Strongest Warlock - Wizard World Irregular

The young man couldn\'t get rid of the nagging feeling on the back of his head—that the lady he was holding onto was the real Ramona, not a copy made by the Painting of Enlightening.

It was a very weird feeling, but he believed it to be true.

But if it was really the truth, then it begged the question.

What was happening?

The Painting of Enlightenment connected the past, present, and future, weaving it together, allowing those who entered it to seek enlightenment.

Enlightenment came in many forms.

It could be moving on and accepting the past, receiving wisdom about something, or perhaps seeing a brief glimpse into the future.

When Ethan saw Godfrey, he was finally able to put a face to the name of the Leader of the Blood Fangs.

He didn\'t know if it was merely a coincidence or not, but he believed that the Demigod\'s appearance was brought upon by Hecate, and not his entrance into the world of the painting.

\'I no longer know what\'s real or not anymore,\' Ethan thought as he gently held the sleeping princess in an embrace. \'I know that the things in this world aren\'t real, and yet, why do I feel like I\'m truly holding Ramona right now?\'

It was hard to believe, and yet, his senses were screaming to him that he was indeed holding the Princess, whom he had left in the Magdar Kingdom hundreds of years ago.

Sebastian and Ethan\'s Other Half, who could understand what Ethan was going through right now, remained silent.

Usually at this time, they would come to tease the young man and tell him some annoying words that would make Ethan roll his eyes.

But, they didn\'t say a word.

Not a single one.

They didn\'t have the heart to ruin this precious moment, which may or may not happen again in the future.

The two of them were Ethan\'s strongest allies, critics, and supporters.

But no matter how powerful they were, there were simply things outside their scope of expertise.

Ethan remained awake until morning because he didn\'t feel like sleeping.

He was exhausted from making love with Ramona, but at the same time, he didn\'t want to close his eyes, fearing that if he did, the Princess would disappear from his life forever.

Finally, just before sunrise, Princess Ramona opened her eyes.

She met Ethan\'s gaze for a few seconds before moving closer to kiss his lips.

"Good morning," Princess Ramona said.

"Good morning," Ethan replied. "How are you feeling?"

Princess Ramona smiled. "Sore, but happy."

She then slowly propped herself up from the bed, causing the blanket to fall off of her naked body.

Marks could be seen on her fair skin, which was as white as cream.

It was proof that, during the night, her beloved had left his mark on her body.

"Ethan, I feel sleepy," Princess Ramona said.

"Then sleep more with me," Ethan replied, but he felt as if something was blocking his throat, forcing him to say the words he had just said.

He then reached out to hold her hand, making sure that she understood that he was there for her.

Princess Ramona gave Ethan\'s hand a light squeeze before yawning.

"Ethan, come and find me," Princess Ramona said before looking at the sun slowly rising over the horizon. "Do you remember that story that you told me in the past? About the princess who fell asleep, waiting for her prince to wake her up?"

"Yes," Ethan replied, rising up from the bed to hug the Princess, whose presence was starting to grow dim.

"Come and find me. Once you do, make sure to wake me up with a kiss," Princess Ramona rested her head on Ethan\'s shoulder, doing her best to stay awake. "Until then, I will be like that princess, sleeping, as I wait for my prince to find me."

"Where are you?" Ethan asked.

Although he was holding her body, he felt as if she was about to slip from his grasp, once again disappearing into the river of time.

"I am very close to you," Princess Ramona replied with a smile. "Close enough to touch, close enough to hold. Illumina and I made a bet, you know? Back then, I was confident that I was going to win. But now… I\'m not sure anymore."

Princess Ramona closed her eyes, and hugged Ethan tightly.

"Thank you for the memory," Princess Ramona said. "I love you. But don\'t tell me that you love me. At least, not now. Find me first because if you don\'t find me soon… I will…"

"I will find you," Ethan said firmly. "I will."

"… Of course, you will," Princess Ramona sighed as her body started to turn into particles of light. "After all, you\'ve always kept your promise to me."

As soon as she finished saying those words, she disappeared into countless golden lights, carried away by the wind.

But before she vanished completely, her words still reached Ethan\'s ears.

"I have done my best. I\'ll leave the rest to you, Ethan."

Ethan walked toward the balcony of the tower, where he looked at the sky.

Princess Ramona\'s words were still fresh in his mind, and it made his heart ache thinking that she was somewhere out there, waiting for him to find her and wake her up with a kiss.

Somewhere in the Temple, Hecate raised her hand and caught a golden orb of light in the palm of her hand.

She then pressed it over her chest, to where her heart was located and closed her eyes.

The Saintess of the Order of the Tidebringer remained in that position for several minutes before slowly opening her eyes.

Hecate blinked once then twice before looking at her surroundings, wondering what she was doing just now.

She was standing on the balcony of her room, with her hands clasped over her chest.

\'Why do I feel so happy right now?\' Hecate thought as she remained in place. \'Did I have a good dream or something?\'

She tried to recall if she did. But, no matter how hard she tried to dig through her memories, she couldn\'t remember anything.

After a few minutes of trying, yet always coming up with nothing in particular, Hecate shook her head and returned inside the room.

There, she found Joanne sleeping on the bed with her arms spread wide, her nightdress slipping off of her shoulder.

Hecate shook her head helplessly and tidied her up a bit.

She even wiped the drool from the corner of her friend\'s lips with the blanket before lightly shaking her to wake her up.

"Ten more minutes…" Joanne replied as she once again hid under the blanket, hoping that she would get a few more minutes of sleep.

"Fine," Hecate replied, and snuck under the blanket to hug the sleeping beauty in her arms. "Ten more minutes. If you don\'t wake up after that, I will eat you up."

"… That doesn\'t sound half bad," Joanne replied. "Wake me up at ten."

A giggle escaped Hecate\'s lips as she hugged her dear friend like a pillow.

She wished that they could stay together forever because her heart felt at ease whenever she was with Ethan and Joanne.

Hecate didn\'t expect that, as she laid beside her close friend, she would also fall asleep.

She dreamed a happy dream where the one she loved loved her back, and the two of them walked hand in hand at the crossroads of destiny, not wanting to let each other go.