[Add's Point of View]

...

Glave. The name certainly took a while to get used to, but it wasn't bad. It was better than being named after a mathematical operation, right? Perhaps Ara would've laughed at that joke... if she was still here. In this space devoid of everything; the painting Luto had given me was the only item I had left. If you don't count that crappy thick dictionary from before, that is. This empty world of nothingness; everything was boring. Nothing ignited a spark of interest in me anymore. Except for Ara's portrait, of course. I have an unhealthy obsession over her, she IS my dead girlfriend, after all. Ha, maybe I know how Raven feels about his deceased fiancee now. Seris, was it?

...

Time had flown by quickly. By now, fragment by fragment, I have started forgetting everything from my past. My previous name... it was Add, wasn't it? Ara Haan was the woman I loved, that's for sure. The painting was the only thing keeping my memories connected together. Pathetic. I'm just so pathetic. Was this eternal punishment going to be torture? Nobody came to visit for a very long time. Nobody knows of this place, except for Luto and I. That was the most plausible explanation.

...

"Whoa! Where are we?" an extremely annoying, but familiar voice greeted me. Elsword. The brat didn't seem as infuriating as usual.

The entire gang was here, too. Deep inside, I was glad that I had visitors, although I would've loved to question how they got here. Luto's doing, maybe? I quickly scanned the group for Ara, and there she was, dressed in her regular attire as the Sakra Devanam. She was still as beautiful as ever, smiling even in a situation like this. I loved her, and I still do now. Now, if only I could talk to her...

"Hello friends! Welcome to Henir's Time and Space." I answered in a rather calm manner. Being isolated here alone for so long, perhaps it had changed my personality a bit.

"Henir's... Time and Space? Explain this, Sir." Ciel glanced at me with his dark blue eyes. It was about the same shade as the floating cubes.

"But, before that! Tell us why we seem to be standing on a platform, even though there's NOTHING here!" Lu interrupted.

I ignored Lu's question, it didn't seem worthy enough to be answered. "My name is... Glave. Yes, Glave. Call me that. It is quite unnecessary to call me 'Sir'. Anyway. You all are gathered here today to participate in the following simulation I have planned for you. Fun, isn't it?" I chuckled.

"Simulation?" Raven's eyes narrowed at me. I could tell that he was feeling uneasy about this~ At this point in time, I'd speculate that he still hasn't gotten over the death of Seris. Perhaps to him, a simulation would be similar to reliving his most painful moments. Or I'm just thinking into this too much. Tch.

"It is nothing bad. In fact, it will be quite fun, as I said before! I am your trusted Administrator of Time and Space. You can believe in me." I smirked from behind my mask.

"Okay, let's give it a try!" Elsword grinned. "Whatever this simulation thing you guys keep talking about is, I'll beat ALL of you! Even you, Sis!"

Elesis remained silent. This version of her was quite... terrifying in some aspects.

"U-Um! W-Wah, I'm not ready for this yet...!" Ara cried out.

"It'll be fine." Rena smiled at her in a comforting way.

"Dummy, what if something bad happens here?! How can we trust this mysterious-looking dude if we barely know him?!" Aisha protested.

"Whatever, Aisha! Bring it on, Glave!" Elsword declared with confidence.

"G-Guess it can't be helped..." Chung chuckled, scratching the back of his head.

"Location Checking: All green. We may proceed with caution." Eve gave the rest of the group a thumbs up.

"Now, let's have the simulation begin, shall we?" I tossed two small dice into the air.

...

--[CHAPTER 17 - SIMULATION : END]--