Parallel Memory

Just like that, we began our journey home.

The return journey was much easier than entering the elves' kingdom, mostly because of the training and better mana control, which allowed us to avoid being detected by most of the monsters. Some of the stronger monsters who were unlucky enough to detect our presence were easily defeated.

Although they were of S-rank, they were barely able to keep up with Hiro's party, even when they were all still in Rank A sub-classes. Mia, Amelia, and I didn't even have to take action, as the group wanted to take this as an opportunity to get used to fighting tougher opponents.

I was surprised to see their coordination—it was smooth, and everyone had their roles. Hiro, Zion, and Misha would take the frontline, where they used coordinated attacks to deal physical damage to the enemy, while Lisa used support skills like status-enhancing spells and shields, also healing her friends whenever required. Sylvia used ranged attacks to distract the monsters.

The way they took on their roles with such efficiency proved that it wasn't something they came up with overnight—it was built on the trust and experience of knowing their teammates' potential and flaws.

It made sense that the four main characters of the novel could do that, but the addition of Misha Kanon was living proof that the novel is not absolute and with determination you can fight against destiny. Seeing them work together almost made me regret leaving the academy.

But in the end, everything I did was worth it—every single minute of it.

While their group was so focused on improving, Mia and Amelia were behaving almost like kids. They kept turning small talk into argumentative fights to prove who had more fans on twitflick.

I didn't know the professor had it in her to make such senseless arguments, but I guess they are good friends after all, as they brought out a whole different personality when they were together.

One of the most interesting parts of the journey was that I got to taste a meal from the most beautiful genius of the human race, Mia Frostine. I didn't expect her to be so good at cooking, as she used to focus solely on training and getting stronger.

Being praised as a generational talent, she seemed to have set her goals on living up to it, and everything else was a waste of time—or at least that was what I thought until I tasted the curry rice she prepared using ingredients from the rations the elves had provided us. The meal clearly showed experience in its flavor.

A few days later, we finally arrived at Etheron City—the entrance to the human domain. The return trip had been strangely peaceful. No surprise attacks, no monsters leaping from the shadows, no high-stakes battles. Almost like the calm before the storm. Still, it felt good to be back.

But the moment we crossed through the main gates, peace went straight out the window.

Camera flashes exploded in our faces like tiny bursts of magic. Dozens of news reporters swarmed us, waving mics and magical recorders while shouting questions we couldn't even hear over the chaos. A glowing banner floated magically above the crowd: WELCOME HOME MIA FROSTINE –CONGRATULATIONS ON RANK SS ASCENSION!

"Wow, this is a bit much," Misha muttered as he held up her hand to shield her eyes.

"Feels like we're the bodyguards to a celebrity," Ameilia added, her voice half amused, half annoyed as she was not used to this kind of attention. The only attention she received were from the guards at church and other priestess since she was mostly confined in the church.

Dozens of scouts from the Platinum and Diamond Guilds stood in the background, dressed in sleek uniforms with their guild insignias gleaming in the sun. Some of them were already approaching Mia, completely ignoring the rest of us like we were just her entourage.

Mia's ascension to Rank SS had gone public, thanks to Nock Fletcher and his group who had returned earlier than us. And at just 29 years old, she had broken a record long held by geniuses of the past. Even SS-rank prodigies had reached that level only around age late 40s. Mia's achievement made her headline material.

A few of them went after Hiro,Zion,Lisa,Sylvia and Misha because of their popularity from the academy, scouts were interested as they got info of the geniuses using the Legendary Luminary springs of the elves to cultivate.

The scouts were full of expectations as to how far they had ascended although they knew that they had decided their choice when they graduated but the scouts were determined to convince them otherwise.

The scouts heard that one of the youth from the golden generation ascended to rank S which everyone assumed was Hiro the most talented of the golden generation and they didn't even care to confirm. I was jealous of his reputation for a second, not that I minded as it spared me the attention I was thankful for.

Amidst the chaos, Mia maintained a perfect composure, gracefully nodding at the crowd. Her signature calm aura wrapped around her like royalty. But I noticed the slight twitch in her eyebrow—she didn't like this kind of attention either.

The celebration didn't stop there. That evening, we were invited—well, dragged—to the branch of Diamond Guild where a full-blown welcome party had been prepared in Mia's honor. The entire building had been decorated with magical chandeliers and enchanted blossoms that floated gently in the air. The food, the music, the guest list—it was a display of power as much as a celebration.

Mia's father, the guild master of Platinum, was front and center. A tall man with a cold presence and piercing gaze. When he raised his glass to toast Mia's achievement, it felt more like a business transaction than a father-daughter moment.

I stood in the back, away from the limelight, quietly enjoying a plate of grilled potato skewers. Lisa and Sylvia were somewhere near the dessert section. Hiro and Zion were comparing mana stats again. Amelia was dragging Misha into conversations she clearly didn't want to have.

Despite the music and laughter, I was wondering what had caused the change, according to the novel humanity was supposed to go to war against the devils a long time back something didnt feel right.

As the night wore on, a ripple of murmurs moved across the party like a wave. One of the giant display screens in the guild's lounge area which had the name tech genesis lit up with a live stream from Twitflick News: BREAKING: DEVILS BREACH BORDER OUTPOST DELTA – TOWER LOST.  (Tech genesis had made a breakthrough after the mana battery was discovered it has now become the top tech company of all of human domain with its revenue and power comparable to that of a diamond guild)

The room fell into a heavy silence as the news anchor's voice echoed over the tv speakers.

"Moments ago, the border outpost Delta was overtaken by unknown devil forces. Reports suggest a sudden increase in the enemy's numbers. High-command believes a major operation is underway."

The footage changed to shaky images of the battle, the tower crumbling as dark figures moved like shadows through the smoke. Screams echoed through the feed. The transmission cut off halfway through as a devil beast lunged toward the screen.

Immediately the room burst into chaos as the officials of the authority and guildmasters were receiving emergency calls demanding their presence in the round table of the authority as the devils had become active again.

The church had prepared an entourage for saintess Ameilia to return to the church,Hiro being a part of the authority had to return to post immediately and as for the rest of the group they had to return to the emergency army unit they joined before departing for the elves kingdom.

As for Mia Frostine, she had to resign from the Ace Academy as she had ascended to Rank SS, Being a teacher was a waste of resources for the Authority hence she was supposed to attend the war council with other Rank SS heroes.

Everyone was busy with the sudden change of situation at the border, Mia gathered the group briefly to discuss our plans ahead before bidding farewell to each other.

"Zero, I believe you should join the War Council with me since you are free," she said, "with your strength the council will accept you without any hesitation."

"Thank you Professor Mia for believing in me but the council has requirement criteria which I fail," I replied with a smile. "And I was planning to check on my parents back home,"

"Mia is fine i am no longer a professor," she said " call me if you have a change of heart" and left with a warm smile. I was mesmerised by her smile and all dreamy when my phone suddenly rang.

Ring…ring I was snapped back to reality seeing the name of the caller made me hesitate before picking up.