Getting the Marionette Lord to leave his body was far more taxing than Damien ever expected it to be.
No matter how much they claimed they would leave him alive, it was clear that they still felt unresigned about his survival.
Nevertheless, he eventually managed to convince them, not through any sort of negotiation or promise, but rather a certain strand of Divine Power that was residing in Damien's spiritual world.
Tiamat's will had gone into a hibernating state after their conversation, but her Divine Power was still present. Damien couldn't absorb it, nor did he want to carelessly release it into the atmosphere.
Therefore, while Tiamat herself wasn't present, traces of her existence were.
And as Damien learned through the Marionette Lord's quick exit after sensing those vestiges…
'Tiamat was an Emperor.'
There were no beings in existence who could make the Marionette Lord retreat without a rebellious word besides Nox Emperors, denizen Demigods of the same level included.
'I was once again saved by her, but I once again have to raise my guard against her. If she's an Emperor, it makes sense why she was sealed instead of killed, but she doesn't seem to have been weakened much if her residual aura can still scare off Lord-level Nox.'
Damien was curious about who designed the seal. Back then, he never found any traces of the dungeon's creator, nor did Kurt Galloway mention anything in his notes and research.
However, that person was definitely not a simple character. Tiamat's imprisonment was clouded in a layer of mystery that had to be revealed before Damien could decide how to proceed in his relationship with her.
Whether they'd be friends or enemies?
Only time could tell.
Damien opened his eyes slowly.
'It was smart to move to the Sanctuary before anything happened.'
The first thing Damien saw were wisps of Nox Mana evaporating off his body. He was afraid that if he was outside, someone would've killed him before he had a chance to explain himself.
'I thought I'd age another few years so I set up a time dilation, but it looks like the Marionette Lord didn't affect my physical body at all since they wanted it for themself. On the other hand, that means this time dilation was useless…'
Damien understood through his body clock that not even a few seconds had passed since the ordeal began, and considering the time dilation, it was possible that those outside hadn't yet perceived his disappearance.
'Return…? No, not yet.'
At this point, all that was left to do was cleanup. Though it was shameful to admit it, the Marionette Lord helped greatly this time. They directly crushed most of the Black Dragons' strongest experts, leaving only a few officials and many lesser soldiers in Beast Emperor Star.
With his skills, Hedrick could lead the charge against these forces and achieve a victory.
It was more beneficial for Damien to spend his time elsewhere.
After all, there were several things in his body that needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.
***
Just as Damien predicted, Hedrick didn't waste time pondering his fate and instead took the opportunity to lead his army to sweep the Black Dragons.
'That tutor is strong. He will survive if he is worthy of his strength.'
This was Hedrick's thought. He and Damien weren't close to begin with, and his position as Astoria's teacher hadn't shown its value yet, so there was no reason for him to spare more than a single thought.
However, while he had no idea what Damien did with the Nox Demigod in that final instant, he respected the man for creating such a wonderful opening.
The Black Dragon Army was already defeated mentally by Lord Garvy's betrayal, and when they were assaulted with the Golden Dragon Army's full power, they couldn't provide any resistance.
They were promptly captured, not killed, and held within the estate's specialized dungeon.
When the Black Dragons were cleaned up, the army spread out and quelled the unrest plaguing the world, eliminating any lingering threats along the way.
It was a long process that took several days, and by the end of it…
The sky was shining gold, illuminated by a canopy of Fate Clouds.
There was one specific section of the world. As civilians calmed themselves and let go of their fear, as soldiers finished their duties and finally had time to rest, all beings slowly gathered here.
In this place. There was a single gargantuan Fate Cloud that all others strayed away from, creating a halo of natural light among the golden sheen held by the rest of the world.
It was understood not long after the cleanup began. This was the source, the origin of those Fate Clouds who returned to bless the world.
And thus, this place became a place of prayer and hope, said to bring good luck to anyone who prayed under it long enough.
After 5 days, the cloud slowly dispersed into the surroundings, filling in the circular gap around it and finally connecting to the rest of the clouds.
DING!
A high-pitched ringing bell sounded as the Fate Clouds shined brightly, lighting up Beast Emperor Star and creating a spectacle for those who saw it as part of their night sky.
In the midst of the beautiful heavenly glow was a single woman who gracefully descended to the ground below.
She opened her eyes to be greeted by several million people staring at her with widened eyes.
Her head tilted to the side.
"Did I miss something?"
One could almost picture the question mark floating over her head when she spoke her first words.
"A-Astoria?!"
Her eyes turned to the voice who called for her. A smile spread on her face soon after.
"Eldest Sister, you're here?"
"Astoria!"
Elizabeth ran forward and embraced Astoria tightly.
"Thank the heavens! I thought we lost you too!" Elizabeth cried as she held her younger sister.
Astoria's eyes slightly narrowed as she picked up the meaning behind those words, but she didn't mention it.
"Eldest Sister, let's go back to the palace and meet Father. It looks like the war is over, but there's still work to be done, right?"
Astoria grabbed Elizabeth's hand and pulled her into the air, moving as she said.
She left behind the crowd below, unaware of the impact she'd left on their hearts.
And when she arrived at the palace, she finally heard of what happened.
She wasn't too close to most of them, but half of her siblings had died.
It wasn't something she could just accept.
While she was being selfish and getting stronger by herself, they were living and dying together with their family.
"I feel useless," she muttered to herself as she collapsed onto her bed.
Though she'd been informed of the outcome of the war, that was it. The Emperor ordered her to rest and return tomorrow to tell him in detail about her experiences after she left.
And now that she was alone, it struck her just how close Beast Emperor Star and the Golden Dragon Clan were to perishing,
"I wish I could've helped somehow…"
"No, rather, if it wasn't for your help, this world would have been destroyed."
A voice refuted her soliloquy. Astoria immediately teleported away and raised her guard, only to widen her eyes and immediately rush back.
"Master!"
She jumped into Damien's arms like a koala and dug her face into his chest.
Damien smiled wryly and sat down on the nearby sofa, patting her back comfortingly.
It couldn't have been more obvious that Astoria was trying to bottle up her feelings and stay strong, but he wouldn't allow it.
No disciple of his would be allowed to follow the same mistakes he'd made in the past.
So his first priority, now that he'd finished up his own errands and returned, was to make sure she was okay.
