Chaos and Fate were each other's main enemies, very old, perhaps even eternal, so they were well aware of their opponent's weaknesses. Zayne was infected with particles of Chaos power, which was a big problem for any person, but his situation was aggravated by the fact that his body still contained Fate energy.

Crackle.

The wooden doors opened as three men entered. It was a simple house, of which there were dozens throughout the village, but here was the person Aron was looking for.

No sooner had Aron taken a step forward than he was stopped by the glint from the blade held to his neck.

"Hey, Roland, don't you recognize us?" Harald said with a smirk, raising the flashlight to illuminate their faces that had previously been hidden by darkness.

"Agh... Damn, sometimes I can be too suspicious..." Roland sighed in relief as he sheathed his sword. He shook his head, looked at them, and only then he noticed Zayne, "What the hell...? Am I imagining things? Do Travelers come back that fast...?"

Zayne scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression, "Nah, I actually showed up earlier than expected."

"So... I'm really glad you're back Zayne, but why did you come to me at this late hour? If you have business with me, give me a few minutes to get ready. I'm not in the proper appearance at the moment..." Roland muttered, lowering his head. Normally he always wore armor, but now he was wearing only pants as the cold wind hit his muscular torso.

"Sure. Do what you need to do." Zayne nodded with a slight smile.

"That's out of the question!" Aron said sternly as he put his hand on Zayne's shoulder, "We don't have time, even this conversation better be kept as short as possible. The problem is that Zayne is infected with Chaos energy."

Roland's eyes went wide as his gaze instantly changed, he became serious as if he was on the battlefield, "I get it. How bad is the situation?" Roland didn't ask any other questions, since then the most important thing was Zayne's life.

"Just under two hours." Aron said calmly, "Zayne did a good job getting here quickly, so we have time to make things reliable. Where's Rina? That Oracle girl, is she with you?"

Roland nodded, "Yeah, Rina as well as Elin is upstairs. They're asleep, but I'll wake them up right away. Wait for us in the kitchen."

"Hurry up." Aron said seriously, heading forward.

"Sure." Roland quickly replied before running for the stairs.

Snap.

Harald closed the door, turned off the lantern, and followed Aron, along with Zayne. They lit several candles that brightly illuminated much of the kitchen while waiting for Roland.

"I want to ask you something..." Zayne muttered with an uncertain expression.

"Hmm? Go ahead, now we have a few minutes until Roland wakes Rina up." Aron said as he raised an eyebrow.

"Well, that's exactly what I wanted to know. Who are the Oracles? I understand that they have something to do with the power of Chaos since Rina was the one who guided us before the Chaos Heart showed up in the woods, but it's still too unclear." Zayne muttered looking at Aron.

"Agh, Oracles are nothing more than a gift from the gods to us. Without them, Chaos would be able to wreak far more destruction on this world than it has now." Aron sighed deeply, "Oracles are people who are blessed with a special talent to sense the energy of Chaos, far better than others."

"Hmm... Oracles are kind of like mages, right?" Zayne suggested.

"No, you shouldn't compare them. Unlike Oracles, mages cannot predict where the next Chaos Hearth will appear. Furthermore, the mages are more focused on battle and combat skills while the Oracles are real scholars." Aron said confidently with sincere gratitude in his voice.

"I see... Looks like Oracles are pretty special people..." Zayne muttered with a deep look.

"Yes they are, but don't think they're just lucky enough to have a blessing, this is just the beginning of their long journey." Aron spoke seriously as he crossed his arms across his chest, "Every Oracle has to go through a long education to learn how to use their abilities and calculate where the Chaos Hearth will appear."

"Agreed." Harald nodded, "Rina may look young, but she has been in one of the academies since she was a child. Oracles are undoubtedly amazing people, but they have their downsides. Most of them are scholars and rather weak, so they always have to rely on others."

Zayne remained silent until he asked, "Can't Oracles fight? Isn't that strange?"

"Hah, Zayne, do you think Oracles know how to stop time? They just don't have time to practice and study, what's more, not everyone can become a mage." Aron chuckled before sighing, "Well, actually Battle Oracles do exist, but it's harder to meet them than a unicorn next to a pegasus."

Step. Step. Step.

Footsteps were heard quickly descending the wooden steps and heading for the kitchen. Two of them were light while the third was powerful and heavy.

"Zayne! It's really you!" Elin exclaimed with a worried but happy expression running toward Zayne. She wanted to jump up and hug him but stopped at the last moment as she sat next to him with a cold look. "I'm glad you came back so quickly... Then, I completely forgot you are a Traveler..."

Zayne understood what Elin was thinking and that was enough for him. He nodded slightly, smiled, and said, "Yeah, I'm fine now, just one little problem to solve."

"Hmm?" Elin gave him a questioning look, "By the way, what are we all doing here...? I'm just now realizing how weird this all is."

"Me too... Explain what's going on here..." Rina muttered awkwardly as she glanced at Roland, but quickly looked away since her cheeks were flushed, "Commander Roland... Would you mind getting some clothes on?"

Roland shook his head, "We don't have time for this! Sit down!" Roland said sternly.

"Fine, in that case, let's get started. We don't have much time. Zayne, hurry up and explain the situation." Aron said seriously, looking intently at Zayne.

"Sure. I'll be brief."

Zayne told them everything that happened to him after he was able to return to this world. The story was impressive, especially about his battle with Hugo, but rather short since it didn't take him more than ten minutes.

"Hah, Zayne I knew you had a talent for combat... I never even thought Black Wing would want to attack my soldiers..." Roland muttered with a frown, "Well, I'm glad you got your revenge. Bastards like them bring only suffering to this world."

Aron looked at Rina, "Can you cure Zayne?"

Rina quickly nodded, "Sure. From what I understand Zayne has a small amount of Chaos power, so it won't be a problem."

"When can you start?" Aron asked.

"Practically now. I just need a little time to get ready. Let's go down to the basement, everything we need is there." Rina said as she put her palm to her chest.

"Fine, then let's not waste any time." Aron said seriously before standing up.