A group of four stood on a green grass area, behind them an ultra-gigantic, sleek black aircraft.
Something about the scene surprised him—he knew Ammamora never used technological artifacts like the spaceship before him.
But before he could dwell too long on that point, he finally arrived before the group of four, Officer Rhys beside him, who waved cheerfully.
"This... this won’t end nicely..." That was the first thought that occurred in Ryuk’s head as he appeared before them.
The reason he didn’t think it would end well?
It was because all four people were ArchGuards, but unlike him, who was a Foreigner ArchGuard, they were true Angelic ArchGuards.
Two of them had their brows scrunched up in displeasure upon seeing Ryuk.
Another had his mouth opened in an ’O,’ while the last—the only female in the group—wore the most deadpan expression Ryuk had ever seen on a living being.
"Very sorry to keep you waiting," Officer Rhys said, but before he could say more, he was cut short.
"Don’t tell me this is him?"
A male ArchGuard, the tallest in the group, standing at an exceptional height of 4 meters and towering over Ryuk by almost double his size, stepped forward, stopping just half a meter before him.
"He is," Officer Rhys replied.
"While he might look immature, I can assure you, he’s the perfect..."
"How many missions has he completed?" the man asked, cutting off Officer Rhys, still staring down at Ryuk.
"He just resumed yesterday, but he did his—"
"So not only does he look immature, he is immature," the man finished, turning to look at Officer Rhys, who tried to say something in defence, but those piercing golden eyes alone were enough to silence him, making him forget what he even wanted to say.
The tall Angelic ArchGuard turned back to Ryuk before bending down to his level.
"Just to make sure you get this right. So, we’re all going on a Loyalty Quest to find a group of lost Foreigner ArchGuards," he said, pausing.
Ryuk nodded once and replied through his nose, "Uh-huh."
"And you are a Foreigner ArchGuard?" he asked.
Ryuk nodded twice, replying again, "Uh-huh, uh-huh."
The man paused, his brow furrowing.
Ryuk’s tone seemed childish, but leaned more toward obvious mockery.
Still, the man continued.
"And you’re sure you get the math?"
This time Ryuk nodded thrice before replying with,
"Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh?"
A faint chuckle came from the side—from none other than Officer Rhys, who found the situation more amusing than he should.
But he quickly received a deadly stare and was instantly silenced.
"You know what?" the tall Angel said, rising back up as he extended a hand forward.
"Welcome to the team. I’m Grozque," he said.
Ryuk smiled—a sweet, innocent smile that, thanks to his beautiful face, looked even sweeter.
"And I’m Ryuk," he replied, taking the handshake firmly before eventually letting go.
"Then I’ll be sure to aim downwind, Grozque. Wouldn’t want your sensitive nose to pass out before we even get to Nihility." Ryuk replied, clearly taunting him, but in such a naive and innocent tone that no one among them could call it disrespect.
"See you, Officer Rhys," Ryuk said with a wave, climbing onto the ship as the hatch soon closed up. The last thing he saw was Officer Rhys waving back.
"I’ll be waiting here to receive you once you’re back!" The fatty called out with a loud shout as the hatch shut closed
But that only saved him from the loud snort that rang through the ship after his words.
’Once he’s back... Tsk. His chances of survival are nil if the Nihility is as described,’ the ArchGuards thought in their hearts.
Unlike Elder Celine’s aircraft, which was so large it had a living room and extra rooms inside, this spacecraft only had a large cockpit lit by golden lights and exactly five seats.
The lady, who had yet to say a word or display any emotion, took the foremost seat directly in front of the aircraft consoles.
Right behind her were two seats where Grozque and another burly man sat.
Behind those two seats was Ryuk’s own seat on the right, and beside him sat the last member of the group—an ArchGuard who was eye-catching due to his short height of about 2.3 meters and a lean body.
Ryuk turned to him for a moment, watching as the man raised his hand and waved at him with a smile that couldn’t exactly be called a friendly one.
It seemed more like a mocking grin, but who was Ryuk to not respond to such a "well-wishing" gesture?
He also raised his hand and waved back, flashing the same innocent smile—and that alone was more than enough to make Mason’s eyes faintly twitch.
’Is he really as dumb as he looks? Or is this all just a façade? Somehow, I feel like the latter is more accurate...’
"Strap up. We’ll be leaving for Nihility in 10... 9..." The countdown from the ship’s AI rang out as Ryuk turned to his side, finding three seat belts.
He didn’t waste much time, slashing one seat belt over his waist, which locked him to the chair, then sliding the remaining two diagonally across his body, tightly securing himself.
It didn’t take long before the sound of the awakening engine rang out in his ears, followed by the surge of waves that rippled outward from the underside and backside of the ship.
Under the watch of Officer Rhys, the sleek black jet slowly hovered upwards before it suddenly rushed into the skies.
It disappeared like a phantom, mingling with the gray clouds and soon completely exiting Ammamora’s atmosphere before vanishing into the darkest depths of space.
"I really hope he returns safely," Officer Rhys mused to himself, looking at the place where the ship had once been.
But then he added,
"If he does, I can finally reach halfway through the merit points enough for my promotion..." He completed with a beaming smile, soon walking away from the scene.