Dark Magus Returns

Rayna's head snapped up, totally stunned. Seriously? It was like everyone in Pagna had forgotten how to actually talk to each other, just doing whatever they wanted without a word.

"Wait, Dame, you're leaving Pagna?" she exclaimed. "After everything that's happened? What about the Neverfall Clan? There's a place for you there, you know. Everyone will accept you, and Fing's not the same as he used to be."

Dame shrugged, a familiar, almost reckless glint in his eyes. "I never planned to lead the Neverfall Clan, not from day one. You and Fing are more than capable of handling things there." He paused, his gaze drifting towards the fading light outside the tent. "I always wanted to forge my own path, and for a while, I thought I was doing that with Raze. But now that Raze is heading out, and the whole crazy situation in Pagna has... settled, I guess, my whole perspective has shifted."

Rayna bit her lip, understanding dawning on her. It was true; after this insane battle, the very definition of what it meant to be a warrior felt like it was changing.

Dame's voice softened, tinged with a raw honesty that Rayna rarely heard from him. "You know, it's strange, right? I always craved something more than the Neverfall Clan. My goal was to build something that could even rival Dad's legacy. I don't know... maybe deep down, I just wanted him to acknowledge me, or maybe I wanted to prove I was better than my brothers." A shadow crossed his face. "But now that we've lost him, and Simyon... it all feels so worthless. All those ambitions, all that striving... it just leaves you empty."

He took a deep breath, his gaze meeting Rayna's. "I started to change. I wanted to protect those close to me, and then I lost Simyon too. Now, we're in a position where if I join the Neverfall Clan, I'll have achieved everything I ever thought I wanted, but I'll feel completely hollow inside." He gestured vaguely. "Now, I know the ones I truly cherish are those two knucklehead students of ours. If they both head off to Alterian, and something happens to them... I'd feel real shitty about just staying here, you know? Just staying put and doing what, exactly?"

A wave of sadness washed over Rayna. She wasn't just losing her husband; now, she was losing her kind-hearted brother. For a moment, she was tempted to ask herself the same question. What if she left too? But that would mean leaving Fing to lead the Neverfall Clan entirely on his own. And deep down, she knew she couldn't do that. Besides, her relationship with Raze was... complicated, to say the least. Her place was here in Pagna, in Flendon. Not necessarily by Raze's side.

Dame, on the other hand, had been there from the start. He was the one who had embarked on this crazy journey with Raze, the one who had stuck with him through thick and thin.

"I'm sorry you had to hear all that, Rayna," Dame said, his voice regaining some of its usual lightness, though a hint of melancholy still lingered. "I don't have some grand ambition to reach the Divine realm, so I'll leave that to those two."

Hearing Dame's words, Raze couldn't help but think. With no warriors in Alterian, it wasn't something he'd considered deeply. But what would happen to him and Dame if they somehow reached the Divine realm while they were there? Since it was another planet and dimension, would they even be bound by the same limitations? It was like the Divine warriors who weren't limited by dimensions.

Technically, they should still be able to return to Pagna, but their strength would be limited, right? He was pretty sure his body was close to reaching that point, especially with everything that had happened lately.

'The strength of a Pagan warrior will definitely be needed when I'm in Alterian. I shouldn't stop my cultivation as long as I can keep going,' Raze thought to himself.

"So," Dame said, breaking the silence with a grin, "do I get an answer? Am I allowed to tag along with your little group?"

Raze nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. "We started this journey together, and yeah, I'm happy for you to come along. You're more dependable than the others, let's be honest, so it'll be good to have you there." His expression turned serious. "But I have to warn you, Dame. It could be dangerous. In Alterian... I'm pretty much everyone's enemy."

Dame just laughed, the sound echoing through the tent. "Sounds just like when you came to Pagna. So, no different, right?"

Over the next few days, a steady stream of people came and went, all wanting to meet with Raze before he departed. There were those he had journeyed with, like Brack, and even some faces he barely recognized – dignitaries from various kingdoms who just wanted to offer their well-wishes or pay their respects.

Then, of course, there were the Alterians, like Marcus and the others he'd agreed to take back home.

As the days passed, a strange feeling settled over Raze. It was finally sinking in that he would be leaving soon, leaving Pagna behind. He started to reflect on all the crazy moments that had led him to this point. What had happened at the orphanage, his time at the Dark Faction Academy, and all the troubles he'd faced every step of the way. And finally, being able to settle one of his biggest debts.

Yet, this journey wasn't over. He was about to cross over to the other side, to a world that would undoubtedly be vastly different from anything he'd ever known. He had the Dark Guild, and now, he'd have some people from Pagna coming with him.

Oddly enough, Charlotte was one of his last visitors.

"Have you made up your mind about what you want to do?" Raze asked, leaning back against a crate.

"Yeah," Charlotte answered, her voice surprisingly firm. "I've decided to come back to Alterian with you as well... but I can't get involved with whatever you're planning. I'm just going to try and live my life, like I was before all this."

Raze nodded, a hint of approval in his eyes. "That's probably the smartest thing to do. Alterian might turn into a pretty chaotic place with everything that's happening, so it's for the best if you stay out of it."

Shortly after, Charlotte left, and then someone else entered the tent, someone he definitely hadn't expected to see.

"Err, Raze, is it okay if I talk to you about something?" Beatrix asked, her voice hesitant.

****

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