CH 15: The Truth About Their World
The next day, inside one of Aethalgard’s classrooms...
Sylveria, Isla, and Isao sat in perfect silence. The air between them was thick with tension.
Sylveria crossed her arms, refusing to even glance at Isla.
Isla sat stiffly, her expression unreadable but clearly uninterested.
And Isao, in her new hairstyle (princess cut) is visibly dying inside as she drummed her fingers on the desk.
“…Soooooo,” Isao finally said, looking from one to the other. “Are we just gonna sit here pretending we don’t exist?”
No answer.
“Wow. Great talk. Love the energy.” said Isao in an annoyed tone.
Then the door opened with a soft click.
“Ah, you three are here. How very early,” Lady Cateleya said, gliding into the room with her usual calm grace, her golden hair flowing behind her like silk.
Isao immediately raised a hand. “Excuse me, ma’am! What happened to our masters? Weren’t they supposed to be training us today?”
Cateleya chuckled, her smile far too serene. “Oh, they’re… busy.”
“Busy?” Sylveria echoed, arching a brow.
“Yes,” Cateleya said sweetly, her tone deceptively innocent. “Helping with the reconstruction of the training grounds.”
Isao and Sylveria blinked.
“…Wait,” Isao said slowly. “You mean they’re doing manual labor?”
Cateleya nodded cheerfully. “Mm-hmm~ Punishment builds character.”
Meanwhile...
Out at the damaged training field, Valerica was hammering metal stakes into the ground, Accla was lifting debris, and Sayuri was sweeping furiously with a broom, muttering curses under her breath.
“This is ridiculous!” Sayuri shouted. “I’m the Katana Saint, and a princess to boot not a janitor in training!”
“Shut up and sweep!” Accla barked annoyed.
Valerica groaned, wiping sweat off her forehead. “Next time, we don’t argue in front of lady Cateleya.”
"Agree" Sayuri and Accala said in unison.
Back in the classroom...
Cateleya clasped her hands together, smiling warmly at the trio who sat straighter under her gentle yet intimidating presence.
“Now then,” she began, her tone shifting to something calm but commanding. “Today, I will be your teacher. And I’ll be teaching you something even your masters haven’t fully grasped.”
Isao leaned forward, intrigued. “Ooooh, secret Saint knowledge?”
“In a way, yes,” Cateleya chuckled softly. “Today, I’ll tell you about things only the other saints and I know about our world.”
Isla blinked, eyes faintly interested. Sylveria’s usual cold composure shifted into quiet curiosity. Even Isao, normally restless like a kid who have eaten too much sweets, settled into attention.
The Grand Saintess smiled knowingly. “Good. Then listen well—because what I’m about to tell you will change how you see everything.”
.
.
.
Then, Cateleya began her lesson.
Her gentle voice carried easily through the quiet classroom. “First, let me tell you something that even many nobles and scholars refuse to believe—the world you live in, the one you thought was everything, is actually just a part of something far greater. What we call our world… is only a continent.”
Sylveria’s eyes widened. “W–what?”
Isao’s jaw dropped. “You mean there’s more out there!? Like… outside of our world?”
But Isla merely blinked, resting her chin on her hand, looking unimpressed. “So?” she asked innocently.
Cateleya only smiled, amused by their reactions—or lack thereof. “Yes. There are many more continents out there, each vast as our own, separated by what we call the Abyssal Oceans. There were once portals, ancient gateways—that allowed travel between them, but they were destroyed or buried after the great battle between the good gods and the evil gods. That is why, to this day, no one has ever reached the other continents and returned.”
Isao raised her hand. “Wait, wait, wait—so there were gods? Actual gods who fought each other?! That story is true!?”
Cateleya chuckled softly. “Indeed. Their war reshaped this world… or rather, this continent.”
Sylveria frowned, still trying to process the revelation. “But, Lady Cateleya… isn’t the world round? That’s what our scholars teach.”
“Haha, true,” Cateleya said warmly. Then, she raised a finger and gently flicked it.
The blinds of the classroom suddenly shut with a soft click, darkening the room. Particles of golden light began to shimmer in the air, forming a radiant, floating map.
The students gasped as the illusion took shape before them—a grand, glowing sphere of countless lands, seas, and shining boundaries.
“This,” Cateleya said, pointing to a tiny glowing speck, “is our continent.”
It looked so small that Isao squinted, leaning closer. “That’s… tiny!”
Cateleya nodded. “Yes. To us, it feels infinite, but in truth, it’s merely a piece of a greater creation. Now, watch closely.”
She waved her hand, and the illusion shifted. The sphere zoomed in toward their continent, flattening as if reality itself were being folded. To the naked eye, it now looked like a flat world suspended in space.
“This,” Cateleya explained, “is how most beings perceive their world. The authority of the gods bends perception, making each ‘world’ appear flat and endless. But in truth, they are all round—each one a separate, massive continent floating in an endless sea of magic.”
Sylveria’s breath caught, her analytical mind overwhelmed. “Then… that means there could be civilizations, people—entire kingdoms—out there we’ve never met.”
“Precisely,” Cateleya said, smiling gently. “Each continent has its own laws of magic, its own history, its own culture, and even its own gods. What we hold sacred here may be worthless to them—and what they find trivial could be power beyond our comprehension.”
Isao whistled low. “Whoa… that’s crazy. So, there’s, like, other Islas and other Sylverias out there?”
Sylveria shot her a glare. “Don’t compare me to her.”
Cateleya laughed softly, shaking her head. “Not quite, my dear. But perhaps… someone very different—and yet, not so different—exists somewhere out there.”
Only Isla remained quiet, her gaze fixed on the fading map, reaching out to touch the particles. For a brief moment, her usual blank expression softened—almost as if the vastness of that vision stirred something deep within her.
