NOVPUB"Irene!" — before Irene's group reached the "Flame Zone", a short girl with long brown hair ran up to her and hugged her tightly. Her height was slightly higher than Esma's, and even her figure was similar.
This new girl immediately caught Esma's attention, and she almost burst into tears with joy at finding someone who looked like her. Esma was already starting to get depressed, surrounded by tall and beautiful girls, and the arrival of this new girl was an outlet for her.
"Hazel!" — Irene exclaimed happily, hugging her friend tightly.
"Heh-heh-heh..." Hazel replied laughing, hugging Irene in her arms. "It's been a long time, Irene. You know, I missed you!"
"I missed you too, Hazel!" Then Irene started looking around as if looking for someone.
"Yuliya isn't here, she hasn't come." said Hazel, realizing who Irene was looking for.
"What a pity. I missed her too." sighed Irene regretfully.
"Don't worry, I'll definitely tell her that you miss her. She misses you too, but because of all the worries with the Guild lately, she hasn't had much free time!" said Hazel, releasing Irene and straightening her clothes.
"Unlike you, she's more responsible," remarked Irene, smiling.
"I don't understand why you like playing Guild leaders so much. Isn't it easier to enjoy the rest of your life for your own pleasure?" asked Hazel, not quite understanding why all those who are close to her and have followed the same path with her from the very beginning decided to establish their own Guilds.
"I do not know what exactly happened to your group with Arslan back then, I only heard rumors about this incident.… So when you disappeared from sight and only replied to messages, we all almost decided not to bother you. Especially since Arslan claimed that you're fine, you just need time to come to your senses. I'm so glad that you're okay and you've finally decided to show up."
"I'm sorry for making you worry. But yes, I'm fine. I just needed a little time to recover." Due to her pregnancy, Irene had to limit all communication, leaving only communication through messages. When Irene met Hazel, she had to admit that she really missed them.
"Who is this, Irene?" came a message from Esma through the Soul Force.
"Her name is Hazel. She was one of the first Awakened and ranked in the top ten in strength. Now she is a member of the Flower Gardens Guild, which is headed by my friend Yulaya. She was also one of the first Awakened Ones and was also in the top ten," Irene conveyed to Esma through the Soul Force.
Hazel, after greeting Irene, turned her attention to Esma and, meeting her gaze, froze for a moment.
When she came to her senses, she looked at Irene and, pointing at Esma, asked:
"Who is she?"
"Heh, heh, heh. I'm Esma, Irene's younger sister."— smiling again, Esma took the initiative and introduced herself, despite her age, which could be compared to her grandmother's age.
"Irene's little sister?" — Hazel looked at Irene in disbelief, as if waiting for confirmation. As far as she knew, Irene had only a younger brother, and no one else, not even close relatives. And so, out of the blue, a younger sister appeared.
"Come on. I'm not Irene's own sister, but her sworn sister." — Esma hastened to correct.
"Yes, Hazel. Esma is my sworn little sister." — Irene confirmed, knowing that her brother and Arabel had decided to leave Esma with her, and she had to play along by making her her sworn sister.
"Oh, that's it. Nice to meet you. My name is Hazel. Irene's friend," — Hazel introduced herself.
Irene, looking at the two girls, one of whom was a Valkyrie from another world, and the other a simple awakened one, found them a little similar not only in appearance, but also in character.
"Well, Hazel, are you here alone? Which of our people came too?" asked Irene.
"I only saw Ren and Rachel," Hazel replied.
"Titans and Dojos?" muttered Irene. She had already noticed the members of the Titan Guild upon their arrival, but Rachel was not among them. Irene realized that it looked like the Titans had sent more people.
"Is Ren as silent as always and doesn't let go of his sword?"
"Yes, we were already afraid that, instead of a girlfriend, he would end up marrying his sword!" Hazel replied. From Hazel's words, Irene realized that Ren hadn't changed.
Irene looked at the twelve members of the Flower Gardens Guild who had arrived with Hazel. While they were studying their colleagues from the Queens Guild, Ned, who was standing behind Esma, attracted some attention. He was the only young man in their group, and he was also attractive, while representatives of both sexes gathered in the Flower Gardens.
The guys from the Flower Gardens started casting jealous glances at Ned, who didn't seem to notice them at all, which made them even more nervous.
Irene, Hazel and Esma, the three of them leading two groups, went to the Flame Zone. Along the way, Esma found a common language with Hazel and began asking her about many of her questions.
Hazel was happy to share her knowledge, although some of it related to the world seemed a little strange to her.
Soon, both groups reached the Flame Zone and, upon seeing this sight, froze in amazement. Everything within a radius of more than five hundred meters was ablaze, and to everyone's surprise, the flames did not spread beyond a certain boundary.
Everyone gathered watched the flames with undisguised curiosity. Surprisingly, no one felt the intense heat when they were with him. Only when someone approached the very edge of the fire, the heat became unbearable, and the person immediately retreated.
"How amazing!" exclaimed Hazel, mesmerized by the sight.
Irene, not wanting to be overheard, asked Esma through the Soul Force, "Is this really related to Idan?"
"Yeah. As far as I can tell, Idan has an affinity for the elements of Fire, and Arabel has an affinity for the elements of Ice and Water." replied Esma.
Irene silently stared at the huge square engulfed in flames. 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪
"Did Idan do this?" — She asked herself.
"Irene?" a familiar voice rang out as she gazed in amazement at the Flame Zone created by her younger brother, Idan.
Turning around, she met the gaze of a woman whose eagle-like eyes were full of sharpness. She had short black hair and was tall. A young man in unusual clothes followed her quietly and silently, hiding his face under a strange bamboo conical hat. A sword hung from his belt, and one of his hands rested on the hilt.
This young man always reminded Irene of the old Ronins.
"Rachel? Ren?"— Irene recognized both of them.
Rachel was a member of the Titan Guild, and her boyfriend Nathan, who had recently become her husband, was the Leader of that Guild.
The young man following her was Ren, the Leader of the Dojo Guild. He was a fanatic of the sword, and as far as Irene knew, he had awakened the Swordsman System.
Both of them were among the first Awakened Ones, and like Hazel and Irene, they were among the top ten and were considered Heroes of the Federation.
