Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

A moment later, "tap" Theobald stamped the written statement on his desk using the official royal seal. Gina sat directly in front of him, arms folded over her chest with a scowling dragon face, looking completely adorable despite her pout. Dion sat behind her, totally relaxed. Once finished, Theobald rolled up the document.

"Here is... the written statement," Theobald said, his voice trembling slightly.

Dion took the document, unrolled it, and skimmed the text from top to bottom. Once satisfied, he rolled it back up neatly and stashed it inside his dimensional bag. Then, with a easy smile, he offered his hand.

"Pleasure doing business with you, Your Majesty. I hope you honor everything you wrote," Dion said nonchalantly.

Theobald stayed silent, looking down at Dion’s hand before meeting his friendly gaze.

"Please... cancel the spell... that is enough," Theobald pleaded, his voice shaking.

"Hmm... but my friends aren’t here yet. Let’s wait until they arrive," Dion replied easily, pulling his hand back.

Not long after, blam! The door swung open. Dion glanced back, and so did Gina. Both of their faces instantly lit up upon seeing Luna, Aria, Cleo, Sheila, and Mei standing in the doorway with disheveled clothes. The five girls were equally stunned to see Dion lounging comfortably in front of the king, with Gina perched on the desk. Suddenly, Sheila pointed at Theobald.

"Dion, watch out!"

Clang!

Dion turned to see Theobald plunging a knife directly at Gina. But Gina didn’t seem to feel a thing, staring back in total confusion at the broken blade lying on the desk.

"Kyuuu?" Gina squeaked, tilting her head at Theobald.

"Im... impossible," Theobald gasped. Clang! He dropped the broken hilt and stumbled backward. "A enchanted blade... that can cut through anything... broken... impossible," Theobald stammered.

"Anything’s possible. Gina isn’t just any ordinary dragon. Well then, Your Majesty, we’ll be taking our leave," Dion said, standing up as he scooped Gina off the desk and placed her on his head.

Thud.

Theobald collapsed to the floor, his face pale and tense. Meanwhile, Dion strolled over to the five stunned girls without looking back.

"Let me take you guys home," Dion said with a warm smile.

The faces of Luna, Aria, Sheila, and Mei looked ready to burst into tears, while Cleo simply smiled back. Dion’s eyes then landed on the magic-sealing choker around Cleo’s neck. He raised his hand and grabbed the restraint. Lightning surged across the metal and zapped his hand, but Dion pulled hard, boom! The choker shattered in his grip. Cleo clutched her neck, staring at Dion with tears welling in her eyes.

"Thank you, Dion," Cleo smiled warmly.

"Don’t mention it," Dion replied with a grin.

"Diooooon!"

Luna, Aria, Sheila, and Mei were ready to tackle Dion into a hug, but Dion quickly held up both hands to stop them in their tracks.

"Not now, let’s get out of here first," he urged.

"Right," all four girls agreed at once.

Dion glanced at his status screen. The remaining time for his Ancient One persona mode was down to just two hours. Moving quickly, he exited the study alongside Luna, Cleo, Aria, Sheila, Mei, and Gina on his head. They made their way to the balcony. Dion opened the doors, swooooosh! Outside, Frederick and René, who seemed to have recovered enough to move, were clinging desperately to a pillar to keep from being sucked into the Dark Star.

"Whoaaaah!"

Sheila instantly grabbed Luna, Mei, and Aria so they wouldn’t fly off, while Cleo cast a protective barrier around them.

"Dion... what is that?!" Cleo yelled over the wind.

"Ah... right," Dion remembered.

Snap! Dion flicked his fingers. The Dark Star instantly stopped spinning, shrank down, and vanished into thin air. The dark storm clouds forming the vortex dissolved, leaving the sky bright blue once again. Clang! René and Frederick tumbled flat onto the ground.

"You bastard... you damn bastard, Dion!" René screamed.

"Shh... quiet down. Just sleep right there for a bit. We’re leaving, bye," Dion said casually.

Dion tossed Gina into the air, and she instantly expanded into her full form. He motioned for Luna, Sheila, Aria, and Mei to climb aboard. All four nodded and helped one another leap onto Gina’s back, while Cleo floated nearby, keeping a watchful eye on Frederick and René.

With everyone ready, Dion and Cleo took to the sky alongside the departing Gina. Frederick could only watch helplessly, while René seethed with rage. René scrambled to his feet, snatched a guard’s spear, and held it tight. White energy surged around the tip of the spear, blazing with brilliant light.

"Hey... René... what are you doing?!" Frederick shouted.

René ignored him completely. Setting his stance with bloodshot eyes, he prepared to throw the weapon in a fit of rage.

"Die, Dion!" René screamed.

René launched the spear, turning it into a blazing white comet racing straight toward Dion. Naturally, Dion noticed. He raised his hand, and his body was instantly wrapped in an elemental barrier. The spear turned to ash before it could touch him, but Dion was shocked to see his barrier thinning as his energy ran out. Suddenly, a second spear pierced right through the fading barrier, impaling Dion straight through the gut.

Cough! Dion spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

René, still in his throwing stance, wore a smug, satisfied grin. His vengeful eyes watched as Dion clutched his stomach and plummeted limply from the sky.

"Dion!"

Cleo caught Dion right beside her, while Luna, Sheila, Aria, and Mei screamed in terror. Seeing Dion unconscious with a gaping wound in his abdomen from René’s spear, Gina pivoted in midair blaz! She unleashed a massive blue fireball from her maw straight toward the palace balcony where René and Frederick stood. Seeing the blue fireball speeding toward him, René had no time to dodge and could only throw his hands up.

"No... noooooo!"

Blam!

The palace balcony exploded into flames. The fate of René and Frederick remained completely unknown. Cleo lifted Dion onto Gina’s back.

"Get us out of here, fast, Gina!" Cleo urged.

"Gyuuuu!"

Gina shot off into the distance, with Cleo flying right beside her while holding onto Gina’s body. Meanwhile, Luna, Sheila, Aria, and Mei kept crying out Dion’s name. He lay unconscious, blood smeared across his mouth as his persona faded, returning him to his original form. Seeing Dion unresponsive, Luna placed both hands over his wound.

"Holy Heal!"

A soft yellow light radiated from Luna’s hands, wrapping around Dion’s injured abdomen. Mei cradled his head in her lap and gently stroked his hair, Sheila held his legs steady to keep him from shifting, and Aria held his hand tight. Not a single one of them noticed Dion’s closed eyes twitching underneath.

***

"Huh?"

Dion opened his eyes. He sat up and looked around. He was in a boundless, pure white realm. Slowly standing up, he turned around to examine his surroundings. He raised both hands, staring at them, clenching and opening his fists before taking another look around the void.

"Huh... where am I? Did... did I die?" he wondered aloud.

Utterly confused, he looked around once more. Aside from endless white, there was nothing else in sight.

"What happened... as I recall... my Ancient One energy ran out, and... my barrier vanished. I didn’t see a second spear... hmm... looks like I fell and died," he muttered to himself again.

"Rest easy. You are not dead."

Dion froze instantly upon hearing a woman’s voice from behind him. Slowly, he turned around. His eyes widened at the sight of a woman wearing a goddess-like white gown, complete with a flowing sash, a golden leaf crown, a golden necklace, and two golden bangles. Her face was enveloped in a radiant glow that obscured her features, and her hair shimmered like golden flame.

"Who are you?" Dion asked, bewildered, pointing toward the woman.

"At long last we meet, Marcus... oh, pardon me, Dion... I am Hestalia," the woman answered, revealing herself as the Goddess Hestalia.

"Goddess... Hestalia?" Dion asked, taking a step back.

"Indeed. I have longed to meet you for a very long time, and only now has the opportunity come... however, it seems our meeting must be cut short once more," Hestalia said softly.

"Wh... why?" Dion asked.

"Because you are about to awaken. Your friends are calling for you," Hestalia explained.

"Dion... wake up... Dion!"

Dion could clearly hear the voices of Luna, Aria, Sheila, Mei, and Cleo calling out to him, their cries echoing through the entire space. Dion looked back at the goddess as she stepped closer to him.

"Go now, Dion. We shall meet again after you learn the secrets of this world and your true destiny," the goddess said.

"Huh... my destiny? Secrets of this world?" Dion asked, thoroughly confused.

"Correct. Learn about the realm where you were born... now go," Hestalia replied.

Without giving Dion a chance to speak further, snap! The goddess flicked her fingers. Prak! Everything around Dion cracked instantly, and prang! The world shattered to pieces. Whoaaaah! Dion plummeted rapidly into the darkness toward a tiny pinprick of light that grew larger and larger until he passed right through it.

***

"Dion... Dion!"

"Ugh."

Dion opened his eyes. He saw the faces of Luna, Aria, Mei, and Sheila standing over him, with Cleo right beside Sheila, and a miniature Gina sitting right on his chest. Looking up, he saw a dense canopy of trees; they seemed to have landed somewhere safe to tend to his wounds. Dion looked back at Luna, Aria, Mei, Sheila, and Cleo, who were now staring down at him with tear-streaked faces and relieved smiles.

"Um... I’m home, hehe," Dion offered with a weak chuckle.

"Diooooon!"

"Kyuu!"

Luna, Aria, Mei, Sheila, and Cleo instantly buried Dion in a tight hug, while Gina hugged his face. "Ugh... I can’t breathe... suffocating... this is bad... at this rate I’m gonna end up meeting that goddess again... but still... not a bad way to go," Dion thought to himself.

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