Family system

Ashen's massive wings folded gracefully as she descended into the sprawling garden behind Freya's house, her powerful claws landing softly despite her immense size. The air crackled faintly with the residual energy of her flight, but the garden quickly absorbed the lingering tension, replacing it with a calming stillness.

Sitting securely on Ashen's back were Valentina and Apollivex, the latter resting comfortably, still recovering from her earlier wounds. As Ashen lowered her head, allowing them to dismount.

The garden was as she remembered—blooming with vibrant flowers that shimmered with faint magical auras. Tall trees swayed gently under a soft, enchanted breeze; their silver leaves catching the morning sunlight. It was beautiful—a place untouched by the chaos of the outside world.

Freya, Isabella, and Elena stood waiting near the center of the clearing, their expressions shifting from anticipation to relief when they saw Valentina step down from Ashen's back.

"Valentina!"

The voices of Isabella and Elena rang out in perfect harmony as they rushed forward, closing the distance between them in seconds. They threw their arms around her, holding her tightly as though they feared she might vanish again.

"I missed you guys..." Valentina whispered, her voice trembling with emotion as she returned the embrace. Her arms tightened around her sisters, warmth within her chest. "I'm sorry for storming out like that."

Isabella, ever the protective one, buried her face in Valentina's shoulder, her usual stern demeanor forgotten. "Idiot... you scared us." Her voice cracked, though she tried to sound scolding.

Elena clung just as tightly, her soft, melodic voice trembling. "We thought something horrible happened to you..."

Valentina let out a little chuckle. "Something would have happened to me if it was not for this Ashen. She was suddenly there and defended me and Apollivex from any harm." She looked at Ashen and smiled at the dragon staring back at us. Elena let me go, walked over to Ashen, and petted her head.

"You really are my lucky charm Ashen." She gave Ashen a soft kiss on her cheek before walking back towards us.

Ashen lay down in the garden as the four of them walked back inside the mansion. Apollivex was stored inside the pet space so that she could get a proper rest and test out her new powers.

As they were walking, Valentina suddenly thought about something. "How long was I gone?" While she thought it wasn't that long, she could also be playing games with her, so she isn't sure.

Isabella looked at her warmly but spoke words that Valentina didn't expect. "It has already been two days. Freya also wrote runes on my body, and we waited for you, but you did not come back after an hour, so we began to try to find you with magic, but we still didn't pick up any traces of you."

The only thing that we knew was that you sent a distress signal to Ashen. We were shocked when Ashen told us about your location because it was in a shielded dimension in some corner of the universe."

Valentina's mouth hung open as she processed what Isabella had just revealed. Two days? It felt like mere hours since she had stepped through that strange hallway and entered that twisted, shielded dimension. Time distortion must have been at play—a dangerous magic.

Freya's expression was calm but serious as she took over the explanation. "The barrier that trapped you was not a typical dimensional shield." Her tone sharpened. "It wasn't just meant to block travel—it was a time-lock."

"Time-lock?" Valentina echoed, still struggling to grasp what she had narrowly escaped.

Freya nodded, her silver-blue eyes glinting. "Whoever created that dimension intended to trap anything caught inside, freezing time or slowing it to an unbearable crawl. If Ashen hadn't been able to sense your distress signal through your connection, we never would have found you."

Isabella placed a steady hand on Valentina's shoulder, her protective gaze softening. "We couldn't trace you through conventional magic. Even Freya's dimensional magic failed. It was only when Ashen physically shattered the entrance to that realm that she pulled you back into our reality."

Valentina clenched her fists, frustration burning through her. "Who could've set something like that up?"

Freya crossed her arms thoughtfully. "Whoever they are, they knew how to hide from me... and that's no easy feat." Her voice turned cold. "This isn't over—but first, we'll ensure you're protected."

"Now, follow me. You still need to get some runes on your body to be on the safe side."

Freya led the group back inside the mansion, moving towards the heart of her mansion—the towering magical laboratory. The air within cracked faintly with energy as they crossed its massive, enchanted doors.

The room shifted with every step, the shelves flying around in the air, adapting to Freya's will. As they reached the central platform, the chair that she saw Elena use was again in the middle, with another tray of equipment next to it.

"Lie down," Freya instructed, her voice firm but lacking her usual teasing tone. "This won't hurt... much."

Valentina climbed onto the chair, stretching her arms over her head as faint streams of magic locked her wrists and ankles gently—not restricting, but stabilizing. A faint chill ran down her spine as Freya's glowing fingers ignited with mana-infused runes.

Freya extended both hands, her fingertips glowing with icy blue runes that cracked like living sparks—sigils formed at her fingertips, weaving together into complex magical patterns.

"Mana Conduit: Activation."

A thin, glowing barrier rose around Valentina, shimmering like liquid starlight. The moment it solidified, streams of complex glyphs began inscribing themselves in the air—thousands of interconnected magic circles spinning in perfect synchronization.

Valentina's breath hitched as the first magic line etched onto her exposed arms. The symbols burned faintly, though it was more of a tingling sensation than real pain. She could feel the power coursing beneath her skin, locking into place like a second layer of protection.

Freya's expression was one of absolute focus. Her hands moved like a composer conducting a symphony, orchestrating countless defensive, offensive, and protective runes with precision that bordered on the inhuman. 'As expected of a goddess of magic.' Valentina was in awe and amazed at Freya's work.

After about three hours, Freya stood up. She was exhausted, having finished with the last person who needed her runes.

Freya slumped slightly, breathing heavily as she lowered her hands. Her eyes burned with arcane exhaustion, though she quickly composed herself.

The glowing runes on Valentina's body dimmed but didn't disappear—settling into a faint, ever-present aura etched into her skin. Enjoy exclusive chapters from My Virtual Library Empire

"There, you're all done now. You should go back to Aphrodite and begin to speak about the rest of the plans. I will go and rest a bit. I need some energy tomorrow in case something goes wrong in the attack.

With that. Freya walked out of the room again, leaving us three alone. We stayed quiet for a bit before Valentina spoke. "She really is a goddess of magic, huh."

"Mhm"

"Yes"

Both answered. While they didn't take Aphrodite seriously because of her personality, they didn't find anything weird with Freya. The only thing a bit strange was her obsession with experiments, but that was a small thing for gods.

"Now, let's go to Aphrodite. While I don't really like her, we still are sisters and wives of the same man, so we have to get along with her, even if it is for a bit.

The three of us left the room and began walking outside. We were met with some of the maids who worked inside the mansion, but they only said some greetings before leaving. They were soon outside the mansion and in the front garden. "Can you open a portal to Aphrodite Ashen?" Elena asked Ashen, who appeared beside us.

Ashen grunted before magic came out of her body and opened a portal. "Thank you, dear." Elena was close to her, as always. She placed her hand on Ashen's head and stored her inside her space to let her rest. "Let's go." At her words, we began walking to the portal that brought us to Aphrodite.

The three of us entered Aphrodite's grand chamber through the shimmering portal. The air was thick with magic, the faint scent of enchanted roses lingering beneath the sharp tang of charged mana. Velvet curtains embroidered with runes hung on the stone walls, and a central table carved from a single piece of obsidian gleamed under the magical lights suspended above.

Aphrodite stood near the far end of the chamber. Her usual air of casual unseriousness was gone; it was now tinged with something colder—focused intensity. As they approached, she turned, her violet eyes gleaming with mischief and command.

"You're finally here," Aphrodite remarked, her voice silk and steel. "I was beginning to think you'd run off."

Isabella's icy gaze met hers without flinching. "We're not the ones who run."

Elena chuckled softly, but her eyes remained sharp as blades. "We're here for the plan, not your theatrics."

Aphrodite smirked but didn't press further. She waved a perfectly manicured hand, and with a shimmer of golden light, a magical map appeared over the obsidian table, displaying a swirling, dimensional rift.