Lord of the Truth

"Umm… are you alright?" Robin's voice came carefully, his steps dragging as he approached her. It was as if his body wanted to keep moving forward, but his mind screamed for distance. His wariness was plain—he truly did not want to get too close.

Morgana was bent over, her body shaking violently as she vomited. Yet the sound that tore from her throat didn't carry the weakness of sickness—it was guttural, furious, a sound filled with rage rather than frailty.

It was as though she wasn't purging her stomach, but her very soul, trying to claw out the humiliation that was eating her alive. The sound alone was enough to unsettle everyone nearby.

Wade and Malik shifted uncomfortably, frowns creasing their faces, while the portal guards who had moments ago been checking her out now looked away awkwardly, unable to withstand the raw intensity of her outburst.

"You!!"

Morgana jerked upright, her crimson hair snapping around her shoulders. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, eyes blazing like twin storms. Then, without hesitation, she lunged forward and seized Robin by the collar. "What did you do to me, you twisted, depraved wretch?!"

Up close, the difference between them became glaringly obvious. She wasn't just close to his height—she was a fraction taller, her presence overwhelming his space. The brim of her crimson hat shadowed not only her own face but Robin's as well, forcing his golden eyes into her storm-dark gaze.

This was a woman who had endured endless torment, who had stared death in the face more times than she could count, who had lived among specters and survived horrors that would strip the flesh from most men's bones. And yet—never, not once in all those centuries—had she ever felt degradation like she felt in this moment.

"Ah… haha…" Robin's laugh was strained, caught somewhere between humor and discomfort. He reached up, grasping her wrists with steady hands, and with slow but undeniable strength, lowered them away from his chest. Then, with surprising gentleness, he pushed her a step back from the portal. His eyes flicked to Wade and Malik, signaling them silently to follow.

As they moved past the checkpoint, Robin turned his head over his shoulder. With a casual wave, a few Energy Pearls appeared in each guard's palm, shimmering like tiny suns. "Apologies for this scene," Robin said smoothly. "I'll trouble you to handle the cleaning."

"...."

The guards stared at one another for a breath, then, almost in unison, straightened their backs and called out loudly, "Thank you, Professor Robin!!"

------------

Inside Robin's apartment at the Academy—

Bam!

Robin shoved Morgana down by the wrist, forcing her into the seat with a strength that brooked no argument. His voice cracked like thunder, sharper than they had ever heard from him. "This is the last time you dare diminish my authority in front of others. Do I make myself clear?"

"..." Morgana rubbed her wrists slowly, carefully. Even though his cultivation was only at level 11, the power in his grip at the gate had nearly crushed her bones. That aura of dominance—so raw, so absolute—it had pressed against her like a mountain.

This was the first time Robin had ever turned such force on her, the first time he had demanded obedience rather than coaxed it. It was something foreign. Something dangerous. Something she didn't want.

"Explain yourself first. What did you do to me, pervert?!" Her voice rose, trembling with indignation. She jabbed a finger toward him, her cheeks flushed with a mixture of anger and humiliation. "Is this your taste in women? Is this some twisted fantasy of yours? I said I'd follow you, but don't think for a second I'll accept any forced relationship!"

"All I did," Robin replied, his voice sharp, cutting her accusations apart, "was correct your growth. Your body froze because you refined a planet far too early, and your strength was abnormal from birth because you were born into a millennial empire. I didn't add anything, Morgana. I merely used a certain Law to accelerate your natural development to the age of thirty." He waved irritably, as though brushing her complaints aside.

Striding to the window, Robin flung it open. The breeze rushed in, carrying the scents of the academy's gardens. He gestured outward, his tone like iron. "What you see now is your true body at thirty years of age. Nothing else. I didn't sculpt you, I didn't paint you—I simply unveiled what you should have become. Your features were altered naturally, fully, so no one will be able to trace you. If you despise the sight of yourself… that is your problem, not mine."

"Oh!" Morgana's fury faltered for a heartbeat. Her eyes widened as she lifted her hands, conjuring a mirror of spirit-light before her. She turned one way, then the other, studying the unfamiliar reflection. Slowly, her lips parted in surprise. "Now that I think about it… I look a little like my mother in this form..."

Bam! Robin slapped his own forehead, exhaling in frustration. Understanding women was impossible—even now, after all this.

Clasping his hands behind his back, he strode toward the door. "I'm leaving on a trip with my guards. You'll stay here. The trip may last several years—perhaps longer."

"What? Where are you going?!" Morgana spun around from the mirror, her voice sharp with panic. "You brought me here just to vanish? At least take me with you! Or let me leave, and we'll meet again elsewhere!"

"I'll handle something quickly, then head toward the Young Belt. I have business there." Robin's tone left no room for argument. "Unfortunately, you can't come—you aren't a resident of the Young Belt. That's why I brought you here to the Academy first. Within these walls, you'll have safety, comfort, and protection until I return."

He paused at the threshold, glancing back one last time. "While I'm away, you may do whatever you wish inside the Stellar Academy. This apartment will belong to you alone until I return. You can even leave if you insist… but I would strongly advise against it, if you value your life."

And without another word, Robin stepped through the doorway. The door closed behind him with a firm thud, leaving Morgana alone with her reflection and a silence heavy enough to crush the air.

Bam!

Morgana collapsed onto the nearest chair, her body sinking heavily into it as though her strength had drained away all at once. The faint murmur of academy students echoed beneath the window, voices rising and falling in idle chatter. Yet to her ears, there was nothing—no laughter, no footsteps, no life. Silence devoured it all.

In that moment, she felt the old weight of loneliness crash back upon her shoulders, the same suffocating emptiness that had been her only companion for hundreds of thousands of years.

Time became an endless ocean again. Minutes melted into hours, hours into days, days into an eternal current with no destination. She stared blankly at the floor, her thoughts lost to the void, feeling as if her existence had not changed at all since the days she wandered in exile among specters.

Bang!

The door slammed open with a thunderous crack, shaking the room. A massive figure stormed inside, filling the doorway like a bear loosed into a cage.

"Ahh!!" Morgana leapt to her feet instantly, violet soul force flaring to life around her body. Her Royal Soul power surged like a storm about to break, ready to obliterate whatever threat had dared intrude.

But the intruder didn't even glance her way. His booming voice thundered across the room: "Where is he? I know he's back! The portal guards told me!!" Shaddad stomped across the chamber, dropping onto his knees to peer beneath the bed as though expecting to drag Robin out from under it.

"Who are you searching for, dork?!" Morgana snapped, her voice unsteady from the wild clash of anger and confusion.

"Big Brother Robin, of course! Where is he?!" Shaddad snarled, his enormous frame lurching toward the table as he shoved it aside to check beneath. Then his head whipped toward Morgana, his eyes flashing with suspicion. "Are you hiding him under that ridiculous hat of yours?!"

"He left not long ago!" Morgana shot back, her hands waving furiously. "He said he had business in the Young Belt. Go look there instead of tearing apart my space!"

"The Young Belt?! Damn it all..." Shaddad slammed his fists together with an explosive crack that rattled the walls. Only then did he pause, turning his attention to Morgana properly for the first time. His massive eyes roamed her up and down, scrutinizing with a seriousness that unsettled her.

"...." Morgana's brows knit tightly. Violet energy pooled at her fingertips, gathering sharper and denser. If this fool so much as tried to flirt with her, she would burn him where he stood. She had tolerated more than enough humiliation for one day.

Snap!

Shaddad clicked his fingers, pointing a thick finger toward her as realization lit his face. "Ah! You must be Big Brother Robin's mother! Forgive me for the disrespect earlier—I was just—"

BOOOOOOM!!

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Outside the Grand Academy Hall—

The largest structure on the planet rose ahead, a marvel of impossible scale. Though only a single floor tall, its height soared for hundreds of meters, dwarfing every other building in the academy. Colossal statues of stone warriors served as pillars, their carved arms straining upward to hold the ceiling aloft. And the ceiling itself—it wasn't stone, nor steel, but a vast sheet of substance resembling clouds, frozen in place yet alive with shifting hues. Its magnificence could not be captured in words. To describe its sheer presence would take not a day, nor two, but an entire lifetime.

No towering guards stood before it, no massive gates barred entry. The area was empty, silent, save for a single figure. One man stood alone in front of that divine structure, his head tilted back, golden eyes tracing the immensity above with awe and solemn wonder.

Robin released a long, steady exhale. The weight of his breath carried centuries of struggle, ambition, and resolve. His head lifted fully, his voice no louder than a whisper, yet it struck the air with undeniable force.

"Your Majesty Althera… I seek to strike a deal with you."

The words lingered in the air for but a second—then whoosh! His figure vanished, swallowed by the unseen currents of power.