Ohayo, minna-san! I know I was gone for like, more than a month, but now I'm back again! Sorry for the holdup, and now, Chapter 9 is out! I hope you guys understand, as I had a little accident, but now I'm fine.

Who's this stranger? What will be his role in the war? Will the Royal Paladins finally be able to beat back the Shadow Paladins and protect their capital? All these answers (well, not the last one) will be answered in this chapter. Also, a part of the stranger's past is shown here, giving elaborate details about him, and what happened to him.

Well, what are you waiting for? (What am I waiting for?) Start reading!

Chapter 9: Alfred's Father

Alfred, Blaster Blade, Blaster Dark, Wingal, and Nemain stared in shock and awe at the stranger right in front of them. About three decades ago, during the war against the Dark Zone Nation, Majesty Lord Blaster had sacrificed his life for the sake of the then-powerless and unofficial United Sanctuary, which was still not quite united. Majesty's martyrdom made the five clans rethink their purpose and plans for their own clans. With the Royal Paladins in the lead, the five clans joined forces to form the strongest nation ever on Cray-the United Sanctuary.

The Oracle Think Tank, Genesis and Angel Feather made up the Angelic Order of the nation, while the other half-Royal Paladins and Gold Paladins-made up the Knight Order. Before the creation of the United Sanctuary, it was the Star Gate Nation, led by Nova Grapplers, that assumed the role of leading the entire planet.

With the arrival of the United Sanctuary, Majesty Lord Blaster, CEO Amaterasu, and Great Silver Wolf, Garmore introduced the idea of equality to the other clans. Most of them had agreed to the suggestion, particularly the Dragon Empire and Star Gate Nation. This event sparked the beginning of the war, as the Dark Zone's hostile attitude arose against the idea of equality.

Led by Spike Brothers, the nation of Dark Zone effortlessly breached the United Sanctuary's boundaries, catching them by surprise. The unprepared armies of the five clans were no match for the relentless, full force rampage of the dark units.

Within a couple of hours, the outer towns of their nation were laid to waste, and people were scattered all over, trying to find a way to escape or counter the endless barrage of darkness, but it was futile. Less than a day after infiltrating the unprepared nation, the whole Dark Zone army, led by Juggernaut Maximum, had made it to the capital. There, the Royal Paladins took control of the situation, trying hard to push back the opponents, but it was obviously futile.

Even with five clans, the United Sanctuary was beaten by the Dark Zone, which only had three clans. The sight was awful-knights lying in pools of their own blood, houses crumbling and burning, and the outer walls of the capital torn down.

But they wouldn't give up. With swords and shields useless against dark magic, they reverted to their own magical powers. But because of lack of usage, they exhausted it quickly, forcing them to return to the swords and shields which helped little in fighting magic.

In the end, Majesty Lord Blaster used his life energy by combining the two forces he controlled-the shadow that covers the light, and the light that blankets the shadow. The opposing army was obliterated in a matter of seconds after Majesty unleashed the full power of shadow and light combined. With a powerful blast that terminated the attackers, the entire country of Royal Paladins was filled with light and shadow.

This very spectacle was not seen, but felt in other parts of the entire planet. In an instant, every knight, zombie, dragon, animal, elf, human, and robot on Cray felt the astonishing power of one individual. From that day onwards, every other clan had given the Royal Paladins the respect they deserve for having such gifted units.

After the blast, Majesty Lord Blaster was nowhere to be seen, which led the clans to think that he sacrificed his life for their nation.

But back to the present…

"B-but… it can't be…!" Alfred's voice was shaking with fear and astonishment. "I've seen you give up your very life! You sacrificed yourself to save our nation! And yet…" his voice trailed off.

Majesty Lord Blaster's face fell. "By the tone of your voice, I'd say that you're not happy to see me, am I right?"

"O-of course I'm happy! It's just that… you came back from the dead?"

"No, I didn't. Perhaps an explanation is fitting. You see, after the explosion, I literally thought I was already dead, since I was seeing white. Wherever I look, everything was white. Then a spirit appeared in front of me. He was glowing with the colors of the rainbow, and he had this green line on his forehead."

Alfred and Blaster Blade looked at each other, then returned their gaze at Majesty.

"Anyway, he told me that I wasn't dead, which made me overjoyed. However, he followed it up with this piece of information: I cannot return to Cray, as my ethereal body was disconnected from my physical body. Though my physical body was gone, there was still my spirit, so I couldn't be pronounced dead."

"He also told me that I could still live a new life, but on another planet, separated from Cray by a mystical and evil force called the Void. This struck me as ridiculous, since I thought Cray was the only planet with life."

"Then he sent me to a completely different place, somewhere I have never seen before. There were tall castle towers made entirely of glass, and strange moving machines on wheels made of rubber. The people living there looked practically the same as me, except that they wore strange clothes, made of cotton and wool. People were looking at me as if I was an alien to the planet."

"Maybe you were." Alfred said.

Majesty shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't know where to go, so I walked on without any real purpose. By chance, I came face to face with this building with people in it. As I peered inside, the first person I saw was a little boy with blue hair. He seemed to be playing cards."

At this, Blaster Blade looked away, his fingers groping for something to work on. Majesty noticed the discrepancy in his behavior and gave him his full attention.

"Did I say anything wrong?" He asked.

"N-no, nothing," Blade stuttered.

"You can lie, but you can't hide from my extrasensory perception." Alfred and the others stared at Blade. He needed something to divert their attention to.

"Ah! We forgot about Phantom Blaster Overlord!" He suddenly pointed.

All of them scurried, fumbled for their weapons as they expected the worst. As if on cue, Phantom Blaster Overlord's hand twitched and he groaned. "W-what happened?"

With a loud cry, Alfred charged right at him as he stood back on his feet. The King of Knights raised his sword and called out, "Royal Paladins! Lend me your strength! Let us show them the combined power of our clan!" Another lightning struck him, and as the smoke dissipated, once again he could be seen on top of his flame-maned horse, his glowing Broadsword crackling with electricity. "Let us go, my fellow knights!"

Majesty whistled approvingly. "Someone has a gift for dramatic speeches," he quipped.

Blaster Blade heaved a sigh of relief. But then, Phantom Blaster Overlord was on his feet again. He must be extra careful this time. His comrades blurred ahead of him, their weapons pointed at Overlord. It was his turn.

"Okay, everyone! Our top priority will be the safety of our King!" Blade called out in his best voice. Instantly, every knight flocked to King Alfred, deflecting feeble attacks from other Shadow Paladins.

Majesty watched this scene with growing enthusiasm. "So this is how they work. In the King of Knight's army, teamwork is essential to defeat the opponent. Well then, it's time to do my part."