Raiden and Nathan saunter over to the round table and settle into a seat. Aside from them and Cyrus, there are nine other people - seven men and two women - who are all dressed in crimson coats. Their attention is all focused on Raia, who stands in front of them.

"I'm Raia Allen, from Uriel," Raia declares, her voice a mirror of her grim expression. "I came here to be branded as an Aragon and be part of this holy organization."

Everyone at the table, including Nathan, regard her with a surprised stare. Cyrus, on the other hand, quickly regains his composure. He smiles at Raia.

"I see. So you're the apprentice of Apostle Simon. The one who can heal," Cyrus says, and a chorus of gasps fills the room.

Raiden is the only one who does not have the same reaction since he already knows about Raia. Of course, he expected them to be surprised. Her nationality, her mysterious healing ability, and her master. Raia's mere presence is enough to cause a commotion within the organization.

Nathan doubts his own hearing. "Apostle Simon is your master?"

Raia's gaze shifts to him, but she doesn't respond. Nathan shrinks comically in fear when he meets her pale and cold eyes, so he looks at Raiden instead.

"Wow, that's cool! I can't believe she's an apprentice of Apostle Simon," Nathan says to Raiden. "That man is the best warrior I've ever known. I wished he was my master, though."

"Apostle Yi Ze will kill you if she heard that," Raiden comments, then a warm smile creeps across his face. "Well, let's see what this girl apprentice of him can do. How far will she go as an official disciple of Azarios."

The room is filled with murmurs and awe-inspiring sounds, but Cyrus silences them with a clap.

"Please mind your manners and don't frighten the new disciple," Cyrus states. "Let me get things clear here. But before anything else, would you like to have a seat first, dear Raia?" He addresses Raia with a kind smile.

Raia remains silent as she settles into a seat, all eyes on her. Ignoring the stares, she turns her gaze to Cyrus.

Cyrus clears his throat and takes a seat also. "So first, this place is called Assembly Hall, where meetings are being held."

Cyrus smiles at Raia as she looks up to take in her surroundings.

"As you see, this place is huge," Cyrus says. "I'll ask someone tomorrow to take you on a tour so you can get yourself familiar with the place. Maybe after your Branding." He clears his throat again and intertwines his hands on the table, looking at the people around him. "So you've heard right, she is an apprentice of Apostle Simon who came from Uriel. She was sent here for some reason. Maybe it's the will of Azarios, the path he gave her. To be part of Mikaelean Branch."

His eyes land on Raia. "Your master, he's the best among all warriors the Order has. Members of different branches have acknowledged his skills. He is an Apostle who wields the most powerful weapon, the First Trumpet, which I assume you already know."

Raia's eyes narrow to a pinprick, bemused. "What is a trumpet?"

Raiden looks at her with a surprised look, even Cyrus has the same expression.

"You don't know? " Nathan blurts out, his eyebrows raised in disbelief. "Are you saying Apostle Simon didn't tell you about that?" He clears his throat upon receiving an icy look from Raia. He collects himself. "Trumpets are powerful divine weapons Apostles receive from an angel after making a contract with them."

"And there's also one thing your master is known for," Cyrus says, drawing Raia's attention back to him, a smirk tugging on his lips.

"A drunkard?" Raia suggests in a flat tone, earning ridiculous looks from the people around her.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Is she nuts?" Nathan murmurs to Raiden only to receive a shrug.

Raiden's forehead creases, starting to wonder what kind of relationship does Raia has with Simon. Do they even have a good bond as master and apprentice? Raiden has noticed from Raia that she'll turn surly every time her master is mentioned.

He draws his eyebrows together. Don't tell me she hates Apostle Simon? I wonder if something happened?

"No, silly. Well, apart from that," Cyrus says, masking his laughter with a fake cough. "Apostle Simon is also known for his unusual way of training his apprentices. If I may ask, how long did he train you before declaring your apprenticeship complete?"

Raia frowns. "Two years."

This time, Raiden's mouth hangs open, having the same reaction as everyone else. Even Cyrus himself, he's regarding Raia with a look of disbelief on his face.

Two years? That's insanely long! Raiden wonders, eyes widening.

"Two years, you say? How old are you when you became an Elysian?" Cyrus asks, leaning on the wooden table and narrowing his eyes at her.

"I was fifteen years old when I received the calling of the Light. But before I became an Elysian, I was already in my master's custody," Raia answers, clutching her cloak.

"I see. To clarify, an Elysian must be Branded after a year of training under an Apostle. More than that isn't allowed. Because Elysians are rare, and they are needed to prevent the Great Wizard and his army of demons from destroying our innocence. They must enter a war prepared." Cyrus pauses, an indecipherable expression shadowing his face. "An Unbranded disciple is unfit for a war."

Raia scrunches up her eyebrows, yet she remains quiet.

"But Apostle Simon," Cyrus continues, his eyes narrowing as though he's in deep thought. "He followed his own rule and trained his first apprentice for more than a year - one and a half years, to be exact. He believes that a disciple of Azarios must be prepared to be one. After only two years as an Aragon, his apprentice unexpectedly made a contract with an angel and became an Apostle."

A smile forms on his lips. "And now he's chosen his second apprentice. Surprisingly, he had you trained for a longer period of time. But, given that this is him, we can only speculate as to why." His amber eyes bore into Raia's grey ones. "Well, we're delighted to welcome another apprentice of such a great man, Raia Allen from Uriel."

Raia holds his gaze, then darts her eyes around the table, returning the gazes of the people as they fall silent. When she looks at Raiden, he smiles.

When Nathan springs to his feet, the sound of a chair scraping against the floor breaks the lingering silence. He reaches out a hand to Raia, a wide grin splitting his face.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Raia. My name is Nathan, the best warrior after Apostle Simon," he says, earning ridiculous looks from the people.

Raia frowns at him without saying anything, so Nathan retrieves his ignored hand and fakes a cough. He then grabs Raiden's arm and wraps his arm around his shoulders.

"And this one is Kara," he says, pointing at Raiden.

"Idiot, we already know each other. I'm the one who brought her here," Raiden hisses, glaring at Nathan as he removes his hand.

Nathan lets out a laugh. "I know, man. But you prefer that name, right?" Nathan asks, raising an eyebrow at him.

Raiden's face flushes in embarrassment. When he opens his mouth to say something, Raia speaks first.

"So you're Kara," she utters, her voice is little more than a whisper.

Raiden gives her a smile and a shrug before glaring at Nathan.

Raia sighs and places her head on the wooden table as if she's lost interest.

Even when she's fighting, her expression remains the same. Is there ever a time when she smiles? Raiden contemplates with a frown on his face.

Cyrus rises from his seat and clears his throat. "Alright, that's all for now. I believe our newcomer is already exhausted. Traveling from another country depletes one's vitality, so she must rest up for tomorrow's Branding."

Raiden nods, agreeing with Cyrus. Of course, Raia's journey must have been exhausting. Considering she came from another country, not to mention the Outcasts she had encountered on her way here. She'd fought three Outcasts in one night; how many had she fought before that? Raiden wonders as he looks at Raia, then recalls that she wasn't even aware of their immunity until he told her.

That must have been a very unpleasant journey.

The sound of scraping chairs fills the room as people in crimson coats, including Raia, rise from their seats. Nathan has already vanished from view, and Raiden believes he must have gone to the cafeteria already.

Cyrus calls Raia out as she turns on her heels and brushes past Raiden.

"Raia, I know it's already late," Cyrus says, dusting his coat. "But would you like to eat something first before you go to bed? You must be hungry."

Upon hearing that, something growls inside Raiden's stomach, reminding him of his own hunger. He lets out a sigh.

"I'm hungry too. Let's grab something to eat first," Raiden says to Raia.

The grim-faced girl glances at him, then at Cyrus, and nods slightly.

Cyrus beams. "Alright. Sonnet, do accompany them to the kitchen and assign a room for the new disciple," he addresses the woman in a crimson coat with blonde bun hair.

"Sure," Sonnet responds and approaches them. She has brown skin and eyes, and her face looks gentle and kind. "Hello, I'm Sonnet Wilson, the assistant chief here. Come on, Raia. I'll keep you company for the moment, okay?" She winks, and Raia nods.

"To the kitchen, then," Raiden declares, stifling a yawn.