Bonus Chapter The night had fallen over Valthera.
The gates of Étheria Central Academy were still open, but nobody was leaving.
The students stood in silence.
The teachers remained gathered near the entrance.
Everyone was still trying to understand what had happened.
Raizen had left.
Kaira had followed him.
Zayden had followed them.
And then…
Sanglan had appeared.
The three Great Mages remained near the academy gates.
Kael stared into the distance.
The four figures had already disappeared beyond the forest.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then one of the two unknown Great Mages finally broke the silence.
His eyes remained fixed on the horizon.
“I had never seen an Ancient Demon with my own eyes.” The other Great Mage remained silent.
He slowly lowered his hand.
His expression was serious.
“Neither had I.” Kael looked at them.
“You knew what that was?” The first Great Mage nodded.
“We suspected.” Kael frowned.
“Suspected?” The Great Mage turned toward him.
“That aura wasn’t ordinary demonic energy.” Selene looked at him.
“Then what was it?” He took a slow breath.
“An Ancient Demon.” The atmosphere became quiet again.
Darian looked toward the forest.
“Are you certain?” “Yes.” Kael clenched his fists.
“And you’re saying that creature was one of the Four?” The Great Mage nodded.
“Yes.” Two Years of Research The two unknown Great Mages walked toward the academy.
Kael, Selene and Darian followed them.
One of them finally spoke.
“For two years…” He stopped.
“We have been researching the Ancient Demons.” Kael looked at him with surprise.
“Two years?” “Yes.” “Why?” The Great Mage looked toward the sky.
“Because the records about them are incomplete.” He continued walking.
“Most of the ancient texts were destroyed.” “Some were lost.” “And others were deliberately hidden.” Selene crossed her arms.
“What did you discover?” The Great Mage remained silent for a moment.
Then he answered.
“The Ancient Demons were not created in the same way as ordinary demons.” Darian frowned.
“Then how were they created?” The Great Mage looked at him.
“They weren’t.” Silence.
“What do you mean?” “They appeared.” The Seven Guardians The Great Mage stopped in front of the academy’s enormous statue.
It represented seven winged figures.
The Seven Guardian Angels.
“Before the Ancient Demons appeared, the God who ruled this world wanted to create seven Guardian Angels.” Kael looked at the statue.
“The seven angels were supposed to protect the world.” The Great Mage nodded.
“They were created to preserve order.” Selene stared at the statues.
“And the demons?” The Great Mage looked toward the forest.
“The demons appeared from something completely different.” Darian asked: “What?” The Great Mage answered: “Emotion.” Everyone became silent.
“Fear.” “Hate.” “Despair.” “Arrogance.” Four emotions.
Four beings.
Four Ancient Demons.
“They weren’t created by the God.” “They were born from the world itself.” The Four The second Great Mage finally spoke.
“Ancient records don’t give them proper names.” Kael looked at him.
“Then what were they called?” He answered: “By what they represented.” He raised one finger.
“The first.” Fear.
“The Demon of Fear.” Its true identity remained unknown.
The Great Mage raised another finger.
“The second.” Hate.
He looked toward the forest.
“Sanglan.” Kael’s expression changed.
“So Sanglan is…” “The embodiment of Hate.” The third finger rose.
“The third.” Despair.
“Another Ancient Demon whose identity remains unknown.” Then the fourth.
“The fourth.” Pride.
The Great Mage’s expression became serious.
“The strongest of the four.” Darian’s eyes narrowed.
“Stronger than Sanglan?” “We don’t know the exact difference in power.” “But the ancient records are very clear.” He paused.
“The Demon of Pride is the most powerful of the Four Ancient Demons.” Names That Were Never Given Selene looked at the ancient statue.
“So they never had names?” “Not originally.” “The ancient civilizations called them by their nature.” Fear.
Hate.
Despair.
Pride.
“Names came later.” Kael looked toward the forest again.
“Sanglan…” The name felt strangely simple for something so ancient.
The Great Mage nodded.
“We don’t know who gave him that name.” “Or when.” “Or why.” Darian remained silent.
Then he asked: “Why would a creature like that choose Raizen?” Nobody answered.
That question remained in the air.
Something Else The second Great Mage suddenly spoke.
“There is another part of our research.” The others looked at him.
“It concerns the Seven Guardian Angels.” Kael turned toward him.
“What about them?” The Great Mage looked at the statues.
“When the seven were first created, they were supposed to protect the world.” He paused.
“But something happened afterward.” Selene’s expression became serious.
“What happened?” “We don’t know.” Darian frowned.
“How can you not know?” “Because every record describing that period is incomplete.” He looked at the seven statues.
“Something happened to some of the angels.” Kael stared at him.
“Something?” The Great Mage nodded.
“Something that changed them.” Selene asked: “Do you mean…” He didn’t answer.
Instead, he looked toward the dark forest where Sanglan had disappeared.
“We are still searching for the truth.” The second Great Mage slowly turned away.
“And perhaps…” He paused.
“…Raizen’s departure has just brought us closer to it.” The Shadow Beyond the Forest Far away from the academy…
Raizen walked beneath the moonlight.
Kaira and Zayden followed him.
Sanglan walked behind them.
Nobody spoke.
Raizen finally looked over his shoulder.
“Sanglan.” The demon stopped.
“Yes, Master?” Raizen stared at him.
“You said you had been searching for me.” “Yes.” “Why?” Sanglan smiled.
“That is a story for another time.” Raizen narrowed his eyes.
“You like keeping secrets.” Sanglan’s smile widened.
“And you have many secrets yourself.” Raizen turned away.
For a moment, the red glow appeared inside his shadow.
Sanglan noticed it.
But he said nothing.
The four continued walking through the darkness.
Behind them, the academy slowly disappeared from view.
And far above them…
the moon was covered by dark clouds.
The world had no idea what had just begun.
Four Ancient Demons existed.
Seven Guardian Angels had once been created.
And somewhere between them…
a forgotten history was waiting to be uncovered.
The truth had not yet been revealed.
It had only begun to awaken.
END OF BONUS CHAPTER