The palace dining hall felt warmer than I remembered.
Long tables had been arranged end to end, plates steaming, laughter echoing, and the scent of spices filling the room. Everyone sat around, Arkas, the emperor, generals, my summons scattered among them, Steve grinning at a plate piled too high, and North sitting beside me quietly.
The emperor raised a cup.
"Let us begin. Billion, you brought home two ships. One of which looks like it can crush the capital if it rolls over in its sleep. I assume you have... explanations."
I wiped my mouth with the napkin.
"It’s Feran’s." I said.
The emperor’s eyebrows rose.
"Feran? As in—?"
"Yes. The race. It belonged to a transcendent," I finished. "Vaelix Ranthor."
A silence fell over the table.
I continued, "We fought. It ended with him dead, the Ferans dead, and the ship falling into our hands. It’s fully functional and filled with high-tier systems. Keep it here. Use it for Vaythos. The Feran crew left in it can help train our people."
One of the generals nearly dropped his cup.
The emperor leaned back, stunned.
"You want to... give Vaythos a transcendent-class vessel?"
I nodded.
"You’ll need it. And I won’t be here to protect the planet all the time."
A murmur passed through the group.
Then Arkas spoke softly.
"This is no small gift, child."
"Not a gift," I replied. "It is my duty as the guardian."
For a moment, everyone ate in silence.
Then the emperor asked, voice softer, "And Dante?"
My grip on the spoon tightened.
I exhaled.
"He’s gone."
The emperor froze. His expression collapsed into something raw and old. A man losing a friend he had known his entire life.
"I see..." he whispered.
He lowered his head, shaking slightly.
"He was one of the few people I trusted. Life will not be the same without him."
No one spoke after that. We simply sat together, letting the weight settle.
After dinner ended, everyone scattered.
My summons rushed out to explore the capital, Silver was already talking about finding clothes shops and mirrors. He left with Lyrate.
Ragnar ran toward the training grounds shouting he wanted to spar with "pathetic humans." Knight slipped into shadows immediately. Primus went to meet his daughter.
Steve left to meet his parents. North left with Arkas.
And I turned toward the sky.
I closed my eyes, reached through the layers of the planet, and tapped the heart of Vaythos.
The world core responded instantly.
In the next instant, space folded and I appeared inside the pocket dimension of the core.
A silent hexagonal prism floated in the center, rotating slowly, glowing faint violet. The moment it sensed me, it trembled and drifted closer like an excited child.
A smile tugged at my lips.
Inside it, currents of violet Essence swirled like a small storm, bright and alive.
"You’ve grown," I whispered.
I placed my palm on its surface.
Essence began to flow from me immediately. First in small streams. Then in rushing torrents. I opened the generator core and dumped all the Essence I had collected. Then I generated more. And more. Until the entire pocket space turned violet.
The core devoured everything greedily, as if starving.
When it finished, it pulsed once.
Then—
BOOM.
A ripple shot outward.
It passed through the pocket dimension, the crust, the mantle, the sky and wrapped the entire planet.
The moment it touched the protective barriers around Vaythos, all of them flashed bright violet.
The defense multiplied instantly.
What was once a barrier that could stop a Grandmaster...was now something even a Transcendent would struggle to crack.
I felt the shift deep in the planet’s veins, the talent seeds strengthening, the mind and body potential rising, the Essence flow accelerating.
Vaythos would thrive.
I exhaled and left the pocket space, teleporting directly home.
I rang the bell once and the door opened instantly.
My grandmother opened the door instantly. I smiled, understanding that she was waiting.
"I missed you," she said, voice trembling. Her face looked healthier, full of life, as if the years had been lifted off her.
"I missed you too," I replied, holding her gently.
We sat together on the couch in the living room. I told her about the journey, only the good parts, the ones that wouldn’t worry her. She listened with that soft smile of hers, nodding at every little detail.
In return, she told me everything that had happened in Vaythos while I was gone. Peaceful days, the cities growing, the academies expanding... small things, but they felt strangely comforting.
From the corner of my eye, the TV flashed bright colors. I glanced toward it and saw the footage of my arrival on the planet playing again. The headline at the bottom read: Return of the Guardian.
So that was the title they had chosen.
Everyone knew now.
Guardian of Vaythos.
A position more revered than even the Emperor’s. And it wasn’t just a title, they had wrapped my entire life story into the academy curriculum. Soldiers studied every event I had lived through, every victory, every mistake. They even used simulations of my battles for training.
The Guardian’s Realm, the small realm I had left behind, had become the official training ground for top military units. Only the elite were allowed in.
Sukra and Peanu had officially become vassal planets under Vaythos. Our influence was spreading far faster than I had expected.
But before we could continue, a loud voice burst from the TV.
Grandma and I both turned toward it.
A reporter stood in the middle of the central street, practically shaking with excitement as the crowd screamed behind her.
"Viewers, you’re seeing this live! A winged man has descended into the capital’s marketplace!"
The camera zoomed out, showing Silver standing right in the center of a massive circle of people—tall, silver-haired, two wings spread slightly behind him like some noble celestial creature.
Children pointed. Adults whispered. Phones recorded from every angle.
"He claims to be a companion of the Guardian of Vaythos!" the reporter continued breathlessly. "Citizens are calling him the ’Guardian’s Wing!’"
Silver raised a hand and waved dramatically.
"Hello, everyone! Yes, yes! I am Silver, companion of the Guardian!"
The crowd erupted in cheers.
The reporter moved the mic closer.
"Sir Silver, can you tell us about your relationship with Guardian Ironhart?"
Silver placed a hand on his chest and smiled proudly.
"I am Guardian Silver," he declared confidently, "first of his companions and the one responsible for keeping him safe."
I covered my face with my palm.
"What are your abilities?"
"Are you single?"
"Can we touch your wings?"
Silver adjusted his robe dramatically.
"I will answer one question at a time. And no touching without permission."
Grandma laughed softly beside me.
"Your friends are... very lively," she said.
I sighed.
"That’s one way to put it."
But then her expression softened again.
"You just came back," she whispered. "You’ll stay a little while... right?"
I looked at her.
Her soft eyes.
Her warm smile.
Her hands holding mine tightly.
And I felt something twist in my chest.
"Grandma," I said softly, "this time... I won’t be gone for weeks or months."
She blinked.
I continued, "It will be years. Maybe longer. I’ll need to travel far."
Her fingers tightened around mine.
But she smiled.
"I know," she said quietly. "You’re my grandson. But you’re also something... much bigger."
"I’ll come back," I said.
"I know," she whispered.
I hugged her one last time.
And outside the window, the violet shield around Vaythos glowed like a second sky.