Journey to Become the Zenith

The Ring of Venus

Videl who was caught up in the magic circle was surprised to see herself inside the Guild Master’s room. Even Clara and the others were teleported. Everyone except for Natalia and Ruby was shocked by this sudden teleportation.

For a brief moment, nobody spoke.

The transition had been so sudden that their minds struggled to catch up.

One second they had been standing on a devastated battlefield surrounded by ash, shattered earth, and the lingering heat of a dragon’s destruction.

The next—

They were standing inside a spacious room filled with bookshelves, maps, and stacks of documents.

The scent of old parchment replaced the smell of burning bone.

The silence felt almost unreal.

”W-What just happened?” Brinda blurted out.

Clara looked around cautiously.

”We teleported.”

”Thank you for that brilliant observation,” Brinda replied.

”I’m serious.”

”You always sound serious.”

Ruby chuckled despite her exhaustion.

Natalia shook her head.

”As expected.”

The calmness in their expressions immediately drew everyone’s attention.

”You two aren’t surprised at all,” Eon said.

Natalia folded her arms.

”We’ve seen things like this before.”

Ruby nodded.

”Not often. But often enough.”

The room remained quiet for a few seconds.

Then Videl suddenly stiffened.

Her blue eyes widened.

What happened?

The scattered pieces of her memory quickly fell back into place.

The battle.

The undead dragon.

Isabella collapsing.

Her gaze immediately swept across the room until it landed on the Guild Master.

Isabella was lying on the floor, unconscious. One of the rings on her fingers was glowing softly, bathing her body in a warm green radiance.

The light pulsed steadily like a living heartbeat.

With each pulse, gentle waves of mana spread through the room, washing away the lingering tension and replacing it with a strange sense of calm.

Tiny emerald motes drifted through the air like fireflies, circling around Isabella before dissolving into her body. As they merged with her, the exhaustion on her pale face seemed to ease little by little.

”Isabella!”

Videl hurried forward.

Clara followed right behind her.

”Is she alright?”

Ruby knelt beside the unconscious Guild Master and checked her condition.

”She’s breathing.”

Natalia nodded after sensing her mana.

”Her condition is stable.”

Videl let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

Even so, she didn’t dare touch Isabella.

Her hand hovered near the Guild Master’s shoulder before stopping midway.

The ring was clearly doing something, but none of them understood exactly what.

”What if moving her interrupts whatever this is?” Videl muttered, withdrawing her hand cautiously.

The green light continued to pulse quietly, as if reassuring everyone that its owner was being protected.

”Then don’t touch her,” Clara immediately answered.

”That’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

Brinda knelt down nearby.

”Shouldn’t we help somehow?”

”Help how?” Eon asked.

Brinda opened her mouth.

Then closed it again.

”...Good point.”

Nobody present possessed enough knowledge to understand what they were seeing.

The ring clearly wasn’t ordinary.

The mana radiating from it felt ancient.

Pure.

Almost divine.

Even Ruby and Natalia seemed unusually attentive.

Natalia noticing Videl’s confusion approached her.

”That’s a Venus ring. As expected from the Sleeping Lion of Skyfall, she planned for everything.”

Videl blinked.

”A Venus ring?”

Natalia nodded.

”The moment Isabella lost consciousness, the ring activated automatically.”

”So it’s healing her?”

”More than that.”

A faint smile appeared on Natalia’s face.

”That ring is probably the reason she’s still sleeping peacefully instead of suffering from mana backlash.”

Clara frowned.

”Mana backlash?”

”Using that much power comes with consequences.”

The room grew slightly quieter.

Everyone remembered the battle.

The overwhelming spells.

The Spirit Rulers.

The destruction of the undead dragon.

Looking back on it now felt almost unbelievable.

Videl glanced toward Isabella’s sleeping figure.

The Guild Master looked far too young to carry that much power.

”What’s a Venus ring?”

Natalia and Ruby looked surprised by Videl’s question, but then they remembered that such information wasn’t widely known.

Natalia happily smiled and was about to answer, but Ruby beat her to it.

Natalia glared at Ruby as the latter started to happily explain what the Venus ring was.

”Hey!”

Ruby grinned.

”Too slow.”

”I was going to explain it.”

”And I explained it first.”

Natalia puffed her cheeks.

”You’re annoying.”

”I know.”

The others watched their exchange in amusement.

Even the tension in the room eased slightly.

Ruby cleared her throat dramatically.

”Now then.”

She stood up.

Placed one hand on her waist.

And pointed toward the glowing ring.

”The Venus ring is a divine item and only six of them exist in the world today. It is said that during the Age of Chaos, the Goddess of Love and Light Venus granted these rings to six heroes that were summoned to fight the strongest tyrant of the evil spirit race, the Evil Spirit Lord Anos.”

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere changed.

Even the wind outside seemed to quiet down.

Ancient legends always carried a certain weight.

A certain mystery.

Brinda’s eyes widened.

”Wait.”

She pointed at the ring.

”That thing is from a legend?”

Ruby nodded proudly.

”Exactly.”

”No wonder it feels strange.”

”It’s not strange.”

”It’s divine.”

Natalia rolled her eyes.

”She’s showing off again.”

Ruby ignored her.

”The six heroes fought alongside the Goddess of Love and Light Venus during one of the darkest eras in recorded history.”

Eon leaned against a nearby bookshelf.

”I’ve heard fragments of that story.”

Natalia nodded.

”Most people have.”

”But very few know the details.”

Clara looked thoughtful.

”I always assumed it was just a myth.”

Ruby laughed softly.

”That’s because most people never see evidence that those legends were real.”

She gestured toward Isabella.

”Yet here we are.”

Everyone followed her gaze.

The unconscious Guild Master remained surrounded by soft green light.

The ring continued releasing gentle waves of mana.

The sight felt almost sacred.

Videl quietly stared at it.

She had already witnessed Isabella destroy an undead dragon.

Summon beings that seemed capable of reshaping the battlefield.

Cast spells powerful enough to shake the heavens.

And now—