Raze had gathered all the information he needed from Amir, and with it, there was one thing that needed to be sorted so the deal between them was complete.
Currently, Raze was drawing the magic circle in a sandstone area, inside one of the houses. It was so the markings wouldn't be blown away.
Everyone was inside waiting for him because they needed him to get home, and that included Amir himself as well.
Just as he was finishing it up, Raze wanted to say a few more words.
"Remember part of the deal," Raze said. "I'm sending you back and out of this place, and you promise to do what you can to protect them."
"I'll do as you say and stay out of the Academy until I'm confident enough that I can take on the principal."
Amir continued to watch Raze draw his magic circle, and so did the others, but even after observing, they couldn't make any sense of what he drew or did.
For a while now, Amir as well as the Crimson Crane members had more questions. Why did Raze fight against the mages, what was he doing in Pagna as well?
It just felt extremely hard to speak to him at times because he was so focused on one thing, but Amir did ask one question.
"You seem to care for these people. I'm surprised someone from Altieran who hasn't been here so long has an attachment to them, rather than attachment to those of your own," Amir said.
After finishing up the circle, all it needed now was a bit of magic. Standing up, without erasing it, there was a smile across his face.
"Those people have done me no harm, and instead all they have done is get hurt because of me, yet despite the danger, they still continue to support me."
"They might think that I've abandoned them; they might be wondering why I haven't turned up or waiting for my return, and I don't care what they think about me."
"If I can help them from the shadows, then that will be enough for me. They have already given me some good memories to forget about the bad."
For the first time, as Amir and the rest of the Crimson Crane looked at the one known as the Dark Magus, he seemed approachable, but instantly the smile faded away, and the strong demeanor had returned.
"It's okay anyway," Alba replied. "Remember, Cronker is with them as well. If he thinks he can't help in any way, then he isn't one to risk his life since he thinks with his head."
"But he will continue to do his duty even if we aren't with him. So he will be there for a bit of support at least."
Raze was a little worried about that. Although he could send Amir back to the academy and the Crimson Crane back to the Demonic Faction, he couldn't really get Cronker to come back. Not without him appearing himself or sending the Crimson Crane into enemy territory.
Alba said it was fine, since the group spent large amounts of time apart before so it wasn't something for him to worry about; she was just happy that her and her group could get out of the dimension.
Raze activated his magic, and with that, the portal had opened in front of their eyes. It was still amazing for them to see.
The dimensions were seen as great dangers or great dangers to the clans and here there were people that could just open them with a few drawings on the ground.
"I will keep my promise to you," Amir said as he took a step forward. "Your plan to join Alter, to dive in even deeper is a dangerous one."
"I can tell you are not the type of person to align with anyone, so your involvement with Alter is just a facade, but be aware of a few things."
"The deeper you dive in, the harder it will be to get out when you need to. However, when you find out the truth that you are seeking I hope we can be on the same side."
"Before then though, the Bonum Society will see you as an enemy, as they won't be made aware of anything that occurred between us."
"I hope the next time we meet on the battlefield that it's not as enemies because I'm a little afraid, to be honest, that if we fought later on, then I would lose."
"Well, I don't plan on dying, so you might be right about that one," Raze replied as he witnessed Amir step through the portal, and it closed behind him.
It was unnerving not knowing what was going to happen on the other side. It had been a long time since he had to just trust people, but there wasn't really any other option he had.
Looking at his face, Alba walked over and stood in front of him. She had an inkling of what he might be thinking inside that head of his.
"Raze... it's okay to call you that, right?" Alba asked.
"It's acceptable," Raze replied. "But when we are in public, it will be better to just refer to me as the Dark Magus."
Raze still wanted his name to spread. He wondered if the name had reached those he wanted it to yet, only time would tell with that.
"Right, you know, you, and the Dark Magus, all of it, are part of the Crimson Crane. I know that you already agreed to join us."
"But it was for a mutual benefit. What I want is for you to be more officially part of us and treat us like a clan."
"Sure you can still keep the Dark Magus business to yourself; you can still do what you need to do. I see that you have a lot going on, but do you know what else it means to be in a Clan?"
Alba was waiting for an answer, but Raze didn't have one for her.
"Being in a Clan, at least our one that has few members, means we are like a family. We help you when you're in need."
"All of us, without realizing it, went beyond just our promise and protected you, and I know you wanted us to help you take down the academy."
"When the time comes, we'll still help you do that, but only if this relationship goes both ways. When we need your help and when you need ours."
With that, Alba placed her hand out. Although Raze didn't like touching people, he did find it slightly easier touching women compared to others.
There was a reason for that, which he didn't want to remember.
"This is twice today I have had to put trust in others. In the past, there were two things that happened to these people."
"Either those I trusted ended up betraying me, or they ended up dead."
Alba smiled in response.
"Well, so far we might have died twice if we didn't trust you, and I think it's safe to say the same for you."
Alba was the one who went forward and grabbed onto Raze's hand. As the two of them shook it, she smiled away, and it didn't feel too bad.
"Before I send you off, there's one more thing I need to do in here," Raze said as he pulled out the Ghost blade and the level 4 crystal he had on him.
