"Wain! It's really you!" Zero exclaimed with a dazed look.

"Yeah. I am." Wain nodded as he placed Zero on the ground.

Zero shook off the dust, looked around, and muttered, "Where are we? Where did we go?"

Crackling.

Several monsters with menacing auras that stared at Zero emerged from the ice caves. Small shards of ice were falling down from the monsters' sharp claws while more and more of them appeared.

"Shit!" Zero frowned as she prepared to fight.

At the same time, a man with black hair and yellow as though gold eyes appeared next to Wain, then he honed his hand toward Wain.

Zero's pupils narrowed as the dark blade in her hand headed for the man's neck, but suddenly Wain stopped her while shaking the man's hand.

"Elegan, how good to see you. How long has it been?" Wain muttered with a smile on his face.

"Huh, a few months, but honestly, I'm used to it. You come in for a couple of days and disappear for a couple of months, that's your norm." Elegan shrugged as his gaze fell on Zero, "Who is this young girl? She looks pretty formidable, you know?"

The dark blade was right at Elegan's neck, so the only obstacle was Wain's firm grip.

"Yeah. Zero, will you put that away already?" Wain asked in a calm manner.

"But... Those monsters... Won't they attack us?" Zero muttered while looking around.

"Hmm? It's not like I hit you in the head..." Wain uttered with a confused look as he tilted his head, "Zero, this is my Void. Every one of these monsters is my ally, so yours is too."

Zero was silent for a while as she stared at the monsters, then the blade in her hand evaporated, and she said, "Okay. I just didn't know you had Void... Especially with such strong monsters..."

"Well, for the most part, I had nothing to do with it. It's a credit to my friends, and he's one of them." Wain pointed at Elegan, "By the way. You look too surprised. Don't you have your own Void?"

Zero looked confused as she shook her head, "I think it would bother me. I mean... I prefer to do everything by myself... Moreover, managing so many monsters... Damn, it's a total headache, isn't it?"

"Hahahahahahahaha." Wain laughed as his voice spread far into the depths of the ice caves.

"What's so funny?" Zero frowned with puffed-up cheeks.

"You don't have to keep track of everyone like Gisle, though even he has helpers. Your main job as head of Void is to be strong and have enough energy to help your monsters evolve at the right moments. That's all." Wain shrugged.

"Well... Maybe you're right, but I'm not going to do it yet anyway." Zero muttered as she folded her arms in front of her.

"Okay. That's your business." Wain nodded before turning to Elegan, "I'd like to talk to Zero, she's an old friend of mine that I haven't seen in a while, so we have a lot to discuss."

"Sure. There are several suitable places in the Magic Forest. Sometimes we all need a break." Elegan smiled.

"Good. Zero, follow me." Wain said before jumping forward.

Zero looked at the monsters once more, released her aura, and ran after him. She trusted Wain, but not the dangerous monsters.

Whoooooooooosh.

A tall man in blue armor appeared beside Elegan. His face was graceful as though the prince, while his white hair was faintly developing in the wind.

"Oh, Frigus, you're here already, too." Elegan turned to him.

"Yes." Frigus nodded in a serious manner, "I've been here since the beginning. This girl is pretty strong, too, there's no way she's going to hurt Wain. That's good."

"Sure. She's his friend, so that makes sense, doesn't it?" Elegan muttered with a confused look.historical

"Perhaps... but it doesn't really seem like friendship, at least on her part. She looks at him like an idol, like perfection." Frigus uttered with a calm look, "By the way, why didn't you tell Wain about this...? We could be in some pretty serious trouble."

"I know, but I think it's better to let them talk first. Would a few hours really make a difference?" Elegan asked as he looked up.

Frigus nodded silently, waved his hand, and disappeared without any noise as though he had never been there.

"Wain... You came pretty much just in time, right? Huh." Elegan uttered with an awkward smile on his face.

...

"Wow, what is this place?! It's so beautiful here!" Zero exclaimed while looking around.

p "This is one of my Void territories. It's quite cozy, isn't it?" Wain smiled as he sat down at the wooden table that was in the center of the picturesque clearing, next to a stone wine barrel.

Zero nodded, sat across from him, and asked, "Is there such an amazing place in every Void?"

"Well, it's a pretty complicated question as it all depends on many factors, but the forest is definitely one of the most common types of areas that exist, so it shouldn't be a problem." Wain said before waving his hand in a careless manner.

Several monsters came up to them with various fruits, set them on a table with jugs of wine, then went back into the forest.

"Are they listening to you?" Zero pronounced with a dazed look.

"Yeah. Don't get me wrong. I don't usually take advantage of my position, but right now, I'm too tired to pick fruit on my own. By the way, try some, they're incredible." Wain muttered as he handed Zero a bunch of grapes that shone in the sun as though they were a rare treasure.

Zero gulped, took one, and swallowed it. Her eyes went wide as she immediately took another.

"Ahahahaha, you shouldn't pounce like that. There's a lot of different fruit here, but enough about that." Wain said as his voice suddenly became serious, "Zero, how did you end up at the Colosseum?"