My Celestial Ascension

Outside the Gladiator's Arena, hundreds of carriages were being parked, and thousands of people surrounded them. Some people were looking for their family members who went on the expedition, while others were there to witness the faces of the warriors who emerged alive from the Forest of Never Return.

"Look over there, Mom! It's father!" a young girl shouted to her mother excitedly upon seeing her father's face after a long time.

The woman quickly turned around, and upon looking in the direction her daughter was pointing, she couldn't hold back her tears anymore. A happy, relieved smile appeared on the woman's face.

She held her daughter's hand and immediately ran toward her husband, who was looking at them with a longing look on his face, and both hugged him tightly.

"W-Welcome back, husband…" The woman began to cry in the arms of her husband, feeling warm and safe in his embrace.

"Welcome back, father, I missed you a lot," the little girl said with a sweet smile on her face before hugging her father tightly.

Similar scenes unfolded for many people as they reunited with their loved ones after so long. They couldn't help but feel relieved seeing their family again, a reunion they never anticipated when the expedition first entered the forest.

However, amidst the happiness, there was also sorrow. Nearly a thousand people lost their lives while defending their comrades from powerful magical monsters within the forest. Many families lost their members, and only their bodies returned from the forest. Some people lost their sons, some lost the pillar of their family, and some lost their lovers.

People who lost their family members wailed in front of the bodies of their loved ones. Their tears, filled with the sorrow of loss, rolled down their cheeks. Even the bystanders became emotional watching the sorrowful, mourning faces of the people. They, too, felt sadness in their hearts and pity toward those who were mourning.

The air became thick with the joy of reuniting with loved ones and, at the same time, with the sadness of losing them. One side was celebrating, while the other side was mourning. It was a very strange and complicated situation.

A few moments later, the bodies of those who lost their lives defending their comrades in the forest were laid down on the ground in rows, covered in white clothes inside the Gladiator's Arena.

The Royal family, important people of the kingdom, as well as representatives from other kingdoms and empires, stood before the bodies with serious looks on their faces.

The entire arena was silent, with a heavy atmosphere; only the mourning of people could be heard from the distance. King Richard, with a serious look on his face, stepped forward, his presence commanding. Everyone focused their gaze on him, waiting for his speech.

"Everyone… The bodies before you are those of our dear comrades who sacrificed their lives to save ours, so we could defeat the corrupted creatures," King Richard's commanding voice resounded throughout the entire arena, making everyone silent and listen to his words.

"In honor of their noble sacrifice, let us pray for them for five minutes, so their souls may enter heaven and watch over us…" King Richard said, looking at the fallen comrades lying on the ground. "They are the true heroes, and because of them, we are able to win the battle and come out alive."

Shortly, everyone began to pray for the heroes who sacrificed their lives fighting the powerful magical monsters inside the forest. The entire city fell silent as every citizen prayed for them.

Sometime later, Arthur exited the arena with an unpleasant look on his face, appearing very furious for some reason.

"I am sick of hearing those lowly people's sorrowful mourning! How dare that lowly king make me pray for the souls of those low lives?! Who does he think he is?!"

The Holy Knights could only follow him in silence. Arthur is the Holy Son, while they are nothing but mere bodyguards for him; they don't have the authority to advise him.

"One of you, go and prepare the carriage. We will depart for the empire immediately," Arthur ordered one of the Holy Knights.

"As you wish, Holy Son." One of the Holy Knights nodded and quickly ran toward the direction where their carriage was parked.

"Holy Son, is it alright to leave like this?" One of the Holy Knights asked, feeling a little reluctant.

"Are you questioning me? Didn't I tell you that I don't like staying here? Did you not listen to me?" Arthur frowned at the Holy Knight, releasing a powerful killing aura that made the Holy Knight feel suffocated.

"N-No…Of course not, Holy Son…" The Holy Knight shuddered in fear, feeling as though the oxygen had vanished from the air.

"Good. Never doubt me, or else it won't end well for any of you." Arthur withdrew his killing intent and slowly walked forward.

"U-Understood, Holy Son…" The Holy Knights nodded, feeling relieved as the pressure vanished.

Shortly, a luxurious white carriage arrived and stopped in front of them, followed by the Holy Knight who had gone to prepare it.

"Let's not waste our time in this wretched place any longer and quickly head out." Arthur quickly entered the carriage and seated himself comfortably in a relaxed manner. The carriage's cabin was imbued with magic, making the atmosphere inside quite comfortable and relaxing, soothing the mind instantly.

The Holy Knights mounted their horses, and the carriage began to move forward shortly after.

Inside the carriage, Arthur's expression suddenly changed and turned very serious.

"Once I return to the church, I have to immediately make preparations to deal with that bastard. I need to have a serious talk with His Eminence about this. Yuan and his wives are a threat to the entire Holy Church!" Arthur mumbled in a low voice, a cold look flickering in his eyes.

"Their strength is unparalleled and beyond what I've seen so far; even the highest-ranking Holy Knights don't come close to them. If we give them more time, they will become even stronger than they already are, and then no one will be able to stop them... We can't let them grow stronger anymore."

"This is a very serious matter… I hope His Eminence listens to me and makes a wise decision," Arthur muttered, sighing before leaning against the comfortable seat of the carriage. "I wonder how the Gods residing in the High Heaven will react to this… Will they dispatch any lower gods to deal with this abnormality, or will they keep on watching?"

Thinking about the possibility, a creepy smile appeared on Arthur's face as if he were looking forward to it. "Knowing their arrogance, they won't keep quiet about it if they see them as a real threat… It would be amusing to watch them fight." Arthur chuckled and decided to make arrangements as soon as he returned to the church.

—

After the prayer ended, King Richard announced that the families of those who lost their lives during the mission would receive five thousand gold coins as compensation and an additional hundred gold coins each month.

Many families felt very relieved, as if a huge burden had been lifted from their shoulders, and many people were overjoyed by the King's generosity. Their admiration for the King increased manifold.

After that, he announced that two days later, a huge banquet would be held at the royal palace to celebrate their victory. Everyone who participated in the expedition was invited and could bring their friends and family too.

Sometime later, Yuan and his wives decided to return to Miss Zara's inn. Just as they were about to leave the arena, they heard Archmage Isadora's voice from behind.

"Are you guys leaving already?"

"Indeed. There is nothing more for us to do here, so we should return to the inn where we are staying. The innkeeper is an acquaintance of ours, so she must be quite worried about us," Anna replied with a smile as she turned around.

"I see… In that case, I won't hold you guys any longer. Let's meet at the banquet two days later," Archmage Isadora sighed and said with a smile, feeling a little disappointed that she couldn't tag along with them.

Anna nodded with a smile. "Let's meet again at the banquet in the royal palace."

"See you then…" Archmage Isadora turned around and left with a reluctant look on her face.

Yuan then looked at Anna and said, "Mom, let's get going. Miss Zara and little Zoe are waiting for us outside the arena."

"Huh? They're waiting for us?" Lily was surprised upon hearing this.

"Why didn't you say so before? Let's go, let's go!"

Before the others could say something, Lily grabbed Yuan's hand and pulled him outside the arena, excitement and anticipation evident on her face.

Seeing this, Yuan and his wives could only chuckle. They never thought Lily cared about Miss Zara and her daughter so much; this was really unexpected.

Shortly, they arrived outside the arena and saw Miss Zara and little Zoe standing close to the guards, who were guarding the entrance and keeping people from entering the arena.

"Yuan, Lily, and everyone else! Over here! We're here!" Miss Zara shouted as soon as Yuan and his wives came out of the arena, both looking very excited to see them.