When the plot-skips players into the game world

Returning home with the Grand Guardian had at least one advantage—they didn't need to waste much time on the road.

The Gryphon had great weight-bearing capacity. Even fully armed heavy-armored Knights could be carried at supersonic speeds, with spare strength to protect them from the wind.

The Grand Guardian's Gryphon, Philip, carried all three of them, while casually holding onto Aiwass's wheelchair... and didn't even fly at full strength, arriving at their home in just a short while.

Aiwass, riding the Gryphon for the first time, couldn't help but exclaim, "The Gryphon really is strong..."

It felt like speeding in a car at full throttle—except there was no need to worry about any accidents.

No wonder Hayna was always going on about the Gryphon she hadn't received yet.

George's invitation to Aiwass was rather impulsive, so naturally, David didn't know Aiwass would come. He didn't even know Aiwass had returned... Therefore, seeing Aiwass, he was momentarily stunned.

"Dad, have you rescued Mr. Moriarty?"

David's voice was filled with concern.

The Grand Guardian raised an eyebrow at this.

—Kid, not even bothering to pretend, huh?

If I really had rescued Aiwass, then who are you worried about?

"No, I escaped on my own. Or rather, she let me go."

Aiwass said gently, climbing down from the Gryphon and sitting in his wheelchair.

"Huh?"

David hesitated for a moment, "Can you actually walk...?"

"David!"

Feeling his son was being somewhat impolite, George immediately frowned and scolded.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"It's fine, your Excellency the Grand Guardian."

Aiwass explained gently and patiently, "Someone had provided me with treatment before I was attacked, the same person who helped me fend off the assassins. My recovery is almost complete. It's just that my legs are still a bit weak and shaky... With some more time, I should be back to full health.

"In the meantime, she also gave me this..."

With that, Aiwass lifted his finger.

The Flame Butterfly on his shoulder automatically flew up, landing on his finger.

Seeing such a beautiful creature, David's eyes widened immediately.

Curiously, he moved closer, staring attentively.

He cautiously asked, "Mr. Aiwass... may I touch it?"

"Of course,"

Aiwass replied frankly.

After all, this was merely a disguise shell for the Defiant Flame Butterfly, akin to her camera. In essence, it was just a slightly smarter Flame Butterfly, with no aggressiveness, and its flames had no temperature at all.

Continue your journey on empire

"Thank you, Mr. Aiwass!"

David was very happy, yet a bit timid.

He carefully touched the flame-dancing butterfly wings, surprised to find they didn't burn. Instead, he felt a warm current flowing into his body... like drinking hot water.

"Did Aleister give this to you too?"

The Grand Guardian asked from the side.

Aiwass shook his head, "No, this is from another lady... her name is Defiant Flame Butterfly."

This was also part of Aiwass's plan.

To be fair, those people were indeed burned by the Defiant Flame Butterfly, and Aiwass wasn't lying. The Little Butterfly could indeed be considered a lady—although referring to her that way might be a bit of an overstatement.

But by doing so, Aiwass could explain why he was able to walk, escape... and also, where he had suddenly learned to summon the powerful Flame Butterfly with the Contribution skill.

Unlike Aleister, whose whereabouts were unknown, there was proof of the existence of "Defiant Flame Butterfly." In the warehouse explosion incident, Yulia left behind a Flame Spirit—a testament to the existence of the Phantom Demon Egg.

Now that Yulia was no longer the Phantom Demon Egg, there was an extra set of evidence to account for. The Defiant Flame Butterfly could easily be a Contributor able to wield Phantom Demon Power, similar to a Demon.

Although no such occupation exists currently, who knows which Codex Book might contain similar legacies. In this world, anything is possible.

That way, Yulia wouldn't be suspected of being the Phantom Demon Egg anymore, and Aiwass wouldn't be suspected of harnessing Phantom Demon Power. After all, the warehouse explosion and his own assault were connected; thus, even if he later said there was a conflict with the Noble Red Society, it would be completely reasonable.

After all, adding a single Aleister to the internal investigation of the Noble Red might be solved quickly; but if there's also a Defiant Flame Butterfly, the situation becomes complicated. It could at least serve to delay things.

"Another lady..."

Upon hearing this, David suddenly thought of what Aiwass had just said, "She let me go."

He blurted out, "Is Aleister a lady... or miss?"

Without betraying his emotions, Aiwass replied, "If the miss who took me away was Aleister... then yes, she seems to be. And probably a young lady, likely one of the Iris People."

By this, he was certain in his heart—that child must be the "Knight" he had met in his dream.

Actually, when he heard the true name included "Barton," Aiwass had wondered if the person might be the child of the Grand Guardian.

After all, someone who got a Gryphon as a gift in childhood must be from a family of at least a mid-level officer's standing.

But there were indeed many with the name Barton, and it certainly isn't a rare name. However, knowing Aleister and even thinking of Aleister as a "Mr."... there was only one person.

Now it appeared that Barton was indeed the son of Saint George!

This could be considered a kind of meeting with an online friend, albeit one-sided—Aiwass knew his identity and alias, but he didn't know his own.

Although Aiwass didn't know the family of the great Guardian Saint George, he knew that the Guardian's entire family had died in the future war. That is, the future "Knight" had also died in that nation-destroying conflict.

Thinking of this, Aiwass suddenly felt a bit guilty.

After all, was it really appropriate for him to have taught the Guardian's son the basic principles and introductory methods of The Path of Transcendence...

But after thinking about it, Aiwass forgave himself — it had nothing to do with him, anyway.

I did advise him, "You can hold on to this idea, but for now, don't advance to The Path of Transcendence"! It was the Werewolf of the Iris that truly deceived him...

Speaking of which, that Werewolf seemed to have said he would come to Avalon.

He should be arriving soon, right?

Upon hearing this, Mr. Knight's face was full of confusion as he repeated, "Miss Aleister is a young lady? Or an Iris Person?"

"That's correct," the Guardian nodded, "Aleister is indeed a surname among the Irisflower People."

"...So Aleister is a surname."

David fell into thought, murmuring softly, "But she said she was an Avalonian. She told me she was also a clergyman's child..."

...Huh, he has quite an impression of me.

Can't stop thinking about it, it seems.

Aiwass raised an eyebrow.

—Could it be that my act of cooking in a cauldron was too handsome?

Interested, Aiwass then eagerly asked, "Do you know Miss Aleister?"

"Ah, actually we've only met in dreams."

David said somewhat uneasily, "She helped me to advance... I'm very grateful to her. But she also said that she's one of the Noble Red, so... I didn't really trust her back then."

"That's not necessarily true."

Aiwass shook his head slightly, saying softly, "I don't think she considers herself one of the Noble Red."

—He needed to cover his tracks a bit, since one couldn't make definitive statements. If it turned out she wasn't really part of the Noble Red, he could just say she was pretending to be one to deceive others.

"That's incredible! So it means she might have joined the Noble Red for some purpose—"

Upon hearing this, a light of realization flashed across David's eyes, followed by a bitter expression, "Was it all just a deception..."

At these words, the Guardian's expression suddenly turned displeased.

He hadn't said anything when David had mentioned Aleister before. But when David said, feeling wronged, "How could she deceive me like that," the Guardian immediately became strict:

"In the ceremony of ascension, any lie is allowed, and it's reasonable. That place is all about deceiving each other, attacking each other. If you didn't disguise your identity properly, that's your fault—you still want to accuse others of lying?

"The ceremonies to come are not child's play; people really die, and killing happens.

"If you can't adapt, it's best not to continue down this path, David. You'll only harm yourself and others."

"...Yes. I remember, Father."

Clearly, George did not often lose his temper. His sudden reprimand took David by surprise, and he promptly became obedient.

To help the Knight divert the topic and ease the tense, silent atmosphere, Aiwass spoke up, "Did she ever say she was a gentleman?"

"That, she did not..."

David shook his head honestly and said, "I arrived late. I heard others calling her that, so I followed suit..."

It was mainly because of the Antlers.

When David first arrived, he saw Antlers talking to Aleister. He didn't dare interrupt, so he could only listen from the side. Then he remembered Aleister's name and personal details.

But David still held back some information.

He didn't mention the fact that Aleister was wrapped in Shadow Demon's aura and that "her" voice was rough and deep, which led him to "misidentify her gender."

Now, he could no longer distinguish which parts of Aleister's words were true and which were false...

"Right, I haven't introduced myself yet!"

The boy, who was no more than fourteen or fifteen this year, suddenly came to his senses, apologized, then stood up straight, saluted, and said earnestly, "I am David Barton. Good afternoon, Mr. Moriarty."

"You can just call me Aiwass, David."

Aiwass nodded amiably, smiling as he spoke.

"Yes, Mr. Aiwass..."

David hesitated in place for a while, but eventually asked, "May I inquire what Miss Aleister... looks like?"

...Hm?

Aiwass was taken aback.

Why do you care so much about what Aleister looks like?

Even if Aleister taught you what Transcendence is and prevented you from stepping onto The Path of Transcendence... that's at best a fleeting mentor-student relationship.

Do you want to know what she looks like, or are you curious if this "net friend" is attractive?

Or are you genuinely thinking of meeting Aleister in person?

Such audacity?

Aren't you afraid she's a bad woman from the Noble Red who will simply chop you up and take you away?