The Arks

Following the battle between Raiyen and the Umbra, the giant emblem of Valokia beamed through the entire area, alerting the Valkyrie and Z.

"That's..." said Z, looking at the Beast's direction.

"Why does he always take the spells that I use..." complained the fallen Valkyrie on Z's back.

"You're finally awake now, huh?"

"Just barely. I still want to sleep."

"Can't sleep without your plushie?" asked Z, with a cheeky smile.

"Shut it, you. I've grown up."

"Yea, but not old enough to stop getting into trouble. You bit off more than you could chew, Bright Eyes."

"I did say I will go after Minwoo to help him out. I would defy anyone who got in my way."

"Hmph, such fiery words for someone who got defeated. And using his twin daggers to back the spell up... Just how many years does he intend to waste?' asked Z, shaking his head in disapproval.

"Years?" asked the Viscountess, catching up to the two Mages.

"Whenever Time Mages go out of their way to increase their Elemental Energy, they would use up their 'years'," explained Z, trying to heal the Valkyrie while making their escape.

"Meaning?" asked Venice, as she leaped from building to building.

"The years that would never come. In other words, he is using his future years to increase the spell's power," replied Z, looking back the blast.

"Hang on a moment. You can take 'years' of your life and use it for Magecraft?!" exclaimed the Viscountess.

"We prefer to call it 'lifeforce'. But yea, some Mages do tend to back up their powers using this method. It doesn't only apply to the Time Mages. Any Mage willing to give up some years to finish a spell can use up their lifeforce to make it work. The days that would never come."

"Why would he sacrifice his future?"

"To him, years might not matter. But since he has an abundance of those, he would fail to see how important those lost years would mean in the future. How many times have I warned you about being so reckless, Time Boy?" asked Z, running away from the blast radius.

"With that much power, I'm sure the Umbra has been defeated," said Mavislin, drifting off to sleep once more.

"I hate to burst your bubble, but the power of a Time Mage is not enough to bring down the Primordial Beast of Tiamat," murmured Z.

"Even if it was just a knock off."

The group managed to escape before feeling the rumble of the ground. Z placed Mavislin in one of the Congregation's rehabilitation centers. It was located under one of the village ponds. Venice and Ling had a hard time finding the area but Z was kind enough to wait for them.

After creating a makeshift tunnel in the water using Ice, the group headed down into a small trapdoor on the lakebed. A rusty old ladder awaited them.

"Ladies first," said Z, making way for the two girls to go down.

"No, we can't see anything in that tunnel of yours. And how is it that you can see in the dark so well?" asked the Duchess.

"I can't see in the dark. I rely on my ears and memory of the place. I've got a good memory, most of the places I've been are right up here," explained Z, pointing at his brain.

"Let's go, shall we?" asked Z, as he freely jumped down the gaping hole.

"Be careful, you have got a wounded person with you!" yelled the Viscountess as she peered down.

"Don't worry, she sleeps like the dead!"

"She will be joining the dead if you are too reckless," mumbled Vernice as she tried going down.

"Don't worry. Mages aren't as fragile as humans. With one fatal blow, humans are down for the count. It'll more than earlier to kill a Valkyrie."

After a sheer few moments of silence and walking, the group finally reached to a metal door. Z placed the Valkyrie down and placed his hand on the door. Within a second, the door froze and crumbled.

"You could have just broken the lock or something. It's a 50-meter high door!" exclaimed Ling.

"Too much work."

The room was small, lit up using a single torch. There was an old bed with a pillow and blanket. On one of the walls were cabinets filled with ingredients and medical supplies. On the other, there was an empty desk and a few chairs.

"Thank god these were still protected. Even after the Congregation collapsed, the Mage over here managed to keep this place well-hidden and taken care of," said Z, placing the Valkyrie on a bed.

The Viscountess looked happy when Mavislin decided to smile in her sleep. Z ruffled her hair as he checked for her pulse.