Chapter 219: The Trail Grounds

The blinding light faded, and Raiden found himself standing in the middle of a dense forest clearing, sunlight filtering weakly through the thick canopy above.

"Everyone still here?" He called out, spinning around to check on his companions.

"Present and accounted for," Theodore replied, already scanning their surroundings with a sharp, calculating gaze.

Aria nodded silently beside him, her earlier fear from the confrontation with her father slowly fading as the reality of the trial settled over her instead.

Woolie sniffed the air curiously, his ears twitching as he picked up on distant sounds echoing through the trees.

Neva stretched lazily on Raiden’s shoulder before hopping down to explore the immediate area, while Rose remained coiled comfortably around his neck, seemingly unbothered by their new surroundings.

"Woolie!!" Hey human, can I conquer this place for my new home?!

"No, no conquering any more places, please. You are already an Emperor. You don’t need to prove it." Raiden begged Woolie, who seemed to think for a while before nodding his head in agreement.

Raiden let out a sigh of relief at that. He still vividly remembered Woolie’s first expectation of expanding his empire and how terrorised those animals at Tobias Shop in the past.

"This place is huge. According to Maple’s earlier briefing, the entire realm spans roughly thirty kilometres. Meeting anyone else out here would be pure luck." Theodore said, pulling out a small compass-like device from his robes.

"Guess we’d better start moving then," Raiden said, stretching his arms before falling into step beside them.

"Alright, I will take the lead."

Theodore raised his hand as a golden light started flashing on his body, and moments later, a massive golden-winged eagle descended from the skies, landing gracefully beside him with a proud screech.

Standing over 10 m tall, it was massive, with sharp, golden feathers that seemed to pierce the eyes of an onlooker.

This is Bee, my partner. He’ll help keep an eye out for danger while we travel." Theodore explained, patting the majestic bird’s feathers affectionately.

"Woolie Woo!!" Hmm,not bad, not bad! You seem worthy enough to be Emperor Woolie’s little brother!! Stand behind me. I’ll protect you.

Woolie puffed his chest out as he took the lead despite clearly being the smallest and least intimidating creature in the immediate vicinity.

"No you don’t, buddy." Raiden chuckled, ruffling the sheep’s wool affectionately before he pulled him up and held him in his arms as they began their journey deeper into the forest.

Woolie:???

"Woolie Woo!!!" What are you doing, human!! Let me go!! I can still fight!! You are damaging the dignity of the Emperor!!

"You are our final trump card, the strongest person here. You can fight the final big boss and protect us for now. Just rest and let the others do the work. An emperor can’t do everything himself, right?? Let your underlings handle it." Woolie seemed to have accepted this explanation as he calmed down.

The group travelled for what felt like hours, Garuda circling protectively above them, occasionally diving down to intercept the odd wild Terra Beast that got too curious for its own good.

Theodore handled each threat with practised efficiency, barely breaking a sweat as he dispatched anything that dared approach too closely.

Meanwhile, Raiden did his best to keep the mood light, cracking jokes every chance he got, mostly aimed at lightening the heavy atmosphere still lingering from the morning’s confrontation.

"Hey, Aria, if you had to marry one of the people back there, which one would you pick? Personally, I’m thinking the one with the moustache who greeted you. Very trustworthy vibes." Raiden teased, nudging her lightly with his elbow.

"Raiden!!" Aria burst out laughing despite herself, swatting his arm playfully. "That’s such a horrible thing to joke about!! Why would I ever marry those smelly old men?"

"What? I’m just saying, moustache guy seemed like husband material. Very reliable, very shady, he would fit anybody well. Hell, I would have gone for it if I didn’t have a girlfriend already." Raiden continued shamelessly, earning another fit of laughter from Aria, who was clearly grateful for the distraction from her own nervous thoughts.

Even Theodore found himself cracking a small smile at the ridiculous exchange, though he quickly composed himself, focusing back on their surroundings.

Just as their little group rounded a bend in the forest path, three figures stepped out from behind the trees, blocking their way forward with clear hostility written across their expressions.

"Well, well, look who it is. Little Miss Aria, back from the dead, and Young Master Theodore too." One of them sneered, arms crossed confidently over his chest.

Theodore immediately stepped forward, positioning himself between the strangers and his sister, his expression darkening considerably.

"Do you three really want to go against me?" He asked coldly, his tone carrying an unmistakable warning. "I won’t hold back, regardless of who you are."

The three men exchanged glances among themselves, clearly hesitant despite their earlier bravado.

"No, we won’t fight you. You are our esteemed young master Theodore, after all. Someone who got admitted to the Archon Academy, atleast not with just the three of us." The one in front admitted, shaking his head slowly.

"But what if there were more of us?" Another guy added as a slow, confident smile spread across his face.

The moment those words left his mouth, the surrounding forest seemed to come alive with movement, dozens of figures emerging from behind trees, dropping down from branches, and stepping out from hidden crevices in the terrain.

Within seconds, Raiden’s group found themselves completely encircled, at least thirty strong, well-armed young clan members closing in from every direction, their expressions ranging from smug confidence to outright bloodlust.

Theodore’s grip tightened around Garuda’s talon perch, his eyes narrowing as he quickly calculated the odds now stacked heavily against them.

Aria’s breath caught in her throat, her earlier laughter completely forgotten as the reality of their situation crashed down around her.

Raiden, meanwhile, simply glanced around at the growing circle of enemies surrounding them, a slow, unimpressed look settling on his face.

"Well, I guess it’s time to work. Woolie, it’s your turn."

"Woolie!!!"

( •̀ ω •́ ) y

CRACK-BANG!!