After dying, Damien found himself in a place that was darker than black, where he wandered aimlessly. He was deaf and blind, unable to see or hear anything. He also couldn't muster any strength, not even an ounce of it.

To him, the silence was like a ghost.

It haunted him, and the surrounding void of light pressed down on him like an invisible pressure, pushing him deeper and deeper into a hole of unimaginable depth.

He couldn't return from it. That something was certain.

'Is this the afterlife? If so, it is really horrifying.'

He struggled with all his might, trying to escape it. Deep down in his heart, he knew he was like a broken boat sinking to the depth of the ocean and that his every effort to escape it would only be in vain. Sooner or later, he would lose himself in it, yet, he didn't give up.

Although he was powerless to do anything in this situation, he refused to give up as he had so much left to do.

He wanted to go back to where his parents were and tell them that he was fine and that they didn't need to worry about him.

He wanted to grow up and become powerful so that he would avenge Sisi and kill Chaos. It was the one that had caused her death. Unless it died, he would never be able to avenge her.

He wanted to reduce its influence and eradicate the chaotic beings so that the world would be peaceful again and there would be no case like him for the next millennia to come.

He also wanted to help his grandfather uplift the seal on the Far West Major World.

'Huh?' The darkness was like a magical wave, and as it washed over him, all thoughts in his mind were dispelled. 'What was I thinking about?'

He lost what was motivating him to escape what he imagined to be a hole. He gave up resisting the downward force and fell inside it at a far faster rate than before.

As he sunk deeper inside it, his soul was stripped of all its senses one by one, and even the consciousness of his powerful soul eventually fogged up.

'Someone, please save me.'

That was his last thought before he was deprived of all his senses and went hysterical, losing consciousness right after.

Just then, a mysterious force tugged at him, and he was dragged out of the darkness.

A while later, he woke up, and the first thing he did was hiss in pain as his head hurt so much that he feared it would burst.

'Eh?'

'Aren't I just a soul that can't feel, see or hear anything?'

'How come I can feel physical pain now?'

A thought that popped up in his mind surprised him.

"No way..."

He opened his teary eyes and found himself in a place he was awfully familiar with.

It was the rose garden that he had grown used to over the past few years.

"How can I be here?"

Damien held his head in his hand and observed his surroundings in disbelief.

He was lying on a small patch of grass. Several red rose petals were crumbled beneath him, and he was surrounded by countless familiar faces.

The expression of Vivia and the onlookers lit up when they saw him opening his eyes.

"Welcome back."

Vivia hugged the bewildered young boy, and although he was confused, he immediately felt comfortable. He took this short moment to piece together the crumbled parts of his mind and calm down.historical

"I'm... back."

Damien hugged her back after stumbling out those words.

He also felt embarrassed as he was being hugged in the presence of others and considered himself a grown-up.

He told her to let him go, and when she refused to and smooched him, he slipped out of her grasp skillfully and moved away.

"Grandpa, wasn't I supposed to die after using up my divine power? How come I am still alive?" he tugged on the water celestial's hand like a monkey.

The Water Celestial was a cold man who didn't like to be touched, but he didn't feel offended as it was his grandson that was bothering him.

"It's all thanks to your grandpa and uncle." Fearing that Damien would anger her father, Vivia tugged him closer to her in one swift motion, "They worked together to revive you. Go and say thanks to them."

Obediently following his mother's words, Damien turned around to face them. The Water Celestial stared at him gently while Badulf stared at him coldly. The latter was expressionless, and his gaze was so sharp that Damien flinched. He never liked this uncle of his as he always treated him coldly and was quite rigid. He didn't think he would go to extreme lengths to pull him back from death.

"Thank you." Damien humbly bowed to them, expressing his heartfelt gratitude.

The Water Celestial flicked his sleeves, and a gentle wind raised Damien up, straightening his back.

"There's no need for such words between a grandpa and his grandson," he said to Damien.

Badulf watched the interaction between the two in silence.

Damien glanced at him and lowered his head as if overwhelmed by his stare, "I don't know what price you paid to revive me, but I will do my best to repay it."

This time the Water Celestial didn't say anything.

It was Badulf, who had been staying silent, who opened his mouth and spoke.

"It's not good for kids to be out so late at night."

It was more like he was reprimanding Damien for being too willful.

Vivia glared at him as if asking whether he was looking for a beating, and Badulf stepped back involuntarily.

"How dare you scold my precious son?"

"I.. wasn't trying to. It came off like that. I swear."

Vivia and Badulf were mentally communicating, so no one heard their words. Otherwise, they would have been surprised to know that even the man called the Fierce Sword of the Empire feared his sister-in-law.

The Water Celestial coughed and added an explanation to Badulf's misleading words, "What he is trying to say is that you should take him home."

Vivia didn't stay here anymore. She picked her only son and flew away like a bird.

"We should also get going."

The noble guards and the members of Arnard's household also paid their respect to the Water Celestial and the Count and turned to leave.

"I will give you a ride back home." The Water Celestial put his ability to use, and countless water droplets manifested out of thin air, quickly merging into chinese water dragons. When he poured his energy into them, they transformed into ice dragons. The guards and servants were picked up by them and taken away.

"Cough!"

After they went away, Badulf, who seemingly came off as sharp as a frigid blade, hunched and spewed out a mouthful of blood.

Arnard turned towards him in shock. No matter how old, it was impossible for a Realm Lord to get sick. Hearing his brother cough was like a bolt out of the blue for him.

He saw his body shuddering each time he coughed out blood, and his eyes turned red.

"Your hair.." Arnard didn't know what to say when he saw his brother undergoing a drastic change. The change was anything but good, and he knew why this was happening. So he couldn't help but blame himself. His chest felt tight, and more than half of his words remained stuck in his throat.

Badulf wiped the blood off his lips and turned to him with an expressionless face as if nothing had just happened.

"What about it?" he asked.

Arnard pointed at his head and said, "It's turning white."

Badulf replied nonchalantly, "I can always dye it black."

The Water Celestial laughed upon hearing his words.

His eyes narrowed as he thought, 'This guy is really amusing.'