one arm, as if refusing to let Bruno harm her.
"Calm down, Bruno. What makes you say Isaura is lying?" This time Teacher Ducan spoke. At least the positions of the two sides were comparable; perhaps they could speak reasonably.
Bruno stared at Ducan, breathing hard as he restrained his anger. "Xander's ashes were sent to the Celestial palace. And the scent we detected was from Elvendria. That proves you sent those ashes to the palace. You are also the ones who wiped out the sole heir of the wolf race!"
Silence fell for a moment after Bruno uttered that sentence.
"I think there is a misunderstanding here. I dare swear on behalf of the Elvendria lands that we did not kill Xander. We were indeed involved in a rather fierce fight. But that happened because Xander attacked our disciples first," Ducan explained after a brief pause.
"But now we have lost Xander! Your defenses are of no use. We only want our prince returned to life!"
Chaos erupted as the wolves shouted and echoed each other, demanding the return of their prince.
Unable to bear it, Elvelyn finally spoke up, "Is there no way to bring him back to life? What about the Moon Locket of Immortality that your race possesses?"
"That locket has long been missing. Xander left to search for it. If he came here, then you are the ones who stole it." Bruno grew more out of control as the two related perspectives conflicted.
"If we had set foot in the Celestial palace, the alarm would have sounded. Besides, that border is heavily guarded; we couldn't have entered, let alone steal anything," Darius explained. For some reason the elf remained calm even though the situation had become chaotic.
Bruno then turned his gaze to the sword in Isaura's hand. "Then let us revive Xander."
Carlos nodded slowly. "If there is a way, that would be best."
"There is one way to bring Xander back to life."
"What is it?"
"I must use the power of the magic sword belonging to the last wizard remaining in the world," Bruno said with emphasis. He looked at Isaura with a hungry stare, as if he wanted to devour her on the spot.
Immediately Isaura hid her sword and it vanished from her grip. She stepped forward, ignoring Darius's outstretched hand. "I will never give Vegas to anyone, let alone to a sly shapeshifter race like yours!"
"How dare you!"
"We are not guilty; why should we be punished? The ashes sent to the Celestial are not necessarily Xander's death ashes. He is a wolf prince—he would not die so easily, let alone at the hands of fairies like us," Isaura added.
Bruno's expression darkened. His teeth bared as fangs prepared to rend the enemy before him. "EVERYONE! ATTACK THEM! SEIZE THE GIRL AND TAKE HER SWORD SO WE CAN REVIVE PRINCE XANDER!"
At their commander's command, the wolves immediately surged forward and attacked the fairies. The two races were now locked in a battle that could no longer be avoided.
The fighting did not stop even as some from both sides fell. Then a single drum sounded—piercing enough to make them stop and clutch their ears.
"Ah! What is that? My ear feels like it's going to burst!"
"Damn, my head hurts from that!"
"Can someone stop this noisy sound?!"
A moment later, a golden light from the sky dazzled them, forcing everyone to close their eyes. After a figure in all-white descended among them, the blinding light vanished.
"The God of Justice?" Bruno whispered.
Then all the fairies and wolves bowed to pay respect to the God of Justice. "Hail the God of Justice," they said in unison.
Michael, the God of Justice, looked at them one by one. "I accept your greeting. Rise."
At Michael's words, everyone stood upright again. Michael's gentle eyes scanned them individually. "What has caused you to resume hostilities after a thousand years of peace?"
"They killed our prince, Xander, O God. We demand retribution!" Bruno was the first to speak. From his tone, everyone could tell he was truly angry.
Bruno's actions did not escape Isaura's notice.
"That is not true, God! We did fight Xander, but only because he attacked us first. And Xander did not die at our hands—he fled!" Ducan objected.
"Xander attacked Elvendria because you hid our Moon Locket of Immortality, God," Bruno continued, unwilling to yield.
Darius's anger flared again upon hearing that. He clenched his fists and stepped forward, were it not for Evelyn restraining his arm. "I already said your guards couldn't even allow a mosquito in. How could we possibly get past your tight defenses and steal something? And what proof do you have to accuse us?"
"Truth cannot be found by quarrelling." Michael paused and looked at Bruno. "What makes you certain that Xander was killed by the fairies?"
"Someone sent us Xander's death ashes. When we smelled it, there was a fairy scent from Elvendria lingering there, O God." Bruno bowed, pressing his palms together before his chest. "I beg you to deliver punishment fairly to them, O God!"
"Yes, O God, deliver the fairest punishment!" added the wolf ranks behind Bruno.