"Well, if you have now understood the task I assign you, you're free to leave now."
"...My lord, are you sure of your decision? You even gave me this...--
"Yea, yea; you have the right to do everything you want, as long as you don't get bored or leave embarrassing witnesses alive on your way. And then, when the time comes, use this little treasure you have just received as a reward for defeating the servant (Cindy)."
The two were no longer in Alvine's office but on the rocky exoplanet.
'I expected everything but that; who would have thought she would choose one of my best artifacts? The most ironic thing is that I intended to give it to her so that she could make good use of it in my place. Given the dangerousness of this relic, it would be risky to give it to Greed who would risk exterminating us with it.' He smiles while looking at Elena's skeptical eyes.
Receiving a reward instead of a punishment was too good to be true for her; even too suspicious, especially from Alvine, who's the perfect definition of the word impartiality.
"If I were in your place, I would hurry before I change my mind and deprive you of...
Before he finishes his sentence, Elena vanishes in front of him.
Seeing her flee him like a plague, Alvine shakes his head with a satisfying little smile.
"Well, now that the Outsider pawn has regained her usual place, and my subjects are safe for a long time, it's time to attend this meeting. ...I already shiver with impatience at the idea of the things this bastard has in store for me."
As if his shadow could understand his intentions, it creates a black portal within itself, allowing two people to join Alvine.
Against all odds, they were none other than Reha and Shiro.
These two were not surprised by their appearances, the information had already reached them through Celestia.
"Are you sure of your choice?" Reha asks immediately as soon as he appears.
"??"
"...I'm not saying we're weak, but I don't think I'm able to properly ensure your protection. There are quite a few useful and more powerful subordinates than us who will be able to...-
Alvine cut her off before she finished her sentence. "Don't worry, you two are the most qualified to fulfill this mission than anyone else."
"...In this case, I have nothing to add." She murmured while taking a quick look at Shiro, who was silent as usual.
'These two are the only ones who perfectly master the element of light; this simple detail changes the whole game.' Alvine takes advantage of this moment of silence while making a brief recap of the whole situation with a little stealthy smile under his unshakable lord's mask.
Then, while the two wondered about Alvine's next steps, the latter closed his eyes and manifested an amount of his aura.
But even with this small amount that was not close to fifty percent of the total, the two witnesses attended shows that were both beautiful but frightening.
-Crack, Crack, Crack, Crack....!!!
They could notice spatial cracks in the form of roots all around them.
"...Will you ask me this question every time we meet again?"
"Possible; at least, until I find the answer."
"...Do I have to understand that you don't intend to clean up the shit you just fucked here?" He grumbles in a somewhat angry tone.
But Alvine only smiled at his question.
As for the principal, he slams his tongue with frustration while sweeping the void with his hand. "...Sigh, I had doubts about some things."
As he said these words, the space debris that was like broken mirrors around them changed their trajectories.
Slowly, the glasses connected as time passed upside down.
Being the only spectator on the field, Alvine crosses his arms and spreads a sufficient smile on his lips.
Even if the mediator saw him putting his magnanimity to the test, he still kept his balance between being angry and acting under the effect of anger.
He then continues his sentence while continuing his maneuver with the laws of time. "I have wondered many times about where you had to...-
"It's a contradiction."
"..." He looked up deeply at Alvine when he saw him interrupt him with such a misty sentence.
But the latter didn't care, he continued: "You said you were there to maintain the universal balance; in other words, to ensure that no one influences the laws of the natural order. But what did I just attend? You have reversed the thread of time on this planet.
-This discrepancy will be forever present here and would risk attracting a lot of time-eaters, who are monsters known to be attracted by anomalies similar to these."
The mediator frowns.
"How is it different from my crime?" But still careless, Alvine continues with his arguments, which were more provocations than anything else. "You had the choice between letting these spatial cracks extend to infinity or repairing them. But even if you chose the second option, you could have used a spatial skill of the highest rank instead of using time."
"..."
"Why the time? Is it because you are more skilled with time than with space?" He asks while raising his eyebrows.
"The decision is up to me, and I don't think I have the memories to justify my choices to you."
"No, you didn't make such promises. But I can't help being dazzled by your spell of time. You used it with such skill that you give me the impression of being one with this affinity; a bit like Isolet, who is one with her affinity of light or me with darkness."
"..."
"Finally, I am only speculating between this possibility among the thousands that exist. I suppose that an ignorant like me is not smart enough to guess the depth of wisdom that is of an unfathomable level." Alvine chains these words one after the other without giving the mediator time to place a word.
The latter, unlike his first meeting with Alvine, was on his guard; to believe that he saw Alvine in another light.
During these brief moments of silence, Alvine looks at Shiro and Reha with contracted eyebrows.