Sacrifice: Time of Mine

Marin continued to throw a fit while Avion didn't know what to do with her.

After thinking for a bit, Avion said.

"How about this? We will consider this a draw then we'll determine the victorious after a rematch."

"Deal!" Marin instantly took advantage of the offer. She then turned around and continued.

"Even if it's my win, I'll consider this a draw."

A nerve popped out of Avion's forehead. However, he successfully restrained himself from saying anything.

Marin then turned to him and smiled.

"Well then, Avion, we'll see each other again very soon."

Swoosh*

"Ah!" Long Hair exclaimed when Marin just disappeared and left him. He wanted to be the first there to warn about her rebellious plan.

Yet,

"If I go right now, she may ambush me. With her current skills, she can defeat me and even kill..." he murmured, "I just lost my chance to be the first. No, but if I left her earlier, she may escape...!"

When he was about to hesitate, there was a sudden explosion from the far Grand Colosseum.

A flame that has the shape of a bird, or specifically, a phoenix rose wildly, illuminating the sky red.

A shout then reverberated all over the place.

"IF YOU WANT TO GET TO OUR QUEEN, YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH US FIRST!"

This fierce voice was obviously from the matriarch.

"Rank Es Elementalist!"

Leaving those words behind, Long Hair disappeared.

Avion turned around to see the devastating spectacle. It glows in the night sky,  pillar of flame in the shape of a bird.

Wanting to know what was going on there, he also disappeared, leaving Jemer and Raff stunned.

Simultaneously, people began panicking over the fact that their matriarch, a Rank Es Elementalist seemed to be enraged.

Avion appeared in the shadows. With no elemental energy within him, he was easily inconspicuous to the high-ranking Elementalists who were hovering in the sky.

"Matriarch Quiare, are you sure you want to resist in this populated area?" the Wrenwor Patriarch sweated.

No one predicted that the situation will escalate this quickly.

However, even if it's their death, they have to stop a Rank Es Elementalist's ascension. If the Queen of Crome succeeded, it meant slavery for the other families' next generations.

Now that the matriarch was getting defensive, it means that all of their speculations were correct.

All of the Rank Es Elementalists that were not part from the Crome Family looked at each other. With the eye contact and nods that they gave to each other, they have already established alliance.

Even Old Maytan was a part of this!

This was their original intention in the first place.

"What's that sound?" Galion were in the secret lab felt the tremble outside when suddenly, he noticed a silhouette in the peripheral of his vision.

In the future, he wouldn't lie that he almost peed his pants at that moment.

"S-sir Gamon?"

"Finally found it..."

The Penta Elementalist looked around as if he was just sight-seeing.

"So this is your Queen... umm... Elder something." Gamon looked at behind the cylindrical tube of thick reinforced glass. It was filled with pure fire element with a core in the middle. It just looked like molten lava on the surface.

"H-how did you get in here?!" Galion tried to contact the Matriarch through the Power Circle, however, she was unreachable.

"Can't contact anybody? Hehe..." Gamon sinisterly laughed. His next words almost broke Galion's mind, "You have served your purpose so you can just do nothing, is that fine?"

"Served... my purpose...?"

Galion muttered as he fell on the ground. The other researchers were petrified in the sight of a Rank Es Elementalist in their lab who is not a member of the Crome Family.

Alisera, located in another cylindrical glass was speechless on what was happening.

"Yes, you have served your purpose. Thank you for bringing the princess into your lab or else, I wouldn't have found it. Thank you for bringing me to a cell labyrinth that is somehow connected to here. Also, thank you for putting me in cell so that Old Maytan have a reason to pressure the Crome Family... seriously, thank you."

Although Gamon said "Thank you" multiple times, he had a very sinister expression plastered on his face.

That was when Galion realized his doubts.

"S-so that's why I contacted the Matriarch and planned all this. Y-... you're the one who planted it in my head! I was doubting of contacting the Matriarch because I was sure that you can trace that activity, yet, you let me! This is all your plan! So that's why Haliviana was in the princess's hands."

Yes,

Gamon is not only a Penta Elementalist, he is also called the Mad Scholar Elementalist.

He could be even considered a Hexa Elementalist from how he is so versed in the branch mind element.

"When did you...!?" Galion trembled in fear and guilt on the floor.

"When did I first touch your head, sir?"

Gamon seemed to be entertaining himself by making the poor old man realize everything.

"Hah-!" Galion sharply inhaled as he realized, "Memory Exchange! The moment you knew my memory  and how the matriarch will listen to what I will say, you have planted something in my head... You planned everything the instant you knew my memories!"

"Well, I'm not that smart but the situation just aligned so perfectly that my success couldn't be avoided."

Gamon then laughed loudly before walking towards the table in front of Arcansas.

It was filled with papers. But the important ones were on the top and could be easily read. Gamon took his time to go through it and skimmed.

He was very familiar with the research papers. After all, he had already read Galion's memory last time. However, there are a lot of details that he didn't get.

Even for him, taking all of Galion's knowledge was too much. Since Memory Exchange is like a double-edge sword, Gamon only took the necessary information.

And now that he was skimming through the papers, his eyes widened. He slightly trembled.

"Are you serious!? This method can wake your Queen but will also simultaneously wake Haliviana as well!"

Galion cowered from Gamon's exclamation as he replied.

"B-but, we ordered the princess to put small doses of energy to the crystal..."

Gamon then looked at Princess Alisera which the princess responded.

"Do anything towards me and I will put all my energy into this." she nervously put the crystal near her bosom.