I gasped as explosions echoed outside of the lab.

What was going on? Had the enemy reached this place? But how would they find it? My grandpa already locked away my uncle Takeshi. Or did he leave them notes to follow?

Suddenly, the lab's silver doors swung open. I held my arms out and covered my fist in purple mana.

"Oh, look who we have here. It's the new Rabbit Pillar," a voice called out. I gasped as I saw a blue-haired woman in a tight-fitting dress standing at the entrance to the lab.

"Margaret," I said, remembering her from the meeting we had earlier. I stepped back as I lowered my fists. "What are you doing here?"

She grinned. "I wanted to see what Aster was cooking up in here. Though, a few rude people decided to get in my way. What about you? Were you taking a nap?"

My eyes shifted toward her hands. They were covered in fine red dust.

I gulped. Did that powder come from crushed cores?

She took another step toward me and grinned. "What's the issue, cutie? You seem afraid?"

I went around her. "S-sorry. It's just that I got to get going! I have to talk to Aster!"

She placed one of her long nails against her lips. "Aster? She went out awhile ago. As did you're grandfather, uncles, and aunts. Only some of your younger cousins are around."

"Then, I'll just go wait for them outside!" I said, sprinting away. I gulped. I wasn't sure why, but chills ran down my spine whenever she spoke. Actually, she didn't even have to talk. Her gaze alone was enough to intimidate people.

My eyes shifted to my surroundings. Holes more massive than the one I had made in the southern entrance of Kaguya City covered the black stone walls.

I took a deep breath. The shattered cores of those Aster assigned to guard the la had to be the cause of this.

I looked over my shoulder and watched as Margaret approached one of the unopened pods. What was she going to do with them? Was she going to kill them too? But, if I didn't get out, I could soon end like them.

I curled my hands into fists. I had to do something, I couldn't let her destroy the others who had yet to wake up!

I ran turned around, but suddenly, a hand covered my mouth. My heartbeat intensified as I slowly raised my eyes. A young man with pepper hair looked down at me. He held a finger against his lips and slowly backed away.

I held my breath. Was he an enemy? Or a friend? The guy did seem familiar. If only the other me had shown me more of my memories... just what was he hiding from me?

He picked me up as he drew near the edge of the most prominent crater and jumped back. Black and white wings spread out as we started to fall. He moved his wings slowly as if trying to avoid getting noticed.

"We need to get out of here," he whispered as he flew over to the other side.

I wanted to ask who he was, but he still had his hand over my mouth.

He continued to fly the rest of the way, not taking time to even look back. His face showed worry and fear. The same feeling I felt not too long ago.

That woman radiated a dread-inducing aura greater than the one my uncle Osamu had when I first met him post-revival. Uncle... what had happened to him to change him from the nice man I saw in my memories to the cruel, power-hungry man who attacked Aster and me.

Or perhaps he was just that way toward his enemies. How would Uncle have reacted if he had seen me without my vizor on?

"Woolsey, Conrad," a voice called out. It was my grandpa. His eyes became cold as he stared at the damage. "What happened here? Did someone attack you?"

"No, but Margaret did attack the guards," the guy carrying me said. Guess his name was Woolsey. Not a common name for sure. "I managed to get Conrad out before he went ahead and did something stupid."

Grandpa snickered. "That's funny to hear from you, son. Now, get Conrad away from here and make sure no one gets close. Things might get intense."

"Don't worry, I will," he said, rushing past his dad.

So, he was my uncle. That explained why he seemed familiar.

"Will grandpa be fine?" I asked as soon as uncle Woolsey removed his hand from my mouth.

He laughed. "You should be saying that about Margaret, not Dad."

I smiled. "True. I've heard grandpa is very powerful. He even managed to bring me back to life."

Uncle grinned. "Yup!" His smile gradually faded. "Though, that woman isn't exactly a pushover either..."

I walked over to a black stone tablet at the far right-corner of the room and placed my hand against it. "Open the file on the Ten Universal Seeds," I commanded.

Red symbols appeared on the tablet and climbed up my hand. "Damn, they added security to this thing. I was better off pursuing that boy instead. At least I would've gotten something out of all of this."

"You aren't getting a thing," a voice called out.

I turned and saw Reginald standing by the entrance.

I smiled and waved. "Oh, hello there, Regi! What brought you here?"

"I told you not to call me that," he said, sighing. "And I'm the one who should be asking you that. What do you think you're doing here? And what did you mean when you said 'pursuing that boy'? If you're talking about Conrad, then what does that child have that's of any importance to you?"

I snickered. "Oh, dear Regi. I know who that boy is. He's more than just your grandson. He's also the reincarnation of the Archangel of Darkness. You and Aster have been watching over him up until now, but I don't believe either of you can awaken his true power."

He crossed his arms and stepped forward. "Oh, and you believe you can?"

"Of course. The strength of his kind, the Kuroriku, is brought out by their rage. Even your son resorted to that with his oldest son in the battle against Takon. Or did you not watch the recordings of the crystals?"

Reginald nodded. "I did, and I am also well aware of that. The Kuroriku have what's called a rage mode. My oldest son employed it in battle himself. Conrad himself had made use of it in the past according to the memories my youngest daughter saw."

"See. Surely you know of the potential it holds. We can tap into that, he would be a greater asset in this war than he is now. Then there's the power of Hanketsu. If we can locate the angel tool of the Archangel of Darkness, then victory will be in our grip."

He closed his eyes. "You mean Zangetsu? I know where it is. It's currently in the possession of Tetsuya."

I rubbed my chin. Tetsuya... he was the one who had fought Satoru alongside that intolerable princess back in the Dark Castle.

I laughed. "In that case, how about I send one of my children to retrieve it?"

He nodded. "Go ahead if you want. Though, you better send more than one as he's surely not alone."

"Alright. I'll send my 'Four Dragons' to fight them." Surely, they'll avenge their younger brother's shameful loss against that irritating peasant. "I'll go get them right away."

He held out his arm, blocking my way. He peered at me with his single golden eye, radiating anger unlike any I had felt from him in a long time. "Before you go, tell me what you were looking for in this room, and why you resorted to killing the guards."

I stepped back. "I wanted to see what your intentions truly are. I've said this before, and I will say it again," I said, crossing my arms. "I don't feel that you're entirely on board with our plan to destroy Zionia and drain its light. You even went as far as telling Satoru and those two grandchildren of yours to try to conquer Zionia peacefully."

He averted his gaze and nodded. "Yes, I did."

I snickered. "Why? Have you forgotten that it killed your dear wife?"

"To be frank, I am not even sure if a Zionian did it."

I laughed. "Oh? Then who would it have been? A Xelerian, perhaps? They do have a grudge against her kind. Or perhaps it was a Wynagan, but a Xelerian appears more likely, considering that a few actually live in Zionia."

His single eye locked contact with my eyes. "Neither of those."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Hmm? Then who could it have been?"

"I am starting to lean toward it having been a demon. A mighty one at that. One whose powers couldn't be restrained by the light of the realm. In other words, a hybrid such as yourself."

My eyes widened. Has he figured it out? No, he couldn't have... I made sure not to leave any proof.

I shook my head. "My, my, you refuse to believe that an angel could kill her? I mean, look at their world. It's far from the heaven such 'virtuous' creatures would desire. Don't forget that the first demons were originally angels." I laughed. "Looking at it that way, it could've been an angel walking down the demon-road."

Reginald narrowed his eye. "You appear nervous, Marge. Did I hit the hammer on the nail?"

I scoffed. "Come on, what would I have to gain from killing that stupid dove you married?"

"It's because I married her that I think you hated her. You were mad that I only had eyes for Aster, until Tulia came along."

I lowered my head. "True. I did despise that woman, and honestly, I'm glad that she died."

Vines slithered around Reginald.

I laughed. "Calm down. Even if I did hate her, it wasn't me who did it. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go gather my 'Four Dragons'."

"If I find out it was you who killed Tulia, I'm going to make you wish for death, but you won't have it no matter how much you beg," Reginald said as more thorny vines emerged from the ground.

I shrugged. "Your doubt hurts me. It appears that you forgot our friendship."

"I haven't. It's because of our former friendship that I haven't struck you down where you stand. Now, leave. You aren't allowed here."

"Alright, alright. Someone is grouchy today," I said, walking out of the room.

I closed my eyes as soon as the silver doors closed behind me. You have grown too soft, my dear Reginald. That part of you will be your undoing. I snickered. And I'll relish when it happens. Though, maybe I should accelerate things. No, I can't get impatient. Impatience was what did my son in. I have to buy my time and act when the path is clear. For now, I'll focus on defeating the Zionians, starting with that Shield-Knight and his companions.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^_^. The final arc of this book will begin shortly!**