Lord of The Red Planet

Arthur watched Sato Yujiwara's car disappear in the distance. After it was gone, he turned his gaze to the dense forest behind him.

"Alright, what should we do next?" Arthur said.

"My Lord, I suggest we clear this forest immediately using wind magic," Emma proposed. "That way, we can start building the large warehouse right away."

"In that case, let me do it! I'm the best at using wind magic!" Lily bounced on her feet, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm as she looked at Emma and Arthur.

"Wait a moment," Arthur said, calming Lily down. He looked at Emma and the others. "According to a saying I once heard, when you own a piece of land, it means you have colonized that territory. So, you could say… this is Avanheim's first territory on Earth."

"You are absolutely right, My Lord! This is the first step of the World Conquest Plan!" Emma exclaimed, her face beaming.

"In that case… go ahead, Lily. Use your strongest wind magic," Arthur permitted.

"Okay!" Lily said happily. She stepped forward and stood in front of the forest.

The playful expression on her face vanished, replaced by deep concentration. She channeled mana into her right hand.

BRIIIMMM…

A low hum of energy began to sound. Transparent blades of wind started to form and ignite around her hand. The air around Lily's small arm began to swirl, creating small vortexes that pulled in dust and dry leaves.

The vortex of air then spun faster and faster, growing larger, until it almost formed a roaring mini-tornado. The sharp smell of ozone began to fill the air.

Seeing this, Lily immediately shouted, "Ninth-Sequence Magic: Horizontal Wind Slash!"

She tilted her arm horizontally and swung it forward. Instantly, the small wind blade exploded outward, its size extending to an incredible width of 200 meters.

WHOOOSH!—BOOM!

The transparent blade of wind tore through the trees in front of it, not just cutting, but obliterating them. Giant trees toppled as if they were made of butter. Thick wooden trunks were sliced cleanly before being shattered into pieces by the immense air pressure. Animals, insects, or whatever was in the path of the Wind Slash was instantly cut in two, then swallowed by a storm of wood splinters and soil.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The Wind Slash spell finally stopped at a distance of 200 meters, leaving a straight and perfect path of destruction in the middle of the forest. Birds flew into the air in a panic, avoiding the man-made natural disaster. A strange silence now enveloped the place, leaving only the smell of ozone and freshly cut wood sap.

Arthur let out a low whistle, then clapped. "Thank you, Lily. As usual, your wind magic is still very powerful." He walked over and praised the little girl.

"Ahh, it's nothing, Lord Arthur, compared to your magic," Lily replied, her face flushing with embarrassment.

"That's right. As Lord Arthur said, your magic is still strong, Lily." Emma joined in the praise, patting Lily's head, then looked at the scene of destruction before her. With this kind of power, those magic-less humans are clearly no threat. But… I must first confirm if we are the only ones who came from Monia. Because the real threat to Avanheim… is 'them'. Emma's reptilian eyes looked on coldly. And maybe… the other Supreme Beings.

"Lady Lily! You're amazing for being able to cast such a powerful spell! I'm sure if I were there, I wouldn't be able to withstand its attack!" Epsilon, who had been standing behind Emma, stepped forward and said, her eyes sparkling.

"Thank you, Epsilon," Lily said with a small smile.

Arthur looked at the scene of destruction in front of him. But, isn't this a bit excessive? I'm worried this will attract the government's attention.

"My Lord! Look over there! It looks like a man-made object!" Lily exclaimed, pointing to a shiny silver object that was reflecting the sunlight.

"You're right."

"Epsilon, bring that object here. If it seems dangerous, don't take it," Arthur ordered quickly.

"Understood, My Lord!" Epsilon immediately ran swiftly toward the silver object.

Epsilon stood in front of the silver object and looked at it. "Hmm, what's this?"

She pressed her palm to the ground. Instantly, the ground that was burying the object trembled before being lifted into the air in a large chunk, then crumbled, spitting out a silver object at her feet.

"A suitcase?" Epsilon muttered, confused.

She picked up the dirty, soil-covered suitcase and brought it before Lord Arthur.

Arthur narrowed his eyes. A suitcase? From its shape, it's an old model and seems to have been buried for a very long time.

Epsilon placed the suitcase in front of Arthur, Lily, and Emma.

Emma looked at it with curiosity, while Lily seemed very enthusiastic. "Lord Arthur! This must be a treasure that a human buried and then forgot about!"

Arthur looked at Lily. "Where did you get that conclusion?" he asked.

Lily grinned sheepishly. "It's… from a sea adventure book written by Lord Noah."

Hearing that name, Epsilon's eyes stopped blinking for a moment. A book written by Lord Noah? I want to read it.

"From Noah, huh… I guess there's some truth to it. But, Lily, don't get your hopes up," Arthur replied with a gentle expression. Noah… he really did love exploring the seas.

Arthur's gaze momentarily shone with nostalgia. He remembered when Avanheim was still a game, when he often went on adventures with his friends, from being pirates to exploring the dangerous world of the Abyss.

Whatever. Why am I thinking about all that now? There's a time for everything. They chose the real world and left Avanheim. That was their choice, and I respect it. Not everyone can give up their real life just for a game.

Maybe… only a loser like me could.

A sad, bitter smile formed on his face.

"Lord Arthur?" Emma's soft voice jolted him. She had noticed the change in her master's expression when Lily mentioned Lord Noah's name.

"Sorry. In that case, Epsilon, please open the suitcase." Arthur quickly changed his sad expression to a smile.

Seeing that forced emotional change, Emma couldn't take it anymore. She stepped forward and took both of Arthur's hands.

Arthur was surprised. "Emma?"

Emma held his hands tightly. She looked at Arthur, her cheeks flushing, while tears began to well up in her eyes. "Lord Arthur… you are not alone in this world. You have us."

She bowed her head, her voice trembling. "Even though I know we can't compare and can't replace the other Supreme Beings in your heart… at least, you don't have to think that you are alone. You still have all of us, My Lord. You still have me, who cares for you."

She lifted her tear-streaked face. "I know! When Lily mentioned Lord Noah's name just now, your expression showed longing and loneliness! Even though I don't know why the other Supreme Beings left us, you must remember this, My Lord!"

"You are not alone! We all need you! So, you can share your burdens with us. We will do our best to provide a solution!" Emma smiled sincerely through her tears, tilting her head to look at Arthur. "So… don't make a face like that anymore, as if you are alone and carrying all this burden by yourself."

The sunlight shone on the two of them, making her tears sparkle.

"Thank you, Emma… for saying such meaningful words," Arthur replied. A sincere, gentle smile now formed on his face.

Unconsciously, he pulled Emma's hand and hugged her.

Emma is right. I'm not alone. Even though my friends are gone, I still have all of them, the people who care for and need me.

A refreshing breeze blew, rustling their hair.

Meanwhile, Lily and Epsilon could only stare at the scene with shocked expressions on their faces.

Epsilon quickly picked up Emma's hat, which had been blown away by the wind. She held it out to Emma a bit awkwardly, seeing the two of them still embracing. "Lady Emma… your hat fell."

Hearing that, Arthur instantly came to his senses and quickly released the hug. He turned his face away, his cheeks feeling a little hot. "Sorry, Emma… for suddenly hugging you," he said apologetically.

Emma took the hat from Epsilon's hand and put it back on. She shook her head gently, her smile not fading. "It's alright, My Lord. I… was actually happy."

"Is that so?" Arthur replied, still feeling very awkward. "By the way, we should see what's inside this suitcase!" He quickly changed the subject.

Emma smiled and nodded.

That was… so embarrassing. Thinking about his action just now, Arthur's face turned red again. But… Emma really does care about me, huh. He glanced at Emma, who was now standing gracefully beside him, looking with curiosity at the contents of the suitcase that Epsilon was opening.

When Epsilon opened the suitcase, the enthusiastic expression on Lily's face immediately faded, replaced by deep disappointment.

"What?! I thought it was treasure! It's just human bones!" she complained with a pout. She stood up and walked over to Arthur with a disappointed expression.

"That's why I told you not to get your hopes up, Lily." Arthur stroked the little girl's hair.

"By the way, Lord Arthur… why did you hug Emma just now?" Lily asked innocently, tilting her head.

Hearing that, Arthur answered nervously, "Ahh, about that… it was because Emma suddenly started crying because she got dust in her eyes, and I… uh… helped her by hugging her."

"Is that so?" Lily looked at him with a very suspicious gaze.

"That's right! Just ask Emma!" Arthur winked frantically at Emma.

Emma, understanding the signal, immediately nodded seriously. "That's right, Lily."

"Hmm…." Lily still looked at them suspiciously, before finally turning around and looking back at the bones.

Arthur sighed in relief. Damn, what was I doing? Behaving indecently in front of an innocent child like Lily?

Meanwhile, Epsilon was still thinking about what Lady Emma had said earlier.

The Supreme Beings left us without a reason… even Lord Noah. Only Lord Arthur remained, staying with all of us even when his friends abandoned him.

Why should I miss a creator like that? One who would abandon his own creation? Only Lord Arthur never forgot and never left us all.

Epsilon lifted her head, now looking at Arthur with a gaze filled with deep and sincere respect.