A few minutes earlier.

Elder Mouranek sat in the captain’s chair as always. His worry about the position of their Zrathras General occupied his mind.

Lost in thought he observed the beautiful universe unfolding opposite him. For someone of this level, however, this sight couldn’t capture the true mysteries of the universe. They were merely monitors projecting the signals they received from cameras outside.

One might think that Mouranek was behaving carelessly as a warrior in enemy territory. But with his passive perception it didn’t make a big difference if he concentrated on his surroundings or not.

Unfortunately, even if the elder purposely tried his hardest he wouldn’t be able to boost his perception over a long period.

That’s why he noticed when Tekark and Riark left the base station on their spaceship, but he missed the inconspicuous ship trailing them.

On the other hand, he might have missed it even if he scanned his surroundings. Its camouflage technology was simply on another level. Not many beings throughout the universe could have manufactured such a spaceship.

Therefore, Mouranek wasn’t concerned when his juniors left to accomplish their standard mission. Eliminating refugees was almost a daily task, not dangerous at all.

The elder never expected any difficulties.

Just as Mouranek prepared to go into meditation, a warning appeared on a small screen before him.

“Life signal lost!”

For a fraction of a second even the seasoned warrior stared in disbelief.

Before their clan members embarked on missions, they would always get suitable equipment. For someone of Tekark’s importance this naturally included a shield which would even keep him alive against a level 79 being for a few seconds.

The young warrior himself might even own stronger security measures privately.

Therefore, if Tekark met a strong enemy he should be able to run away for a few minutes. With this much time, Mouranek would notice the commotion and quickly arrive on Earth.

Now Tekark had died instantly. This could only mean a being stronger than level 80 had appeared on Earth.

Admittedly, their Zrathras Clan didn’t care that much about Tekark himself. Since their females would produce thousands of offspring, their clan was never one to bemoan their fallen soldiers. They only apricated those who turned out exceptional like Eldrak. Tekark hadn’t reached such a level yet.

However, the news of a strong being appearing on Earth might prove detrimental to their plan.

Therefore, Mouranek didn’t hesitate even a second.

“Open gate one!”

The ship AI hastily headed the elders order as the wall to Mouranek’s front slid aside. The loose maintenance personal broke out in panic as their base station suddenly shook.

They didn’t know that this was simply the aftershock of Mouranek jumping into space. At the elder’s level he could already sustain himself in this vast emptiness forever.

After all the universe only appeared empty to normal people. For even the weakest warrior it was filled with mana.

Controlling magic had already become a simple habit to Mouranek, so a sturdy platform of ice instantly formed underneath his feet.

A beginner like Lilly would probably be left dizzy if she tried to observe the process.

The elders’ stern gaze focused on Earth as he abruptly accelerated. With his speed it would only take him a few minutes until he arrived.

As soon as Mouranek Zrathras left the base station, the old Rottals noticed him. Realization set in that the Zrathras Clan didn’t grant them any time to catch up with their children.

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Iain and Lilly’s mother took out a strange, greyish stone from nowhere. As the pair of siblings’ confused eyes turned towards it, they immediately felt their heads spinning. It felt as if something wanted to leave their bodies.

Before any serious harm befell them, their father’s strong body filled their sight.

“Iain, Lilly. You need to listen well now.

We sadly can’t keep you out of this war. However, we tried to create a situation where you can slowly grow and maybe don’t have to fight on the frontline.

You have to remember one thing under all circumstances: Never tell anyone about us!

Promise me to remember this!”

Noticing the concern in their fathers’ eyes, the pair of siblings didn’t know how to feel. How could they as simple village people suddenly join a war?

Lilly felt like throwing up. Iain didn’t fare much better. Noticing the worsening look on his sister’s face however, the young man forcefully steeled himself.

Iain put his hand on Lilly’s shoulder. A warm feeling engulfed the young woman from this familiar action. Both siblings realized they wouldn’t go through this alone.

A lonely tear silently ran down their mother’s cheek as she proudly observed her children. She had already made all the preparations, knowing that she would send her loved ones on an unpredictable journey.

An inexplicable mood spread as Iain and Lilly spoke with conviction:

“Yes. We promise!”

“Good. Good children. We can also promise you two things:

The Soulsage will be your strongest ally, although its uncertain if you will ever meet her.

And.

We will always stay by your side from now on!”

Iain and Lilly didn’t understand those last words. Why was their parents’ mood so complicated if they could stay together from now on?

The pair of siblings weren’t left any time for deeper analyzation though. As silent voice once again sounded out.

“Sleep now!”

Iain and Lilly observed their parent’s reluctant faces as their sight slowly turned dark.

Watching his children drift to sleep, Thomas Rottal took a step forward. Not wanting them to fall into the dirt, he caught Iain and Lilly before slowly turning around.

Earlier he didn’t only protect his children from the soulstone’s harmful effect, but also prevented them from observing their preparations.

Iain and Lilly would have surely been shocked if they saw the strange patterns their mother had been painting on the ground.

Especially if they would have recognized the weirdly pulsing, red liquid. After all this was their parent’s blood.

Innumerable runes surrounded the soulstone in a wide circle, crafted with unimaginable precision. After those runes filled with blood an eerie atmosphere engulfed the backyard.

Iain’s and Lilly’s limp bodies were carefully placed on the ground on designated spots by their father.

Although the old Rottatls were reluctant to continue their actions, they sadly didn’t have much time left.

As soon as they positioned themselves on the core runes in this circle, the soulstone slowly began glowing. Soon its light reached an intensity too strong for most people’s eyes.

However, the two Rottatls’ sight wasn’t disturbed at all. They quietly focused on each other’s eyes, one gaze conveying all their feelings.

Their love for each other and their children led them to this point and would carry them forward forever.

As they felt a strong presence fast approaching, they knew their time was running out.

The couple whose name stayed renowned throughout the universe suddenly took out strange looking daggers before viciously plunging them into their own hearts.

Soon blood ran down their chests. It didn’t soak into their clothes but gathered on the ground, combining with the existing circle.

Even the life leaving their bodies couldn’t force these proud warriors to bend.

As energy seemed to gather from miles away, the soulstone began rotating, its light intensifying rapidly.

Soon it resembled a miniature star, its light even spreading to the nearby universe.

Mouranek’s face didn’t change but he was prepared for a hard battle. The energy gathering at this moment signaled him that his opponent was at least at his level.

Although the elder couldn’t understand what they wanted to achieve with such a showy display, he didn’t hesitate to increase his speed once more.

On earth Thomas and Silvia didn’t show any remorse as they saw their lover’s body run dry of blood. Both were prepared for this day since a long time ago.

Accelerated by their setup, even their strong vitality ran dry after a few minutes. They gifted each other a last smile before their eyes drifted towards their children.

In satisfaction they felt the space above their children reacting, before the old Rottals lost control of their bodies.

Two invisible masses of energy shot out from Thomas and Silvia’s heads, attracted by the soulstone.

As soon as the stone made contact with this energy, it suddenly stopped all activity.

Only now was there a chance to see the innumerable runes covering the small crystal-like stones’ surface. Those runes only turned dark for an instance before lighting up again.

As the soulstone next tried to turn in the opposite direction, a majestic, invisible force stopped it for the shortest moment.

After seemingly sweeping through the stone’s runes however, this force vanished as if it never existed.

The soulstone thus turned faster and faster again until it suddenly broke into two.

Without a second delay the soulstone’s two halves directly glided towards Iain’s and Lilly’s heads.

There, they shrank to a size countless times smaller than a speck of dust before entering their bodies and settling down on top of their brains.

One stream of energy respectively separated from the crystal. They hovered over Iain’s and Lilly’s brains without any guidance.

Fortunately, the left over crystal slowly turned into gas, merging itself with the free energy. Some invisible reaction seemed to take place, before the masses of energy shot towards the sibling’s brains and suddenly vanished.

Exactly at this moment strange fluctuations embraced Iain’s and Lilly’s bodies before they mysteriously disappeared as well.