Half a month later, the wizard airship appeared above Golden Crown Mountain in the Cloud Marsh Wetland. A banner had been strung across the peaks of the mountain's four summits—three small and one large. The enormous red textile, woven from a special kind of silk, read: Welcome Back, Wizard Locke Augustine.
A series of magnificent fireworks burst into the sky immediately afterward.
Locke stood beside the observation window of the Time Gold Crystal, looking at Wizard Trajan in surprise.
"Senior Brother, what is this?"
Wizard Trajan smiled. "It is rare for an entire Academy to celebrate a Second-Ring Wizard like this. But this time, everyone is celebrating not only your contributions to our Academy, but also your determination to uncover the truth of the past for the wizard of Golden Crown Mountain and restore his name."
"For that reason, Golden Crown Mountain passed a resolution through the Academy Council to hold this welcome ceremony for you."
"Welcome back, Wizard Locke Augustine."
On Golden Crown Mountain's main peak, Locke saw the little brother of Wizard Probus, the remaining members of Probus's family who had not been bought off and had long suffered exclusion at Golden Crown Mountain, as well as those wizards from the Dragonblood Society, all standing on either side to welcome him.
Among these wizards were quite a few who had once bullied or isolated Probus's family members because of Wizard Probus. Yet now, they stood together, and their old grudges seemed to have dissolved. Perhaps the rights and wrongs had been too complicated for anyone to distinguish anymore. They only knew that, through Locke's efforts and under Witch Catherine's leadership, Wizard Probus's reputation had been cleared.
Wizard Trajan smiled at Locke. "I only learned of this a few days before returning."
"They wanted to give you a surprise,