《Aethernea》 Episode 1 - Prologue Aethernea is a new fantasy web novel which episodes are released every Thursday. It is also available for reading on aethernea.com websiteandwattpad. Links:Website|Wattpad|Facebook|Twitter Note: * * * She didn''t have much time. She could feel it clutching at her heart, slowly slithering beneath her skin, spreading deeper and deeper with every breath she took. The stabbing pain in her chest lasted longer and longer every day. Yet the worst pain wasn''t caused by the sickness, but by the knowledge. She was the only one who knew. Nelaira [ne- lah-ee-rah] stared at the cold metal walls with a desire to break them down. As hard as titanium itself, they wouldn''t budge. No matter how hard she clawed, hammered and kicked at them, Nelaira couldn''t make a single scratch or dent. And to make matters worse, pushing mana [mah-nah] into the walls to power a spell was near impossible ¨C the alloy had a high mana resistance. She imagined placing her palms in front of her and pushing outwards like opening double doors. Nelaira could picture the metal bending and twisting; creaking as if crying. It would slide away, creating a hole for her to pass through. Yes, that''s how she would have done it. At her prime, even platinum would have shifted in her wake. Nelaira was a Transmutation magic master - this wall would have been history if she could still use her magic. If only she could still use her magic... But it was no longer her own. The Ink growing inside her had tainted her mana, it resisted and twirled chaotically. Nelaira could no longer control it. Nelaira wanted to cry, to sob, but she had never been the type to cry when met with difficulty. Even now, faced with bitter frustration and futility, her fighting spirit burned in her chest. She swore under her breath, her fist clenched so hard her nails drew blood. The sharp pain made her look down at her palms. The blood was black and refused to flow. Her eyes traced the black veins branching under her skin, traveling up her arms. The flesh around them was slowly losing every bit of color, turning snow white. Nelaira averted her gaze to the floor. She was disgusted. However, the shiny metal floor only reflected her own face back at her. She cringed. Her eyes had lost their glow, her pupils had shrunk so much they were barely visible. Her face was plagued by dark bags and cracked blue lips. The hair on her head was just as lifeless as straw. It had stopped growing and was slowly decaying into shades of silver. Nelaira looked back at the walls, her eyes losing their focus. Her mind was getting cloudier every day. The secret inside her head weighed on her, consuming her from inside. She stared into the distance as if she could see beyond the walls. It was there, somewhere. Right in that direction ¨C Ashar [ash-ahr] University of Magic. He was there, doing what he always did, completely unaware that she had been betrayed. She should have been more careful. If only they hadn''t found out what she had stumbled upon. If only she had been more skilled in hiding her doubt. Her "accident" could have been avoided. Alas, now her only wish was to pass it on to him. He needed to know. Everyone needed to know. He would believe her; he would not attribute her words to ramblings of a sick person. He would make sure her death would not be in vain. Nelaira closed her eyes, imagining his smile, his mischievous eyes, and undying curiosity. He gave her strength to hold on, to fight. She would cling on to life as long as she could. The thought of him cleared her head. These walls couldn''t hold her prisoner. All of this was just a farce. They should have just killed her back then. Their own greed would cost them dearly. She would shatter the lie they encased everyone in. Caged like animals in the false name of "protection". If Nelaira didn''t reveal the ugly truth, no one would. They would get away with their sins and continue to manipulate history. She needed to find a way to reveal it! But how? No one was allowed to see her. She couldn''t get out. Her body was weak and her magic unusable. Nelaira could write him a letter, but it would never reach him. They would censor anything they deemed dangerous. And to them, revealing that the Ink wasn''t what everyone thought it to be, revealing the actions of AegisAriteweren''t as kind-hearted as described by the history books... the truth was nothing short of a largeaxeswinging above their heads. Think, just think!Nelaira screamed inside her head. You are an intelligent young woman. You can find a way. You can outwit them. They are still greatly underestimating you! They have no idea what you are truly capable of. Nelaira sighed. That''s right! She was more than just a great mage. Even without magic she could wreak havoc! She would not sit still and count days to her untimely demise. Nelaira sat in silence, contemplating every option, devising a plan until her vision became foggy and her mind slipped back into the darkness. Next time, when her mind cleared, she would be ready to act. * * * People are not born equal. Some are gifted with power, intelligence and status from the moment they leave their mother''s womb. Others might spend their entire lives helplessly chasing what they had been denied from the start. Kiel [kee-yel] , born as a non-mage in a world ruled by magic, had become painfully aware of this fact at a very early age. But Kiel, as he was now, was no longer the same. The old Kiel had died. Even now, he remembered the deafening silence of his heart clearly. He was now someone ¨C something else. This was clearly evident in the way he jumped around like a bouncing rubber ball, trying to avoid a stream of daggers, flying, swishing and slashing at him from all angles. Kiel put up several reflective barriers to ward off the daggers. However, they were enchanted with a high-level piercing magic that prevented a change of velocity from external sources. They would bang against his barrier, the spell on the dagger causing strong waves of interference with his own, shattering the barrier in a single hit. The impact would send the imposing dagger flying away from him, however, the rest of them would continue on their path of destruction. Kiel had no time to put up a stronger, more durable barrier. He didn''t even have the time to glare venomously at the enemy mage who attacked them for no apparent reason. Was it premeditated? Was it personal? Were they too close to something dangerous? Kiel didn''t have the time to ponder over it. All he could do was respond quickly with low-level spells such as the weak barriers he was currently casting, which were quick and easy to put up. Unfortunately, he could not put up enough barriers to stop all daggers. Even he, as great of a mage as he was, couldn''t create hundreds of barriers in a span of few short seconds. He doubted even Elaru [el-ah-roo] herself would be able to do something of that magnitude. Kiel swore under his breath as a dagger whizzed right next to his head creating a shallow stinging cut on his cheek. The searing hot blood pumping through his veins took his already superb reflexes to the next level when faced with the question of life and death. Kiel''s eyes briefly glanced towards the other side of the ancient, decaying hall, his eyes searching for Elaru. He was worried she would be in a worse condition than him, knowing how reckless she was. Elaru was able to forget her own mortality and disregard her pain in the midst of battle, fighting and enjoying the rush. For the same reason, she often didn''t notice just how much damage she was taking in the process. However, Kiel''s worry was misplaced. Elaru didn''t have a scratch on her. A few cuts on her clothes, though they drew no blood. Unlike him, who could attack both from the distance and from close range, Elaru almost exclusively and carelessly charged right into melee combat. All together it left an impression as if her luck was going to expire at any moment. Like the next battle will be her last. Only by disregarding appearances and concentrating on the pure and simple truth could one realize that Elaru was a combat master. When she suffered damage, it was because she deemed it necessary to get closer to her goal. Her movements, though appearing reckless, were precise and planned, comparable to flawless actions of a well-calibrated machine. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Kiel let out a quiet "Tsk". She made his blood boil. He hated being outperformed by her. She had become the determinant of his worth. The one he could compare with. The one who motivated him to exceed his own limits. His rival. He had to become better. Faster. Superior. Elaru dished out spells and avoided daggers with such speed and precision one would think she could stop time itself. The swirling blades hissed as they fell down upon her like rain, reflecting soft rays of light into her long carmine red hair. Her high ponytail flew around like it had a life of its own. Ethereally shining in the darkness of the ruins as if it was glowing. Giving that last push to the beauty of her playful dance into realms of otherworldly. Kiel was a high ranking mage, his reaction speed and casting speed were both quite incredible. On the other hand, Elaru was on an entirely different level. Kiel swore again, his brief moment of distraction was enough for a few daggers to graze his skin. I have no time to worry about that monster! - He thought. Unlike her, he was on the defensive. Keeping himself alive was already a big deal in itself. Besides, it''s not like she shared his sentiment! She was clearly enjoying the situation. She laughed, her face spread in eerie, wide, yet somehow still attractive grin. In the midst of battle was where Elaru felt the most alive. Kiel''s mind filled with possibilities. How to defend, avoid, destroy. All the facts gathered inside his head into strains of clear, coherent thought. Each dagger was enchanted with three different magic spells. Acceleration spell which allowed it to fly around swiftly, a piercing spell that negated outside attempts of changing the velocity, and a protection spell that rendered attempts to destroy it meaningless. There were a few hundred of them and each had three high-level spells cast on it. Sustaining that many simultaneous high-level spells was too much for any single mage. Which meant that daggers had a certain degree of autonomy and were not drawing their power from the mage himself - they drew their power from crystalized mana. The mage prepared the mana days beforehand, maybe even weeks. Which means if he could shatter the mana crystal powering them, the daggers would lose their enchantments, making them just regular daggers. And normal daggers were no threat to a mage of his level. Can''t defend. Unable to avoid. All that was left is to destroy them before they destroyed him. He smirked. Pinpointing their source of mana was easy. Especially since they needed a lot of it to sustain them. He spread his Mind, like it was a gentle wave or a veil, touching the magic of the daggers. Hundreds of small lights blossomed inside his head, giving a presence to the intangible magic brewing inside the daggers around him. He raised his arms in front of his face to protect it in case he couldn''t shoot down all of the daggers before they reached him. His body was protected by enchanted gear, but his head was bare. With icy tempest pulsating through his eyes, he started his offense. Dozens of high-density mana bolts spiraled and separated from his aura, mashed into existence with the sole purpose of destruction, silently they honed in on the daggers. With incredible speed, achievable only through the lack of mass and perfect accuracy, they collided with targeted mana crystals. The show of magic bloomed like a reflection of the storm hiding behind his eyes. Magic rained down on him. When his bolts collided with the crystal, a small explosion cracked and shattered it, creating a shower of beautiful mana sparks, turning solid matter into fluid vapor. Some of the bolts even pierced through the target taking out multiple daggers with one well-aimed mana bolt. The air was crackling with glowing fireworks. Daggers shined like silver stars, glittering brightly just before their magic broke and they fell down to the floor clattering and turning to nothing more than useless scraps of metal. His magic was beautiful. He could tell that much even without being able to see magic, but he still craved her approval, the admiration and delight shining through her eyes down to the depths of his core. Unfortunately, she didn''t even spare one look at him. As if he wasn''t there at all. There was still a whirlwind of weaponry in the air around Kiel. He had managed to shoot down enough of them to raise his survival chances significantly. Despite that, blinded by the fireworks, he almost suffered a severe injury. He jumped backward just in time, the sturdy cloth had torn from the force, leaving him with a new shallow cut on his thigh. He swore for not being as adept at evasion as Elaru was. However, the cut was worth it; he had lowered the number of daggers considerably - he should have no trouble ending the next batch now. Just as Kiel was about to launch his finishing blow, daggers stopped in mid-air and reversed their direction of movement, away from Kiel. In that short moment, a brief sense of achievement and pride washed over him. The mage pulled back his daggers to avoid their destruction! ...until a potent thought flashed across his mind quieting all others - Elaru! His eyes quickly darted towards her, confirming his suspicions. The daggers weren''t retreating. They changed their target to Elaru. She got too close to the enemy mage threatening his well-being. The terror taking over the mage was radiating off of him in waves. Kiel could feel its intensity through his mana. Elaru''s abilities were a perfect match for this type of battle. Her aura was so thick it influenced all the daggers that came in contact with it. The density of her mana interfered with the spells cast on the daggers, disorienting and weakening them. Such daggers were inadequate, they couldn''t possibly hurt a fighter of her caliber. She didn''t even consider them a threat, it seemed like she ignored them completely and returned fire to the enemy directly. In that regard, it was understandable why the enemy was starting to panic. Ignoring me? You think she is the only one you need to be worried about? - A cruel smile appeared on Kiel''s face, even more chilling than the ice in his eyes. He readied himself; he was itching to try out his newest spell on a real opponent. Since he didn''t need to avoid daggers anymore, his spell casting speed increased greatly. A wide, bright ray of light emerged from Kiel''s spread hand and flashed towards the mage, disintegrating everything in its path in a sizzling and zapping high pitched sound. Giving Kiel enough time to cast a high-level light beam spell was a fatal mistake. The protection spell on the daggers might be high level, but when faced with a higher level spell, it would inevitably break. Time seemed to slow down as daggers standing in its wake disintegrated into nothingness; leaving almost no sign of their existence, not even little fragments of metal, not even dust. The only proof was the smell of melted metal spreading through the stale, moldy air. The eyes of the enemy mage widened in realization of his imminent demise, horror seeping through them as he recognized he had no time to defend against it ¨C his full focus was already spent on his fight with Elaru. The beam light illuminated Elaru''s face. Her eyebrows twitched in annoyance, her mouth morphing into a frown. Kiel felt no gratification from it, for when he understood the source of her displeasure, it was already too late to stop. It was ironic. A second before he was jeering at the miscalculation of the enemy, while a second later it was he who had miscalculated. They were fighting in the middle of Zerean [ze-ree-ahn] ruins. An ancient temple of crumbling rock couldn''t possibly endure the power of their battle. And he, instead of carefully controlling his power, used a high-level spell whose power he seemed to have greatly underestimated. Kiel didn''t even have the time to hiss a profanity before his beam hit the mage, producing a powerful blast. As if the pulse from the beam blew away the last straw keeping it together, the ceiling above and the floor below them crumbled in unison. The walls around them caved in almost simultaneously, showering all three of them with dense rock as they fell down into the basement. Why is it so powerful?! - Kiel''s mind raced as he quickly revoked the spell. When he was trying this spell earlier on Elaru, it didn''t seem to be that powerful. She brushed it off as if it was nothing. As Kiel raised his hands in front of his face, preparing to defend against the avalanche of rock, one question reawakened deep inside him like rekindling a flame. How did I get into this mess?! Why was he fighting a life and death battle against an unknown mage in the middle of ancient ruins deep in the forbidden zone? How did he, Kiel Rroda [roh-da], a son of a noble family of first class mages, end up in such a situation? His position in the family was not important enough to have people after his head and yet he was still wealthy enough to lead an easy, comfortable, though boring life. Yet, his life, his identity, everything turned upside down after a single meeting. "How did I get into this mess?!" - He had asked himself that same question countless times over the course of the last few weeks. And no matter how many times he had asked, the answer stayed the same. Calamity, thy name is Elaru. * * * Fate binds us. Everything is connected. Seemingly separate threads of life tend to converge into the same point. It is the secrets and mysteries that suck in and intertwine countless lives like a black hole. For curiosity and hope is what makes us human. And it is also the curiosity and hope that drives the moths into the flame. Is it a path of no return? Or is it a path from which only the fated ones can return? Or maybe, it isn''t a question of fate at all. Maybe what we call fate is just a result of decisions and abilities. Either way, to unveil the ball of yarn, one needs to start from the beginning of a single thread. * * * Coming up in the next episode: "It had been a calming, enjoyable ride ¨C Kiel Rroda didn''t know it back then, but this ride would be the last bit of real peace he would feel in a long, long time." "She was still there, staring right at him." "Suddenly he felt a presence - an aura, foreign mana. His eyes widened. It appeared out of nowhere." Episode 2 - How it all began In the previous Episode: A mysterious woman is confined in a room with no way out. She is dying yet she can''t die in peace because she is the only one that knows a dangerous secret. After a fierce battle with an unknown mage, Kiel and Elaru are buried under an avalanche of rock. Moments before their fall, Kiel recalls how his life changed into its current chaotic state. * * * Town of Beyd, Thursday, 23rd of August 1449 A.W. That fateful day a hazel blur could be seen flying skillfully between the canyon pillars. The scales which adorned the creature glittered brightly under the desert sun, contrasting sharply with the black clothes worn by the rider. The powerful sweeps of its wings rose soft red sand all around them, but the rider didn''t mind. On the contrary, the wind hitting his face felt very refreshing in the summer heat, carrying an earthly smell of burnt sand which he could still feel even though his nose and mouth were covered by a scarf. It had been a calming, enjoyable ride ¨C Kiel Rroda didn''t know it back then, but this ride would be the last bit of real peace he would feel in a long, long time. Kiel pulled on the leather reins of the dragon, making him stop gracefully in front of an orange house in the upper Beyd. This part of town was filled with tidy medium-sized houses with small green gardens whose roofs were covered with orderly rows of red brick. Upper Beyd stood still, covered by a veil of silence with no person or creature in sight. Kiel looked towards the small wooden porch just in time to see a figure emerge behind the vivid multi-colored drape hanging above the entrance to the house. Kiel pretended not to see the approaching figure and dismounted gracefully, removing his goggles and scarf. He breathed in the faint scent of roses spreading through the dry desert air and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back side of his gloves. The dragon puffed through its nostrils releasing hot air. His gaze unconsciously drifted to the high cliffs on the southern side of the canyon towering above the town. His eyes focused on the distant figure sitting on the highest pillar of the canyon, next to the small blue flag marking it as the highest point in the entire town of Beyd. She was still there, staring right at him. Or, at least, in his general direction - he doubted she could actually see him as clearly as he could see her. Her elibu eyes weren''t capable of ''zooming in'' on distant targets like his argel eyes. He could tell she was an elibu because of the long pointy ears protruding through her hair. Beyd was an argel town. There were no elibu in Beyd. Consequently, she was by default an exotic creature to Kiel, who rarely left Beyd. Did she perhaps want to come to town, but was afraid the townsfolk would be hostile to her? Was she raised in an elibu city and didn''t feel comfortable around argel? That was certainly possible, considering how only the big cities had residents of both races. Many halneans lived their entire lives without contact with the other race. Kiel was not a people''s person. Showing genuine interest in others was not something he often did. And yet, this girl, who sat in the same spot every day, under the harsh sunlight from morning until dusk, managed to pique his curiosity. Perhaps he felt intrigued because of his natural attraction towards mysteries ¨C he liked being challenged, the process of finding a solution to a problem amused him greatly. Maybe it was because he longed for something new and exciting to break his every day monotony. Or perhaps his innate sense of danger was trying to warn him that his life was about to take a sudden turn. It could have been a premonition of fate, for the wheel steering his life might have already been far beyond his reach, firmly in the hands of another. Either way, whenever he stopped his work to take a rest, his gaze would drift to the mysterious girl. "Kiel! Did you come to see me?" A high-pitched voice called out to him, making him snap out of his daze and divert his gaze back to the house. Piala was waving her hand frantically, evidently delighted to see him. Her unremarkable blue eyes were ogling him disturbingly. She flipped her long blonde hair with brown highlights seductively. Or rather, in a manner she thought was seductive. Kiel disagreed. Though, the issue might have been on his side since he remembered Piala being rather popular in the Beyd academy. Her father was a well-known merchant, which led her to believe to be of a higher social status than everyone else. She had been in the same grade as him so he knew her...well, as well as he could know someone who he was discretely avoiding as much as possible. Kiel walked up to her with a package in hand. "I did come to see you..." as much as it pains me... - Of course, he left that last part unspoken. "Doing deliveries again? Poor Kiel, why do you need to start from the bottom? You should just throw a pool party instead of wasting your time on these meaningless quests. Leave quests for plebs!" Kiel didn''t expect a little pampered stuck up princess that hadn''t worked hard a day in her life to understand that everyone did quests ¨C lower social class and nobles alike. The entire economy of Halnea revolved around quests. Whenever someone wanted something done, they would put up a quest in the quest lodge. Quest seekers who met the skill requirements of the quest could then take it and complete it for the bounty or glory. Ironic how a middle-class nobody like herself could be so pompous and condescending. He would have expected it from a noble like his father and brother ¨C they had reasons to be arrogant and patronizing. Piala, on the other hand, was full of hot air. Kiel had to exert extra effort to keep his scowl of disgust off his face and instead smiled his trademark gentle, charming smile. "I don''t want to take advantage of my father''s influence to advance in quest seeker rank. I want to do it with my power alone, just like everyone else." Kiel lied. He had no intention of mentioning that his father didn''t approve of his life plan, hence he offered no help in getting him the credentials needed to challenge the ''fun'' quests. "Besides, spending the whole day relaxing by the pool gets dull quickly." She giggled and fluttered her eyelashes attempting to be charming. "I would not let you be bored!" Kiel swallowed down the bile silently, trying to ignore his gag reflex and handed her the package addressed to her name. Piala, from the moment she first saw him, had designated Kiel as her prince charming. He had a shiny, straight yet slightly messy hair, the color of the midnight sky, reaching past his chin. Thick locks of deep blue strands on the left side of his face made his piercing icy blue eyes look even more striking. All argel had multi-colored hair ¨C a racial trait of which Kiel was no exception. She remembered how his eyes scanned the room back then. As his diamond shaped pupil argel were known for met her eyes, she felt her heart skip a beat. She could swear his eyes lit up as well. It hadn''t occurred to her that it was the optical trick of light caused by the contrast between two black rings spreading around his pupil and the rest of his pale blue iris. She had never seen anyone as gorgeous as him. Of course, she had heard that most nobles were gorgeous, but still, she was sure that Kiel was stunning even by noble standards since she couldn''t possibly imagine how anyone could be more dazzling. It might come as a surprise, but Piala wasn''t known for being imaginative. Later that day when she came to introduce herself he shook her hand. Her knees almost gave out when she felt his pale, smooth, flawless skin against her own. She thought Kiel must have felt shy because he never asked her out, even though she followed him around all through the academy like a mana wyrm. ( Leech-like creature that feeds on mana. Upon finding a good mana source it sticks around it until depleted.) "Kiel, do you know that elibu?" Piala nodded her head towards the girl sitting on the cliff, her jealousy rearing its ugly head. "No, why do you ask?" He wondered, mild surprise crossing over his face. "She has been rudely staring at you for days!" How do you know that? Have you been stalking me again? - was what he wanted to ask. Instead, he kept this play of politeness and dignity. "Really? I haven''t noticed!" Kiel knew she had been staring at him a lot. It was impossible not to notice, but he had been staring at her just as much. Kiel knew what Piala was implying without her voicing it out loud. Nonetheless, he didn''t agree with her view. He was used to all kinds of stares - admiration, desire, greed, jealousy, despise. However, he did not recognize the stare that girl directed his way. "She has been stalking you for the whole week! You should report that creepy elibu to peacekeepers and have her arrested!" Piala shared her great ''wisdom''. As opposed to you, who have been stalking me for years. - Kiel snorted inside his head. ¨C I''d take her over you any day! Instead of saying what he honestly thought he hid once again behind his lovely smile and flawless lies, pretending to be someone else: "We mustn''t be quick to judge. She might have a good motive for coming here each day." He reasoned with a soft understanding smile. Though the calculating, selfish monster concealed behind his cold eyes would never say it in such a way, this time, his words weren''t all a big lie. Piala clasped her hands and looked at him with admiration. "As expected from Kiel! You are always so understanding and gentle!" Kiel barely managed to mask his bitter smile. Yes, that''s what is expected of him. To be picture-perfect. No one was to know the real him. To everyone, he was a well-mannered son of the influential and prosperous family of mages from the noble bloodline. A person who everyone liked, a person who had many friends. The sad truth was that while many might have considered themselves his friends, there were none he considered as friends. It wasn''t just because everyone had an ulterior motive for befriending him. It wouldn''t have mattered even if their intentions were pure because Kiel didn''t like people. People were selfish, noisy, tiring and complicated. Kiel found the most joy in quiet solitude. Understanding and gentle! What a joke! ¨C Kiel thought. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. He imagined twisting Piala''s scrawny little neck. He hated her. He despised pretending to be such a person. And yet, all he ever did was bury that hate deep down and smile his signature smile: "You flatter me, Piala. Take care. I must continue my work." Piala giggled and waved. "See you later! You are welcome to stop by anytime!" He nodded and waved back in a friendly manner, knowing inside he would never, ever, take her up on that offer. He straddled his dragon and high-tailed it out of there as fast as he could without revealing he didn''t want to stay there a second longer than he needed to. He could feel Piala''s eyes checking out his behind. He never looked back. * * * In the middle of the canyon, surrounded by rocks, a mesmerizing female sat motionlessly like a statue. The only part of her that showed that she was not a flawless sculpture were fingers of her left hand, they seemed to be playing with a strange crystal. She was twisting the crystal and passing it from finger to finger. The crystal seemed to be a different color each time one looked at it. It was an interesting object. However, her enchanting eyes weren''t focused on the crystal, they were focused on someone or something far away. She didn''t seem to mind the distance at all. Inside her bubbled excitement until it finally showed on her face in the form of a smile. No one was close enough to be able to see that smile, which was a good thing, for the beauty of that smile could cause the earth and the sky to rumble, flowers to wither in shame and the sun to shy away. "What is it?" - she murmured. "Are you asking me to come closer or are you telling me to stay away?" She didn''t stop to ponder, nor did her smile leave her face. "Call of life or call of death, it matters not. Those that are not truly alive need not fear death." * * * Sun had already started coming down when Kiel was done with his work. He breathed in the fresh evening air, basking in the soft pink and red light of the sunset. Kiel looked up at the bright white moon high in the sky, the smaller of the two moons circling Halnea was also hovering on the horizon, crescent and glowing orange. What should I do now? - Kiel wondered. There was no place he wanted to be. There was no one he wanted to see. He instinctively looked up to the cliffs. She was gone. The elibu girl was no longer sitting on the cliff! Kiel searched the horizon for her silhouette but couldn''t find her. What''s going on? She never leaves before the sun sets! Did the summer heat finally get to her? When did she leave? He exhaled and quieted his thoughts. - It is none of my business what she does. I don''t care if she falls down the cliff and dies. He walked towards the deciduous forest to the west of Beyd, thinking of taking a long way through it to the Rroda mansion like he always did. Although the woods were not dense enough to completely shield him from view, at least the wildlife was not abundant in the proximity of Beyd, so it still provided him with peaceful seclusion. And since the trees were about twenty meters high with sturdy branches, he could avoid monotony by switching between walking and jumping from branch to branch. The rustling of dark green leaves in the soft breeze relaxed him. With each breath he could smell wood and dried leaves, it was a melancholic and refreshing scent. He strolled, dragging his feet. Enjoying the silence and solitude of the forest. Night had already fallen by the time he came close to the other side of the woods. It''s not like someone was waiting for him back home, or that he really wanted to go back there. Therefore, it''s no wonder he took his time. Suddenly he felt a presence - an aura, foreign mana. His eyes widened. It appeared out of nowhere. He wouldn''t be careless enough not to notice it before, which means the person had concealed their presence intentionally. The body of every living thing constantly let out mana, which created a unique aura. Like breathing let out hot air ¨C mana was the breath of life. Most living creatures had the ability to sense foreign mana, detecting the presence of other beings in their proximity. Which meant that it was difficult to sneak up on a creature with an acute mana sense. To combat that perception, predatory creatures had come up with a technique to conceal their presence. To prevent the mana from being detected, it had to be hidden behind a carefully crafted barrier. For creatures with slow mana flow, it was easier to control the mana leaving the body, keeping it just under the barrier. Controlling the movement of a few mana drops was simple. However, the technique became exponentially more difficult with the increase of mana flow turning extremely hard extremely fast. For most mages, hiding the presence was a formidable skill that required a precise and proficient mana control. Kiel remembered the time his father took him hunting many years ago. He ordered him to capture a small dragon and left him alone in the forest. Dragons had keen senses (they were predators that relied on hunting other creatures) so they could pick up mana from hundreds of meters away. The direction of wind had little influence on mana since mana had no physical form, it was pure energy. (Though, he had to watch for the wind too because even if he hid his presence, it would be in vain if the dragon caught his scent.) It took him the whole day before he managed to control his mana well enough to conceal his presence from the dragon. Luckily (or unluckily, as it turned out later on) he didn''t have a lot of mana that he needed to keep in check, or else the task would have taken several days. Kiel turned quickly to the source of the presence. It was close by! Argel eyes had great sight, even in the lack of light. However, Kiel struggled to see any movement besides soft wavering of the leaves. His hearing didn''t help him much either - the only sound Kiel''s ears could hear was the rustling of the leaves as the breeze passed over them. Everything else was completely silent and still. Maybe it was just a hunter returning home from a hunt? He debated whether he should just ignore it and continue home as if nothing happened. His internal struggle was interrupted by a smooth and melodic voice. "Do not be alarmed. I mean you no harm." A female figure stepped out from behind a tree. She was surrounded by dense mana forming an invisible layer of protection that marked her as a mage - Mage Armor. "If so, why conceal your presence?" Kiel asked her. She smiled a guilty smile. "If you knew I was approaching you, you would have avoided me." So he was her target! Kiel''s mind switched to full alert. His body reflexively stepped into a battle stance. He inspected the female thoroughly. Her hair was deep carmine red, slightly curvy, thick and long, tied up in a large high ponytail that reached her waist. It looked a bit messy in an attractive way. Surrounded with thick black eyelashes, her eyes glowed in the moonlight. The edge of the iris was rimmed with a thick black ring. From the ring spread a sea of teal towards the iris. Before reaching the pupil, teal suddenly changed into bright golden yellow. Her eyes glittered with golden and orange lights that resembled little suns. Since the contrast from black to teal to yellow was sharp, they looked like they were glowing, or perhaps they were? He had never seen such eyes before. If magic was something that could be seen, he imagined it would look like her eyes. Her facial features were soft and beautiful. Her body was slim, perfect hourglass proportions, curved in all the right places. She had a narrow waist, generously sized breast, slim long legs, and slender arms. Her skin was sun-kissed like she spent a lot of time under the desert sun. (Which she did, considering her actions of the past week.) Her naturally red lush lips were forming a soft smile. She had dark curvy markings framing the left side of her face, extending down her neck to her shoulder marking her as an elibu. From her attire, Kiel could tell she was a professional quest seeker. She had a water bottle, few small bags, and many needles and daggers strapped on her belt and limbs. Her robes were stylish and showcased her attractive body in an eye pleasing yet modest way. They hugged her curves as only a custom made attire could. This girl was probably the most beautiful female he had ever seen. Compared to this girl, Piala looked like a scarecrow. She was unmistakably the elibu girl who he had been watching sitting on the top of the Southern canyon for the past week. "Can I help you?" Kiel inquired. He didn''t know whether to hope for a ''yes'' or a ''no''. This one female caused him conflicting emotions. Part of him wanted nothing to do with her while another part was hopelessly curious. She chuckled lightly. "Not quite. However, I can help you." Kiel raised his eyebrows in a genuine surprise. "I wasn''t aware I needed help." She smiled a knowing smile. "Then let me stir your awareness." She stepped closer to him, her smile never leaving her face. "You need my help to become a first class mage and a student of Ashar University of Magic." * * * Coming up in the next episode: "His breathing became shallow, although the air temperature was warm, each breath stung him as if he was breathing in pure ice." "She put her hand lightly on his rapidly rising and falling chest." "He was completely aware that he should run. If he stayed in her net any longer, he would not be able to escape." Episode 3 - The Non-mage In the previous Episode: Kiel is confronted by a mysterious quest seeker that had been monitoring him for an entire week. She offers to help him become a first class mage and a student of Ashar University of Magic. * * * "You need my help to become a first class mage and a student of Ashar University of Magic." Kiel''s eyes narrowed, he fought the urge to step back. He shaped words ''Not interested'' but they never left his mouth. And no matter how much he struggled to push them out of his throat, reasoning that he was done with that silly wish of his, they never vocalized. He swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. "What makes you think I would be interested in attending the University of Magic?" Kiel asked, his face turning into a cold mask. "I''ve been observing you." She stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You mean stalking me?" Kiel smiled coldly. "Call it what you will." She shrugged. "So, what was it that you ''observed'' that gave you that impression about me?" Kiel wondered. He had been trying to bury that dream for the past year. There shouldn''t have been any remnants of lingering sentiment left for the world to see. "You are a Rroda. Not wanting to be a great mage while being raised as a part of a famous mage family would be downright bizarre. And yet, although you finished high academy you did not apply to the University of Magic. Now, that is quite strange, considering the fact you enjoy using magic so much." So she knew who he was? Well, that part was not difficult to figure out. Everyone called him either ''Kiel'', ''Master Rroda'' or ''Young Master''. He also lived in the Rroda mansion. "Attending the University of Magic is a waste of time. I want to be a quest seeker." Kiel reasoned. How did she know he didn''t apply? Because he was not getting ready for the entrance exams? "Do you really?" She smirked. "For days I''ve watched you complete numerous mundane quests with a straight face. But then, every once in a while, the quest required you to use magic. And then, in that single brief moment, you transform from a bored, empty doll to a shining star!" She did a graceful pirouette for emphasis. "Are you insulting or complimenting me?" Kiel raised his eyebrows. The girl chose not to answer that question and continued on with her explanation. "You love magic so much you want to learn everything about it. You crave it to the point of wanting to devour it." Kiel gave her an icy glare. His aura transformed into a chilling snowstorm; dark and frightening. She infuriated him; a stranger, thinking she knew him. His fury gave him a push to finally say what he should have said from the start "You know nothing about me. I am not interested." She just smiled softly, undisturbed by his glare or the sudden change of mood. Not many had an ability to stay composed when faced with Kiel''s cold fury. That girl was either clueless or had nerves of steel. "Then let me tell you what I know, and you can be the judge of how much I know about you." Kiel quietly dared her to continue. Her confidence disturbed him. Did she have him investigated? "You hate your life. You hate doing these simple repetitive quests you do every day. You hate people around you. You hate this town. You hate being a Rroda. And most of all, you hate the mask you hide behind." Kiel stood frozen. It was a perfect performance! He never showed any signs of how he truly felt. He smiled and laughed and not even his own father would be able to tell how much hate brewed under his skin. How did she deduce all that? Could she see through his poker face? "You are withering away in this town. You want to be mentally, magically and physically challenged. You wish to discover, learn and achieve new things. You yearn for the top, to excel! To show everyone who you truly are! You want to go far away, to fly freely through the sky, to see and get to know all the magical things in this world!" She stated, her eyes glittering with excitement. It was as though she was no longer talking about him but rather herself. Is that why she thought she understood his underlying desire? Because she projected her own goals onto him? She looked back at him, coming down to earth. She stared right into his eyes, unwavering. Even though his eyes were still narrowed into a most chilling glare he could muster, she didn''t look away. "How do I know that much you ask? It''s because, on some level, we are the same. I could have easily been you." He didn''t know how to respond. It was a rare occurrence for Kiel. Was she really able to see under his skin to the demon hiding deep down? Was she fearless or just stupid? Did she lack common sense? How else could she look him in the eye so calmly, without batting an eyelash? Because they were the same? She is nothing like me! - Kiel thought. Her smiles were not just pretty deceptions. Those were genuine smiles. As a master of deceit, he would surely be able to tell if they were fake. Not waiting for his response, she continued: "Now, since you like magic so much, why didn''t you apply to the University of Magic?" Her eyes glittered. She was about to answer her own question. "Simple. Because you can''t pass the entrance exam. You can''t even pass the bare minimum requirements of entry." Kiel did not respond. How did she find out about that? Including him, there were only three people in this world that knew about it. Last summer, his older brother ventured to take Ashar University of Magic entrance exam, Kiel tagged along. He was hopelessly curious about how he compared to his brother as a mage; they had always been quite competitive. So Kiel decided to take the entrance exam along with him under a false name, just to feed his own ego. Of course, he wouldn''t have enrolled had he passed ¨C he still had one year of high academy to finish. Since Ashar University of Magic allowed almost anyone to take the exam, it was a perfect opportunity for him to get a feel for what to expect the next summer when he took it for real. The result completely shattered all his hopes and dreams. "Most people would have spent this summer preparing and trying to improve so they could pass the exam. But not you. Why? If you can''t do something, it is natural to seek to improve until you can. Unless..." She tilted her head to the side in delight. "Unless the result was not something you could change no matter how much you tried." She smiled a knowing smile. Kiel opened his mouth to respond, but she beat him to it. "...or so you thought." She smirked. "Who are you?" Kiel wondered. "I am Elaru Wayvin [wey-win]." She responded. Her name didn''t ring a bell. Wayvin was not a famous family name. "How about I try to guess what your exam score might be for Ashar''s exam if you took it as you are now?" She clasped her hands in excited delight. Was this a game to her? Did she enjoy twisting his nerves and insides like this? Kiel wanted to yell at her and stop her. He didn''t want her to voice what was most painful to him. But that would be out of character for the person Kiel tried to be. So he missed his chance to stop her. He should have stopped her. He should have definitely stopped her, back when it was still possible for him to just walk away. This stranger seemed to know so much about him, it was both ironic and ludicrous. She started her explanation. "Ashar University of Magic is the most prestigious University of Magic with the hardest entrance exam. There are, in total, 9 areas which they test and award points for on a scale of 0 to 25 (Horrid to Exceptional): ¡¤ Mana Pool Size and Mana Regeneration ¡¤ Mana Flow Speed ¡¤ Magic Casting Speed ¡¤ Mana Weaving (a.k.a. Mana Control) ¡¤ Spell Control ¡¤ Simultaneous Cast Count (a.k.a. Multicast) ¡¤ Knowledge and Understanding of Magic ¡¤ Practical Usage of Magic ¡¤ Special " She didn''t need to explain those areas to him. Every mage knew those terms. To cast magic, pure energy was needed - mana. Without mana, there was no magic. Each living being had a Mana Pool. It was a place within one''s spirit where mana accumulates. Larger Mana Pool means more mana readily available for use. When the pool is not full, mana regenerates - faster mana regeneration means the mage will be able to replenish spent mana faster. To cast magic one first needs to transfer mana from the soul to the target of the spell. The speed with which one can do so is known as Mana Flow Speed. The faster one can transfer mana into this world means they can gather enough mana to perform the spell quicker and even perform multiple spells in rapid succession. Once one gathers enough mana to cast a spell, raw mana needs to be woven into a particular pattern that will make the spell. Weaving mana into a spell requires a lot of control and precision. Ability to weave mana is directly proportional to the mages ability to cast magic spells. Mages who can weave well can learn to perform spells easier than those who can''t. Better control of weaving also makes spells more potent, faster to cast and overall better. Mana weaving is like handwriting. You can write a sentence with bad handwriting, as long as it is readable it would be meaningful, though writing the same sentence in good handwriting would make it easier and more pleasant to read. In the case of magic weaving, better weaving means more potent magic. How fast one can gather enough mana to cast the spell and how fast one can weave mana directly affects magic casting speed. It is important for a mage to be able to cast magic in time - there is no use in casting acceleration magic to slow down your fall if you had already hit the ground. In dangerous situations, casting speed is of life-or-death importance. Once the mana is woven into a meaningful pattern, the mana stops being individual drops of energy and condenses into a dense form, a single entity known as a spell. Once created, the spell needs to be wielded and used by the mage until it expires and disappears. How well one can control a spell, as opposed to controlling raw mana, is called spell control. Good spell control means the mage is able to hit his target with the spell and manipulate the behavior and trajectory of the spell. People have only two hands so they can write only two things simultaneously, however, weaving mana is done with the mind and not the body, which means it is possible to simultaneously weave multiple magic spells ¨C to multicast. How many spells you can cast simultaneously is known as simultaneous cast count. However, a good mage is more than just a sum of his magical abilities. A good mage should be able to make quick and right decisions on what magic to cast when and how. The ability to cast the magic well in the classroom does not mean that one will be able to perform well in real life situations. Which is why practical usage of magic is considered a very important skill and is tested in the university entrance exams. Of course, skills are meaningless if the person has no knowledge and understanding of magic. Which is why the theory of magic is tested as well. The exam also gives bonus "special" points for unique skills such as being able to use secret types of magic which are not taught in school or having a genius level of talent in a specific area. There aren''t many people who get special points. The ones that do usually come from a famous family or clan that has studied and perfected the usage of a unique branch of magic. Regretfully, Rroda was not one of those families. Elaru''s voice snapped Kiel out of his thoughts. "Minimal threshold required to be considered as a student candidate is 145. To ensure passing the exam, you need at least 160 points." She walked slowly around Kiel as if appraising him. "You are highly intelligent, observant, quick witted and adaptive. Not only that, you have an exceptional skill in magic. In high academy, you were easily the top student." Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Kiel snorted. He didn''t usually snort, his fake persona allowed no room for snorting. Nonetheless, this individual managed to make him lose the grip for a short moment. It doesn''t take a genius to figure out that much. - He thought. She didn''t need to investigate a lot to find that out. His grades spoke for themselves. She continued, paying no attention to his snort. "However, you have one and only crippling flaw. The flaw you tried your best to hide." She stopped talking, looking straight through Kiel to the secret he frantically tried to hide all his life. "You have almost no mana." Her words struck a painful blow to Kiel. One of the reasons why Kiel preferred lies was because the truth hurt. He hated the cruelty of fate. He hated how everyone else around him was gifted with an abundance of mana while he was severely lacking. He hated that no matter how hard he tried, he could not change his fate. What he lacked was not something that could be learned, but rather something he needed to be born with. He hated how he had always miserably clung to hope that someday he could be more than a third class mage. Because in this world, where everything revolved around magic, if you weren''t a mage, you were nothing. And he was less than nothing ¨C he was a non-mage. A person unable to use magic on a regular basis. The stranger, going by the name of Elaru Wayvin, either did not notice the change of mood in Kiel or chose to ignore it. She continued, her each word hitting closer and closer to the goal. "Ironic. To be such an incredible mage and almost not be a mage at all. It''s like having an ability to paint better than everyone else, yet not be given any paint." Kiel felt a stabbing pain in his chest. How could she say it so bluntly?! The fact that haunted him all his life! If only he had been born with a normal-sized mana pool, just like everyone else. What he would be able to achieve if only he had the basic ingredient! If he had been born into a normal family, maybe he would have grown up without much care for magic. He would have found a satisfying non-magic related job, and would have never thought twice about the cruelty of fate. On the other hand, he had been born into a family of first class mages. Being an excellent mage was not considered as lucky or skilled ¨C it was expected. He felt all those expectations shatter around him because of something he could never change, no matter how he tried. His existence was but a mistake, something that his family threw away into a small desert town in attempts to forget and hide the disgrace. "All that skill and knowledge is useless if you don''t have the basic requirement to use magic. I know it, you know it, and people running entrance exams know it. Other universities, which don''t even have a proper exam, have a minimum mana amount as an entry requirement. Which you, with your lack of mana, can''t possibly pass. The Ashar University of Magic is your only hope because they actually have a full exam, which could allow you to enroll if you scored high in other areas." Shut up. Just shut up! ¨C Kiel screamed inside his head. He did not want her to continue reminding him of the painful truth. But bound by the shadow of a person he tried to be, he was unable to voice his plea. "The size of your mana pool and your mana regeneration is so small that it is a wonder you are able to cast magic at all. Not to mention that any non-basic spells are impossible for you because you don''t have the mana to cast them. In your current state, you can''t even be a third class mage, let alone anything more." Third...class...mage. Third class mage. Those words echoed painfully inside Kiel''s head. His pupils dilated, his mouth unconsciously twitched. He took a step back. Another step soon followed. Elaru watched him closely and opened her mouth to say more. But Kiel didn''t want to hear more. His body reacted before his mind could catch up with it. His legs darted into a sprint. Away. He just wanted to get away. Away from the truth. From his own flaws. From this cruel stranger. An ancient instinct to flee from pain. Something that could even defeat his self-control and pass through his poker face and the house of lies. Kiel had never run that fast. He even used magic to speed himself up. The magic that he loved and yet hated at the same time. The magic that has controlled and ruined him and his life. He didn''t know where he was going. He didn''t care where he was going. He just ran... And jumped tree branch to tree branch... And climbed the hill... And then ran some more. And jumped up and up, as if trying to reach the sky... But fell back to earth and then ran again. Third class mage. Third class mage. Time held no meaning for him. Seconds, minutes, hours. It all blended into one. The only sound he could hear were her words and his own pounding heart. Third class mage... His breathing became shallow, although the air temperature was warm, each breath stung him as if he was breathing in pure ice. You can''t even be a third class mage... His limbs wavered and failed him. He had run, jumped and climbed through the dense forest until both his mana and his strength ran out. Until his own Mage Armor faded into nothingness, exposing him to foreign spells. His legs gave out under him and he fell to the floor in a battered heap of nerves. He could still hear faint echoes of her words inside his head. He looked at the moon above the trees. Judging by its position, he had ran for hours. Which made sense, since he was in peak physical condition and would never get this tired otherwise. He closed his eyes in pain. His entire body hurt like he had been pulverized by a fierce dragon. Each breath he took hurt like thousand needles piercing through his chest. His limbs felt like they were on fire. He could feel each excruciating heartbeat pulsating through his entire body shaking it with its intensity. First time in a long, long time, Kiel felt like crying. The same Kiel that never cried. No matter how much he was hurt and how much he bled, Kiel didn''t cry. He thought he had finally let go of it - the disappointment and hope. Truthfully, he had just buried it deep down, just like every other troubling emotion. That''s what he did best. Thankfully, he didn''t have the strength to cry. He just wanted to be left alone to drown in his unshed tears, misery, and self-pity. However, the demon had other plans. She sighed and sat down on the ground next to him. He never felt her coming. She had completely erased her presence, hiding her mana behind a barrier. She sat there quietly, she wasn''t even out of breath. Such is a difference between a mage and a non-mage. Kiel could feel her eyes on his face, yet he refused to acknowledge her presence. He wasn''t able to keep his poker face in place anymore, and he did not want her to see him. The real him. He thought that if he opened his eyes, she would be able to tell just how devastated, weak and broken shell of a person he truly was. He wanted to scream at her to get out of here and leave him alone, but his lungs still hurt too much to even breathe. She put her hand lightly on his rapidly rising and falling chest. He didn''t have the strength to push her away, even though he wanted nothing more than to push her away, perhaps murder her, and then never see her again. From her hand spread tiny drops of pleasure, calming his broken flesh. It was warm and chilling at the same time, expanding through his body in gentle waves. Healing magic. She dares to mock me?? ¨C Kiel''s sorrow quickly morphed into fury. At that exact moment, she started talking again. Cutting down his fury just as it showed its ugly head. "No, it isn''t a wonder that you''re able to cast magic." She proclaimed, continuing the conversation right where she left it. As if hours hadn''t passed by at all. "It is pure skill." She mused softly. Get over yourself! You''re full of it, thinking that you can manipulate me like a child! Was that your plan? Shock me with your harsh brutality, and then lure me into your trap with sweet words? ¨C Kiel screamed inside his head. However, the words never left his mouth. "You''re actually quite lucky. It is exactly because you were born into a mage family with such a small amount of available mana that you needed to develop an exceptional skill in using it. You needed to savor every little drop of mana and milk everything you could out of it. " It is true ¨C Kiel always tried harder than anyone else. He tried so hard to hide the fact he could not really do much magic. He practiced and practiced every day, hoping that his mana would suddenly appear out of nowhere. That his true power would suddenly awaken. He knew that it didn''t work that way, he knew things like that do not happen. It was illogical and stupid to expect them to. And yet, he couldn''t help but hope. "You relish each drop of mana like your life depends on it. I have never seen such an incredible mana control before. The way you use mana is...true magic..." Her lips parted softly as she whispered the words "true magic" in a husky tone filled with strange emotion. She paused, savoring the taste of "true magic" on her lush lips. When she continued, her voice and eyes were filled with determination. "You use as little mana per spell as possible, 100% utilization rate. Compared to the way a regular mage utilizes mana and weaves spells, you are in an entirely different league. If you had enough mana, there would be no spell you wouldn''t be able to cast. Your mana weaving is nothing short of perfection." "And even after you create the spell, your spell control is flawless. After all, you need to make your each spell count. Missing your target or failing is not an option. Because you cannot simply recast it, like normal mages." "Your spells are at maximum efficiency and your weaving is flawless ¨C which results in you being able to cast spells pretty fast!" "Magic Casting Speed, Mana Weaving, Spell Control, Knowledge and Understanding of Magic, Practical usage... you have them all! You are exceptional in all magic skills!" Kiel laughed a quiet bittersweet laugh. If he wanted to help himself, if he wanted to ease his pain, he wouldn''t know how. There was no one he knew that could help him ease the sorrow suffocating him. And yet this demon of a woman so easily sprouts words of completely blunt honesty that turn pain into pleasure, flaws into skills. At that moment, Kiel became completely aware just how dangerous that elibu really was. A person who could manipulate people easily, just by stating the truth. He manipulated people with lies. But she was different. She didn''t need lies. For her, the truth was enough. Because she could see right through you, to your darkest and deepest secrets. That person could heal you or destroy you with truth alone. He was completely aware that he should run. If he stayed in her net any longer, he would not be able to escape. He was aware that she had a power he could not comprehend or defend against. And for the second time in his life, he experienced an utter and devastating hopelessness. He was not the predator, but the prey. * * * You can always find the latest episodes on aethernea.com website, even if they aren''t released here yet. Coming up in the next episode: Gently, softly, musically, her lips parted and formed words that struck Kiel to the core. "Can you actually...see...magic?" "I want you. " Kiel felt as if he was faced with a life and death choice. Power and charisma oozed out of her in dense waves, even before the dreadful moment...the moment when she stopped concealing her presence. Episode 4 - Aethernea of Sight In the previous Episode: Elaru Wayvin reveals that Kiel is a non-mage - even though he has extraordinary magic abilities, he has almost no mana. Because of this defect, Kiel cannot enroll in the University of Magic nor become a true mage. He attempts to run away, however, even after completely exhausting himself Kiel is unable to escape from Elaru. * * * He was completely aware that he should run. If he stayed in her net any longer, he would not be able to escape. Kiel was aware that she had a power he could not comprehend or defend against. And for the second time in his life, he experienced an utter and devastating hopelessness. He was not the predator, but the prey. Elaru continued, paying him no attention. "What you lack is not skill, it is ability. On the exam, you would have gotten an exceptional score in every category other than Mana Flow Speed, Mana Pool Size and Regeneration, Multicast and Special - that makes 125 points." "Since you are very skilled in magic, I bet multicast is not difficult for you, and you could have easily gotten an exceptional score in it as well, just like the rest. But you don''t have the mana to cast that many simultaneous spells. So you can''t even demonstrate the skill that you do possess." "I''ll give you 10/25 for the Simultaneous cast." "As far as I know, Rroda family doesn''t have a magic branch they specialize in therefore I''ll guess you don''t have any skills for which you would have gotten special points." "Your mana pool size and regeneration is abysmal thus you got no points there. If there were negative points, you would have certainly got them. I bet you didn''t get any points for mana flow speed either. You have a pint-sized amount of mana, even if you transferred it instantly that would still constitute as a slow mana flow. You''d get 5 points at most." "With 140 points in total, you are 5 points short of the minimal entrance requirement." By the time she finished her monolog, her healing magic had completely removed any physical pain Kiel felt. It was like he had never run at all. The only remnant reminding him that all of it was not just a dream was his racing heart. Kiel had never heard of healing magic that could heal effects of fatigue, but even without knowing details of it, he could understand the scale of the spell. It needed to fix damage to the muscles, rejuvenate his tired cells with hydration and oxygen, and more. And all of that needed to be done permanently. Such a spell would be quite complex, requiring high precision and no doubt be a real mana drain. Just that one spell would require two or even three orders of magnitude more mana than he had in his entire mana pool. Kiel could have pushed her away at this point. He could have yelled at her. He didn''t even open his eyes. He didn''t want to see her, or talk to her. Kiel wanted to pretend to have never met her, to pretend she wasn''t there. Hoping that maybe, just maybe, she would go away on her own. She removed her hand from his chest, suddenly correcting herself. "Ah! Wait! Minimal points required to take the practical part of the exam are 120. Deducting 25 points you would have gotten from practical leaves you with 115." "Am I right?" Elaru asked him with a grin. Kiel refused to respond. As if he would admit that she was right. As if he would tell her that her evaluation was completely and utterly perfect, not a single point was amiss. He didn''t want to admit defeat. Kiel clung to that last tiny strand of pride he had left. He hoped that now that Elaru had finished her appraisal, she would just leave on her own. She let him contemplate his defeat for a while, never moving from his side. He could feel the heat of her body even though they weren''t physically touching. It was like a warmth of a fire in the cold winter night, but instead of providing comfort, he felt as if it was searing his skin. Kiel didn''t want her close to him. He didn''t want anyone close to him, let alone her. "The truth is, we met a week ago. I was just passing by Beyd through this very forest. You were here, in the clearing, practicing magic. You were so focused you didn''t see me. And I am always careful not to disclose my presence. Hence, you couldn''t sense me either." Kiel remembered. He was trying to fly, but he didn''t have enough mana for true flight. He could accelerate a few times, but it was nothing more than a high jump, he could glide a bit but would soon come crashing back to earth. She turned her head towards him. Although Kiel had his eyes closed, he could feel her gaze on his face. "Great martial arts by the way! With such skills, you could even take down a low-class mage!" Kiel''s eyes snapped open in confusion, just in time to see her giving him a thumbs up. "Martial arts?" Realization hit him hard. Wait...wasn''t that the time I threw a childish tantrum? Kiel remembered taking out his anger on a tall tree, throwing a bunch of punches and kicks at it until it was broken beyond recognition. Soft pink found its way towards his cheeks. He looked at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, pretending as if he did not hear her compliment. Judging by her grin, she was teasing him. She saw his rare moment of weakness...and had guts to tease him about it? And then, she dropped a bomb. Something Kiel could have never predicted she would say. Gently, softly, musically, her lips parted and formed words that struck Kiel to the core. "I couldn''t get my eyes off your magic. It was utterly stunning. So...beautiful..." The shock of her words made Kiel''s self-control waiver, and he laughed out loud. How peculiar! To fall for the magic of a non-mage. Kiel had been praised for many things. Many girls had fallen for him, or rather, the person they thought he was. Girls often told him that line ¨C "I couldn''t get my eyes off you". However, no one ever fell for his magic. His teachers, his father - they taught him how to use magic. Nevertheless, magic was not something that could be seen with eyes. The results of magic could be seen, but never magic itself. Therefore, it is no wonder no one ever saw his magic or noticed its beauty. And yet this elibu claims to have seen his magic? "What does it look like? My magic?" Kiel asked her coldly, mockingly. Even he himself, the caster, didn''t know how his magic looked like. He could feel it, and he could imagine how it would look like. Nonetheless, he couldn''t truly see it. "It''s not something that can be described by words. It''s like trying to describe how the color looks like to a blind man. ...However, I''ll give it a try..." She paused briefly trying to come up with right words. "Your mana has a very beautiful gradient. It comes in bright shades of blue, from azure to sapphire blue. When you are weaving it, it looks as if tiny liquid, fluctuating, shiny gas droplets are dancing. They flicker in many shades until they form a pattern that describes the spell you are trying to cast." Kiel''s eyes widened. He looked at her face. Elaru looked sincere; she seemed to be recalling it. Her eyes were closed in reminiscence. It can''t be...can it? "Can you actually...see...magic?" She opened her eyes and looked straight into his. Her eyes didn''t just look like they were glowing. They were glowing. And not just that, they were fluid, animated - little dots and stripes were moving in an endless repeating cycle. It was crystal clear from up close - those eyes were not normal. She possessed the Aethernea of Sight ¨C the fabled eyes that could see magic. "What do you want from me?" Kiel sighed in bitter resignation. "I thought it was obvious." She tilted her head to the side and exclaimed bluntly. "I want you." If Kiel were someone else, someone who isn''t used to restraining his emotions, his eyes would have popped out of their sockets and his mouth would have dropped open so wide he could have caught a tiki bird in it. Instead, Kiel''s face froze. A long moment passed, both of them staring in silence at each other. "Are you bloody kidding me?! You did all this to get me to date you?!" Kiel blurted out in shock. Elaru stared at him confused. "What? No! Why would you think that?" "What do you mean why?! ''Your magic is beautiful''?! ''I want you''?!" He quoted her own words. She blinked a few times before starting to laugh. It was a warm and pleasant laugh. "No, no. That''s not what I meant." Elaru found it hard to speak through the laughter. "No offense. You are lovely and all that, but I am not interested in a romantic relationship." He was ''lovely''? There must have been a thousand better words to describe him as. Kiel felt offended. "What is it then? You must be aware that I am a Rroda only in name. I have no power in my family. There is nothing you can gain from me." "Your worth doesn''t lie in your family name. Whether you are a Rroda or not is irrelevant." That was a first. To call his family irrelevant. Did she truly have no interest in his family? She understood that the person everyone liked was not truly him. So what could he possibly offer her? "I can''t offer you anything else. I can''t do magic beyond simple spells. I am a non-mage." Elaru pouted. It was a silly gesture. "Don''t call yourself a non-mage. It is insulting to all other mages, because if you aren''t a mage, then no one deserves to be called that." "Enough with the flattery! Get to the point!" While he did want her to stop with the flattery, deep down, Kiel enjoyed it. The way she spoke was as if she was stating the truth. It held no trace of flattery as the motive. To be seen for what he truly was...it was a bittersweet feeling. "You are a whirlpool of unused potential...like a large chunk of Xium hiding away in the shadows. You only need to be found and refined to turn into something truly magnificent." She clasped her hands and spoke with strange excitement. "Lucky! I am so lucky! I never thought there would be someone so interesting in this town." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Comparing him to Xium? Xium was a rare mineral that resembled common rock so most people wouldn''t be able to recognize it even if they came across it. When refined it becomes a beautiful, magical gem shining a rainbow colored light. Xium gems were considered to be kings of all gems because of their immense rarity and value. Kiel felt a strange feeling he couldn''t quite define. "You are lucky too, Kiel Rroda. Because I was the one to find you. Because I have the power to turn you into what you were meant to be." Elaru jumped up to her feet looking down at him. Moonlight was shining down behind her, giving her an ethereal glow. Her hair was softly flying around in the breeze. Her eyes were glowing with magic. Elaru bent down and offered him her hand to help him get up from the floor. Her cleavage was exposing the roundness of her breast. Her face showed pure excitement and glee. She was unaware of her own allure. For a brief moment, Kiel felt a strange sense of d¨¦j¨¤-vu, something about this situation seemed familiar. "Kiel Rroda, will you let me unleash your true potential?" She asked him a question that carried more power than simple words could convey. If Kiel didn''t feel like he was faced with life and death choice, he might have found the situation to be funny. This scene would surely look like a fairytale prince proposing to a princess. The fact that he would be the princess in this situation would only add to the humor. However, Kiel was in no mood to be able to see the funny side of things. Power and charisma oozed out of Elaru in dense waves, even before the dreadful moment...the moment when she stopped concealing her presence. While Elaru was concealing her presence, her mana was hidden behind a barrier, not a single drop coming in contact with him. But now, suddenly, it was as though the waves of the ocean rose and violently crashed into him. Her aura washed over Kiel, striking his mind like a hammer. He froze, struck to the core by the potent emotions carried by her mana. She could see him. Beyond his shell. Beyond the false face he showed everyone. She saw the darkness dwelling inside; she saw his talents and his flaws. And she thought him to be absolutely beautiful. Not in the superficial, physical way. But rather, something beyond. Like she thought his existence was beautiful. Like his existence was needed. She needed him. She needed him for what he truly was, beyond his lies and his family name. She needed the real him. At that moment, he was glad that she held her mana away from him this long. Because the power carried in that aura was not something he was prepared for. In a single moment, he had completely fallen into her grasp. Kiel could no longer just walk away and pretend to have never met her. How could he walk away from the only person who appreciated the real him? A stranger that craved neither the person he pretended to be nor his family name. Even if Elaru was a demon, even if she just wanted to use him in the end...he was unable to walk away. "You say you can give me the power to become a real mage. What do you want me to give you in return? Myself? What does that mean?" "I need you to become my partner, bound by an oath. If you agree not only will you have access to near limitless mana, but both of us would be able to use pure mana as a result." Since Kiel refused to take her hand, she retracted it and reached it out to the sky, a look of longing covered her face. "Just like you, I have always wanted to fly. But, I can''t be bound to just anyone. That''s where you come in." That''s right. While he didn''t have the right amount of mana to be able to fly, she was an elibu ¨C she didn''t have the right type of mana to be able to fly. Elibu have a transmutation mana type, which allows them to cast only transmutation magic. Argel have an augmentation mana type, which allows them to cast only augmentation magic. Flying magic was based on velocity-controlling magic, which was augmentation magic. An elibu would never be able to fly. By using pure mana, one could perform both transmutation and augmentation magic. And beyond that, pure mana users can cast arcane magic. In the world of Halnea, there existed a fair amount of ancient divine artifacts able to purify transmutation and augmentation mana. Every noble family had a few; some non-noble wealthy families had them as well. The rest were under strict control of Association of Magic for use in forging magical contracts, the creation of magic portals and other important matters. The Association of Magic had been trying to reproduce them for hundreds of years to no avail. Was she offering to lend him such an artifact? But Elaru said that her solution would make her able to use pure mana as well. If she already had such an artifact, she would already be able to use it. Does she know a location of such an artifact and needs his help in getting it? But then, how could he, a non-mage, possibly help her? And what about his lack of mana? Does the artifact generate mana as well? Could it be - the legendary Soul Crystal - the mythical artifact said to be able to generate pure mana!? She had succeeded in catching his profound interest. Who are you Elaru Wayvin? Who are you really?! Kiel''s mind raced trying to connect all the clues. Kiel jumped back on his feet skillfully. He didn''t want to look up at her anymore; he''d rather look down at her like he was used to. "Are you an intelligence agent?" Kiel blurted out. She frowned. "No." Not like an intelligence agent would admit to being one. Kiel stared at her suspiciously. "No, really. I''m just a regular quest seeker." She defended herself. "Oh? What type of quests do you specialize in? Intelligence gathering ones?" She rolled her eyes. "That would make me an intelligence agent. I already told you, I''m not a spy." She did seem to be sincere. But intelligence agents should be pretty good liars. The brief pause allowed Kiel to regain back his composure and take back the control of the conversation. "It''s such a waste. With your skills, you could be a top ranked intelligence agent." She pouted. "Bah, you sound like my..." - she paused. "I tried that route, but it isn''t for me. Too darn boring. You have to keep a low profile and passively observe people." Her pout changed into a smirk. "I am an action person, I don''t do passive. Quit changing the subject!" Kiel smirked. "My apologies, please continue." She opened her mouth to resume, but he interrupted her again before she could do so. "On second thought, don''t. Why don''t we continue this chat tomorrow? It is getting pretty late, and I am tired." He needed to clear his head and prepare to bargain with her. That is...to come up with a battle plan. She looked at him with eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You are not just saying that to get rid of me, are you? You think I am a creepy stalker, don''t you?" That made Kiel snort a rare genuine laugh and grin wide. Elaru was so brutally honest it was refreshing. She is like anti-me. Kiel thought "Yeah, you are a ''creepy stalker''. In spite of that, I really am interested in your proposal." She returned his grin accepting his response. "Well, alright. You''re currently out of mana, so you can''t enter an oath with me anyway. Meet you tomorrow, 8 AM, in that same clearing where you usually practice magic." Kiel nodded briefly before looking around trying to discern where he was and where home was. Elaru must have noticed his disorientation because she asked slyly: "Do you need help getting home?" "Piss off!" His mouth spoke before he could censor it. Kiel was way too tired to be picture-perfect. His irritation was amusing to her - she chuckled musically. "Alright. See you soon!" She turned her back to him and waved while walking off into the shadows of the trees. Her presence vanished along with the glitter of her red hair. Kiel jumped up to the branch of the nearby tree, and from there, leaped to the next branch in rapid succession until he reached the top. Kiel didn''t need magic to climb a tree. He had been climbing these trees for the majority of his life. The view from the top told him where he was, and how to get back home. Luckily he had been running around his mansion in circles instead of running away from it. It was probably out of habit. Kiel was glad that he didn''t need to run for hours to get home. Kiel hurried back home while replaying the night in his mind along the way. Over and over. Such a dangerous female...She gave him a feeling of uncertainty and insecurity, a feeling he did not like. And yet Kiel still wanted to meet her...her offer was too enticing. I must be out of my mind. He thought. Back then, when he had first met her, Kiel could not understand Elaru at all, even though he thought he did. He had labeled her a lupax in meep''s skin, an intelligent and cunning demon. He had never been more right and more wrong at the same time. Even when presented with the pure and simple truth, bound by his own anger and prejudice, Kiel could not recognize her true form. Unknowingly, he had already started walking along the path of no return. And even if he understood the gravity of the situation, even if he had seen through her to her core, it would have been too late. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Her mana washed over Kiel, causing a strange feeling of warmth to erupt in his stomach. "Which noble mage family are you affiliated with?" ¨C Kiel leaned forward, placing his intertwined hands on the table. Kiel gave her a brief, meaningful look before deciding to change his tactic. "What is your end game?" Episode 5 - Calm before the storm In the previous Episode: Elaru claims she ran into Kiel by accident and noticed his talent in magic. She reveals she possesses Aethernea of Sight ¨C eyes that can see magic. She wants Kiel to become her partner, bound by an oath, which would solve Kiel¡¯s lack of mana and even allow him to cast arcane and transmutation magic. They agree to meet next morning to discuss the details. * * * The warm light rays dancing across Kiel''s face awoke him from his restless slumber. The drowsiness was soon replaced by vigilance as he quickly got up and started his morning routine. Last night, like a little child before a school field trip, he rolled and turned, too jittery to sleep, which resulted in him not getting enough rest. Kiel dropped by the kitchen to grab something to eat. A warm smell of freshly baked bread combined with a sweet smell of hot cherry syrup made his mouth water. Bagels filled with cherries - his favorite. The cook bowed down to him as he passed by. Kiel smiled politely in response. He grabbed two bagels from the rack by the window, careful to not get burnt, stuffing one in his food pouch and taking the other one to eat on the go. He made his way out of the mansion into the surrounding forest. It was a slightly chilling morning; the sun had not been up enough to warm it up. The smell of dew lingered in the air, mixing with the delightful smell of freshly baked bagels. He granted himself the luxury of using a temperature manipulation magic to cool down the bagel before biting down into its tender flesh filled with sweet cherries. The soft bread leaked warm syrup with an occasional large cherry that brought tantalizing pleasure to his taste buds. It slowly warmed him up from inside out. Kiel tried to relax his nerves and get rid of the uncomfortable jitters. He distanced himself from the situation and tried to calmly analyze what had happened yesterday. One question repeated inside his mind in an endless loop: Who is Elaru Wayvin? Was that even her real name? Wayvin was not a famous family name, yet she possessed a powerful aura and Aethernea of Sight. The possibility of her being born into a random family of nobodies was near zero. Using a fake family name to mask their affiliation was not new, most noble families did it; some more often than others. Nevertheless, why would Elaru need to hide her family name from him? Kiel was from a noble mage family himself, did she think he would be wary of her if he knew of her true origin? However, not knowing made him even more cautious. Every little bit of information she provided opened up, even more, questions. Elaru spent a week observing him from the cliff; he piqued her interest with his magic so she wanted to find out more. Assuming she sought to know more about him, she couldn''t just casually walk into Beyd and ask around. That would cause too much attention and in a matter of hours, the whole town would hear of her interest in Kiel. Therefore, she climbed the highest point in Beyd from which she could monitor him. Creepy but effective. In a short while, Elaru was able to learn more information about him than he thought possible. She was perceptive and intelligent. And more than that, she was able to perfectly gauge his magical ability with minimal information. Perhaps being able to see mana proved useful in estimating someone''s magical ability? Perhaps she could tell about his flaw just by seeing how much mana his body lets out in regular intervals (which was not much)? Kiel''s frustration with the lack of information was passing through onto his eating manner. He devoured his bagel licking his lips with each new bite. His lips were turning redder. It was unclear whether it was from repeated licking or the cherry syrup. He was barely aware he was already on the outskirts of Beyd. The people around him were greeting him good morning. The entire town knew him. He was a local celebrity of sorts. He smiled, nodded and waved here and there, out of politeness. If someone were to ask him who he had encountered on his way, Kiel wouldn''t be able to remember a single face. There was something strange, something eerie about Elaru Wayvin. She managed to catch up with him last night without breaking a sweat. How? She was an elibu, which means she couldn''t cast augmentation magic to accelerate, float or fly. Because Kiel wasn''t able to use magic often, he was forced to train his body to make up for that flaw ¨C which meant he was in top shape and able to run quite fast for extended periods of time. Assuming Elaru was just as fit, she should have been just as tired as him, if not more. Did she use that healing magic to remove her own fatigue as well? How large would her mana pool need to be to allow her to use it twice in a row? Impossible. Kiel reasoned, dark look entering his eyes. There must be another explanation. Kiel concluded devouring the last of his bagel. He wanted to lick the sugar powder off his fingers, but that was improper since he was in public. Was Elaru a healer? She didn''t look like one. But if she wasn''t a healer, what magic did she specialize in? She claimed not to be a spy, yet she can conceal her presence perfectly. With an aura as powerful as hers, concealing her presence would be extremely problematic. If Elaru isn''t a spy, why bother with it? Was she a famous or wanted person? An outlaw or a celebrity? Was she on a secret mission? What would that kind of person want with him? Elaru mentioned she wanted him to become her ''partner''. What kind of partner? Partner in crime? The disturbing thought made Kiel''s hair stand on end. He hurried into the forest where they were supposed to meet, the sweet smell of sugar urging him to lick it. When he was sure no curious eyes could see him under the safe seclusion of the trees, he carefully licked the sugar off of his fingers. It was a sensual gesture, one that could make any female blush. "Mmmm..." Kiel murmured and then sighed soon after. He should have grabbed a few more bagels; he didn''t know when he would be able to eat again. Kiel arrived at the designated meeting point shortly. The dew had evaporated leaving the air heavy and moist. The sun was rising in the sky, showering the clearing with its warm glow. Elaru didn''t seem to be there yet. Am I early? Kiel wondered. "I was afraid you wouldn''t show." Kiel turned his head to the source of the familiar voice. Elaru was sitting on the lowest branch of the tree to the right of him. He could swear she wasn''t there a second ago. "Doing that is highly unpleasant and quite unnecessary." He was referring to her hiding her presence and appearing out of nowhere. "Sorry, habit." Elaru grinned guiltily and removed the barrier hiding her presence. Her mana washed over Kiel, causing a strange feeling of warmth to erupt in his stomach. Her mana felt nice, warm and relaxing. It was very different from how it felt yesterday. Kiel''s father once told Kiel that person''s mana was like a window into one''s heart. Mana was in direct contact with the mind of the mage which meant that the intention and personality of the mage carried over to the mana. The feelings carried through the mana couldn''t be controlled by the mage. Mana couldn''t lie; it showed the pure and simple truth. The warm feeling ensured Kiel that Elaru''s intentions weren''t hostile. Now, after he had felt it, he was all the more confused. Kiel thought she was calculating and self-centered, yet her mana felt like bright fire. It seemed gentle, comforting and welcoming, lighting up the darkness. Though, at the same time, he could tell that those flames could turn into an all-consuming inferno if provoked. He had never met anyone with a mana similar to hers. So very pure; not pure light, nor pure darkness, but something else entirely. The purity that went beyond good and evil. Elaru seemed like a different person entirely, however at the same time, she was clearly the same. Could changes in her mood really impact her aura to such a degree? Kiel''s false persona was well trained, so it managed to recover from stunned silence much faster than his real persona. "Did you wait long?" Kiel asked her sweetly. Elaru raised an eyebrow and her long elibu ears twitched. She was surprised at his sudden politeness. "No. Why do you feel the need to pretend you care?" Kiel smiled softly and shrugged. "Habit." His response mimicked her own response from earlier. There was no reason to pretend with her. The only reason Kiel came on time was because he detested being late, not because he didn''t want to make her wait. "I would like you to clarify a few matters for me." Kiel started, replacing the soft expression with a serious one. "Hold that thought!" Elaru exclaimed and jumped down from the tree. The sudden change of velocity made her ponytail flap behind her like a red flag. When her feet touched the ground, her long ears shook up and down a few times before settling in their original position. She approached the center of the clearing. Elaru slammed her right boot to the dry forest ground. Almost instantly, as if it was responding to her hit, the soil rose up in front of her shaping three stumps. She was using a transmutation spell ''Morph'' to control the earth. Elaru twisted the soil forming it into a near perfect cylindrical shape, smoothing the corners in the process. She flicked her wrist and cast another transmutation spell, turning soft lumps of earth into lumps of rock. That way, the soil wouldn''t collapse when sat on. The purpose of her creation was obvious ¨C she was making stools. Kiel''s mind automatically translated the spells into ranks: ? "Morph" ¨C Level 4 shape transmutation spell, quick and precise. ? "Material Transmute: Soil to Rock" ¨C Level 5 material transmutation, solid state variant. Elaru sat down on the stool closest to her and motioned for Kiel to sit down too. He hesitated briefly before sitting down opposite of her. Was there really a need for comfortable seating? Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Elaru, as if answering his unspoken question, placed her small backpack on the stool between them and dug around it until she seemed to find what she was looking for - a metal tube. It was a scroll case. Elaru carefully unscrewed the cap and removed the scroll from the inside, following which, she spread the thin yellowish parchment on the table and looked up at Kiel. "Do you know what this is?" Elaru asked him, ready to explain. However, Kiel didn''t need an explanation. The first line of text written on the scroll happened to be the name of the scroll. It also happened to be written in letters so large he could have read it from a kilometer away. It was a reusable Oath of Truth ¨C a rare arcane contract. Arcane contracts were specialized limiter spells. The contract spell would stay latent until activated by a trigger spell. The person who activated it would then be put under the contract. While the contract spell is active, it would limit the actions the person can take in such a way that he does not break the contract. Oath of Truth made those who activated it unable to lie in a ten-minute time period. Unlike traditional contract scrolls which were one usage only, this particular one was reusable. As such, it was very hard to create and, therefore, pricey. "How did you obtain that?" Kiel asked quietly. "I know people." Elaru shrugged. "You are well prepared. After yesterday, I assumed I am like an open book to you. Could it be I am not that easy to read after all?" Kiel rose his eyes from the scroll carefully examining her facial expression. The corner of his mouth twitched. He was trying to prevent a smirk from appearing on his face. Confusion flashed across Elaru''s face. "What? No. You''re not the easiest person to read. However, the one signing the oath won''t be you, but me." Kiel''s smirk, that never managed to emerge, died miserably and was replaced by a frown. That was...thoughtful...and yet...insulting... Kiel prided himself on being able to detect lies. "That won''t be necessary. I am proficient in detecting lies." As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt remorse for letting his pride get the best of him. "Don''t care. I''m signing it anyway." Elaru rolled her eyes completely ignoring his protest. Kiel''s eyes flashed with a chilling light. Elaru flicked her wrist in a fluid motion. Kiel could feel her casting a trigger spell - she was ''signing'' the contract. The latent spell placed on the parchment was activated by her trigger spell. Kiel could feel a soft burst of magic power. The black ink forming words on the scroll glowed golden briefly before disappearing altogether. The ink would return when the current contract expired, and scroll could be used again. "Ask away." Elaru motioned him to ask what was on his mind. Kiel wouldn''t admit it, but he was actually glad she was under the oath of truth. A veil of calmness covered his face; he was able to relax now that he didn''t need to catch traces of deceit. "Who are you really?" Kiel decided to not waste any time beating around the bush. Her answer was not what he had expected, something he would soon get used to. "You should be more specific in your inquiries. As I previously mentioned, I am Elaru Wayvin." Kiel''s eyes briefly narrowed before he continued his questioning. "Is that your real name?" "Yes." Elaru nodded her head. Even if she was a part of a noble mage family, that doesn''t mean she had to have their last name. It would be easier to hide the relation if the name was not a lie. ¨CKiel reasoned internally. He should rephrase his question. "Which noble mage family are you affiliated with?" Kiel leaned forward, placing his intertwined hands on the table. "I am an independent existence. I am not under anyone''s banner. I control my own life." Elaru''s eyes briefly flashed with an emotion Kiel didn''t manage to recognize before it disappeared. She couldn''t lie while under the contract, but it was hard to believe nonetheless. How is it possible that a ''nobody'' would possess Aethernea of Sight and enough money to buy a reusable Oath of Truth? This entire time Kiel had easily overlooked the possibility of her not being related to a noble mage family. If Elaru was not a noble, could she be related to one of the non-noble families with high social standing? "How can you afford all of your expensive equipment?" Kiel continued the questioning, his eyes drifting quickly over the empty scroll in front of him. "Earned it doing quests." Elaru stated in a bored matter. As if his questions were predictable and uninteresting. After seeing his narrowed eyes flickering with apparent doubt, she added ¨C "Perfectly legal quests I assure you." "What kind of quests do you do?" If she was not from a noble family, nor a wealthy family, then finding out her occupation was the next best thing. "Well paying ones." Elaru smirked. The contract only made sure she couldn''t lie. It couldn''t force her to answer questions she didn''t want to answer. Kiel gave her a brief, meaningful look before deciding to change his tactic. "What is your end game?" "You make it sound like I have some deep, dark agenda. I am simpler than you think. I just want to live." Elaru grinned. She wants to live? What an ambiguous answer. Kiel understood that what she meant was not to merely stay alive, but to truly live. He could relate. He longed for a meaning in his life just as much. However, he knew not her true definition of living. "Did you have me investigated?" "No. What interested me about you wasn''t something I could read in a background report. Purchasing your life story from an information broker would have been a waste of money and, possibly, invasion of privacy." Kiel chuckled dryly. "If you had been concerned about invasion of privacy you wouldn''t have spied on my daily activities from the highest point in Beyd for a week." "I could have just as easily followed you around like a shadow instead of just watching from afar." ¨C She shrugged. "But I thought it to be a bit too intrusive." "I would have noticed an elibu trailing behind me!" Kiel''s eyebrow twitched. Was she serious? She laughed out loud. "Mate, with my skills, you wouldn''t notice me if I was standing right in front of you!" Was she trying to piss him off?! Kiel took a silent, deep breath to calm down. Don''t let her rile you up. She is obviously teasing you. He reasoned with himself. "How did you catch up with me yesterday?" He finally asked the question that was bothering him earlier. He looked at her with expectation. She smiled gently and shrugged. "Mate, you were running in circles. I just waited for you to stop running." Huh?! - Her anticlimactic response made Kiel''s eyebrow twitch. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. She had managed to throw him off his track. He completely forgot what he wished to ask next. "And how did you know when I stopped running? How did you keep an eye on me? How did you know I was running in circles in the first place?" Kiel sneered, followed by his cold gaze. She pointed her fingers towards her eyes "Divine sight mate, remember?" Kiel glared at her. She rolled her eyes and elaborated. "The body of every living creature lets out mana in regular intervals. The mana let out by living creatures spreads through the forest like air, the only difference being that mana can pass through solid matter. However, every material has a specific mana resistance which influences how much mana manages to pass through it and how much is retained inside." She paused briefly. "What I am trying to say is: I can see the mana retained within the objects which allows me to pick up shapes of the objects, living or not, as long as they are in my range of vision. Therefore, I just sat on a tree branch and let you run around. I could see you clearly wherever you went because you remained close enough for my Aethernea to pick you up." Kiel''s eyes widened in disbelief. What a convenient ability! She could see the mana his body let out so she could effectively pinpoint his location. Aethernea of Sight did not produce a two-dimensional picture, it built a three-dimensional model. It was the ultimate Mana Sense! What he could do with such an ability! He could tell if someone was approaching him and avoid them. He could relax knowing no one was around him. When Kiel noticed he was clenching his fists he quickly moved them away from sight. But then he realized how futile that gesture really was. She could see the mana flowing through his fists. She could probably tell they were clenched no matter where he put them. "Is it possible to hide mana from your sight? Like how people can hide their presence from being detected by someone else''s mana sense?" Kiel dreaded the answer. "Sorry mate. There is nothing that I know of that can obscure my sight. There is a reason why the divine gifts are considered divine." Darn! He couldn''t hide from her or avoid her. If she wanted to stalk him, she could find him anywhere. "How long is your range of vision?" In other words - how far away did he need to be to escape her sight? * * * Coming up in the next episode: Of course! How had he not seen it before? It was in front of him the whole time! Kiel felt an intense wave of self-satisfaction wash over him. Finally, he unraveled the mystery of Elaru. There was no feeling quite like when you finally find a solution to a puzzle! ¡°Kiel, what I am about to tell you is sensitive information that must be kept a complete secret. No one must know about this.¡± ¡°My father speculates that it is a blessing of the gods ¨C one of the first Aetherneal Gifts ¨C a forgotten Aethernea.¡± Episode 6 - Deal with the devil In the previous Episode: Kiel meets Elaru in the designated place and time. Kiel is confused because Elaru¡¯s mana is different than how it felt like yesterday. Especially because mana carries traces of the owners personality and emotions. To gain Kiel¡¯s trust Elaru signs an Oath of Truth ¨C a contract spell that prevents her from lying. Kiel questions Elaru and finds out that her real name is truly ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± and she is not affiliated with a noble mage family. Elaru explains that her Aethernea of Sight shows her a three-dimensional model of the area around her which allows her to locate objects and creatures in her vicinity. Episode 6 - Deal with the devil ¡°How long is your range of vision?¡± In other words ¨C how far away did he need to be to escape her sight? ¡°It depends on my state of mind and point of focus. Usually, when I am not paying extra attention or am sleeping, it narrows down to about half a mile radius.¡± If Kiel had been drinking something, he would have spat it out at this point. ¡°You can see mana in your sleep?! With your eyes closed?!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see mana with my eyes; I see it with my mind. In its essence, it is an enhanced mana sense. Just like you don¡¯t stop sensing mana when you are asleep neither do I. If there were a sudden burst of mana near you, you¡¯d wake up. You don¡¯t stop hearing things while you are asleep either. If there were a sudden loud noise, you¡¯d wake up. Same thing with my Aethernea. If there are significant changes around me, it will wake me up as well. And since it is a sense, I can¡¯t shut it off. Whether my eyes are open or closed makes no difference. Whether I like it or not, I can always see everything around me.¡± Kiel stared at her emotionlessly. Suddenly Aethernea of Sight didn¡¯t look as tempting as before. It was constantly feeding her with information that she didn¡¯t want most of the time. It was probably similar to standing in the middle of a noisy crowd of people all the time. She could ¡°sense¡± so many things, and she had no way to shut it off. Every power comes with a price. ¡°If your power does not originate from your eyes why do they look¡­¡± He motioned to her eyes, trying to find an appropriate word to describe them. ¡°So magical? I might not see magic with my eyes, but it doesn¡¯t mean that my eyes aren¡¯t magical.¡± She winked. ¡°Being able to see mana isn¡¯t the only reason why my Aethernea is called Aethernea of Sight.¡± Kiel raised an eyebrow. Being able to see magic wasn¡¯t the only benefit of having Aethernea of Sight? Could there be even more benefits? ¡°Can you identify things based on their unique mana footprint?¡± ¡°I can see the color of someone¡¯s mana so I can recognize them based on that. However, my eyes don¡¯t have enough precision to distinguish between people whose mana is near the same shade of color. The real power of my eyes is not in being able to see raw mana, but in being able to see spells. It is much easier to identify a spell pattern than a color.¡± Omnidirectional vision? Being able to identify spells based on their pattern? Of course! How had he not seen it before? It was in front of him the whole time! Elaru Wayvin was a Tracker! Trackers were mages specialized in finding things. Be it other people, magical creatures, artifacts or even rare plants. It was an attractive job that was very well paid; which would explain why Elaru had the funds for purchasing an Oath of Truth. No wonder she had excellent observation and deduction skills, they were developed by years of tracking! ¡°You are a Tracker!¡± Kiel exclaimed his revelation out loud with satisfied glee. Elaru raised her eyebrows. ¡°I suppose. I do spend a lot of time tracking down artifacts.¡± Now it all made sense. With her skill, she could find artifacts no one was able to find before her, such as the Soul Crystal! And because of it, if anyone could find something which could help his condition, it would be her! Kiel felt an intense wave of self-satisfaction wash over him. Finally, he unraveled the mystery of Elaru. There was no feeling quite like when you finally find a solution to a puzzle! However, Elaru did not give him time to bask in his achievement. ¡°We better hurry before the contract expires. You can ask me more questions later, let¡¯s get down to business.¡± Her expression changed into her own version of a poker face. Kiel responded by putting on his own solemn and unreadable expression. Elaru flicked her wrist in a useless gesture. Kiel could tell she cast a sound barrier around them to prevent any potential eavesdroppers from hearing what she was about to reveal. After ensuring no one but him could hear her, she put up her red striped scarf over her lips to prevent lip reading. ¡°Kiel, what I am about to tell you is sensitive information that must be kept a complete secret. No one must know about this.¡± He heard her voice loud and clear even though the scarf covered her mouth. Kiel nodded in response. He could keep a secret. After all, he had been keeping his lack of mana a secret from the whole world his entire life. And that took much more effort than it would take to conceal knowledge. Though, why would she trust him with sensitive information? An arcane contract prohibiting him from sharing the information would be more appropriate. Perhaps because she was sure he would have no benefit from sharing it? Elaru took off her left glove and afterward moved her sleeve, exposing her marked skin. Kiel¡¯s eyes quickly scanned her arm, covered by curvy tattoo like markings, before he glanced back to her face. Why was she showing him her markings? Was there something special about them? ¡°These markings might look like ordinary tattoos, but they are neither tattoos nor ordinary. They are a manifestation of an ancient oath branded into the essence of my being. And to activate it, like every other contract, a trigger spell needs to be performed.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes returned to her markings and this time he stared at them with more attention. Even so, no matter how hard he stared at them, her markings didn¡¯t appear any more special than markings of any other elibu. All elibu were born with distinct markings on different parts of their body. It was a kind of a birthmark. Were her markings special, or were the markings of every elibu an oath? He voiced his question ¨C she flashed a satisfied smirk as if she was congratulating him for asking the right question. ¡°You never wondered why elibu are born with marked bodies?¡± Honestly, Kiel had never put much thought into it. ¡°Well, now you know these aren¡¯t just for show. Elibu are the vessel for the spell, and the trigger is you ¨C an argel mage, or rather, the trigger spell, performed by your mana. The name of the oath is Aetherneal Bond.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered as she was telling him this. In this world, there exist four types of magic ¨C transmutation, augmentation, arcane and aetherneal magic. By using pure mana, one can cast transmutation, augmentation, and arcane magic. If the mana is impure, one can cast either transmutation or augmentation magic, based on the mana type. However, Aetherneal magic was different. It could not be cast by mortals, not even by using pure mana. Not much was known about Aetherneal magic since the only ones able to cast it were gods themselves, which is why it was popularly known as divine magic. Aetherneal magic was also considered to be ¡°True Magic¡± because it seemed able to bend all rules and laws of magic. Or rather, mortals were unable to grasp its rules, as if it was unbound by the laws of reality. ¡°You want me to cast the trigger spell to activate your markings and become bound by the Aethernal bond?¡± Kiel caught on what she was proposing fast. ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Elaru almost seemed to purr with delight that he was quick to process the information. (And didn¡¯t seem to consider her crazy.) ¡°However, you won¡¯t be the only one signing it.¡± Kiel frowned. Signing the Aetherneal bond is beneficial? Suddenly he remembered Elaru¡¯s promise of pure mana. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. ¡°How come I¡¯ve never heard of this? I¡¯ve heard tales of the Aetherneal Gifts such as Aethernea of Sight. However, I¡¯ve never heard an explanation behind the elibu markings. Why isn¡¯t it a known fact?¡± ¡°In the chaos of the Great Mage Wars, that decimated the population of Halnea, not many were left after the wars which were familiar with the trigger spell. All scrolls and carvings describing the trigger have either been lost or sealed after the war. Not many retained the knowledge of the trigger, so the purpose of the markings and existence of the Aetherneal bond was forgotten with time.¡± ¡°Then how did you get ahold of such knowledge?¡± ¡°One noble family retained the knowledge and is currently completely monopolizing the power of the Aetherneal bond. I was able to see the trigger when they were casting it for their own purposes.¡± Kiel had a pretty good idea what family she was talking about. There was one family that stood above all others ¨C only one family whose members all held pure mana without the need of mana purifying artifacts. Everything made sense now. Why she warned him not to share this information, why no one was left alive that knows it. If that family didn¡¯t wish to share the information then knowing it would be a death sentence. She didn¡¯t need to have him sign a contract promising not to disclose this information, because if he refused to do so, it would be suicide. She trusted his intelligence; she knew he would understand what it meant to know of this. While he doesn¡¯t share the information, no one will be aware of his knowledge, and he would be safe. Is that why she was careful to not disclose her presence? Because that family was after her? Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Are they aware you possess this knowledge?¡± If they were after her than associating with her could put him in danger as well. ¡°Thankfully, no. And I intend to keep it that way.¡± Elaru gave him a meaningful look, clearly telling him not to reveal this information to anyone if he valued his life. So she wasn¡¯t a wanted person? Was hiding her presence just a preemptive move to avoid trouble? ¡°Tell me more about the Aetherneal bond. What would happen to us if I activate it?¡± Kiel continued the questioning, his emotionless mask never wavering. ¡°The spell would create a link between us ¨C a bond. Our souls would merge into one, which would allow us to share mana ¨C you would be able to use my mana supply as your own. We would also gain the ability to purify mana.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the catch?¡± Kiel stared deeply into Elaru¡¯s eyes trying to fish out a response from their depths. ¡°The catch is that it is permanent. Once done, it cannot be undone. If we become bound, we will remain so until one of us dies.¡± She stared right back at him, unwavering. ¡°Does it have any adverse impacts on us? Such as shortening of lifespan?¡± ¡°No, on the contrary, it lengthens the lifespan.¡± ¡°Can the oath harm us in any way?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t get hurt by signing the oath.¡± Kiel examined her face carefully. There must be a catch, a reason to not do it. Could she use the bond to control him somehow? Would he become a slave of the bond and she, as the vessel, his master? ¡°Is the contract symmetrical?¡± A symmetrical contract places the exact same spell on all of the contractors. If Aetherneal bond were symmetrical, that would mean effects of the bond on him would be the same as on her. If she could control him, then he could control her too. ¡°Yes. The rules of the oath are the same for both of us.¡± She nodded her head in approval. Was this really the truth? It had to be since she signed the oath of truth! Yet Kiel just couldn¡¯t shake off a feeling of dread. Maybe he was just paranoid? His mistrust of people was getting in the way even when he was sure they weren¡¯t lying. ¡°Why would elibu be born with such a powerful spell?¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know why elibu are born like this. My father speculates that it is a blessing of the gods ¨C one of the first Aetherneal Gifts ¨C a forgotten Aethernea.¡± Kiel stared at Elaru with eyebrows raised high in disbelief. This sounded too good to be true. His eyes drifted to the oath of truth scroll, but the letters haven¡¯t returned to it yet, meaning it was still in place. No matter how hard to believe this information was, it couldn¡¯t be a lie. Even if it is not the actual truth, it is what she believed to be the truth. And if she believed it to be the truth, she must have had an excellent reason to do so. She had a sharp mind and divine sight, deceiving her would be very difficult. ¡°Why would I want to be bound to you? Any elibu with a large enough mana pool would do.¡± Elaru smiled wide as though she was just waiting for him to ask that question. ¡°It would do indeed¡­¡± Her smile turned into a devious smirk. ¡°If you actually knew the trigger spell.¡± Naturally, she wouldn¡¯t show him the trigger spell unless he was to use it on her. He could accept her offer and then run away once he learns it, but she could find him anywhere with her eyes. She wouldn¡¯t even need to dispose of him, she could just spread information about his knowledge in select circles, and he would get eliminated by the third party. She didn¡¯t need to advertise her own worth to him. It was either ¡°do this with me¡± or ¡°don¡¯t do it at all¡±. Elaru¡¯s smirk turned back into a smile, a mischievous one. ¡°But let¡¯s pretend that you do know the trigger spell. Even if you search for another elibu, you¡¯ll never find one which has more mana than me. My exceptionally large mana pool is put to shame only by my monstrous mana regeneration. I have way more mana than I could ever spend! More than enough mana for both of us.¡± Kiel had felt the intensity of her aura. He had seen how dense her Mage Armor was. He noticed that she never seemed to get tired of using magic, even after using a powerful healing spell on him. Alas, he couldn¡¯t have really known just how much mana that one elibu had at her disposal. It stung Kiel like rubbing salt into an open wound; he was born with almost no mana, but she was born with near limitless amount?! Life was playing such a cruel joke on him! How could the fates be so unfair? With her soul, at least a dozen non-mages could raise to be real mages. Yet the fate condemned many individuals just so that one could be extraordinary. ¡°You have no mana, and I have plenty. Every fiber of my being is screaming ¡®perfect match¡¯. This might not be just blind luck; this might be destiny.¡± ¨C Her eyes twinkled mysteriously. Kiel¡¯s fingers clenched into a fist. Destiny? He didn¡¯t believe in destiny. The question here had never been ¡°why would he want to get bound to her¡±, it had always been ¡°why would she want him¡±. Why? To him, it is important who he gets bound to because of his mana issue, though why would she choose someone with no mana? To him, it was the ideal choice, but not for her. To her, the benefit is only the pure mana, so why would she care who she gets bound to? Any argel which can perform the trigger spell would do. ¡°Why me?¡± Kiel voiced his concern out loud with a solemn expression. He left no room for excuses such as ¡°destiny¡±. Elaru clasped her hands, leaned forward and smiled deviously. ¡°Our souls aren¡¯t the only thing that gets linked. Our minds get linked as well, allowing us to communicate telepathically, share memories and senses, and even be able to tell when one of us is lying. I wouldn¡¯t want to have a telepathic link to just anyone.¡± Kiel could finally understand her reasoning. He wouldn¡¯t want to have a telepathic link to someone he can¡¯t stand either. Kiel imagined having a telepathic link to someone like Piala and unconsciously shivered in horror. Usually, he would be quick to refuse a connection with another person, whatever that might imply. Kiel didn¡¯t like people, and he didn¡¯t like them seeing the real him. But even without the link, this girl saw right through him, and she wasn¡¯t appalled, on the contrary. If it were a link with her, it wouldn¡¯t be all bad. Besides, even if he had it with Piala, if it were for the sake of mana, Kiel could learn to get along with her. He needed this link. She had him from the start. He couldn¡¯t refuse. She probably wanted him as her partner because she liked him and she believed being connected to him would be useful for her. It was exactly as he had thought it to be ¨C it was an investment. Her mana would turn him from a nobody into an important figure, and being connected to him then would only raise her own worth. He was smart and had many talents. Having an intelligent, reliable and knowledgeable partner would be beneficial for anyone. He might not be of much use right now, but she could see his potential worth. She is just as bad as me. Kiel chuckled. Exploiting my mana weakness to her own benefit! That candor and lack of judgment towards sins. She was both so pure and so devious. Kiel loved it. He loved how this person didn¡¯t hide behind believable lies pretending to be a philanthropist or a kind soul, nor did she show hostility and blatant cruelty of a demon. To her, good and evil were irrelevant. She did not think of what she wanted others to see. She didn¡¯t bother with appearances. She acted only on her own instinct and beliefs. Pure and uninfluenced by what society deemed appropriate. Kind or mean? Good or evil? Argel or elibu? Who cares! He thought he understood her now. That the puzzle of Elaru was slowly getting put in place. And he was right ¨C he could finally see the form of the puzzle. He noticed Elaru possessed a strange kind of purity: freedom from prejudice and societal influence, one of her defining characteristics. Elaru was free. Truly free to be whoever and whatever she wanted to be. She was what he always wanted to be. Free. He couldn¡¯t refuse her offer. She provided him an excuse to break away from who he pretended to be, a push towards dreams he tried to extinguish. She was offering him an adventure into the unknown. And, he had little to lose. She could give him all the mana he would need, and more than that. This little cunning elibu held great worth beyond her mana. With her smarts and ability to track anything ¨C she would be very useful to him in the future. This would be quite a profitable partnership. He couldn¡¯t have found a better partner if he was searching for one! Kiel¡¯s blank serious face faded away replaced by a sly smirk. Alright. If that¡¯s the game you want to play, I¡¯ll play as well. This is how, just one stranger, a female elibu, twisted his life beyond recognition in a matter of days. Had he known what was to come¡­the man he was would have never accepted her offer, not even for the sake of pure mana. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Soon enough the fateful moment arrived. They were ready to attempt it for real. As the two spells collided, Kiel¡¯s time seemed to stop. Abruptly the brand grew larger and enveloped both of them. It stamped itself around them clenching their bodies like a snake. It was thrilling and horrifying, entrancing and enchanting. It was a feeling neither of them would ever forget. Episode 7 - Aetherneal Bond In the previous Episode: Elaru introduces the effects of Aetherneal bond to Kiel, and he determines that it would be very beneficial to him and agrees to sign the contract with her. The contract will merge their souls which will allow them to share mana. It will also connect their minds allowing them to communicate telepathically. Episode 7 - Aetherneal Bond It didn¡¯t take them long to learn how to cast the trigger spell; it had a foreign shape yet it was simple to weave. Elaru knew what the trigger spell was supposed to look like and was able to reproduce it on her first try; she said she¡¯d seen it before but had never performed it herself nor had it taught to her. The oath of truth had expired and Elaru didn¡¯t sign it again. However, Kiel didn¡¯t think she was lying about it. He was pleased with her magic skill, it was only fitting for his partner to be a skilled mage. Kiel was able to pick up the spell just as quickly. He didn¡¯t want to be outperformed by her. Therefore, he concentrated extra hard. The trigger spell wasn¡¯t hard to reproduce. However the difficulty was not in the trigger spell itself, it was in the timing. Elaru revealed that he needed to cast the trigger to start the magic reaction, but she had to confirm it with her own spell before the contract activated. Their spellcasting was required to be in sync for the trigger to work. Kiel thought Elaru would tell him to follow her lead. Instead, she told him to start casting and she would copy him. That surprised him, she seemed headstrong, prideful and independent, someone who makes their own way instead of following ways of others; still, he didn¡¯t complain about it. He didn¡¯t like adapting to other people¡¯s pace anyway. It was better this way. Therefore, Kiel spent a while casting and recasting, under the watchful eye of Elaru, trying to get a feel for the spell so he could reproduce it with consistency. Elaru watched him with an unreadable expression, she seemed to be concentrating and dedicating all her attention on his spellcasting. Like she was trying to absorb its every twitch and movement to be able to predict the flow of his weaving. Kiel took a few short breaks to drink and eat the bagel he stored in his pouch this morning. However Elaru never even once stopped to rest, drink or eat. He was even mean enough to eat and drink right in front of her. He ate tantalizingly slowly trying to tempt her. He even used augmentation magic to reheat the bagel so that the warm, sweet smell of cherries would spread around the clearing mixing with the earthy smell of the forest. He expected her to glare at him and call him insensitive, or, at least, ask him to share (he would have enjoyed telling her no). However, she paid no attention to it. She continued staring at him as if he was a specimen she was studying. As though she was an apparatus running on mana who needed no nutrition from worldly substances. The sun was high in the sky by the time they were ready to attempt it for real. Kiel was eager to get it over with; his water had run out half an hour ago. If Elaru wasn¡¯t such a freak, she might have noticed his thirst and transmuted him some water from the air with her transmutation magic. He thought about asking her, but his pride got in the way. Kiel didn¡¯t like asking for help. He was just fine on his own. Soon enough the fateful moment arrived. They were ready to attempt it for real. They faced each other, holding each other¡¯s gaze. Elaru nodded, Kiel nodded back. They needed no words to convey the meaning; at the same time, they started waiving the trigger spell around their right hands. Kiel couldn¡¯t see it, but he could feel the spells dancing around their arms coming closer and closer to one another. It was a delicate, beautiful dance. The spells were in perfect sync. Kiel was impressed and surprised that Elaru managed to copy him on her first try. Copying someone else¡¯s spell so flawlessly took an enormous amount of skill. Her weaving was most likely as good as his own if not better. The spell was brief and nothing spectacular. It reached its climax quickly. Right at the end, their palms touched briefly and the spells collided with one another. When two spells collide, one of three things happens: 1) they interfere with one another potentially canceling each other out 2) they resonate with each other increasing effects of both 3) they do not affect each other at all Naturally, two identical spells in perfect sync could only resonate with each other enhancing the effects of both. Kiel had expected their resonance, yet it still took him by surprise when it happened. As the two spells collided, Kiel¡¯s time seemed to stop. A wave of absolute power and energy exploded spreading from their arms through their entire body shaking and rippling through their cells like a hurricane. The two spells abruptly changed shape on their own and merged into one. Kiel could see it clearly, even though he couldn¡¯t see magic, the spell created visible light phenomena. It twirled and twisted into an obscure glittering brand reaching out to Elaru. Wrapping around her and pulling with tiny strings of light. As the spell touched her markings, they started flickering in all kinds of colors ¨C same colors the brand was glowing with. The tiny tentacles of the brand latched themselves to her markings, merging with them and making them dance across her skin. They moved like they were alive. Twisting and twirling, slithering. Flickering and glittering in many bright colors. Elaru¡¯s skin started glowing subtly with hard to define radiance. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Her hair spread out and twirled like it was being blown by the wind. It danced along with the brand mimicking its movements. For a moment, he could swear he saw strands of her hair flash white. Her eyes burned brightly, the black iris widening slightly into a diamond shape uncharacteristic for elibu, before shrinking back and almost disappearing overwhelmed by golden lights. Abruptly the brand grew larger and enveloped both of them. It stamped itself around them clenching their bodies like a snake. Everything the brand touched tingled, it was both burning and chilling, painful and pleasurable. It was an otherworldly feeling. The world faded out in front of Kiel¡¯s eyes, it ceased to exist in his mind. There was just Elaru, him and magic between them. Kiel felt the roots of the spell grow deep inside his core, branching and spreading until he could feel it from his heart all the way down to the tips of his toes. The brand sang an eerie, ethereal melody, Kiel felt as if he had heard it before but at the same time as if he was hearing it for the first time. Kiel wasn¡¯t even sure that the melody was indeed a sound originating from the bond, it could have been a sensation or a memory embedded deep inside him surfacing once again. His heart beat erratically, reacting to the melody, pulsing with the rhythm of the brand. Was that even his heartbeat? He could swear he felt Elaru¡¯s heart beating side by side with his own. Kiel felt her hot breath on his skin even though they weren¡¯t close enough. He could hear and feel every contraction of her lungs. He felt the heat waves rolling off her body as if they were his own. His nose picked up an odd barely noticeable scent. It tingled his senses making his nose twitch. It didn¡¯t smell like anything he had smelled before, he had no words to describe it, the closest words he could come up with was power, or magic. Though, magic was not something that could be smelled. Kiel felt his whole body react and reach to the brand, wanting to absorb it, to make it his, to make it a part of him. He didn¡¯t feel like he was in control of his own actions anymore. The skin on the right side of his body seared and burned. The sensation spreading from the tips of his right-hand fingers, climbing up to his shoulder. Then swirling around his neck onto his face. When it reached his eyes, he felt something deep inside him light up like a big campfire suddenly bursting forward from a small birthday candle. He felt the power and warmth spreading faster and faster, flickering up and down, growing and burning even brighter with each new flicker. It was as if never before opened floodgates had opened for the first time. The surging tide of water smashing into him and submerging his every cell into the cool fluid. It was a feeling that he could never manage to describe with words. A feeling which only grew more painful and pleasurable at the same time. It was thrilling and horrifying, entrancing and enchanting. It was a feeling neither of them would ever forget. The entire phenomena lasted only a few short seconds but to them it seemed to last forever, time seemed warped and twisted just like the brand. As the spell stamped itself deep inside Kiel¡¯s body, mind, and soul, the brand flashed pure white blinding them. They could feel ringing in their ears and their lungs contracted painfully, their heartbeat suddenly turned deafeningly silent. Kiel could feel a sudden wave of melancholy wash over him briefly. Like he was staring face to face at death, like every second could be his last. And then the brand exploded in the completely silent boom of power, showering them with tiny light particles which made their whole body shake. Their vision flickered in an out, blurred in and out. Something inside them undoubtedly changed forever. Kiel felt like all his senses were in overdrive. Like he was seeing ¨C feeling the world clearly for the first time. Kiel could feel the life of the forest vibrating in every leaf and strand of grass. He could feel little wyrms digging through the earth and hear the humming of small tiki in flight. Kiel felt a strange completeness shaking him. Like he had finally found a large part of him that was missing; the lock for his key. He cloud feel its closeness, he felt he could grasp it, touch it. It was so close! Still, it was strangely out of his reach. He felt complete yet incomplete at the same time. It was a maddening feeling. Kiel no longer felt like Kiel. He no longer felt¡­halnean. He felt like he had become someone ¨C something else. The old Kiel died at that moment, under the hot sun, in fireworks of magic lights. It was utterly terrifying. And it was utterly beautiful. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Her eyes had been on the flower-adorned cup, slipping through her fingers in slow motion. However, she could not see it ¨C her mind had been pulled to the river of time. The path of time had been altered, the timeline shifted into a new branch. There was no longer a way to stop, to revert back to the old road. The future of the entire land of Halnea had been altered. His mind kept rejecting the reality. What was happening to him? Is this really happening to him or is it just a dream? This was definitely not how reality felt like! Everything seemed different! He didn¡¯t feel like himself at all! He propped himself up on his elbows and looked down on top of what he had been lying. The realization left him speechless. Episode 8 - Rebirth In the previous Episode: After Elaru explains what the Aetherneal bond is, Kiel decides to accept her offer. After a short practice, Kiel and Elaru activate the Aetherneal bond spell. The spell turns out to be extremely powerful and changes them on a fundamental level. Episode 8 - Rebirth ? City of Eleasia, Temple of Fate ? Time is an infinite river, continuously flowing forward, branching into many possible futures. The river is made out of countless drops of water ¨C living creatures inhabiting the world. Their drops of life are swept down the river, unable to resist the flow, unable to change the flow. No matter how much they struggle, what can one restless drop of water do in the stream made out of countless drops of water? To the drop itself, its path is very important. If they hit a rock, or collided with other drops, the force of the impact could push them into another stream of drops. But when you look at the stream, do you ever stop to think about the life of a single drop of water? When you look at the water¡­all you see are the fish. But when Sanarra Arten gazed at the river of time, she couldn¡¯t see the fish. There were no fish in the river of time. Not anymore. Granted, she, as the envoy of fate, could only see that which was right in front of her. She couldn¡¯t look into the distance to see what was and what will be. She neither held the power to see the past nor the future. What she could see was very specific. Very limited. She couldn¡¯t tell what decisions would a single drop make or the consequences of that decision unless it was never their choice to begin with but a path that had been already predetermined from the start. She couldn¡¯t see the possibilities, she could only see the inevitable, the things that cannot be changed. That unchanging certainty ¨C the lack of choice ¨C that is what people labeled as fate. Can the fate be changed? That question was as old as time itself. Sanarra knew the answer to that question. Mortals can¡¯t transcend the scope of their fate. Fate is an integral part of reality; only that which holds the power to alter reality itself on the fundamental level can alter fate. And there existed only one thing that could alter the basic laws of reality ¨C Aetherneal magic. Sanarra, of course, couldn¡¯t use Aetherneal magic; that was the domain of the gods. But she wasn¡¯t completely unfamiliar with it. After all, she used to wear a divine artifact around her neck. Still, as many times as she saw divine magic in action, she had yet to see it alter the fate. She didn¡¯t expect that ¡®yet¡¯ to come today. It caught her completely off guard. It had been a hot summer day. Sanarra just had lunch and was relaxing, drinking mint tea in her chambers. A slight breeze coming through the windows made the chimes hanging all around her room jingle musically. Her breath suddenly caught in her chest, her eyes widened, and her hands lost their grip on the tea cup. Her eyes were glued to the flower-adorned cup, slipping through her fingers in slow motion. However, she could not see it ¨C her mind had been pulled to the river of time. That¡¯s when she saw it, just as it happened. She knew not what decision had been made; she didn¡¯t even know which drop of water was decisive. It mattered not ¨C the change was a result of a butterfly effect ¨C caused by many, many decisions, all building up to reach this point. Sanarra saw a dam alongside the river, sealing off the river and directing it. She saw a single rock on the dam move back slightly pushed under the pressure of the water. Yet like a stack of dominos the entire dam crumbled in an instant, overwhelmed by the stream. Every hair on her body stood up as a wave of chills traveled down her spine. The path of time had been altered, the timeline shifted into a new branch. There was no longer a way to stop, to revert back to the old road. The future of the entire land of Halnea had been changed. She didn¡¯t hear her cup crash on the floor, for, at that moment, all she could see and hear was the time. She had been blinded by a brilliant golden glow of a single drop. She knew that drop. That drop was the key to everything. And that key was in the form of a golden seed, deep inside of it. A seed that with proper nourishment could one day grow into a fish. A fish with the wings of light that could swim freely in the river. It had been a fish of light that entrusted this task to the first envoy of fate several millennia prior. The envoys of fate had only one purpose. They were created by the fish for the sake of the fish. It was the invisible hands of countless envoys of fate that lead to the appearance of this golden seed, and it was up to her to make sure it turns into a fish. Sanarra smiled, even though she knew not the path the seed needed to take for it to grow. She smiled as the river of time blurred and disappeared in front of her eyes. She felt the thrill of the unknown coursing through her body. She was walking in the dark, yet she had hope. Inability to see the fate meant only one thing ¨C the future was an ocean of possibilities. Sanarra exhaled the breath she didn¡¯t know she was holding and prayed. Prayed that a waterfall wouldn¡¯t come. Prayed that there would be some room for mistakes. Prayed that the fragile seed would survive the test of time. For if it didn¡¯t grow in time, it would be swept away by it. Crushing the hopes of many envoys of fate that prayed, breathed and bled just to bring the light back into the river. The choices were not hers to make. All she could do now was pray. * * * Kiel was rudely awakened by the stabbing pain in his right arm. The sensation of thousand little needles jabbing at his skin was gradually fading away. He was lying on the forest ground, his vision blurring in and out. He blinked furiously trying to focus his eyes. Everything looked so bright, too bright. He could hear many strange sounds in the previously silent forest bombarding him from all sides. Their perceived intensity kept shifting, as if they were suddenly getting louder or quieter. Did his hearing improve? Is this, upcoming headache, a result of his mind trying to filter out all of the sounds, and make them fade into the background once again? Was this how the world sounded to elibu? Their long ears had much better hearing than short argel ears. Were they constantly annoyed by irrelevant sounds like these? The thought made Kiel reach for his ears. He didn¡¯t know what he expected to find, but he let out a sigh of relief when he found his ears just as small and round as they were before. As he inhaled the air around him, his nose twitched. It wasn¡¯t just sounds that suddenly became louder. Scents became stronger also. He could still smell a faint scent of the cherry bagel he devoured hours ago. And even beyond the overload of his senses, he was overwhelmed with power. The spell was long over, but his entire body was still shaking, consumed by the power that showed no sign of dissipating. His mind and heart were racing, even though he just woke up. His breathing was irregular and shallow. His feelings and thoughts were jumbled; he didn¡¯t even know if they were his own ¨C they felt so alien. It was as if his loss of consciousness merely paused the tornado until he woke up again. His mind kept rejecting the reality. What was happening to him? Is this really happening to him or is it just a dream? This was definitely not how reality felt like! Everything seemed different. He didn¡¯t feel like himself at all! Realization struck him like a hammer. What have I done?! Kiel¡¯s conviction wavered, regret and dread threatening to consume him. The thought resonated through him, creating ripples and shaking him to the core. He did not sign up for this! How could he have taken all of this so lightly?! That spell was not just a simple contract; that was something much more. He felt truly bound to her, like she had become a part of him. He should have known it wasn¡¯t as simple as she made it out to be! Kiel would have entered a frenzy ¨C afraid of what he had done, terrified of what he had become ¨C if it weren¡¯t for her mana. It flowed into him with every contraction of his mind; he could feel it clearly, it was undoubtedly her mana, yet it felt like it was his just as much as hers. Elaru¡¯s mana carried a gentle, pleasant lull, calming down Kiel¡¯s racing heart. Don¡¯t panic. Kiel told himself. This was just a tradeoff. Yes, it wasn¡¯t all bad! He felt much more powerful, full of energy, so much more alive than before. He felt like anything was possible. He would get used to these changes eventually. This is a blessing in disguise. Kiel took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He was going to be just fine. As he calmed down and concentrated on the power flowing through him, excitement sparked deep within him. He never knew¡­he never knew how incredible it must have felt to be a mage, a real mage, to constantly feel such power flowing through them, like life itself. Pure, dense, abundant mana. This was a good choice after all. Kiel reasoned with himself. He didn¡¯t know how long he had laid there unmoving before he got used to changes in himself and his own perception of the world. The sense of time taken by the spell slowly returned to him, it could have lasted minutes or hours, either way, it took him a long time to notice the softness under him, uncharacteristic of the forest ground. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked down on top of what he had been lying. The realization left him speechless. His head was right next to Elaru¡¯s, his legs on the outside of hers, her soft breasts were pressing on his chest. Son of a¡­! Kiel¡¯s jaw dropped. How the¡­wha¡­?! He quickly pushed himself away and tried to get up hastily. However, his body seemed new to him and it didn¡¯t quite follow his commands. His leg slipped on the soft mound of dirt and he fell back down, into the same position he started from. Awkward. Kiel couldn¡¯t remember the last time he felt so awkward. Luckily, Elaru¡¯s eyes were closed and she didn¡¯t have any reaction to his blunder, which made him feel a bit better. He was so very glad they were alone in the clearing because this predicament looked quite wrong and would certainly be misunderstood. Their hands were touching when they were casting the spell, so they weren¡¯t that far apart. Their legs probably gave out after the spell. He most likely stumbled towards her and fell taking her down with him. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Kiel checked Elaru¡¯s face to see if she was breathing. Even though he could feel she was alive just as surely as he could tell he was alive. Unlike his breathing just a moment ago, her breathing was even and deep. Her eyes were still closed, most of her face was pale, other than a faint blush on her cheeks. Kiel would have thought it to be embarrassment if it weren¡¯t for the fact that he felt no trace of embarrassment in her aura. Was she not feeling well? He could tell she wasn¡¯t unconscious, on the contrary, she was fully aware of her surroundings. He could feel her Mind spreading around him like a blanket. She could have pushed him off of her. That¡¯s what he would do in her place. Perhaps her body was even worse off than his? Maybe she felt a weakness in her limbs? He noticed the cold sweat on her face and connected the dots. Cold sweat, pale face, feverish blush. Nausea? Or perhaps she was hurt when she fell back? Wait¡­ Kiel was just about to try pushing himself away again when his mind rolled back to his previous thought, giving him goosebumps. I can sense her Mind?! A ¡®mind¡¯ and ¡®the Mind¡¯ are basically the same thing and often, in literature, writers use the former instead of the latter. The only times when people bothered referring to it as ¡®the Mind¡¯ is when talking about the metaphysical projection of the creature¡¯s consciousness. Every person¡¯s consciousness spreads itself and creates a flexible and fluid projection ¨C the Mind. The Mind is rooted to the center of the person¡¯s body, but it can stretch and bend according to the user¡¯s will. It was exactly this projection that gave them ability to sense magic. It was the Mind that allowed them to sense auras ¨C presences of other beings ¨C and feel the intent and emotions carried through the mana making the aura. However, no matter how acute the sensing capability of the Mind, a Mind could not perceive other Minds. It is as though each Mind was on a separate wavelength; as if each Mind was a realm of its own in which no other Mind could intrude. Even if two minds were mingling, curving around each other, or even standing at the exact same spot, they would not be able to sense it. Yet Kiel could clearly sense Elaru¡¯s mind. His face paled. Elaru took this moment to finally spring to action, reminding Kiel he had yet to get up from on top of her ¨C she reached towards his belt. Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. What was she doing?! Endless possibilities went through his mind in an instant. Not a single one looked good. He pushed himself away, this time successfully, into a seating position next to her. Looking back at her with a startled and uncomfortable gaze he noticed her hands were holding his water bottle. Kiel mentally slapped himself. What was he thinking? Of course, she was after his water bottle that was hooked on his belt. A few flicks of her fingers and gust of wind seemed to enter the bottle. When she returned it to him, it was full of water. She had just changed ¡®shape¡¯ of the air with transmutation magic, filling the bottle with air denser than what was originally inside the bottle. And then she transmuted the air inside of the bottle into water. Kiel let out a tired laugh. It took an Aetherneal Bond for her to finally notice his thirst. Usually, he would refuse help, he didn¡¯t like receiving anything from others. But this time, he was too thirsty and too mentally exhausted to care. He nodded briefly to say ¡®thanks¡¯ before he gulped down the water as if he hadn¡¯t drunk anything in days. The water was fresh, tasty and cold. Her body was coping with the lack of water much better than his. He could somehow tell she felt slight thirst, yet it paled in comparison to his. Kiel noticed how she always made a peculiar body movement when she cast magic, although magic was cast with the mind and movement of the body had very little impact on it. It wasn¡¯t strange for mages to perform certain gestures while casting magic. It was easier to visualize magic that way and visualizing magic did make the casting easier. Even beliefs of the mage could impact the casting; if the mage honestly believed his magic was easier to weave while performing specific movement ¨C it would become easier. Most mages started out by mentally mapping magic spells to a particular action. One could even tell things about the mage from their movements. Assassins and Spies didn¡¯t perform any movements to camouflage their intent while warlocks took the gestures to entirely different level to entertain the audience or ¡®look cool¡¯. Kiel performed certain discreet gestures every once in a while too. Often while weaving magic it just felt unnatural to stay still. Elaru¡¯s gestures were not over the top, they were graceful and quick; they almost seemed too precise. He couldn¡¯t quite put his finger on it but there was something strange about them. As if his mind detected an anomaly but couldn¡¯t quite decipher its meaning. He shook the thoughts out of his head, it wasn¡¯t important anyway. Her little body movements added something intangible to her character. Kiel looked up into the burning sun. He felt refreshed by the coldness of the water and let out a long sigh. Suddenly a shadow obscured his line of sight. Elaru had gotten up from the floor and stood in front of him, blocking the sunlight. She was looking at the sun too, probably determining the time from its position. Elaru scratched her head removing stray leaves that got stuck in her hair. She looked ruffled, her hair tangled like she had been rolling on the forest floor. Her face looked bright. She mumbled something to herself gleefully. He wouldn¡¯t have been able to hear it before the bond, but now, he managed to pick up several words: ¡°So¡­works¡­even for me¡­¡± Elaru inhaled the fresh forest air and turned towards him, her face lighting up with a wide, warm grin. She looked excited, thrilled at what they had done. She lowered her body towards him and offered her hand to help him up. ¡°Welcome to the secret world of Aethernea my soulbound mate!¡± She exclaimed without a hint of hesitation or doubt in her voice; to her, this was a splendid day. Her hair was moving slightly in the breeze, the sunlight behind her giving her a brilliant glow, making her hair shine like it was made out of red glitterdust . Kiel felt a sense of d¨¦j¨¤-vu again; this was the second time she offered her hand to him, and the second time that he refused to take it. He wondered if this would be the last time she would extend her hand towards him. Kiel sighed in resignation and got up on his own. There was no point in crying over spilled milk; no point in sulking; he was an adaptive person, he could handle everything and anything! He¡¯d make the best of his current predicament. His internal encouraging monolog was interrupted by Elaru¡¯s sudden movement. She stepped towards him and reached for his face. He froze, unsure of her intentions. Was there something on his face? In a quick and fluid gesture, she brought her face up to his. Kiel almost gaped in shock, she didn¡¯t intend to kiss him, did she?! She mentioned she wasn¡¯t romantically interested in him! Was that a lie? He would have pushed her away quickly, just like every other girl that tried to kiss him before, but it happened too suddenly. His pupils dilated, the time seemed to slow down. He wasn¡¯t quick enough to react. He could only watch in horror as her face came closer to his, seeing every beautiful detail of her enchanting eyes, catching a whisk of a pleasant smell that was similar to cinnamon. She closed her eyes, parted her lips¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­and pressed her forehead to his. Vivid memories flew into his mind making him stumble back in shock. She had, somehow, transmitted her own thoughts to him. She had shown him her own memory, the memory of the Aetherneal bond viewed through the eyes of an Aethernea holder. It was indescribable. He could have never imagined just how grand of a spell it actually was. Not even the incredible dance of light that he had witnessed came close to its beauty. That light show was merely a spark created by the giant fire. He would have never known how majestic and complicated of a spell it really was. That was a spell that not even he would be able to weave, even if he knew how and had the mana to do it. It was truly something out of this world. It was divine. Aetherneal. From then onwards, the world never again looked the same to Kiel. Deep inside of him, a wish was born ¨C he wanted to see the world through Elaru¡¯s eyes. Kiel moved his right hand towards his face to wipe off the sweat that had formed from his exposure to the sunlight. His hand froze in midair. ¡°Wayvin¡­what is this?¡± Kiel stared at the black mark on his right arm. It was on the inner side of his wrist. It looked very similar to Elaru¡¯s markings, they had the same style. ¡°Ah!¡± She smiled and took off both of her gloves to show him her own wrists. ¡°And I have a first name. Use it.¡± Kiel ignored her words and concentrated on her arms. Unlike him, she had no markings on the right wrist. However, her left arm still had the same elibu markings as before. Kiel looked up to his own mark. It appeared partially the same as elibu markings she had on her left hand. ¡°That is the mark of the bond. It is a sign of our contract.¡± She explained. ¡°You can think of it as a seed left by the Aetherneal bond.¡± ¡°A seed?¡± Kiel looked up questioningly from the markings into her eyes. ¡°Aethernal bond activated something within us and formed this seed that will slowly grow as our bond grows stronger. The mark on your wrist will also grow and evolve to reflect the growth of the bond.¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°The spell can grow and evolve?¡± Kiel had never heard of a spell that could grow and evolve. Growth and evolution were traits of living things. And spells weren¡¯t alive. They weren¡¯t. Right? ¡°That¡¯s a good thing. As the bond gains power, so will we. Growth isn¡¯t something you should be worried about. It¡¯s the shrinking that is dangerous. You wouldn¡¯t want that to happen.¡± * * * Coming up in the next episode: ¡°You claimed previously that the contract was harmless! How could you¡­¡± Elaru interrupted Kiel in midsentence. ¡°Actually, I said that signing the contract was harmless. Never said that the actual effect after the signing would be.¡± She smirked. Kiel gaped in shock. She tricked him! For all he knew, it could be a life draining spell or a curse. It might have been a forbidden spell that would eventually turn him into a monster or devour his soul forever breaking his cycle of reincarnation. Kiel knew better than anyone that everything in this world came with a price. This bond was not a gift; it was an exchange. And he needed to find out exactly what he was offering to it. Episode 9 - Soulbound In the previous Episode: Kiel realizes that Elaru¡¯s and his mind are connected as an aftereffect of Aetherneal bond. Elaru manages to transmit her memory of the Aetherneal bond as seen through her eyes. Kiel notices a strange marking has appeared on his right hand. Elaru explains the marking is a state indicator. Episode 9 - Soulbound ¡°That¡¯s a good thing. As the bond gains power, so will we. Growth isn¡¯t something you should be worried about. It¡¯s the shrinking that is dangerous. You wouldn¡¯t want that to happen.¡± ¡°I see; it is a state indicator. Useful.¡± Kiel inspected his mark. It didn¡¯t look bad at all. It resembled a tribal tattoo. He always wanted to get one of those. His true persona did, the false one disagreed. A tattoo wasn¡¯t appropriate for the image he was trying to uphold. ¡°Why don¡¯t you have one? You weaved the spell with your right hand, but you have no mark there.¡± Kiel asked. ¡°Is it because you already have elibu markings on the left side?¡± Elaru nodded. ¡°Yeah. My elibu markings became my mark of the bond. Now they serve the same purpose as your mark. If the bond starts losing power, my markings will shrink. If it starts gaining power, your markings will grow.¡± Ah, so that¡¯s how it is. Her markings shrink, and his grow. ¡°Will my mark grow to look like yours? Spawning from the wrist to the face?¡± She shrugged. Kiel suddenly felt a sense of dread. He had missed something. ¡°Wait¡­define ¡®dangerous¡¯! What will happen if the mark starts shrinking? And didn¡¯t you say that the spell was symmetrical, why are there differences between us?¡± His eyes narrowed in suspicion. ¡°I don¡¯t know what would happen if the bond started shrinking, but I was warned that I should avoid it.¡± She shrugged again. Kiel stared at her. What could possibly happen? Would they gradually lose the powers granted to them by the bond? Or is it something far worse? ¡°You claimed previously that the contract was harmless! How could you¡­¡± Elaru interrupted Kiel in midsentence. ¡°Actually, I said that signing the contract was harmless. Never said that the actual effect after the signing would be.¡± She smirked. ¡°I don¡¯t know the effects of the bond that well. There might or might not be any harmful effects.¡± Kiel gaped in shock. She tricked him! Her eyes twinkled and she added: ¡°It is symmetrical. The manifestation of the mark is the only difference between us; it isn¡¯t an issue of the spell but rather racial differences.¡± So the spell does the same thing, but their bodies respond differently? He had asked her about a catch, and she didn¡¯t mention anything. Now he understood why. Kiel almost face-palmed himself. If she didn¡¯t know of any setback then telling him there were none wouldn¡¯t have been a lie! Why was she so eager to get into something she wasn¡¯t fully informed about?! He thought her to be smarter than that! Kiel sighed in annoyance. This won¡¯t do. He needed to find out exactly what Aetherneal Bond was and what it did to him. He knew nothing about it; Elaru didn¡¯t seem to know much either. All Kiel knew was that it was an Aetherneal spell of grand proportions that penetrated through the core of what makes him ¨C him, and twisted it, modifying it beyond recognition. It had engraved itself deep inside of him, he could feel it in his every breath, in his every heartbeat. Kiel couldn¡¯t rely on what Elaru thought she knew nor could he be sure she wouldn¡¯t twist the truth and deceive him again. For all he knew, it could be a life draining spell or a curse. It might have been a forbidden spell that would eventually turn him into a monster or devour his soul forever breaking his cycle of reincarnation. Kiel knew better than anyone that everything in this world came with a price. This bond was not a gift; it was an exchange. And he needed to find out exactly what he was offering to it. He needed to find out as much as he could about it, discretely. His best bet was to search for it in the library of Ashar University of Magic. It was the largest vault of magic related knowledge in the entire land of Halnea. He sighed again, this time in resignation. He should hope for the best and tackle one thing at a time. He would look for it when he managed to become a student. There was no point in thinking about it now. Kiel looked at his mark again trying to decide what to do about it. ¡°You¡¯ll have to hide your mark. My markings don¡¯t attract attention because I am an elibu, but our bond might get discovered if a wrong person sees yours. You should get a pair of gloves or arm protectors.¡± Elaru spoke solemnly. Kiel nodded in agreement. He intended to hide it anyway. It didn¡¯t agree with the false image of himself he tried to uphold. ¡°Should we hide our ability to use pure mana as well?¡± Kiel hadn¡¯t thought about it before, but even that fact would be suspicious. Hiding it would be simple because mana type isn¡¯t something that could be ¡®felt¡¯. There weren¡¯t many ways to determine mana type, usually the method used was quite straightforward: weave one augmentation and one transmutation spell, if only the augmentation spell activates then you have augmentation type mana, if weaved transmutation spell activates instead ¨C you have transmutation type mana, if both activate you have pure mana. As long as he used only augmentation magic, no one would ever know he possessed pure mana. ¡°We could hide it, but¡­¡± She paused shortly. ¡°¡­all this soul binding business is meaningless if we can¡¯t be free to use the powers we¡¯ve gained.¡± Kiel wouldn¡¯t mind using only augmentation type magic for the rest of his life ¨C for a non-mage, being able to just use magic, any magic, was a blessing. However, he couldn¡¯t wholeheartedly disagree with her. Saying that he had no desire to be able to cast transmutation and arcane magic would be a lie. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s fine if people know that we have pure mana as long as they don¡¯t connect it with the Aetherneal bond.¡± She continued. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that family make the connection from the start?¡± Kiel frowned softly. ¡°No. Neither you nor I have a relation to them so the possibility of our power coming from Aetherneal Bond won¡¯t even cross their mind ¨C as long as there is a perfectly simple and logical explanation for it.¡± ¡°Which would be?¡± Kiel questioned. ¡°Mana purifying artifact.¡± She smirked. Mana purifying artifacts were ancient artifacts left behind by gods with the ability to purify mana. They were considered rare, but since they were indestructible, all noble families had managed to collect a few in the past millennia. In fact, the last time he checked, his family was in possession of 4 such artifacts. She had a point ¨C to outsiders it wouldn¡¯t be strange if a noble possessed such an artifact. The only ones that would question his possession of it would be his own family. Kiel laughed a quiet, bittersweet laugh. So that¡¯s why she chose him. A commoner in possession of such an artifact would be outrageous, a noble on the other hand ¨C not strange at all. Her calculation went even beyond that ¨C he was a noble that felt no loyalty towards his own family ¨C a person who could easily hide a secret which could bring much prosperity to his family for his own benefit, a person that would be ready to lie and deceive everyone ¨C for that¡¯s what he had been doing all his life. Everything had been a well thought out move! Elaru Wayvin might seem reckless and impulsive, but that was just a mask. Just like his own false persona, it was a mask hiding the calculating monster inside. Which means that she probably had a good reason to enact this bond without fully knowing of its effects. ¡°You make a very valid point. However, how do you suggest I explain all this to my family? If they believed me to have such an artifact they would surely take it away from me and give it someone else. As I mentioned, I don¡¯t hold a high position in my family.¡± Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched into a lopsided smile, her eyes twinkling mischievously. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°You just need to tell two different stories. One story for your family members, and the other for everyone else. To your family, you can say that your latent potential had finally awakened. Since every argel has the ability to activate the bond ¨C using pure mana is a latent potential. It just needs to be activated with the bond. That way even if they forced an oath of truth upon you, you could still claim it to be true.¡± Kiel raised his eyebrow. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of anyone¡¯s mana regeneration suddenly increasing out of the blue. That doesn¡¯t happen. My grandfather isn¡¯t that na?ve, even if I am under the oath of truth, he would still not believe it.¡± He sighed again in exasperation. He expected her to come up with something better. She smirked, the mischievous glint never leaving her eyes. ¡°He doesn¡¯t need to believe it to be the truth. What he needs to believe is that you don¡¯t know what happened. And if you tell him that your mana regeneration increased because you had awakened your latent potential, while under the oath of truth ¨C he will conclude you don¡¯t know the actual reason and leave you be.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. Of course! Feigning ignorance! That might work! He felt a single drop of sweat rolling down his neck. Elaru¡¯s ability to twist the truth was unsettling. She might have been manipulating him all along, twisting the facts, weaving a new version of the truth. ¡°I get it. I can do that. But I¡¯ll need a dummy artifact to make others believe it to be the source of my pure mana.¡± He mused softly, his eyes staring at her, his gaze strong, unwavering. ¡°Way ahead of you mate. I know just where to get one.¡± She barely resisted puffing up her chest in pride. Kiel looked at her suspiciously. ¡°Why?¡± Elaru looked at him in confusion. ¡°Why what?¡± ¡°Why would you get me such an artifact? Wouldn¡¯t it be simpler for you to just forbid me from using any magic besides augmentation? Why go through the trouble just so I can be free to use arcane and transmutation magic?¡± No matter how he looked at it, it didn¡¯t make any sense. Did she not trust him to be able to keep his pure mana a secret? Surely it wasn¡¯t because she actually wanted to help him out? She blinked at him, twice, before answering. ¡°What is simpler to get, a dummy artifact or an arcane contract forbidding you to use transmutation and arcane magic?¡± ¨C She paused briefly before answering her own question. ¨C ¡°The artifact is much simpler and cheaper to obtain.¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°Besides, it doesn¡¯t seem fair that I can use all three types of magic and you can¡¯t.¡± Kiel sighed in resignation. If she wanted to help him out, he wouldn¡¯t complain. ¡°How long will it take you to obtain such an artifact?¡± ¡°A few days. I can get it before the Ashar entrance exams start.¡± Kiel nodded in agreement. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s meet in front of the university an hour before the beginning of the exams. You can give me the artifact then.¡± The smile on Elaru¡¯s face froze for a few moments before it turned blank, her lips pressing into a line. Kiel thought she probably wanted to test out telepathy or similar effects of the bond. However, he had no intention to communicate with her; he just needed that artifact and her mana. After that, there was no need for him to see her again. It was time for them to go their separate ways. He had much to do ¨C he needed to pack and leave for Ashar to sign up for the exams. And she needed to hunt down a rather hard to find artifact. ¡°I am grateful for your help Elaru Wayvin.¡± Kiel squeezed out. It¡¯s better to leave things on good terms. She is not a person he would like to have as an enemy. And she could always change her mind and not get him that artifact. ¡°You¡¯ve already confirmed we can send memories to each other. I think it is safe to assume that this contract was a success and part our ways.¡± Her blank look disappeared replaced by a nervous laugh. A tense face looked strange on a confident person such as Elaru. ¡°Ah¡­I suppose you didn¡¯t really connect the dots huh?¡± She scratched her head grinning sheepishly. Hairs on Kiel¡¯s neck stood up in alarm. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°We are now soulbound. Our souls are literally glued to each other.¡± Kiel didn¡¯t like where this was going. ¡°Yes, I am aware of that. What is your point?¡± She swallowed before explaining. ¡°One soul can only be at one place at a time, and we effectively have one soul now. When we move away from each other, our soul switches place to be right between us. Farther apart we get from each other, farther apart we get from our soul. Farther apart from the soul we are, more the mana has to travel from the soul to our body and mind to sustain it.¡± Elaru paused briefly to catch a breath. ¡°The mark of the bond is a direct link to our soul and its main function is to continuously transfer the mana from the soul to our bodies. However, how much it can transfer depends on the growth level of the bond and the distance from the soul. If we pass a certain limit¡­¡± Elaru directed a meaningful look towards Kiel. Kiel froze. His lips quietly voiced out the continuation. ¡°¡­we get weaker and weaker to the point of feeling excruciating pain and ultimately death?¡± Elaru nodded. Of course. It made perfect sense. Mana was life itself. Both mind and body needed mana to stay alive. Mana deficiency leads to weakness, excruciating pain, and death. Why didn¡¯t this occur to him before?! How could he miss something so obvious?! The aura around Kiel changed, temperature dropping rapidly, his face twisted into a coldest glare he could muster. His heart was clenching, his fury boiling. ¡°Weakness? Excruciating pain? You told me there were no disadvantages to this bond! How is being glued to you like a Siamese twin not a disadvantage?!¡± She smiled apologetically. ¡°I thought this side effect was obvious! Besides, being with me isn¡¯t a drawback; we are going to the same place anyways.¡± Kiel¡¯s face kept darkening. Elaru quickly tried to salvage the situation. ¡°It is only a temporary disadvantage. Since we just established the bond, it¡¯s just in its initial phases and mana transferring function isn¡¯t powerful. Therefore, it¡¯s only able to transfer a small amount of mana from the soul to us directly, which limits the range we can be away from each other. As the level increases, its efficiency will increase as well, so eventually, we won¡¯t need to be near each other at all.¡± ¡°And what do we do until then?! How do we even raise the level?!¡± Kiel bit his tongue, preventing himself from a further anger outburst uncharacteristic for him. Elaru smiled and waved his hand at him dismissively. ¡°No problem, no problem. Like I said, we are going to the same place ¨C Ashar University of Magic, so being close enough isn¡¯t an issue! And surely by the time we both graduate our bond would have improved enough already!¡± She grinned. ¡°Just like I said, no disadvantage at all!¡± In all her life, Elaru Wayvin had never been so wrong. A noble non-mage chained by his own past, bound to a nameless tracker whose entire existence depended on the dense veil of countless secrets. It had been a foolish idea from the start. A dangerous, foolish idea, born out of desperation, put into action by unrealistic hope. Yet, neither the grinning Elaru nor fist and teeth clenching Kiel noticed how this single limitation would utterly twist their life. * * * Coming up in the next episode: He was going to have to put up with her for three years?! ¡°And what if one of us doesn¡¯t pass the entrance exam? What will we do after we graduate?!¡± Kiel¡¯s voice was trembling. He could barely keep his temper in check. ¡°Asif that would actually work?!?! Do you take me for an idiot?!?!¡± ¡°Beyd doesn¡¯t have a gate!! We can¡¯t get there in time!¡± Episode 10 - Fury In the previous Episode: As an effect of the Aetherneal bond, Kiel had been marked with the mark of the bond which looks like a tattoo similar to Elaru¡¯s markings. Elaru said that it would grow alongside Aetherneal bond which is an evolving spell. Elaru mentions that if the mark starts shrinking it would become dangerous however she is not clear on how dangerous. Kiel and Elaru discuss how to disguise the fact they are under the influence of Aetherneal bond while still reaping the benefits. Elaru crafts the story which Kiel will be selling to everyone about his abilities and promises to get him a dummy artifact. Kiel finds out another after effect of the bond ¨C they cannot be too far apart from each other. Episode 10 - Fury ¡°No problem, no problem. Like I said, we are going to the same place ¨C Ashar University of Magic, so being close enough isn¡¯t an issue! And surely by the time we both graduate our bond would have improved enough already!¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°Just like I said, no disadvantage at all!¡± An indeterminate amount of time passed in which neither moved or spoke. The picture could have looked like a painting if it weren¡¯t for the grass waving in the breeze. Kiel was fighting a battle within himself to calm down and not kill Elaru on the spot. His attempts finally seemed to have borne fruit when he noticed an additional problem: He was going to have to put up with her for three years?! Calm down, calm down. Kiel repeated to himself. There is no guarantee that what she is saying is the truth. Maybe they don¡¯t really need to be close at all. That sort of thing is easy to test. She did say that she doesn¡¯t know much about the bond. Maybe some of the things she knows are actually misconceptions? End even if it were the truth, if she indeed joins the university with him, he wouldn¡¯t necessarily need to hang around her, they would be close enough even if they avoided each other. Right? ¡°And what if one of us doesn¡¯t pass the entrance exam? What will we do after we graduate?!¡± Kiel¡¯s voice was slightly trembling. ¡°There¡¯s no way either of us would fail the exam. And as for what to do after we graduate, we have three years to solve the problem of physical limitations. That¡¯s plenty of time!¡± Kiel was still silently fuming. Repeating ¡°calm down¡± inside his head had little effect. She tricked him! ¡°You¡­you¡­¡± His words dripped with venom, the temperature around him continuing to plummet down, becoming icier than even his glare. Kiel struggled to find an appropriate word for her. It¡¯s not that he couldn¡¯t think of any, on the contrary, he thought of too many ¨C monster, demon, liar¡­countless insults easily rolled around his head. Elaru pouted. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°Do you think apologizing half-heartedly is going to make it all better?¡± Kiel hissed through his gritted teeth. ¡°What will make it better then? Would you feel better if you hurt me? Do you want me to take responsibility for it?¡± ¡°In fact, yes. Excellent idea!¡± Kiel¡¯s face contorted into an undisguisedly false smile. Elaru¡¯s grinning face experienced a sudden change ¨C her expression turned serious, even a bit cold. It surprised Kiel that she had a real poker face, it looked so similar to his own. He suddenly felt like he was looking in the mirror. It gave him an uncomfortable feeling. ¡°Alright. Then I should start taking responsibility by telling you the full truth, right?¡± She didn¡¯t wait for him to answer. ¡°I admit I omitted and¡­manipulated certain things. And I¡¯ll even explain how it works.¡± She pointed her index finger upwards as if saying ¡®listen carefully¡¯. ¡°The best way to trick someone is to cause them to trick themselves. Our minds constantly summarize the information we receive and extrapolate information to fill up the holes with context. So when I say ¡®I am called Elaru¡¯ you process it as ¡®Her name is Elaru¡¯ even though that is not what I said. I could have meant that some people call me Elaru but my name might have been something else. Well, this is just an example, my name really is Elaru. This trick works best if the person you are trying to fool knows that it is undoubtedly the truth ¨C such as, by you having signed an oath of truth. In such a situation, they won¡¯t put as much thought into what you are saying as they would have put otherwise. Because they know the oath prevents lying, they will believe you and not question deeply what you say. So if you want to trick them or manipulate them using the truth, you would do it by hiding information and by forming your statements in a way that the person you are trying to deceive reaches the wrong conclusion by themselves. If they reach a lie on their own, they will treat it as if it was the absolute truth. And after all is said and done, you can always get out of it by telling them it was all a big understanding. You should make full use of this method in the future if questioned about Aetherneal Bond or anything related to it.¡± Kiel could feel sweat rolling down the side of his face. This female was much more cunning than he had initially thought. She locked her eyes with his and said good-naturedly, with a straight face: ¡°Don¡¯t be mad. All of this is just a misunderstanding.¡± The frozen calm of Kiel¡¯s face was broken by the sudden widening of his eyes. He stared at her in disbelief. ¡°As if that would actually work?!?! Do you take me for an idiot?!?!¡± His words came out higher and louder than he intended. Maybe he would have believed it was a misunderstanding if she didn¡¯t explain her strategy a second ago. But since she did, her blatant implementation of the said strategy made all Kiel¡¯s attempts of stifling his anger instantly fail. The fury, like bubbling lava, melted through his mask and erupted forwards. The drops of his mana, flowing around the clearing, instantly became agitated and started whirling around chaotically, creating a tempest. Elaru looked straight into his livid eyes. Neither his fury nor the tempest of mana seemed to bother her. Her face didn¡¯t convey a clear message. Was she taunting him, or perhaps gloating about her own superiority? Was she warning him to not underestimate her? To not look down on her because of who she seems to be? ¡°Of course not. I wouldn¡¯t have wanted to become bound to an idiot. I¡¯ve known about the Aetherneal Bond for years. I have always wanted to do it, but I¡¯ve never found someone who I¡¯d want to do it with.¡± She dismissed his anger. Her mind was strong, but not like a steel wall ¨C shielding itself from the tempest and keeping it out ¨C no, her mind was like air ¨C just letting the tempest pass through. She could feel the emotional turmoil in its entirety, but it could not affect her. ¡°Since it is not something that can be undone, naturally you would want to choose a right mate to do it with. Especially if you actually become stuck to them!¡± Kiel reasoned, pushing the words forcefully, violently, between his teeth. Elaru nodded. ¡°I wanted to do it so bad, but I had no one to do it with. But then¡­suddenly¡­you appeared, presented to me on a silver platter.¡± She paused briefly. ¡°No, you didn¡¯t appear. Our meeting had nothing to do with luck. It is more like we met by divine guidance¡­¡± She puckered her lips, thinking hard about something. ¡°Stop with the bullshit already! I already told you I don¡¯t believe in fate.¡± Kiel was long past caring of who he was and who he tried to be. The profanities that he usually never voiced rolled off of his tongue easily. Elaru ignored him, her eyes glazed, as she wasn¡¯t even talking to him but herself. ¡°I watched you for a week trying to determine why we met. I still have no idea.¡± Kiel looked at her disbelievingly and said slowly, dragging out each word as if he was talking to an idiot. ¡°We met because we were coincidentally at the same time and place. That¡¯s what happens when two people are at the same time and place ¨C they meet.¡± Elaru continued as if she didn¡¯t hear him. ¡°But I am out of time; I can¡¯t just idle around and watch you, hoping that I would suddenly get enlightened about it. So since I can¡¯t stay here with you, I just have to bring you with me.¡± Her eyes cleared, and she looked at him again. ¡°But how could I bring you with me into the Ashar University of Magic? The only way is if you enrolled too.¡± What did she think he was? An interesting specimen she wanted to study? What¡¯s up with this strange turn of events? What divine guidance?! Why is she so desperate to believe in fate? Kiel felt a headache coming. The more she talked, the less he understood. ¡°And how could I make you capable enough to enroll?¡±Elaru smiled. ¡°Aetherneal bond. That¡¯s when it hit me. Maybe that¡¯s what I was supposed to do all along!¡± Her eyes glittered. ¡°So I took a chance. Both of us had little to lose. I noticed you were taking it too lightly. I could have told you this from the start. But if I did, you wouldn¡¯t have done it with me. So, of course, I chose not to.¡± She admitted, giving him a look as if it was his fault for getting tricked. ¡°Of course, I would have said no! Who in their right mind would have said yes?!¡± Kiel felt the need to defend his point of view. ¡°What happened to honesty, integrity, freedom of choice?! Do you not feel a shred of guilt?!¡± Kiel was about ready to explode. Regardless of her answer, it wouldn¡¯t change how he felt. So why did he even ask? The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Elaru stared right through his eyes to his soul. Her gaze wasn¡¯t mocking; it was solemn. But he still felt as if she was telling him ¡°Don¡¯t you feel ashamed speaking about honesty and integrity with how you deceive the entire world every day?¡± He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white. He had no right to speak of such things. ¡°What is the purpose of guilt? I live my life without regrets. Sure, it would have been ideal if I didn¡¯t need to trick you. But why would I let feelings cloud my judgment? I made the logical ¨C the optimal decision. And since it brought me the wanted outcome, I don¡¯t regret it.¡± Kiel understood what she meant. In her position, he would have done the same. Logic over emotion. Why risk failing your goal for something as irrelevant as feelings? But even though rationally her actions made sense, even though he would have done the same, when he was in the receiving end, it wasn¡¯t as easy to accept, forgive or dismiss. He wasn¡¯t even sure if the hate rocking his body came because of what she had done, or what he was doing every day. Did he hate her, or did he hate himself? The self-reflecting thoughts did nothing to stifle his fury, on the contrary, it was as though the magnitude of his rage had surpassed that which he could express. His face lost every trace of expression, replaced with bone-chilling apathy. The more furious he became, the calmer he seemed. ¡°I have nothing to do with you and your ¡®fate¡¯. We are completely separate! And should stay that way. Don¡¯t talk to me, don¡¯t even stand near me. Since you like watching me from the distance so much, I suggest you do that.¡± Kiel spoke his final words and turned around to leave. It would be better if he left, before he did something stupid. Like murdering her. ¡°Ouch!¡± Elaru said in mock hurt her hand over her heart. He could tell she was rolling her eyes even though he couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°My ¡®fate¡¯ is now your ¡®fate¡¯, mate.¡± She emphasized the word mate; she was clearly referring to the fact that they were now soulbound. He could even hear her trying to stifle a giggle. She found it amusing that her statement rhymed. How bloody insensitive!! Kiel continued stalking off. The plants seemed to turn away from him. As if trying to stay out of his path. If plants had legs, they would have run away like every other creature previously dwelling near the clearing. Elaru watched him walk off for a bit before she started following behind him. She attempted a different approach. ¡°Oy oy! Don¡¯t be so mad. So what if we are temporarily stuck together? So what if I had questionable motives for choosing you as my mate? The situation is now different. Since we are now stuck for life, we are practically family!¡± ¡°Fantastic.¡± Kiel said sarcastically. ¡°That explains why I can¡¯t stand you. Take a page from my father¡¯s book and take good care of me by staying as far away as you can.¡± ¡°Ah, right. You don¡¯t get along with your relatives.¡± Elaru mumbled. ¡°Family is a wrong comparison. I don¡¯t get along with my relatives either. In fact, most of them don¡¯t even know we are related. That was a totally wrong comparison! It¡¯s more like¡­like¡­¡± She tried her best to find the right words. She snapped her fingers. ¡°Ah! It¡¯s like marriage.¡± Kiel almost fell when he heard it, but he quickly regained his balance. ¡°For the love of Origin, please don¡¯t compare it to marriage!¡± He hissed. Elaru frowned. ¡°You¡¯re right; marriage can be dissolved while we are stuck for life¡­¡± Kiel almost facepalmed himself. ¡°No¡­that isn¡¯t the point¡­¡± Elaru nodded obliviously. ¡°Right, the point is that now you are one of the most important people in my life. And I take good care of people important to me. So how about we let the bygones be bygones and restart this relationship?¡± ¡°There. Is. No. Relationship.¡± Kiel growled out, wishing he could strangle her. ¡°Then let¡¯s start one.¡± ¡°No. Let¡¯s not.¡± Surprisingly, Elaru stopped following him. She sighed in exasperation and looked up to the sun. Unfortunately, Kiel didn¡¯t get the time to bask in the small victory, because, Elaru being Elaru, decided upon this exact moment to add oil to the dying fire: ¡°Are you going to continue sulking or are we going to Ashar? You know, the deadline for applying for university exams is today.¡± The city of Ashar was a two days flight from Beyd. There was not a direct Gate from Beyd to Ashar (Gates were arcane mechanisms used for teleportation over large distances). Only major cities had Gates and Beyd was just a small country town. There was no way they could make it in time! ¡°I¡¯ve already applied for the exams, but I guess you haven¡¯t yet, huh?¡± Kiel froze in his steps. ¡°Are you telling the truth?¡± ¡°Of course. I can no longer lie to you. Our minds are connected now; you¡¯d be able to tell if I was lying.¡± ¡°Lie to me.¡± Kiel blurted out. She grinned. ¡°My favorite color is pink.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in shock. He could clearly tell it was a lie! Not because of how she said it, or even what she said. He felt deep within him with 100% clarity that that was a lie. He had never been sure of something with that much certainly before. It was staggering. ¡°Again!¡± ¡°I am actually an intelligence agent.¡± Lie. So clear. It was so clear! So she really can¡¯t lie to him? So previously¡­when his ¡®lie sense¡¯ wasn¡¯t tingling¡­ Kiel¡¯s hands shook, the dying fire exploded into an inferno in a blink of an eye. Elaru didn¡¯t seem to notice because she continued: ¡°Do you want to stop by your mansion to pack before we go to Ashar?¡± Kiel turned around and spat out: ¡°Are you deliberately trying to piss me off?! Is this your twisted sense of humor?! Are you enjoying this?!¡± Elaru was startled by the sudden reappearance of his fury. She had thought he had managed to calm down a bit. She tilted her head in confusion. ¡°What? No. What?¡± ¡°Beyd doesn¡¯t have a Gate!! We can¡¯t get there in time anyway!¡± Kiel jeered menacingly. The realization flickered on her face before it was replaced by a beautiful smile. ¡°Who said we need a Gate?¡± Before Kiel could retort with a snide remark, she reached into her backpack and pulled out a hexagonal purple crystal the size of a baton stick. An Eternal Beacon. Beacons were artifacts that could be used to create a dimensional rift to teleport the user to their sister Gate; regardless of where the user was in the world. The Beacons were made out of the Gate itself, so they were a limited and expensive method of transportation. Periodically, the Association of Magic would scrape some dust from the Gate and use it to create small Beacons in a form of a white or transparent glass-like crystal which would melt and crumble after a single use. However, the Beacon that Elaru was holding was a deep purple color. Kiel recognized it immediately as an Eternal Beacon. So rare and expensive that there were less than a thousand of them in existence. Unlike a regular Beacon, an Eternal Beacon could be used an unlimited number of times. Where would she get such a rare and expensive artifact?! She recognized the disbelief on Kiel¡¯s face. ¡°Who do you take me for? Geez! Ashar is known as a city of quests! Quest Lodge headquarters are in Ashar! Why do you look so surprised? What kind of quest seeker would I be without one of these?¡± She smiled a brilliant smile. ¡°A normal one.¡± Kiel responded bluntly. ¡°I don¡¯t do normal.¡± Elaru smirked. And just like that, Kiel was struggling to stay mad at her. His rekindled anger deflated like hot air escaping from a balloon. His face didn¡¯t experience much change in expression, but now it felt much less cold. His aura stabilized. He tried so hard to hate her, but she was so hard to hate. He felt like he was trying to stay mad at a naughty child. Even though she was cunning, devious, and selfish, there was an inexplicable charm to it. The charm didn¡¯t originate from her beauty, in that Kiel was sure. He had seen many beautiful women before, and none of them had left him with such a deep impression. Was it the charisma oozing out of her mana? Was it the perfect combination of many traits that coalesced into ¡®charm¡¯? Or¡­ Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, thinking of another possibility. ¡°Does the bond influence emotions?¡± * * * Coming up in the next episode: His eyes narrowed slightly as a battle plan flashed inside his head. Two can play that game. ¡°Could it be that you find me attractive?¡± He asked with a soft knowing smile. But she couldn¡¯t just sleep. She had a mission she had to accomplish no matter what. He would definitely come to see her soon. Episode 11 - Setting Off In the previous Episode: Elaru explains how she manipulated Kiel into becoming her partner and makes him furious. She tells him she can no longer lie to him because their minds are now connected, and he would be able to tell if she was lying. Elaru reveals that today is the last day people can sign up for Ashar university entrance exams. Kiel is worried they won¡¯t make it in time, but Elaru pulls out an Eternal Beacon, which will allow them to teleport to Ashar. Episode 11 - Setting Off ¡°Does the bond influence feelings?¡± Kiel dreaded the answer. Elaru smirked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Your adoration and love for me are all your own.¡± He gave her an icy glare, but she just smiled innocently. Kiel exhaled slowly. His anger had mostly evaporated and he should keep it that way. He should get used to her antics and learn to deal with it. After, all, they were stuck together for the time being. He had no choice. She seemed to enjoy teasing him. Teasing wasn¡¯t something he was used to, however, he was very much prepared to handle it. He was Kiel Rroda! Quick wit was his middle name. If he couldn¡¯t handle it, who could? His eyes narrowed slightly as a battle plan flashed inside his head. Two can play that game! ¡°Adoration and love? You seem to be projecting your own hidden desires onto me. Could it be that you find me attractive?¡± He asked with a soft knowing smile. It was impossible not to find him appealing. So he already knew the answer to that question. And he had prepared an appropriate response regardless of what she said. If she said ¡®no¡¯, he would tell her that she can¡¯t lie to him because of the bond. Then he would continue teasing her asking ¡°Why lie? Are you embarrassed?¡± If she said ¡®yes¡¯, he would continue to tease her with: ¡°I see. So you show your affection by teasing the people you like. I had no idea you liked me that much.¡± If she refused to respond he would tease her with ¡°Why are you silent? Can¡¯t admit your attraction to me?¡± Ideally, she would blush, which would give him more ammunition. In any case, in future conversations, he could use her attraction to him as ammo. However, her reaction was, again, not something he predicted. At first, she was surprised at his question. Then she looked at him. Really looked at him, inspecting him head to toe. Then she walked up to him, closer, too close, and examined his face. This was the point where Kiel regretted asking that question, and his regret only deepened when she smiled and bluntly stated: ¡°Yeah. You¡¯re really pretty! You have a face that would make girls feel jealous!¡± Her response devoid of any intentional teasing stabbed Kiel right where it hurt. If she weren¡¯t sincere, it wouldn¡¯t have been an insult but rather just her teasing him. But since her words were earnest it turned into an insult by truth! Critical hit! Kiel had an undoubtedly male figure with well-defined muscles; he was in no way scrawny or female looking. His body was toned just the right amount, neither skinny nor bulky. It resembled a slim, graceful body of a feline (male feline!) rather than a body of a warrior. The problem was his face. Kiel had one of those rare faces with refined and beautiful facial features, even more pronounced by his thick black eyelashes, full lips, and shiny, silky hair. It was very popular with females, but jealous males would give him a title of ¡°pretty boy¡±. While his face couldn¡¯t be mistaken for a girl¡¯s at this point, back when he was little, adults often mistook him for a girl, later excusing their own mistake by saying he was too pretty for a boy. Which is why this unexpected hit hurt even more. Kiel never managed to get over it, just like most things, he buried and ignored it. ¡°Are you trying to pick a fight!?¡± And just like that, his mask evaporated without a trace. It was harder and harder to act in front of her. Harder and harder to keep calm. She knew exactly how to push his buttons. ¡°No, no! It was a compliment!¡± She defended herself confused at his fiery reaction. She really did mean it as a compliment. ¡°In which world is that a compliment!?¡± Kiel barred his teeth at her, glaring down at her ferociously. ¡°All worlds! It is the highest kind of compliment! You have one of those rare pretty faces that could even pass off as a girl¡¯s with a bit of makeup!¡± She suddenly realized that didn¡¯t come out right and attempted to correct herself. ¡°Not that I think that you look like a female! You are undoubtedly male! It¡¯s just that you have that prettiness about you. You know what I mean?¡± ¡°Stop. Talking.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched in annoyance. Elaru opened her mouth to continue, ignoring the red lights going off. ¡°Don¡¯t be mad! I¡¯m not insulting you; your beauty is a good thing! Women love those types of faces! You¡¯re a female magnet, aren¡¯t you?¡± She was about to continue talking before Kiel clasped his hand over her mouth. At this moment, he completely forgot how he disliked physical contact with others. ¡°Just¡­for the love of Origin¡­stop talking¡­before I end up killing you¡­¡± Elaru stopped talking and a few seconds of silence passed. Kiel watched Elaru closely, trying to determine if it was safe to remove his hand. ¡°You¡¯re pretty sensitive about your face, huh?¡± Kiel could hear Elaru¡¯s voice clearly, but he didn¡¯t feel her mouth move under his hand. Telepathy. That¡¯s right¡­he had no way to shut her up¡­he was doomed¡­ Kiel frowned and removed his hand. It was pointless, if she didn¡¯t voice her thoughts out loud, she would just enter his head. Elaru chuckled at the doom written all over his face. ¡°Personally, I don¡¯t care how you look like. Physical appearance is a fickle illusion that can easily be changed by magic.¡± That isn¡¯t a bad idea. Kiel thought. He should learn light magic which would allow him to alter the appearance of his face. It would be great if he didn¡¯t attract so much unwanted attention. ¡°But if it makes you feel better, yes, I think you are very attractive. So don¡¯t be so sensitive about it. If you hate people being attracted to you or jealous of you because of your appearance, just give them a taste of your cold and scary personality! Throw one of your signature icy glares and no one will bother you, male or female!¡± Kiel threw her his signature icy glare as a response. ¡°Cold and scary personality, eh? Are you incompetent of complimenting someone without insulting them?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the one! Perfect! Just like that!¡± She gave his glare a thumbs up. ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem to be working.¡± Kiel growled. Elaru chuckled musically. It was such a pleasant sound. It was as though at that moment all the birds in the forest stopped their chirping to listen. Kiel sighed in resignation, his initial intent long forgotten. How troubling. This woman is too difficult to deal with. * * * ?Meanwhile in the Purge Headquarters ? Nelaira got up from the poor excuse of a bed made out of a single pillow, a blanket, and a futon. She stretched her limbs, trying to ignore the pain racking her whole body. She briefly looked at her own reflection on the cold metal floor. She looked just as bad as she felt. She didn¡¯t feel like doing anything. She felt too weak to do anything besides sleep. And yet, no matter how much she slept, she never felt rested. But she couldn¡¯t just sleep. She had a mission she had to accomplish no matter what. Nelaira slowly walked up to the locked metal doors, which were the only way in and out of the metal box. Every step was harder than the last. When she reached the door she coughed painfully a few times; she felt the air scraping her dry throat like a grater. She felt lucky that her blood no longer flowed otherwise she would have spewed it all over herself. She raised her hand and knocked on the door as hard as she could. Her fists felt numb, and she didn¡¯t know whether it was because she knocked hard, or because she was too weak. Dull thuds resonated in the air. They weren¡¯t as loud as she intended them to be. There was no response. Nelaira rolled her eyes and then winced, regretting the movement. She might not have been able to use her magic, but her presence sensing capabilities were just fine. ¡°I know you are out there.¡± She was surprised by the raspiness of her own voice. Her long ears twitched painfully because of the unpleasant sound. She licked her cracked lips hoping that moisture would make her voice sound less grating on the ears. She didn¡¯t need to wait for long before an exasperated, deep voice responded: ¡°What do you want?¡± She went straight to the point. ¡°I want to talk to your manager.¡± ¡°What gives you the qualifications to talk to the manager? Should I bother him every time someone wants to see him?¡± The voice responded in a mocking tone. Nelaira turned her back to the door and rested against it. ¡°What gives me the qualifications is the fact that I am the only one in this shithole with a personal bodyguard. Now, why would a dying person need a bodyguard?¡± The person snorted. ¡°I am not your bodyguard.¡± Nelaira smiled. ¡°I know exactly who you are and why you are stationed here. My point is, if I didn¡¯t hold importance to the manager, he wouldn¡¯t have assigned you to keep watch over me. Would he?¡± The man didn¡¯t respond. Nelaira waited a while before continuing. ¡°Hey, it is your loss. I wanted to propose a time sensitive deal to your manager which would be of great benefit to him. He¡¯ll get word of it sooner or later. But if he hears of it too late, will you be able to take the responsibility for not notifying him of it?¡± She did her best to sound persuasive. ¡°Shut up.¡± The man growled. Nelaira didn¡¯t speak more. A small smirk sneaked onto her face. He would definitely come to see her soon. * * * ? Beyd ? If Kiel was to go to Ashar, he needed to pack. Not just for his trip to the exams, but also, he needed to prepare everything he would need for his stay in the Ashar university dorms. He had no doubt that he would pass the exam ¨C now that he had enough mana at his disposal. Kiel decided to not waste any more time and took Elaru with him to his mansion. He initially wanted to leave her in the forest to wait for him, but he didn¡¯t know the distance limit that their bond could currently handle. And he didn¡¯t think he had enough time to test it. The exams were of utmost priority. Kiel and Elaru approached the mansion through the forest and then entered through the back gate. That way no one would have seen them together except the servants. Rroda mansion was a large, two stories high building made out of the same orange canyon rock as the houses in the upper Beyd. Many Mana Wyrms in all kind of poses were carved out in the frames of windows, doors and fences, giving them an irregular shape. The rock the house was made out of was carefully chosen to have an eye pleasing variations in color, which were manipulated by transmutation magic to create beautiful shapes that truly resembled real Mana Wyrms. Everywhere on the walls, hundreds of wyrms were depicted slithering and dancing in perfect harmony with green vines, which grew from the roof, down the sides of the mansion. The green-orange contrast made both the leaves and the orange wyrms stand out even more. Mana Wyrms were ethereal, translucent creatures that glowed in the dark. They came in soft pastel colors, usually shades of blue and purple. Mana Wyrms had a small head that somewhat resembled a head of a small dragon, and a long tail that looked like it was made out of a silken sheet or drape. Not only did it resemble silk in appearance and behavior but also to the touch. They slithered through the air, drawn to places or creatures with abundant mana. Because of their ethereal nature, they could not be damaged by physical objects, and to make matters worse, using magic around them was difficult because they would absorb the mana powering the spells. Mana Wyrm was an animal representing the Rroda family ¨C it was on their flag and crest. Thousands of years ago, when they were first established, choosing a Mana Wyrm as their animal was supposed to speak of their tenacity, grace, and refinement that brings them above all rest. However, currently, Kiel found it quite ironic that his family¡¯s signature animal was a mana leech ¨C because that is precisely what he was now ¨C a wyrm feeding on Elaru¡¯s mana. The mansion was undoubtedly beautiful, and it was clear that family it belonged to had noble blood running through their veins. Elaru examined it with interest, but her face contained no awe which most commoners would have expressed had they seen the exquisite mansion. * * * Dneth [de-neh], born and raised in Beyd as a servant in the Rroda mansion, had never left Beyd in all 63 years of her life. She had been in charge of house chores even before master Kiel first arrived at the mansion, more than a decade ago. And in all of those years, master Kiel had never given her such a huge surprise as on this day. She didn¡¯t expect master Kiel to come home in the early afternoon. It was a regular working day, so he was supposed to be out questing until evening. If he came home early, it wouldn¡¯t have given her such a shock. It wasn¡¯t hard to accept; it happened from time to time. What she did have trouble accepting was that he didn¡¯t return home alone. Though he had many friends, master Kiel had never brought a friend home with him. Dneth felt as if master Kiel never truly thought of this mansion as his home in the first place. Dneth wasn¡¯t sure if master Kiel was able to recognize the fact, but she always thought that he was very lonely. The fact that he didn¡¯t want to have an emotional connection to this place, didn¡¯t mean he didn¡¯t need one. It was because she knew how master Kiel was purposefully distancing himself from everything, that she was so shocked to see master Kiel return with a guest. And what shocked her even more, was the gender of the guest. Although master Kiel was very popular with the ladies, there had never been a lady to catch his eye. So naturally, he had never brought a lady home before. Until now. The fourth surprise, that made Dneth almost knock down the vase from the table she was standing next to, was the appearance of the girl. She was an elibu! Dneth had only ever seen pictures of elibu in books. She had never seen one in person, or from this close up. Dneth had to urge herself, repeatedly, to look away from the girl. It was impolite to stare. But how could she not stare? The girl was an exotic beauty with lush curves, messy red hair, and intricate markings on the left side of her body. Several noble ladies had visited this mansion before. They were beautiful too, but using the same word to describe this girl seemed like sacrilege. Was this girl a noble? Dneth¡¯s eyes narrowed into scrutinizing gaze. The girl looked to be in a good mood, humming quietly, and following gracefully behind master Kiel. Her movements had a certain refinement to them, not like what Dneth was used to seeing from nobles coming to the mansion. It was different. There was a certain air about it Dneth couldn¡¯t quite define. The air carried power, but not frightening or cold power, but rather something strangely warm and alive. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.Dneth could understand why master Kiel would like this strange person. Men liked exotic and unique things, not to mention she was a living piece of art. She gave master Kiel a quick knowing look and noticed he looked messier than usual. Strangely, even though ruffled, he seemed even more enchanting than usual. It was as if he returned more beautiful than he was when he left this morning. Realization dawned on her. Both master Kiel and his lady friend looked a bit ruffled. As if they had been rolling on the forest floor. Dneth bit her lip to suppress her surprised gasp. Were they rolling on the forest floor together?! She didn¡¯t seem to be the only one that reached that conclusion because she could see the maid opposite of her blushing feverishly. So it really was true that people looked more beautiful while in love?! Master Kiel smiled politely and nodded at Dneth in greeting. He didn¡¯t make small chatter nor elaborate who the lady trailing behind him was. He had no need to explain himself to his servants. Dneth pondered whether she should ask him if he needed something, or if his companion needed something. Her gaze landed back to the two, and her thought process was suddenly interrupted. As she watched the two walking away, she felt as if she was watching a divine painting. There was something ethereal about them. True ¨C both were creatures of extreme beauty that would draw attention wherever they went. But looking at them together, it was as if they enhanced each other¡¯s beauty even further. Dneth could feel her hair standing on end. It was uncanny. And that¡¯s when the fifth surprise hit her, making her hands reflexively clutch at her heart ¨C Master Kiel took the girl upstairs, to his bedchamber. Were they going to his bedchamber to finish what they started on the forest floor?! Dneth wasn¡¯t the only servant baffled by the turn of events. Younger and older, females and males alike, turned their heads and dropped their jaws in surprise as their eyes passed over master Kiel. None of them made a sound, but they didn¡¯t need to, for the questions plaguing their minds were showing clearly on their faces. Dneth glared at two younger male servants who seemed to be staring at master Kiel¡¯s guest inappropriately. Their ears reddened and they scattered back to work. Other female servants avoided her eyes, pretending not to be interested in master Kiel and his guest, although the blush on their cheeks spoke otherwise. Dneth waited a short while, before discretely moving towards master Kiel¡¯s bedchamber. She needed to be nearby if master needed her. Or at least, that¡¯s what she told herself. She was actually worried about master Kiel. This turn of events might impact master Kiel¡¯s reputation! Servants will no doubt gossip about this for a long time. She turned her head left and right, noticing other servants nonchalantly following her, as if her movement towards master Kiel¡¯s room gave them permission to join her. They evidently wanted to douse their curiosity. Dneth was about to shoo them away when she was interrupted by the noise coming from master Kiel¡¯s bedchamber. The exotic lady was speaking to master Kiel in an enthusiastic, warm voice: ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to do it, I¡¯ll do it!¡± Dneth gaped like a fish, looking towards young maid on the right in shock; her ears had already turned red from embarrassment so they could only get redder as young master responded with: ¡°I can take care of my personal hygiene just fine on my own, thank you very much!¡± He seemed to be flustered, not emotion often heard in his voice, which made the entire situation look even more¡­unique¡­ ¡°No need to feel shy, just let me do it!¡± The girl whined. Dneth covered her gaping mouth shut with both of her hands in horror. The shock she was getting made it hard for her to catch her breath. ¡°Hands off! I do not want or require your help!¡± Master Kiel responded annoyed. Hands off?! That was the last surprise Dneth got that day, and it was more than her old heart could handle. Her eyes rolled back, and she fell towards the second female servant making her stumble back into the third. Their robes tangled and the row of servants fell like dominoes. The noise startled all of them and they quickly scattered, two male servants quickly reacting, grabbing Dneth by her arms and dragging her away from the premises along with the remaining half a dozen servants. They made a ¡°just in time¡± escape because no second later had the door to the master Kiel¡¯s chamber opened. * * * ? 15 minutes prior ? Even though Kiel had entered the mansion through the back, several servants were already waiting for him. They bowed and greeted Kiel respectfully though none of them could hide their surprise of him bringing an elibu home. Kiel briefly wondered whether he should leave Elaru to wait for him in the foyer. He decided not to; he had no idea what trouble she might get herself in without him to keep an eye on her. He didn¡¯t trust her one bit. Sourly, he decided he had no choice but to take her with him to his bedroom. Kiel¡¯s bedroom was large and relatively luxurious, with a large bed and a private bathroom. All of the furniture and decorations were expensive and pleasing to the eye. The room had soft gray and blue colors as the theme, which did nothing to lessen the feeling of emptiness and coldness. The room was too clean and tidy, as if no one was living in it. There weren¡¯t any pictures, notes, mementos or any other personal items out in the open. Elaru frowned. This wasn¡¯t a home. She briefly glanced at Kiel, from the corner of her eyes, but said nothing. Isn¡¯t this¡­too sad? To have such a beautiful home yet not treat it like home. Kiel¡¯s room felt even less personal than a hotel room. It was glaringly clear how he never considered this place as his home. While Kiel was quickly packing, Elaru¡¯s eyes glazed. Was it worse to not have a home, or to have one but not feel at home? She spent her whole life traveling from one place to another. She never owned a house or a place she could call her own. No place to call home. Yet, she never felt homeless. She never thought about the significance of having a home. Her eyes glanced towards Kiel again. No. It isn¡¯t that she had no place to call home, it is that she felt as if the whole world was her home. The open sky, the soft grass, the sand dunes, the cold cliffs, the noisy streets ¨C it all felt like home. But if every place feels like home, could it be that she has no idea what a home feels like? What is a home? Elaru wondered. A home¡­is where you feel happy, content, relaxed, safe. Elaru¡¯s eyes lit up, the haze that had previously covered them vanished without a trace. A home doesn¡¯t need to be a place. A home can also be a person! A head full of blonde hair with several black locks flashed in her mind, followed by a head full of unruly red hair, just like her own. She unconsciously smiled. That¡¯s right. I do have a home! She looked back at Kiel, determination entering her eyes. If he doesn¡¯t have a home, then I¡¯ll be his home! It didn¡¯t take Kiel long to finish packing. He didn¡¯t have any items which he held dear, so he packed only the necessities. He filled a large bag with things he will need to move into the university dorms. He would tell his servants to send him this bag later. The most important of items he put into the little bags on his belt. After he was done, he turned around and glanced at Elaru. She was giving him a rather strange look. What is with that look? He didn¡¯t know why but he felt his hair stand on end. She didn¡¯t get any bizarre ideas, did she? Kiel shook his head and discarded the thought. He didn¡¯t want to know what strange thoughts were flying around her head. Right now, there was one last thing he wanted to do. Shower. Elaru looked at him like he grew two heads when he declared he was taking a shower. Kiel raised an eyebrow at her. ¡°What?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have time for you to shower! Why not just cast a Cleansing spell?¡± He glared at her. Firstly, Cleansing was a transmutation spell, and he was an argel ¨C he could never cast transmutation spells, and naturally he had never learned them. Secondly, even if he could have cast it, back then, he didn¡¯t have enough mana. Though, both points were invalid right now. So the actual reason why he never considered it was because he wasn¡¯t used to that way of thinking ¨C using magic to do everything. And because, well, he didn¡¯t want to admit he had no idea how to do it. Elaru quickly caught on to his underlying reason. ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to do it, I¡¯ll do it!¡± She approached him, grabbing the front of his shirt with her hands. ¡°I can take care of my personal hygiene just fine on my own, thank you very much!¡± Kiel slapped her hands away and stepped back. He disliked people touching him. ¡°No need to feel shy, just let me do it!¡± Elaru grabbed him by his shoulder. ¡°Hands off! I do not want or require your help!¡± He shrugged her hand away. Their bickering was interrupted by a thud outside of Kiel¡¯s door. As he approached the door, he could hear the sound of frantic footsteps running away. When he opened the door, no one was there. He closed the door, annoyed by the interruption. Elaru snickered. ¡°Your servants are funny. Do you bring girls to your bedroom often?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t dignify that with a response. He thought she might make fun of him if she knew the truth. He had never been interested in¡­relationships. It took his mind a second to process what happened outside the door. It was something that Elaru could see because of her Aethernea, but regretfully, he couldn¡¯t. When his mind connected the dots, he covered his eyes with his hand, vexed by the stupidity of his servants. What the hell did they think Elaru and him were doing?! He hated how noisy his servants were, always gossiping and butting in his privacy. He sighed in annoyance. He just hoped this incident doesn¡¯t reach his grandfather¡¯s ears. Suddenly he didn¡¯t feel like taking a shower. He wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible. He couldn¡¯t wait anymore. It was finally the time for him to spread his wings and leave for the big city. It was finally the time for his life to begin. For what he had been living up to now couldn¡¯t really be called a life. Kiel hesitated briefly before putting down his Mage Armor. Mage Armor wasn¡¯t a spell; it was a layer of dense mana surrounding the mage. Its main purpose was to shield the mage from foreign spells. If another mage wanted to cast a spell on him, they would have to bring their mana inside Kiel¡¯s body. And that task would become very difficult if that mana had to pass through a dense layer of Kiel¡¯s mana. It would be as if a gust of air was trying to reach the bottom of a sea. Mage Armor was the difference between a mage and a regular person. Only when a person can hold up their Mage Armor for the majority of the day would they be considered a mage. Although this distinction seemed insignificant, that wasn¡¯t the case. Most of the basic spells had the capability to mortally wound someone. For example, the simplest Augmentation spell ¨C Accelerate, could be used to make a person slam hard into a stone wall, or raise them high up in the air and drop them to their demise. That simple layer of mana was the difference between life and death. ¡°Fine. Make it quick.¡± Kiel sighed in resignation. He wasn¡¯t worried Elaru would harm him. She wouldn¡¯t have gone through the trouble of binding her soul to his if she wanted him dead. Elaru grinned and walked up to him. She extended her right arm and touched his chest with the tips of her fingers. She seemed to have a habit of touching things she was casting magic on, even though it would be just as easy to cast it from a distance, without physical contact. Suddenly Kiel felt like he was standing naked in a soft breeze. It was warm yet surprisingly refreshing. He could feel little drops of mana capturing every particle of dirt on his skin and clothes, and then slowly, sliding away from him, bringing the grime along. It was a pleasant feeling, like hundreds of little air kisses smothering his skin. Kiel had heard Cleansing could feel grating in cases of an inexperienced caster, leaving skin raw and red. He had expected Elaru to pull something like that on him and call him a ¡®wuss¡¯ if he complained. But instead, her spell was perfectly gentle and very effective. She must have done it countless times to have such an exceptional degree of control of a level 5 spell such as Cleansing. He doubted she was taking extra care to be gentle with him. Kiel liked being showered by her mana. It was such a pleasant, uplifting feeling. He would never admit it to her, but he didn¡¯t want to learn that spell so he¡¯d have an excuse to make her do it. It wasn¡¯t just that the spell itself felt pleasant, the large part of the pleasant feeling came from the direct contact with her mana. Since it was very warm and comforting, it made Kiel feel content. It was already afternoon. They needed to hurry before the exam entries closed. ¡°Are you ready to leave?¡± Elaru asked him to confirm it. Kiel nodded and extended his hand. He needed to be in physical contact with her to be brought along when she used the Beacon. And both of them needed to be in the air. Otherwise, the spell would attempt to bring the ground along with them. She looked at his hand like she saw a strange, wondrous creature. Then she looked back up to him. ¡°What is it?¡± He asked annoyed. ¡°Is that how you people teleport? By holding hands?¡± ¡°And how else would we teleport!?¡± He growled. She took every opportunity to annoy him! ¡°Why don¡¯t you just grab onto the beacon?¡± Kiel was speechless. The thought had not occurred to him. He stood there like a statue, his hand in the air, his mind trying to come up with an appropriate response. Elaru laughed a lovely musical laugh and took his hand in hers. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll do it your way then. It doesn¡¯t really matter.¡± Her hand was soft and warm. Before he could respond, she Accelerated upwards from the balcony taking him with her. As soon as his feet left the ground, she twirled the beacon in her hand. It activated when her mana entered it and blinded them with a quick and bright purple flash. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Ashar University of Magic. Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. That was his destination. That was his future home. Elaru laughed, dismissing his unvoiced concerns easily. ¡°Kiel, you worry too much!¡± ¡°And you worry too little.¡± He glared at her halfheartedly. Kiel¡¯s soft glare turned into a real one. ¡°As if I would catch you! You can go and die for all I care! That would free me from this mess.¡± ¡°Let go of me, woman!¡± Kiel frowned in displeasure. ¡°I can tell you are lying! Is our impending demise a joke to you?¡± Episode 12 - Sign-ups I''ve received feedback of readers who think that pictures in line with the text and the pronunciation guide are too distracting and should be removed. If you agree, please let me know so I can decide whether to keep the pronunciation and images or include them at the end of the chapter. In the previous Episode: Servants of the Rroda mansion are shocked that Kiel brought a girl home and misunderstood their relationship. Kiel finishes packing. Elaru casts a Cleansing spell on him to avoid him having to take a shower. She Accelerates into the air and activates the Eternal Beacon to teleport them to Ashar. Episode 12 - Sign Ups A moment later, Kiel and Elaru landed back to the ground gracefully. However, the ground they landed back on was not the same land from which they jumped. They were standing on a large circular podium made out of black jade upon. Countless symbols were carved on it, and the carvings were filled with a glowing ink. The podium was large enough to fit several houses. It made one feel insignificant. From the edges of the podium, spread a sea of purple crystals. Layers upon layers of crystal formations grew around the podium. It was a gorgeous sight, full of flickering and reflecting lights. Each time someone new appeared out of thin air, the magical carvings on the floor would light up briefly as if welcoming the travelers back home. Elaru was quick to put her beacon back into her bag before she tugged on Kiel¡¯s hand and led him towards a large gateway. Although no one would be brazen enough to try robbing her in the presence of Peacekeepers, letting people see her Eternal Beacon would be asking for future trouble. For Kiel, this was his first time seeing the famous gate of Ashar. He was dazed, looking around with interest. He didn¡¯t even question Elaru¡¯s usage of Acceleration before they teleported, nor did he notice they were still holding hands. Kiel looked at the few dozen Peacekeepers guarding the Gate. They were spread around the gate in a circle, standing watch like statues. Their uniforms were white with golden embroidery. They wore a few pieces of light armor, coated to be gold in color, which seemed to be more decorative than practical. Kiel looked up to the clear sky. He could clearly feel an invisible, restrictive barrier enveloping the Gate like a dome. It prevented the people from exiting or entering the Gate as they pleased. Everyone needed to follow a set path when entering or exiting so that they could be inspected and charged fees. Kiel looked back towards the gateway in front of them. The white marble gate, 10 m in circumference, was the only way in and out of the barrier. As Kiel looked out of the gate, he noticed the world beyond the gates was a bit blurry, and it glittered. His mana sense told him that there was a dense layer of mana in between the gates, but that shouldn¡¯t have caused his vision to blur. No one stopped them as they made their exit. Only those who wished to enter needed to pay fees. As they passed through the gateway, Kiel felt a strange sensation, like he passed through the surface of a soap bubble. What was that? Kiel was confused. These gateways were the only places where there were holes in the restrictive barrier, so what he felt wasn¡¯t the barrier. Even if the restrictive barrier didn¡¯t have holes, he wouldn¡¯t have physically felt it unless it repelled him. Kiel turned his head back to look at the gate. ¡°They spread a thin veil in between the gates, made out of mana wyrm tail silk. Because of its ethereal nature, we can pass through it.¡± Elaru noticed his interest and explained. Ah! So that¡¯s why the world he saw through the gates flickered and felt blurry. He was viewing it through a veil. ¡°Mana wyrm silk is very sensitive to Ink, so the Purge use them to test whether someone is Tainted.¡± Suddenly, everything fell into place, and Kiel understood. Anyone at any point could teleport to this gate if they had an appropriate Beacon. That meant that even people outside, in the dangerous forbidden zone, could also come back inside the Shield of Aegis. However, who is to say that they weren¡¯t carrying back with them a deadly plague ¨C the Ink? If they had been Tainted by the Ink then they would have to be quarantined immediately and not allowed to spread it. That¡¯s why everyone needed to pass through the Ink detecting veil when exiting the gate. The clear view of rows upon rows of light yellow houses greeted them as soon as they passed through the gate. Elaru tugged on Kiel¡¯s hand harder, telling him to walk faster. ¡°Come on. No time to sight see! We have to hurry.¡± She pulled him down the street. She seemed to know exactly where she was and where she needed to go. The streets were bustling with people, murmurs of voices created a pleasant background melody. Kiel thought she was going towards a large ¡°Rent-a-dragon¡± wooden sign ahead of them, but before reaching it she suddenly stopped and Accelerated upwards, pulling him along. They landed on a rooftop of a building; their landing scaring a flock of yellow tiwi [tee-wee] resting on the roof, making them fly away in a sudden buzz of their wings. Tiwi were small round birds that looked like cotton balls. They had a small sharp beak, beady eyes and short wings that create a soft buzzing sound when they flap them. They also have a few tail feathers that are several times larger than their entire body sticking out of their behind. The skies were clear, with no clouds in sight. The only things that could be seen in the sky were flocks of gugoo [goo-goo] and silhouettes of flying dragons and men. The sun was blazing down brightly, but it didn¡¯t feel hot. (Gugoo are small birds commonly found in cities. 35 cm in length, with long curved feathers on their head and tail.) Kiel looked towards the horizon. Countless rows of houses of all shapes and sizes greeted him, as far as the eye could see. Their walls in all shades of yellow, personalized by different engravings, murals, and drawings. Although most houses were made of similar materials in a similar style, each one seemed to have a personality. It showed through many different things: the engravings on the walls, drapes, and carpets hanging from the roof and types of flowers and plants decorating the houses. The warm colors of the houses mixed with vivid colors of the decorations gave Ashar a pleasant, warm feeling. The feeling was only enhanced by the background noises. Kiel could hear soft cooing of gugoo, the pleasant chirping of tiwi followed by the quiet buzzing of their wings, and even strong swishing of dragon wings. Chatter and laugher of men and women alike, spread from all sides. Ashar was bursting with life; one could tell immediately that it was one of the five biggest cities in Halnea. This wasn¡¯t Kiel¡¯s first time in Ashar; he used to live here, before moving to Beyd. He didn¡¯t dislike Ashar; he wouldn¡¯t mind calling this place home once again. Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched into a small smile. Elaru pointed to a complex of large buildings far in the distance. The buildings were situated on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by empty plains from one side, and a forest from the other. Ashar University of Magic. Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. That was his destination. That was his future home. Elaru turned to him and grinned. ¡°Let¡¯s fly!¡± Fly? Kiel looked around them ¨C even though one could rent a dragon to get around the city, Kiel noticed many people were jumping roof to roof via Acceleration, and even more were flying around in the air purely by magic. Their presence on the roof didn¡¯t make them stand out at all. In fact, upon further inspection of the roofs, it looked like they were specially made to be walked on. They were not roofs in the traditional sense but orange stone platforms, sturdy enough to not crack by having an Accelerating person crash into it full force. The buildings also had wooden pillars around them for holding up carpets and drapes hanging from the roof. At first, Kiel had thought their purpose was to shield people from rain and the sun, but they might have also served to soften the fall if someone were to lose their footing and fall from the roof. Even though he used to live in Ashar, he had seldom been allowed to leave the house, so being in the big city was not something he was used to ¨C it felt foreign and strange. Even though Beyd was an argel town, and argel often used magic to fly and accelerate, there weren¡¯t many people in Beyd that flew around. It was rare to see someone jumping from roof to roof because it was considered impolite. Roofs in Beyd weren¡¯t designed for walking and could collapse easily. ¡°Fly? Why don¡¯t we just rent a dragon?¡± Kiel raised an eyebrow at Elaru. There was a ¡°Rent-a-dragon¡± office just ahead of them. ¡°Renting a dragon is for people who can¡¯t fly! Besides, those dragons aren¡¯t racing dragons; they can¡¯t hope to keep up in speed to two excellent mages such as ourselves!¡± Elaru was grinning ear to ear. When her feet left the roof and she floated upwards, is when Kiel realized that they had been holding hands the entire time. Why now? Because her hand was pulling at his, beckoning for him to join her. He frowned and let go of her hand. It was inappropriate to hold hands with a female unless they were romantically involved. And he didn¡¯t like people touching him. He pretended that the sudden loss of comfortable heat in his hand didn¡¯t bother him. ¡°There is a long way to the university. You just gained the ability to cast Acceleration magic. Are you sure you can sustain it the entire way?¡± There were many different ways to make one fly with magic. From the most rudimentary ways, which relied on Accelerating every few seconds, which looked like the person was jumping without touching the ground, to the most advanced ones which completely nullified the effects of gravity. Elaru was skipping the entire learning curve on to the last stages of flight. Kiel felt inferior for being unable to cast any Transmutation spells. Not that he had tried. He didn¡¯t know any. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯ve seen Acceleration magic so many times I could cast it in my sleep.¡± Acceleration was an impulse spell ¨C it had immediate effect and then it disappeared. Making an impulse spell into a sustained spell ¨C a spell whose effects persist over time, was not as simple as one would be led to believe. Kiel didn¡¯t bother to argue with her. Instead, he concentrated on overcoming his own reluctance to fly. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was because he was afraid he¡¯d run out of mana, or because he was afraid to finally set out to the skies, after all this time. Certainly he wasn¡¯t afraid he couldn¡¯t keep up with her magic; he had been using Acceleration magic since he was born. It wouldn¡¯t be a challenge to beat someone who just started using it for the first time a few minutes prior. Kiel looked back to the university, measuring the distance skeptically. Elaru laughed, dismissing his unvoiced concerns easily. ¡°Kiel, you worry too much!¡± ¡°And you worry too little.¡± He glared at her halfheartedly. ¡°It¡¯s fine! It doesn¡¯t matter if I can¡¯t fly well or fly for long. If I fall, you¡¯ll catch me!¡± Kiel¡¯s soft glare turned into a real one. ¡°As if I would catch you! You can go and die for all I care! That would free me from this mess.¡± She flashed him a mischievous grin and grabbed his hand again tightly, merrily pulling him upwards to the skies. Kiel bit down on his lips to not curse. Whenever she reached for his hand, it was always so quick he didn¡¯t have the time to dodge it. ¡°You¡¯ll either catch me or fall down with me mate!¡± Elaru laughed. The wind was blowing her hair around her like a mane. She was happy. She was really happy to finally be able to fly. And Kiel felt her happiness spread onto him. Whether it was because of her powerful, expressive aura, or an aftereffect of their bond that she claimed didn¡¯t exist, it didn¡¯t matter. Whatever the case, she was contagious. And, after all, he had always wanted to fly as well. He pulled up the goggles hanging around his neck onto his eyes so that the wind wouldn¡¯t bother him. Elaru followed his suit and took out her own that were hidden under her scarf. Elaru took the lead and accelerated quickly forwards, faster and faster, pulling Kiel along high into the sky. He struggled, Accelerated away from her, but her grip on his hand didn¡¯t lessen at all. The attempts to struggle free caused a weird dance to occur. ¡°Let go of me, woman!¡± Kiel frowned in displeasure. No matter how he tried to shrug her off, she had a steel grip on his hand. ¡°Nevah!¡± She laughed. Kiel even saw her flick her tongue to him briefly. How bloody childish! ¡°Let go or I¡¯ll kick you!¡± Kiel threatened. ¡°Go ahead and try!¡± Elaru grinned, easily dodging his leg. It looked like she was a leaf drifting on the wind. Kiel frowned; he would indeed have trouble hitting her like this. ¡°Stop pulling me down with you!¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you just fly us back up, mister ¡®straight-A-student¡¯?¡± ¡°Fly on your own darn it!¡± ¡°But flying with you is so much more fun!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re having fun! I am not having fun!¡± Kiel yelled over the loud sound of wind hitting their faces. ¡°Did you forget I can tell when you are lying?¡± Elaru laughed merrily. Kiel tried to divert the conversation. He did, in fact, forget that she could tell his lies apart. ¡°Stop it! We are attracting attention. People are looking at us!¡± Kiel felt his cheeks heating up; he tried his best to keep his emotions off his face. This is just too ridiculous! When was the last time he did something so unbecoming of a noble?! ¡°So?¡± ¡°What do you mean ¡®so¡¯?! Have you no shame!?¡± Kiel spat through gritted teeth. ¡°Yes, I am shameless.¡± ¡°Learn some shame then!!¡± ¡°Teach me then.¡± Kiel glared at her, complained, even swore a few times. The wide grin never left Elaru¡¯s face. She responded to him mostly in a joking manner, telling him she would never let him go and taunting him to try and shake her off. ¡°Are you deliberately going in the opposite direction?!¡± Kiel hissed. ¡°Of course not, I am just a bad flier.¡± ¡°I can tell you are lying! Is our impending demise a joke to you?¡± She rolled her eyes at his exaggeration. ¡°Drama queen. Stop worrying and have some fun!¡± ¡°How could trying not to fall to death be fun?! I am not having fun!¡± Elaru laughed without a care in the world. ¡°You are repeating yourself. Running out of curses already?¡± Kiel glared at her icily. He couldn¡¯t admit it. He couldn¡¯t say it was really fun. Trying to steer while taking into account actions of each other; it was like a game of rock, paper and scissors. The most fun game of rock, paper and scissors Kiel had ever had. Even though he complained the entire way, it wasn¡¯t because he was worried about dying. He wouldn¡¯t die as long as he had enough mana to prevent it. He complained because he didn¡¯t want her this close to him. He didn¡¯t want her to spread her glee to him, nor to hold his hand so tightly, and especially not to permanently engrave her presence in his pleasant memories. He could feel his cold and apathetic mask melting like ice under her light, and he didn¡¯t like it. Or did he? As the clear sky beckoned them closer; as the warm sun showered them with gentle kisses, as the wind ruffled their hair and clothes, Kiel forgot all his worries. For that brief while, Kiel felt free. And for the first time in a long time, he felt content, maybe even happy? Perhaps Kiel couldn¡¯t quite recognize that pleasant feeling because he was a stranger to happiness. He didn¡¯t ponder and dissect ¡®why¡¯ and ¡®what¡¯ he was feeling, all he knew was that finally, after all this time¡­he was flying. For a moment, he even forgot that all of this was just temporary. That he shouldn¡¯t get attached. Shouldn¡¯t get used to this. And even though his mind knew that clearly, the heart was not the one to listen to reason. The huge courtyard, surrounding the Ashar University of Magic, was paved with white stone tiles and decorated with trees, flowers, and fountains, making the building complex at the end of it look nothing short of a royal palace. The white buildings were numerous, large and each one of them was a peerless work of art. Even Rroda main house manor paled in comparison. Standing in front of the large buildings, Kiel felt insignificant. Like a bug looking up at a tall tree. He took a short while to catch his breath. Kiel and Elaru¡¯s tug-war had ended with a slightly rough landing. Kiel was aiming for the gates while Elaru was aiming for the road next to them. Naturally, that resulted in them missing the top of the gates and falling onto a nearby tree. Usually, such a landing might have left bruises and scratches, but they were still under the influence of flying magic that made them effectively weigh less, and with their fast reflexes, dexterity and agility both of them managed to pass through the tree like a hot knife through butter. When they were finally safely on the ground, Kiel glared and pointed his finger childishly, blaming Elaru for the fall, but instead of an apology she just laughed. Seeing her laugh warmly, with branches and leaves sticking out from her hair and clothes, Kiel almost busted out laughing too. She looked ridiculous; her hair looked like a bird¡¯s nest. Still, looking at her beautiful smile made it clear that she would look stunning even if she was bathed in mud and wearing rags. Kiel was starting to like her sincere laugh. It made everything seem fun. Like life was just a game to her. There was no place for sorrow and worry. Just fun. He could like such a world. It seemed to bring out a childish side to himself that he wasn¡¯t aware he possessed. He shook his head helplessly, trying to return his mental facilities to those of a proper adult. Kiel and Elaru passed through the gates and entered the foyer of the university in a hurry. In the middle of the foyer was a reception desk occupied by two men, looking to be in their twenties. They seemed to be packing their papers and boxes, preparing to leave. One of them was an argel with brown hair reaching his ears that had several dark brown strands. His eyes were chocolate brown and very warm. His appearance, coupled with his gentle aura, reminded Kiel of a cute pechuh [pe-chooh]. (Small fluffy round rodent with big beady eyes and a long bushy tail. Their fur usually comes in shades of brown or white. Because of their adorable looks and docile nature they were very popular pets.) The other one was an elibu with shoulder length bluish gray hair tied at the back. He had a scholarly air about him and dark green eyes that looked almost gray. Both of them had dense Mage Armours surrounding their bodies that marked them as mages. Kiel and Elaru accelerated towards the two. ¡°Excuse me, are you taking entries for the exam?¡± Kiel called out to them. The two looked at Elaru and Kiel, noticing their ruffled appearance that looked as if they were in a cat fight rolling through the bushes. The men exchanged a strange glance. The man with the gray hair hesitated a bit; his eyebrows furrowed when he looked towards Elaru. However, the argel with chocolate brown hair, didn¡¯t hesitate at all. He shrugged and smiled gently. ¡°You¡¯ve barely made it. We were just closing down.¡± When he heard the warm voice of his acquaintance, the other man sighed in resignation and took out some papers he had just packed. He offered them to Kiel and Elaru. ¡°Fill up these forms please.¡± Elaru refused them. ¡°I signed up for the exams months before. It¡¯s just Kiel that waited until the last second.¡± The soft, kind smile that was plastered on Kiel¡¯s face froze. That little¡­! It was you that waited until the last second to tell me about the deadline! Kiel accepted the papers and waited for the men to take their eyes off of him before he gave Elaru a sneaky glare. When Elaru saw his face which was half stuck in a soft smile and half glaring at her, she pretended to cough into her hand to mask her failed attempt at controlling her laughter. Kiel¡¯s distorted expression was just too funny. Kiel¡¯s glare disappeared in an instant when the brown-head turned to him and offered him a signature pen. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Signature pens were filled with a special ink that acted as a glue for mana, so the first mana which came in contact with it would be stuck to the ink. This allowed the person using the pen to sign documents with their own mana ¨C first mana the ink came in contact with after getting out of the pen was the mana of the person using the pen. Since everyone¡¯s mana was unique, their mana could be used to verify the identity of the person who wrote the signature. Kiel thanked the man politely and started filling up the forms. Unfortunately, Elaru didn¡¯t give him the peace and quiet in filling the forms. Instead, she started conversing with the two. Apparently, they were assistant professors in the university, and because of the University policy (¡°Important Muni stuff must be handled by Muni staff¡±) they had a draw to decide who gets the job of taking entry forms. They drew the short sticks. Kiel also picked up that the term ¡°Muni¡± [myoo-nee] seemed to be a slang term used by students and teachers to refer to Ashar University of Magic. After all, ¡°Ashar University of Magic¡± was a mouthful. People shortened it to ¡°Magic University¡±, but since that was also too long, eventually even that got condensed into Muni. Kiel also caught their names ¨C Rau Eryey [ra-oh er-yeey] and Ahon Tonrai [ah-ohn ton-rah-ee]. Their last names were familiar to Kiel. Eryey family was one of the noble families. Their specialty was healing magic, and they owned a chain of hospitals and medicine shops. Tonrai, on the other hand, was a side branch of the Ruyle [Roo-yel] family. Ruyle family was also one of the noble families. They specialized in breeding, taming and raising beasts. They also had their own quest lodge, dragon racing tracks and owned a chain of ¡°Rent-a-dragon¡± offices. Kiel was surprised how the university could make two nobles take entry forms. Draw or no draw, it sounded ridiculous! This university was indeed something else¡­ Elaru didn¡¯t seem surprised, neither at the draw nor their last names. Kiel wondered if it was because she wasn¡¯t aware of their status or because she was used to hanging around nobles. Kiel looked at the first form; he needed to fill in the regular stuff: name, gender, race and date of birth. But after that, there were a lot of other questions such as information about the pets he would be bringing (or, in his case, wouldn¡¯t be bringing) to the dorms. He also needed to write details about his roommate preference. Explanation of the question gave some good examples: ¡°I dislike animals so I wouldn¡¯t like my roommate to have one.¡± and ¡°Since I am an elibu, I¡¯d like my roommate to be an elibu as well.¡±, and some bad examples: ¡°I¡¯d like my roomy to be a hot girl!¡± and ¡°I want to room with a noble!¡± When he filled up these forms last year, he was greatly surprised to find this question. He wasn¡¯t aware that they would be required to share a dorm room. It made no sense to Kiel. The university was huge and luxurious; it wouldn¡¯t pose any problem for them to give everyone their own room. So why did they force them to share? In fact, how did they expect nobles to accept sharing a room with someone else? Wait¡­why wasn¡¯t there a question asking them if they would be staying in their dorms in the first place? There were plenty of people who lived in Ashar and didn¡¯t need a dorm room inside the University. Was everyone required to stay in the dorms even if they didn¡¯t want to? Last year, after his initial confusion, he left his roommate preference empty because he didn¡¯t intend to enroll. But this time, he stopped to think about it. He didn¡¯t care who he got as his roommate as long as the person wasn¡¯t annoying. However, he couldn¡¯t write ¡°Someone who isn¡¯t annoying¡± as his answer. He was tempted to write ¡°Not Elaru Wayvin¡± as the answer, but that made no sense since he wouldn¡¯t have been paired with her anyway. He would most definitely be paired with a male freshman. After a brief pondering, he decided to leave it empty this year as well. If he had a problem with his roommate, he could always switch rooms with someone else. Right? That¡¯s how it usually worked in the university dorms, right? And besides, what were the odds of getting someone annoying? Kiel suddenly felt chills travel down his spine. He looked up to Elaru, and then checked out the two professors, but nothing strange was taking place. He spread his mind to check his surroundings, but found nothing out of the ordinary. Why did he suddenly get a bad feeling? Kiel shrugged and shook his head. Elaru might be right; he was worrying too much. He continued filling the papers until he reached a section about the practical part of the exam. He needed to pick which practical exam he would take, assuming that he collected enough points to be eligible to take it. There were many types of mages entering the university with varied specializations and skills; it was unrealistic to expect everyone to have the same skill set and even more absurd to test for it. Therefore, university prepared different scenarios examinees could choose to better display their particular skillset. Kiel slowly looked over his options, the only thing he could go by was the name of the scenario; they didn¡¯t provide any additional details. There were many scenarios tied to a specific profession such as ¡°Healing and damage control¡±, ¡°Herbalism & Alchemy¡±, ¡°Arts & Crafts¡±, ¡°Engineering and enchanting¡±, ¡°Beast handling¡±, etc. There was also a variety of scenarios that required or could be completed with a varied skillset such as ¡°Hunt¡± and ¡°Apprehend and rescue¡±. It was here, faced with so many different options, that Kiel understood that even now, with the abundance of mana, he was still severely lacking as a mage. Having plenty of mana couldn¡¯t turn him into an incredible mage. Mana could only open the path for him that leads towards that goal. It was up to him to walk down that path. Currently, he could cast a variety of magic spells, but most of them were low-level spells every mage knew. Granted, his execution of them was flawless, but what he could do with them wouldn¡¯t be enough to excel in any of the offered scenarios. He had no specialization; he wasn¡¯t particularly skilled in any area. Kiel felt cold sweat rolling down his back. Didn¡¯t Elaru say in her previous evaluation that he was skilled enough to get full points in the practical part of the exam? What scenario did she have in mind? He looked up at her, like a little pechuh asking for help. When he realized what he was doing, he quickly looked down to his papers, disgusted by himself. He didn¡¯t need anyone¡¯s help. He was always on his own, relied only on himself. That made him independent, competent. That¡¯s who he was. He didn¡¯t need help! He exhaled quietly, calming himself down. He went to the top of the listed scenarios and mentally gave them his evaluation of what skills were needed to excel in that scenario. ¡°Healing and damage control?¡± That needs knowledge of healing magic, familiarity with the bodies of argel and elibu, medicine and medicinal plants, diseases and ailments. He continued down the list, often stopping to cross over a scenario that he thought was impossible for him. Soon enough he was left with only a few options. Most of the left over options were vague and Kiel couldn¡¯t tell exactly what skillset would be necessary. There was only one scenario where the required skillset was quite clear ¨C ¡°Battle Royale¡±. Obviously, the test would require him to show his combat prowess. He was alone most of the time with his only opponents being trees, so he found it hard to gauge his own battle capabilities. Still, Kiel felt that this was the test he had the highest chance of excelling at. The magic that he was the best at was acceleration magic. And even if he couldn¡¯t beat his opponents, he could at least run around fast enough to avoid their attacks. In the worst case scenario, it could turn into a battle of attrition, and since Elaru¡¯s mana pool was larger than most people, he would win when his opponents ran out of mana. Kiel circled the ¡°Battle Royale¡± option, satisfied with his choice. He wasn¡¯t useless after all. He even had a few days before the exam, that he could use to brush up on his skills and prepare. His satisfied smile quickly left his face when he turned the next page of the sign up forms. He needed to report his ¡°special skills¡± so that Muni could prepare to test his speciality. Special skills were different from the practical exam. You could get special points only if you had extraordinary, rare abilities. The main purpose of this test was to give peerless geniuses a higher chance to be accepted into the university and separate them from everyone else. There was a large list of offered ¡°special skills¡±, such as ¡°Aethernea wielder¡±, ¡°Possesses flawless recollection¡±, and ¡°ingenious breaker¡±. Kiel went over the list quickly. His heart tightened. Elaru made it sound like all his problems would be solved if he had enough mana. When he finally felt a sea of mana rolling through him, he felt like he could do anything. That he was now better than everyone else. He even entertained the thought that he would score the highest on the exam and make his family shocked. He thought that these exams would be his stage. That he would show everyone that he was a genius mage. He would finally get the respect he deserved. Looking at it now, if he didn¡¯t ace the practical and if he didn¡¯t apply for a special exam, he couldn¡¯t hope to reach the top 10. He would pass the exam but he would at most be above average among other nobles. In fact, his grandfather might even say that his performance embarrassed their family name. He might even be ridiculed in the end. His fist clenched. He wouldn¡¯t be able to surpass his ass of a brother. He would always be in his shadow. His knuckle turned white and he was slowly losing all feeling in his hand. When his eyes passed over ¡°pure mana wielder¡± entry, he gritted his teeth. He was a pure mana wielder, but he couldn¡¯t let anyone know about it. It felt unbearable. Those 25 points were so close yet out of reach! His mind echoed with ridiculing words of others. He could see them sneering at him, mocking him. Telling him how unremarkable he was. How he was never special. And even if he was no longer a non-mage, he was still a nobody. The voices got louder and louder, his head hurt, his breathing became raspy. And when the voices became so loud he thought his head would explode, suddenly everything went quiet. His eyes focused on two words. ¡°Spell replicator¡± He stared at the two words dumbfounded. ¡°Spell replicator¡± His eyes widened. How could his mind go so off track?! He could weave anything! It didn¡¯t matter if he didn¡¯t know a spell, because as soon as he was confronted with it, he would learn it very quickly. Spell replicators were mages whose job was to replicate spells. They would be given an enchanted item, a magic artefact, or even a spell design itself, and they would use it to replicate the spell. Spell replicators had only two skill requirements. One, they needed to be able to weave mana flawlessly, so flawlessly to be able to create a perfect replica of another spell. And two, in case they weren¡¯t given a spell design but shown the spell, they needed to have a mana sense powerful enough to sense all the details in the given spell, to be able to replicate those details. His weaving was flawless! And his Mind was very sensitive to mana! That is exactly why he could have such flawless weaving. He fit both requirements! Kiel¡¯s eyes lit up. He circled the two words on his paper and smiled unconsciously. No one could beat him in basic mage capabilities. He lacked knowledge, but not ability. He would shine like a Xium gem! He would show everyone that he wasn¡¯t a common rock! His family would feel endless regret for the way they had treated him. After filling up the initial form he was greeted with a bunch of papers with rules and regulations that he needed to be aware of (and sign that he had read them). He also needed to sign a document that stated that he takes all responsibility for any damage (or death) caused by the exam and the university is in no way accountable for it. It was the university¡¯s way to avoid any legal responsibility. After he passed the filled papers back to the elibu going by the name of Rau Eryey, the man passed another paper to him. The paper contained the schedule of the exams so Kiel would know when and where he was supposed to take his exams. The friendly argel took out a round ceramic plate, the size of a large badge, and another signature pen. The argel man used the pen to write large, bright blue numbers on the plate ¨C ¡°5642¡±. He than turned the plate around to the other side and offered the plate to Kiel. ¡°Sign your name here, on the back.¡± Kiel took it and quickly wrote down his elegant and curvy signature. Ahon Tonrai¡¯s chocolate eyes seemed to smile as he explained. ¡°This is your proof of identity and your exam pass.¡± Finally, Kiel had got his exam pass. He smiled softly and thanked the man. He had made it! He managed to sign up for the exam! All he had to do now was pass it. Ahon continued speaking in a gentle and pleasant voice explaining the purpose of the plate: ¡°This is your entry number.¡± He motioned to number ¡°5642¡± that he had written on the plate. ¡°For the sake of privacy and ensuring everyone receives equal exam conditions, we don¡¯t use your real names on the exam but instead refer to you by your number. Don¡¯t lose it. You can¡¯t enter the exam without it.¡± Kiel thanked the man again politely, smiling his charming smile, before bidding both men farewell. He noticed that Elaru seemed to have gotten pretty friendly with the two while he was filling the forms. They waved them goodbye and wished them good luck on the exams: ¡°Hope to see you in school!¡± Ahon smiled brightly. ¡°You most certainly will!¡± Elaru grinned back. While they treated them both with respect and good intentions, he could tell both of them were especially friendly towards Elaru. Kiel didn¡¯t know why that fact made him feel uncomfortable. They clearly didn¡¯t have any bad or indecent intentions. Was it that he envied people who could make others like them while still staying true to themselves? He shook his head and put it to the back of his mind. It was beneath him to feel jealous. Kiel and Elaru exited through the foyer through the university gates in silence. After they were out of earshot and line of sight, Elaru turned to Kiel and asked: ¡°What now? Any places you want to visit?¡± Kiel looked towards the horizon into the golden setting sun that died the sky orange. It had been a long day. ¡°It is getting late. The only place I want to visit is an inn.¡± ¡°Hmm, I know of a cozy little inn nearby that has an excellent cook.¡± Elaru suggested with a smile. Kiel didn¡¯t protest her suggestion. He had never stayed in an inn before so he had no idea what Ashar inns were considered good, or where to even begin searching for one. Kiel quickly found out that his definition of ¡°nearby¡± didn¡¯t match with Elaru¡¯s definition of ¡°nearby¡±. The only reason why he chose not to complain was because the small inn in front of them didn¡¯t look bad at all. It was a small tavern but it looked well cared for and friendly. It was in a good neighborhood filled with little houses which were glued to each other like canned fish. The houses were built from warm colored bricks and decorated by pots of flowers. Kiel stared at the wooden sign in front of him showing a large pot and two words ¨C ¡°Hot Pot¡±. Hot Pot? Seriously? He shook his head and followed Elaru inside. As soon as they entered, they noticed a middle aged, short, plump woman sitting at the reception desk. Her almond eyes were reading the newspaper while her thin lips were sipping on a glass of lemonade. Her brown hair with a few orange strands was tied into a plat on the back of her head covering her argel round ears. Kiel could tell the woman wasn¡¯t a mage because her mana drifted around freely, showing no sign of forming a Mage Armour. The woman didn¡¯t bother to look up before saying ¡°Sorry, we¡¯ve got no available rooms left.¡± Kiel stopped in his tracks and would have walked out if he didn¡¯t see Elaru completely disregard the woman¡¯s words. Elaru leaned on the counter. ¡°What about that nice little comfy one on the attic?¡± A flash of recognition washed over the woman¡¯s face and she looked up in surprise. When her eyes fell on Elaru her face spread in a wide grin. ¡°Dear, you are back from your quest? What took you so long?¡± Elaru scratched her head sheepishly, giving Kiel a side glance. ¡°Ah well¡­ I got sidetracked.¡± The woman noticed Elaru¡¯s glance and shifted her eyes onto Kiel¡¯s soft smile, before looking him up and down. ¡°What do we have here?¡± The woman chuckled warmly before taking a sip of her lemonade. Her thoughts were written clearly on her face: Where did you pick up this pretty boy? Elaru turned towards Kiel, smiled in delight and motioned her hand towards the woman. ¡°Kiel, this is Mira. She and her husband own this little tavern.¡± Then she put her left hand on Kiel¡¯s shoulder and motioned towards him with her right hand. ¡°Mira, this is Kiel.¡± Kiel noticed how she purposefully avoided mentioning last names. ¡°He is my¡­¡± Elaru struggled to find the right words. Friend? Colleague? Fellow future student? Partner? ¡°¡­mate!¡± And of course, she had to choose the word leaving most room for misunderstandings. And the way she said it wasn¡¯t helping either. She said it with pride, glee and delight. Mate was a tricky word. When used to refer to a male and female pair, it would mean the two are romantically involved. When used by people of the same gender, it would mean they are good friends. Kiel¡¯s smile froze. He wasn¡¯t sure if Elaru used the word ¡°mate¡± as a short for ¡°soulmate¡± or if she was trying to say that he was her good friend. But at this point, it didn¡¯t matter. He had to fix the damage. The argel woman, whose name seemed to be Mira almost choked on her lemonade. After a strong coughing fit she managed to squeeze out. ¡°Mate? Is he the reason you got sidetracked?¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Elaru nodded before Kiel could stop her. Woman looked at Kiel sternly, like a mother inspecting her future son in law. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. He was just about to fix the misunderstanding but Elaru beat him to it. ¡°So is my room free or not?¡± Mira turned to her surprised, but nonetheless took the keys from her desk. ¡°Well¡­yeah¡­¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll be taking it!¡± Elaru declared. Kiel almost face-palmed himself. Mira was flabbergasted. ¡°But there is just one bed in there!¡± Elaru didn¡¯t quite get the problem. She looked at Mira, confusion written all over her face. ¡°So?¡± ¡°There is two of you!¡± Mira tried to clarify. But Elaru, being Elaru,¡­misunderstood completely¡­ ¡°Ooh! Don¡¯t worry it¡¯s a double bed so we can both fit!¡± She waved it off. Kiel stood frozen. He wanted to set things clear but he didn¡¯t even know how to go about fixing it. Elaru snatched the keys from Mira¡¯s shaking fingers and waved her bye. ¡°We¡¯ll be coming down to dinner soon! Mmmm, I sure hope chief¡¯s special is on today¡¯s menu!¡± Without further ado, she ran up the stairs gracefully. She knew exactly where the room was. Kiel stood glued to the spot, his face frozen into a soft smile. It wasn¡¯t until Elaru called out to him that he was shaken out of his stupor. ¡°What are you standing around for? Come on!¡± Kiel rubbed his temples and slowly followed her upstairs. How would he resolve this issue?! This girl had no common sense! * * * The next two episodes will be released on 7th of Jully. However, if you subscribe to Aethernea.com website by email, you can get access to them now. Email subscribers are two episodes ahead of everyone else. Or you can head here and leave a rating. It takes only two clicks. And if Aethernea receives 20 ratings, I''ll release the episodes here right away. Coming up in the next episode: ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s big enough?!? However you look at it, it¡¯s a one person bed!!¡± Who the hell is Wade?! He sighed and removed his hand. I¡¯ll just have to teach her some mann¡­¡±What the hell are you doing?!¡± His thoughts were interrupted by the sight in front of him. Episode 13 - Hot Pot I looked around at other web novels, translated web novels, and other serialized fiction, and I¡¯ve noticed that their chapters are a lot shorter than mine. So instead of releasing one large chapter, I¡¯ve decided to start releasing several shorter chapters. From this week onwards, I¡¯ll start releasing two chapters each Thursday. That way, the chapters will be shorter but you won¡¯t lose out on the number of words released. In the previous Episode: By the time Kiel was done signing up for Ashar University entrance exams the night was already falling. Elaru leads Kiel to a small inn ¨C Hot Pot, whose owners she seems to know. However, there is only one room with one bed available and they have to share. Episode 13 - Hot Pot By the time Kiel came up to the attic, Elaru had already unlocked the room and entered. The sturdy doors to the room were enchanted to open only with the right magic key. Kiel didn¡¯t expect a small tavern to have such an enchantment. And it wasn¡¯t just the door that was enchanted. As his mind probed the surroundings, he noticed that the walls had a sound isolating magic array formation set up. It would make sure no sound entered or exited the room, giving them utmost privacy. The night had just fallen, and there was not much light coming through the windows, however, the room was bathed in a warm light coming from many yellow crystals embedded in the ceiling. Not bad, not bad at all. It was probably safe enough to leave their belongings here while they ate dinner. And Kiel could also relax knowing no one would be able to hear him being an ass. As he entered the room, he was still busy contemplating how he would solve this issue of a single bedchamber. Elaru was too impulsive and didn¡¯t care for etiquette and social norms. His thoughts paused when he saw the insides of the room. The room was filled with wooden furniture and had a very warm and pleasant feel to it. Just like the rest of Hot Pot. But that wasn¡¯t what surprised him. What surprised him was that the room was filled with mementos, books, and personal items. It didn¡¯t look like a room one would expect to find in an inn. Well, Kiel had never been in an inn before, but still, this was not what he expected the room to look like. The room was¡­special, too personal. It looked like a room of a teenage girl. ¡°What is going on? Who is that woman to you? Is this your room?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed as he looked at Elaru. She gave him a bitter smile. ¡°This room is not for rent. It used to belong to Mira¡¯s daughter. But now, this is the place I stay at when I am in Ashar.¡± Kiel raised his eyebrow, urging her to elaborate. Her face showed a tinge of sadness. ¡°A few years back, a sudden battle broke out between mages that took the lives of a few innocent bystanders. Mira¡¯s daughter had been in the wrong place at the wrong time.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± He didn¡¯t know what to say. He wasn¡¯t good at comforting people. ¡°Did you know her?¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°Not really. She worked as a waitress in Hot Pot, so I did exchange a few words with her, but I didn¡¯t really know her. After the accident, in the resulting chaos, the perpetrators slipped away and covered their tracks. The peacekeepers couldn¡¯t find them, and since those that lost their lives had no social status, peacekeepers in charge of the investigation weren¡¯t granted enough funds to hire a tracker. Mira and her husband couldn¡¯t rest until those responsible for it were punished so they put up a quest asking for someone to find the culprits.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes brightened in realization. Of course! Elaru was a tracker. It was right up her alley. ¡°However, they couldn¡¯t pay a fee high enough to hire a tracker skilled enough to complete it.¡± She paused. ¡°I was staying at Hot Pot at the time, so I found out about the situation.¡± Elaru paused, and picked up a red glittering stone from the night table. She brought it up to her eye level and watched the light flicker on it with a sad look. ¡°I like it here, Mira and her husband are good people.¡± She sighed and put the stone back down. ¡°I offered to help out, but since they couldn¡¯t pay a high enough fee, we settled on an alternative payment. The deal was that I get to enjoy the services of Hot Pot for free in the future, and they would let me permanently ¡°rent out¡± this room.¡± Kiel glanced around at the frilly curtains and small ceramic animals placed on shelves. ¡°Why do I get the feeling you ripped them off?¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°Because you have no idea how high of a fee trackers of my caliber usually charge.¡± He shrugged. True. But he could guess that her value as a tracker was on the top of the ladder. And the number of people qualified to sit on the top was too little to satisfy the high demand for their services. Kiel picked up a ceramic doll wearing a lacy dress and looked it over. ¡°So all this stuff isn¡¯t yours.¡± He smirked. ¡°That makes sense. This room doesn¡¯t suit you.¡± Elaru chuckled and jumped on the bed. ¡°And what kind of room would suit me?¡± She stuck out her tongue at Kiel cutely. ¡°Chains and skeletons everywhere?¡± He smirked. She was clearly teasing him about how he made her out to be evil. He was about to respond when his expression froze. It was only when Elaru sprawled on the bed that he noticed a serious problem. ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s big enough?! No matter how you look at it, it is a one-person bed!¡± Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°Well, in comparison to the king size bed you have in your room, yeah, it must look quite small.¡± Kiel gritted his teeth. ¡°It doesn¡¯t look small, it is small! It is a standard single person bed!¡± She shrugged nonchalantly. ¡°We are both slim, we¡¯ll fit.¡± He glared at her. ¡°What is wrong with you? It is inappropriate to share a room with a male which isn¡¯t your lover, let alone a single bed. Did you stop to consider how this would look to other people?! This is socially unacceptable!¡± ¡°Well what do you suggest we do? There are no other available rooms.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go find another inn.¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Do you think it is a coincidence that there are no available rooms?¡± Elaru looked at Kiel like he was an idiot, before elaborating. ¡°Muni exams start in three days, and thousands upon thousands of people are congregating here for the exams. This weekend and next week are the liveliest times of the year. That¡¯s why all of the good inns are full. We could spend the whole night searching for a single room, let alone two.¡± Kiel pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He hated to admit it, but she was right. He had to endure and hope no one finds out about this in the future. He glanced at the bed again. Who¡¯ll take the bed? He didn¡¯t want to sleep on the floor, but forcing a female to sleep on the ground would be considered rude. Wait, why was he worrying about etiquette in a scenario where no one would find out what he did? He had already shed all pretense of nicety with her. There was no reason for him to sleep on the floor. It was her fault that this happened anyway, she should take responsibility. ¡°Get off. The bed is mine.¡± Kiel declared, his tone of voice leaving no room for arguments. Elaru chuckled with amusement. ¡°You can have the left side, I¡¯ll sleep on the right.¡± Kiel¡¯s face darkened. ¡°You still intend for us to share?!¡± She looked at him with confusion ¡°Of course, there is just one bed in here. What can we do but share?¡± ¡°Floor is an option.¡± He snarled. Elaru pouted. ¡°No way. A bed, no matter how small, is still better than the hard ground. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?¡± She continued in a teasing tone. ¡°Are you afraid of getting cooties?¡± Kiel¡¯s hands twitched, he had a sudden urge to strangle her. After a few seconds, he restrained himself and let out a long sigh. What was it about her that caused him to lose his cool so easily? Kiel reverted back to his standard response pattern ¨C when teased, tease back. ¡°It depends; do you share your bed with men often?¡± He gave her a lopsided smile. Elaru didn¡¯t seem to pick up on his teasing tone. ¡°Not really. I don¡¯t remember the last time I slept next to a male.¡± She stopped to think about it. ¡°Hmm, I think the last time was 3 years ago when I was out with papa and Wade.¡± Papa? So she was a daddy¡¯s girl, was she? Only little kids called their fathers ¡°papa¡±. And who the hell was Wade? ¡°So with which one did you share your bed with?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but wonder. ¡°Neither.¡± She laughed. ¡°Papa tosses around like crazy and Wade latches onto my boobs while asleep like a leech.¡± Kiel steeled his expression, suppressing a gape that threatened to emerge. Wait, what?! Is Wade a little kid with a mother complex? ¡°Watch your language.¡± He squeezed out, but she completely ignored him. ¡°I slept on the floor and had them share the bed. But papa kicked Wade out of the bed in the middle of the night, and he joined me on the floor. And then I had to leave the room and sleep on the roof because Wade kept accidentally touching my boobs all night.¡± She laughed merrily. ¡°He is such a twit. That¡¯s the last time I let him sleep anywhere near me.¡± What kind of a childhood did she have to talk about such things so casually? And what kind of a father let his own daughter sleep on the floor? And who the hell is Wade?! He didn¡¯t even notice he voiced that last part out loud until Elaru responded. ¡°Wade is a distant cousin of mine, but we grew up together so he is like a brother to me.¡± ¡°Ah, I assume it is normal for brothers to grope their sisters¡¯ in your family?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Elaru opened her mouth to say ¡®no¡¯ but in the middle of voicing it out, she actually reconsidered her answer. After thinking about it for a few seconds, she smiled sheepishly and shrugged. What is that supposed to mean? Kiel smacked his hand over his face in frustration. Should I blame her father for her poor upbringing? He sighed and removed his hand. I¡¯ll just have to teach her some mann..what the hell are you doing?!¡± His thoughts were interrupted by the sight in front of him. Elaru was stripping her clothes off. She stretched like a feline, as if flaunting her perfect body. ¡°What does it look like I am doing?¡± She rolled her eyes. ¡°I am standing right here!¡± Kiel motioned towards himself. ¡°Exactly. Why aren¡¯t you taking off your baggage?¡± That¡¯s when he noticed that she was just taking off her accessories ¨C her scarf, goggles, gloves, bags and a few weapons. He sighed in relief. So she wasn¡¯t that stupid. But just to avoid any future trouble he responded with: ¡°Warn me before doing something like that in the future.¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°I thought you were aware. Didn¡¯t you cover your eyes a second ago?¡± Kiel was dumbfounded. What was he supposed to reply to that? Tell her that it wasn¡¯t out of consideration for her privacy but him face-palming himself because of her stupidity? Arrgh! This woman will be the end of me! He face-palmed himself again. ¡°Next time, don¡¯t peek.¡± She added teasingly. Kiel got the urge to face-palm himself again, but unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t, because he was already doing it. After a while, he sighed in resignation and followed her suit. If you can¡¯t beat them, join them. He took off his sword and bags. He started taking off his arm protectors when Elaru stopped him. * * * Don¡¯t forget to check out the next episode, it is already up. Coming up in the next episode: Kiel grabbed Elaru¡¯s arm and looked at it closely. She gasped softly and pulled her wrist out of his grasp. Elaru was a rare specimen. Seeing her blush was even rarer. It was rare squared! Her face and ears turned especially red when Kiel smiled at her. ¡°Elaru, what high school did you go to?¡± Kiel started out his excavation of Elaru¡¯s personal information with a simple question. Episode 14 - Homeschooled In the previous Episode: Elaru reveals her connection to Hot Pot. Kiel doesn¡¯t want to share a room with her, let alone the small bed in the room. Elaru teases him about it and reveals the existence of two important (and eccentric) people in her life ¨C her father and cousin she grew up with. Episode 14 - Homeschooled Kiel took off his sword, and bags. He started taking off his arm protectors when Elaru stopped him. ¡°Don¡¯t take it off. Your brand will be visible.¡± She was talking about the mark of the Aetherneal Bond. Kiel almost forgot about the mark. Well, he would have remembered as soon as he saw it. But remembering only after seeing the brand would be unacceptable in the future. Who is to say someone else wouldn¡¯t be in the room with him? I should learn some light magic in the future to camouflage the brand. Light magic is a branch of transmutation magic that specializes in the manipulation of light, which can be used in a wide variety of ways, such as changing the color of things, making them emit light or making them invisible. ¡°How about I teach you how to hide the brand?¡± Elaru offered him her left hand without waiting for his response. ¡°Pay attention.¡± Elaru slowed down her spell casting intentionally so Kiel could catch every movement of her mana. When she wasn¡¯t concealing her presence, she was like a bright sun ¨C countless tendrils of light formed by her mana surrounded her and danced a slow, chaotic dance. When she started casting the spell, the mana around her arm stopped moving aimlessly and instead started congregating into a single spot. It was like the mana drops were snowflakes blown by the wind, they layered on top of each other, forming a curvy pattern. The attraction force mashing them together didn¡¯t lessen at all, like gravity it pulled at them harder and harder until individual drops of mana could no longer be seen. They turned from countless gaseous particles into a liquid ribbon of bright light. If mana drops were little stars, then that ribbon was the moon. When it appeared, all else dimmed. That formed, bright pattern of light was ¡°the spell¡±. Association of Magic defined ¡°a spell¡± to be a reality altering phenomena. And just like its definition foretold, a soft pulse of magic power spread out from it, creating a distortion in reality. After the initial pulse, the spell started revolving around Elaru¡¯s arm on its own in a periodic dance. This special movement of the spell continued to distort the reality around her arm. Kiel saw that spell in a book covering the basic types of magic. It was a basic color manipulation light magic spell. As Elaru exerted control over the spell, it started moving around like a hyperactive child, causing the black markings on her arm to fade out until they completely disappeared. Technically, a spell was still made out of Elaru¡¯s mana, and she could exercise her mana control to deform the spell. However, if drops of mana were like drops of water, then a spell would be a block of ice. If she tried shifting the mana forming it, it would break and fall apart. Once the phenomena forms, the pattern and the form become fixed. The spell becomes linked to the mage as if it was an extra limb and the caster can innately control it as a whole. This control over the spell is exactly what was known as ¡°spell control¡±. It is an entirely different concept from mana control. The spell Elaru cast wasn¡¯t a solid-state spell, which meant that the distortion of reality would be detected as an anomaly and reality itself would reject it, continuously attempting to revert back to its previous state. To keep the new color of her markings from reverting back to black, the spell would need to keep distorting the reality. And that continuous distortion would use up mana. The moment that the spell ran out of mana, it would attempt to feed on mana it is made out of, which would cause it to deteriorate until it fell apart and dissolved into nothingness. Since this was a mage-sustained spell (as opposed to self-sustained spells), that meant Elaru had to constantly feed it mana to prevent it from breaking. This process was like breathing, she could consciously control it, but it usually came effortlessly and didn¡¯t require her to dedicate her attention to it. Kiel grabbed Elaru¡¯s arm and looked at it closely. The place where the mark used to be, turned into flawless skin. Her spell control was so fine she managed to make her markings the exact color shade of her skin. In his amazement, he involuntarily touched the place where the markings were supposed to be. The skin was smooth to the touch and revealed no sign that it was black a second ago. Well, the skin didn¡¯t reveal any sign, Elaru however, did. She gasped softly and pulled her wrist out of his grasp. Kiel looked up at her face, surprised by her sudden motion. A beautiful reddish tint covered her cheeks. He stared at her in wonder. It was the first time he saw her flustered about something. That reckless, headstrong Elaru that was unperturbed by the world, was blushing like a little girl. He couldn¡¯t believe his own thoughts, but this flushing Elaru had an irresistible charm to her. At that moment, she looked pure, even vulnerable. That color suited her, made her look compellingly adorable. Seeing her like this brought incredible satisfaction to Kiel. Elaru was a rare specimen. Seeing her blush was even rarer. It was rare squared! ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± He asked her. He had to know what could make her blush. He felt like he was close to discovering a weapon of mass destruction. It was imperative that he learned about it! ¡°Don¡¯t touch my markings.¡± She responded in a soft tone. Her voice sounded so pleasant to the ear. Kiel was sure that if he were an elibu, his ears would have perked up. ¡°Why?¡± Was it an elibu thing? Were they sensitive about their markings? ¡°It feels weird when you touch it.¡± She responded. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°Who is afraid of cooties here?¡± He smirked. This was good, he finally had something on her. Something he could use in the future. This was an excellent day! ¡°I¡¯ll need to engrave the details of that pattern into my memory before I am able to cast it.¡± Elaru nodded. ¡°You can work on that after dinner.¡± The color of her face returned to normal quickly. Before going down to dinner, she moved towards the desk where they left their equipment. She reached into one of the pouches on the desk and took out something wrapped in thin metallic paper. It was a fist-sized metal object with numerous engravings on it, shaped in a form of an egg. The egg was sliced into multiple rotatable rings. This egg was a puzzle that had many possible configurations. It was near impossible to find the right position of all rings. Elaru twisted them one by one in various directions. When she twisted the last one, the egg clicked softly. The engravings started glowing and a spell spread in two-meter radius around the table. As she placed it on the table, even though it was round, it stood stably on it without any signs of being unstable. Is this what I think it is? Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. He had always had a high interest in magical arrays because the process of making them didn¡¯t require him to use his own mana. With enough money, even a non-mage could become an arrayist. He considered becoming an arrayist, but he would need to invest a lot of time to it for it to become useful. And since what attracted him to the profession wasn¡¯t the profession itself but the product, he felt reluctant about pursuing that path. It would be like a swords master trying to become the greatest blacksmith just so he could forge a greatest sword for himself. Kiel reached out his hand towards the table, but his hand stopped in midair as if there was an invisible wall in front of him. The spell that the artifact activated created a protective barrier that locked down space on the borders of the barrier preventing anyone other than the original user from going in or out of it. He nodded in appreciation. Even though Elaru seemed to lack common sense and not pick up some obvious clues when it came down to quest seeker related business she was a pro. Even though the room was secure, one could never be careful enough. This protective barrier ensured that no one would be able to steal their items unless the thief could break it. And the people who had the capability to break it wouldn¡¯t be interested in robbing them. It would be like an emperor secretly breaking into a peasant¡¯s house to steal food. Ridiculous and utterly pointless. Kiel looked at Elaru from the corner of his eyes. She seemed reckless on the outside, but actually, she was pretty careful about things. He found her rather hard to understand. Her personality seemed inconsistent. He could never tell if she was going to take things seriously or not. She wasn¡¯t like Kiel, who had a bad personality and pretended to be a good guy. She seemed to be true to herself. It was just that that ¡°self¡± was hard to define. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. * * * The tavern was filled with people and indiscernible chatter spread into every nook and cranny of the place. The smell of roasted meat mixed with the sweet smell of caramel spread to every corner of the tavern. Kiel and Elaru were seated around a small table, sipping on honeymead, awaiting their meal. Honeymead was a popular nonalcoholic creamy beverage that melted on the tongue, leaving a mellow sweet taste similar to caramel or honey. It was a refreshing drink that could be drunk both hot and cold. Kiel expected Elaru to order some exotic alcoholic beverage so he was surprised when she ordered just regular honeymead. She also ordered the ¡°Chief¡¯s special¡± as her meal of choice leaving him reluctant to do the same. While she did seem to have a similar taste in beverages as him, that didn¡¯t mean she would have the same taste in food. Instead of ordering the same as her, he looked at the table next to them and ordered: ¡°What that guy is having.¡± It looked like a kebab. The meat glistened and glittered brightly, dripping sweet smelling juices all over the plate. Kiel licked his lips. He liked meat. Especially this kind, which was juicy and melted on the tongue without much chewing. The waitress serving them was a thin elibu girl with pale skin and numerous freckles all over her face. Her shoulder-length orange hair did nothing to conceal the redness spreading through her long pointy ears. Elaru seemed to know the girl because she called her by the name ¡°Pixy¡± and started up a conversation with her as soon as she arrived to take their orders. (which ultimately resulted in other customers complaining about the delay.) The girl looked at Elaru with reverence and was very excited to chat with her. She threw many not-so-sneaky glances at Kiel but was too flustered to talk to him. Each time her eyes met his icy blue ones her face and ears turned especially red. When he smiled at her, she almost dropped her tray. Luckily she was standing next to Elaru, and she caught it so effortlessly, without even looking at it, that one would think she knew it would fall. Kiel continued smiling self-satisfied. Ah, now this was the reaction he was used to. This kind of girl was easy to deal with. So unlike the annoying redhead that seemed completely blind to his charm, who enjoyed nothing more than to tease him. Kiel even caught her ¡°stealthily¡± giving Elaru a thumbs up when she thought he wasn¡¯t looking. Elaru responded with a confident thumbs-up, her face saying ¡°no problem, no problem¡±. She thought the girl was giving her the gesture because she helped her out with the tray, completely oblivious to the real meaning. He smiled wryly. Idiot. While they were waiting for their meals to arrive Kiel thought about his day and the upcoming exams. There were less than three days until the start of the exams. And he wasn¡¯t ready. He needed to get used to his new abundance of mana and learn as many spells as he could in this short period. The Ashar University of Magic was an academy that accepted only geniuses among geniuses. The difficulty of the exam could be imagined. Kiel wondered if Elaru had any skill in battle. If she was good enough, he could use her as an opponent to practice his own combat ability. He also needed to test out the distance he could be away from Elaru and what would happen if they passed it. He needed to test out the changes that happened to him as a result of Aetherneal bond. Aetherneal bond, Aetherneal gifts, what are they? His curiosity was peaked. He was surprised when the food finally arrived. That¡¯s because both his and Elaru¡¯s dish looked identical. Ah, so that kebab was actually the chief¡¯s special. Kiel¡¯s evaluation of Elaru immediately rose. They had similar taste in food and drink. Who knows, they might share some other similarities too. He waited for the food to cool down a bit, but she cast a temperature manipulation magic to cool it down and started eating immediately. He stared at her in silence. Does she do everything with magic? How close was she to levitating her meat with acceleration magic instead of using her hands? Where does she draw the line between convenience and abuse? Now that he had enough mana to abuse it, where should he draw the line? As he stared at her, his mind pinpointed an irregularity. He would have expected her dining etiquette to be lacking, but her eating manners were flawless. It wasn¡¯t the same as the etiquette he was thought as a noble, hers was more practical. She handled her utensils as if they were weapons ¨C with grace and precision. He had never seen anything like it before. If her eating was faster and more efficient than his but still had the grace and manner expected from a noble, would that mean the etiquette she was taught was of a higher level than his? Did she receive the education befitting a noble? Or was this skill gained through the usage of a specific weapon? ¡°Elaru, what high school did you go to?¡± Kiel started out his excavation of her personal information with a simple question. She paused her eating briefly to respond. ¡°I never went to school. Muni is my last chance to experience the joys of public education.¡± Joys of public education? Was there such a thing? All he could see were flaws. And besides, Muni wasn¡¯t a public institution, it was privately owned. Kiel wasn¡¯t surprised by her answer, well, the first part of her answer. Most nobles with high standing had a personal tutor. He didn¡¯t let her off and continued his questioning. ¡°Were you homeschooled?¡± Elaru didn¡¯t respond for a while. She seemed to be pondering what to say. ¡°All the things I know were either taught to me by papa or learned by personal experience.¡± Kiel paused mid bite. ¡°Are you trying to tell me you weren¡¯t homeschooled?¡± Elaru scratched her head. ¡°Well, I can¡¯t be homeschooled if I don¡¯t have a home. I¡¯ve been traveling with papa my whole life. So it was a somewhat unorthodox method of schooling.¡± Kiel¡¯s expression darkened. How much can a single person teach? It¡¯s not like her father is the most powerful mage in the land of Halnea. Experience is a great teacher, but there are certain things that experience can¡¯t teach you. Elaru picked up on his worries. ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate my knowledge and ability. Adventuring is the best way to learn new stuff. For example, what better way is there to learn how to fight than fighting itself or watching other people fight?¡± Kiel nodded. Fighting was one of the subjects better taught by performing it than learning the theory behind it. She didn¡¯t pause and continued with her high speech. ¡°What better way to learn how to cook than to work in the kitchens of a famous restaurant?¡± He continued nodding. Makes sense, makes sense. ¡°What better way to train your own balance and coordination than to join the circus?¡± Kiel¡¯s nodding froze for a second before he hesitantly nodded again. I guess¡­? ¡°What better way to learn about different types of poison and their antidotes then to try them out yourself?¡± Kiel¡¯s nodding stilled, and his expression froze. Wait, what? Elaru paid him no attention as she continued with her self-righteous speech. ¡°What better way to train your own mana weaving then to try to survive and eventually break out of prison which has an anti-mana-weaving artifact?¡± Eeeh?! Kiel¡¯s face paled, and he blurted out. ¡°Who would do that?! Isn¡¯t that too extreme?!¡± His words brought her out of her weird mood, and she looked at him strangely. She pressed her lips into a thin line to keep her mouth shut. Oh for the love of fate¡­she couldn¡¯t be talking about her own experiences¡­could she? Kiel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. What kind of¡­I don¡¯t even¡­what? * * * A bonus episode has been released (Episode 15 ¨C Good Night), so the two episodes that are going to be released on next Thursday will be 16 & 17. (Those two episodes are already available to Aethernea.com subscribers) Coming up in the next episode: Elaru finally noticed that her speech didn¡¯t have the desired effect and she coughed to attract Kiel¡¯s attention before waving it off and changing the subject. ¡°My point is, I am a genius, according to papa.¡± He felt the chills traveling down his spine. Don¡¯t give me that look! Didn¡¯t you say you weren¡¯t romantically interested in me? She surprised her revulsion and steeled her resolve. ¡°Has my fianc¨¦ been bothering you?¡± Episode 15 - Good Night This is a special bonus episode, the courtesy of the wonderful folks over at wattpad, who gave Aethernea 400 votes over two days. Enjoy! In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru leave their equipment in their room inside the inn and come down to have dinner. In their conversation, Kiel figures out that Elaru didn¡¯t go to school nor was she homeschooled. Episode 15 - Good Night ¡°What better way to train your own mana weaving then to try to survive and eventually break out of prison which has an anti-mana-weaving artifact?¡± Eeeh?! Kiel¡¯s face paled, and he blurted out. ¡°Who would do that?! Isn¡¯t that too extreme?!¡± His words brought her out of her strange mood, and she looked at him strangely. She pressed her lips into a thin line to keep her mouth shut. Oh for the love of fate¡­she couldn¡¯t be talking about her own experiences¡­could she? Kiel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. What kind of¡­I don¡¯t even¡­what? Elaru finally noticed that her speech didn¡¯t have the desired effect, and she coughed to attract Kiel¡¯s attention before waving it off and changing the subject. ¡°My point is, I am a genius, according to papa.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed with cold light. ¡°Do not change the subject!¡± He lowered his voice to be barely audible. ¡°I thought you said you aren¡¯t a wanted criminal!¡± She looked at him with a straight face. ¡°I am not.¡± He expected her to continue, but she didn¡¯t. When she noticed the chilling aura that started spreading from him, she decided to elaborate. ¡°Don¡¯t be silly.¡± She rolled her eyes with mirth. ¡°I wasn¡¯t arrested and thrown into prison.¡± Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. His lie sense wasn¡¯t tingling. Thank the gods! He noticed his lips were dry and took a sip of his honeymead. ¡°Papa smuggled me in.¡± The honeymead that just entered Kiel¡¯s mouth came out in a beautiful spray of shining liquid creating a colorful rainbow in the soft light of the tavern. It spilled all over his meat and even dripped down the sides of the table to the floor. He quickly covered his mouth with his hand, doing his best to look like a dignified noble. But suppressing a coughing fit while choking wasn¡¯t easy. His lungs burned, his throat itched, his eyes teared from his attempts to keep a straight face and not choke on his own spit. Yep. Her father is definitely the one to blame for her poor upbringing. Kiel didn¡¯t know what was worse, the pain he was feeling, his dignity going down the drain, or that his spit didn¡¯t manage to reach Elaru and pull her down with him. Elaru seemed oblivious to the murderous gaze aimed at her. She looked at him worriedly and flicked her fingers creating a sound barrier around them. ¡°Hey, hey. There is no dignity in death, mate. If you worry about your image, you¡¯ll choke.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t hold it in any longer and coughed it all out. He still did his utmost to cover it up. Luckily, they had chosen a secluded spot of the tavern, where they wouldn¡¯t attract much attention. Since both of them were extremely good looking, Kiel was worried they would stand out like diamonds among regular stones and not have any peace and quiet. Since no one could hear him coughing, no one noticed anything strange. He wanted to aim his coughing at Elaru this time, but the vixen must have had an impeccable sixth sense because she quickly moved behind him (out of reach) and patted him on the back like she was patting a baby about to burp. ¡°There¡­there.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t¡­touch¡­me¡± He growled in-between coughs. She let him be after that. Giving him a few minutes of silence to get over the experience. It would have been better if the expression on her face didn¡¯t clearly state: ¡°Let¡¯s have a moment of silence to mourn Kiel¡¯s tragic fate.¡± Kiel moved his hands to rub his temples and when his eyes refused to stop glaring holes into Elaru he covered them with his hand. He stood there frozen for a while. After another few minutes had gone by, when Elaru¡¯s senses detected the danger had passed, she spoke up. ¡°Are you alright, mate? That was a nasty coughing fit! Should I cast some healing magic on you? What brought that on?¡± ¡°What do you think was the cause of that?! Breaking into prison is just as illegal as breaking out of it!¡± Kiel hissed from between his clenched teeth. ¡°Not if you don¡¯t get caught doing it.¡± She smirked. ¡°That¡¯s not how the law works!!¡± He barely managed to restrain himself from slamming his fist against the table. She chewed on a piece of her meat and smiled. ¡°Your meat will get cold. You can use magic to heat it up, but you shouldn¡¯t be spoiled and do everything with magic.¡± I don¡¯t need you to tell me that!! ¡°Oh wait, I guess it already got cold. That honeymead you spewed over it cooled it down.¡± Kiel felt like banging his head against a wall, repeatedly. The last amount of restraint he had evaporated, he didn¡¯t even care about being in public anymore. He couldn¡¯t even remember what he was supposed to be acting like in this moment. In a swift motion, he picked up Elaru¡¯s jug of honeymead and spilled it over her plate of meat. Elaru gaped at him in shock. A mix of ¡°I did not see that one coming¡± and ¡°Who are you and what did you do to Kiel?¡± was splattered all over her face. Kiel couldn¡¯t remember the last time he felt such a strong sense of self-satisfaction than seeing Elaru¡¯s stupefied expression. He finally managed to get back at her. He finally managed to usurp that calm that ruled over her. As her eyes grew wider and wider, the previous anger and humiliation evaporated into thin air without a trace. After recovering from her stupor, Elaru exclaimed in a tear-jerking voice. ¡°Why did you kill my meat?! And why did you use my honeymead to kill it?¡± Kiel snorted, stifling a laugh. ¡°Why would I waste my own honeymead? You killed my meat, I killed yours. Now we are even.¡± Elaru pouted, feeling wronged. ¡°So petty! You were the one that spewed your honeymead all over your meat!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°You made me spew it out.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t be blamed for that. If you accidentally ran into my fist, would you blame that on me too?¡± Kiel raised his eyebrow. ¡°The only way I could accidentally run into your fist would be if I was already moving and you formed the fist and put it in front of my face. Which is no different than straight out punching me. You¡¯d definitely be the one to blame.¡± She refused to give up. ¡°What if it was an accidental injury? You¡¯d make me suffer too?¡± ¡°I am not heartless. I¡¯d probably pardon you on account of being a female.¡± As soon as he said that, he felt a sharp pain on his shin. Son of a¡­!!! The little fox kicked him! Almost out of reflex he kicked her right back. But she was ready for it and quickly dodged while whining. ¡°You said you¡¯d pardon it.¡± ¡°I said I would pardon it if it was accidental.¡± ¡°How do you know it wasn¡¯t? You didn¡¯t even give me a benefit of the doubt!¡± ¡°I am not bloody stupid!¡± Elaru pouted and gave him a sad look, like a child who got her sweets stolen. Her ears drooped down pitifully as she looked back at her plate. ¡°Such a waste of fine meat. Something had to die for this.¡± Kiel rolled his eyes at her antics. She didn¡¯t feel bad when his meat got ruined, and only when her own suffered did she start making a drama out of it. ¡°Drowning in honeymead is not a bad way to go.¡± ¡°Spoken like a true alcoholic.¡± She continued pouting and looking at him judgingly. ¡°Except honeymead isn¡¯t an alcoholic beverage.¡± Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched. Elaru raised her finger to her lips and shushed him. ¡°Shhh! Let¡¯s have a moment a silence for our fallen comrade.¡± How childish! What brought this on? Where did the cunning demon disappear to? Kiel couldn¡¯t help finding it amusing. ¡°It¡¯s a piece of meat. It would have ended up mixing with the honeymead in your stomach anyway. It makes absolutely no difference.¡± This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Her eyes were as round as saucers, looking at him as if his words contained profound enlightenment. She looked down at her plate and then stabbed a piece of meat with a fork, bringing it into her mouth. It was Kiel¡¯s turn to be dumbfounded. Did she still intend to eat it?? Kiel didn¡¯t need to be telepathic to tell she was thinking ¡°Right. Whether it enters mixed or mixes in the stomach, it is all the same.¡± As the meat entered her mouth, her expression steeled. She finished chewing on it and swallowed. Just as Kiel thought she would continue eating she put down her utensils and sighed: ¡°Not the same. Definitely not the same.¡± Both of them looked down at their ruined dinner. The entire table was dripping with honeymead. The meat was floating around their plates like a ship. They turned their heads and looked around them. Thank the gods for the sound isolation! No one seemed to notice anything wrong. Yet. They turned their heads back straight and looked at each other. Then they looked back at the table, and then back at each other. Elaru was the first one to burst out laughing. It wasn¡¯t clear how much time passed before Kiel noticed he was laughing too. They giggled, chuckled, and outright laughed until their stomachs started hurting, and tears started stinging their cheeks. Kiel sat on the chair next to the desk and stared at Elaru. She was lying down on the bed preparing for sleep. She had taken off an outer layer of her clothes when they came back from the dinner. All she had on was a tight sleeveless shirt and short petite trunks. Most of her body was bare; her long legs and slim arms, her delicate neck. The shirt was low cut so even parts of her chest were visible. Her skin was flawless, without any blemishes or scars. Kiel felt like he was seeing something he shouldn¡¯t be seeing. He had been aware of her well-developed body from the start. He didn¡¯t need a reminder. He preferred her with her clothes on. He could tell her to cover herself with the blanket, but he could already see her teasing him about it. Kiel wasn¡¯t shy. Most of the time he wouldn¡¯t care if women around him were walking around naked. But those were just random women he didn¡¯t have any relation to. Why would he care what they did? However, Elaru was different. She was an irreplaceable part of himself; he was stuck with her forever. And everything she did would have an effect on him, large or small. The last thing he needed was to bring romance or sexuality into their relationship. The nature of their relationship was that of mutual benefit, and it should stay that way. No more, no less. Mixing romance with business was never a good thing. Besides, he wouldn¡¯t be glued to her forever. There would come a time when they would part their ways. Any potential romance between them was doomed to fail from the start. They didn¡¯t live in the same world. He was an argel, she was an elibu. He was a noble, she was a commoner. He wanted to raise in status, show everyone his worth. She didn¡¯t care about social norms and preferred hiding in the shadows. Even their personalities were completely opposite. They had no place in each other¡¯s lives. The highest relationship they could ever hope to have was friendship. A friendship without sexual attraction, like that between two guys. Unfortunately, it was easier to pretend she was a guy when her two mounds weren¡¯t poking him in the eye. Elaru paid him no attention. She had no problem acting like she was a guy camping with male friends. She didn¡¯t flaunt her assets around, but she didn¡¯t take measures to hide them either. It was as if she wasn¡¯t aware she even had assets. Did her father raise her as a boy? Is that why Elaru considered herself to be ¡°one of the guys¡±? Calling him ¡°mate¡± all the time? That would certainly explain a lot. Elaru misunderstood his serious gaze ¡°You don¡¯t need to keep watch. I¡¯ll put up another protective barrier around us to protect us while we sleep.¡± Kiel closed his eyes and sighed. Did she really expect him to sleep next to her? He removed his own clothes too. Leaving only his boxers and undershirt on but they didn¡¯t do much to cover up his abs and well-sculpted body. He noticed Elaru staring at him with interest. He felt the chills traveling down his spine. Don¡¯t give me that look! Didn¡¯t you say you weren¡¯t romantically interested in me? ¡°You¡¯re pretty toned. Your mana resistance shouldn¡¯t be too high. That¡¯ll be quite helpful. How long have you been practicing martial arts?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming. ¡°Since I was little.¡± She was used to being around men because of her father and Wade? Was that it? She wasn¡¯t looking at him as a man. She acted just like two buddies would in the dressing room, asking casual questions. She was interested in him, but not in a romantic sense. He felt relieved. It made the situation that much simpler. Realizing that Elaru had ¡°friend zoned¡± him from the start, he was no longer worried about misunderstandings and romance. He laid down next to her on the bed and turned away to his side. He was not a sex crazed teenager, he never was. Now that he understood her behavior he could easily adjust his own. He was just about to let it go when he remembered what usually happens in these scenarios. Knowing his luck, they¡¯d wake up in a compromising position. That won¡¯t do. He better be safe than sorry. Elaru got up from the bed and found her way towards the table with their equipment. Kiel¡¯s eyes briefly paused on her before he looked around the room, his eyes searching for something. He frowned, there was nothing suitable in the room. His gaze snapped to the table, attracted towards the glow coming from the metal egg. Elaru had just finished aligning the rings and the protection barrier activated, this time covering an even larger area. Kiel¡¯s eyes brightened when his gaze fell on his sword that was among their equipment on the table. He got up and picked up the sheathed sword, bringing it back to the bed. The wooden headboard of the bed had decorative holes in the shape of a heart. He brought up his sword and lodged the handle into the hole right in the middle of the headboard. The sword remained lodged, creating a clear divide between the two sides of the bed. As Elaru get back on her side of the bed, her eyes didn¡¯t leave the sword hovering there like a poor excuse for a fence. ¡°You don¡¯t intend to murder me tonight, do you?¡± She chuckled and asked half-jokingly. ¡°I just might.¡± Kiel smirked. This would do. With the sword in the way, there was no way they¡¯d wake up in an awkward position now. He was very satisfied with himself. Elaru realized it was a joke because she grinned in response. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t recommend it. I am pretty nasty while half asleep.¡± ¡°Even nastier than you are when you are awake?¡± Kiel exclaimed in mock shock. Elaru snickered and rolled her eyes at him. ¡°Many times nastier. So nasty you could die from the nastiness.¡± Kiel shook his head, his face sprouting a small smirk, and pulled on the rope that shifted the array formation on the ceiling out of place. As soon as the formation got misaligned, the glowing crystals dimmed and lost their light, blanketing the two in the veil of darkness. * * * Coming up in the next episode: She suppressed her revulsion and steeled her resolve. ¡°Has my fianc¨¦ been bothering you?¡± His speech got cut down instantly as a sad voice reached his ears. ¡°Does that mean I don¡¯t have the right to live?¡± ¡°Let the gods be my witness! I¡¯ll follow you wherever you go! Be it the abyss, the eye of the storm. Be it life or death.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± She mumbled dejectedly. ¡°I won¡¯t ever leave you alone. We¡¯ll always be together.¡± She offered her pinky finger. ¡°Pinky promise.¡± Episode 16 - Promise This chapter¡¯s ¡°foreign¡± word : Nalen Talath [nah-len tah-lah-th] In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru have a quarrel while eating dinner, but they make up in the end. They go to sleep in the same bed, but Kiel puts a sheathed sword between them as a fence. Episode 16 - Promise ? Meanwhile in the Purge Headquarters ? Nelaira sat on her futon and looked at the lone elibu in front of her. Other people in his position would be on guard, afraid that the Ink would spread and infect them. That the Tainted in front of them would suddenly lose their mind and attack. But not him. He stood in a leisurely posture with his sickly pale hands behind his back, showing neither fear nor revulsion towards her. He had neither bodyguards nor weapons that could protect him from Nelaira if she chose to attack. Yet Nelaira didn¡¯t believe, not even for a second, that she could pose a threat to him. The man with the grayish green hair framing his face looked no older than 30. He wore a wide smile that didn¡¯t reach his eyes. One couldn¡¯t pinpoint what was wrong with his smile, it neither looked insincere nor polite, it wasn¡¯t sly nor evil, yet it made Nelaira¡¯s hair stand on end. There was just something about the man that gave her the creeps. Those thin slits that were his eyes looked at her without emotion. They were so narrow that Nelaira couldn¡¯t tell what color his eyes were. Nalen Talath, the manager of the quarantine section of the Purge Headquarters. Exactly the calculating and cold-blooded man she had asked to see. ¡°You wanted to see me?¡± The man started the conversation with a sickly pleasant tone that reminded Nelaira of the hissing sound of a snake. She suppressed her revulsion and steeled her resolve. ¡°Has my fianc¨¦ been bothering you?¡± That disturbing smile never left the man¡¯s face as he replied. ¡°Deliberately wasting my time is not going to help either of us.¡± Nelaira chuckled wryly. ¡°He is not going to give up until you let him see me.¡± The man responded in a pleasant, friendly tone, but Nelaira could feel the sarcasm dripping from his words. ¡°Oh my, you are right! We better let him see you then!¡± Nelaira tried her best to keep her emotions off her face. ¡°He won¡¯t be playing nice forever. Do you really want the world to know that you are holding me prisoner? Is this a prison or a quarantine?¡± Nalen Talath grinned wider, a tinge of malice finally dripping into his smile, and retorted in a teasing tone. ¡°It¡¯s a quarantine of course! Why would you compare it to a prison?¡± Nelaira¡¯s heart skipped a beat. She could feel cold sweat forming on her back. It felt like it took the man hours to continue, yet only a few seconds had elapsed. ¡°Aren¡¯t you sweet? Worrying about our matters. You have too much time on your hands.¡± He was probing her and waiting for her to mention ¡°the deal¡± he had been informed about. That was the only reason why he was still here. Nelaira decided to finally get to business. She couldn¡¯t delay any longer in fear of losing his interest. She had to put on a flawless performance, for he was her only hope. ¡°I¡¯d be willing to help you deal with my fianc¨¦, getting him off your back.¡± The man showed no change in expression, still wearing that disgusting smile. ¡°Is that so?¡± Nelaira sighed and put on a pitiful act, her long ears hanging downwards. ¡°As you said, I have too much time on my hands, yet at the same time, I have very little time left. If you help me spend these last moments a bit more pleasantly¡­ I will write a letter to my fianc¨¦ telling him that I don¡¯t want to see him and that although you are doing your best to stop the spread of the Ink, I don¡¯t have many days left in me.¡± The manager wasn¡¯t moved by her words. He still stood with the same expression like a doll. Nelaira didn¡¯t give up. ¡°You can, of course, suggest what you want me to write and then I¡¯ll word it to sound like something I would say. I¡¯ll rewrite the letter until you are satisfied. This would also help you to deal with the aftermath of my death.¡± She paused shortly before continuing. ¡°You¡¯ve got nothing to lose in this deal. You only stand to profit. If I tell him that it is I that doesn¡¯t want to see him, he will understand and stop making trouble for you.¡± Nalen looked at her for a while, his eyes inspecting her closely. Nelaira felt her scalp turn numb, his gaze was quite unpleasant. It seemed like an eternity passed before he responded. ¡°What are your demands?¡± Nelaira¡¯s heart jumped. The fish had taken the bait. Now she only needed to reel it in. The erratic hard beats reverberated through her body. ¡°I want you to bring me some blank paper and pens so I can draw. Also, I want you to bring me 3 new books to read every week.¡± As she waited for his response, she could feel her heart jumping in her throat. It was painfully clenching with dread and fear of failure. ¡°What kind of books do you want?¡± Nelaira felt like a giant weight has been lifted from her shoulders. If she wasn¡¯t already sitting down, her legs would have given out, and she would have slumped to the ground. For the first time, she was happy to see Nalen¡¯s smile, as it meant that the deal was on. Her heart was still beating erratically, but, this time, it was out of joy. Success!! She tried to stifle her excitement and not let it show on her face. ¡°I prefer romance and adventure books. The longer the book, the better.¡± Just you wait. I¡¯ll wipe that fake friendly smile from your face sooner or later. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll see what I can find. Is there anything else you wish to discuss?¡± ¡°No, that is all.¡± Nelaira smiled politely, urging him to leave before her fast beating heart gave her away. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be taking my leave.¡± Nalen Talath smiled and bowed in fake politeness before leaving the room. Nelaira¡¯s smile stayed on her face for a long while, even after the doors closed, once again, imprisoning her in this cold metal box. The first part of her plan was a success. Nelaira couldn¡¯t help but feel satisfied. Her request for books was a diversion from her actual target. All along, her true goal was the letter. If she had asked him to let her write a letter, he would have laughed at her naivety. If they didn¡¯t stand to profit from it, they wouldn¡¯t be moved. If she offered to write a letter that was beneficial to him, he would have still refused it because of her suspicious agenda. Who would help their captors from the kindness of their heart? She had to make it seem like she wanted something else from them, and the letter was only the bargaining chip to get it. That letter was vital. It was her one and only chance to pass her secrets onto the love of her life. She had to forge every word, every sentence with utmost care, so that only he would be able to understand the hidden meaning. * * * The blanket of the night covered the streets of the city, but it couldn¡¯t suppress the sudden chatter and excitement from erupting. One person after the other kept coming out of their houses to see what was going on. There were only two small figures moving in the opposite direction from the crowd. The first was a small boy, no older than seven, who zigzagged around the street skillfully, dodging people as if he was a leaf blown by the wind. His blonde hair jumped around his face in sync with the movement of his long ears. His bright lime green eyes resembled that of a feline as he skillfully used the cover of the darkness to conceal himself from unwanted attention. The second one was a girl, no older than the boy, her small delicate hands were tightly wrapped around the boy¡¯s neck. Her nose nuzzled the boy¡¯s neck, the short black hair, growing from the back of the boy¡¯s head, tickled her. Her chest pressed onto the boy¡¯s back tightly, her head full of messy dark red hair was drenched with sweat. The long ponytail of the girl followed behind the two like a ribbon, waving and glittering in the darkness of the night. One couldn¡¯t tell from her expression, but her body was in so much pain she couldn¡¯t even speak. She was clinging to consciousness with every shred of willpower she possessed. The people around them showed a mix of curiosity and excitement. It contrasted sharply with the emotions showing on the boy¡¯s face. Dread, indignation, urgency, self-loathing. The emotions radiating off of him could easily make one forget that the origin was a young child. There was no trace of immaturity showing in his eyes as he ran like the wind. Cold sweat glistened on their sun-kissed limbs, both of them breathing heavily. Even so, the boy didn¡¯t stop running for a long while. It was only when he heard a sweet melodic voice of a young girl that he halted and hid in the shadows of the empty ally: ¡°It¡¯s ok. No one is following us.¡± Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°It¡¯s not ok!¡± The boy hissed angrily. ¡°You went in alone! Without me! What if something went wrong? I could do nothing but watch you die right in front of me!¡± His aura was in turmoil. It clearly projected the pain and helplessness of watching your most precious person walk on the edge between life and death. She was right there, in front of him, yet the distance felt like the divide between worlds. He was safe, and on the other side, she was alone and dancing with death. He was afraid to blink, afraid that when he opened his eyes, he would see her perish right in front of him. Wade had never felt that kind of fear before, that kind of powerlessness. He had wanted nothing more than to charge in with her. To share her burdens. Being with her on the edge was better than being alone in a sanctuary. To die together was far better than to live alone. They had always been together. Inseparable. He felt as if even their hearts were beating together. He couldn¡¯t imagine a world without her. The girl¡¯s aura tickled him gently in response. ¡°Everything is fine. I am fine.¡± The boy glared into the space in front of him. ¡°All is well that ends well. AS if!¡± He rested his hands on his knees. ¡°The next time you might not be as lucky!¡± Before the girl could answer, the boy growled. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you are sorry. I can tell you aren¡¯t.¡± ¡°But I am. I am sorry that I worried you. I am sorry that I put myself in danger. I am sorry that I couldn¡¯t bring you with me.¡± The soft voice sounded completely sincere. ¡°You¡¯d still make the same choice next time!¡± The boy puffed up his cheeks in dissatisfaction. ¡°I don¡¯t want there to ever be a next time!¡± ¡°The risk was worth it.¡± ¡°No, it wasn¡¯t. ¡®When the risk outweighs the potential benefits it is not worth taking.¡¯, remember?¡± The boy argued. ¡°A life for a life. The weight is the same.¡± The voice argued back with much less vigor than the boy. The boy stomped his feet on the ground angrily. ¡°Not all lives are equal. Some are more valuable than others.¡± If someone were to pass by the two children, they would surely give them a strange look. The boy seemed to be arguing with himself. The girl on his back had her eyes and her mouth shut, undisturbed by the boy¡¯s temper tantrum. ¡°Who decides the value of someone¡¯s life? How do you know that the life I¡¯ve saved wasn¡¯t as important as mine?¡± The blonde boy stopped to think for a second before replying. ¡°It is decided by how valuable one is to society and the people around them. They were non-mages, thus, zero value. As for the people around them¡­no one came to save them; I rest my case.¡± The childish voice responded in a tired voice: ¡°Babies can do even less magic than non-mages. Does that mean they aren¡¯t worth anything either? Yet every genius that changed the world started out as one.¡± The blonde frowned, his cute face scrunching up. ¡°Babies have potential worth. Their worth will rise as they grow up.¡± ¡°Right. The worth of life can change. For all you know, the one I¡¯ve saved could grow up to become someone incredible.¡± The boy¡¯s mouth twitched. No way would that guy become someone amazing. He is a non- mage! But he wouldn¡¯t be able to convince her otherwise. He changed his tactic. ¡°Or it could stay worthless. It is a gamble. And if you continue gambling with your life, sooner or later you¡¯ll lose it. This world is cruel. It is the survival of the fittest¡­you can¡¯t save everyo¡­¡± His speech got cut down instantly as a sad voice reached his ears. ¡°Does that mean I don¡¯t have the right to live?¡± He grew silent. How did the conversation suddenly end up like this? Stupid move Wade, stupid move. Walked straight into the trap. Darn it. He opened his mouth to say something several times but didn¡¯t know how to refute. He sat down and put down the girl. They huddled together like pechuhs on a cold winter night. ¡°You are making my head hurt. I don¡¯t know the answer to those hard questions. I just don¡¯t want you to die!¡± The mere thought of it made his heart lurch and twist in his chest painfully. ¡°I just want to be with you.¡± The girl, lying pressed onto him opened her mouth for the first time. ¡°Everyone dies. I¡¯ll die too sooner or later. There are places where I can¡¯t take you with me, no matter how much I want to stay with you.¡± Her voice was raspy and contained a profound sadness within, yet it was unmistakably the same voice that the boy had been speaking with previously. The boy hugged her tighter. ¡°If you can¡¯t take me with you then I will walk by my own accord. When you return to the Origin, I¡¯ll follow right behind. We¡¯ll go there together.¡± The girl¡¯s hand that was on the boy¡¯s chest grabbed onto his shirt tightly. ¡°Don¡¯t say that. If I die, you must live for the both of us.¡± The boy covered the girl¡¯s clenching little hand with his. ¡°What point is there to life without you in it?¡± To him, the redhead was the sun. When she shined down, everything around her turned into flowers, rainbows, and light. With her gone, everything would dim and turn into shadows, withering away, turning into a desolate land of death. Wade didn¡¯t want to live in such a lonely place. She was the light to his darkness. A part of himself he never wanted to lose. The girl opened her large orbs that could make anyone¡¯s breath catch in their throat. She looked him in the eye with longing. ¡°There are so many wonderful things out there. So many nice people. So many magical phenomena. So many different things we are yet to experience.¡± She could see the beauty in everything. She could never truly understand how he felt. To her, life was a precious gift, and he too was a precious gift in her eyes. The boy stared at the large orbs that flickered with glowing golden lights, his gaze not wavering for a second. ¡°Then let¡¯s experience all of them together. Let the gods be my witness! Be it the abyss, the eye of the storm. Be it life or death. I¡¯ll follow you wherever you go! Never again will I let you leave me behind.¡± The girl¡¯s face finally contorted into a pained expression. ¡°Stupid! I don¡¯t want you to die!¡± The boy¡¯s mouth twitched, trying to suppress a grin. ¡°Then you should keep that in mind the next time you decide to gamble your own life. Remember, you are gambling with two.¡± She gasped, realizing that she had walked straight into his trap. ¡°Low blow!¡± The boy¡¯s face spread into a foxy grin and his chest puffed up in pride. You think you can outsmart me? Fat chance! After sulking for a while, the girl mumbled dejectedly: ¡°I get it. I won¡¯t ever leave you alone again. We¡¯ll always be together. In life and death.¡± She offered her pinky finger. ¡°Pinky promise.¡± The boy¡¯s eyes lit up like the sun, and he gripped her pinky with his own. ¡°Deal! Don¡¯t you dare go back on it later!¡± As the two smiled, the time seemed to stop, and the word around them dissolved slowly. The blackness soon swallowed every light and sound. It greedily devoured everything, leaving nothing behind but a lingering pain. * * * Do you like the Elade drawing? (Elaru x Wade) ^_^ It took me a whole day to draw. Coming up in the next episode: I knew it! I knew it would turn awkward! This is why two people of the opposite sex shouldn¡¯t sleep in the same bed! The girl¡¯s face flushed, the color reaching even her ears, and she gave Elaru a knowing smile. ¡°Was this the first time you two¡­shared the same bed?¡± She had no idea that this seemingly insignificant incident would give birth to various strange rumors. He wasted no time and went straight to the point. ¡°Elaru, I¡¯ve been thinking about the bond. We need to test out how the distance affects us. We can¡¯t go on without knowing how far apart we can be.¡± Episode 17 - Experienced In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru have a quarrel while eating dinner, but they make up in the end. They go to sleep in the same bed, but Kiel puts a sheathed sword between them as a fence. Nelaira managed to strike a deal with the manager of the quarantine that would allow her to send a letter to her fianc¨¦. Elaru has a dream of when she was little, and she risked her life to save a non-mage. Episode 17 - Experienced Saturday, 25th of August 1449 A.W. Days until the Muni exam: 2 Kiel woke up to the morning light caressing his face. He tried to cling on to sleep just a bit more. He didn¡¯t feel like getting up. His current predicament was too comfortable, too enjoyable. It was cozy, relaxing, and made him feel¡­happy? Well, regardless, he couldn¡¯t remember the last time he slept so well. The temperature was just right, and there was even a nice warm breeze tickling his neck¡­ ¡­ ¡­ Breeze tickling his neck!?! Kiel¡¯s eyes snapped open. The sight that greeted him made his face freeze in horror. The sheathed sword that he set up last night as a fence in the middle of the bed was still there, in the same position he had placed it in. Which isn¡¯t a wonder considering the fact it was supported by weight from both sides. Kiel¡¯s body was pressing onto the sword from one side, he even had an arm draped over it. Elaru was pressing onto the sword from the other side. Both of them had somehow converged to the center of the bed. And the only thing between them was a thin sword. It might have as well not been there! It¡¯s not like it helped at all! Her head managed to sneak under the sword and was nuzzling his neck and his arm was going over the sword and was comfortably resting on her back. Other than his mother, Kiel had never hugged a female before. The entire notion of being intimate with someone (in any way) horrified him. He didn¡¯t like anyone! He didn¡¯t want to be close to anyone! Kiel gritted his teeth, one could almost see fumes coming out of his ears. I knew it! I knew it would turn awkward! This is why two people of the opposite sex shouldn¡¯t sleep in the same bed! Are the gods making fun of me? Are they laughing at my futile attempts of fighting their set fate? What kind of a miserable turn of events is this? Luckily he was the first to wake up. He didn¡¯t know how he would face Elaru if she found them in such a position. He wondered if she would be bothered by it, or if she would just laugh it off. Surely it would be the latter. That thought annoyed him. He carefully, steadily retracted his arm and then used it to support Elaru¡¯s head as he moved away quickly. In fact, he moved away so abruptly that he ended up falling off from the bed. It was unclear whether Elaru was woken up by the string of curses or the thud, but soon after she stretched like a cat and smiled from ear to ear. ¡°I feel great. I don¡¯t remember the last time I slept this well. I even had a dream. A dream!¡± She turned towards Kiel, who had just gotten up from the floor, and emphasized it like a miracle had occurred. Kiel looked at her strangely. She elaborated: ¡°I am a light sleeper. My sleep is rarely deep enough to have dreams.¡± He didn¡¯t answer her; he was still wearing a scowl on his face. Elaru looked at the sword that was still lodged between them. ¡°Why are you in such a foul mood? See, your contraption even worked! I stayed on my side, and you stayed on yours. Just like I said, there¡¯s no problem with sharing a bed.¡± Kiel didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. * * * It was a quiet morning in the tavern. There were not many people eating breakfast. Elaru was feasting on bacon and fried eggs, while drinking caramel-cookie milk. Kiel was surprised that she would drink milk for breakfast. That was something children did, or girls that hoped the milk would make their breast grow larger. He had heard the girls in Beyd Academy talk about that, and it sounded ridiculous at the time. But seeing Elaru drink it, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder if all that milk was the reason her chest grew to its current generous size. The funny thing about it was that Kiel drunk milk too. Chocolate milk to be exact. He felt the need to explain himself and claimed it was because he practiced martial arts so he needed his bones and muscles to get as strong as possible. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t have admitted actually liking the taste of milk. That would be just inviting the ridicule of others. Well, maybe Elaru wouldn¡¯t laugh at him since she was drinking milk too, but still, he needed to keep his image of a cool guy. Cool guys didn¡¯t drink milk for breakfast. Kiel had finished his meal quickly and returned back to the room. He didn¡¯t want to give Elaru the chance to turn this meal into yesterday¡¯s fiasco. And also, that freckled waitress going by the name of Pixy, was burning holes into him with her gaze. When Kiel left the hearing range, Pixy, the freckled waitress, slowly approached Elaru and nonchalantly leaned her back on the table next to hers. She wore a coy smirk on her face as she asked in a naughty voice: ¡°Sooo¡­did you sleep well last night?¡± Elaru grinned brightly. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the last time I slept so well! I feel refreshed today.¡± The girl¡¯s face flushed, the color reaching even her ears, and she gave Elaru a knowing smile. ¡°Was this the first time you two¡­shared the same bed?¡± Elaru wasn¡¯t surprised that the Pixy knew that she shared the room with Kiel. Pixy was an outgoing person who always had the latest gossip. She must have heard it from Mira. Elaru didn¡¯t bother to deny it and nodded. ¡°Yeah. We didn¡¯t have the chance to spend the night together before.¡± Pixy smirked slyly before asking. ¡°How was he?¡± Elaru looked at Pixy confusedly, trying to determine what she was really asking with such a vague question. Her eyes lit up in realization. She must be asking about her experience sharing the bed with Kiel. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°It was great. He is still, doesn¡¯t make any noises and doesn¡¯t hog the blanket. About time I ran into someone who doesn¡¯t kick, snore or grab boobs in his sleep.¡± Pixy stared at Elaru dumbfounded. What? His performance in bed doesn¡¯t sound amazing at all. ¡°Ah¡­it must be that he isn¡¯t as experienced as you.¡± Elaru gave Pixy a strange look. Experienced? The girl sure switched conversation topic fast. What does Kiel¡¯s experience as a mage have to do with the previous conversation? ¡°Of course not. You¡¯d be hard-pressed to find someone as experienced as me. He is already quite excellent. He has been training since childhood. Experience will come with time.¡± Pixy froze and stared at Elaru gaping. The fingers gripping her tray slipped. It was only when the tray hit the ground that she awoke from her stupor. Her whole face and ears were beet red. ¡°Y..you are?? H¡­how did he train?¡± She stammered, fidgeting on her feet. Elaru took a sip of her chocolate milk before responding. ¡°How else? By exercising and casting magic over and over.¡± ¡°There is a magic even for that?!¡± Pixy¡¯s voice raised even higher than her usual voice. Elaru gave her a confused look and was about to ask something, but Pixy suddenly looked past Elaru to some other table and stammered out ¡°I¡¯ll be right th¡­there!¡± She smiled nervously at Elaru and explained. ¡°Sorry. Duty calls!¡± Then she ran off like the wind. Elaru stared at the place where Pixy was previously standing in shock. ¡°What was that about? I didn¡¯t notice anyone calling for her¡­¡± Elaru didn¡¯t dwell on it for long and eventually shrugged, continuing with her meal. She had no idea that this seemingly insignificant incident would give birth to various strange rumors. * * * Kiel was walking back and forth in the room, thinking about all the things he needed to do before the exams. He couldn¡¯t practice magic here within the room. He needed an open space, somewhere where he wouldn¡¯t be worried about the potential damage. Something like the forest clearing he used to practice magic in. He could find such a place on the outskirts of Ashar. However, he couldn¡¯t go there without Elaru because it was pretty far away and he didn¡¯t know their current distance limitation. That¡¯s it. That was the most important thing ¨C he needed to find out how far apart they could be. Other effects of the Aetherneal bond could wait until he passed the exam, but this couldn¡¯t wait. Luckily, this was the point when Elaru walked back into the room, smiling brightly like the sun. Kiel had the urge to shield his eyes from the imaginary light. He wasted no time and went straight to the point. ¡°Elaru, I¡¯ve been thinking about the bond. We need to test out how the distance affects us. We can¡¯t go on without knowing how far apart we can be.¡± Elaru snapped her fingers and pointed at herself. ¡°That is exactly what I¡¯ve been thinking. I have to go fetch you that artifact I promised, but I can¡¯t take you with me. So I need to know how far apart we can be.¡± Kiel nodded approvingly. She didn¡¯t forget about the promised artifact. ¡°I thought one of us would stay here, and the other would leave towards the outskirts of Ashar. We could then carefully observe what we feel as the distance increases.¡± Elaru smiled. ¡°Excellent idea. You sit tight and keep notes about what we experience at what distance and I¡¯ll set off.¡± Kiel was about to protest. He wanted to be the one to run around. His goal was to find a suitable place where he could practice magic. However, before he could protest, Elaru continued. ¡°When we are satisfied with the experiment I will just use my Beacon to teleport back to the city. Hot Pot is close to the Gate, so it would be the most effective way of traveling back. A quick way back is necessary in case adverse effects appear.¡± Elaru grinned wide. ¡°Also, this is an excellent chance to practice two things. The first is telepathy. We should practice it until it feels easy and natural to use. That way, in the future we can converse about ¡®you-know-what¡¯ without fearing someone would overhear us. Using this chance to practice telepathy is ideal because we will also be able to test out if our telepathic ability degrades with distance. It will also be helpful for us to converse about what we feel at what distance. When you feel something, you can ask how far I moved and write it down.¡± Kiel was impressed. ¡°Did you think of that just now or were you thinking about it for a while?¡± He wondered. He hoped the answer was ¡°a while¡±, because if she managed to think of such a good plan this quickly, he would feel threatened by her intelligence. He had never felt threatened or even considerably challenged in that area before. She grinned. ¡°Thank you for the compliment!¡± She understood the thoughts behind the question. Kiel narrowed his eyes. ¡°I was not complimenting you¡­¡± He growled. Elaru ignored him, her grin not fading even though she clearly heard him. * * * Fun fact, Aethernea now has over 50k words out. That is more than half of the words an average novel would have. Well, Aethernea isn¡¯t an average novel, and this amount might not even reach 20% of the first book. I just wanted to thank you guys for reading. It means a lot to me! The next two episodes will be released, as usual, on next Thursday, 21st of July. (Unless you become an email subscriber, in which case you¡¯d get them as soon as you subscribe.) P.S. I am running a special event on Wattpad, the rewards of which are extra Aethernea episodes. If extra episodes get released during this next week, the email subscribers will be getting them as soon as they are released, while nonsubscribers will be getting them next Thursday. Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed in doubt. Isn¡¯t this¡­too simple? He had too many questions and too little answers. He craved access to the Muni library like a starving man craved food. If there was one place where he could find the answer he was seeking, it would be the Muni library. The first unexpected anomaly appeared when Elaru passed the 5 km mark. Episode 18 - Distance Test (Part 1) In the following 4 episodes, you¡¯ll get to understand more about the nature and relationship between the soul, Mind, and body (and some other spellcasting related things). Bear with me, after that we¡¯ll get a glimpse into Elaru¡¯s secrets and why and how she ran into Kiel. In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru decide to test out how far apart they can be from each other. Elaru also suggests they practice telepathy and whether distance affects it. * * * ¡°First things first, try transmitting your thoughts to me.¡± Elaru¡¯s lips never moved, yet her voice reverberated inside Kiel¡¯s head with perfect clarity. He would probably be able to hear her loud and clear even if they were in a noisy environment. Thoughts seemed to be a more powerful signal than sound. She had picked up the whole telepathy business pretty easily. As if she had previous experience with it. Or perhaps telepathy wasn¡¯t that hard at all, maybe it should come naturally to them? He wouldn¡¯t know since he had never tried it before. ¡°I¡¯ll give it a shot.¡± Kiel thought up a response. Can you hear me? Elaru¡¯s stare didn¡¯t change. She didn¡¯t respond, so he assumed she didn¡¯t hear him. Thinking of a response to her question wasn¡¯t enough? Of course, it wasn¡¯t. Otherwise, she would be able to hear his thoughts and words that weren¡¯t intended for her to hear. His thoughts should be private while they remained inside his mind. Therefore, perhaps he needed to push them outside of his mind? If his thoughts were like a paper message, instead of just writing it and keeping it, he would need to scrunch it up into a ball and throw it towards Elaru (would be perfect if he managed to smack her in the face with it). Kiel concentrated all his senses on Elaru. He layered his Mind on top of hers like a blanket. This time, instead of just thinking of a response he imagined telling her that, he wanted her to hear it. He concentrated on the message and imagined pushing it out, he willed it to move. He could almost feel his thoughts leaping towards her. This sensation was very familiar to him. And just on cue, Elaru chuckled. ¡°Hearing someone else¡¯s voice inside my head feels so weird. In a cool way!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed in doubt. Isn¡¯t this¡­too simple? He had done something like this a thousand times before. All those times when he was trying to silently communicate with someone or pass them a silent message. All those times he bore holes into someone, practically screaming at them inside his head. All those times when he¡¯d icily glare at someone, internally calling them names. All those times when he looked at his mother hopefully as a child, begging her for something. He¡¯d do it just like this, exactly like this! Sometimes, when someone was staring intently at him, he got this feeling of being watched and could almost feel them projecting their thoughts towards him. People attributed these feelings to their Mind picking up on the intent hidden in the aura. But what if what he had been picking up were stray thoughts? Thoughts that he could feel but couldn¡¯t understand? Kiel¡¯s eyes brightened, his mind branching out into many different possibilities. Could it be that everyone had an innate ability to send thoughts to others, but the problem was receiving them? Could it be that every mind thought in a different wavelength, and could only understand the thoughts that were on the same wavelength? Right! The reason why people couldn¡¯t feel Minds of others was exactly because they were on a different wavelength! It was as if each Mind existed in a dimension of their own, never managing to see or touch the Minds of others. Their dimensions overlapped, layering on top of each other like sheets of paper. Others were there, within reach, sometimes you might even feel them, but at the end of the day, you couldn¡¯t speak their language. The reason why he could feel and communicate with Elaru¡¯s mind was that Aetherneal bond connected their minds. But what did that mean? Was the bond between them like a wormhole connecting the two separate worlds? Like a gum gluing two sheets of paper together? Or was it that their wavelengths were now one and the same? Was it that Aetherneal bond made their different worlds merge into one? Did their two Minds exist in the same world which would naturally make them able to communicate with each other? Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. If their Minds were only connected by a hole, he would be able to send thoughts, but he wouldn¡¯t be able to feel her Mind this clearly. He could feel every twitch and movement of her Mind, as if his Mind was truly touching it. Which means it was very likely that their Minds truly did exist on the same wavelength. Kiel¡¯s pupils suddenly shrunk as a dangerous idea appeared. If their minds could touch and interact with each other¡­ would it be possible to¡­invade her Mind? Would it be possible for him to catch those thoughts that were hidden deep inside? The thoughts she wasn¡¯t projecting outside towards him. Would he be able to read her mind? His heart skipped a beat. If he could do it, then she should be able to do the same! The idea terrified him. For his most private thoughts and feelings to be laid out in the open. For everything, he tried desperately to hide and disguise to be found by someone else. He would be stripped naked of all his armor. Nothing could save him from being used and manipulated. Each of his embarrassing thoughts and mistakes, all the information he knew, his lies, experiences, everything would be exposed! The image he tried so hard to build would shatter in a single moment. Would she care about it being ethically wrong, for it being a serious invasion of privacy? No. He couldn¡¯t rely on her sense of justice. He could clearly recall her view on the law: ¡°It¡¯s not illegal if I don¡¯t get caught doing it.¡± It was critical for him to find out if this was possible. He needed to confirm it, and if it was possible, he needed to find a way to prevent it from happening to him. His heartbeat quickened. What if she was reading his mind right now? Kiel looked towards Elaru to see her giving him a quizzical look. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± was written all over her face. Kiel forced himself to calm down. Either she was the best actor he had ever seen, or she wasn¡¯t reading his thoughts. Just because mind reading occurred to him, it doesn¡¯t mean the same idea crossed her mind as well. And besides, it was just speculation, it might be impossible after all. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. It would be best if it were impossible. ¡°If I didn¡¯t have you in my field of view, would sending thoughts be more difficult?¡± Kiel decided to throw in a diversion, jerking the conversation onto a topic which had nothing to do with the relationship between their Minds. The last thing he needed was for her thoughts to travel down the same path as his. He took out a notebook and a pencil from his backpack and sat down on the bed. He started noting down all his questions. He even noted down his previous fear but worded it so only he would be able to understand what he was referring to. Elaru took that as her cue to leave, and she quickly dashed out the door, closing it behind her. ¡°What is your favorite season?¡± Kiel heard inside his head. She clearly had no issue with sending her thoughts without being able to see him. He closed his eyes and concentrated on her once again. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Every season has its good sides and bad sides.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a favorite either.¡± He could feel her smile, even though he couldn¡¯t see it. She could send expressions telepathically too? Or was it that feelings traveled along with thoughts by themselves? Kiel suddenly felt enlightened about the nature of thoughts. Thoughts weren¡¯t made out of words, they carried meaning. That meaning could be a message, or it could be memories and feelings. It might even be possible to transfer knowledge or pure intent. Anything that exists within the Mind had a possibility of being transferred to another Mind. Elaru continued: ¡°I see you have no trouble sending your thoughts to me now. Sit tight, I am going on a little trip. Don¡¯t forget to note changes in your body while the distance between us increases.¡± Elaru dashed down the stairs and exited the tavern. She didn¡¯t even notice Mira, who greeted her. She ran down the street and flew up onto the roof. She scanned the horizon briefly to decide which direction to take, and then accelerated towards the outskirts of Ashar, periodically shifting between jumping, flying and running. Kiel closed his eyes, shutting out the information coming from outside. He concentrated on the state of his body and the mana inside and outside it. It would have been helpful if he could perceive their soul, but not even Aethernea of Sight could see it. Ancient records described it to look like a flower of light, or a flame hemisphere with many fiery tendrils, positioned in the center of one¡¯s body. Those petals or tendrils, touched numerous different parts of the body, transmitting mana through them into the body. The mana would nourish every cell, and the excess would drift outside of the body forming an aura ¨C a cloud of mana around the person. The mana making the aura was exactly the mana that the mage usually used to weave magic. Elaru had told him that Aetherneal bond glued their souls together, and instead of staying inside their bodies, their merged souls would drift about and shift their position to stay in between them. As the distance between them and their soul increased, the length of the tendrils of light would stretch, and the mana would need to travel further to reach them. Would the tendrils be stretched thin by the distance? Would that stretching make it so they can transfer less mana through them? Was there a limit of how much they could stretch? Could they be stretched to the point of breaking? Or would the tendrils only detach? What would happen if they snapped or detached? Would the damage be reparable? Would he even be able to tell that they were close to snapping or detaching? He had too many questions and too little answers. He craved access to the Muni library like a starving man craved food. If there was one place where he could find the answer he was seeking, it would be the Muni library. He decided to share his concerns with Elaru. Her response was more helpful then he thought it would be: ¡°I have been observing the behavior of the soul for years. While I can¡¯t see the soul itself, I can see the mana inside of it which allows me to get a general idea of the shape. Through my observations of the people under the Aetherneal bond, I¡¯ve noticed that those tendrils are of no significance. If soul moves too far away, they snap. However, as soon as the soul moves back into range, a new tendril regrows and takes its place. The snapping of the tendrils can¡¯t even be considered as damage. It¡¯s like someone pulled out a strand of your hair, another one will soon grow out and take its place. The soul is one of the most resilient things in all of creation. The ways of causing permanent damage to the soul can be counted on fingers of one hand.¡± Kiel¡¯s lie sense wasn¡¯t tingling, making all that she had said to be true. He let out a sigh of relief. He could trust her on this matter. Considering how careful she was about her equipment, one could deduce that she would be even more cautious about the potential danger to herself. She wouldn¡¯t have agreed to this experiment if she wasn¡¯t sure that it wouldn¡¯t negatively impact them in the future. He continued observing his state until he noticed a subtle change in his aura. As expected, it was shrinking and thinning out, slowly approaching the pitiful state it was in when he was a non-mage. He tried weaving mana and controlling the activated spell. Everything was as it was supposed to be. His performance didn¡¯t degrade, he only had less mana available. The first unexpected anomaly appeared when Elaru passed the 5 km mark. * * * Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Something isn¡¯t right.¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°Even if our body was in a worse condition, even if we were in more pain, our magic abilities shouldn¡¯t be taking such a large hit.¡± I don¡¯t understand. The farther away you are, the closer to me you feel. It was as if his heart was breaking, as if he was nearing the collapse of his mind. Episode 19 - Distance Test (Part 2) In the previous Episode: Elaru and Kiel start to test out how far apart they can be. Kiel contemplates the changes to their soul and Minds brought by the Aetherneal bond. * * * The first unexpected anomaly appeared when Elaru passed the 5 km mark. Kiel suddenly felt a sharp stinging pain in his heart. His breath hitched in his throat, his pupils dilated. After the initial spike, the pain dulled, leaving behind only a slight stinging sensation and an uncomfortable chill traveling down his spine. Was it caused by a soul tendril snapping? Kiel couldn¡¯t be sure, however, as the distance grew, the stinging pain periodically reappeared, sharper every time. Soon, the previous chill turned into a full blow discomfort that he couldn¡¯t quite explain. It didn¡¯t feel like physical discomfort, rather, it felt similar to nervousness or panic, maybe even fear. Larger the distance between them, the more uncomfortable they felt. It grew unbearable to the point of feeling like an itch you just couldn¡¯t scratch. Kiel¡¯s aura became so pitiful that it was just as bad as when he was a non-mage. The feeling left a bitter taste in his mouth. Never again! He never wanted to revert to being a non-mage. Even though he knew that this state was only temporary, the fear lingered, slowly eating at him from inside. The periodic stinging pain increased in frequency along with the distance until the pricks of a needle turned into full-blown knife stabs. His senses dulled, trying to keep the pain from interfering with his bodily functions. As the state of their body became harder to bear, it started affecting their concentration and impacted magic weaving and control. It was becoming unstable, as if one was trying to write with a shaking hand. Quickly, their abilities started degrading until they reached an ability expected from an average mage at the distance of 8 km. Even controlling the magic felt difficult. It felt as if the spells that were supposed be like their own limb fell asleep, turning numb. ¡°Something isn¡¯t right.¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°Even if our body was in a worse condition, even if we were in more pain, our magic abilities shouldn¡¯t be taking such a large hit.¡± ¡°You are right.¡± Elaru sighed dejectedly. ¡°The problem isn¡¯t the state of our body. Our Mind is getting less mana as well.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in realization. The body wasn¡¯t the only thing that needed mana to survive! His Mind, the ethereal projection of his consciousness, the embodiment of what made him who he was, the part of him that perceived the world and thought about it, the part that weaved mana and controlled the spells ¨C it was sustained by mana! Usually, the Mind would be glued to the flat side of the soul, where tendrils didn¡¯t grow, and would constantly suck mana directly from the soul. However, Aetherneal bond changed that. His soul and Mind were no longer in direct contact. His soul was who knows where, and his Mind was now rooted in his arm ¨C right where the mark of the Aetherneal bond was situated. Elaru told him previously that the mark was linked to the soul, and it would transfer mana to him. This mark, was a proxy, a substitute for the soul. That was probably why his Mind had switched its target to the mark. As he observed the mark, he noticed that the amount of mana it released was constant. It did not change in any way with the distance. That was a good thing. However, Kiel¡¯s expression darkened. The soul was almost completely detached from the body; it couldn¡¯t supply the body with enough mana. The only way for the body to receive extra mana was through the mark. The mana that was usually completely monopolized by the Mind would need to be shared with the body. Neither the Mind nor the body would get enough energy to function properly. And if the Mind was not getting enough energy, the ability to cast and control magic would deteriorate ¨C exactly like it had. But that was only the first step. His concentration and even ability to think clearly would be impacted if this continued. In the worst case scenario, he would lose consciousness or enter a coma. If his Mind was deprived of the mana long enough, it would be damaged, and he might never awaken. The question was, what would fail first? The body or the Mind? Did it even matter? The result didn¡¯t differ by much. The pressure kept building inside their chests. It became harder and harder to breathe. At the distance of 10 km, flying became a health hazard, and Elaru was forced to proceeded on foot. This was also the distance in which Kiel lost the ability to hold up his mage armor. Not only was there too little mana in his aura to form mage armor, but even the little what was left went completely out of his control, chaotically surging around him and quickly dissipating into the surroundings. He was naked, unprotected. Any random person could come in and end him. Every second in this state seemed to last like hours. Insecurity, dread, and vulnerability clouded his mind. Elaru¡¯s mental state seemed to be much better than his. Each time she spoke, her voice brought him slight relief from pain. It felt as if her voice was a rope pulling his mind back into clarity, for a short moment. He didn¡¯t know if it was because she would shift his concentration away from the pain, because her voice was pleasant to the ear, or because the calmness of her mind soothed his. Or maybe it was something else entirely. He couldn¡¯t understand how she could retain her cool in this situation. The graver the situation, the calmer she became. As if all useless emotions got pushed out of her head, replaced by quiet apathy. She was alert, in control, without fears or regrets. She stood firmly like a pillar of support, grounding both of them, dispelling the demons lurking about. It wasn¡¯t that she was optimistic, or that she was unaware of the danger. He felt confidence within her. Confidence that she could handle whatever came her way. In this situation, even with his degrading mental capacity, Kiel could feel it clearer than ever ¨C Elaru Wayvin was not simple-minded at all. No matter how dimwitted, carefree or careless, she seemed, all that immaturity disappeared in an instant when the situation didn¡¯t allow it. As if she switched gears, as if her personality was liquid, molded by the situation. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. After passing 12 km, Elaru had no choice but to sit down and try catching her breath. Covering 12 km was not something that would usually make either one of them tired. But in this scenario, it felt as if they had been running for days without rest. Kiel kept gripping the blanket on the bed tightly. He wanted nothing more than to pluck his heart out of his chest and stop the pain. It was becoming unbearable. Kiel felt Elaru¡¯s hard breathing reverberate inside his head. That is when he realized that he too was breathing hard. Their raspy breath seemed to be in sync. It felt as if their mutual pain was resonating with each other. As if the breathing of their cells started synchronizing, as if their hearts became one and the same. His body was urging him to move towards a specific direction. Further away she went, more clearly he could feel her presence. I don¡¯t understand. The farther away you are, the closer to me you feel. The entire time, their telepathic connection didn¡¯t show any signs of losing power. On the contrary, he could hear her more and more clearly, feel her pain more and more distinctly. He wasn¡¯t a sissy, he could take physical pain and discomfort just fine. But this feeling was something else entirely. He would prefer it if he were beaten to a pulp than going through this again. It was as if his heart was breaking, as if he was nearing the collapse of his mind. It had felt like hours before Elaru reported reaching 13 km mark. But she didn¡¯t even need to report it. He could tell clearly just how far she was. He could tell by how not even a drop of mana was left in his aura, he no longer had an aura. He could tell by the sharp stinging pain enveloping his entire body. His muscles were twitching, screaming in agony. Involuntarily he let out a hiss. He could feel it by his heart that was trying to leap out of his chest. Kiel laid on the bed listlessly, his consciousness clouding over. Is this how mana deficiency feels like? His entire body was sore, he felt weak. His mind wandered aimlessly. Until it reached the depths of his subconscious, where he found the memory of those gentle, bright blue eyes that he tried not to think about. Is this what you felt your whole life? Your whole body screaming for mana, constantly on the verge of collapse. All this time, I kept complaining about being a non-mage. How na?ve¡­how selfish was I? I even had extra mana I could use to cast magic. You¡­you didn¡¯t even have enough mana to live¡­ Elaru¡¯s weak voice brought him out of his daydream. ¡°15 kilometers.¡± He could feel her frowning. ¡°I am having trouble moving away from you. I feel a powerful pull to turn back. I am doing my best, trying to overpower the urge to run back. My mind is drifting; my vision is blurring. I won¡¯t be able to last much longer. Should I turn back?¡± Kiel considered it for a second before gritting his teeth and replying. ¡°No, let¡¯s continue just a bit more.¡± He wanted to know their exact limit. Just how far they could go, how long they could last. They might need to know in the future. And even to compare their progress as the bond evolves. Another 5 minutes passed when Kiel suddenly felt pain, unlike anything he had ever felt. It was so heart wrenching he thought he could die there and then just from the pain. He bit his tongue to stop from screaming. He could feel the metallic taste of blood in his mouth. Every part of him was screaming, he could swear that his soul itself was shrieking. A brief cooling feeling dulled the pain as he heard Elaru¡¯s voice. ¡°20 km¡­I am coming back¡­ If I take another step, I might not make it back at all.¡± As she spoke, he could clearly feel her. Her heard breathing, her limbs shaking. The sweat glistening on her skin. ¡°Yeah¡­come back to me¡­¡± He murmured between gasps. He felt feverish; he couldn¡¯t think straight. It had felt like an eternity before his mind cleared up enough to think clearly. Why didn¡¯t the telepathy show any signs of weakening? Our minds were 15 km away from each other. Could it be that the distance between the Minds is irrelevant? Or does the mark connect our minds even when they aren¡¯t in proximity to each other? Just like it links to the soul? No. It¡¯s not that telepathy didn¡¯t weaken; it did the opposite. Its effects increased. The further they were, the more clearly he could feel her. Further away they were, the closer he felt to her. Each time she talked to him, he felt her every emotion. He felt her every twitch and shake. Was it because it became harder to control what to send through telepathy and what not? Was that why more and more feelings passed through? Or was this¡­resonance? * * * Next two episodes will be released on Thursday (28th of July). Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Kiel, are you actually¡­shy?¡± She asked him with a devious grin. ¡°You are acting like a shy girl that had her butt pinched..¡± Noticing his next weapon, Elaru didn¡¯t panic at all. ¡°You might want to accelerate the next thing you throw if you really want to hit me.¡± Was this book¡­her diary? After several minutes, he couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°What are you doing?¡± Episode 20 - Distance Test - Aftermath In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru test out the distance they can be apart. After reaching 20 km, Elaru can¡¯t proceed anymore and starts going back. Kiel notices how telepathy doesn¡¯t degrade with distance, but instead, he can feel more emotions passing through. He hypothesizes that the emotions they feel are resonating. * * * Or was this¡­resonance? Their emotions were combining together into something with much higher intensity than the original emotion. Was it because their emotions were the same, because they were going through the same experience? Was this resonance through empathy? If the mark acted as a wormhole between their Minds, it would be like a portal connecting two different places in space. No matter how far apart those two places were, they would always be right next to each other because of the portal. That would explain why the physical distance between them didn¡¯t make their telepathy weaker. Their Minds were always right next to each other. But the distance did have an effect, it improved their telepathy. The only explanation Kiel could think of was resonance. It wasn¡¯t that the distance affected their telepathy, it is that the situation they were in affected it. And how come each time he heard her voice he felt better? Could it be that the negative effects of physical distance could be countered by mental closeness? Kiel¡¯s pain gradually lessened, and his aura started appearing again. Elaru was getting closer. With each step she took towards him, he felt more excited, exhilarated. As if every fiber of his being couldn¡¯t wait to reunite with her again. His fatigue slowly evaporated, replaced with a newfound energy. This feeling, it was just like getting out of mortal peril intact; the entire body in overdrive, bursting with power. The heart beating a hundred miles per hour; the body shaking with vigor. With trembling hands, Kiel wrote down the conclusion into his notebook. ¡°Distance limitation confirmed. Optimal distance: less than 5 km. Max distance: 20 km.¡± He stroked his chin. Five kilometers was a manageable distance for the time being. And the allowed distance would increase with the evolution of the bond. But how could they make it evolve? What did they need to do? Elaru imparted her (unclear) opinion on the matter: ¡°Papa says that an emotional closeness between mates positively affects the bond. He says that as long as the mates spend enough time with each other, the bond would naturally evolve. Should we try this experiment again in a few months¡¯ time?¡± Kiel thought about it. He didn¡¯t feel keen on experiencing this horror again. It was truly unpleasant. But he was curious whether the time would increase the max tolerable distance. ¡°It depends. We¡¯ll think about it then.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Kiel¡¯s legs itched for some action so he got up from the bed. He felt restless, fidgety. Elaru was almost back. He could feel it deep down, inside of him. As if on cue, Elaru burst through the door, she looked at him like a wild lupax seeing a piece of meat. Kiel froze, startled by the look. She gave him no time to think before she leaped across the room and latched onto him. Kiel¡¯s surprise turned into shock. Her hands clasped tightly around his torso, her head was nestling under his neck. Her two mounds went splat when pressed against his chest. She rubbed her cheek around, left and right, like she was trying to rub his scent in. Like he was a healing tonic. Like, she was burning, and he was the water. She let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Ahh¡­this feels much better. Yes! Yes! I can feel my power coming back!¡± She didn¡¯t stop with the rubbing. With each rub, Kiel¡¯s temper rose higher and higher. His eyebrow started twitching, one could see his veins popping out on his neck. Too damn close! Had she no sense of personal space?! Though it did feel quite pleasant. His body did respond quite positively to hers. Warm tingles everywhere. No, no, no! He tried to push her away. He asserted more strength than should have been necessary, but her grip on him was too tight. She didn¡¯t move an inch. Her face still looked blissful, as if she didn¡¯t even notice his revolt. Soon he was trying to peel her away from him with all his strength. She didn¡¯t budge, clinging onto him like a python. ¡°Fates, you¡¯re strong!¡± Kiel cussed under his breath. How the heck is your slim female body stronger than mine?! Freak! Elaru suddenly noticed steam coming out of Kiel¡¯s ears and figured out that he disliked the closeness between them. She frowned and gave him a look that clearly stated ¡°Geez, childish much? I am just curing the damage caused by the experiment. What¡¯s the big deal?¡± Kiel glared at her venomously and gritted his teeth, trying to find the right words to make her let go of him. Though, before he could say anything, she suddenly let him go on her own. Which caused him to lose his balance and he stumbled back, falling over the footboard onto the bed. Elaru sniggered at his glare. ¡°Kiel, are you actually¡­shy?¡± She asked with a devious grin. ¡°I am not shy!¡± Kiel spat out, grabbed the nearest object he could find and threw it at her. Unfortunately, that object turned out to be a pillow. Luck had abandoned him ever since he crossed paths with the tricky woman. ¡°I just don¡¯t like people invading my personal space!!¡± Elaru caught it in reflex, her grin only widening. ¡°What personal space? I¡¯m already inside your head, it doesn¡¯t get closer than that.¡± She teased him. ¡°Boundaries! We need some boundaries. You can¡¯t go around touching everywhere you¡¯d like!¡± This time, he threw his notebook. It wasn¡¯t a big upgrade from the pillow¡­ ¡°You are acting like a shy girl that had her butt pinched. It was just a hug.¡± She caught the notebook flawlessly too, her grin never wavering. ¡°Not shy! I just don¡¯t enjoy physical contact with people I don¡¯t like. Which includes you, and everyone else I know.¡± Kiel grabbed the porcelain pechuh that was decorating the night table. Finally, a good weapon! Elaru didn¡¯t panic at all. ¡°You might want to accelerate the next thing you throw if you really want to hit me.¡± Blatant provocation! Kiel¡¯s eyes glowed dangerously as he accelerated the ornament towards her. He didn¡¯t use all of his mage prowess, he didn¡¯t want to cause any major damage. Alas, his attempts were in vain. Elaru had no trouble catching his throws. And more of them she cached, the more annoyed Kiel got. Once the ¡°fight¡± started, it was hard to stop. In only a few minutes, their tidy room was trashed. Well, they didn¡¯t break anything, just turned it into a mess. Although it wasn¡¯t out of Kiel¡¯s lack of trying, but because Elaru found it more fun to attempt to save all thrown objects from doom than to avoid them. She had fun teasing Kiel. He was actually quite easy to rile up. He had many years¡¯ worth of pent-up frustration inside of him, and Elaru took it upon herself to give him excuses to let it out. Kiel didn¡¯t over analyze her behavior. He was too busy trying to understand his own. He used to be a calm and collected person. Yet this redhead could rile him up with such ease it was embarrassing. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. He didn¡¯t even try to bury it all down and plaster on his mask. With Elaru, he didn¡¯t need to hide behind his false persona. She seemed to like his true face much more. She was such an unusual girl. She preferred fighting to peaceful times. Kiel would never admit it, but he enjoyed their fights too, in a weird way. Even though he growled, glared and cursed her, deep down, he was having fun. It was such a bizarre relationship. Yet, at that moment, neither one of them minded it. And as the two were preoccupied with their mini-war, neither one of them noticed a change happening on Kiel¡¯s right arm. Like a seed letting out a sprout, the black stripes moved slightly, slowly, up his arm. * * * After the peaceful resolution of the war (Kiel ran out of things to throw), they decided to find a secluded place on the outskirts of Ashar where they could practice magic. They traveled to the west, where a dense deciduous forest spread as far as the eye could see. The day was sunny and warm, the bright rays of sunlight made everything they touched glitter. Though only occasional sunrays managed to pass through the bright green leaves of the deciduous tall trees towering over them. Even though it was still technically summer, the temperature was lowering every day with the approaching autumn. Currently both the temperature and humidity felt just right. If Kiel wasn¡¯t in a rush to increase his power, he would have enjoyed taking a stroll. Instead of strolling around, Elaru used her eyes to scan the surroundings until she found a secluded clearing near a small waterfall. The clear droplets of water created a small but beautiful rainbow as the fell down. The clearing seemed very peaceful, not much could be heard besides the sound of the waterfall and soft singing of the birds. However, Kiel wondered how long it would stay peaceful. They might run into quest seeker parties, hunters or beasts living around the water source. The forest around Ashar was bursting with wildlife, and it was a popular hunting ground for all sorts of creatures. Even herbalists often spent their time searching the forest for various herbs. Elaru claimed this place to be too close to Ashar. All the good stuff was deeper in, therefore herbalists and hunters wouldn¡¯t stick around here. The only people who would dwell on the outskirts would be mages using the forest as their practice ground, just like them. However, the forest was large, so the chance of them stumbling onto the same clearing was slim. Kiel stretched and thought about what he should practice first. Elaru sat down against a tree, making herself comfortable. She took off her backpack and pulled out a red book with leather covers. The cover had no letters, marks or anything else that could give away the contents. However, Kiel could instantly tell that the book was anything but ordinary. It was enchanted by a long, obscure spell that Kiel didn¡¯t recognize. Elaru performed a quick trigger spell that was so fast that the only thing Kiel managed to catch was a pulse of magic power. As soon as she opened the covers, the easygoing expression on Elaru¡¯s face vanished and was replaced by deep concentration. She was completely absorbed into the book, her face showing no other emotions. It was blank. Kiel had gotten used to seeing her mischief and serenity all this time, this seriousness felt unnatural. And yet, there was a certain charm to it. People were said to be the most attractive when they were working hard. Kiel could finally understand why. Elaru kept flicking her fingers, poking the book and tracing various patterns with her fingers. Kiel concentrated his mana sense on the book and realized that the pages were coated with a thin layer of crystalline ink. It was an invisible liquid that had a special property ¨C the crystalline structure of the liquid was easily changed by magic. And changing the crystalline structure of the ink resulted in changing the color of the ink. That transparent ink had the possibility to turn into any kind of color. After its initial discovery in ancient times, it had started a revolution in art and literature. The spell to change the color of the ink was one of the first spells they were taught in school. Of course, the spells differed between argel and elibu since the two had different principles behind their magic. But nevertheless, it was an important spell that Kiel could recognize instantly, and that was exactly the reason why Kiel deduced that the book was coated with crystalline ink ¨C he felt Elaru casting the ink altering spell over and over on the pages of the book. Was this book¡­her diary? It was none of his business. He had no right to take a look inside. It was embarrassing how curious he felt, he ¨C a person that never used to care about other people. His pride didn¡¯t allow him to ask about it though, so instead he took several sneak peeks at it, from the corner of his eyes. His skill in taking nonchalant sneak peeks was quite formidable. He was startled to find the pages of the book completely blank. Was Elaru actually¡­changing the transparent ink into the same color of the paper? Could her Aethernea of Sight see the writing even if it couldn¡¯t be seen with normal eyes? Or was the book enchanted with some kind of spell that would prevent him from being able to see what was written in it? Elaru was a treasure-trove of fascinating artifacts. At this point, he shouldn¡¯t be surprised by it. So surprise wasn¡¯t one of the annoying emotions he was currently feeling. He found it hard to concentrate on his own business. The more difficult it was to find out what was inside, the more Kiel wanted to know. There is nothing that tastes sweeter than the forbidden fruit. Elaru didn¡¯t look up from her book at all. It was as if he wasn¡¯t there. As if she had entered her own world, separate from the rest. Periodically, she would stop writing in the book and start weaving a spell around her arm. She would then disperse the spell and continue writing in the book. What was she doing? Kiel¡¯s curiosity ate at him to the point of turning unbearable. He had never seen Elaru so serious and absorbed in something before. After several minutes, he couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore, his pride all but forgotten. ¡°What are you doing?¡± * * * Coming up in the next episode: [i]It is said that mortals weave their mana into spells, but mana of the gods weaves itself. Elaru grinned widely. ¡°It¡¯s a secret. But yes, it will be quite helpful for the exams.¡± Wasit because no one knew them? Were they avoiding them because they were mages?Was it because they assumed the two of them were a couple and didn¡¯t want to butt in? He didn¡¯t know it then, in fact, he didn¡¯t figure it out later either, but Elaru¡¯s plans depended on this very decision. Episode 21 - Spellcrafting In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru finish their distance test and end up having a small fight. After making up, they find a clearing in the outskirts of Ashar where they can practice magic. Elaru takes out a book that looks like a diary and starts scribbling in it and occasionally weaving a spell around her arm. * * * ¡°What are you doing?¡± Elaru abruptly stopped what she was doing and brought her eyes up to look at Kiel. It took her a few seconds to process what he had asked before answering: ¡°Spellcrafting.¡± Spellcrafting is a process of creating new spells and spell patterns or customizing existing ones. What is a spell? The books defined it as ¡°a reality altering phenomena¡±. But people usually disregarded definitions and went by their intuitive understanding. For them, a spell was the extension of themselves in the form of a moving pattern of light. Both were right. It was only when talking about spellcrafting that people made a distinction between a spell and a spell pattern. A spell pattern could be drawn on paper or anywhere else, but only if it was drawn with a dense enough mana would that spell pattern turn into a spell. The spell pattern was the key to everything, the core of the spell. It defined and described the spell. Magic itself was a language defined by a large number of intricate rules and mysterious principles. And that spell pattern was a sentence written in that mysterious language. That sentence was written with words ¨C multiple spell fragments weaved together in a meaningful way to create a valid sentence. There existed words that could be used alone to form a sentence, and then there were others that held meaning only when combined with other words. One had to understand every word, grammar and rules of the language to form meaningful sentences. Those words, those spell fragments, were the basic building blocks of magic. Legends say that the first spell fragments were discovered by ancients by studying and dissecting the innate abilities of magical creatures and magic cast by the gods. It is said that mortals weave their mana into spells, but mana of the gods weaves itself. The gods possessed a divine will that caused spells to form by themselves and could cast all types of magic. It was actually quite rare for them to resort to using divine magic since most of the things could be accomplished by using the other three types of magic. Gods didn¡¯t need to understand magic to do whatever they wished. Mortals, on the other hand, needed to know the rules, to have a detailed understanding of different aspects of many spell fragments, and even possess a large degree of creativity (if you know the language, it doesn¡¯t mean you can write heart touching poetry with it). Mortals needed to spellcraft. However, while there were many great mages that could spellcraft to a certain degree, master spellcrafters were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. When Elaru declared that she was spellcrafting, Kiel felt naturally skeptical about it. He raised his eyebrow. ¡°You can spellcraft?¡± Elaru nodded leisurely as if it was not a big deal. ¡°Yeah.¡± The corner of Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°How good are you?¡± I mean, how good can a person who received no education be? She stroked her chin in thought before replying. ¡°I¡¯ve never met anyone better at it than me.¡± Kiel¡¯s skeptical look didn¡¯t lessen one bit. Did that mean that she was really good, or did that mean she didn¡¯t have the opportunity to meet anyone who was really good at it? He could accept her being a wielder of Aethernea of Sight. He didn¡¯t really know what Aetherneal gifts were exactly or what it meant to be a wielder of an Aethernea, but he was clear that it was something one was born with, not something they had to work for to obtain. He could accept her being a great tracker because it was granted to her by her eyes. However, talent could not turn one into a spellcrafter. No amount of talent could compensate the lack of a deep and comprehensive understanding of magic. Kiel didn¡¯t understand Elaru at all. Isn¡¯t she supposed to be a tracker? Spellcrafting has nothing to do with tracking. Even if she did know some things about it, why was she spellcrafting right now? Wasn¡¯t she supposed to prepare for the exams? Will this spell she was attempting to make help her in the exams if successful? Kiel¡¯s straight face masked his thoughts completely. ¡°What kind of spell are you crafting? Is it for the exams?¡± Elaru grinned widely. ¡°It¡¯s a secret. But yes, it will be quite helpful for the exams.¡± A secret, huh? Of course it is¡­Everything about her was a secret. I guess there is nothing left to do but wait and see whether she can make something usable with her spellcrafting. Seeing is believing. No point in dwelling on it. Kiel motioned towards her book and inquired: ¡°Is that your¡­workbook?¡± He couldn¡¯t blatantly ask if it was her diary, could he now? Elaru¡¯s eyes flashed with an emotion so quick Kiel didn¡¯t catch it. ¡°You could say that. It is a compendium of my research.¡± Not a diary? That did nothing to dampen his curiosity. ¡°Research on what?¡± Spellcrafting? Elaru smirked, her eyes glittering mischievously. ¡°Magic.¡± And here she goes again with the vague answers¡­what did he expect? A straight and complete answer? From Elaru? Fat chance. Kiel pinched the bridge of his nose and walked away to tend to his own matters. He couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Considering how the first thing she did was cast a trigger spell on the book, even if he got his hands on it, it would be useless without knowing the trigger spell. The book was locked and needed a key ¨C a trigger spell, to unlock it. Well¡­unless he could break the spell locking it. However, his knowledge didn¡¯t cover spell breaking. After somewhat sating his curiosity, or to be more precise, being unable to find out anything much, Kiel stopped bothering with Elaru and concentrated on his own matters. He tried out his spellcasting, checking to see if there were any anomalies with it. He didn¡¯t have the time to inspect his limits before and the Aetherneal bond might have changed them. He tried out weaving spells as flawlessly as he could. Soon he realized that he couldn¡¯t really test out his mana weaving ability like this. His weaving was flawless to begin with; how do you improve something that is perfect? The only way that he could check whether his weaving improved was to try weaving it faster. If he could weave spells faster than before while still retaining his flawless weaving, that would mean that his weaving improved. He continuously sped up his casting until he couldn¡¯t weave flawlessly anymore. Then he stopped trying to weave flawlessly and instead concentrated on weaving as fast as possible. He weaved faster and faster, trying to go to the limit of his abilities. His concentration caused beads of sweat to appear on his forehead. After reaching the point in which he couldn¡¯t go any faster, he realized that he was breathing hard. At some point, his breathing became affected by his weaving. He would pause his breathing while weaving as to not let any movement disrupt his mana control. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. He took a short moment to stabilize his breathing, before moving on to test out the degree of his spell control. After his testing, he was thrilled to find out that his casting speed, mana weaving, and spell control had all improved slightly. It wasn¡¯t a large increase, but the better you were at something, harder it was to improve. This increase could already be considered incredible. Effects of Aetherneal bond were fate-defying! He had to admit that he couldn¡¯t understand Aetherneal magic at all. It was one of the things on his ¡°to look up in Muni library¡± list. After confirming that the three specs hadn¡¯t decreased, it was the time for him to test out multicasting. This was something that he was never able to practice because he didn¡¯t have enough mana to cast a lot of simultaneous spells. He used the leaves as his spellcasting targets and cast a lot of acceleration spells on them, causing the leaves to fly around in various ways. After 12 years of constant practice, magic weaving and spell control came naturally to him, without much effort. He kept adding more and more leaves to the whirlwind of leaves. It wasn¡¯t hard for him to simultaneously weave a lot of acceleration spells. He decided to add a weight shifting spell into the mix. The practice became exponentially more difficult with the addition of a new spell. It felt as if he was trying to write one thing with his left hand and completely another with his right. It felt strange, unnatural. Still, with an hour or two of practice, he should be able to do it easily. His spell control worked in a similar way to his weaving. Higher the amount of leaves, harder it was to control them. However, it posed no problem to him if he was controlling them to move in the same way. The problem arose if he wished to move them differently from each other. He needed to be able to visualize their paths and control all of them at the same time. He estimated he would need a few hours to get used to the sensation of controlling so many different ¡°limbs¡±. It needed multitasking, coordination, and precision. It would take him several more hours to make his multicasting reach the pinnacle. If it was someone else, it would be impossible to reach such a high standard of multicasting in a single day. But he had all the basics, he just needed to put them into practice. He was like an artist possessing flawless wrist and finger control, and complete understanding of art, that had never actually drawn before. He knew what to do, any only needed to actually experience doing it. Like that, he spent the remainder of the day practicing his multicasting. He took several breaks to rest his mind and prepare for his next session of multicasting. While resting, he¡¯d look at what Elaru was doing. Unlike him, she never stopped to rest. Once again, he was faced with her ¡°machine-like¡± way of doing things. She didn¡¯t get distracted, she just weaved and scribbled for the entire day. The spell she was crafting became more and more complex like she was weaving a ball of yarn. The number of spell fragments increased exponentially turning into a web of patterns. He was surprised to find out that he didn¡¯t recognize the majority of fragments. However, his years of studying enchanting weren¡¯t in vain as they allowed him to recognize that the spell she was crafting was an enchantment. It was not meant to be used by mages in everyday life. It was meant to be placed on an object to turn it into a magical artifact. Since using artifacts was an important part of the daily life, knowing enchanter basics was useful, even for Kiel, who could never become an enchanter as a non-mage. Knowing about it would make him able to recognize the purpose of the artifacts and how to use them. In the early afternoon, Kiel and Elaru made a small break and returned to the city to get something to eat. Kiel was the one to suggest this, since Elaru showed no signs of being hungry. It was a quick and uneventful meal, and they soon returned to the same clearing to continue their work. Kiel thought it was surprising how no one approached them. Both of them were the finest quality eye candy. It would be natural for people to want to approach them, associate with them, talk to them. If they were in Beyd, people would congregate around them like snowflakes and not let them have any privacy. In Ashar, however, people only ogled them from afar and never approached them. Was it because they thought them to be nobles and naturally, didn¡¯t feel like they had the qualifications to approach them? Almost all noble families had estates in Ashar. Seeing nobles in Ashar wasn¡¯t considered rare. So perhaps everyone had an unspoken rule to not antagonize beautiful people? Or was it because no one knew them? Were they avoiding them because they were mages? Were they giving off ¡°do not disturb¡± vibes? Was it because they assumed the two of them were a couple and didn¡¯t want to butt in? Usually, Kiel would shiver because of that last thought, but at this point, the satisfaction of not having to associate with people outweighed his displeasure of being grouped with Elaru. As the sun was approaching the horizon, Kiel finally decided to end his multicasting practice for the day. His concentration was falling rapidly; he did his very best the entire day. He needed to rest. He was pretty satisfied with his results. He was a genius mage after all. Even his multicast was of a high standard. After the multicast, the only three things he was yet to test out were his mana pool size, mana regeneration, and mana flow speed. Elaru had claimed that she had a monstrous mana pool size and regeneration, but he should at least try to confirm that. Even though he was tired, testing out these three wouldn¡¯t put a huge mental strain on him, so he should use this time in which he could no longer effectively practice other things to test out the performance of their soul. It was a logical conclusion and would have been a great decision. If that wasn¡¯t exactly what she was waiting for. He didn¡¯t know it then, in fact, he didn¡¯t figure it out later either, but Elaru¡¯s plans depended on this very decision. * * * The next episode is already available on aethernea.com Coming up in the next episode: He needed to visit an elixir and pill shop. He opened his eyes and looked at the blood red sunset. Would they be able to make it to a shop before the closing time? Kiel¡¯s hands clenched into fists tightly. He had thought that he had finally escaped from his identity as a non-mage. He thought that he had transformed from a caterpillar into a butterfly. That he had shed his old skin. Yet, at every corner, he kept being reminded that he used to be a non-mage. Elaru¡¯s words struck Kiel like a hammer. Kiel¡¯s eyes burned with flames of passion. Every cell in his body, every thought in his head, everything responded unanimously with a load roar. YES! Episode 22 - To take a single step This extra episode is thanks to the people over at Wattpad that nominated Aethernea for Fiction Awards 100 times. :) In the previous Episode: Kiel starts practicing magic (especially multicasting) to prepare for the exams, he notices that he has improved in all areas. Elaru is spellcrafting a mysterious enchantment spell that she claims will be useful for Muni exams. She calls her notebook ¡°a compendium of her research¡±. However, she does not reveal what she is researching. * * * Kiel sat down cross-legged and concentrated on feeling their soul. He could no longer feel his own soul, it had blended like a ball of clay into Elaru¡¯s, and now, that giant blob belonged to both of them. He couldn¡¯t tell which part was his and which part was hers. Their control over it wasn¡¯t separated into regions. All of it belonged to them both. He could tell that the mana pool within the soul was filled to the brim with mana, but he couldn¡¯t tell how much mana was in it. That was the thing with the mana pool, one could feel the percentage of it being full, but to know how much mana that percentage signified one would need to test it out. It was just like the stomach. You could tell if you were hungry, full, almost full, or even so full you would burst if you ate more. But you can¡¯t tell the volume or weight of the food inside your stomach. Kiel exhaled slowly, before starting to draw mana from the soul into his body. It flowed down the countless tendrils into his flesh, continuing to travel through it until it exited to form the aura. Mana flow speed, as defined by the Association of Magic, was a standardized metric that described how much mana a mage could pull into his aura in a single second. It could be used to calculate minimum possible casting time for certain large spells and even determine the max number of spells the mage could cast in a certain period of time. Mana flow speed greatly depended on the amount and quality of the soul tendrils, the availability of mana in his mana pool, and was also influenced by the composition of the cells in the body, as half of the trip was from the body to the aura. Mana was energy. In a way, it was similar to electricity. What happens when an object is hit by lightning depends on the properties of the object. If it hit a block of ice, the composition of the ice would be destroyed, and the ice would melt into water or even directly disperse into steam. However, if the same amount of lightning hit a copper coin, it would pass right through, not impacting it at all. There were two properties that described how a material behaved towards mana: mana tolerance and mana resistance. Every material had an amount of mana it could tolerate passing through it. If the amount of mana passing through it was above its mana tolerance, the material would start to collapse and eventually be destroyed. Too much energy was just as dangerous as too little energy. To prevent itself from being easily destroyed, materials with low mana tolerance usually had a high mana resistance. They would resist the passage of mana, slowing it down and decreasing the amount of mana passing through them. If the passage of mana was impaired, it would be harder to go over the mana tolerance. It was a simple self-preservation mechanism that achieved balance. If the material was like a pipe, and mana was like water, then higher mana resistance would mean a narrower pipe. It would limit how much water can pass through it at the same time. Mana tolerance, on the other hand, would be the material of the pipe. If it was flawless steel, it could handle a violent water current, but if it was wooden, the fast current would soon cause it to start leaking. The holes would expand until it is completely destroyed. If Kiel wanted to increase his mana flow speed, he would need to decrease his mana resistance and increase his mana tolerance. If his mana resistance decreased, it would make it easier for the mana to pass through his body and thus it would be faster. And if his mana tolerance increased, he would be able to make more mana travel through his body at the same time without fear of injury. It would also make it less physically tiring to use magic. Both his mana resistance and tolerance would impact his mana flow speed. As mana passed through Kiel, he felt energized, his cells were agitated. This sudden increase in the density of Kiel¡¯s aura startled Elaru out of the strange mood she was in. She stopped her work and observed Kiel instead. He started pulling the mana gently, but after ascertaining that this speed wasn¡¯t his limit, he would make it flow faster. Some time and a lot of mana later, the mana pool still wasn¡¯t fazed by the loss of mana. Just how large was it?! Faster. Still faster. Soon, mana crashing into his flesh felt like a tsunami. His mana flow speed had reached above average. If he had to give it a score, he estimated it would probably be 17/25. Yet, he could already feel sore all over his body. No matter how fast the mana traveled through his soul tendrils, his mana flow speed wouldn¡¯t increase if the bottleneck was his body. It would be like attaching a wide pipe into a narrow pipe, it would either block the flow of water coming into the pipes or cause the stream flowing through the narrow pipe to become extremely fast. If his body couldn¡¯t tolerate the speed of the stream, it would be damaged. If his mana flow speed was low, having a large mana pool and mana regeneration would be wasted on him. Since he would never be able to empty his pool no matter how hard he tried. His magic casting would be limited by how much mana he could transfer from the soul for use. Kiel gritted his teeth and continued. He kept pulling more and more mana out, almost drunk on the power he was feeling traveling through his body. Yet the tingles of power couldn¡¯t overshadow the stinging pain spreading through his body. His clothes were already drenched with cold sweat. He wasn¡¯t surprised at his approaching mana tolerance limit. He used to be a non-mage. There was never much mana passing through his body so his body wasn¡¯t used to it. He was extremely fit, which increased his mana tolerance, but because of his status as a non-mage, it could only reach the average mana tolerance. He speculated that the only reason why his current mana flow speed was above average was due to the changes to his body caused by Aetherneal bond. Kiel¡¯s hands clenched into fists tightly. He had thought that he had finally escaped from his identity as a non-mage. He thought that he had transformed from a caterpillar into a butterfly. That he had shed his old skin. Yet, at every corner, he kept being reminded that he used to be a non-mage. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. He had hoped that he would be able to shock the entire world by having a perfect score on Muni entrance exams. Looking at it now, he was na?ve and greedy. He thought too highly of himself. He was full of hopes and dreams like a little child, and he kept looking up at the clouds instead of facing reality. The sourness, the bitterness, the disappointed that clenched his heart, must have spread onto his aura, because Elaru honed in on his worries like an arrow. ¡°Are you aiming for the perfect Muni exam score? Do you want to be the first? To shock everyone? To raise from no one into a genius in one swell swoop?¡± Kiel¡¯s knuckles turned white from how hard he was clenching his fists. His silence gave Elaru all the answers she needed, or perhaps her questions were rhetorical from the start. ¡°If the only thing standing in your way to reaching a perfect score is inadequate mana flow speed, all you have to do is raise it.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously as he glared at her. What did she think? That raising mage specs was as easy as reading a book? ¡°My mana flow speed is too far from the perfect score, there is too little time. I can¡¯t raise it enough in the span of a few days.¡± Elaru smirked and teased him. ¡°What are you going to do? Sulk?¡± Her teasing tone disappeared, her eyes radiated strange heat. ¡°Or are you going to try your best to raise it as far as you can in this remaining time?¡± Elaru¡¯s words struck Kiel like a hammer. It might have not been the actual words, maybe it was the intent behind them, or the aura that spread from her. Either way, his entire body shook with enlightenment. So what if he couldn¡¯t reach the perfect score? Was he just going to give up? Or will he do his best to reach as high of a score as possible? If he couldn¡¯t win a battle, would he just throw in a towel or fight until the end? The sourness and depression was instantly replaced with steely determination. He wasn¡¯t the one to give up. Even as a non-mage, he didn¡¯t give up. He sweated rivers, shed tears of blood. He started out as a person who hated magic to become someone who loved everything about it. The pain, the unshakable resolve, sweat and tears, it is what turned him from a person who couldn¡¯t do magic to save his life, to a genius mage. It wasn¡¯t a change that happened overnight. No, it took him 12 years. 12 long years. So why is it that he felt disheartened if he couldn¡¯t reach a pinnacle in a few days? Laughable. Now that he had the opportunity, now that he had the means, there was no way he would give up! He would milk every drop of sweat from his body, he would squeeze out every bit of willpower he had. All so he could walk forwards. Step by step. No matter how distant his goal was, as long as he kept steadily walking, one day he would reach it. It might take him months. It might take him years. It might even take him his whole life. Was the goal worth it? Was it worth dedicating his whole life to pursue the pinnacle of magic? Kiel¡¯s eyes burned with flames of passion. Every cell in his body, every thought in his head, everything responded unanimously with a load roar. YES! He had to keep walking. His spirit rekindled, his resolve hardened. The waves of conflicting emotions that wrecked havoc in his mind stilled into a perfect calm. He closed his eyes and exhaled. He didn¡¯t notice Elaru¡¯s eyes glittering mischievously, nor the satisfied smile on her face. What do I need to do to take a single step forward? That¡¯s what he should do. He should concentrate on that single step. A step to increase his mana tolerance and decrease his mana resistance. He searched his knowledge of the subject until he found what he was looking for. He needed to temper his body with mana. That was something that happened to mages naturally. Mana would constantly pass through their cells, and over time, after the old cell died, a new cell that replaced it would have a higher mana tolerance and lower mana resistance. The bodies of all creatures in the land of Halnea had an incredible ability to adjust. Natural selection and evolution would happen to all of the cells making the body. After countless generations of cells, new cells would reach a much higher tolerance than the first generation. However, that would take too much time. And time was one thing that he lacked. He needed to speed up the process of his cells dying and being replaced by new cells. It was easy to speed up the process of his cells dying. He just needed to increase the amount of mana passing through them to reach their mana tolerance limit. They would then start disintegrating, and new cells would need to replace them. He shouldn¡¯t damage his own body too much, otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t be able to recover to his best condition in time to participate in the exams. How many cycles of destruction and regeneration he could go through depended on his healing rate. If he could increase his healing rate, by consuming some healing elixirs or pills, he might be able to pull this method off. He needed to visit an elixir and pill shop. He opened his eyes and looked at the blood red sunset. Would they be able to make it to a shop before the closing time? * * * For all of you guys out there with dreams, keep chasing them and don¡¯t give up! Just concentrate on taking one step at a time. And I too will do the same by writing Aethernea. One word at a time. :) However, my path is different from Kiel¡¯s, to walk forwards I need your support. It isn¡¯t something that I can do by myself no matter how hard I work. Without readers there is no successful author. One easy way to show your support is to rate Aethernea. It would mean a lot to me. Thank you <3 Coming up in the next episode: [i]Elaru smirked. ¡°Can you even afford something like that?¡± Kiel froze. His heart involuntarily skipped a beat. ¡°Too darn close!¡± Elaru stroked her chin with one hand, looking solemnly at the motionless body in front of her. Like a sack of potatoes. She giggled and smacked him on his behind teasingly. Everything was deathly still. Without any sign that anyone had been there at all. Episode 23 - Acupuncture In the previous Episode: Kiel realizes his mana tolerance is not as high as he would like it to be, preventing him from getting a perfect score on the entrance exams. He is momentarily discouraged before he remembers all his hard work and is determined to work even harder. To increase his mana tolerance, he would need to temper his body with mana. This process would be faster if he had some healing elixirs or pills. * * * Kiel didn¡¯t have any healing elixirs on him ¨C needed to visit an elixir and pill shop. He opened his eyes and looked at the blood red sunset. Would they be able to make it to a shop before the closing time? He got up quickly. When he noticed the drenched state of his clothes, he used a temperature manipulation spell to heat them up until they were completely dry. That didn¡¯t make him clean, though. The smell of sweat made him scrunch up his nose. He couldn¡¯t go to the city like this. He needed a cleansing spell. He looked over at Elaru, thinking about how to ask her for a cleansing. He noticed she was looking at him too. Kiel decided to explain his thoughts about buying some healing medicine first, and then nonchalantly mention a cleansing. Yes, that way he¡¯d retain his pride. Before he could fully explain his intentions of getting some healing medicine, Elaru interrupted him. ¡°Healing the damage caused by going over mana tolerance isn¡¯t as simple as healing other types of damage. Since your cells were damaged by mana, you need to heal them with a medicine that has natural, gentle healing properties. If you use a medicine that relies on magic to heal then the density of mana inside the medicine would cause further damage to your body which was already damaged by mana. It would be like trying to heal burns with a hot ointment. You need a medicine refined from something with innate healing properties or specialized pills used to temper the body with mana.¡± Kiel wasn¡¯t familiar with healing and medicine, but what she said made perfect sense. She seemed to know what she was talking about. He stroked chin and then nodded. ¡°Then I¡¯ll get that.¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°Can you even afford something like that?¡± Kiel froze. He was a noble, he had plenty of money, right? Not quite. His family was rich ¨C not him. The bastards never sent him any pocket money. And even if they did, he wouldn¡¯t have accepted it. He wasn¡¯t on good terms with the rest of his family and he wanted nothing from them. Anything that they might give him would either be filled with obligations or mockery. He would be selling himself or catching a few coins like a beggar. He wanted nothing to do with it. Thus, the money in his pockets were earned through his own hard work, however the amount of it was rather modest. It was very likely that he didn¡¯t have enough to buy such medicine. Seeing his frozen expression, Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered excitedly. ¡°If you can¡¯t buy the medicine then we have to work with what we have.¡± She continued talking telepathically. ¡°When we activated Aetherneal bond initially, the spell burrowed inside us, into every cell. It slowly destroyed our cells and replaced them with new ones. This process of damaging and healing is very similar to mana tempering. It took us only a few hours to recover from the process that would have taken days or even weeks for anyone else.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, and his voice quivered slightly. ¡°What you are saying is¡­¡± Elaru smiled and nodded. ¡°Correct. Aetherneal bond increased our cell regeneration speed. It is very likely that your body would be able to heal quickly enough even without the medicine. I could even help further increase your natural healing rate by acupuncture.¡± Kiel stared at her emotionlessly. He had no idea what emotion he was supposed to be showing right now. He had long gotten used to Elaru knowing a bit of everything. ¡°You know acupuncture?¡± Kiel raised his eyebrow. ¡°Is there anything you don¡¯t know?¡± Elaru smirked and spoke in a self-satisfied fashion. ¡°What can I say? I know a bit about everything, some things more than others. The more useful I find something, the more I study it. Knowing where to insert needless happens to be very useful in my line of work.¡± Kiel¡¯s scalp turned numb. ¡°What line of work are you talking about?¡± Something told him she wasn¡¯t talking about the art of healing. Elaru waved her hand dismissingly. ¡°My point is, just go ahead and go over your mana tolerance threshold. By morning, you¡¯ll be fine.¡± Kiel furrowed his eyebrows in thought. ¡°Our increased healing rate could have been an aftereffect of activating Aetherneal bond. It could have dropped back to normal now. And how do you know that the cells in our body got replaced? I thought you said you don¡¯t know much about Aetherneal bond.¡± Elaru smirked mischievously. ¡°I know you felt it as well. Our cells being replaced. The body completely changing from inside out. Didn¡¯t you notice how fast we recovered from the distance experiment we did this morning? Did you really think that mana deficiency didn¡¯t cause any damage to our bodies?¡± That¡¯s right! Kiel remembered how his body was screaming back then. Yet, as soon as Elaru came back in range, it subsided and disappeared. He knew that the part of the pain was caused by mana deficiency, but he wasn¡¯t aware of the actual damage. He wasn¡¯t a healer ¨C he knew no skills that could allow him to see the state of his own body. He could only go by what he felt, and the information that provided was very limited. Looking at Elaru¡¯s confidence and the fact how everything she had ever told him turned out to be true, he had no basis on which to doubt her. ¡°I could control the damage caused by mana tempering to not exceed the pain I felt back then. In such case, the damage wouldn¡¯t exceed the damage caused by mana deficiency, and I should be able to heal quickly. In fact, if I go by the time it took us, I¡¯d be able to complete dozens of rounds of tempering in a single day.¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°Fast healing rate is priceless. Just imagine how much money that will save us in the future.¡±She jumped up from where she was sitting and in a quick motion arrived next to Kiel. She flung her arm over his shoulders and waved her hand in front of them in a motivational speech. It was as if she was pointing out the beauty of the world to him, or offering him an invisible mountain of gold. ¡°No medicine shops, no hospitals, no medical fees or healing costs. We¡¯ll be filthy rich!¡± Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Kiel¡¯s face twisted in a strange grimace. He was unsure if she was joking or if she was actually serious. How would avoiding medical treatment cause them to become rich? Was she earning a large profit that was totally eaten by medical fees? Kiel snorted. Not likely. He turned towards her to give her a disdainful look, but it froze on his face as soon as he noticed just how close her face was to his. Her long ears were tickling his neck, a sweet scent of the forest wafted off from her. It smelled similar to cinnamon and made her slightly moist, lush lips seem almost edible. His heart involuntarily skipped a beat. ¡°Too darn close!¡± Kiel wasted no time and shrugged her arm off with a solemn face. He slipped away towards the stream. He bent down and drunk some water, splashing it on his face nonchalantly as if trying to freshen up. The clear water drops dripped down his lips and made his thick black eyelashes stick together. He exhaled, calming his mind and turned around, glancing towards Elaru with the corner of his eyes. Was the vixen riling him up on purpose? She was humming a quiet tune with a smile plastered on her face and resting against the same tree as before. She unsheathed 5 acupuncture needless that were strapped to her thigh, holding 4 of them in between fingers of her right hand, while she twirled the last one in her left hand like a toy. She threw a few side glances at him expectantly. Kiel had to suppress the urge to stomp his feet as he made his way back to the same place where he had been sitting previously. He exhaled once again, discarding all of his unnecessary and distracting thoughts, concentrating wholeheartedly on the task at hand. His plans had changed, there was no need to go to a medicine shop and no need for cleansing. He would use his own power to improve. His eyes glittered with excitement as he started the previous process over again. After several minutes, his body started stinging again. Instead of stopping, he persisted this time. His aura became so dense it felt as if it was suffocating him. The mana that was initially a warm, pleasant feeling of power turned into a rampaging flame. His previously dry body was again drenched in cold sweat. Elaru paid close attention to his state. She seemed to be waiting for him to finish mana tempering so she could help him heal faster. Kiel gritted his teeth and pushed himself even harder. His body burned, his muscles twitched, his breathing became shallow. The hard beating of his heart echoed painfully inside his head. His cells screamed in agony. He closed his eyes tightly and tried persist, just a bit more. ¡°Just a bit more. You are almost there.¡± He could hear Elaru musing softly. He clung onto her words. If she told him to endure a bit more, how could he refuse? Wouldn¡¯t he look like a sissy? Not the impression he wanted to leave. He could take this. He was strong. He wasn¡¯t afraid of pain. He clenched his fists. As the mana inside of him raged, as his aura turned almost liquid, he couldn¡¯t think about anything besides enduring. Just¡­a¡­little¡­bit¡­mo¡­ He didn¡¯t even get to finish his thought before his consciousness blurred and his mind was enveloped by darkness. His sitting body slowly fell backward onto the grass. It didn¡¯t even let out a thump as it hit the ground. Elaru leisurely got up from her sitting position, in no hurry to help out. That¡¯s about right. It should take him at least a few hours to regain consciousness? She stroked her chin with her left hand, looking solemnly at the motionless body in front of her. I shouldn¡¯t underestimate the healing rate of our bodies after the bond. I better hurry it up. She sheathed the needles she was holding in her right hand, before walking up to Kiel. Sorry mate. I can help you increase your recovery rate. But¡­I never said that I would. She bent down and pulled out a single, thin needle out of Kiel¡¯s neck. ¡°See, knowing where to insert needles is very useful.¡± Elaru cast a quick cleansing on the needle before she put it back into the last empty sheath on her thigh. Your speedy recovery isn¡¯t in my interests right now. Hang tight, sleep well, and let me attend to my own business. She sighed before grabbing Kiel by his shirt and flinging him over her shoulder easily, like he had no weight at all. She looked at the dying sun, it was glowing with a blood red color. A tinge of mischief glittered in her eyes as she looked at Kiel¡¯s legs she was gripping so he wouldn¡¯t fall off.Like a sack of potatoes. She giggled and smacked him on his behind teasingly. Kiel¡¯s mage armor dissipated along with his consciousness, so technically, she didn¡¯t need to carry him. She could easily make his body float next to her. But using magic on a body that just went through mana tempering was a bad idea. In the next moment, the redhead with a human sack flung on her shoulder completely vanished from the grassy clearing. There was no trail, no footsteps, no wavering grass or rustling leaves. Everything was deathly still. Without any sign that anyone had been there at all. * * * This isn''t the latest episode. There are two more available to read on Aethernea.com + 2 more available to email subscribers. Coming up in the next episode: Suddenly,as if appearing out of thin air, right next to the couch, another person materialized. The girl smiled at him warmly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± He isn¡¯t bleeding so¡­ ¡°He won¡¯t get any blood on it.¡± For her, Muni was the land of light, while she was a phantom that dwelled in the shadows. One wrong step was all it took to disintegrate all the shadows protecting her and reveal her true form. ¡°I am out of ideas. You know just as well as I that Muni had always been our last resort. I am stuck at a dead end.¡± She laughed softly. It was a laugh that contained no humor, only resignation. ¡°I don¡¯t know where else to look.¡± Episode 24 – Burrowing Windroot In the previous Episode: Elaru tells Kiel that Aetherneal bond increased their recovery speed, and he doesn¡¯t need healing elixirs to be able to perform mana tempering effectively. She reveals that she is familiar with acupuncture and can even help increase his rate of recovery through it. However, as Kiel reaches his threshold of tolerance and is about to stop mana tempering to allow his body to recover, Elaru knocks him unconscious with a single needle -¡°Your speedy recovery isn¡¯t in my interests right now. Hang tight, sleep well, and let me attend to my own business.¡± ¨C Then she takes his body and disappears. * * * ? Eryey Mainhouse, Ashar ? Countless bright rays of light illuminated a spacious room inside a remote manor. Yet the only thing that could be seen through the windows was the darkness of night. A middle-aged man in a white coat and green slippers moved about the room. His handsome features couldn¡¯t be covered up, not even by his sloppiness. His wavy gray hair did its utmost in its unruly attempts to fall over his face. Thankfully, the advance of the strands was halted by the strange looking goggles resting securely on top of his head. Both his silvery hair, and the black lines and circles marking the left side of his forehead, looked several shades darker when contrasted against his sickly pale face. The man chewed on a long straw hanging from the corner of his mouth like a cigar. It looked similar to a stick of cinnamon, it even tasted similar ¨C sweet and spicy, yet, it was actually burselpine bark. It was the medical properties of burselpine, which kept the mind alert and awake, that caused it to become his trademark feature. He could have opted to drink coffee instead, but he hated the bitter taste. The man busied himself with various strange items littered around the room, not the least bothered by the messy state of his chambers. Although there were many shelves, cabinets, and desks filled to the brim with papers, books, vials and strange apparatus, he seemed to know exactly where everything was. The only object in the room that was perfectly clean and tidy was a leather couch, which, of course, looked completely out of place. Suddenly, as if appearing out of thin air, right next to the couch, another person materialized. Ixos instantly felt the foreign presence. However, instead of being startled, as a normal person would be if someone popped up in their private residence, he didn¡¯t even turn around to look at the newcomer. He continued observing a small vial in his hand with a completely nonchalant expression. He shook the vial a few times before finally speaking out casually: ¡°What took you so long?¡± The other figure scratched her head and sighed. ¡°I got sidetracked.¡± She flung a body off of her shoulder onto the nearby couch as if taking off a bag. The man turned to look at the beautiful redhead and complained half-heartedly. ¡°Oy, oy. I got the couch replaced just this morning.¡± The girl smiled at him warmly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± He isn¡¯t bleeding so¡­ ¡°He won¡¯t get any blood on it.¡± A normal person would have asked why she got sidetracked. A normal person would have asked her why she had an unconscious person slung over her shoulder. A normal person would have asked her who was napping on their couch. Not Ixos Eryey. He behaved as if all of it was a perfectly normal occurrence. As if there was nothing strange going on. The girl¡¯s smile suddenly vanished, and she looked at the man suspiciously. ¡°Wait¡­what happened to the old couch?¡± The man¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change at all as he explained. ¡°Nothing much. Nothing much. I accidentally spilled one of my experiments on it.¡± Elaru Wayvin furrowed her eyebrows. Couldn¡¯t he clean it up? Why did he get another couch? Realization dawned on her, and she chuckled. ¡°How big of a hole did your concoction leave? What did you do with the old couch? Where is it?¡± He looked at her, his expression nonchalant as if he was talking about the weather. ¡°You are looking at it.¡± Elaru stared at him confused until her eyes fell on the small vial in Ixos¡¯ hand. It was filled with a vile looking green liquid. R.I.P. The old couch. You shall be missed. Well, not really, no one cares about a couch. After a few moments of silence, Elaru coughed dryly and changed the conversation topic. ¡°So¡­I got you those burrowing windroots you wanted¡­¡± The man¡¯s previously emotionless emerald green eyes started glittering in excitement. He held out his hand like a child asking for candy. His usually gray and calm aura lit up with strands of white. Elaru stifled a chuckle and took off her backpack. She dug around it until she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a platinum box and tossed it towards Ixos. The box was simple and didn¡¯t look special at all, but the man treated it like a treasure. Ixos couldn¡¯t hold in his excitement, and he opened it right away. There were no jewels or magical artifacts inside. No, the box was filled with dark orange roots, yet the man¡¯s entire person glowed in delight as if he had stumbled upon a priceless gem. ¡°What a good harvest! So many, and all of them are in perfect condition, fully matured too. You always bring me the best stuff!¡± He turned to Elaru looking at her as if she was his long lost kin, almost moved to tears. He ruffled her hair warmly as if he was dealing with a small child. ¡°Good work my little munchkin!¡± Elaru smiled wryly and didn¡¯t even bother pointing out that she was neither little nor a child anymore. Ixos took out one of the roots and brought it closer to his eyes. ¡°The sturdy yet mild nature of burrowing windroot is exactly what I need to combine the rest of the ingredients.¡± He managed to chuckle in satisfaction without dropping the burselpine stick he was chewing on. ¡°I just need a few other minor ingredients, and then I¡¯ll be able to make a whole new variety of tempering pills. They will be the most potent pills on the market!¡± Elaru sighed in resignation. ¡°Uncle Ixos¡­that¡¯s exactly what you said the last time too¡­¡± ¡°Aha!¡± He pointed a finger in the air. ¡°And it was exactly as I said. Behold!¡± He went over to one of his cabinets and pulled out a small box that looked exactly the same as the one Elaru had just given him. He chucked it towards her nonchalantly, as if the box didn¡¯t contain anything fragile or expensive inside. Elaru caught the box carefully, a wry smile on her face. Ixos Eryey had a very bizarre personality. He treated rare medical ingredients as priceless treasures, but after producing pills or elixirs out of them, he would completely lose interest. While other alchemists were concocting pills for the sake of the pills, he was concocting them for the sake of concocting. It was like a child playing with jigsaw puzzle pieces. He would take a lot of time and effort to put the pieces together, but once the picture is complete, it¡¯s not interesting at all. It is just a picture; it can¡¯t be played with further. While some might display that completed puzzle as their proud achievement, Ixos would just fling it aside and find another incomplete puzzle to play with. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. While the insides of the box were priceless treasures to others, to Ixos, it was just a toy he was finished playing with. As soon as Elaru opened the box, a sweet fruity aroma with the tinge of spiciness reached her nose. The box was padded with velvet cushions, securing three large translucent pearls. They were cherry red, glittering in the light like glass marbles, but in the eyes of her Aethernea, those candy-like pills looked like little suns, glowing so brightly it was almost blinding. While she was admiring the pills, Ixos put away the box with the roots and started scribbling on a small piece of paper. ¡°So, here is what I¡¯ll be needing next.¡± His handwriting was, unsurprisingly, messy; yet the curvy, barely legible words had a certain beauty to them. Elaru closed the pill box and put it in her backpack. ¡°Sorry uncle. I won¡¯t be able to get you any more ingredients for a while.¡± Ixos didn¡¯t stop scribbling. ¡°Why?¡± She approached him, with her hands clasped behind her back. ¡°I am enrolling into Muni this year.¡± Tha man¡¯s shoulders stiffened, and he abruptly stopped scribbling. The Ashar University of Magic was a place that created unparalleled geniuses that would grow to become the pillars of Halnea. A place where only the chosen could enter. A place that most people considered a holy land of magic. But for her¡­ For her, Muni was the land of light, while she was a phantom that dwelled in the shadows. One wrong step was all it took to disintegrate all the shadows protecting her and reveal her true form. For her, Muni was too dangerous, tantamount to walking on the edge of life and death. Would her father let her go through with it? Just like that? ¡°¡­¡± What a silly question¡­of course, he would¡­ Elaru had been born standing on the edge. And she had never stopped walking on it. Or to be more precise, she couldn¡¯t step down. All she could do was continue walking, making the edge her domain, turning it into her world. Ixos frowned and scratched the stubble on his chin. Her mind was already set. He couldn¡¯t do anything to stop her. But he still felt the need to voice his opinion. ¡°It¡¯s a bad idea.¡± Elaru sighed, but her eyes showed no hesitation. ¡°I am out of ideas. You know just as well as I that Muni had always been our last resort. I am stuck at a dead end.¡± She laughed softly. It was a laugh that contained no humor, only resignation. ¡°I don¡¯t know where else to look.¡± Ixos gave her a deadpan expression and responded. ¡°In the Milkywyrm Forest.¡± Elaru looked at him with shock. ¡°What?¡± He pointed to the list of ingredients he had just finished writing. ¡°Moonfruit grows in Milkywyrm forest.¡± Elaru¡¯s resigned smile froze. This apathetic uncle of hers had no sense of humor, which means that he was quite serious. After a brief pause, she chose to pretend that this intrusion didn¡¯t happen. ¡°There is a professor in Muni that might be able to help. So¡­Muni is my best bet right now.¡± Ixos¡¯ expression didn¡¯t change at all, still as phlegmatic as ever, he responded: ¡°None of these things grow in Muni.¡± Elaru didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. She sighed again before accepting the list. ¡°I¡¯ll see what I can do¡­but it is better if you don¡¯t expect anything.¡± She turned away from Ixos, looking at Kiel sleeping soundly on the couch. She gripped the crystal pendant around her neck and murmured quietly. ¡°Maybe this is my fate¡­¡± Ixos¡¯ long pointy ears twitched, picking up on the almost inaudible words. Elaru walked towards the couch, preparing to leave when Ixos¡¯ words made her steps halt. ¡°If there is such a thing as fate, then changing fates of others would be my job.¡± Elaru smiled sadly. Didn¡¯t you stop taking patients years ago? That used to be your job, but because of what happened¡­ She swallowed down her words and changed the subject. ¡°Get some rest. The black circles around your eyes are darker than the circles on your forehead.¡± Ixos hmmmed before replying ¡°What day is it? I might have lost track of time.¡± Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°Saturday.¡± Ixos stared at her blankly before asking. ¡°Which Saturday?¡± ¡°Go get some sleep before I knock you out!!¡± Elaru shook her fist threateningly. What a pain¡­ Ixos frowned and put up his hands in surrender. ¡°I¡¯m going. I¡¯m going.¡± ¡°Start by removing that burselpine out of your mouth.¡± Elaru shook her head helplessly. Ixos unwillingly took his chewing stick out of his mouth, frowning the entire time, before he pocketed it. After removing it, he just stood there looking at Elaru. ¡°What?¡± ¡°How can I sleep if your pet is already occupying the couch?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. Moron, you have a king sized bed upstairs! Ixos responded with a blank look. You know I feel the most relaxed in my lab. I can¡¯t sleep anywhere else. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just move your bed in here then?¡± Ixos stared at her vacantly for a while before looking around his room. It might fit. If not, I¡¯ll demolish the wall. He started nodding to no one in particular. Why didn¡¯t I think of that? Ixos Eryey [ee-ks-uh z er-yeey] I would usually do a quick chibi drawing of new characters, but Ixos inspired me to do a more detailed drawing. Do you like it? I had a lot of fun writing this episode. It is such a nice change from writing about Kiel and Elaru. Did you like Ixos? Are you intrigued? Do you have theories about what is going on? I¡¯d love to hear them. Coming up in the next episode: Her goal was deep inside the wall of the canyon. Her steps suddenly stilled, her excited expression replaced by shock. ¡°Allegedly it has something to do with the soul. And the return of the gods. Perhaps it can help you find what you seek? Or perhaps it might warn you of the impending crisis? If it is meant to be, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll figure it out. For now, just think of it as a lucky charm.¡± She was indeed coming closer. Her eyes glittered, her heart thumped hard in anticipation. To her surprise, no matter how she tried to go around him she always ended up going towards him. Is he a wielder of an Aethernea? Episode 25 – I should get a pet In the previous Episode: After knocking Kiel unconscious, Elaru meets with a doctor and an alchemist by the name of Ixos Eryey. She seems to be on close terms with the man, calling him ¡°uncle¡± and scolding him for not getting enough rest. Ixos is researching tempering pills and wants to make the most powerful tempering pill in existence. Elaru gives him a small box filled with burrowing windroots ¨C a rare medicinal plant. In return, Ixos gives her three magical pills and a list of ingredients he wants her to track down. Ixos thinks Muni is a dangerous place for Elaru and doesn¡¯t like the idea of her enrolling there. Elaru tells him she is out of ideas and that there is a professor there that might be able to help her. * * * ? Canyon near Beyd, Wednesday, 15th of August 1449 A.W. ? (10 days prior) Elaru Wayvin stood in front of the orange canyon ridge. The winds howled around her, ruffling her red hair and raising up puffs of red sand. The sun blared down on her as if trying to burn her to a crisp, yet neither her clothes nor her hair were wet with sweat. Around her spread an intricate mage-sustained spell that bent light which entered its area of effect. This spell treated rays of light as if they had shape, and as such, that shape could be altered by transmutation magic to curve away from her. Since no light touched her, the warmth of the sun was unable to directly reach her. Elaru walked right into the wall of the canyon. Just as her body was about to hit the wall, the rock bent and twisted away from her, creating a hole for her to pass through. She was like a queen, everything moved out of her way. Ok, so it wasn¡¯t anything grand like that¡­she just transmuted the rock around her to shift away from her. Her goal was deep inside the wall of the canyon. It took the form of a small, orange root, growing inside the rock. Burrowing windroot was a rare magical plant that could only grow in a hot, windy valley inside a special type of canyon rock. It was an expensive, hard to find ingredient because it couldn¡¯t be seen from the outside, nor could it be found by bloodhound¡¯s sense of smell. There were very few ways to find the root inside the walls, Elaru¡¯s eyes being one of them. Every living creature had a soul that provided it with mana. Including plants. Since Elaru could see mana, living creatures looked like bright flames in comparison to the rest of the world. She could clearly see the root inside of the wall because the mana inside the root and the mana in the rest of the rock were very different in quantity and density. She shapeshifted the stone away from the root and caught it before it fell to the ground. She quickly exited trough the path she had created and shifted all the rock back in place. When she arrived out in the open, she removed the remnants of the rock from the root, until it was sparklingly clean. Then she found a metal box from her backpack and put the root inside. She admired the contents of the box for a while. It was filled to the brim with orange roots. This should be enough. She should go back to Ashar now. Uncle Ixos would probably want her to find a few more herbs, and she didn¡¯t have much time to find them. Ashar University of Magic exams were starting in less than two weeks. And after that, she wouldn¡¯t be free to travel the lands and collect rare ingredients. She snapped the box closed and returned it to her backpack. She pulled out her Eternal Beacon so she could teleport to Ashar. She twirled it around and looked at the lifeless walls of the canyon in front of her.Adventuring alone sure is boring¡­maybe I should get a pet like uncle Ixos suggested¡­ Hmmm¡­what kind should I get? It would have to be pleasing to the eye, and useful. It must be a male, don¡¯t want to end up with a litter of little ones. As she was about to activate her Beacon, an idea struck her. Wouldn¡¯t it be fun if she climbed high up to the top of the canyon and jumped down the cliff? It would be just like flying! And before she became a pancake, she would just teleport away. Elaru nodded her head. The people who invented Beacons must have had this in mind as the proper usage.Yes, yes. That¡¯s how it should be used. Her eyes glittered mischievously as she climbed the walls as quickly as zuzels climbed trees. Wherever she touched would turn into a place where she could grab or place her foot. She had to admit that she didn¡¯t do a lot of mountain climbing in her 18 years of life. But she climbed a lot of buildings. And climbing as an elibu sure was fun! Transmutation magic was the best climbing gear! Soon she was towering over the entire canyon, looking down at the rock bellow like an emperor looked down at his loyal subjects. She grinned wide and walked back, away from the cliff. She needed to put some distance between herself and the edge so she could run and reach her maximum speed before jumping down the cliff. The faster, the better. Her steps suddenly stilled, her excited expression replaced by shock. A moment before, everything was fine. A moment later, a bright torch appeared in her mana vision, right in the middle of her chest. She looked down towards her chest to see a long crystal, the size of a finger, which was agitatedly quivering left and right. This usually lifeless pendant was suddenly pulsating with life as if trying to tell her something. She had been wearing this crystal around her neck for the last 3 years, and in that time, it had never shown any signs of activity. If it weren¡¯t for her Aethernea of Sight, to which this crystal looked almost alive, she too would have thought it to be a mundane object with no magical properties. Each time she looked at the object, she would remember the person who gave it to her, and her face would turn sour. ¡°What does it do?¡± She had asked that person. The response she got still caused her face to turn unsightly:¡°Allegedly it has something to do with the soul. And the return of the gods. Perhaps it can help you find what you seek? Or perhaps it might warn you of the impending crisis? If it is meant to be, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll figure it out. For now, just think of it as a lucky charm.¡± She humphed in displeasure. Almost two millennia had passed since they received the object, in that time even an idiot could have found out some clues of its actual usage. Yet, instead of investigating their own family heirloom, they left it up to fate. They believed that the one that was fated with it would eventually unveil its secrets. Elaru looked around her with all her senses. She spread her mind, employed her Aethernea to its maximum distance and accuracy, she even used her ears to pick up any sounds. Yet no matter how hard she searched, she could not find the reason for the pendant¡¯s strange behavior. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Perhaps it can help you find what you seek? Or perhaps it might warn you of the impending crisis?¡± The words echoed in her head. Which one is it? Should I search for the cause, or should I stay away from it? She gripped the pendant tightly, her gaze steeled. Even if it is dangerous, if it can help me understand this pendant better, I should investigate. Elaru Wayvin wasn¡¯t the kind of person to just wait for fate to find her. She made her own fate. This seemingly useless pendant could prove to be of life and death importance. Every clue she found might end up bringing her closer to her goal. She most definitely wouldn¡¯t let a single one slip away! The pendant was obviously reacting to something. She just had to find out to what. If she moved closer to the source of the reaction, would the pendant¡¯s reaction intensify? Elaru started moving away from the cliff. The pendant started reacting when she was moving in this direction so she decided to continue. As she walked, every few steps, the pendant¡¯s glow would intensify slightly. She was indeed coming closer. Her eyes glittered, her heart thumped hard in anticipation. What is it? What is it reacting to? Her chase of the unknown led her to the forest on the top of the canyon. It was on the outskirts of a small town. She walked slowly but surely, sometimes she would proceed in the wrong direction, but the shaking and glowing of the pendant would soon put her back on track. It was growing more and more resplendent. If it were someone else, they probably wouldn¡¯t be able to conceal the waves of mana the pendant created wherever it passed, but Elaru¡¯s mana concealing abilities had constantly been polished over 18 years. It wasn¡¯t just a habit; it was her way of life. As she spread her Aethernea over the forest, she noticed it was full of wildlife. There were several argel in the forest too. Most of them appeared to be hunters. There was one mage using the forest as his training ground. She looked over the people briefly but then paid them no more attention. It was only when the pendant led her deeper in, in the direction of the practicing mage, that she started paying him more attention. Her presence was completely erased, and she was under a light bending spell that made her invisible to the eye. Even so, she still didn¡¯t approach him too closely and decided to go around him. To her surprise, no matter how she tried to go around him she always ended up going towards him. The pendant was pointing straight at him! Elaru focused on the mage, this time with profound interest. The trees blocked her vision, but she could still see him with her Aethernea. His mage armor wasn¡¯t very dense, but it was very stable and perfectly under his control. His aura was light, and slowly dissipating as he was using magic. The amount of mana exiting his body was too little to be able to keep up with his consumption. Still, even in a scenario where his mana was sparse and light, it still flowed with intricate beauty. In her vision, it glowed prettily, sometimes icy blue, sometimes deep azure. The colors were very pure and extremely beautiful. Mana was colored by the mage¡¯s mind. His personality, feelings, and desires reflected on the mana. As her mind came into contact with his mana, Elaru felt a sense of Deja Vu. Her first impression was that this mana belonged to a sentimental yet lonely person. It seemed like he was loyal, dedicated and really passionate about that which is important to him. Usually, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to tell that much about the person just by sensing his mana. But this feeling¡­was very familiar¡­ Elaru smiled involuntarily. This person¡­his mana feels a lot like yours Wade¡­ She chuckled. But without all the naughtiness and trouble causing tendencies. This time, instead of trying to avoid him, she went straight towards him. The closer she came, the more excitedly the pendant pulsated, glowed and shook. Soon she was close enough to see him clearly. It was a boy that looked to be around her age. He was extremely good looking, so much that he could be called beautiful. Raven black hair with several blue locks. She focused on his eyes. Icy blue. Most likely a Rroda from the main branch. She deduced instantly. This color combination was very unique; it originated from the Rroda family ancestor and everyone with this color combination was blood-related to the Rrodas. Rrodas weren¡¯t the only ones that had a signature color combination, Arites, for example, were the only noble family whose members had violet eyes, and Tanyers inherited eyes the color of molten gold. What would a Rroda be doing here? Is this place their vacation spot or something? She looked at the boy closely, inspecting his toned body. Is the pendant reacting to him, or is it reacting to something he has on his person? As far as her eyes could see, he wasn¡¯t wearing any artifacts or objects of value. But if he wasn¡¯t in possession of an Aetherneal artifact, why would the pendant be pointing towards him? Is he a wielder of an Aethernea? Dum dum dum. The return of the mysterious crystal that was introduced in the second episode. You didn¡¯t pay it much attention back then, did you? ;) I also included a long overdue drawing of Kiel, unfortunately, I only managed to finish his face before my drawing tablet died. P.S. This is not the latest episode. RRL is two episodes behind aethernea.com release. Coming up in the next episode: To Elaru, who could see mana, this side of the boy looked absolutely enchanting. This person¡­is incredible. Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered. Elaru shook her head, yet what she felt at this moment wasn¡¯t pity, but a sense of comradery. A lucky charm, huh? Tsk¡­tsk¡­knowing the person who gave this to me, all of this has to do with fate¡­fate¡­ Elaru rubbed her chin in thought. Am I connected to him by fate? Why? If that is the case¡­should I be fighting against it or embrace it? Episode 26 – Coincidence or Fate? In the previous Episode: Elaru reminisces of what happened 10 days ago that caused her to meet Kiel. She was searching for burrowing windroots in the canyon near Beyd. Just as she was about to teleport to Ashar, her crystal pendant lit up, pointing her towards the forest. The pendant brings her to Kiel who is practicing magic in the forest. She recognizes him as a Rroda and wonders why the pendant is pointing her towards him. Episode 26 ¨C Coincidence or Fate? As far as her eyes could see, he wasn¡¯t wearing any artifacts or objects of value. But if he wasn¡¯t in possession of an Aetherneal artifact, why would the pendant be pointing towards him? Is he a wielder of an Aethernea? As far as she knew, there existed 5 different Aetherneal gifts. (Excluding Aetherneal bond which she speculated to be another Aetherneal gift, however, she was unable to confirm it.) Impossible. She concluded. Out of the five, four would have allowed him to detect her presence in different ways. Yet he was still clueless about it. And the last one would have given him extraordinary healing rate, which, judging by the state of his fists, he didn¡¯t possess. No surprise there, Aethernea wielders don¡¯t grow on trees. After eliminating the possibility of him being an Aethernea wielder, she concentrated on other options. Did the pendant consider him a threat to her? She watched the boy get pissed about something and furiously beat a tree into a pulp. She covered her mouth to stop a giggle. The boy seemed harmless, even cute. Dangerous? Him? Alright, alright. I shouldn¡¯t dismiss the possibility so easily. Who am I to question the proper function of an Aetherneal artifact? She continued observing him as he practiced his martial arts. He didn¡¯t have a specific martial arts style. His style was formless and flexible. It looked like something he developed while trying to make sense of a basic hand to hand combat manual. Elaru¡¯s keen eye could tell he neither had a good teacher nor battle experience. However, from his adaptable and flawless usage of the basics, she could tell he had talent. He has a good sense for martial arts. Pity that he had no one to guide him. The time moved slowly as she continued watching him. The blazing sunlight rained down from the clear sky. The tiwi hid in the shadows of the trees and chirped a relaxing melody. The body of the boy soon got drenched with sweat. His clothes stuck to him like glue, revealing all his fine muscles. The sunlight danced on the clearing, making the sweat on his body glisten like pearls. Elaru sighed inwardly. I wish I had some snacks to nibble on. This is going to take a while. After calming his breathing, the boy switched to practicing magic. And as he did so, he seemed to turn into someone else. While practicing martial arts, he already looked like he was dancing, but now¡­the glittering light of magic made it seem even more ethereal. When he weaved magic, it was as if every pore of his body exuded elegance and beauty. His magic was flawless, intricate and pretty. To Elaru, who could see mana, this side of the boy looked absolutely enchanting. This person¡­is incredible. Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered. Why haven¡¯t I heard about a younger generation genius of a Rroda family? Soon she got her answer. She had thought it to be strange from the start, but her suspicions were confirmed after a while of observation. This guy¡¯s mana regeneration is almost non-existent¡­This guy¡­is he a non-mage? Suddenly everything made sense. Why he was here alone, in the middle of nowhere. Why she had never heard of him before. Why he had no one to guide him and teach him martial arts. He was a non-mage. A disgrace of the Rroda family. It would be considered merciful if they didn¡¯t disown him. They deliberately kept him away from the spotlight. He might even be someone¡¯s bastard child. Nobles were very picky with who they married. It had to be someone with high status or ability. It would be almost impossible for a legal son of a noble to be a non-mage. The only explanation would be if the noble had an affair with someone with low magic ability. What bad luck. To be born into a Rroda family as a non-mage. Elaru shook her head, yet what she felt at this moment wasn¡¯t pity, but a sense of comradery. * * * ? Thursday, 23rd of August 1449 A.W. ? (8 days later) For eight days, Elaru had stalked Kiel Rroda hoping to find out the reason why they met. In that period, the only thing she managed to find out was that the pendant was definitely reacting to Kiel Rroda himself and not an artifact on his body. She confirmed this fact when he was taking a bath. Of course, she didn¡¯t peek on him. She had her Aethernea of Sight, there was no need to see him with her actual eyes. Her mana vision wasn¡¯t considered as peeking! It was always active, there wasn¡¯t anything she could do about it. She couldn¡¯t not see him. Ok, fine, she would have peeked even if she had a choice to not peek. But it was purely to confirm whether the pendant was reacting to him. Really. Ahem! The point is, in this time, she managed to find out so much about Kiel Rroda that he felt like an old friend. However, no matter how much she thought she knew, she couldn¡¯t find anything that would warrant such a reaction from her pendant. Currently, Elaru was sitting on top of a large canyon pillar. Just out of pendant¡¯s range. If she came any closer to Kiel, the pendant would start glowing and shaking again. She was lost in thought, completely disregarding the distance. She could see him clearly, as though he was standing right next to her. Aethernea of Sight, besides giving her mana vision, also improved her regular sight, making it even better than the excellent sight of an argel. All of this seems to be too big of a coincidence. I am looking for an argel to become my soulmate. And you just happen to need this bond just as badly as me. No, it isn¡¯t just the bond that you need. You need an elibu with a large enough mana pool. It is¡­as if¡­you need me specifically¡­ Elaru furrowed her eyebrows. The coincidence doesn¡¯t stop there¡­Our situation¡­is different¡­yet quite similar¡­as if we were two sides of the same coin¡­ Is this truly a coincidence? Her eyes narrowed. Tsk¡­tsk¡­knowing the person who gave this to me, all of this has something to do with fate¡­ Fate¡­ Elaru rubbed her chin in thought. Am I connected to him by fate? The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. And if that is the case, is the fate connecting us the one I yearn for or the one I am trying to change? Is meeting you a good thing? Or is it a bad thing? Should I be fighting against this fate, or embrace it? The crystal in her hands changed colors beautifully depending on the angle one looked at it. Her face revealed a soft smile as she spoke to it. ¡°What is it? Are you asking me to come closer or are you telling me to stay away?¡± She had to make a choice quickly. Time was running out. She needed to return to Ashar to take the Muni exams. My involvement with non-mages tends to always be a matter of life and death. That time, I almost died so he could live. This time, will it be the same? Will I die so you could live the life you always wanted? Or will you be the one to forfeit your life for mine? This time, her smile was not directed towards the pendant. ¡°Call of life or call of death, it matters not. Those that are not truly alive need not fear death.¡± She grinned widely. When has Elaru Wayvin ever been afraid of a gamble? This chance¡­I won¡¯t give it up! If I can¡¯t stay here with you, then I just have to take you with me. But¡­her destination was Muni and the only way for him to follow her there is if he had qualifications to enter on his own. However¡­ A non-mage can¡¯t pass the entrance exams. Elaru continued passing the crystal between her fingers. This gamble¡­It¡¯s all or nothing. Aetherneal bond is unavoidable¡­Is this what you want me to do? Is this why you brought us together? To be bound to him for the rest of my life¡­ The thought didn¡¯t cause her reluctance or apprehension at all. I need a soulmate, yet I am running out of time to find one. I don¡¯t even have an another candidate in mind. Elaru searched her memory of every argel mage she had ever met or heard about. She considered each one of them before confirming her initial feeling. Kiel Rroda¡­isn¡¯t a bad choice at all. In fact, he is the best choice out of all of them. She chuckled musically. I wouldn¡¯t mind him becoming my soulmate. I wouldn¡¯t mind it at all. Her heated gaze almost bore holes into the boy. Kiel Rroda. I pick you. The boy must have felt her stare because he turned around and returned it with his own chilling gaze. He was doing that more and more often. Meeting her gaze. A while back, after covertly tailing him for some time, she still didn¡¯t notice anything strange about him. That¡¯s when she decided to stop hiding and reveal herself out in the open. She had multiple reasons for doing it. She was sure that he would notice her soon, and after a while, he would even recognize that she was looking at him specifically. If he had something to hide, he would feel under pressure, and it would increase the chance of a slip-up. It could help her unveil the secret behind the reaction of her pendant. If he didn¡¯t have anything to hide and didn¡¯t change his behavior, then there was a large chance that she would need to interact with him to find out the reason. However, since he was living in an all-argel town, he might feel uncomfortable around elibu. So if she wanted to interact with him in the future, she needed to make him get used to her. He might even approach her on his own ¨C that would be ideal. If he approached her instead of her catching him off guard, he would be less vigilant. She could have chosen to head into town and monitor him from there, but this way she could avoid interacting with other people. And her pendant wouldn¡¯t be on the fritz the entire time. An entire week had passed, and he still showed no signs of being under pressure or any intention of coming over. A whole week! If her clothes didn¡¯t cover her entire body, she would have been roasted by the blazing sun. Thankfully, they were made out of high-grade meep wool, which had special heat isolation properties, that kept both the heat and the cold outside, making them appropriate for all seasons. What a stubborn guy. Elaru chuckled. If you won¡¯t come to me, I guess I¡¯ll have to come to you. She looked down to the crystal in her hands. And you, my dear, are going into a platinum box inside my backpack until you stop behaving like a lupax in heat. * * * ? Saturday, 25th of August 1449 A.W. ? ( Present ) In the room located in the attic of Hot Pot, Elaru stood in front of the bed on top of which a sleeping figure could be seen. She was holding her pendant deep in thought. The pendant was lifeless, it neither glowed nor shook. She remembered how restless it had been right before they established their Aetherneal bond. Yet, after the deed, it turned deathly still, no different from a mundane rock. It hadn¡¯t shown any signs of life ever since. Did it decide to stop wiggling because there was no more need for it? Because she understood the message? Was the pendant telling her to make Kiel her soulmate and now it had nothing more to say? Or did Aetherneal bond seal her fate so that not even the pendant could do anything to change it? Elaru shook her head, dispersing the thoughts, and looked up at a wooden pendulum clock on the wall above the storage cabinet. He should regain consciousness soon. I have no time to waste. * * * And we are back to the present. By this point, I gave you enough hidden clues to connect the dots about how everything/everyone is connected. Alas, don¡¯t feel bad if you didn¡¯t manage to catch them. :) After I finish Aethernea, you can reread it and then you¡¯ll surely catch them all. (Anyone else that couldn¡¯t resist saying ¡°Gotta catch them all! Pokemon!¡±? XD) Coming up in the next episode: It was as if a flame had been lit up inside her. The warmth pulsated everywhere,heating her up. Elaru chuckled softly. No. When it comes to you and me¡­there might not be any coincidences at all¡­ Tsk¡­tsk¡­and you were even complaining how horrible it is to be stuck with me¡­ The source of the imposing aura was an old man, looking to be in his sixties, seated behind a large work desk, in an armchair that looked nothing short of a throne. The old man¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously, his voice dropping down lower and lower. ¡°You. Don¡¯t. Know?¡± He sneered derisively. You think this is a place you can casually come and go as you please? Who gave you the permission to leave Beyd? Episode 27 – Quasi-Tempering Pill In the previous Episode: Elaru stops reminiscing about what happened to make her meet Kiel and decide to make him her soulmate. She returned to their room at Hot Pot. Kiel is still unconscious. Episode 27 ¨C Quasi-Tempering Pill Elaru sat down cross-legged on the rug before taking out a pillbox from her backpack. She opened the box which contained three candy-like pills. As she picked one up, she felt a familiar warmth spread through her fingers. So this is what happened to that Feather of a Firebird I got for uncle Ixos. Initially, she had thought that plucking a feather from a firebird would be as easy as taking candy from a baby. Yet it had given her unexpected trouble. It wasn¡¯t that finding a firebird was hard for her, it wasn¡¯t that she couldn¡¯t approach it or sneak attack it. No, the problem was quite peculiar: A firebird didn¡¯t have any feathers. Where normal birds would have feathers, firebird was covered with flames instead. She lost count of how many times she cursed whoever named the item as the ¡°Feather of a Firebird¡±. Elaru shook her head. Misleading. Totally misleading! Then, without hesitation, she popped the pill into her mouth and swallowed it down. As soon as the candy reached her stomach, it melted into a hot liquid. The liquid quickly passed through the walls of the stomach, seeping directly into her bloodstream. Through her blood, it quickly spread to every nook and cranny of her body. It was as if a flame had been lit up inside her. The warmth pulsated everywhere, heating her up. Her skin turned reddish and hot to the touch. Sweat started pouring down her forehead like a waterfall. The warmth started burning her from inside out. This must be how a freshly roasted porkling feels like. Searing pain assaulted her senses. She closed her eyes and took long breaths, her body posture shifted to that of meditation. Although her body ached, her face was the definition of calm, showing neither pain nor worry. Tempering medicine was the kind of medicine she was the most familiar with. It took only a single glance for her to be able to tell that this particular pill was a quasi-tempering medicine. Quasi-tempering medicine didn¡¯t actually temper the body with mana, but rather, changed the body in a beneficial way that would ultimately result in improved mana resistance and tolerance. This pill tried to make the composition of one¡¯s body closer to the body of a firebird. Not only was its flesh resistant to fire, but it also had a better mana resistance and tolerance than the bodies of argel and elibu. The firebird was always on fire, and its body consumed a lot of mana to sustain the flames. This increased consumption of mana, when compared to the consumption of argel and elibu, caused its body to excel in channeling mana. This pill used the flame of the firebird to burn away all impurities within the body. Afterwards, it modified the cells using the flesh of a firebird as a reference. The impure matter within the body negatively impacted the passage of mana, so removing these useless particles was desirable. It was a similar process to refining gold. Only by removing useless impurities would the gold be able to shine resplendently. The burning pain persisted for several hours before starting to subside. By that time, Elaru was as drenched as if she had been swimming with her clothes on. She looked down at her sorry state, sighed and then proceeded to cast a cleansing. After she was sparkling clean again, she got up from the floor and stretched. Her body felt a bit lighter, and her skin was even more radiant than before. It was so smooth and flawless it could give a baby a run for its money. (If babies had money.) This should have removed the last bit of impurities that were left in my body. Uncle Ixos was right. This is indeed a miracle medicine. After all the impurity removing pills she¡¯d consumed, her body had almost no impurities left. It had reached the point in which no other medicine could improve it further. The fact that this medicine managed to remove the left over impurities that all others couldn¡¯t was a testament to its extraordinary value. She wanted to test how much her mana resistance and tolerance improved, but she needed to let her body recover to its best state first. She wanted to take another pill, but that also had to wait for her body to completely recover. She looked at Kiel, who was still soundlessly sleeping. Technically, he wasn¡¯t unconscious anymore. Because he was exhausted from his whole day of hard work and the mana tempering, his lack of consciousness had somehow turned into deep sleep. He would probably wake up in the morning, brimming with energy. She looked back at the pill box she was holding in her hand, and then looked back at Kiel. Say¡­Isn¡¯t that ice block over there in a need of tempering pills? What a coincidence! Elaru chuckled softly. No. When it comes to you and me¡­there might not be any coincidences at all¡­ She didn¡¯t think about it for long before concluding: I¡¯ll leave one of the pills for him. He is my soulmate now. I should treat him with more sincerity. These types of pills that permanently altered the body had significant diminishing returns when consuming multiple pills. Depending on the type of the pill and the body of the person consuming it, the second pill would at most reach 40% effectiveness of the first pill. The third pill would at most reach 15%, and the fourth would barely reach 3%. Therefore, even the rich nobles wouldn¡¯t squander money to make their heirs take the fourth pill. At most, if the person in question was extremely important to the family, they would give them three pills. This was exactly the reason why uncle Ixos gave her only three pills. Elaru grinned widely as she looked at Kiel¡¯s peaceful face. It¡¯s your lucky day mate! You didn¡¯t get a single strand of hair burned by the blasted firebird and you still get to enjoy a priceless treasure of a medicine. Tsk¡­tsk¡­and you were even complaining how horrible it is to be stuck with me¡­ * * * ? Sunday morning, Rroda Mainhouse, Ashar ? It had been a pleasant summer morning in Ashar, yet the temperature in the disturbingly neat room was everything but warm. Only one word could be used to describe the biting cold ¨C subzero. The source of the imposing aura was an old man, looking to be in his sixties, seated behind a large work desk, in an armchair that looked nothing short of a throne. The time had almost completely turned his black-blue hair into white. However, his chilling icy blue eyes showed no sign of age, still as piercing as ever. The man held a tacky, luxurious looking teacup, adorned by many patterns and crystals, that looked out of place in the elegant yet sparsely decorated room. His eyes flashed left and right, causing every person they landed on to shiver involuntarily. Although there were several armchairs positioned in front of his desk, no one dared to sit down. The three men stood with their heads lowered, sweating profusely and avoiding his eyes as if their life depended on it. His gaze stopped on the man who looked to be the leader of the group. ¡°Care to repeat that?¡± The sunlight came through the window behind the old man, casting a shadow over his face. However, even in the lack of light, his eyes were disturbingly bright. Like the eyes of a predator eying its prey in the darkness of the night. Clem, the leader of the group of three, felt his hair stand on end. He gulped but didn¡¯t know whether he should repeat himself or not. His panicked eyes looked at the butler standing behind the old man, pleading for help. The middle-aged butler stood with his back straight, dressed in a tidy uniform. His face was perfectly calm, as if he had long gotten used to witnessing such situations. He nodded at Clem briefly, encouraging him to repeat himself. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Clem swallowed another batch of saliva before speaking out in a weak voice. ¡°Your grands¡­¡± The old man¡¯s eyes narrowed, making Clem¡¯s words get caught in his throat. He gulped again and continued. ¡°Master Kiel¡­left me instructions to bring his luggage here¡­to the mainhouse. He said he would stop by to pick them up later.¡± The man¡¯s cold face didn¡¯t change at all as he held out his hand. Clem looked at it briefly in panic, before realizing what the old monster wanted. He hurriedly gave him a paper with the previously mentioned instructions. Venric Rroda glanced at the letter briefly, his expression remaining frozen the entire time. Even though his expression still didn¡¯t change, the temperature in the room seemed to plummet down again. ¡°Where is he now?¡± Venric Rroda spoke slowly, extenuating every word as if he was attempting to communicate with morons. A species that couldn¡¯t understand the greatness of his words. Every cell in his body radiated innate arrogance. The deep, cold voice made Clem feel as if there were ice needles piercing his heart. ¡°We¡­we don¡¯t know.¡± The old man¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously, his voice dropping down lower and lower. ¡°You. Don¡¯t. Know?¡± Even though Venric¡¯s face showed no fury, instead wearing a chillingly cold expression, Clem felt that the word ¡°terrifying¡± couldn¡¯t do him justice at all. There was something about Venric Rroda that made him look like a demon in human skin; a viper that could end Clem¡¯s pathetic life in an instant. Clem¡¯s scalp turned numb, his back had long since become drenched in cold sweat. He hurried to explain himself. ¡°M¡­master Kiel didn¡¯t leave us any other instructions¡­We¡­we believe he used a beacon to teleport somewhere¡­his aura just suddenly vanished¡­¡± Venric Rroda placed the tacky teacup against his thin lips. His mannerisms were dignified and refined. His poise could make anyone feel like they were nothing more than dirt in front of him. After the agonizingly slow sip, he spoke out a single word: ¡°Lawrence.¡± The butler behind him bowed his head down and responded. ¡°Yes, your grace. I¡¯ll get it investigated right away.¡± The butler, whose name seemed to be Lawrence, put down the teapot he was holding and quickly made his way out of the room. The entire time, Venric Rroda didn¡¯t look at his figure at all. His eyes remained fixed on Clem. ¡°And you¡­¡± Did he forget my name? Clem didn¡¯t dare remind him of it. ¡°Tell me everything you know. Did¡­the boy¡­exhibit any strange behavior before leaving? What caused the departure? Speak.¡± His authoritative voice exuded powerful pressure. His black clothes, pale skin, beard and mustache, his every feature made him look imposing. It was like thousands of ghostly whispers were telling Clem he didn¡¯t have the right to breathe the same air as Venric Rroda. ¡°Your g¡­¡± Clem coughed almost choking on his own saliva before he forcefully stifled it and continued. ¡°On Friday¡­in the early afternoon¡­master Kiel came back with an elibu female. He proceeded to take her upstairs to his room where they¡­uh¡­attended to some private business¡­¡± Clem¡¯s face flushed red. Venric Rroda raised his eyebrow displeased but didn¡¯t interrupt. ¡°You see¡­uh¡­master Kiel never brings girls home¡­so it falls into the previously mentioned category of suspicious behavior.¡± Clem explained, his voice picking up pace, wanting nothing more than to quickly narrate everything he knew. ¡°The girl was extremely beautiful and graceful. She had long red hair tied in a ponytail, tanned skin, and teal colored eyes. She was dressed in quest seeker garbs.¡± Venric¡¯s eyes narrowed. He couldn¡¯t deduce her origin from the description of her hair and eye color. They weren¡¯t among the well-known unique colors belonging to a specific bloodline. ¡°The girl arrived at Beyd about a week ago. She has had her eye on master Kiel ever since. But no one had seen master Kiel interact with her before that Friday.¡± While Clem was animatedly describing everything he knew, Lawrence returned back into the room and assumed his previous position behind Venric¡¯s back. He had delegated the job of finding the gate where Kiel Rroda teleported to, to someone else. His job was to serve the house master; he couldn¡¯t afford to do it personally. The more the servant talked, the more tightly Venric Rroda gripped his teacup. His wrinkled fingers turned completely white. Clem¡¯s hands, which he hid behind his back, were shaking profusely. He was worried that the teacup wouldn¡¯t be able to endure the pressure. If it broke and caused the tea to splatter on the man, who knows what sorry fate would befall them. Lawrence didn¡¯t seem worried about the matter at all. As Venric moved the teacup to the side, Lawrence took it as his cue to pour in more tea. After the man was done narrating everything he knew, Venric¡¯s chilling voice finally brought him some release: ¡°Leave the luggage in one of the guestrooms. Dismissed.¡± Clem bowed before scuttling out of the room. He rushed to leave so much he almost tripped over his own legs. The other two men weren¡¯t in any less of a hurry, they darted towards the doors as if competing who would pass through them first. The three almost got stuck trying to leave the room at the same time. The doors weren¡¯t large enough to allow all three of them to pass side by side. As the door to the room closed behind the trio, Venric¡¯s cold voice once again sounded in the quiet room. ¡°Lawrence. Find out everything you can about this¡­girl.¡± ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± Lawrence once again bowed in respect and exited the room, leaving Venric to his own thoughts. When he was finally left alone in the room, Venric¡¯s cold face revealed some emotion at last. He sneered derisively. You think this is a place you can casually come and go as you please? Who gave you the permission to leave Beyd? Useless bastard child. You better not cause me any trouble and go back where you belong. * * * Fun fact, when I was done writing this chapter, I stopped to take a breather and realized that the word document containing the episode had a very peculiar number of words. :p I swear, it wasn¡¯t intentional. It¡¯s one of those creepy coincidences that Elaru keeps mentioning. :D P.S. This is not the latest episode. RRL is two episodes behind aethernea.com release. Coming up in the next episode: However, to his surprise, she kept her distance. In fact, she seemed to be avoiding his eye entirely. Whenever she accidentally met his eyes, her face would flush and she would scurry away like a startled pechuh. Kiel felt a foreboding feeling when it happened. Is this¡­a second stage of a crush? To Augment meant to improve the existing. To transmute was to change completely. The first thing Venric saw when he opened the folder were two words written in a large font. ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±. As Venric flipped the stack of papers, his frown kept deepening. ¡°What nonsense is this?¡± Episode 28 – Transmutation Magic In the previous Episode: Elaru causes Kiel to faint using her acupuncture needles while he was in the process of mana tempering. She then visits Ixos Eryey who gives her 3 tempering pills. After returning to Hot Pot, she takes one of the pills and decides to take one later, while the last one would be given to Kiel. Episode 28 ¨C Transmutation Magic ? Sunday, 26th of August 1449 A.W. ? Days until the Muni exam: 1 When Kiel opened his eyes, what greeted him was a familiar room bathed in the bright morning light. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes, his brows furrowing in confusion. How did I get here? He wracked his brain trying to remember what happened. The last thing he remembered was tempering his body with mana in the forest clearing. He frowned and looked down at himself. Nothing seemed out of place, he was wearing the same clothes. He was also the only one in the bed. Thank the Gods! The last thing he needed was to wake up wearing Elaru instead of his clothes. He shivered involuntarily. Why am I even thinking about the worst possible scenario? The first thing his eyes landed on as he sat up was Elaru. She was sitting beside the desk with her workbook open in front of her. ¡°Good morning matey. Did you sleep well?¡± She greeted him with a bright, beautiful smile. Seeing her heartwarming smile, for a moment Kiel lost his train of thought. But only for a moment. ¡°Matey? What are you; a pirate? Surely you can come up with a better endearing term?¡± Elaru stroked her chin. ¡°Hmmm. It was supposed to be a cuter way of saying mate¡­but now that you mention it¡­that does sound like something a pirate would stay. It won¡¯t do¡­won¡¯t do.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°No. Stop. You and I aren¡¯t close enough to warrant anything endearing. Just call me like everyone else, by my¡­¡± Elaru interrupted him, completely disregarding his opinion. ¡°Iceblock it is!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow started twitching more violently. She wouldn¡¯t care for his objections at all. He was wasting time arguing. Elaru smiled at him widely. ¡°Let¡¯s try this again: Good morning iceblock. Did you sleep well?¡± Kiel closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose and then exhaled. ¡°Yesterday. What. Happened?¡± Elaru rolled her eyes at him. ¡°You fainted. Duh.¡± He narrowed his eyes and glared. ¡°How did I faint?¡± She shrugged her shoulders innocently. ¡°Why are you asking me? Shouldn¡¯t you be clearer on what happened? Did you go overboard with your mana tempering?¡± He stared at her warily. No smirks, no chuckles, no mischievous gleam in her eyes. She looked so innocent it was suspicious. ¡°What happened after I fainted?¡± ¡°What do you think happened? I carried you back to Ashar. You slept the entire night away.¡± Kiel sighed an internal breath of relief. So he only slept through the night. He was worried that he had been unconscious for a longer period of time, missing the exams. Maybe he did go overboard with mana tempering? He couldn¡¯t come up with a better explanation. Kiel shrugged the matter off and jumped up from the bed energetically. He stretched his limbs. He felt great, his muscles didn¡¯t even feel sore. Elaru was right. Their body did have an enhanced regeneration. The damage he caused to himself yesterday was completely gone. He felt his stomach quiver silently. He was extremely glad that it didn¡¯t choose this moment to let out a grumble. ¡°I¡¯m going down to eat.¡± He declared. Elaru smiled. ¡°Go ahead. I ate already.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°I wasn¡¯t inviting you to join me. Just stating my future whereabouts.¡± She shrugged, a soft smile still plastered on her face. ¡°Enjoy your breakfast.¡± She turned her back on him and continued her work. Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched. Oy. Oy. Why does your personality shift all the time? He shook his head and left for breakfast. Kiel didn¡¯t remember the last time he ate so much for a single meal. Was it because my body expanded energy to heal? It made sense to have a larger appetite after recovering from an injury. No one bothered him this time. He was initially worried that the waitress would come to chat with him. Yesterday morning, she kept giving him puppy looks. She was practically wagging her tail whenever he smiled at her. However, to his surprise, she kept her distance. In fact, she seemed to be avoiding his gaze entirely. Whenever she accidentally met his eyes, her face would flush, and she would scurry away like a startled pechuh. Kiel felt a foreboding feeling when it happened. Is this¡­a second stage of a crush? After a while, he shrugged the feeling off. It didn¡¯t really matter. Whatever the reason, it granted him peace and quiet. And he wouldn¡¯t be staying here for much longer. In a few days, after the exams finish, he would be moving into the Muni dorms. At that point, whether she developed some puppy crush on him or not wouldn¡¯t matter. After the satisfying meal, Kiel returned back to the room. Yesterday he went over all his basic mage specs. Today, he should learn some transmutation spells. There were many incredibly useful transmutation spells he should learn asap ¨C such as cleansing. While Elaru¡¯s execution of the spell was very pleasant, he didn¡¯t want to depend on her. After a day of practice, he would again mana temper himself and sleep for the remainder of the night. At least, that was his plan. However, ever since he met Elaru, things stopped going according to his plan. Elaru and Kiel set off for their secluded clearing. Kiel wanted to stop by a bookshop to buy himself a spellbook, but no bookshops were open on Sunday. The only thing he could do was to temporarily rely on Elaru and have her teach him some Transmutation magic spell patterns. Kiel already knew the principles of casting magic, and they were the same regardless whether he was casting Augmentation or Transmutation magic. The difference between the two types of magic, besides the mana type required to cast them, was in their domain. To Augment meant to improve the existing. To transmute was to change completely. Where augmentation altered, transmutation transformed. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Where augmentation magic changed properties, transmutation magic changed the state. Augmentation magic had control over the basic properties of an object, such as velocity, temperature, mass, density and hardness. The theory of magic stated that augmentation magic could be used to derive all the spells used by transmutation magic. For if you control the basic properties of matter, you can do anything you wish with it, you only need to know how. This was something argel often quoted, trying to gloat about the superiority of their magic over the transmutation magic of elibu. How did elibu respond? Very simple: ¡°Can you heal? Can you turn iron into copper? Can you make me a lifelike dragon figurine?¡± Most of the time, that would make the other party shut up. Could they truly control the movement of sub-particles of iron in such a precise way to change its internal structure, turning it into copper? Could they really control the velocity of every particle of jade to such a fine level allowing them to create a pretty jade figurine? No. The large majority of augmentation mages couldn¡¯t do that. Yet for transmutation mages, it wasn¡¯t a difficult matter at all. Transmutation magic could do complex things easily, such as change shape of objects, transmute one material into another, heal, condense water or even turn energy into matter (or vice versa). However, while transmutation magic could do ¡°complex¡± things easily, it couldn¡¯t do the ¡°easy¡± things at all. While in theory, augmentation magic could be used to achieve the same result as transmutation magic, it didn¡¯t work both ways. Transmutation magic couldn¡¯t be used to achieve the effects of augmentation magic. When they reached the same clearing as yesterday, Kiel couldn¡¯t wait and immediately turned towards Elaru. ¡°Teach me how to Morph.¡± He demanded. She didn¡¯t seem to be bothered by his lack of ¡°please¡± or the impolite tone. Her usually mischievous personality and even her aura turned completely solemn. It was uncanny how she could switch gears from a daredevil to an authoritative figure in but an instant. ¡°The Morph spell is made out of a single spell fragment. Here is how it looks like¡­¡± Elaru directed the mana in her aura to congeal a curly pattern in front of her. It was the definition of ¡°shape¡± or ¡°form¡±. She controlled her mana to not be dense enough for this spell pattern to turn into a spell. ¡°Now, do you feel these parts of the pattern?¡± Elaru started moving the outer layer of the pattern up and down. ¡°These are the end points of the Morph spell fragment.¡± The end points of the spell fragment were the points where the fragment ended. They were the places from which other fragments could be drawn. If you wanted to link multiple spell fragments, you would need to create a bridge between them. These end points were the places where one needed to build the bridge. However, Kiel was learning the Morph spell which had a single spell fragment, so he didn¡¯t need to build a bridge. In this scenario, he needed to use the end points for another purpose. After making sure Kiel remembered where the end points of the Morph spell fragment were located, Elaru continued with her spell weaving. She moved the almost congealed spell pattern into the ground under her feet. Then she proceeded to channel mana into the ground. The mana resistance of dirt was higher than the air so it was more difficult to channel mana into it. However, Elaru did it with ease. It felt like a flood of mana had entered the ground and spread in a hemisphere under her feet. The mana started slowly congealing into strands or tendrils, that connected to her Morph spell fragment. It looked like her spell fragment sprouted roots, like a seed, with many vines growing out of it. The vines spread everywhere creating a web. If one looked closely at Elaru¡¯s spell, one could see that these ¡°roots¡± or ¡°branches¡± connected to the spell fragment through the end points, or one could say that they grew out of the end points. This was the second purpose of the end points. To build spell roots which were used to define the target of the spell. To control this patch of dirt, Elaru needed to deeply root the spell inside of it. The more roots she created the finer her degree of control became. Closer the dirt was to the root, easier it was to control. Thicker roots were more powerful and could control a larger area of dirt. Her Morph spell was like a tree that could move its roots to displace the ground. And it wasn¡¯t just this particular spell that was like this. All spells, augmentation or transmutation, needed to root out to be able to control reality. These roots defined the spell¡¯s area of control. These roots were like nerves inside the body. To be able to control the arm, the brain needed to be connected to the arm by the web of nerves. The dirt became the arm, the spell fragment was the brain, and the roots were the nerves. After Elaru had finished growing out the roots, she increased the density of the roots and the pattern so that it could reach the required mana density to be able to turn into a spell. After the density reached the required threshold, a pulse of magical power spread from the spell, signaling that its cast was successful. Elaru smiled affirmatively. ¡°That¡¯s all there is to it.¡± Just as she said that, the dirt beneath her feet rose up, bringing her towards the sky. She stood on the newly created earth pillar and grinned down to Kiel, like an empress looking down from her throne. Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. ¡°So basically, it is the same as casting augmentation magic? The only difference being the actual spell pattern?¡± Elaru nodded as a response to his question. No wonder you could accelerate and fly a few hours after gaining the ability to cast augmentation magic. The process is exactly the same! If you know how to cast one type of magic, you only need to learn a new spell pattern to be able to cast the other types. Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s face fell. I don¡¯t like the sound of that¡­ Kiel felt a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. I think I¡¯ve seen this before¡­ Suddenly a memory flashed before his eyes. She covered her eyes with her palm and swiped it down as if wiping her face. As she removed her palm, Kiel¡¯s breath caught in his throat. Episode 29 – Morph In the previous Episode: Elaru gives Kiel a new nickname ¨C iceblock. She teaches Kiel how to cast a Morph spell ¨C a transmutation spell that can be used to control the shape/form of objects and materials. Kiel is thrilled to find out that using transmutation magic is the same as using augmentation magic. Episode 29 ¨C Morph ¡°So the only thing I need to memorize is the spell pattern itself. Draw it out for me on a piece of paper or something.¡± Elaru looked down at him for a while, standing on her tall pillar of dirt, showing no intention of drawing the pattern for him. Upon closer inspection, Kiel noticed her eyes glittering. Aaaaand she is back to her mischievous self¡­ ¡°What?¡± Kiel¡¯s hair stood on end. Elaru grinned. ¡°I have a better idea.¡± Kiel¡¯s face fell. I don¡¯t like the sound of that¡­ ¡°How about I transfer my memory of the pattern to you? Perhaps if I transfer a memory, it would be easier for you to remember it? Maybe my memories can become your memories.¡± Elaru jumped down from the pillar like a lunar pouncing on its prey. ¡°Oh no, you don¡¯t!¡± He remembered how she transferred her memory to him the last time ¨C she pressed their foreheads together. Kiel dodged to the side as if his life depended on it. Instead of hitting the ground face first, like Kiel expected her to, Elaru flipped in the air and landed on her feet. Just like a lunar¡­they always land on their feet. She looked at him frowningly. ¡°Aren¡¯t you overreacting?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. He needed to find another way to deal with her. Outright refusing never seemed to work. ¡°I just think you should practice sending me your memories without physical contact. That would be much more useful in the long run.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes brightened, and her face showed what seemed to be enlightenment. ¡°You¡¯re right!¡± Score! Kiel suppressed the urge to fist pump. Then he caught himself and realized he shouldn¡¯t be counting his clucklings before they hatched. He looked at Elaru, half expecting her to say ¡°But¡­¡± However, she didn¡¯t. Instead, she smiled and explained: ¡°See, I knew it was a good idea to make you my partner. You are full of great ideas.¡± Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched. Why do I get the feeling you are being sarcastic? However, Elaru didn¡¯t try approaching him again. Instead, she turned him her back, intentionally removing him from her line of sight. Kiel stood there, not knowing what to do with himself. He needed that spell pattern. At least write it down for me. Who knows how long it will take you to¡­ His thoughts were interrupted when a vivid world of glowing lights appeared before his eyes. It was a perfectly clear and detailed recollection of what happened a few minutes ago. The memory showed beautiful golden, orange, and red flames congealing into the Morph spell. He saw the embers burrowing through the earth and spreading glowing tendrils of light. An involuntary amazement flashed through Kiel¡¯s mind. Her mana¡­is so stunningly beautiful¡­ It glittered vividly, in colors so gorgeous that everything else paled in comparison. He could even see himself in the memory, surrounded by striking sea of blue. However, while his own mana did look beautiful, he found it rather lackluster when compared to hers. He could see their entire surroundings. The earth, the trees, the wyrms underground. He could perceive everything clearly. He could even see Elaru herself as seen by her own Aethernea of Sight. It gave him a strange feeling. He saw everything from her point of view, yet her own point of view included herself in it as well. She was glowing so brightly it was blinding. She was like the sun. Countless obscure patterns surrounded her. Innumerable spell roots weaved a tight web around her. Kiel felt a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. I think I¡¯ve seen this before¡­ He wracked his brain for several moments before he remembered where. He saw these same patterns back when Elaru had shared her memory with him for the first time! Back then, he had thought these patterns to be a part of the Aetherneal bond. Only now, seeing them again, did he realize that they weren¡¯t. He concentrated on the spells again. He could only pick up a few symbols that he recognized. The mana that surrounded her body was too dense, it too glowed and made it harder to see the spells clearly. What is that? Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. Am I seeing the enchantments on the magical artifacts in her possession? No¡­if it was the enchantments on her items, they wouldn¡¯t be so widespread. They would be concentrated into the item itself. However, these patterns were everywhere around and inside Elaru. Why are there so many? With so many spells cast on her, how can she even accelerate without causing destructive interference? Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed even further. Better yet, what are these spells for? I don¡¯t recognize any of them. Ah¡­there is one I recognize. It was the same color changing spell Elaru had shown him the day before yesterday for the purpose of hiding the mark of the bond. The spell was very small and barely visible. It seemed to be targeting her eyes. How come I haven¡¯t felt any of these spells on her body before? My mana sense should have been able to pick it up. Unless¡­ Unless she was intentionally concealing them. Kiel shook his head. Now was not the time to concentrate on unveiling Elaru¡¯s secrets. His priority was learning how to Morph. His thoughts cleared, his attention returned to the Morph spell. He concentrated every fiber of his being into remembering the scene, engraving every line into his memory. Soon, all his previous thoughts vanished, and he became completely absorbed into the Morph spell. The world, him, Elaru, everything faded out; it ceased to matter. The only thing that mattered was weaving this spell. His entire being concentrated on that single task. Seeing the pattern with her Aethernea was indeed a more effective way to study it. A pen and paper drawing was only two-dimensional; it couldn¡¯t adequately portray a three-dimensional spell. It was incomplete. Kiel started weaving the Morph spell over and over again. He felt as if he could actually see it. As if seeing it once somehow increased the sensitivity of his own mana sense. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Seeing Kiel in the state of absolute concentration Elaru smiled softly and walked away from him to the same spot in which she sat yesterday. She pulled the same book out and started working on the same enchantment. Yet one thing was different. Today, the spell she was weaving looked nothing like it did yesterday. The feeling of controlling materials by using the Morph spell was very similar to how Kiel controlled mana. He felt as if he was a slime that could control its body to change however it wished. As if that pack of dirt that he was trying it on became a slimy extension of him. He found it extremely fun to control the ground. He tried creating earth spikes, pillars, and walls. Then he tried changing the shape of his own sword. He bent it and twisted around, seeing endless possible variations of how he could use it in battle. He tried it out on tree trunks and on his own shirt. He even tried morphing the water in the nearby stream. That proved to be extremely fun as the water was very flexible and proved to be easier to morph than rock. He even ended up trying to wrap the air around him. It gave him the most trouble out of all the materials he had tried so far. The less dense a material was, the harder it was to morph it properly. Each time he thought he had finally run out of things to Morph, he would get another idea. He was like a child playing with a new toy. He tried all possible aspects of the spell. How to do it as quickly as possible, how to do it as accurately as possible. In a span of several hours, a spell that he had never cast before became his second nature. A part of him. Only after half a day had passed did he come out of his strange mood. He was awakened by his stomach growling. His cheeks flushed with a tinge of pink. He looked towards Elaru from the corner of his eye, but she showed no sign of hearing it. Thank the gods! That would have been awkward. He stopped his practice and approached her. How should he bring up the matter? He needed to convince her to stop her work and leave to have lunch asap. Before his stomach gave out another embarrassing sound. His gaze shifted to Elaru, finally paying attention to what she was doing. She was currently weaving an extremely complicated spell around her arm. If the spell she was weaving yesterday was a thread of yarn, this current spell was the ball of yarn. Countless spell patterns intertwined, overlapped and formed a web in which one couldn¡¯t tell heads apart from the tails. The patterns were intertwined so tightly together that Kiel didn¡¯t know whether he should be impressed or appalled. How can you still continue weaving this?? It is a giant mess! Will this spell even work? He was skeptical about it. It will most likely fall apart before it manages to activate, or it would implode on itself. When a magic spell gets weaved as densely as she was weaving it, the different parts of the spell start interfering with one another causing the spell to shatter and fall apart before it can form. It looked as though she didn¡¯t take that into account at all. Alas, he didn¡¯t dare underestimate her. She always found a way to surprise him with her abilities. As Kiel inspected the spell more closely, he was startled to find out that he didn¡¯t recognize a single spell pattern. This spell¡­is completely different from the one she was weaving yesterday! Did the old spell fail to meet her expectations so she started working on a new one? Well¡­whatever. None of my business. He shrugged and no longer paid attention to her weaving. Instead, his eyes landed on her expressionless face. Usually, he avoided looking at her face. Partially it was because she would stare back at him and make him feel awkward. But mostly it was because the more he looked at it, the more he noticed just how beautiful it was. And he didn¡¯t find that to be beneficial to him in any way. His gaze was naturally drawn to her eyes. Just as always, they were teal with a bit of yellow around the pupil, which one wouldn¡¯t be able to notice unless they really paid attention. Huh? Isn¡¯t there supposed to be a color changing spell on her eyes? But they don¡¯t look any different than usual¡­ Suddenly a memory flashed before his eyes. A memory of the night when they first met face to face. Her eyes were still teal, but they were glowing with not so subtle golden lights. The dots and stripes in her eyes moved around magically. It was a mesmerizing sight. When he met her the next day, he didn¡¯t pay a lot of attention to the appearance of her eyes. Thinking of it now, he vaguely remembered they didn¡¯t look as magical as the previous night. Back then, he didn¡¯t think much of it. Glowing things would naturally be much more visible at night, so he felt it was normal for her eyes to not look the same at daytime. However, now that he thought about it¡­he had already spent several days with her, and he had never seen her eyes look as magical as they did the first time they met. His mind connected the dots quickly, but he still wished to confirm his speculation. ¡°Elaru.¡± He called out to her, snapping her out of her own little world. She looked towards him questioningly.¡°Do your eyes change color?¡± She blinked a few times before responding through telepathy. ¡°What do you mean? They always look the same.¡± ¡°The first time we met, they looked much more magical.¡± She stared at him a bit confused, before starting to laugh. ¡°Well of course they did.¡± She covered her eyes with her palm and swiped it down as if wiping her face. As she removed her palm, Kiel¡¯s breath caught in his throat. * * * This is not the latest episode. Aethernea.com is two episodes ahead. From now on, release schedule has been changed. One episode will be released on Thursday and one on Sunday. Coming up in the next episode: Suddenly a growling noise spread through the clearing, interrupting their conversation. The first thing Venric saw when he opened the envelope were two words written in a large font: ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±. Venric ¡°tsked¡±. What a bad taste in women. Venric¡¯s eyes widened. Trying to infiltrate the Rroda mainhouse? ¡°Order someone to pick Kiel Rroda up and bring him back to the mainhouse. I authorize you to use force if necessary.¡± Episode 30 - The Act of Teenage Rebellion In the previous Episode: Venric Rroda, Kiel¡¯s grandfather, orders Kiel¡¯s whereabouts to be investigated, along with information about Elaru Wayvin. When Elaru shares her memory of the Morph spell, Kiel notices that her memory contains a color changing spell cast on her eyes. Kiel asks her if she had changed the color of her eyes. Episode 30 ¨C The Act of Teenage Rebellion She covered her eyes with her palm and swiped it down as if wiping her face. As she removed her palm, Kiel¡¯s breath caught in his throat. What stared back at him were those same stunning eyes from his memories. The daylight did nothing to lessen their ethereal beauty. Their vibrance made everything else look colorless. ¡°Aethernea of Sight has a very characteristic appearance that you just can¡¯t miss. If I went around looking like this, everyone would be able to tell I possess the Aethernea of Sight. So, of course, I always cover up their real appearance with a color changing spell. The only reason why I didn¡¯t cover them up the first time we met was because I intended to reveal my Aethernea to you. It was a show of my sincerity. Since my Aethernea is one of my biggest secrets that should under no circumstance be revealed to anyone.¡± So it really was as he had thought. Kiel¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change in the slightest. ¡°So the reason why I can¡¯t feel the spell is because you are concealing it.¡± Elaru smiled softly. ¡°The disguise works the best if people don¡¯t know it is a disguise.¡± Besides the glittering of his eyes, Kiel¡¯s face remained emotionless. ¡°What other spells do you have hidden on your body?¡± Elaru¡¯s soft smile abruptly shifted into a smirk, followed by a shrug. ¡°Everyone has their secrets.¡± Of course she wouldn¡¯t tell him. He didn¡¯t even expect her to. But at least she confirmed that she had other spells cast on her. So his question wasn¡¯t pointless. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am capable of telling what should be kept confidential. It might not be of life and death importance like the secret of Aetherneal bond, but I won¡¯t reveal it just the same.¡± It was, after all, an incredibly rare and sought after ability. Revealing it wouldn¡¯t benefit him in the slightest. ¡°But it is of life and death importance. It falls into the same category of danger as Aetherneal bond.¡± As Elaru frowned, Kiel too furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°Aetherneal gifts aren¡¯t a secret. Everyone has heard tales of the divine gifts. Noble families like to gloat about their offspring which are Aethernea wielders. They don¡¯t hide it.¡± Kiel reasoned. ¡°That¡¯s their show of superiority. Something they are the proudest of. Something that makes them feel like children of god. How would they react if an Aethernea that they thought to be their signature ability, something that can appear only on people from their own family, suddenly appeared on an outsider?¡± Elaru gave him a meaningful look before continuing. ¡°They would feel like their family heritage or a family heirloom was swiped away by someone else. Here they are, gloating about being children of god, and suddenly, they are not so privileged and unique after all. It would be a severe blow to their pride. They¡¯d stop at nothing to eliminate that person. They would never allow their Aethernea to spread around. If another noble family managed to get the Aethernea wielder under their banner and insisted on protecting them, it could easily escalate into a war between families.¡± Kiel¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°That serious? Could one person really end 15 centuries of peace?¡± ¡°You underestimate the power of divine abilities. Aetherneal gifts can easily shift the balance of power.¡± Kiel raised his eyebrow questioningly. ¡°If it was that dangerous, why did you tell me about it in the first place? What would have happened if I didn¡¯t agree to the bond and ended up telling on you?¡± Elaru looked at him and gave him a mischievous smile. ¡°It was a gamble. I was confident in winning it though. And even if I lost, I had 6 contingency plans.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrows shot up. ¡°6 contingency plans? Really?¡± Her smile grew wider. ¡°Of course. I am always prepared. No one can one-up me.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed in suspicion. ¡°What were they?¡± ¡°1. Making sure no one takes you seriously. 2. forcing you to sign a non-disclosure contract, 3. Switching my identity, 4. ¡­¡± She paused suddenly. ¡°Let¡¯s just say that you are better off not knowing the rest.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Was killing me on the list? I wouldn¡¯t be surprised¡­ Suddenly a growling noise spread through the clearing, interrupting their conversation. Kiel pressed his lips into a thin line. Elaru smiled mischievously before opening her mouth to speak. Before she could even utter a single word, Kiel snapped. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about.¡± Elaru turned her head away from him, trying her utmost to not burst out laughing. ¡°I see.¡± A few seconds of silence had passed before she managed to control herself enough to ask slyly. ¡°Since you aren¡¯t hungry, we don¡¯t need to return to Ashar for lunch. Carry on with your training.¡± She waved her hand as if shooing him away. Kiel glared at her, grating his teeth. ¡°You just don¡¯t know when to quit, do you?¡± * * * ? Meanwhile at Rroda Mainhouse, Ashar ? ¡°Your grace, we have received the results of the investigations you requested.¡± A servant quickly handed over two large envelopes to Lawrence and then bowed deeply. Lawrence wasted no time ¨C he nodded to the servant, giving him the permission to escort himself out of the room. After deeply bowing in respect, the servant didn¡¯t dally around and quickly left the premises. As Lawrence made his way back to the work desk, Venric Rroda moved aside the papers he was currently working on. Lawrence didn¡¯t miss this act and instantly deduced that the Lord wanted to see the investigation results right away. He placed the envelopes gently in front of the Lord. The envelopes were shiny, coated with a thin layer of sealing wax. There were no letters on the envelope, only a black wax seal on the back, confirming that the envelope has not been opened before. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Both the wax the envelope was coated with and the wax forming the seal was produced by red-stripped bees which used it to build their hives. It had a high mana resistance, making it almost impossible to alter with magic. This ensured that their beehives could only be penetrated by brute force. Similarly, it ensured that no one had changed the contents of the letter before it reached Venric Rroda. The crest embedded in the wax depicted a lunar ¨C a large feline that was known as the emperor of night. They were quick, soundless, invisible, and deadly. It was only proper for them to represent the Etezza family. The battle power of Etezzas wasn¡¯t overwhelmingly crushing as that of the Tanyers, nor were they gods¡¯ favorite children as the Arites. Yet, Etezzas still managed to stand on the same pedestal as the other two. That naturally meant that they held an enormous amount of power. The power they wielded came in the form of information. People often joked that the ears and eyes of Etezza are more widespread than the air. Venric Rroda didn¡¯t find it funny. He detested feeling like all his secrets were on sale. Yet, he didn¡¯t hesitate a moment when it came to purchasing the secrets of others. Venric Rroda wasted no time and opened the first envelope which turned out to contain the report on Kiel Rroda¡¯s whereabouts. As his eyes quickly darted left and right, he picked up his lavishly decorated teacup and took a sip. ¡°Kiel Rroda was seen exiting the Ashar Gate at 4:13 PM on Friday, 24th of August 1449 A.W. He was in the company of a female elibu, going by the name of Elaru Wayvin.¡± Venric¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. Wayvin? He had never heard of such a surname. ¡°They proceeded to fly, hand in hand, towards the Ashar University of Magic with the usage of flying magic.¡± Venric¡¯s frown deepened. He didn¡¯t give a damn with who his useless grandson had intimate relations with, as long as it remained a private matter. Even his brother, who was known for being a ladies¡¯ man, was clear on this fact. Before revealing a relationship to the public, nobles had to consult the head of the family of the possible repercussions. Relationships impacted the reputation, the public view of the family and even internal relationships between noble families. And even if they received permission to reveal their relationship to the public, they still had to exercise restraint, avoiding public displays of affection. Nobles had to remain aloof and prideful with elegant and refined manners of gentlemen. Public displays of ardor and lust were unbecoming. But not only did Kiel Rroda not consult him on the matter, he even engaged in public display of affection?! Was this an act of teenage rebellion? If it was an affair with a lady of a high standing, Venric could swallow it and let him off with a gentle scolding, however, the hussy was clearly not a noble. Otherwise, he would be familiar with her visage. The youngest son of the esteemed councilman, the grandson of the head of the family, engaging in a relationship with a female with no social status! Venric Rroda gripped his teacup tightly, his fingers turning white. This was absolutely unacceptable! His eyes suddenly narrowed. He had missed something ¨C they were going towards the Ashar University of Magic. No. It couldn¡¯t be¡­ Kiel Rroda was many things, but he was neither arrogant nor stupid. He wouldn¡¯t¡­ His thought was interrupted by the information laid out in the next paragraph. His eyebrows rose so high they almost reached his hairline. No longer able to restrain himself, his fist slammed on the table. The desk shook from the force, the pens and quills rattling around it. Is the bastard mad?! As if a non-mage could pass the exams?! Is he trying to drag our family honor through the mud?! Other nobles would never let us forget this humiliation! His fingers gripped the paper so tightly it tore. Lawrence wasn¡¯t startled in the least by the sudden violent outburst of his Lord. While Venric Rroda was as cold as the block of ice, often showing no emotion on his face, that was just a mask he wore when dealing with other people. He had no need to cover up his own dissatisfaction if there was no one else in the room. No one else besides Lawrence that is. As Venric Rroda continued reading, the temperature in the room continued plummeting without showing any sign of stabilizing. Further investigations have found the two to be sharing a room in an inn, the name of which Venric had never heard of. The agents even questioned the waitress. The information gathered from the chatterbox of a waitress made blood rush to Venric¡¯s face. What nonsense is this?!?! Why did the report include details about their sexual life?! Authenticity Unverified?! Why did you even include it in the report if it is unverified?! And what man from the Rroda family didn¡¯t have a satisfactory performance in bed?! What utter nonsense!Venric was ready to spew fire. Although the fire would probably freeze before it even came out. Wait¡­his mother was quite sickly¡­don¡¯t tell me that he has those kinds of problems? Was that why he didn¡¯t engage in any relationships with the opposite sex before this? This is disgraceful! Humiliating! And this ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±¡­ What kind of whore did the bastard elope with? Did the hussy fill his head with nonsense of greatness? What is going on?! Venric forcefully slammed the papers aside, making the entire table shake again. He glared at the last envelope for a while before taking it. The first thing Venric saw when he opened the envelope were two words written in a large font: ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±. * * * Coming up in the next episode: As Venric flipped the stack of papers, his frown kept deepening. ¡°What nonsense is this?¡± Venric¡¯s eyes widened. Trying to infiltrate the Rroda mainhouse? ¡°Order someone to pick Kiel Rroda up and bring him back to the mainhouse. I authorize you to use force if necessary.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. As if he would fall for something like this. If this wasn¡¯t suspicious, nothing is suspicious. ¡°What a coincidence! How do think it got into your backpack?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Are you sure you weren¡¯t scammed?¡± Kiel pointed to her face and smirked. ¡°You don¡¯t look fine. You seem to be burning up.¡± Episode 31 – The Secret of Elaru Wayvin In the previous Episode: After a long practice of the Morph spell, Kiel¡¯s practice is interrupted by hunger. Elaru teases him about his growling stomach. Venric Rroda is about to open the envelope containing the investigation results about Elaru Wayvin. Episode 31 ¨C The Secret of Elaru Wayvin The first thing Venric saw when he opened the envelope were two words written in a large font: ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±. He flipped the page and came face to face with the picture of a redheaded girl. Etezzas were professionals in the field of gathering and selling information, of course they would go as far as to hire an artist to draw the picture of the girl. Especially since the customer was an important individual with exceedingly high status. Venric stared at the image, his frown deepening. The girl was strikingly beautiful, so much that the quick painting couldn¡¯t cover up her extraordinary beauty in any way. Instead of praising his grandson¡¯s taste, Venric¡¯s lips curled. That annoying old hag used to have hair of this exact shade when she was young. This whore even has a tan just like her. Venric ¡°tsked¡±. What a bad taste in women. If anyone from Venric Rroda¡¯s generation were there, they would have burst out laughing at this point. ¡°Who has a bad taste in women? Your grandson or you? Didn¡¯t you spend five years courting that old hag? Does attraction towards redheads run in your family?¡± However, as soon as the memory of his old flame appeared he was quick to vanquish it, not stopping to recall the old times. He quickly moved on to the next page, not pausing a single second to consider the possibility of this ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± being related to her. It wasn¡¯t that he was overlooking this possibility. Rather, this possibility didn¡¯t exist at all. That old hag was an argel. While this young wench was an elibu. All throughout the history, argel and elibu rarely married. It wasn¡¯t because of societal norms, or because interracial marriage was frowned upon. No. It was because of a single, simple reason ¨C argel and elibu couldn¡¯t produce an offspring together. Their races were too different. They were physically incompatible. It was like a dragon mating with a phoenix ¨C while they could technically engage in intercourse ¨C a half-breed couldn¡¯t exist. This was one fact that had never changed all through the ages. Even back in the days, when gods roamed freely around the world, creating all kinds of miracles through Aetherneal magic, a half-breed was one of the things they couldn¡¯t create. As Venric flipped the stack of papers, his frown kept deepening. ¡°What nonsense is this?¡± ¡°Origin: Unknown, Family: Unknown, Mage Rank: Unknown, Profession: Unknown. Affiliation: Unknown.¡± For the love of Origin, why is everything ¡°Unknown¡±?! The report even listed her race as unknown! Their explanation being: ¡°Appears to be an elibu. Has been seen using augmentation magic. The existence of mana purifying artifact on her person hasn¡¯t been confirmed. A possibility of her being an argel can¡¯t be dismissed. Needs further investigation.¡± The only concrete information they provided was her age¡­and even that wasn¡¯t precise, instead, they gave a range: 18-25. Venric quickly skipped to the last page which contained the conclusion alongside the personal opinion of the person writing the report. ¡°Conclusion: Elaru Wayvin doesn¡¯t exist.¡± Venric Rroda slammed down the papers, his gaze icy. ¡°Then who am I looking at?!¡± After stifling his temper, he continued reading. ¡°Explanation: There exists sporadic data going up to three years back, matching the name and appearance of the person in question. The data briefly mentions the existence of such a person and provides no further details. There exist no older records of that name nor records of a person with a similar appearance to the person in question. There exist no records of a family with the surname Wayvin. There are no birth records of a child matching the age and features of the person in question.¡± ¡°A false name and a false face?¡± Venric Rroda glared at the papers. ¡°Then she is obviously one of yours!¡± The next sentence of the report made Venric¡¯s expression turn sour. ¡°The possibility of her being one of our secret agents cannot be disregarded. However, we aren¡¯t the only family with agents capable of using light magic. Even Rroda family has a few, no?¡± It was as if the writer knew what he would be thinking at this moment. It left a sour taste in his mouth. Etezzas always made him feel unpleasant. In fact, he had been on bad terms with their current family head since university days. What would anyone be doing with a bastard child of my oldest son? Venric¡¯s eyes widened. Trying to infiltrate the Rroda mainhouse? Venric suddenly rose to his feet, alarm flickering in his cold eyes. ¡°Lawrence! Put the entire manor on high alert! Investigate the luggage of Kiel Rroda and check if there are any suspicious items inside. Order a thorough search of the entire estate. Check if there are any items missing¡­or if there are extras; be it suspicious items, substances or people.¡± Venric pushed the two stacks of papers lying on his table towards Lawrence. ¡°Order someone to pick Kiel Rroda up and bring him back to the mainhouse. I authorize you to use force if necessary.¡± Venric Rroda wasn¡¯t the head of the family for nothing. Cunning, efficient, decisive, ruthless. He had all the qualities required for the position. ¡°Go. Quickly.¡± Lawrence picked up the stack of papers and bowed deeply. ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± Kiel and Elaru had a quick lunch in a small tavern at the edge of Ashar, before coming back to their clearing and resuming their work. Kiel had asked Elaru to teach him the basic form of a Cleansing spell. Cleansing was a modified version of the Morph spell that implemented a targeting boundary which prevented the spell from Morphing the skin instead of the dirt. The rest of the spell was exactly the same and functioned in the same way. He only needed to learn how to Morph the dirt away from his skin and clothes in a gentle way. Kiel continued practicing the Cleansing until nightfall after which he decided it was time to bring today¡¯s training session to its end. And what better way to end it than to again temper his body with mana? This time, he would be extra careful to not faint. As Kiel sat down and was just about to start mana tempering, Elaru suddenly stopped what she was doing and quickly jumped to her feet. ¡°Wait! Stop, stop!¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Kiel raised his eyebrow and looked at her inquisitively. ¡°I¡¯ll be more careful this time so you won¡¯t need to carry me back.¡± Elaru waved her hands in defense. ¡°No, no, that¡¯s not it.¡± She flung her backpack off from her shoulder and dug inside it. Her face spread into a grin as she pulled out a metal box. ¡°After you fainted yesterday I was worried¡­¡± ¡­that you would wake up at an inconvenient moment. ¡°So I checked my stash of medicine to see if I can find anything that is appropriate to use on a body damaged by mana.¡± I was searching for some sleeping inducing medicine in case you woke up. ¡°And indeed there was something in my collection that can help out.¡± As soon as she opened the box, a sweet scent reached Kiel¡¯s nose. The box contained two translucent, red pearls. Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered as she looked at the marbles. ¡°A miracle tempering medicine! And there are even two of them. We can both take one. You¡¯re my m¡­ice block¡­now, so my stuff is your stuff.¡± She puffed up her chest in pride as if saying ¡°Look how awesome I am. I am even willing to share this stuff with you.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. As if he would fall for something like this. If this wasn¡¯t suspicious, nothing is suspicious. ¡°What a coincidence! How do think it got into your backpack?¡± Elaru rolled her eyes at him. ¡°You make it sound like it appeared out of thin air. I obviously had an alchemist make it for me before we met, duh.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow rose. His lie sense wasn¡¯t tingling. ¡°And why did you have an alchemist make tempering medicine for you?¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°So it could improve my mana tolerance. Why else?¡± Kiel watched her with narrowed eyes. Suspicious. Yet she spoke no lies. Was he being overly cautious? ¡°Hmmm¡­and what is the name of this ¡®miracle medicine¡¯?¡± Elaru¡¯s lips pressed into a thin line. The truth is¡­uncle Ixos never told her the name of the pill. Chances are he didn¡¯t even give it a name. If that is the case¡­it wouldn¡¯t be wrong if she named it¡­right? ¡°It¡¯s called a Firebird Flame Pill.¡± Elaru blurted out. Kiel stroked his chin in thought. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of such a pill.¡± ¡°Of course you haven¡¯t. That¡¯s because it isn¡¯t available on the market.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Are you sure you weren¡¯t scammed?¡± ¡°100% sure.¡± Elaru made a gesture as if she was swearing the truthfulness of her words upon her own life and death. Kiel wasn¡¯t impressed. ¡°Does it have a declaration of expected effects or a certificate of quality from a high ranked alchemist? Pills aren¡¯t something you should play around with. Consuming unknown medicine can be deadly.¡± Declaration of expected effects is a document signed by a certified alchemist stating the name of the pill and its effects. Certificate of quality was a document guarantying that the pill has no defects and is safe to consume. ¡°¡­¡± After a moment of silence, Elaru flicked one of the pills into her mouth. ¡°Trust me. There are no issues with the pill.¡± She offered him the box containing the last pill. Kiel raised his eyebrows and asked skeptically. ¡°Are you an alchemist too?¡± ¡°No, but I¡¯ve consumed so many different tempering medicines that I can appraise them quite accurately.¡± Elaru spoke with a serious voice and a solemn face. Kiel snorted, unconvinced. ¡°If one could learn alchemy by consuming pills then every high standing noble would be an alchemist.¡± The effects of the pill kicked in, and Elaru¡¯s face heated up. ¡°Look, I am fine! The pill is fine!¡± Her aura clearly demonstrated that she was starting to lose patience. Kiel pointed to her face and smirked. ¡°You don¡¯t look fine. You seem to be burning up.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why the pill is called a Firebird Flame Pill. It tempers the body with fire.¡± Elaru glared at Kiel.Ungrateful twit. I am willing to share the fruit of my labor with you, and you aren¡¯t willing to take it. Kiel raised his hands in a pacifying gesture. ¡°Ok, let¡¯s assume that the pill you¡¯ve consumed is actually a tempering medicine, and there is nothing wrong with it.¡± Elaru stared at him, waiting for him to continue. ¡°But what is to say that this one¡­¡± he pointed to the remaining pill. ¡°Won¡¯t have any problems. They might look the same, but their effects might be very different.¡± Elaru pouted. ¡°You make it sound as if I am trying to poison you!¡± In a fluent gesture, she took the other pill between her fingers and licked it like a lollipop. ¡°There, no poison. Its composition is exactly the same as the one I consumed.¡± Kiel raised his hands in surrender. ¡°Alright. I believe you.¡± Elaru puffed out hot air. Finally. ¡°However, I am not going to put in my mouth something that came in contact with your saliva.¡± Elaru¡¯s lips pressed tightly together, she was getting annoyed. Even her aura started showing signs of agitation. Kiel opened his mouth, attempting to speak up some final words on the matter. However, before he could speak out a single word, Elaru¡¯s eyes flashed decisively. With lightning speed, like an airbalt player scoring a goal, she flicked the pill right into his mouth. * * * What is with me and the sixes? Is the universe trying to tell me something? XD What¡¯s next? 666 twitter followers? :P P.S. As usual, this isn''t the latest episode. There are 4 more available on aethernea.com Coming up in the next episode: ¡°So sensitive¡­¡± This time, Elaru raised her hands in surrender. ¡°Alright princess. I won¡¯t be rough with you again. Probably¡­¡± Yet,the thought of future peace and quiet failed to move his heart. It brought no pleasure nor anticipation. It just left him feeling empty. Kiel snorted. ¡°My family doesn¡¯t give a shit about me. No one would be worried for my sake.¡± A thought flashed in his mind. ¡°Could they possibly be here to deliver my luggage?¡± ¡°Wait¡­battle mages?¡± Kiel narrowed his eyes. Something smells fishy here¡­why would his grandfather send battle mages to pick him up? Something else is at work here¡­ I can¡¯t go with them but I can¡¯t refuse to do so either. Episode 32 – Firebird Flame Pill In the previous Episode: Venric Rroda finds out that ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± doesn¡¯t exist and is wondering what her motives are. He suspects that she was after something inside Rroda manor and orders the estate searched. Elaru wants to gift Kiel a powerful tempering pill, however he doesn¡¯t want to take it. She takes the matters into her own hands and shows it down his throat. Episode 32 ¨C Firebird Flame Pill With lightning speed, like an airbalt player scoring a goal, Elaru flicked the pill right into Kiel¡¯s mouth. The pill shot like a meteor and in the blink of an eye lodged itself in his throat. Kiel covered his mouth with his hands, his eyes wide as saucers, he let out quiet choking sounds. He wanted to cough the pill back out, but it seemed to be firmly stuck. He quickly tried to accelerate it out of his throat, but the pill contained dense mana inside of it which interfered with his casting. His acceleration spell broke before it could form. Before he could come up with a way to solve it, the pill melted into a liquid which slid down his throat into his stomach. He still didn¡¯t give up and attempted to throw it up. When he felt heat spreading through his body, he realized it was already too late. He looked up at Elaru, his aura dropping down into sub-zero. His expression remained frozen, yet fury flickered in his eyes. Elaru¡¯s previous annoyance seemed to vanish into thin air, and she snickered. ¡°Serves you right. Did you think you¡¯d get cooties from the darn pill?¡± ¡°Anyone in their right mind wouldn¡¯t want someone else¡¯s saliva inside them!¡± Kiel spat out through gritted teeth. Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°Grow up.¡± Kiel clenched his fists and spoke out slowly as if he had trouble speaking. ¡°I. Could. Have. Choked. To. Death.¡± Completely undisturbed by the change in Kiel¡¯s aura, Elaru grinned. ¡°You are a genius mage. If you can¡¯t even accelerate a pill out of your windpipe, you deserve to choke on it.¡± She joked. Kiel¡¯s voice rose up an octave. ¡°I¡¯d like to see you cast a spell on a magical pill!¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°You could have just cast a spell on the air surrounding the pill and pushed it out.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow started twitching violently. ¡°I would have done that, but it melted too fast!¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered mischievously, and she smirked. ¡°Let me get this straight. Earlier you said you could have choked to death, and now you are saying that the pill melted just too fast to do anything let alone choke on it. You¡¯re contradicting yourself iceblock.¡± The veins on Kiel¡¯s neck bulged out. ¡°You are missing the point!!¡± Elaru shook her head and sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t believe we are having this conversation.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t believe¡­?! I¡­¡± Kiel seemed to be fuming so much that he found himself out of breath. ¡°So sensitive¡­¡± This time, Elaru raised her hands in surrender. ¡°Alright, princess. I won¡¯t be rough with you again. Probably¡­¡± ¡°Stop it with the nicknames!¡± The veins in Kiel¡¯s eyes reddened. ¡°Princess Iceblock.¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°Argh!¡± Kiel let out a cry of anguish, the last shred of restraint snapping like a rubber band. The hair on Elaru¡¯s neck stood up, and she darted away from Kiel. The second she accelerated away, Kiel gave chase. Elaru wasn¡¯t sure what he would do to her if he caught her, but whatever it was, it wasn¡¯t good. So naturally she ran like the wind, Kiel hot on her tail with his teeth gritted and red eye whites. What followed next was a mad chase through the forest. Which, instead of becoming faster paced, turned quickly into a crawl because of the strong effect of the pills. Nonetheless, fast or slow, chase or crawl, it made little difference. * * * It took several hours for the effects of the pills to subside. By that time, both Kiel and Elaru were dirty and covered in sweat, however, at least they had managed to calm down. Kiel¡¯s anger slowly dissipated as he felt the effects of the pill for he realized that Elaru might have been right. The medicine might indeed possess a powerful tempering effect. His hate disappeared along with his fury, and his mind regained clarity. Elaru was secretive, often insufferable, and with eccentric methods of doing things, but her intentions weren¡¯t bad. Over these 3 days, she had helped him out quite a bit. And yet, she didn¡¯t ask anything in return. On the other hand, not only did he not return the favor, but he wasn¡¯t really a joy to be around either. So really, he had no right to complain. He wasn¡¯t used to feeling a sense of gratitude. It was a very unfamiliar feeling. He didn¡¯t quite know how to deal with it. He opted to remember every bad thing Elaru did since they met, hoping that would squash the gratitude. However, the only result of reminiscence was an involuntary chuckle. Wasn¡¯t all of this¡­a bit¡­funny? He had spent 3 days with Elaru, yet it felt like 3 months. These three days weren¡¯t filled with anything overly exciting. There was no life or death battles, no maddening mysteries, no fantastical adventure. Yet it still managed to be an emotional rollercoaster that he wouldn¡¯t forget anytime soon. Kiel sighed. Tomorrow morning was the start of the exams. In only a few days, his dream would come true, and he would get his peace back. Once he entered Muni, he had no intention of hanging around Elaru. They¡¯d be in the same place, but they would be in different social circles. Yet, the thought of future peace and quiet failed to move his heart. It brought no pleasure nor anticipation. It just left him feeling empty. I must be too tired to feel anything right now. Kiel thought, rubbing his eyes as if to further confirm the validity of the fact. * * * When Kiel saw the familiar looking inn in the distance, his eyes lit up. He wanted nothing more at the moment than to get his well-deserved rest. As his eyes were glued to the building, he failed to notice the change in Elaru¡¯s expression. The emotions on her face gradually vanished, replaced by a type of calm that felt eerie, considering how expressive she usually was. Her aura quieted and stilled as if it became void of emotion. It was the change in the aura that alerted Kiel and made him took note of her facial expression. As he considered whether he should ask about it, Elaru suddenly slowed down and stopped. He halted too, turning around to look at her, about to voice a complaint. However, the solemn look on her face made him stop in his track. Elaru looked him in the eye and transmitted her voice inside his head. ¡°Two suspicious men are waiting for someone in front of Hot Pot.¡± Kiel looked towards Hot Pot, but the other buildings blocked his view, and he couldn¡¯t see what Elaru¡¯s Aethernea managed to pick up. ¡°What about it? Why are they suspicious?¡± ¡°They are not paying attention to people leaving the Hot Pot, but rather, people coming in. They don¡¯t look like guards, nor are they dressed in Peacekeeper uniforms. It is obvious that they are waiting for someone. Whether it is with good intentions or bad intentions is hard to tell.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°What does that have to do with us? Do you think we are their target?¡± ¡°Judging by their uniforms, they are men from the Rroda family. The chance of their target being us is quite high.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°How do you know what kind of uniforms the Rroda family uses?¡± She rolled her eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t be paranoid. I know what kind of uniforms all noble families wear. It¡¯s nothing personal. It¡¯s helpful to be able to see the affiliation of people with a single glance.¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed in thought. ¡°Why would the Rroda family send men to look for us? How do they even know where we are staying?¡± ¡°Probably had it investigated. As for why¡­you did leave Beyd in a hurry without contacting any of your family members. Maybe they were worried?¡± Kiel snorted. ¡°My family doesn¡¯t give a damn about me. No one would be worried for my sake.¡± A thought flashed through his mind. ¡°Could they possibly be here to deliver my luggage?¡± ¡°Not likely. I don¡¯t see any signs of your luggage.¡± Kiel sighed tiredly. ¡°Why don¡¯t we just go over and ask what they want?¡± Elaru looked at him as if he was an idiot. ¡°If their intentions were good, then sure. But what if they aren¡¯t?¡± ¡°If they are from the Rroda family then naturally they wouldn¡¯t have hostile intentions towards me. They might not like me, but I am still the grandson of the family head and a son of a councilman.¡± ¡°You are too na?ve. Think! Why would someone from the Rroda family investigate your whereabouts and send people to meet you?¡± Kiel sighed resignedly but nonetheless stopped to consider it. ¡°If they wanted to pass me a message, they could have just left me a letter. Perhaps they were instructed to personally deliver it to me and not leave it in the reception? Or perhaps they thought it was inappropriate for me to stay at a small inn instead of going to the Rroda mainhouse so they came to pick me up?¡± ¡°Do those two people look like messengers to you? Messengers don¡¯t come in pairs. And they aren¡¯t bulky bodied mages with swords on their backs.¡± ¡°Hey. I can¡¯t see them. How was I supposed to know they are battlemages?¡± Elaru paid no attention to Kiel¡¯s frown and continued: ¡°Your second idea is possible. They might be here to pick you up.¡± ¡°Wait¡­battle mages?¡± Kiel narrowed his eyes. Something smells fishy here¡­why would his grandfather send battle mages to pick him up? Something else is at work here¡­ ¡°Could it be that they are here for your sake? Did you somehow offend the Rrodas?¡± Elaru stared at him her mouth twitching. My allies would never send people to pick me up. My enemies don¡¯t know me as Elaru Wayvin. Even if they did recognize me, they wouldn¡¯t send two blockheads to pick me up. They¡¯d send a group of S class head hunters. And they wouldn¡¯t be just standing around obviously waiting for me. Even an SSS class wouldn¡¯t be able to catch me like this¡­ ¡°No. Just no. If I had offended Rrodas in any way it would be through my relationship with you.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t quite put his suspicions at rest. ¡°You said you weren¡¯t a wanted person. Why would you then be as attentive to suspicious looking people as you are?¡± ¡°In my line of work, it is impossible to not offend anyone. Competent people always end up stirring jealousy and hate. I might not have a criminal record, but that doesn¡¯t mean there are no people who would take pleasure in my downfall.¡± ¡°Well then, there would be no problem if I went to talk to them. If they indeed want me to return to the mainhouse, I¡¯ll come up with a reason to politely decline. I obviously can¡¯t return to the mainhouse unless you return with me, and I doubt their invitation would extend to you.¡± ¡°What reason would you give them? What if they don¡¯t accept it? What if they were instructed to escort you back no matter what your opinion is on the matter?¡± Kiel turned silent. He doubted they would resort to violence. He didn¡¯t do anything that would warrant such treatment. However, if his grandfather was behind this, no matter what reason he gave, no matter how reasonable it sounded, it wouldn¡¯t be good enough for him. His grandfather treated his own word as law. Going against it was an act of rebellion that needed to be punished. I can¡¯t go with them, but I can¡¯t refuse to do so either. Tsk¡­what a crappy situation. Elaru watched him closely, seeing his expression turning sour she interrupted his thoughts. ¡°You¡¯ll have to have to visit your grandfather sooner or later. And I¡¯ll have to go with you. However, I think now is not the best time. Why not wait, and visit him after you enroll in Muni? After your fabulous performance in the exams, he is more likely to treat you better and not do anything unpleasant¡­such as sending you back to Beyd.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°But it still doesn¡¯t solve the problem at hand. What do I tell them?¡± Elaru¡¯s previously somber expression suddenly changed. Her eyes glittered mischievously, and she grinned. ¡°Who said you need to tell them anything? Why not just avoid them altogether? They can¡¯t do anything if the message never reaches you.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You want us to change the inn and not return to Hot Pot? To pretend that I had no clue anyone from the Rroda family was looking for me?¡± That is¡­Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered. Pure brilliance! Since both of them only carried the basic necessities with them, they had no luggage left in their room at Hot Pot. All their items were already with them. They didn¡¯t need to return to Hot Pot at all. ¡°Yeah¡­but I doubt we can find another empty room. Tomorrow are the exams. And if we spend half of the night searching for a room, we won¡¯t be in the best condition for the exam.¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°What other option do we have?¡± Elaru scratched her head sheepishly. ¡°Do you have any friends living in Ashar that would let us crash at their place for a night?¡± * * * Aethernea finally has a Patreon account that allows you to support Aethernea and get extra chapters to read! The subscriptions start as cheap as 2$ per month and rewards go up to 8 episodes ahead of what is currently being released. That¡¯s right, if you become Aethernea¡¯s patron, you can read up to 8 extra episodes! In fact, those 8 episodes are ready for reading and just waiting for you. If you pledge now, you could be reading them in a few minutes. Please Check out the amazing benefits, rewards and all other related information here. Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Send some men to wait for them in front of the University and prevent Kiel Rroda from entering.¡± Yet, instead of feeling thrilled, the first emotion that hit him was devastating regret. His arms were incredibly full. Full of warm, soft flesh, that, unfortunately, didn¡¯t belong to himself. While his mind and body were sending mixed signals, even his heart joined in on the chaos ¨C from his chest spread a dull ache. Episode 33 – Camping in Style In the previous Episode: After a day of training, Kiel and Elaru return to Hot Pot, only to find two battlemages in Rroda uniforms waiting for them in front of Hot Pot. The two decide to avoid the men with unknown motives and not to return to Hot Pot. Episode 33 ¨C Camping in Style Elaru scratched her head sheepishly. ¡°Do you have any friends living in Ashar that would let us crash at their place for a night?¡± ¡°Me? I don¡¯t have any friends in Beyd let alone Ashar! What about you? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be an adventurer? Surely you know a lot of people who¡¯d be willing to help out.¡± Elaru chuckled awkwardly. ¡°I guess we have no choice but to sleep in the forest?¡± Kiel¡¯s face turned sour. He looked back towards Hot Pot. ¡°You know¡­now that I think about it¡­those guys might not be here for me at all. Why don¡¯t I just go and have a little chat with them¡­hey! Where are you going? Come back!¡± Elaru didn¡¯t even wait for him to finish before she flew back in the same direction they came from. Kiel ¡°tsked¡± but nonetheless chose to follow. Sleeping on the hard ground wasn¡¯t that bad¡­maybe Elaru could do some magic and transmute the ground into soft sand? However, the trip back was a pain¡­ He wouldn¡¯t have complained had he known the disaster he had just avoided. If Elaru had been less observant that night, Kiel¡¯s path as the student of the Ashar University of Magic would have ended then and there. No. Actually, there were no ¡®ifs¡¯ involved. Elaru was never ¡°less observant¡±. For 18 years she had lived on the edge, one step away from the bottom of the cliff. It took only a second of negligence, a single slow reaction, a single misstep, for her to end up at the bottom of the cliff. It wasn¡¯t that she searched for irregularities and suspicious behavior. It wasn¡¯t that she was paranoid and edgy. No. The closer she was to the edge, the calmer she became. Her constant flawless awareness of her surroundings had stopped being a conscious decision long ago. It had seeped deep into her bones becoming second nature. Something she didn¡¯t think about, something that happened on its own. It was the edge that pushed her to improve, to absorb all knowledge she came into contact with like a sponge, to constantly improve in every way. To not make mistakes. Yet, no matter how she walked along the edge, she was unable to reach the summit of the cliff, to reach the top and look down at all creation. What chained her back was time. Time. The most valuable commodity that no amount of money could buy. Something effort and talent couldn¡¯t surpass. Time constantly went forward, never retreating or slowing down. Time already passed was forever lost. * * * (Meanwhile in the Rroda Mainhouse, Ashar) Venric Rroda looked at the large clock hanging on the wall of his office, a slight frown making its way to his face. ¡°Lawrence. Did you send someone to pick Kiel Rroda up?¡± The iciness of his voice was enough to cause people to shudder. His mood was exceedingly sour. His men had combed through the estate two times already, not finding anything out of the ordinary. To anyone else, that would be good news. However, Venric Rroda didn¡¯t view it in the same way. If his men had found something out of the ordinary, the pechuh would be out of the bag. He would have found out the motive of Elaru Wayvin. No matter how capable or dangerous a person was, once their goal became clear, it would be easy to deal with them. However, right now, he still knew absolutely nothing. That irked him to no avail. He was very clear on one thing: the most dangerous existences are those who cannot be seen through. The most dangerous weapons were not giant great swords or axes. No; the most dangerous weapons were hidden weapons. The most dangerous foes weren¡¯t his most powerful enemies, but the ones that he didn¡¯t even know he had. Lawrence remained as calm as ever as if he couldn¡¯t feel the icy atmosphere at all. ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± He had indeed arranged some men to find the young master. Venric eyes narrowed. ¡°Why isn¡¯t he here then?¡± Venric¡¯s Mind always remained stretched to cover the whole estate. He could feel everyone coming in and out of the estate. And Kiel Rroda clearly was not among them. Lawrence was wondering the same thing. How hard of a job could it be? He even sent two battlemages to ensure the job got carried out without a hitch. ¡°Your grace, perhaps Kiel Rroda is no longer staying at the same inn? Or perhaps the men ran into some difficulty? I¡¯ll send someone to inquire about the current situation.¡± Lawrence observed his Lord closely, as Venric showed no signs of disagreement, he bowed and left the premises. * * * Having no place to go, Kiel and Elaru returned to the same clearing as before. Elaru, once again, proved to be quite prepared. She found a nice spot, hidden from view, and with a slam of her foot, turned the earth in the radius of two meters into soft sand. After that, she took out two rolls of green silk from her bags. The sheets of cloth seemed extremely thin and fragile. She spread one of the rolls over the sand. Since the sheet was thin, the small roll managed to cover 4 square meters of ground ¨C more than enough for both of them to lie comfortably on it. She pulled out 4 small mana crystals from one of her pouches. She flicked them to fall on the corners of the silk blanket. Surprisingly, the crystals made the silk dip down into the sand, as if it was hit by a hammer. Kiel¡¯s eyes glittered in recognition. Those crystals were enchanted with a weight altering spell so they could become extremely light or heavy when used by a mage. Elaru had altered their weight to become heavy so no wind would be able to blow away their blanket. As he noticed that the thin blanket didn¡¯t show any tears when hit by a heavy crystal, Kiel finally realized what the blanket was made out of ¨C scaled spidersilk. Not only was it incredibly durable and flexible, but it was also resistant to heat and cold. It was an expensive material often used to create high-grade cloth armor. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Yet she was using it as a blanket?! Scaled spidersilk as a blanket, weight altering crystals as anchors. Isn¡¯t all of this a bit too extravagant? They were camping out in the open, yet she made their camp as comfortable as staying at an inn. To top it all, she brought out her enchanted metal egg and aligned it properly to create a barrier around their campsite so no creatures or people could disturb them. Then she laid down on the spread blanket and used the other roll of spidersilk to cover herself. Her face was blissful as if she was finally home. Kiel was already turning numb to her surprises. He had an urge to open every single compartment Elaru had on her and check out what wonders hide within. None of the things she pulled out were shabby in any way. It made Kiel curious about what else she had inside. He even took note of the volume of everything she pulled out up to now and figured that there was still space inside her bags for more things. After a while, he just sighed and lied on his back next to her. What greeted him was a clear black sky, filled with countless glowing dots. The two moons circling Halnea were glowing brightly ¨C one silvery white, one bright orange. In the depths, among the stars, one could even see vivid colored glittery clouds of dust. Resting on the soft, silky blanket, surrounded by the beautiful scenery, Kiel finally understood why Elaru seemed to feel at home out in the open. Her little gadgets removed all the bad sides from camping in the woods. No bugs, snakes or other critters could come through the barrier to bite them. No lupaxes or lunars could sneak attack them. The hard ground had turned soft and comfortable. Without the drawbacks, all that were left were the benefits. The beautifully lit night sky. The soft night breeze making the temperature feel just right. Countless quiet noises of the forest combined with the sounds of the nearby waterfall turned into a soothing lullaby. Even though he was very excited for the tomorrow¡¯s exams, even though his mind wasn¡¯t quite ready to doze off. The tiredness of his body, coupled with the relaxing atmosphere overcame everything, lulling him to sleep. His long eyelashes fluttered and soon his breathing became rhythmic and soothing. * * * Venric Rroda stared into thin air, deep in thought. The report had just come in. Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin never returned to the inn. Allegedly they left in the morning. When they had questioned the owner of the inn on whether they had checked out, the lady told them that Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t need to check out, since she had her own, exclusive room in the inn. For a girl of unknown origin to have an exclusive room in an inn, didn¡¯t leave him with a good feeling. ¡°Should I have their whereabouts investigated, your grace?¡± Lawrence, stood by his side, asking in a soothing tone. ¡°No.¡± Venric waved his hand in dismissal. ¡°It is a pointless endeavor. Tomorrow is the first day of the exams. They¡¯ll have no choice but to come take them. Send some men to wait for them in front of the University and prevent Kiel Rroda from entering.¡± ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± * * * Monday, 27th of August 1449 A.W. Muni Exams: Day 1 When Kiel Rroda woke up that fine Monday morning, he was brimming with energy. Today was the first day of the exams. His rise to prominence started today! Yet, instead of feeling thrilled, the first emotion that hit him was devastating regret. Why?! Why didn¡¯t I remember to place a fence between us?! Although he felt warm and comfortable, his body stiffened and froze in place. His arms were incredibly full. Full of warm, soft flesh, that, unfortunately, didn¡¯t belong to himself. Elaru was more lying on him than the blanket. She was using his chest as a pillow. Her body was tightly pressed against his. And to make matters worse, his hand was comfortably wrapped around her keeping her right where she was. He couldn¡¯t even blame it all on Elaru, because upon further inspection, it wasn¡¯t her that made her way towards him during the night. No. Both of them had, again, congregated to the center of the blanket. Kiel would have let out an anguished cry of ¡°Why?!¡± if he wasn¡¯t afraid of waking Elaru up. He needed to move out of this position, right now. This situation could only get more awkward with the passage of time. But how could he move her away? She was lying on top of him. He couldn¡¯t move at all. He couldn¡¯t even use acceleration magic to make her float away from him gently because the vixen still had a dense layer of mage armor wrapped around her body. How could she retain her mage armor in her sleep?? It made no sense! His forehead was already drenched with cold sweat. From where their bodies touched, spread warm tingles that felt wonderful. Yet, Kiel didn¡¯t find the situation wonderful in the least. While his body was enjoying the sensation, his mind was in turmoil. This felt both absolutely right and undeniably wrong. While his mind and body were sending mixed signals, even his heart joined in on the chaos ¨C from his chest spread a dull ache. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Yet, why is it that when he looked at her, he didn¡¯t feel repulsed at all? As soon as her body touched the floor, she jumped up like a frightened lunar, with its hair raised, hissing and puffing: ¡°The heck?!¡± Kiel let out an inward sigh of relief and jumped up on his feet. Disaster averted. God bless my quick wits! Ashar University of Magic entrance exams, here we come! When Kiel and Elaru arrived in front of the Ashar University of Magic, what greeted them was a large crowd of people filling up the entire huge courtyard. Episode 34 - Sneaking About In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru went to sleep in the woods. When the morning of the exams arrived, Kiel was the first to wake up and realize that Elaru and he were again in an inappropriate position ¨C Elaru was laying half on top of him. Episode 34 ¨C Sneaking About Kiel Rroda is a perfectly straight male (at least that¡¯s what he believed). Even though he didn¡¯t feel an attraction towards the opposite sex at all, he felt even less of an attraction towards the same sex. So naturally, his conclusion was that he wasn¡¯t gay. It might be that he didn¡¯t believe in love. He wasn¡¯t sure himself if he believed or not. While everyone preached about how much they were in love, all his eyes could see was a shallow physical attraction. People drowned themselves in lust and called it love. It made his skin crawl. Even those that did hold love in their hearts weren¡¯t really in love with the person in front of them ¨C they were in love with their own internal image of them. Those kind of people were even more pitiful. They weren¡¯t even aware that the object of their love was just a fantasy. Kiel wouldn¡¯t let himself become entangled in romantic matters. He wanted nothing to do with it. He had better things to do in life. He just couldn¡¯t see a single benefit a significant other would bring him. He only saw drawbacks. His heart didn¡¯t have room in it for anyone. Maybe his opinion on romance would change if he had an opportunity to feel love or lust. But when he looked at all the women that wanted him, his heart didn¡¯t feel moved at all. All he felt was revulsion. No matter how beautiful they looked on the outside, it didn¡¯t make him feel an ounce of affection towards them. He didn¡¯t know them; he didn¡¯t want to know them. Most of them hid their own ugliness under a beautiful mask. No matter how beautiful someone was on the outside, that which was inside caused all potential attraction to wither before it could even sprout. How could he possibly be attracted to something that looked pretty on the outside but was full of disgusting things inside? How could he possibly want to have an intimate relationship with them? Not attractive at all. Neither mentally nor physically. He had never felt a primal instinct to mate. And he was glad for that. He was perfectly in control of himself. Just the way he liked it. Yet, the worst thing about it all was that he was exactly like them. He too looked beautiful on the outside, while the insides¡­didn¡¯t match. Elaru Wayvin was like it too. She was beautiful on the outside, but he couldn¡¯t tell what ugliness hid beneath her skin. Yet, why is it that when he looked at her, he didn¡¯t feel repulsed at all? They fought all the time. He didn¡¯t like her at all. She could easily get under his skin, make his blood boil. And yet, even after all of that, he didn¡¯t hate her. Not really. Being with her couldn¡¯t be called pleasant, but if he was forced to endure it for the rest of eternity, he didn¡¯t think it would be unbearable. Perhaps, this was acceptance? Or maybe it was something else. Whatever it was, it was illogical. It made absolutely no sense. Kiel couldn¡¯t make heads or tails out of it. So he just decided not to think about it at all. He sighed in resignation. Look at the bright side. After a few days, I¡¯ll be living in Muni dormitory, and things like this won¡¯t have a chance to happen. Then I can go to sleep and wake up in tranquility. After a few seconds of pondering how he could resolve the issue, he decided to use the air stream to gently lift her up. His eyes glittered as he cast Acceleration on the air around him. He could have done something similar using Morph, but Morph wasn¡¯t really intended for creating uniform movement of particles, so naturally it would be much easier to do it with Acceleration. He proceeded to control the movement of air particles, directing them to pass over them, in between the crevices, faster and faster. Surprisingly, it was more difficult than he thought it would be. It was as if it became more difficult with every second. Still, he persevered and finally succeeded in pushing Elaru¡¯s body a bit upwards. In that split second in which their bodies separated, he accelerated sideways from under her. He didn¡¯t even get a chance to breathe out in relief before Elaru smacked facedown onto the blanket. She had lost the support of his body, and his air control seemed to fail completely for no apparent reason. As soon as her body touched the floor, she jumped up like a frightened lunar, with its hair raised, hissing and puffing: ¡°The heck?!¡± Startled awake, she looked around herself in a daze until her eyes found Kiel who was still lying on his back, a few meters away. ¡°What happened?¡± Kiel plastered a completely emotionless expression on his face and responded in the most honest tone he could muster. ¡°You suddenly jumped up screaming bloody murder. Did you have a nightmare?¡± She frowned and scratched her head. ¡°I don¡¯t remember having a nightmare¡­¡± ¡°It is possible you don¡¯t remember anything because you woke up too abruptly?¡± Elaru shrugged and started stretching her limbs. ¡°Well¡­whatever.¡± Kiel let out an inward sigh of relief and jumped up on his feet. Disaster averted. God bless my quick wits! As he stood on his feet, something felt strange. His body¡­felt lighter? He flexed his muscles a bit. Was it just his imagination, or did he have more control over his body? His eyes brightened. Was this because of that pill I consumed yesterday? That would be the only explanation since he didn¡¯t exercise his body yesterday nor did he perform mana tempering. The previously sour mood got replaced by delight. He was in a perfect condition to take the exams. He just needed to tidy himself up to look like a proper noble. He made his way to the stream and washed his face. Then he tidied his clothes. He even spent a few minutes checking himself out in the small mirror before being satisfied. He was looking quite dashing, just like always. Cold, yet sexy eyes. The soft rebellious hair framing his flawless pale face. The long black eyelashes and soft lips. Wait¡­why does it sound like a description of a girl?! He frowned and quickly returned the mirror into his backpack. His eyes turning towards Elaru who was patiently waiting for him. Besides running her hands through her hair, doing a quick cleansing and drinking some water, she didn¡¯t tidy herself up at all. Even so, she looked like her usual beautiful self. She was bursting with vigor, her aura so animated and alive Kiel felt like it was directly pouring energy into him. A neat, refined look wouldn¡¯t suit her. When people described beautiful women, there were several types of beauty they would point out such as charming, soft, cold but regal, voluptuous and sexy, adorably cute, etc. None of those descriptions were adequate to describe Elaru. Her appearance was neither tomboyish nor was she a girly girl. She was neither warm and soft nor did she have a cold countenance of a noble. She was neither voluptuous nor cute. She seemed to be somewhere in-between all of those. She was just¡­beautiful. Charismatically, gracefully beautiful. ¡°Are you all pampered up, princess? Ready to go?¡± Elaru grinned warmly, showing off her pearly white teeth. Kiel frowned in annoyance. ¡°Do all your nicknames have to be so insulting?¡± She chuckled and seemed to realize that calling Kiel a princess was going a bit overboard. ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯m sorry. You are actually quite fast in getting ready. But when you pulled out a mirror¡­¡± She suddenly started giggling melodiously. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Kiel¡¯s frown deepened and felt the need to explain himself. ¡°How am I supposed to know how I look like without a mirror? I could have an unruly strand of hair that makes me look ridiculous. Using a mirror doesn¡¯t make me a girly guy. Everyone uses a mirror!¡± She smiled and gave him a thumbs up. ¡°You are right.¡± Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched. Can¡¯t tell if you are being sarcastic or not¡­ And so, the two set out towards the Ashar University of Magic which was so large it could still be seen in the distance. Ashar University of Magic entrance exams, here we come! * * * It was a warm, sunny morning in Ashar. Even though it was very early, the whole city seemed to be up. The streets were bursting with people, chattering was a constant background noise. When Kiel and Elaru arrived in front of the Ashar University of Magic, what greeted them was a large crowd of people filling up the entire huge courtyard. Thousands upon thousands of people were moving about the courtyard. The crowd was so saturated one would think a circus had come to town. There were people wearing all kinds of different garments. Nobles and commoners. Young and old. Examinees and their family members. There were reporters and agents gathering information about the event. There were even people totally unrelated to the exam that just came in to join the fun. Even Peacekeepers considered this a major event, as they could be seen everywhere, making sure everything was in order. In the middle of the courtyard, held up by thick pillars stood a large board that wasn¡¯t there the last time Kiel and Elaru were here. As they inspected the contents of the board, they realized that it contained groups. Each one of the examinees had gotten a number when they signed up for the exams. Based on that number they were split into groups of 20. The board provided them with the time and place for their exam. Kiel¡¯s and Elaru¡¯s entrance numbers were too far apart, so they didn¡¯t end up in the same group. However, they did end up in the same building, and even the starting time of their exams was close. After remembering the time and place, they navigated their way through the crowd towards the entrance to the university. They could have flown, but Kiel didn¡¯t want them to attract attention to themselves. Surprisingly, Elaru didn¡¯t voice a word of complaint. In fact, she wholeheartedly agreed while adding: ¡°Don¡¯t let your mana leave the vicinity of your mage armor.¡± Kiel didn¡¯t understand why Elaru, who liked doing things in an unorthodox way, would agree to it. Nor why she had asked him to control his own mana. Nonetheless, he did it. It was only when the entrance of the University entered their view that he realized the reason behind her actions. In front of the entrance stood several mages of thick build wearing a Rroda family uniform. Kiel stopped in his tracks. Yesterday, it was hard to tell if they were waiting for him in front of Hot Pot, but today there was little doubt. They were indeed waiting for him. Elaru latched onto his arm like a leech. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched, but he didn¡¯t even get to ask her what she was doing before he felt a barrier envelop them, followed by Elaru¡¯s Mind which wrapped around them like a cocoon. Her Mind cut off the path of other Minds, which made it impossible for others to come in contact with their mana and sense their presence. The reason why she had asked him to control the movement of his mana was so that it wouldn¡¯t leave the cocoon and be detected. Kiel looked left and right, but no one seemed to have noticed anything strange. In fact, as Elaru accelerated and pulled them into the air, he noticed that not a single person looked towards them. ¡°Are we under¡­an invisibility barrier?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. Elaru nodded her head nonchalantly. ¡°Yeah.¡± Kiel sucked in a breath. Light bending functioned in a similar way to the Morph spell. However, it was many times more complicated to morph energy which increased the complexity of the spell, bringing it up to level 6. An invisibility barrier was a sustained spell that utilized the light bending spell fragment in such a way to make light travel half a circle around the user, not touching him and exiting in the same direction it would have exited if the person wasn¡¯t there at all. The spell required an incredible degree of spell control which made it a level 9 spell. A level 9! How significant was that? Plainly put, S-ranked mages and above were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. When people talked about the pinnacle of magic, usually they referred to A-ranked mages, which were a level bellow S-ranked mages. And what was one of the requirements that mages needed to fulfill before they could become A-ranked mages? It was to be able to cast level 9 spells! * * * Important news It has been a longtime dream of mine to make a living doing what I love ¨C creating worlds and stories. In fact, I¡¯d love nothing more than to be able to write Aethernea full-time. Not only would it improve the quality of Aethernea, but it would also allow me to give you more episodes to read. However, I am a mother and a wife, and I need to financially support my family, so Aethernea cannot become more than a hobby unless it is able to put food on the table. Now, I¡¯ve taken a first step in making Aethernea into something more than a hobby by opening a Patreon account. Patreon is a crowd-funding platform that allows content creators (writers, musicians, artists, etc.) to make a living from their work through subscription payments from their fans. The subscriptions start as cheap as 2$ per month and rewards go up to 8 episodes ahead of what is currently being released. If you choose to support Aethernea through Patreon, you could be reading those 8 episodes in a few minutes. Not only does supporting Aethernea bring you immediate benefits of extra episodes, but it also brings everyone benefits in the form of extra art and bonus episodes when a certain funding goal is reached. With enough support nothing is impossible! Even far-fetched dreams such as creating an Aethernea game, comic/manga or animated series are within reach with enough funding. Please Check out the amazing benefits, rewards, goals and all other related information here. Coming up in the next episode: Kiel felt a warmth spreading in his chest, which was suppressed by the cold he felt when Elaru¡¯s body separated from his. The surroundings disappeared, and the first thing his eyes landed on was an elibu boy that looked no older than 10. There was something about the boy that looked familiar. Yet, he was sure that this was the first time he had seen him. As he revealed his name, surprised gasps could be heard from the gathered people. Everyone caught the significance of his name. She spoke up in a husky, pleasant tone. ¡°I am Kady Ailert and will supervise your magic casting speed test.¡± Episode 35 - Special Handshake In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru make their way to the Ashar University of Magic to take the entrance exams. They notice more battlemages in Rroda uniforms waiting for them in front of the university. Elaru grabs onto Kiel, conceals their presence and casts an invisibility barrier (which is a level 9 spell) around them. Episode 35 ¨C Special Handshake What was one of the requirements that mages needed to fulfill before they could become A-ranked mages? It was to be able to cast level 9 spells! Yet Elaru treated a level 9 spell as if it was only right for her to be able to cast it. As if there was nothing strange going on. Kiel decided not to question her about it at this moment and concentrate on the problem at hand: she was clinging onto him a bit too tightly. Her whole body pressed against his own. It made his stomach do flip flops making him uncomfortable. Kiel concentrated hard on the Rroda men as they passed right next to them. However, none of them even turned their heads in their direction. Even so, Kiel didn¡¯t relax in the slightest as they flew into the foyer. Luckily it had a very large ceiling so it presented no problem to fly above everyone¡¯s head. Only when they entered deeper into the foyer, where they were completely shielded from view of the Rroda men, did Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. As they approached the exit, they noticed there was a barrier erected preventing unauthorized people from going through it into the university. Elaru didn¡¯t hesitate at all and accelerated right into the barrier. When they signed up for the entrance exams, they received badges with a number. Those badges also acted as their exam pass which allowed them to enter the university. What greeted them as they passed through the barrier was another large courtyard. From all sides, many large structures could be seen in the distance, towering over them as if they were bugs. The courtyard looked like a beautiful garden or a park with grass meadows and wide paved roads. It was prettily decorated with many different trees and flowers. There were even fountains, tables, and benches. It was a glorious sight. Kiel could already tell that he would be spending a lot of his time relaxing in this park. It would be a perfect place to sit below a tree and read a book. Or even have a picnic. Many different men and women could be seen passing through the courtyard, directed towards the exam rooms via guideposts. Kiel and Elaru finally landed. Elaru released the invisibility barrier and unwrapped her Mind. They were safe. Rroda men couldn¡¯t follow them inside without an exam pass. They shared a relieved look, with a bit of gloating. For a moment it seemed as if their emotions had synchronized. It felt good to have a partner in crime, someone to have your back. Kiel felt a warmth spreading in his chest, which was suppressed by the cold he felt when Elaru¡¯s body separated from his. There was no more need for her to be pressed against him. It¡¯s good that she remembered to let me go. Kiel approved. It is tiring to have to constantly remind her to keep her distance. They walked close to each other, following the guideposts towards a large ivory building that had many windows with red curtains. The building was named as ¡°the Red Quarters¡±. Why it was named that way and what it was used for was something Kiel and Elaru didn¡¯t know at this point. When they walked through the doors of the building, they entered into a well-lit hall which contained several tables and chairs. The ceiling of the hall was so high it reached the roof, on top of which was a glass dome. The bright sunlight entered through the glass and illuminated the entire main hall and the hallways of upper floors spread around the hall. The upper floors were separated from the main hall by a railing, so not only could the people walking down the corridors of the upper floors see down below to the main hall (and vice versa), but they could also skip taking the stairs and instead fly. The entire building seemed to have the color red as its theme. The velvet chairs were red, carpets were red, even banners on the walls were red. Elaru looked at the tables and chairs nodding approvingly. ¡°Let¡¯s meet up here after the exam.¡± Kiel let out a quiet hum that was supposed to be an affirmative answer. The two didn¡¯t dally around the main hall, but instead went straight to the closest staircase and climbed it to the second floor. No one else was flying so they (mostly Kiel) didn¡¯t want to attract attention and took the stairs like everyone else. Elaru¡¯s exam was on this floor, while Kiel¡¯s was on the fourth floor. It was finally time for them to go their separate ways. Elaru looked back at Kiel, pouting, her eyes glazed over as if they were on the verge of tears. Yet her aura showed no sadness. Kiel barely restrained himself from smacking her on the back of her head. ¡°Stop with the pitiful act. We¡¯ll see each other in a few hours. No need to be dramatic.¡± In response, she extended her fist towards him. Kiel looked at her blankly. What? Do you want me to give you a fist bump? Seeing Kiel¡¯s confused look, instead of explaining herself verbally, Elaru chose to send him a memory. The surroundings disappeared, and the first thing his eyes landed on was an elibu boy that looked no older than 10. His beautiful facial features were spread into a wide grin. The breeze ruffled his blonde and black hair left and right, tickling his tanned skin. His lime green eyes glittered mischievously as he extended his fist towards him¡­or rather, towards Elaru, since it was her memory. Elaru didn¡¯t reciprocate his own confused look, rather, she knew exactly what she was supposed to do. Her face spread into a wide grin, mirroring the same look on the boy¡¯s face as she extended her own fist towards his. The two did a strange, but cool, gesture which was a combination of fist bumping, high-five and a handshake. The two didn¡¯t speak any words. They didn¡¯t need words. The handshake conveyed the message quite clearly. It was meant to mean something along the lines of ¡°Break a leg!¡±, ¡°Good luck!¡± or ¡°Kick their asses¡±. It could even be used as a farewell, saying ¡°Godspeed.¡± or ¡°See you soon.¡± The memory faded away, leaving Kiel with a frown on his face. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. The handshake looked¡­familiar. He couldn¡¯t quite place it. He was sure he had seen it before, but for the life of him, he couldn¡¯t remember where. And the handshake wasn¡¯t the only thing about the memory that gave him a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. There was something about the boy that looked familiar. Yet, he was sure that this was the first time he had seen him. He would have remembered an elibu boy with two colored hair. It wasn¡¯t every day you see an elibu change the color of their hair to resemble the hair of an argel. So then, why did the boy give him such a strong sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu? ¡°Who was that?¡± Kiel blurted out. Elaru smiled a brilliant smile full of affection that made Kiel¡¯s heart suddenly clutch inside his chest. ¡°That was Wade.¡± Kiel¡¯s lip curled. ¡°The same guy who likes to touch inappropriate places?¡± Elaru giggled warmly. ¡°Yep. That¡¯s Wade.¡± She still had her fist placed in front of her, and she looked at Kiel expectantly. Looking at her fist, Kiel hesitated for a while. Usually, he would ignore her and not do the handshake thingy. But would it really be wrong to do it? It didn¡¯t look silly, it looked like something a cool crowd would do. So saying that he didn¡¯t want to do it because it looked stupid would be a lie. His hesitation came from the fact that it felt too personal. Like something one would do only with people closest to them. A way to exchange feelings and wishes with your best mates. The cute face of the blonde boy flashed in Kiel¡¯s mind, and he pressed his lips tightly together. Why not? And so Kiel and Elaru exchanged the first of many special handshakes. Passing on how they felt without a need for words, they left; each towards their designated classroom. * * * Kiel had been waiting in front of his designated classroom for a while now. He stood with his back straight and a cool expression. He was a definition of a dignified noble. As he waited, more and more people were arriving in front of the same classroom. All of them, without exception, looked his way, their gazes remaining on him for a prolonged period of time. He could feel some faint hostility from the males, while the females seemed to have their eyes glued to him. Whenever he caught someone staring at him, he would give them his signature gentle smile. The males would quickly look away embarrassed for being caught. While females would do the same, albeit with a blush on their face. There was a female among the group who had the intention of approaching him and starting a conversation. While she was hesitating, Kiel was cursing the examiners to hurry up and start the exam. As if they had heard him, the doors to the classroom opened revealing a familiar face. It was an elibu in his twenties with silver hair tied behind his head and dark green eyes. The same elibu that Kiel had met previously when he came to sign up for the exam. If Kiel remembered correctly, his name was Rau Eryey. Rau looked at everyone gathered in front of the classroom, his face emotionless. ¡°I am Rau Eryey and I¡¯ll be one of your examiners today.¡± As he revealed his name, surprised gasps could be heard from the gathered people. Everyone caught the significance of his name. Eryey! He is a noble! Everyone suddenly became more self-aware, straightening their backs and trying to leave a good impression. They felt extremely lucky and privileged to be able to meet a noble. Most of them would never in their entire lives have a chance to interact with a noble. They hoped to leave as good of an impression as they could, hoping that the noble before them would remember them. Even if he didn¡¯t, they would be able to brag to their peers how they met a noble of a high standing. As everyone was trying to keep their excitement off their face, there was one person in the group that had no trouble keeping his face calm and emotionless ¨C quite similar to the expression currently on Rau¡¯s face. As Rau¡¯s gaze landed on Kiel¡¯s collected expression, recognition flickered in his eyes. He nodded to him slightly, his face remaining emotionless. It wasn¡¯t that his countenance was cold, rather it was professional ¨C collected and calm. Kiel smiled politely in return, his bearing just as dignified as Rau¡¯s. After glancing over the examinees, Rau continued talking, not seeming to care about their excitement at all. ¡°The first test of the exam tests your magic casting speed.¡± Rau paused and motioned towards the classroom. ¡°Come in and I shall explain how you will be tested.¡± As he said that, he walked into the room. Everyone standing in front of the classroom soon followed him in. The classroom was large with many tables and chairs moved to the edges, leaving a big empty space in the middle of the room. There was a long teacher¡¯s desk at the head of the room where sat a middle-aged argel woman with dark-gray wavy hair framing her face which had several white strands interwoven within. She was smiling warmly towards the examinees. Her eyes were squinted into a crescent shape, looking as if they too were smiling. On top of her desk, there were several sheets of paper, a few pens, an hourglass and a stack of small glass orbs. * * * Coming up in the next episode: Several gasps of shock were let out in the students. His magic casting speed was so fast, yet he only got 20/25?! Most of the examinees displayed a strange expression, not knowing whether they should laugh or cry. You already have such a high score, and you are complaining that fast casting wasn¡¯t your strong point?! What does that make us?? She waited a few seconds, however, no one spoke up. She flipped the small hourglass standing on her desk and declared: ¡°You have 5 minutes. Begin.¡± When the result came out it shattered the hopes of many present. ¡°10/25¡± Kiel was speechless. Why is everyone targeting me?! I didn¡¯t even do anything. The entire time I was perfectly polite towards everyone! This face of mine is more trouble than it¡¯s worth. Episode 36 – Casting Speed Exam Start! In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru arrive in their designated classrooms to take the casting speed exam test. One of Kiel¡¯s examiners happens to be Rau Eryey ¨C the elibu young man who Kiel first met when he came to sign up for the exams. He invites all the examinees in Kiel¡¯s group inside the classroom to take the test. Episode 36 ¨C Casting Speed Exam Start! In the middle of the room, there was a large table with a strange apparatus. The device was made out of 20 small glass orbs. The orbs were a bit smaller than the size of a fist and made out of half-transparent yellow glass. They were positioned in a spiral, connected with a thick yellow cable, made out of a strange rubbery material. In the center of the spiral, at the end of the cable, there was a small hourglass filled with blue jelly. The upper part of the hourglass was completely filled with jelly, while there was none on the lower part of the hourglass. The jelly showed no sign of passing through the small opening between the sides of the hourglass. As everyone entered the room, the woman sitting behind the teacher¡¯s desk got up and smiled. She spoke up in a husky, pleasant tone. ¡°I am Kady Ailert and will supervise your magic casting speed test.¡± Kiel searched his memory. When he was little, his grandfather made him remember all important surnames. The knowledge still remained. Ailert was a branch family of the Arten noble family. Artens were the spiritual support of the whole Halnea. They ran numerous temples, practicing all religion-related arts such as meditation and aura sensing. They were the only noble family that kept completely away from the politics. Rau approached the table with the apparatus and picked up a ball that was at the end of the spiral. This ball was larger than all the other balls and had a more vivid golden color. He quickly performed a spell that no one managed to catch. As his spell activated the ball reacted to and started sucking up mana all around it like a sponge sucks in water. After a while, the ball stopped absorbing mana and started glowing. This meant that the apparatus was ready for usage. ¡°As you might have noticed, this magical artifact absorbed a predefined amount of mana that will be used in the test. Your goal is to transfer as much mana from the first orb to the hourglass at the end.¡± Rau put down the orb and pointed towards the hourglass in the middle of the spiral. ¡°When mana reaches this hourglass, it will heat up according to the amount of mana that reaches it. As it heats up, the jelly inside of it will melt and pass through the hourglass. The more jelly passes through, the better your result.¡± Rau stroked the cable connecting the glass balls. ¡°When you perform the first trigger spell, the speedometer will activate, and the mana will naturally travel down these magic conduits. However, when it reaches the next orb, it won¡¯t be able to pass through it.¡± Rau pointed to the next smaller glass orb, connected to the first big orb by the cable. ¡°When mana reaches these orbs, the orbs will not only block the passage of mana, but they will also slowly absorb mana. When you activate them with a trigger spell, they will no longer block the passage of mana nor will they absorb it. Your task is to activate these orbs as fast as possible to minimize the amount of mana that gets absorbed and maximize the amount of mana that reaches the hourglass. However, keep in mind that you can only trigger these orbs sequentially. They will not activate unless the previous orb has already been activated. Naturally, spell preparation is not allowed.¡± Spell preparation was when a mage congealed his mana into a spell but avoided reaching the high enough density for the spell to activate. The mage could then later quickly increase the density and cause that spell to activate. Naturally, taking that one last step would be quicker than weaving a new spell from the beginning. To dispel any confusion, Rau proceeded to demonstrate the usage. He started casting spells upon the orbs so fast that before anyone could even blink, several orbs had already been lit up. In a matter of a few seconds the last orb lit up, and the mana reached the hourglass. The jelly within the hourglass seemed to be boiling, the viscosity of the jelly lowered with the heat and it started slipping down to the bottom half of the hourglass. Almost all of the jelly passed through to the bottom half. The eyes of the people inside the room almost popped out of their sockets. Fast!! So very fast!! None of them felt confident that they could reach the same speed. This man, who couldn¡¯t be much older than them, at most being 6 or 8 years older, could cast magic so fast that they felt like they couldn¡¯t even compare. As expected from the university teacher. He is a noble after all. Most people nodded their heads in approval. Rau was completely undisturbed by their reactions, nonchalantly he pointed towards the small, barely visible markings on the hourglass. ¡°All that is left is to read the score.¡± He bent down, squinted his eyes to read the score and declared. ¡°21/25.¡± Several gasps of shock were let out by the examinees. His magic casting speed was so fast, yet he only got 21/25?! Some people gulped down and started sweating. All of them were the top of their class in their respective academies. They have always considered themselves as prodigies, which is why they thought they belonged in the greatest university of magic. Watching Rau Eryey nonchalantly reach a speed far from what they could reach and still not get a perfect score gave them a cold wake up slap. They might have been considered geniuses in their previous class. But when compared to monsters such as Rau Eryey, they were simply ordinary. ¡°Magic casting speed isn¡¯t really my forte.¡± Rau added, wanting to make it clear that he wasn¡¯t actually this ¡°bad¡±. Most of the examinees displayed a strange expression, not knowing whether they should laugh or cry. You already have such a high score, and you are complaining that fast casting wasn¡¯t your strong point?! What does that make us?? If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Unlike the rest of the examinees, Kiel kept a calm expression throughout the demonstration. This wasn¡¯t his first time taking this exam. It was exactly the same last year too. He knew exactly the score he could reach so he felt no suspense or pressure. Rau again cast a quick spell on the speedometer, and the previously glowing orbs again turned lifeless. The remaining jelly that didn¡¯t manage to reach the bottom half of the hourglass suddenly passed through. Rau flipped the hourglass over, switching the top and bottom halves. He had now reset the apparatus to its previous state, ready for another test. He then stepped back, looked towards the middle aged woman and nodded. The woman smiled slightly and started talking. ¡°I will now show you the trigger spell that you need to cast on the orbs to activate them.¡± She stood up from her desk, in her hands was a stack of papers. She extended her hands throwing the stack of papers towards the examinees. Instead of falling to the ground, every sheet of paper started flying towards a specific student. Following the papers, the small glass orbs stacked on her table also flew towards the examinees. Each one getting one orb. She was an argel and could naturally use acceleration magic to control the movement of the papers. ¡°Take these papers. They contain the diagrams of the spell pattern for the trigger spell. These orbs are the same as the orbs used in the test so you can directly use them to practice your spellcasting.¡± After everyone reached out their hands and caught their orb and the sheet of paper, the lady continued. ¡°Pay attention. I am about to demonstrate how to cast the trigger spell.¡± The woman proceeded to do exactly that. She slowly weaved her mana to form the trigger spell. She then made the spell float in the air as she weaved a few more so that the examinees could see the process a few more times. ¡°I will give you 5 minutes to practice the trigger spell. After those 5 minutes are up, you will no longer be allowed to practice the spell. This will ensure fairness to the examinees that will be tested first, as no one would be able to practice casting it longer than the other.¡± She looked at every face in the room, smiling softly. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± She waited a few seconds, however, no one spoke up. She flipped the small hourglass standing on her desk and declared: ¡°You have 5 minutes. Begin.¡± As soon as the words left her mouth, everyone started weaving the spell. Kiel also, did his best to familiarize himself with the spell. They changed the trigger spell used each year, so you wouldn¡¯t know how the trigger spell looked like until the start of the exam. Therefore, the trigger spell was new to Kiel, and he needed to do his utmost to remember it and find a way to weave it as fast as possible. This ball that they received was actually quite helpful, as they could test out their spells and figure out how sloppily they could weave the spells for them to still activate. Since this test was all about the spell casting speed, whether you weaved your spell flawlessly or not was irrelevant, as long as the spell was valid, the sloppy handwriting didn¡¯t matter. That¡¯s why Kiel needed to use these 5 minutes to find a balance between weaving accuracy and speed. Seemingly in the blink of an eye, 5 minutes had passed. As soon as the last dust of sand fell to the bottom of the hourglass, Kady declared. ¡°Stop weaving. 5 minutes are up.¡± She weaved her hands and all the balls flew away from the examinees and stacked neatly on top of her desk. She smilingly looked at every face. ¡°I wish you luck on your exam.¡± She paused slightly before asking. ¡°Who wishes to go first?¡± Examinees looked between each other, no one showing the desire to step out. After seeing that even Rau¡¯s speedy casting was unable to go above 80% of the max score, they felt discouraged. ¡°If no one will step forward, I¡¯ll start calling you out by your number.¡± The female that had been staring at Kiel before they entered the classroom gritted her teeth and stepped forward. She looked at Kiel heatedly as if saying ¡°Watch me! I¡¯ll show you how great of a mage I am.¡± She wanted to impress Kiel. She wanted to catch his attention. Kiel forced an encouraging smile which seemed to light a fire in the girl¡¯s eyes, and she proceeded with the test. Na?ve. Kiel internally snorted. Even if you got the perfect score, I wouldn¡¯t care. What does that have to do with me? You won¡¯t though. Kiel¡¯s number was 5642, assuming he was the last student to register for the exam, that meant there were 5642 people taking the exam. Yet Muni only accepted around 100 students every year. That meant that less than 2% of the examinees would pass the exam. Most groups wouldn¡¯t have a single person capable of passing the exam. Rau asked the girl for her exam pass. He inspected it thoroughly. He then passed it off to Kady and proceeded to activate the speedometer again. The girl was sweating buckets, her eyebrows furrowed as she started the exam. She cast and cast with all her might. But in Kiel¡¯s eyes, she looked like a tortoise trying to run. Sure enough. When the result came out it shattered the hopes of many present. ¡°10/25¡± The girl was shocked and refused to accept the result. ¡°Can I try again?¡± * * * Coming up in the next episode: The jaw of every examinee hit the ground, their eyes so wide they looked like they would pop out of their sockets. Their breaths caught in their throat, they even forgot to breathe. Kiel didn¡¯t know why, but suddenly he had a bad feeling. Elaru stared dumbfounded at the two professors that were in charge of her exam. As the words rolled off of his tongue, Deora froze in his step, and likewise, the faces of every examinee froze. Oy, oy, why are you provoking him?! Deora¡¯s heated gaze turned towards Zerel. ¡°What did you just call me?!¡± He pointed his finger towards Zerel, his two eyes like embers. Episode 37 – Kiel’s speed test results In the previous Episode: Kiel and Elaru arrive to take the spellcasting speed exam. Professors supervising Kiel¡¯s exam explain how the examinees will be tested. The first examinee to take the test is a girl that has her eye on Kiel. Her result is only 10/25, unsatisfied she asks if she can try again. Episode 37 ¨C Kiel¡¯s speed test results The girl was shocked and refused to accept the result. ¡°Can I try again?¡± Kady looked at the hourglass next to her, which she had flipped when the girl stepped forward. There was still sand left. She nodded her head, and Rau reset the apparatus again. And so the girl tried again. And in fact, after that, she tried two more times before the time ran out. Yet the best result she managed to achieve was 11/25. Kady noted down her result and returned the exam pass. ¡°You will be free to leave when everyone finishes the test.¡± Disheartened, the girl accepted her exam pass and dragged herself back to the examinees. She kept giving Kiel glances under her bangs. Kiel gave her another encouraging smile which managed to instantly lift her spirits. He likes me! Her eyes glittered excitedly. No. No. I am being polite. Kiel smiled wryly. As soon as she walked back in line, Rau looked towards the other examinees and asked: ¡°Who is next?¡± This time, a male walked out. Kiel didn¡¯t need to be a mind reader to understand what his glare towards him meant: ¡°Let me show you how it¡¯s done.¡± Kiel was speechless. Why is everyone targeting me? I didn¡¯t even do anything. The entire time I was perfectly polite towards everyone¡­ This face of mine is more trouble than it¡¯s worth. The argel male didn¡¯t do much better, his top score reaching 13. After him, the remaining examinees felt less bad about their future score and gained the courage to step up. One after the other completed their test. 12,9,11,14,10. None of them went past 15. Soon enough, Kiel was the only one left. Everyone was looking at him expectantly. As if the only thing they were looking forward to at this moment was seeing the pretty boy embarrass himself. Coward. He must suck really badly. Pfft¡­looking pretty must be the only thing he is good at. Can¡¯t be that good looking and be a great mage. Most of them thought that Kiel wasn¡¯t confident in his abilities and didn¡¯t want to embarrass himself. Otherwise, he would have already gone up. They looked at him with varying emotions, ranging from disdain to pity. Kiel sighed inwardly. Since no one could leave before everyone was done, what would be the point of him going up first? He would reveal his prowess and then while he waited, the girls would swarm around him. This way, at least no one bothered him. Kiel stepped forwards and gave Rau his exam pass. After Rau had confirmed its validity, he gave it to Kady and activated the speedometer. ¡°Begin.¡± At the moment Kady placed her hands on the hourglass, Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed. Before she could even put the hourglass back on the table, there were several orbs glowing. In the blink of an eye, the glass orbs, one after the other lit up in such rapid succession that the viewers wouldn¡¯t even be able to tell which orb lit up first if it wasn¡¯t required to lit them up in order. It hasn¡¯t even been two seconds yet when the last orb lit up resplendently. The jelly inside the hourglass boiled up and agitatedly quivered as if trying to break out of the glass. It then slid down the hourglass, not a single drop of jelly remaining in the upper part of the hourglass. The room was enveloped by deathly silence. The jaw of every examinee hit the ground, their eyes so wide they looked like they would pop out of their sockets. Their breaths caught in their throat, they even forgot to breathe. A rare gleam appeared in Kady¡¯s eyes, she nodded approvingly. ¡°Well done. 25/25¡± She scribbled down the score with a wide smile. She was very glad that one of the examinees in her group had the possibility of enrolling. Truthfully, she wasn¡¯t that surprised. She only knew Kiel¡¯s number and not his name, but she could guess exactly who he was. After all, she was a teacher of a certain troublemaker that looked almost identical to the boy in front of her. As she proclaimed the score, the rest of the people seemed to have been shaken awake by her voice. Gasps of shock erupted through the classroom. Followed by exclaims of disbelief. ¡°No way!!¡± ¡°What happened?? I blinked!¡± ¡°What the¡­?!¡± ¡°Monstrous!! He is simply too monstrous!¡± ¡°What¡¯s with that speed?!¡± ¡°He is even better than the teacher!!¡± ¡°A perfect score! It¡¯s a perfect score!!¡± ¡°Who the hell is he?!¡± ¡°A noble! Must be a noble!¡± Some of them couldn¡¯t even control their surprise and ended up swearing. The gaze with which they looked at Kiel instantly changed into a gaze of shock, disbelief, and wonder. They looked at him as if he was a monster. A creature that was in no way similar to them. As if he had walked out of a fairy tale. The girls covered their mouth with their hands, looking at him with fervent gazes. The guys stumbled a step back, cold sweat trickling down their backs. If we ended up in a fight¡­wouldn¡¯t he be able to kill us so fast we wouldn¡¯t even know what happened?! Kiel stood proudly, his face calm, showing no excitement nor glee. At that moment, his flawless bearing could make even his grandfather proud. When one looked at his perfect visage and unequaled grace, there was only one word that could describe him: Cool!! So bloody cool! Clearly, none of these people were nobles. They were merely frogs in a well, unaware that the sky is much larger than what they could see from the bottom of the well. Muni was a place that only geniuses among geniuses were qualified to enter. Geniuses among geniuses ¨C in other words ¨C monsters. If you aren¡¯t a monster, why did you even sign up for the exam? Kady clapped her hands to quieten down the crowd. She smiled brightly and looked at every one of them, her gaze lingering on Kiel longer than the others. ¡°This marks the end of the test. There is one more test later, check out the board in front of the academy for the timeslot and classroom. And everyone, don¡¯t be discouraged. This is only the first test. You¡¯ll still have plenty of opportunities to show your ability.¡± However, her words didn¡¯t seem to achieve the desired effect. That¡¯s right! There are 5 more exams after this. Won¡¯t they be just as hard as this one?! ¡°Before you leave, come here and sign the non-disclosure agreement. It ensures that you won¡¯t divulge the information of the trigger spells used on the exam to anyone, ensuring that no examinee receives a head start.¡± Kady pointed to the pen and stack of papers next to her. One by one, the examinees lined up to sign the arcane contract. After everyone had signed, Rau opened the door of the classroom and motioned for them to get out. Kiel nodded his head towards Kady and Rau politely and made his way towards the exit. As he walked, everyone moved out of his way, not daring to cross paths with him. His manner was dignified and confident, drawing all gazes towards him. His face showed neither arrogance nor coldness. Instead, he wore a heart-stopping smile that could even make men feel embarrassed. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. As soon as he turned the corner, out of their view, he accelerated away down the hall, stopping only when he reached the second story. He didn¡¯t want to give anyone a chance to engage him in conversation. As he reached the second floor, he looked down to the main hall. There were many people occupying the tables and chairs, but as far as he could tell, Elaru wasn¡¯t among them. Her test started even earlier than mine. She should have finished sooner too. He spread his mind over the entire hallways and down to the main hall, yet there was no sign of Elaru. Is she really not done yet? Should I wait for her in front of her classroom? After a bit of hesitation, he decided that waiting in front of her classroom was better than waiting in the main hall. There were more people in the main hall, and the people who were in the same exam group as him would surely come down to the main hall. They might even start fawning over him and asking him for pointers. When he arrived at the second floor, he noticed a group of people impatiently waiting in front of the classroom. ¡°What is taking so long?¡± ¡°Are the teachers running late?¡± ¡°Why hasn¡¯t the exam started yet?¡± Listening to the chatter of the people, he realized that the previous group had not yet left the classroom. Kiel didn¡¯t know why, but suddenly he had a bad feeling. * * * (2 hours earlier) Elaru stared dumbfounded at the two professors that were in charge of her exam. One of them was a redhead in his twenties with spiky hair sticking out everywhere. Both his eyes and several strands of his hair were colored in a warm, honey-yellow. He was wearing white-purple Muni assistant professor official uniform that was very similar to the uniforms the professors wore but a bit less majestic. He introduced himself as Deora Thayn. Yet, the name Elaru associated with him was actually¡­ ¡°Firecracker.¡± She subconsciously blurted out. Her voice wasn¡¯t loud at all, but it seemed like that specific word was a taboo subject. The man¡¯s eyebrow started twitching, and he stopped in the middle of his explanation to shout. ¡°Who said that?!¡± As he abruptly yelled out, examinees jumped up in fright, looking at him in shock. Thayn was one of the 15 great noble families ¨C a family of peacekeepers whose duty was to upkeep the law and ensure the peace and prosperity of the lands of Halnea. They took their job very seriously with unshakable beliefs which earned them the reputation of being hardheaded and stiff. Deora, since he wore the last name of Thayn, certainly belonged to the mainhouse of the Thayn family and not a branch family. So why was his behavior¡­so¡­unlike how a Thayn should behave? In fact, without hearing his name, none of the people present would think he was a noble. He held not a single drop of grace or poise one would expect from a noble. Deora¡¯s eyes almost caught fire, his eyebrow twitching the entire time. His gaze flashed left and right but couldn¡¯t make out who was it that called him by that damnable nickname. The examinees felt a sense of pressure envelop them, which was kind of funny, considering that his angry face looked cute and comical rather than fierce. However, the aura that enveloped them ensured that not a single person dared to utter a single sound. Everyone did their best to not display anything unfavorable on their faces, while inwardly they were unanimously shocked and disturbed: Fierce! Too fierce! What happened?? How did we end up in this situation?! How did such a hotheaded person become a teacher at Muni?! Seeing Deora behaving like a fiery tempered teenager, the other professor decided to interfere, speaking out with a playful tone one would use when talking to a child. ¡°Now, now, little Dei, calm down. No one is calling you a firecracker.¡± As the words rolled off of his tongue, Deora froze in his step, and likewise, the faces of every examinee froze. Oy, oy, why are you provoking him?! Everyone¡¯s gaze fell onto the other teacher ¨C Zerel Reysic. He was an elibu in his thirties with dark purple hair dropping past his shoulders in an uneven way. He wasn¡¯t wearing the same uniform as Deora. Instead, he wore a dark green long robe with many intricate golden and purple patterns. It had wide sleeves and reached almost to the floor looking like a crossover between a kimono and a long coat. His odd attire and hairstyle created a strange harmony, giving him a mischievous yet refined look. Combined with his narrow golden eyes, it made him look like a vulpy or a lunar in a humanoid form. His impish smile gave the finishing touches to that feline lazy yet playful vibe. Reysic was also one of the 15 great noble families. They claimed to be archeologists, historians, and explorers. But everyone referred to them by a different term ¨C treasure hunters. Deora¡¯s heated gaze turned towards Zerel. ¡°What did you just call me?!¡± He pointed his finger towards Zerel, his two eyes like embers. * * * Vulpy is a foxlike creature with large eyes and ears, coupled with many long tails. More tails it has, the more powerful it is. Lunars are catlike creatures with short fur, that have eyes and markings that can glow in the dark. If you picture characters as anime/manga like then I¡¯ve got good news ¨C my drawing tablet has just been fixed: [i]If you picture the characters realistically, then you can picture Zerel as Asian, and Deora as a ginger. On another note, I¡¯ve started sharing my daily ¡°adventures¡± on Facebook and Twitter. You should check it out if you are interested in some writing, Aethernea and cats related humor. Coming up in the next episode: The examinees stood dumbfounded, their mouths gaping open. You two¡­you are nothing like teachers! Who in the name of Origin, let you two supervise the entrance exams?! What are the odds?! How can there be such a large coincidence? Could fate truly exist? Was it dangerous? Very. But when has Elaru Wayvin ever been afraid of danger? In fact, which part of her life wasn¡¯t dangerous? The clapping woke up the examinees from their disbelief, but they still stood there frozen like statues, unsure whether to laugh or cry. What the bloody meep is this?! Stand-up comedy?? Are we supposed to clap too?? He recognized that expression. That sly smile was just the same as his when he was about to dupe someone! Episode 38 – Little Patience In the previous Episode: Kiel shocks everyone with a perfect score on the spellcasting speed exam. After his exam finished, he realizes that Elaru is nowhere to be seen, even though her exam should have finished before his. Two hours earlier, Elaru is dumbfounded by the two professors supervising her exam ¨C Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic. Deora flips out when Zerel calls him a firecracker. Episode 38 ¨C Little Patience Deora¡¯s heated gaze turned towards Zerel. ¡°What did you just call me?!¡± He pointed his finger towards Zerel, his two eyes like embers. Zerel¡¯s vulpine smile didn¡¯t waver at all. ¡°Little Dei?¡± ¡°No! The other thing!¡± Zerel scratched his head feigning ignorance. ¡°Eh? What other thing? I always call you little Dei.¡± Deora¡¯s mouth pressed into a thin line, his eyes flashing dangerously. ¡°Annoying. You are so annoying! Even that way of address is annoying. There isn¡¯t a single part of me that is little!¡± Zerel tilted his head and smiled impishly. ¡°Little patience.¡± All sound in the room stilled at that moment. The examinees didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. Some of them found Zerel¡¯s retort funny, but they didn¡¯t dare laugh. The others were counting their blessings hoping that Deora wouldn¡¯t erupt in flames. Deora didn¡¯t know how to respond to Zerel¡¯s retort. Zerel had always been more proficient in the art of conversation. Since he couldn¡¯t come up with an adequate retort, Deora¡¯s tight lipped expression slowly turned into a pout. ¡°Hmph!¡± He turned back to the examinees, shifting the target of his anger. He scrutinized their faces, trying to determine who spoke earlier. While Deora was glaring left and right, Zerel brought out a pocket watch and checked the time. Then he sighed helplessly. ¡°Little Dei, searching for a miscreant is just, but if we end up running behind schedule because of it, Eri will be very mad at you. He might even punish you.¡± Examinees didn¡¯t know who ¡°Eri¡± was but they nodded their heads nonetheless. That other professor might be just as odd as the hot-tempered redhead, but at least he had some common sense. He was clearly trying to defuse the bomb. ¡°You can search for the miscreant after the test.¡± Zerel added innocently. The examinees stood dumbfounded, their mouths gaping open. You two¡­you are nothing like teachers! Who in the name of Origin, let you two supervise the entrance exams?! Elaru wasn¡¯t among the people with their mouths agape. She had previously heard of both Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic. Both of them could be considered eccentric, but they were also geniuses in their respective fields. Deora was on his way to becoming the youngest Muni professor (as opposed to his current status of an assistant professor), at the gentle age of 23. Although he was an argel, which made him unable to use transmutation magic, he was a master of conjuring and manipulating flames. Which coupled with his short fuse, earned him the nickname ¡°firecracker¡±. Zerel, on the other hand, was an authority on several different topics, from ancient language and culture to survival in the wilderness. He was popularly referred to as a ¡°walking encyclopedia¡±. The mention of ¡°Eri¡± and ¡°punishment¡± seemed to invoke a shiver in Deora, and he quickly changed his demeanor, as if flipping a switch. ¡°Eh?! You are right! We must hurry it up. Can¡¯t keep the next batch waiting!¡± His aura quickly turned more docile, he even retracted it, removing all the pressure from the examinees. His face, however, looked a bit stiff. He quickly turned around and continued explaining right where he left off. This time, his talking speed increased, trying to make up for lost time. While everyone else was concentrating on Deora¡¯s words, Elaru wasn¡¯t paying much attention to what was being said. Her heart thumped excitedly inside her chest as if it was trying to break out. What are the odds?! How can there be such a large coincidence? Could fate truly exist? Her father warned her to lower her performance, to hold back. To avoid drawing too much attention to herself. She had every intention to listen to him. She had. But the current situation wasn¡¯t something she predicted would happen. The probability was less than 1%. She would have downplayed it without a hitch¡­if her examiner was anyone else. But now, downplaying it was no longer the ideal move. To achieve her main goal, she would need to show her worth eventually. However, if she hid it initially, it would only raise more questions later. Was this encounter good or bad luck? For 18 years she had kept to the shadows, stifling her nature, never walking out to the light. Watching everyone rise and spread their names far and wide. Watching them make a difference in the world, while she disappeared into obscurity. She walked in the shadows, yet where she belonged ¨C what she craved, was the light. Elaru clenched her fists, the blood inside her starting to boil. It was time. Time for her to attempt to cross the divide. To shoot up into the stars. To become someone who couldn¡¯t be disregarded. Someone who mattered. Was it dangerous? Very. But when has Elaru Wayvin ever been afraid of danger? In fact, which part of her life wasn¡¯t dangerous? Elaru Wayvin wasn¡¯t the type of person who let opportunities slip her by. Her eyes glowed with fiery light like two bright suns. That¡¯s right! This is the true me. I am Elaru Wayvin and I live my life without regrets! These exams were exactly the opportunity she needed. If she didn¡¯t take it, she would forever regret it. Yet, if fate weren¡¯t playing tricks on her, she wouldn¡¯t have remembered who she was. Her aura burned and intensified, if anyone were to come close to it, they would be enveloped by incredible pressure. If anyone¡¯s mind were to touch it, they would receive a shock. If I¡¯m going out, I¡¯ll go out in flames! I¡¯ll show them exactly who Elaru Wayvin truly is! The change in her own aura didn¡¯t escape her notice. Quickly, decisively, she wrapped her Mind around her tighter, leaving only a few small openings in her cocoon, so that her aura wouldn¡¯t disappear completely. It seemed like she managed to conceal it in time. No one seemed to notice the change. She looked up towards Zerel Reysic and for a moment their eyes met. If her eyesight wasn¡¯t even better than the eyesight of an argel, she might have missed a slight gleam in his eyes. He noticed it! Beside the quickly vanishing gleam, Zerel showed no change in his expression. He still held a sly yet disinterested smile on his face. Elaru¡¯s eyes darted toward Deora who was animatedly explaining the details of the test. Just as she looked at him, he seemed to have finished with his explanation. ¡°Watch and learn!¡± Exclaimed Deora full of confidence and pride. He was about to demonstrate how the testing equipment was used. He intertwined his fingers and stretched out his arms as if stretching would improve his magic casting. His eyes focused, all expressions other than deep concentration vanishing from his face. Suddenly, in a blink of an eye, one orb after the other lit up brightly. Before anyone could realize what was going on or exclaim in surprise, the last orb lit up like the sun, and no traces of the jelly remained in the upper part of the hourglass. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. The examinees looked on with disbelief, their mouths open so wide they could have caught a tiwi. Their mind spun with shock. What happened??? Holy baffamoot!! A perfect score?! It¡¯s a perfect score! Even such a simpleminded person can have such a fast casting speed?! What have I been doing my whole life?? Everyone was shocked into silence. Zerel was the first to break the quiet with soft clapping. With a voice still as mischievous as always, making it hard to figure out whether he was praising Deora or mocking him, he exclaimed: ¡°Way to go little Dei. Cool! That was so cool.¡± Deora, on the other hand, didn¡¯t seem to have the mental capacity to question the intent behind Zerel¡¯s words, and his chest puffed out in pride. The clapping woke up the examinees from their disbelief, but they still stood there frozen like statues, unsure whether to laugh or cry. What the bloody meep is this?! Stand-up comedy?? Are we supposed to clap too?? Deora looked at the shocked faces of the examinees, pleased with himself. His gaze lingered longer on Elaru, his expression clearly saying ¡°Did you see that? Did you see? I am awesome!¡± Elaru swallowed the laughter that threatened to emerge and gave him a thumbs up followed by a wide grin. One had to hand it to her ¨C her beautiful smiles had the power to light up the entire room. It wasn¡¯t a wonder that her action made Deora puff out his chest even further, glowing with pride. Self-satisfied, he nodded a few times before smugly remarking: ¡°Don¡¯t be discouraged, everyone. We don¡¯t expect you to have a perfect score. It is impossible for you to compare to me, I am a genius after all. So don¡¯t worry about it.¡± He crossed his arms in front of his chest in an attempt to look domineering and grand. ¡°Right. Now I¡¯ll teach you the trigger spell for these balls.¡± He opened his arms wide, and suddenly the stack of papers and orbs that were on the teacher¡¯s table flew out. One paper and orb reaching every examinee. Zerel just sat leisurely, in the same position with the same soft smile, not attempting to take the spotlight in the slightest. If Deora wanted to do everything himself, why would he stop him? It would be even better if he didn¡¯t need to lift a finger. It was a win-win situation. ¡°Those papers contain the trigger spell pattern. And those balls I gave you are the same as the ones used in the test. Use them to practice.¡± Deora waited a few seconds making sure everyone¡¯s attention returned to him before continuing. ¡°I¡¯ll now demonstrate the trigger spell three times. Only three times! So watch carefully.¡± As he proceeded to demonstrate, one had to admit, although Deora looked to be an airhead, his demonstration was flawless. It was slow and detailed. It made everyone¡¯s opinion of him rise. He might be hot tempered, but his teaching wasn¡¯t bad at all. After repeating the spell three times, Deora declared: ¡°You have 5 minutes to practice. After that, you won¡¯t be allowed to continue practicing. Otherwise, those who take the test last would have more time to practice, which would put them in a more favorable position. We can¡¯t have that.¡± He looked at every face in the room, stopping a few more seconds on Elaru. After all, she was much more pleasant to look at than the rest. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± He didn¡¯t wait for long before saying. ¡°Alright then, let¡¯s b¡­¡± ¡°Wait, wait! I have a question!¡± Suddenly an arm rose and started waving left and right, asking for attention. Deora¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°What is it?¡± He asked with a pout. Elaru¡¯s eyes glittered mischievously as she asked. ¡°Are we allowed to chain the trigger spells?¡± Spell chaining was weaving multiple independent spells into a single spell. When a spell chain was finished casting and activated, the spells in the chain wouldn¡¯t all activate at the same time. They would activate sequentially, one after the other. The delay between consecutive activations was determined by the length of the bridges between the spells. If the trigger spells could be chained, Elaru would just create a large spell chain made out of 20 trigger spells and then activate the spell chain. Weaving a spell chain would be slower than weaving 20 trigger spells independently, but the apparatus would only start the test when the first trigger spell is cast on it. Which means that the amount of time taken to weave the first trigger isn¡¯t counted in the test. As long as the delay between activation of the first trigger spell and the other 19 was fast, it wouldn¡¯t matter if one took hours to weave the first trigger. So if the time taken to weave the first spell isn¡¯t counted in the test, Elaru could weave a chain that would result in sequential activation of 20 trigger spells. This way her spellcasting speed would be irrelevant, yet she could cheat the speedometer to display the highest score. Deora stared at her blankly for a few seconds before bursting out laughing. ¡°That would be convenient, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± He looked at her disdainfully with a smirk. He was very tempted to say ¡°Sure! I¡¯d like to see you chain it!¡± since it would be a futile effort. The trigger spells were designed to not be chainable. However, in the end, he refrained from saying that because the rules clearly stated that chaining was forbidden. ¡°The next thing you are going to ask is if you are allowed to prepare the spells!¡± Deora chuckled and looked at Elaru provocatively. Other examinees looked at Elaru as if she was a comedian. Disdainful smirks and pitying gazes were sent her way. Yet no one noticed the sly gleam in her eyes. Naturally, Elaru knew that chaining wasn¡¯t allowed. Her question had another purpose in mind. ¡°Of course, I wouldn¡¯t ask that. You have clearly stated that spell preparation isn¡¯t allowed.¡± Elaru smiled mischievously. As Zerel saw that smile his eyes lit up. He recognized that expression. That sly smile was just the same as his when he was about to dupe someone! * * * The next episode is going to be hilarious. I advise you not to read it in public places as you might end up bursting out laughing out loud. You have been warned. Coming up in the next episode: If other examinees weren¡¯t too busy with their own practice, they would have laughed at her and mocked her. Deora chuckled. If my weaving was as terrible as hers, I¡¯d stop to ponder the meaning of life too. Deora stood frozen with his face a mix of shock, bewilderment, and fright. His mouth was agape, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. His arms stood rigidly up in the air, attempting to shield his face. The people in the room almost fell to the floor. Shameless!! As if anyone would believe that! He looked up at Elaru, his eyebrow violently twitching. ¡°OUT!! Everyone out!!!!¡± He pointed with a shaking finger towards the door and screamed furiously. Episode 39 - Past expiration date In the previous Episode: Elaru decides not to hold back and to show everyone her true power. For mysterious reasons, she asks Deora a ¡°stupid question¡± that causes him to make fun of her. Episode 39 ¨C Past expiration date ¡°Of course, I wouldn¡¯t ask that. You have clearly stated that spell preparation isn¡¯t allowed.¡± Elaru smiled mischievously. As Zerel saw that smile his eyes lit up. He recognized that expression. That sly smile was just the same as his when he was about to dupe someone! ¡°Oh? Good that you were paying attention.¡± Deora humphed. ¡°Any other questions?¡± He asked just for the sake of asking, he didn¡¯t expect anyone to respond. His face fell when Elaru¡¯s hand rose up in the air again. ¡°Would altering the trigger spell be allowed? As long as we are able to activate the testing equipment, it shouldn¡¯t matter what trigger spell we use, right?¡± Trigger spells were made up spells that had no function. Anything could be a trigger spell. You could draw a flower or write a swear word with dense mana and turn it into a trigger spell. Those bogus spells didn¡¯t do anything when cast. The reason why they could activate a magical artifact was purely because the artifact was enchanted to respond to a specific bogus spell. A trigger spell was like a password. The magical artifact would respond only to the correct password. Deora¡¯s mouth twitched. Is this girl an idiot? If you change the password, of course it won¡¯t activate! Why would you even change it? It makes no sense! If Elaru asked this straight away, Deora would have questioned the purpose of the question and eventually explained the impossibility. However, her previous question didn¡¯t leave a good impression on Deora, making him think that the redhead was all beauty and no brain. He thought that explaining it would be a waste of time, that it would be interesting if the girl actually tried changing the trigger. It would elevate his sour mood and entertain him. He smirked tauntingly. ¡°Sure. Go ahead.¡± Zerel¡¯s face revealed a wry smile, but he said nothing. Technically, there was no rule against changing the trigger spell. In fact, everyone would make slight modifications to the spell while learning how to cast it to make the spellcasting faster. However, this wasn¡¯t categorized as changing the trigger spell, it was simply writing it in a different handwriting. Theoretically speaking, if someone activated the testing equipment with a different trigger, the speedometer would no longer be able to accurately judge the casting speed because it wasn¡¯t tuned for that specific trigger spell. Therefore, although there wasn¡¯t a rule against it and the possibility of it happening was non-existent, Deora shouldn¡¯t have allowed it. ¡°Any other questions?¡± Deora spoke through gritted teeth, his head turning left and right, daring anyone to speak up again. No one had any questions, but even if they did, they wouldn¡¯t dare say anything. ¡°Alright, those 5 minutes start now! Go!¡± He flicked his hand towards the hourglass on Zerel¡¯s desk, and it flipped to the other side as if flipped by an invisible hand. Examinees fervently started casting the trigger over and over. Yet, Elaru did something completely baffling ¨C she closed her eyes and didn¡¯t cast anything. If other examinees weren¡¯t too busy with their own practice, they would have laughed at her and mocked her. However, since they had little time to waste on such a stupid girl, they disregarded her actions. Deora, on the other hand, had plenty of time, and he almost burst out laughing. What is she doing? Don¡¯t tell me she is analyzing the trigger spell in attempts to change it? Or is she analyzing the enchantment on the glass orbs? If Deora weren¡¯t afraid of his laughter disturbing the other examinees, he would have been the first one to burst out laughing and pointing at her as if she was a clown. Zerel still had a smiling expression, but no laziness or boredom could be seen in his smile. Instead, what the minute change of expression revealed was pondering. His understanding of enchantments and magical artifacts was much higher than Deora¡¯s. In fact, he even authored several books on the subject of ancient enchantments and magical artifacts. Is she doing what I think she is doing? Several minutes passed without Elaru casting a single spell. Soon, there were less than two minutes remaining. Suddenly, Elaru¡¯s eyes snapped open, and she started casting spells. Deora chuckled. Finally, she gave up and started practicing the trigger spell like the rest. Suddenly, his eyes widened, and he stopped chuckling. Fast! Her spells were cast so quickly that he couldn¡¯t even catch what it was that she was casting. Yet, what baffled him, even more, was that she made a large pause between each spell. As if she wasn¡¯t satisfied with what she cast and had to ponder how to improve it. If she didn¡¯t make the pause, she could possibly even reach his speed. But with the pauses, her speed was abysmal. Deora chuckled. If my weaving was as terrible as hers, I¡¯d stop to ponder the meaning of life too. The spells that she cast couldn¡¯t even light up the ball. Deora attributed it to bad weaving. Half a minute passed, and Deora was more and more astonished. Even an idiot would have learned how to weave the trigger by now! It was specifically designed to be very easy to learn and weave. Yet her balls still aren¡¯t lighting up! How did she ever hope to enroll in Muni with such abysmal weaving?? When there was only one minute of sand left in the hourglass, suddenly the ball in Elaru¡¯s hand started lighting up. Better late than never. Deora shook his head in pity. Her pauses between spells decreased. However, it still wasn¡¯t enough to compare to his speed. When the last grain of sand trickled through, Deora immediately commanded: ¡°Stop! 5 minutes are up!¡± When his words fell, everyone without exception stopped weaving. No one wanted to lit up this firecracker. Deora waved his hands and all papers and balls in the hands of examinees flew back to the teacher¡¯s desk. He then looked at every examinee, as if trying to decide who¡¯ll take the test first. His face suddenly spread into an evil grin that didn¡¯t suit him at all, making him look funny. ¡°You!¡± He pointed his finger towards Elaru. ¡°Come on up and take the exam.¡± He wasn¡¯t a patient person, so he wanted to enjoy the entertainment right away. He was looking forward to seeing what speed the redhead could achieve. Elaru didn¡¯t hesitate for a second, smiling happily with steady graceful steps she went up to take the exam. She handed him her exam pass. When Deora saw the number written on the pass he looked at it dumbfounded for several seconds. Didn¡¯t I choose this batch of 20 because it would include this number? I thought it would be cool. Those three digits represented the duration of the Great Mage Wars. After the wars, the number was taken as a sign of bad fate ¨C death, danger or simply bad luck. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. He shook his head and proceeded to inspect the validity of the exam pass before he flicked it towards Zerel. Zerel lazily caught it and found her exam papers among the ones in front of him. ¡°Begin.¡± Deora grinned widely and again, flipped the hourglass upside down without touching it. As Elaru reached the speedometer, she placed her palms on the table and leaned towards the center of the apparatus, coming as close to it as she could. ¡°Are you going to show us that altered spell you spoke of?¡± Deora taunted, making sure everyone remembered her previous ignorant words. Instead of the embarrassed reaction he expected, Elaru gave him a brilliant smile, that made his heart skip a beat. ¡°Yeah.¡± She nodded. Deora was clueless as to how to respond. Elaru started casting, and Deora just blinked in confusion. Big mistake. When Deora¡¯s eyes opened next, the last ball had just been lit. His one blink caused him to miss out on seeing what happened. All 20 glass orbs glowed brightly like suns, the hourglass heated up, the jelly inside starting to boil. Before anyone could question what happened, before anyone could gape in shock, the jelly changed color into red looking similar to lava and started producing a sizzling sound. However, it failed to pass through the bottleneck of the hourglass. That¡¯s because the extreme heat made the glass of the hourglass crack and shatter in an instant. The burning jelly splattered and sprayed everywhere! It sprayed over the glass balls which were still glowing, melting small holes through them, making them flicker out like dying candles. It fell over the cables, completely melting through them, disconnecting the balls from one another. It even splattered over the table and the floor, creating holes on the wooden table and carpet. The extreme heat even caused the carpet to burst into flames. And worst of all, it splattered all over Deora who was standing the closest to the hourglass. No, that wasn¡¯t the worst part. The worst part was that the culprit behind this incident seemed to have expected something to happen because she stepped back from the proximity of the table just in time. Deora stood frozen with his face a mix of shock, bewilderment, and fright. His mouth was agape, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. His arms stood rigidly up in the air, attempting to shield his face. And as if that picture wasn¡¯t comical enough, the splattering jelly made holes over his pants and shirt making him look like a beggar. Well¡­a beggar on fire¡­cause his clothes caught fire. The only upside to the whole ordeal was that Deora always had a self-sustained heat isolation enchantment on his own body so the flames didn¡¯t burn him. This was because he had a habit of setting himself on fire when he was trying to be intimidating or when he was mad. However, the clothes he was currently wearing weren¡¯t fireproof like his usual attire. This was the uniform given to him by the university to wear on the exams. Every professor and assistant professor got one. The examinees were deathly quiet, with their mouths wide open, looking like they¡¯ve just seen a ghost. Excited clapping broke the deathly quiet of the situation. ¡°Bravo! 25/25! Your speed was so fast you even broke the equipment.¡± Zerel spoke in a mischievous voice that suddenly made Elaru¡¯s face twist into horror.Frakkidy frakk! She wanted to show off, but she had no intention of breaking the artifact! They wouldn¡¯t disqualify her for that, would they? Quick! Shift the blame! She scratched her head sheepishly. ¡°Ah¡­your equipment is past its expiration date.¡± The people in the room almost fell to the floor. Shameless!! As if anyone would believe that! Deora¡¯s face started morphing, from shock to fury. His face reddened, coupled with his red hair, making him look like a tomato. As he looked down at the sorry state of his clothes, as he looked at the even more sorry state of the speedometer and the fire spreading across the carpet, his hands started shaking. He looked up at Elaru, his eyebrow violently twitching. ¡°OUT!! Everyone out!!!!¡± He pointed with a shaking finger towards the door and screamed furiously. As soon as he bellowed, the fire flickering on his body started spreading more rapidly. His aura intensified, enveloping the entire room with intense pressure. He looked like a demon, his whole body on fire, his face distorted in fury. The flames flickering all around him, on the carpet and speedometer. Elaru was the first to dart through the door. Her action woke everyone up, and they galloped towards the door like a herd of wild beasts. Pale-faced, they pulled and pushed each other chaotically, frantically. Some people tripped and got stepped on. The heel one female was wearing even snapped making her unceremoniously tumble to the ground, before she quickly scampered to her feet and hopped towards the exit, leaving her broken heel behind. For the first time, Zerel got up from his seat. ¡°Calm down little Dei. Everything will be just fine. You¡¯re not hurt, are you?¡± ¡°Of course, I am not hurt!! As if this measly liquid could even be compared to the heat of my fire!!¡± Deora roared out. But just after the roar, he seemed to realize a problem he failed to take into account. His clothes weren¡¯t heat resistant, and in the fit of rage, he even accelerated the spread of the fire. Soon there was little left of his clothes. Zerel looked at the baby smooth skin in front of him and smirked. ¡°I was about to say, I¡¯d fix the holes on your clothes but¡­¡± He motioned towards the butt naked Deora. ¡°The hole that big, I can¡¯t fix.¡± Suddenly he seemed to realize a hidden joke in his words, and he started giggling like a little girl. That seemed to be the last straw and Deora completely ignited the flames on his body with a loud snarl. * * * Oh, wait. I made a mistake. While this episode is indeed funny, when I warned you guys at the end of the last chapter to not read it in public, I was actually referring to the happenings in the next episode. :P On another note: XD Speechless¡­ Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Careful you¡¯ll break¡­¡± Crash! ¡°¡­never mind.¡± However, there was one statement in the rules that could be used to disqualify her ¨C ¡°We retain the right to disqualify any examinees that cause intentional damage to the university property.¡± The friendly looking boy grinned widely, his warm brown eyes glittering. He extended his hand towards Elaru. ¡°Arion. Arion Urwin.¡± Deora pointed his finger to Zerel accusingly. ¡°I am telling on you! Wait until Eri¡­I mean¡­principal Eruan hears about it.¡± ¡°Who wants your underwear?!?!¡± Episode 40 – Alternate Trigger In the previous Episode: Elaru dupes Deora into allowing the usage of alternate triggers in the test. He makes Elaru go up first and take the test. Elaru manages to cast the trigger spells so quickly that the speedometer becomes unable to take the heat. The hourglass filled with jelly cracks from the heat, spraying hot jelly all over the speedometer, carpet, and Deora, setting them on fire. Deora flips out, igniting his own flames, and kicks out the examinees from the room. Since his clothes weren¡¯t fireproof, they get disintegrated by the flames. Episode 40 ¨C Alternate Trigger Luckily, all of the examinees had retreated from the classroom and loudly closed the door even before Deora¡¯s clothes completely disintegrated. One-third of the examinees ran away from Red Quarters, completely abandoning the exam. The remaining examinees were hesitant to leave because that would most likely be the end of their dream of enrolling into Muni. As they heard the sounds of stuff breaking inside the classroom, more and more of them retreated further away in alarm. All throughout their retreat they could hear noises and Zerel¡¯s playful voice coming from the room: ¡°Don¡¯t be mad little Dei. We¡¯ll get you a new uniform.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the carpet. The room looks better without it. The carpet makes it look too¡­red.¡± ¡°Careful you¡¯ll break¡­¡± Crash! ¡°¡­never mind.¡± ¡°Oh wait! I have a great idea little Dei! You can use those curtains to cover yourself up.¡± ¡°No. Don¡¯t come any closer. You¡¯ll set the curtains on¡­¡± ¡°Not to worry little Dei. They were red anyway, no one will notice if they are a bit burnt.¡± With every crash, the examinees cringed and took a step back. They looked at Elaru with hate, blame, distress and hopelessness in their eyes. Elaru shrugged her shoulders, smiling wryly. ¡°It¡¯s not my fault he is a firecracker.¡± As a response to her words, a furious bellow erupted within the room. ¡°What did you just call me?!?¡± The examinees shivered. What a good hearing! It¡¯s like he is an elibu! Elaru didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. This whole event quickly went out of control. When she decided to crack the spell she had no idea that the glass wouldn¡¯t be able to take the heat. She might have a lot of knowledge in various areas, but the breaking temperature of glass wasn¡¯t among it. And even if it were, she still wouldn¡¯t have known what exact temperature the glass would reach when she used the artifact. So how could she possibly predict that her attempt at showing off would end this badly? Only when the glass shattered did she realize the danger and her monstrous reaction speed kicked in making her dodge the hot jelly. Elaru sighed. If this accident didn¡¯t happen, she would be explaining her brilliance right now. Explaining how she activated the artifact with a different trigger spell than the one they were given. To make an artifact react to a trigger spell, the enchantment on the artifact needed to recognize the trigger spell. And there were only two ways of making a spell recognize another spell. The first way was to contain a copy of the trigger spell pattern within the main spell. The main spell would just compare the copy inside of it with the one cast outside. If it were similar enough, the main spell would activate. It would be like giving the spell an apple and saying ¡°If you see anything that looks like this ¨C activate.¡± The spell would hold that apple and when another fruit appears it would look down at the apple in its hands and compare the new fruit to it. This method was the simpler and more commonly used method. However, it had a drawback ¨C a mage could inspect the main spell to figure out how the trigger spell should look like. (Everyone can see the apple the spell was holding and deduce ¡°Oh! I should bring an apple!¡±) What if the magical artifact was important? What if no one besides its owner should be able to activate it? In such a scenario, the second method was used. Instead of including the trigger in the main spell, the main spell is given a unique way to recognize the trigger spell in which the main spell doesn¡¯t know how the trigger looks like, but it would be able to recognize the trigger if it appeared. It would be like telling the spell ¡°If you see a fruit, bake it first and then add sugar and spice. If it tastes similar to this, then activate.¡± When someone inspected such a spell, he would see the recipe and how the end result should taste like, but he wouldn¡¯t be able to see the main ingredient ¨C the trigger spell. Because of the complicated cooking procedure, in the end, it would be hard to recognize that the finished dish was once an apple. However, what if someone managed to find a pear that when cooked had a similar taste to an apple? The spell, which recognizes based on taste, wouldn¡¯t know that it was given a pear and not an apple. If it tastes similar, it is the trigger. In such a scenario, the main spell would wrongly recognize the pear as an apple and activate. This was exactly the way Elaru duped the testing apparatus. Each year, Muni staff would dispel the old enchantment on the speedometer and enchant it with a new one that had a different trigger spell. That way, the people taking the exam couldn¡¯t practice the last year¡¯s trigger spell and use it to ace the exam. The new trigger spell needed to stay a secret until the exam. And naturally, since the trigger needed to stay a secret, they had to use the second method. This was never a problem because finding an alternate trigger spell wasn¡¯t something that was easy to do ¨C rather, usually it took years of research, sometimes even decades were needed to decipher the activation trigger of a magic artifact. However, how could all those other magic breakers compare to someone who possessed Aethernea of Sight? It was like a bunch of people smelling the apple pie without being able to take a bite, yet trying to make a pear pie that tasted exactly like that apple pie. How could they make a similar pie if they didn¡¯t know how it tasted like? Granted, Aethernea of Sight wasn¡¯t enough. One also needed to have a vast experience and familiarity towards¡­fruit. Creativity and intelligence were also important qualities. When brought together into a single body ¨C what was born out of it was the ultimate magic breaker. Someone who could not only break spells, but also crack them ¨C exploit a flaw in the spell to their own benefit. When Elaru first saw the spell, she already had a few ideas about the possible trigger. The reason why she dared to gamble was 1) because she thought 5 minutes would be enough for her to find and alternate trigger and 2) because she was sure that the alternate trigger was actually easier to weave than the real trigger. If she had used the trigger they were given, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to reach such a high weaving speed. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Alas, that high speed was useless if it ended getting her disqualified. She duped Deora into giving her his permission to use an alternate trigger, and since there weren¡¯t any specific rules in the exam forbidding it, they wouldn¡¯t have enough ground on which to disqualify her. However, there was one statement in the rules that could be used to disqualify her ¨C ¡°We retain the right to disqualify any examinees that cause intentional damage to the university property.¡± Elaru sighed once again and looked around her. All other examinees in her vicinity avoided her like the plague, refusing to come in a 3-meter radius. Either they were worried they too would feel Deora¡¯s wrath if they associated with her, or they felt uncomfortable around a person who could have such an abnormal casting speed as to break a speed testing equipment, or maybe they just plainly hated her because she ruined the exams. Either way, there was a wide circle of emptiness in every direction. As she looked around, there was one person in the crowd who didn¡¯t mirror the worried, nervous and hostile faces of others. He was an argel with a boy next door vibe ¨C cute looking, but couldn¡¯t be called very handsome. He had light brown hair with blonde highlights that reached his ears and wore a plaid shirt. His face contorted comically, his body shaking with suppressed laughter. It only took a few seconds for him to become unable to endure and burst out laughing. He clutched his stomach painfully, laughing so hard that it hurt. In the midst of his laughter, he looked over at Elaru, their eyes meeting. Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched, and she joined him, laughing musically. The other examinees looked at them as if they were freaks, stepping away from the boy too, as if he had just caught whatever Elaru was infected with. That only made the two laugh harder, until tears came out from the corners of their eyes. By the time their laughter died down, they were sitting on the floor in front of the classroom, leaning against the railing. The friendly looking boy grinned widely, his warm brown eyes glittering. He extended his hand towards Elaru. ¡°Arion. Arion Urwin.¡± Elaru shook his hand, her face mimicking his own grin. ¡°Elaru. Elaru Wayvin.¡± * * * In a room which looked like it just went through a firestorm, with carpet and curtains completely burned into piles of ashes and scattered pieces of chairs and tables loitered around messily, Deora sat on the floor panting. He didn¡¯t bother to cover up his family jewels. His body was perfect, he had nothing to be ashamed of since Zerel was also a straight guy. Zerel stood to his side, avoiding looking in Deora¡¯s naked direction and patting him awkwardly on the shoulders. ¡°There¡­there¡­¡± Deora¡¯s voice came out in rasps, full of misery. ¡°What do¡­we do¡­now? The room¡­trashed¡­the testing equipment¡­broken¡­I¡¯ve got¡­no clothes¡­¡± He should have thought about it earlier, before he went berserk and tried to beat up Zerel. It was a horrible idea. That guy was way too slippery and sly for him to contend with. ¡°Aha!¡± Zerel suddenly exclaimed, pointing his finger up. ¡°Not to worry little Dei! Look at what I saved you.¡± He flicked his wide sleeves, revealing a piece of red cloth that seemed to have previously been a part of the curtain. ¡°Look. It¡¯s not even burned.¡± Deora barred his teeth at Zerel. ¡°Are you trying to piss me off?!? Just give me your coat! You have another layer of clothes under, don¡¯t you?!¡± Zerel jumped away from Deora in alarm, for the first time looking at him like he was a dangerous creature. ¡°No way! Do you have any idea how expensive this was?¡± ¡°Why aren¡¯t you wearing the school uniform?!?¡± Deora almost breathed fire. ¡°What uniform?¡± Zerel feigned ignorance. ¡°The one we got for the exams!¡± Deora tried stomping his feet, but since he was sitting, it didn¡¯t produce the desired effect. ¡°I didn¡¯t get anything.¡± Zerel shrugged. ¡°Must have gotten lost in the mail.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t sent in the mail! You were supposed to pick it up from madam Rosling!¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t have my size.¡± Zerel blinked innocently. As if! Madam Rosling used transmutation magic to adjust the size of the clothing! All clothes were the right size after she was done with them. Deora pointed his finger to Zerel accusingly. ¡°I am telling on you! Wait until Eri¡­I mean¡­principal Eruan hears about it.¡± Zerel face displayed mock horror. ¡°Noooes! Eri is too scary when he is mad!¡± He paused and then smirked. ¡°Oh well¡­by the time he is done punishing you, he would have forgotten about me.¡± Deora¡¯s shoulders sagged, he seemed to be on the verge of tears. Zerel patted him on his shoulders comfortingly again. ¡°How about this? I¡¯ll keep the coat and let you have my underwear.¡± ¡°Who wants your underwear?!?!¡± * * * Patreon support of Aethernea has now reached 196$ per month. Holy baffamoot! Aethernea Patrons are incredibly awesome people! <3 <3 Do you know what will happen when support reaches 200$? That¡¯s right ¨C everyone will get an extra episode! For all of you guys that don¡¯t know about the benefits of supporting Aethernea, I¡¯ll just list some patron benefits quickly: and, ofc, more support Aethernea gets, more time I can allocate to write it and therefore more episodes would be released for everyone. Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you that told her that using an alternate trigger spell was allowed? Are you going to take back your own words?¡± He got the urge to turn around and walk away, but before he could do so, Elaru spotted him and animatedly started waving her hand in his direction. Kiel looked back up to the boy, whose eager expression reminded Kiel of a pup, ears perking up, tail wagging excitedly. ¡°Your girlfriend is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.¡± Both Elaru and Kiel responded to the question simultaneously. Unfortunately, their answers didn¡¯t match. ¡°Oy, Elaru. You brought him along. Now find a way to get rid of him.¡± Episode 41 - Urwin In the previous Episode: While Elaru is waiting for Deora and Zerel to resume the exam, she meets Arion Urwin, who unlike the other examinees, holds no hostility towards her. Deora¡¯s clothes have been burned away leaving him naked. Before he can resume the exam, he needs to be clothed, and a replacement speedometer needs to be found. Episode 41 ¨C Urwin * * * * * * Damn right! I want interest on the time I wasted. Wait¡­she did what?! What the¡­? Is he making fun of me? Or did that really happen? ¡°What really happened?¡± Kiel could no longer endure, and he sent his telepathic demand for Elaru to explain. Her response was simple: ¡°Actually, everything happened exactly as he said¡­¡± ¡°What. Did. You. Do?!¡± ¡°How did you break the speedometer?!¡± ¡°Naturally, I was too fast¡­¡± The statement wasn¡¯t false, it indeed broke because of her speed. But of course, she didn¡¯t elaborate the reason why she managed to reach that speed. Abnormal! You are too abnormal! From which world did you come from?! Urwin. Urwin. Hmmm¡­ None of your business¡­ Kiel grumbled inwardly. ¡°What? Those were your words, not mine.¡± She responded, her eyes glittering impishly. Three days ago, when he realized he was stuck with her, he did mention something of the sorts. Why, oh, why did you have to break a speedometer in the presence of an Urwin?! What flawless execution! Could this be considered an Urwin family secret skill? ¡°Nice save! You didn¡¯t even lie. I see you are catching on what I meant when I talked about lying with truth.¡± She winked at him. Is this an interview, or is it that you usually never shut up? * * * Coming up in the next episode: Elaru¡¯s eyes suddenly glittered mischievously. ¡°Don¡¯t you want to show everyone how awesome you are? What better way than to be featured in the Sibyl? If you made friends with an Urwin, you¡¯d more easily get featured as a new rising star mage.¡± When Elaru put down her gravity crystals, his thrill turned into awe: ¡°Holy baffamoot! Can you be more awesome? What are you going to pull up next? A picnic basket? Darn¡­suddenly I feel hungry.¡± Kady Ailert looked at the examinees smilingly. ¡°I hope you got some rest and are now ready for the second exam. As you might already know, the second exam tests your mana control a.k.a. weaving.¡± When the words left her mouth, all gazes converged on to Kiel. Episode 42 – Mana Control Exam Start! In the previous Episode: After finishing the exam, Elaru and Arion meet Kiel. Kiel doesn¡¯t like Arion while Arion seems clueless of the fact and acts overly friendly with the duo. Episode 42 ¨C Mana Control Exam Start! Elaru smirked and retorted with: ¡°That¡¯s a secret. Let¡¯s just say¡­I know Kiel better than anyone.¡± She winked again. This time, Kiel wasn¡¯t sure whether it was to him or Arion. Either way, her statement left him speechless. Unfortunate but true. Only then did he realize how wrong it was for a person who he met 3 days ago to actually be the closest one to him. He didn¡¯t even like the girl, and she was already the closest thing to a friend or family he had. This was¡­miserable¡­wasn¡¯t it? He quickly turned around and asked in hopes of interrupting the barrage of questions. ¡°Shall we go?¡± He motioned towards the staircase. They had no reason to continue chatting in front of the classroom. Elaru and Arion nodded, and the three of them started walking towards the exit. To steer the conversation off of his relationship with Elaru, Kiel spoke up. ¡°Did you do well on your first test?¡± Luckily, Arion seemed to bite: ¡°Not as well as Elaru. But I guess it was fine.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Don¡¯t let his easygoing manner fool you. Other than me, his score was the highest in our group.¡± Elaru added. ¡°Oh?¡± Kiel smiled. ¡°Congratulations.¡± Arion smiled widely and spoke humbly. ¡°I¡¯m not that good really. I should be able to pass the exams, but I¡¯ll probably be somewhere in the middle. Nothing to brag about.¡± ¡°Passing the exams is already something to brag about.¡± Kiel smiled warmly, while inside he was cursing. It wouldn¡¯t be good if he passed. He is obviously overly friendly and doesn¡¯t know when to take a hike. What would I do if he used us knowing each other as an excuse to associate with me in the future? I don¡¯t know if he is ignorant or thick-skinned. ¡°Oy, Elaru. You brought him along. Now find a way to get rid of him.¡± Elaru chuckled telepathically. ¡°What? You don¡¯t like him? I think he is amusing.¡± ¡°He is a chatterbox that keeps asking endless questions and acting too familiar. He is also an Urwin. Enough said.¡± Kiel expected Elaru to ask him what he meant by that. However, surprisingly, it looked like she actually knew what kind of business the Urwins ran. ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t make hasty judgments on someone¡¯s personality based on their family name. Would you want people to group you together with your grandfather or brother?¡± Touch¨¦. Inwardly, Kiel frowned, however, his outwards expression didn¡¯t change in the slightest. ¡°Him being an Urwin is just an additional minus point. His behavior is the main issue.¡± ¡°Why is being friendly a bad thing? Afraid you¡¯d actually gain a friend for the first time?¡± Kiel sent her a glare when Arion wasn¡¯t looking. Elaru chuckled silently. ¡°I hate to break it to you Kiel, but based on what I¡¯ve seen, he will most certainly pass the exams. Since we¡¯ll be attending the same university, making friends early would be beneficial.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve already made friends. Now is the time to part ways.¡± Kiel looked at Arion, who was clueless to their inner communication. ¡°How about you Kiel? Do you mind me calling you Kiel? How did your exam go?¡± Arion steered the conversation back to Kiel. How else would you call me besides using my name? Before Kiel could respond, Arion added. ¡°The acquaintance of this little monster and a Rroda.¡± He smirked towards Elaru. ¡°You must be much better than me.¡± Kiel smiled and modestly replied. ¡°Of course, we are future fellow students, you can call me Kiel. The exam went better than expected but that isn¡¯t to say that the rest will go the same way.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes suddenly glittered mischievously, she continued her internal conversation with Kiel. ¡°Don¡¯t you want to show everyone how awesome you are? What better way than to be featured in the Sibyl? If you made friends with an Urwin, you¡¯d more easily get featured as a new rising star mage.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Nice try. Why don¡¯t you try getting featured and see how that goes? Rather than being featured as a rising star, you¡¯d be featured as a clown who broke the speedometer.¡± ¡°Hey! I didn¡¯t break it because of incompetency. It broke because it couldn¡¯t contain my greatness. No shame there.¡± The three made their way out of Red Quarters into the courtyard full of greenery. They found a nice, secluded spot under a tree and sat down on Elaru¡¯s spidersilk blanket.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Needless to say, Arion was thrilled to see her blanket. ¡°Aww man! That is so awesome!¡± When Elaru put down her gravity crystals, his thrill turned into awe: ¡°Holy baffamoot! Can you be more awesome? What are you going to pull up next? A picnic basket? Darn¡­suddenly I feel hungry.¡± Kiel was quick to respond with. ¡°If you are hungry, don¡¯t mind us. You should go grab something to eat.¡±Please go away. ¡°So thoughtful.¡± Arion praised. ¡°Don¡¯t worry man. I can handle it. It isn¡¯t lunch time yet anyway.¡± And so, the three of them spent several hours relaxing under the warm sun. If Kiel were in better company, he would have enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Instead, he spent the entire time trying to find a discreet way to tell Arion to get lost, while Arion continued being completely oblivious to it. * * * When early afternoon arrived, it was finally time for the second exam. The second exam for all three of them was held in the Blue Quarters, which was a building near the Red Quarters, that looked almost identical to the Red Quarters, the only difference being the color theme. Kiel was thrilled to finally separate from the annoying blabbermouth and make his way towards his classroom. The same group of people with which he took the previous exam, were waiting in front of the classroom. Not only were the examinees the same, when the door opened, he noticed that the examiners were the same too ¨C Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert. Was it that his examiners for all exams would be these two? This time, when they were invited into the room, what greeted them on the desk was a large cube made out of dark blue rock-like material that glittered dazzlingly in the sunlight. To be precise, the cube wasn¡¯t on the desk, rather, it was floating 30 cm above it. Every surface of the cube was covered by all kinds of delicate carvings in all shapes and sizes. Some of them made out small patterns while some of them spiraled around the cube in sharp angles like canals. The cube wasn¡¯t made out of a single chunk of rock, rather it was made out of many rotatable pieces like a large Rubik¡¯s cube. By rotating the pieces, the overall appearance of the carvings would change, and no one would be able to predict how the cube would look like beforehand and prepare for that configuration. Kady Ailert looked at the examinees smilingly. ¡°I hope you got some rest and are now ready for the second exam. As you might already know, the second exam tests your mana control a.k.a. weaving.¡± Kady pointed towards the stone cube. ¡°This is the artifact that will test your ability. On its surface, you can see many carvings. These carvings are actually the spell pattern that you will be required to cast. You need to fill these carvings with dense mana. However, no mana should touch or enter the cube itself. This will require a lot of precision and accuracy on your part, especially because the mana resistance of mythril, which the cube is made out of, is equal to the mana resistance of air.¡± Examinees exclaimed in surprise. Some of them had suspected the material of the cube to be mythril, but most of them had never seen mythril before. Mythril possessed the lowest mana resistance of all metals, which made it an optimal material from which to form armor, weapons, and magic artifacts. Unfortunately, it was too precious and rare which caused it to reach astronomical prices. Yet Muni would squander a large chunk of mythril to create a cube for the exam. And considering how many exams were being held at the same time¡­they had several dozens, maybe even a hundred of such cubes! If that wasn¡¯t extravagant, then nothing was extravagant. Kady paused, waiting for the examinees to pipe down before continuing. ¡°When you cover all of the carvings with dense mana¡­Well¡­not all of them¡­this large spiral carving doesn¡¯t need to be filled with mana.¡± She pointed to a spiral carved on a large piece of the cube. ¡°When you cover all carvings, other than the spiral, with dense mana, the artifact will be activated because the carvings depict exactly the trigger spell needed to activate the cube. Once activated, the cube will judge the quality of your weaving.¡± As Kady spoke up to this point, Rau approached the cube. Large tendrils of mana separated from Rau¡¯s aura and twined themselves around the cube. Like water, they entered the carvings and spread around the cube. Since the cube was complex, it took Rau a while to fill all carvings with his mana. Just by feeling the mana around the cube, one could tell that his mana was dense and filled the entirety of the carvings flawlessly. When he filled all of the carvings and reached the required density for the mana to turn into a spell, the cube suddenly reacted. That one carving, in the shape of a large spiral, which he didn¡¯t fill with mana, lit up brilliantly. The azure glow started from the center of the spiral and like a worm spread through the spiral until the entire spiral was glowing. Rau pointed towards the spiral and certain indentations on parts of the spiral. ¡°If the entire spiral lights up, that would mean that your weaving is perfect, and you would score perfect points. Otherwise, these lines mark the thresholds for each of the 25 points.¡± As he spoke up to this fact, the examinees finally realized what the current reaction of the cube meant. Perfect points! He got perfect points!! So that¡¯s what he meant when he said speed wasn¡¯t his forte! It¡¯s because he is actually even better at weaving! After several seconds of light, the cube absorbed all mana that was inside the carvings and slowly dimmed. It was now ready to be used again. Kady didn¡¯t let the crowd discuss Rau¡¯s weaving for long. She quickly moved on with the explanation: ¡°Unlike the previous test, you don¡¯t get the chance to practice. The test starts right away, each one of you will get 5 minutes with the cube. If you, by any chance, don¡¯t manage to activate the cube in that time, you will score 0 points on the test. Any questions?¡± Kady smiled and looked at all of the examinees one by one, her gaze lingering on Kiel. When she confirmed that there were no questions she finally asked: ¡°Who wants to go first?¡± When the words left her mouth, all gazes converged onto Kiel. Oy. Oy. Why are you all looking at me? Do you want me to take the test first this time? What does my test have to do with you? Can¡¯t you just mind your own business? The people continued looking at him until Kiel inwardly sighed and stepped forward. Peer pressure¡­ With each step he took towards the cube, he could feel everyone¡¯s gazes glued to him, almost staring holes right through. Some of them chattered quietly amongst themselves, some of them just projected their thoughts through their heated gaze. ¡°Surely he won¡¯t get another 25/25?¡± ¡°Of course, he won¡¯t. Speed should be what he is good at. Usually, people are either fast or can control mana well. Not both.¡± ¡°You are right. It must be like this.¡± ¡°If he had full points for speed, how high do you think he¡¯ll get for mana control?¡± ¡°He shouldn¡¯t be too bad. 15 points perhaps.¡± ¡°You¡¯re giving him too much credit. I say 13.¡± Coming up in the next episode: At this point, everyone¡¯s hearts were beating hard. Too dangerous! This boy is too dangerous! Rau¡¯s pupils shrunk. Kady¡¯s fingers gripping her pen turned white. Deora¡¯s eyes suddenly started glittering. He had found a way to get back at her for the fiasco from the previous test. If you want to make it more difficult for yourself, by all means, go ahead! She couldn¡¯t do anything to him. As long as he didn¡¯t hurt her too badly and claimed innocence, no one could touch him. Not even principal Eruan would bother with it. Cold sweat covered her back instantly when she realized her own bad luck. Episode 43 - Catch the Cube In the previous Episode: The second test started, testing the mana control ability of the examinees. Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert explained the details of the test. Because of the peer pressure, Kiel stepped out to take the exam. Episode 43 ¨C Catch the Cube Unperturbed by the voices and stares, Kiel walked unhurriedly to the cube. His face indifferent, the definition of calm. His posture, mannerisms aura ¨C everything radiated nobility and power. Making everyone who was looking at him have their heart skip a beat and their blood rush to their face. Saying that Kiel was alluring, sexy, enchanting, or hot wouldn¡¯t be wrong, but his bearing wasn¡¯t intended to be so. Rather, his appearance gave it an inherent allure that could only be enhanced, and never covered up. When his steps stilled, the entire sound within the room died down. His icy blue eyes locked onto Rau and he offered him his exam pass. Rau glanced at it briefly, before giving it to Kady. She inspected it shortly as well, and then smiled kindly at him. She flipped the hourglass standing on her desk and nodded her head in approval. Without further ado, Kiel concentrated full-heartedly onto the cube. The voices, the gazes, everything else ceased to matter. The light azure mana separated from his aura, into strands that followed the crevices of the cube. Like water flowing through canals, his mana slowly filled every gap. Constantly he directed it to tighten, to become denser. The cube slowly rotated, floating in front of him. With its every movement, Kiel¡¯s spell also moved accordingly. For others, it was a challenging task. For Kiel, it was simplicity itself. His mana was as much of a part of him as his own arms and legs. His heart didn¡¯t accelerate; his hands didn¡¯t shake. Calm and confident. That is who Kiel Rroda was. He wasn¡¯t a kindhearted polite person he acted as. He wasn¡¯t an easily riled up fool that he appeared to be when confronted by Elaru. No. This was true Kiel Rroda. In a flash, a pulse of power spread through the cube as his weaving reached its apex. The spiral on the side of the cube started glowing brilliantly, the glow slowly spreading from the center outwards. Examinees almost stopped breathing, looking closely at the spiral, waiting for the glow to stop spreading. 5¡­7¡­10. As it reached the 15th marker, people started nodding their head. ¡°As expected. He is good at weaving as well.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t as alarming as his casting speed though.¡± ¡°Did you see how fast he finished the test. He weaved it even faster than the professor.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because he is good when it comes to speed. However, with speed, the accuracy suffers. Just watch.¡± When the light passed over 17, it still showed no signs of stopping. People were already exclaiming in surprise. ¡°Ah! He is even better than expected!¡± ¡°He should be reaching his limit.¡± ¡°He won¡¯t go past 20.¡± ¡°What are you saying? I say he won¡¯t go past 18!¡± Yet the light grew and grew. 16¡­18¡­20¡­ At this point, everyone¡¯s hearts were beating hard. Too dangerous! This boy is too dangerous! What does it mean to be both fast and accurate? Not only were they unable to compare to his speed, but his potential for learning more complex spells far surpassed them too. His spellcasting wouldn¡¯t fail. When he decided to cast a spell, in a flash, that desire would turn into reality. Kiel¡¯s expression showed no excitement nor pride. He stared at the spiral as if he already knew the result. 21¡­22¡­23¡­ Rau¡¯s pupils shrunk. Kady¡¯s fingers gripping her pen turned white. 24¡­ Everyone held their breath. 25. As the glow reached that final number, examinees felt as if a bomb exploded beside their ears. Absolute silence enveloped the room. The first sound to break it was the soft sound of pen writing on paper. Kady was noting down Kiel¡¯s exam score. ¡°Wonderful performance. 25/25.¡± She praised. As her words fell, the room erupted in an uproar. ¡°Impossible!¡± ¡°How can someone both be fast and accurate to such an extent!¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Monster. He is simply a monster.¡± The black haired male with flawless pale skin, standing with his head held high and his back perfectly straight, at that moment, in their eyes, looked no different than a god. * * * The time for Arion¡¯s and Elaru¡¯s second exam was moved later because of the delay caused by breaking of the speedometer. When they were let into the room, they noticed that their examiners were still Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic. As soon as they entered, Deora¡¯s eyes were glued on Elaru, giving her a deathglare. The mood was very tense. Knowing how quickly Deora could erupt, everyone kept quiet, not daring to even breathe loudly. Whether Deora noticed that the number of examinees had decreased or not was unclear. He didn¡¯t comment on it, instead explaining the usage of the cube. After that, he proceeded to demonstrate his own skill in weaving. Like they were rereading the same book over and over, a similar scene to the one earlier today played out again. Deora proudly puffed out his chest, flaunting his 24/25 points as if no one could compare to him. Zerel clapped and praised him. ¡°In doing it fast, almost no one can compare to you little Dei! You¡¯re done before anyone can react!¡± Examinees stood with their lips tightly pressed together, not knowing what to say. This praise¡­is he actually making fun of him? This two-man show was simply too ridiculous. Once again, Deora didn¡¯t doubt the validity of Zerel¡¯s words, basking in glory for a while before asking if there were any questions. His gaze rested immediately on Elaru, giving her a deathglare, just daring her to ask a question. Elaru didn¡¯t disappoint. ¡°Are we allowed to touch the cube?¡± Deora stared at her and blinked a few times. What? Just¡­ What? ¡°Why would you want to touch the cube?¡± Deora finally responded, momentarily forgetting his hate towards Elaru. ¡°Someone might find it easier to weave if the cube was in their hands.¡± Elaru shrugged. Deora¡¯s mouth twitched a few times before he started laughing uproariously. Zerel looked at Elaru with interest. He didn¡¯t believe she was stupid or asked questions without a purpose in mind. Yet, he couldn¡¯t see through her intention at all. Deora looked at Elaru, scorn written all over his face. Aren¡¯t you grasping at straws here? The reason why the cube is set up to float in the air, slowly rotating is to make it easier for you to weave, without having to turn the cube yourself. Stupid! If one had to manually turn the cube, their bodily movement might not be synced with their control of their mana. The rotation of the cube currently had a constant velocity. However, her body wouldn¡¯t have such precise control of rotation. Deora¡¯s eyes suddenly started glittering. He had found a way to get back at her for the fiasco from the previous test. If you want to make it more difficult for yourself, by all means, go ahead! Deora picked up the cube easily. Although the cube looked large and heavy, it actually had a zero gravity field set up around it, which is why it continued to float, and why it rotated with a constant velocity. When he took it between his hands, it stilled. He looked towards Elaru, who was ostracized by almost everyone, with no one standing close to her. Arion too moved away from her sheepishly, not wanting to draw Deora¡¯s fury towards himself. Deora¡¯s mouth curled into a smirk, and his hands moved quickly, flicking the cube towards Elaru. ¡°Sure! Go ahead!¡± Not only would he ¡°generously¡± give her the cube so she could touch it as she asked, but he would take the opportunity to throw the cube straight at her face. He hoped she got a broken nose or a black eye when hit by the cube. The cube was made out of mythril which was an incredibly hard material, almost impossible to break, so he wasn¡¯t worried about the cube getting damaged. The only one getting damaged here would be Elaru. If she dared complain that he had hostile motives towards her and hit her with the cube on purpose, he would just innocently claim that he was just giving her the cube as she asked. That he didn¡¯t do anything wrong. And besides, everyone had signed an agreement when applying for the exams, stating that Muni held no responsibility for their injuries. She couldn¡¯t do anything to him. As long as he didn¡¯t hurt her too badly and claimed innocence, no one could touch him. Not even principal Eruan would bother with it. This would be so refreshing and enjoyable. Deora watched Elaru with excitement, just waiting to see her miserable appearance. His throw was quick and unexpected, she couldn¡¯t catch it. Elaru¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t even have the chance to widen before she reflexively reacted. Her hands moved so fast a slapping sound was heard when she caught the cube. Deora¡¯s face darkened, revealing a pout of dissatisfaction. Darn it! What fast reflexes! However, Elaru¡¯s face, instead of revealing relief or pride turned completely stoic. Even Zerel, who caught a brief flash of panic pass through her eyes, attributed it to the sudden ¡°attack¡±. He was wrong. Elaru was used to people shooting stuff at her ¨C usually daggers, arrows, and fireballs. How could she possibly reveal panic because of a fast moving cube? The problem lied in the fact that she was caught unprepared. She didn¡¯t manage to move her mana away from the cube as it entered her dense mana field. Her mana field¡­was much more than just mage armor. The dense mana making her aura hit the cube like an avalanche. Cold sweat covered her back instantly when she realized her own bad luck. Her eyes darted towards Deora who seemed to be sulking, and Zerel whose eyes glittered with interest. Neither realized what just happened. Without further ado she flicked her badge towards Zerel, bypassing Deora completely. ¡°May I begin?¡± She asked, trying her best to contain her urgency. Zerel effortlessly caught her exam pass and nodded his head without even looking at it ¡°Of course.¡± Deora wanted to protest, angry that she completely ignored him, but Zerel had already flipped the hourglass. She wasted no time, pushing mana around the cube so fast it looked like her life depended on it. Her expressionless face revealed no clue about how much she was swearing inside. Examinees stared at her dumbfounded. This isn¡¯t a casting speed test! Deora didn¡¯t know whether to huff because she hurt his pride, or laugh because she was racing through an accuracy test. As they watched Elaru rush with the test, people around her started revealing mocking expressions. Who are you trying to impress? Are you trying to weave it fast to use the speed as the excuse for not having a high score? Idiot! Haha! I¡¯ll eat the entire cube if you manage to reach 10 points with such speed! Arion was the only one among the examinees who didn¡¯t have scorn and disregard splattered over his face. He stared at Elaru, with a solemn face, deep in thought. What is she doing? He was an excellent judge of character. And his instincts told him that Elaru was in no way stupid. Does she actually have the ability to weave flawlessly while retaining such speed? Elaru completely ignored all the scorn and employed her full concentration and ability on the task at hand.Faster! Faster!! Faster!!! She chanted inside her head, sweat dripping down her forehead. Speed had no effect on the score of this test. However, because of her mistake¡­or rather¡­Deora¡¯s mistake, she had no choice but to hurry. Soon the spell was completed, and the spiral started lighting up. Without waiting for it to finish, she accelerated towards Deora and pushed the cube into his hands. As if the cube was on fire and would hurt her if she continued touching it. Deora looked at her dumbfounded for several seconds before looking down at the glowing spiral. The spreading of light seemed so slow. Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Elaru repeated inside her head, yet her urgency never showed on her face. 3¡­5¡­8 The examinees chuckled, not feeling the result suspenseful at all. It would stop climbing at any moment. There was no way to have a high score with that speed. The girl clearly had no idea what she was doing. Elaru clenched her fists quietly. 10¡­13 When the spiral reached 14, the room was in an uproar. Coming up in the next episode: The one with the palest face, the face with the most comical shocked expression, was actually Deora. He stared at it for several seconds before his bloodshot eyes slowly rose up to meet Elaru¡¯s. With a shaking finger, he pointed straight at her face and bellowed. ¡°What did you do?!?!¡± ¡°Out. OUT!¡± Deora screamed so loudly that the building almost shook. After exiting the room with the other examinees, Elaru wiped the sweat off of her forehead. That was close¡­ Elaru strode towards him gracefully and grabbed his arm. In a sing-song voice pleasant to the ear, she chimed: ¡°Let¡¯s go shopping.¡± Episode 44 - In Pieces In the previous Episode: Deora threw the testing cube at Elaru wanting to catch her off-guard and hit her with it. Elaru caught the cube reflexively, however, for an unknown reason she became alarmed and started casting the trigger spell as quick as she could instead of concentrating on accuracy the test is supposed to test. After finishing the testing in a record time, she returned the cube to Deora and is awaiting her result. The spiral is slowly lighting up, showing Elaru¡¯s score, surprising everyone present. Episode 44 ¨C In Pieces Judging by the difficulty of the last exam most of them would not surpass that score, yet this girl who rushed her spellcasting managed to reach it. Doesn¡¯t that mean that they were vastly inferior? Even if they managed to reach the same score as her, the speed of their weaving couldn¡¯t be compared to hers. As they watched the glowing spiral, their faces turned pale. That was because the spiral was still continuing to light up. 15¡­17¡­19 Come on!! As Elaru gritted her teeth, the mouths of others gaped open. The hands with which Deora held the cube started shaking. But even the shaking of the cube couldn¡¯t cover up the increase in score. 21¡­23 Everyone¡¯s eyes widened, almost popping out of their sockets. As the spiral finished lighting up, everyone felt as if a bomb went off inside their skulls. Their mouths turned dry, their jaws almost dislocating from how wide they were gaping. 25. When the spiral finally lit up completely, Elaru let out a long breath. Phew! Safe! Just as she thought that, before anyone could recover from the previous shock, another outrageous thing happened ¨C like a string stretched to its limit, the enchantment cast on the cube snapped. Like a snake, the spell writhed left and right and disintegrated like melting snow. As if it was broken porcelain, the cube in Deora¡¯s hands fell apart, clattering loudly as the mythril pieces fell to the floor. ¡°Eeeeeh!?!?¡± ¡°Wh¡­what happened?!¡± ¡°It broke! It broke again!!¡± ¡°My god! It fell apart!¡± The one with the palest face, the face with the most comical shocked expression, was actually Deora. He stared at the mythril pieces around his feet in disbelief. He stared at it for several seconds before his bloodshot eyes slowly rose up to meet Elaru¡¯s. With a shaking finger, he pointed straight at her face and bellowed. ¡°What did you do?!?!¡± Elaru placed her hand on her chest acting out shock and pain. ¡°Me? Why do you assume it was me?¡± Her long ears dropped down pitifully, her large eyes looking at him innocently as if saying ¡°How could you even think it was me?¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t you then who was it?!¡± Elaru raised her hands in surrender, still looking pitiful. ¡°It fell apart while in your hands, didn¡¯t it?¡± Arion Urwin found himself covering his mouth trying not to burst out laughing. Deora¡¯s two honey yellow eyes glowed like embers. ¡°Do you think I am braindead?!¡± He puffed up like a balloon, his hands twitching to strangle the annoying redhead that ended up destroying everything she touched. ¡°Out. OUT!¡± Deora screamed so loudly that the building almost shook. * * * Zerel slowly picked up the scattered pieces of the cube, inspecting them with a strange smile on his face. As I thought. Was the cube broken because her weaving was so incredible the cube couldn¡¯t take it? Of course not. There was a limit of how good one could weave the spell. If it was flawless ¨C it was flawless. It couldn¡¯t be better than that. Naturally, the cube was made to take into account someone weaving the spell flawlessly. The reason why the cube broke apart was because the enchantment holding it together disappeared. Without the spell, the little pieces were just lifeless decorations. Zerel chuckled softly, his golden eyes turning into crescents. You, my dear, are indeed a spell breaker. But how did you do it? And why? He had paid close attention to her the entire time. He didn¡¯t notice any actions or attempts of spell breaking. It was as if¡­she touched it¡­and it broke. Zerel revealed a wide grin. How peculiar.Better not tell Deora how satisfied I am with the batch of examinees he picked. * * * After Deora flipped out (again), this time, Elaru remembered to ask for her exam pass before leaving the room. When she came closer to Zerel to pick up her exam pass, she exchanged a few words with him. She had asked him if she was done with her exam and could leave instead of waiting outside with other examinees. Zerel waved her goodbye leaving a single sentence behind: ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± Muni exams actually lasted for 5 days. Because of the large number of examinees and the limited amount of staff and testing equipment, only two exams could be held on the same day. After the first 3 days, most examinees were eliminated from the exams, which allowed Muni staff to allocate more resources for the remaining examinees.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. After exiting the room with the other examinees, Elaru wiped the sweat off of her forehead. That was close¡­ Luck sure wasn¡¯t on her side today. Who knew Deora would do something as stupid as throwing a cube at her? It was his fault that the cube broke! Of course, he couldn¡¯t have known her circumstances¡­ Her circumstances¡­ Elaru smiled sadly. Almost no one knew her circumstances. Everyone thought her to be a gifted child of the gods. Not only was she in possession of a divine gift, but also the largest soul seen to date. A soul with a huge mana pool; an endless supply of mana. Those that coveted her soul, those that turned green with jealousy, none of them knew the truth. It wasn¡¯t a gift. Rather, it was a curse. Her soul¡­was flawed. It kept filling up with mana, threatening to blow up like an overinflated air balloon. All that excess mana had to be constantly siphoned away from her soul, transferred through her soul tendrils to her body where it would form a dense mana field around her, acting as a natural mana armor, requiring no conscious control. Her aura was like a sun surrounded by the sky of small stars. When her light appeared among the crowd, everything else dimmed. She was an abnormal existence that erased all others. She kept the majority of the mana inside her own body, to prevent it accidentally harming people coming in contact with it. And the mana that her body couldn¡¯t contain formed a dense aura around her which she had to conceal to avoid drawing attention. Any spell, other than her own, which came inside her field would be crushed under the pressure of her mana. This was the reason why she couldn¡¯t wear any enchanted armor, magical weapons, or even magical artifacts as accessories. The only artifacts that could survive inside her mana field were divine artifacts and artifacts made by her mana. All other magical artifacts needed to be placed inside platinum boxes or wrapped in platinum foil. The high mana resistance of platinum kept them safe from her aura, and before taking them out, she would divert her mana away to not damage them. However, Deora threw the cube unexpectedly at her. She couldn¡¯t divert her mana in time and as soon as the cube entered her aura, the spell it was enchanted with suffered severe damage. It wasn¡¯t just nicked here and there ¨C the entire pattern was crushed. By the time she diverted her mana away from the cube, it was already too late. The enchantment was barely holding up. It could snap at any moment. Which is why she hurried up her spellcasting as fast as she could go in hopes she could finish the test before it completely fell apart. Fortunately, it managed to hold out until she gave the cube back to Deora so it was his mana armor that finally finished it off. They couldn¡¯t blame this on her. Could they? Elaru shook her head and turned towards Arion who was laughing uproariously next to her. ¡°Not funny. Not funny at all.¡± She grumbled. Arion¡¯s chocolate eyes stared at her warmly, but he couldn¡¯t stop laughing long enough to respond. She glared at him halfheartedly. ¡°Don¡¯t think I didn¡¯t see you abandoning me to the lupaxes in the moment of crisis.¡± Arion wiped the tears off from the corners of his eyes and finally calmed down. ¡°Hey, if you end up dragging me down with you, there will be no one left to pull you back up.¡± As if to demonstrate what he meant by ¡°pulling back up¡±, he placed his hand comfortingly on her shoulder giving her an encouraging look. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Everything will be fine. In the case of a dispute, I can testify to it not being your fault. And besides, they won¡¯t dare disqualify someone with perfect points.¡± His lip curled into a smirk, and he couldn¡¯t help but add. ¡°Unless you break more equipment tomorrow.¡± As he said that, he suddenly started laughing again. Elaru rolled her eyes and responded, her words dripping with sarcasm: ¡°Gee, thanks¡­that makes me feel so much better¡­¡± Arion gave her a thumbs up. ¡°Anytime.¡± She placed her hand on her forehead and sighed. ¡±I¡¯m leaving¡­¡± Arion waved her goodbye. ¡°I¡¯ll see you tomorrow?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­yeah¡­¡± Elaru grumbled in response, walking away in the direction of the staircase. * * * After regaining his wits, Kiel discreetly looked left and right but saw no sign of Arion Urwin. Inwardly he let out a breath of relief. That annoying guy seemed to be like a shadow, impossible to get rid of, always trailing behind Elaru. Elaru showed no restraint as she strode towards him gracefully and grabbed his arm. In a sing-song voice pleasant to the ear, she chimed: ¡°Let¡¯s go shopping.¡± Kiel stared at her as if she grew out two heads. Who are you and what did you do with Elaru?? He even forgot to glare at her and shrug her arms off. ¡°Shopping for what?¡± She led him down the hallway, her smile never leaving her face. ¡°Something that will be very helpful in the future.¡± The crowd of people around them made way for them to pass through. When Kiel noticed their gazes he wanted to shrug Elaru¡¯s arms off, however, that would go against his image of a prince so he couldn¡¯t do it for the time being. The gazes of both males and females were glued to them. Some of them were entranced, almost drooling. Some gazes showed jealousy and hate. Elaru seemed not to notice how they were the center of attention. Or rather, she didn¡¯t care at all. Her bearing captivating, yet pure. Graceful yet powerful. Her steps were relaxed yet steady, neither quick nor slow, neither prideful nor servile. She walked as if the entire world was her home, like everything was her domain, as if nothing could make her uncomfortable. As if in her world there existed no one besides the two of them. It wasn¡¯t a cold and dignified disregard of a noble. One could not point out any refinement nor scorn in her behavior, only welcoming warmth. Yet it still made the hearts of everyone present palpitate. As if they were looking at a being far above them. As if she was the sun and they were just little candles that flickered out in her presence. A phoenix among tiwi. Arrogance was unnecessary. Everyone could feel an intangible feeling of inferiority deep down inside them that stemmed not from her as a person, but themselves. Kiel walked by her side with dignity and refinement of a prince, his own glowing brilliance not interfering with hers at all. Hot and cold, fire and ice, red and blue. Their entire beings formed a strange sense of balance, of perfect synergy. Looking at the gazes around them, Kiel¡¯s feelings were mixed. He was glad that Elaru enhanced his own worth in the eyes of others. He was glad that being with her made him even more dazzling. The respect and jealousy of others should have felt enjoyable. Yet, for some reason, he really hated all these gazes. He really loathed this attention. While he enjoyed quiet solitude the most, he had long gotten used to being the center of attention. So why did it suddenly feel so¡­so¡­stifling? Why did wearing his flawless mask suddenly feel¡­painful? * * * One of Elaru¡¯s secrets is finally revealed. Looking back, I gave you so many clues. In the first chapter, in that fight in the prologue, Kiel mentioned that Elaru¡¯s mana armor was so dense it weakened the enchantments on the flying daggers, disorienting them. The reason why their enchantments didn¡¯t directly break was because as soon as they entered the outskirts of her mana field, the enchantments were lightly damaged, including the acceleration spell that caused it to fly, which made it so it couldn¡¯t continue flying forwards for the time being. When Elaru pulled out the oath of truth, almost 40 episodes before this, it was inside a platinum case. When she pulled out that unnamed artifact in the shape of an egg, it was also wrapped in platinum foil. Even those pills and roots she carried were placed in a platinum case. Every artifact not made by her, is placed inside special platinum coated containers. It was mentioned that Elaru consumed all types of different tempering pills making her the most familiar with these types of pills. Even uncle Ixos is constantly working on inventing new types of tempering pills. This is because the dense mana puts a considerable strain on her body. If she didn¡¯t constantly improve her mana tolerance, her body would have fallen apart long ago. This revelation is actually only a part of the truth related to her soul. There is more to it. ;) In fact, by now, I¡¯ve given you enough information to speculate and connect the other pieces of the puzzle. Coming up in the next episode: Kiel almost got a heart attack from that statement. Seeing Kiel¡¯s horrified, pale expression, Elaru blinked confusedly. ¡°If you ever take me to a lingerie shop in the future, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± As he transmitted the thought, Elaru could clearly feel his killing intent in the words. He wasn¡¯t joking. Kiel stumbled a step back. Could it be¡­? At that time¡­? Kiel suddenly felt uncomfortable, something inside of him seemed to twist painfully. He had never seen such an expression on Elaru before. ¡°The more you know about something, the more you understand just how little you actually know.¡± She murmured, more talking to herself than Kiel. Episode 45 - Mystification In the previous Episode: After breaking the cube used in the exam, Elaru finishes early and waits for Kiel¡¯s exam to finish. After meeting up, the two of them make their way out of Muni. Elaru leads Kiel into the city, claiming that she is taking him shopping.
Episode 45 ¨C Mystification Kiel stood dumbfounded, staring at the luxurious shop in front of him which had several dangerous looking guards standing at the entrance. His bangs cast shadows over his eyes so no one was able to tell that his eyebrow was violently twitching. Elaru pulled on his arm, but he stood frozen like a statue, refusing to take a single step towards the shop. ¡°Come on.¡± Elaru frowned slightly, his behavior was strange. Even his aura was turning violent. ¡°No.¡± Was the only response she got. And even that was said in a husky, dangerous voice. ¡°Wh¡­?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t even let her finish the statement before interrupting her. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Let¡­¡± Elaru pouted and was about to explain, but she didn¡¯t manage to say much before being interrupted again. ¡°No.¡± Her eyes narrowed, and she stopped trying to communicate verbally. ¡°Why won¡¯t you go in?¡± Kiel looked at her as if she was an idiot. ¡°It. Is. An. Engagement. Ring. Store.¡± Elaru stopped pulling at his arm, looking back at the store in front of them. It was a large luxurious building made out of white marble. Through the windows, could be seen the glow of silver and gold, coupled with multicolored light reflections of various precious jewels. ¡°Naah, I think they sell all kinds of different rings. Not just engagement rings.¡± Kiel¡¯s lips were pressed so tightly together they turned white. Naturally, he had never visited a jewelry shop before. But even he, who lived the majority of his life in a small town of Beyd knew this brand of jewelry shops. This was where couples usually went to buy engagement rings! He had no idea why she wanted to go in there, but no way would he go in with her. Kiel pinched the bridge of his nose trying to calm down. ¡°Why are we here?¡± Elaru looked back at him and smiled brightly. ¡°Why do you think? We are here to look at rings!¡± Kiel almost got a heart attack from that statement. Seeing Kiel¡¯s horrified, pale expression, Elaru blinked confusedly. ¡°Why are you so allergic to jewelry? You make it sound like I brought you to a lingerie shop.¡± Kiel took several deep breaths, trying to figure out the right action to take in such a scenario. ¡°If you ever take me to a lingerie shop in the future, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± As he transmitted the thought, Elaru could clearly feel his killing intent in the words. He wasn¡¯t joking. Why did she bring him here? Surely she wasn¡¯t one of those insane clingy girlfriends who wanted to get engaged three days after meeting the male counterpart. She wasn¡¯t even his girlfriend. In fact, she wasn¡¯t even his friend. ¡°I am not going in there, and that is final. If you want to shop for jewelry, go by yourself. I¡¯ll wait for you in a coffee shop.¡± Elaru paid closer attention to Kiel¡¯s expression, his eyes flashing cold light, his aura exuding all kinds of cold feelings. ¡°I can¡¯t go by myself. I need your help picking a ring.¡± Kiel looked her straight in the eyes. His beautiful icy orbs made her forget her previous annoyance. ¡°Is this really the time to be ring shopping? Can¡¯t you wait to do it after the exams?¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°It can¡¯t wait. The sooner we buy it, the better.¡± Kiel¡¯s gaze only got more and more icy, frowning slightly. ¡°Why do you need it? And why do you want my help?¡± Elaru sighed in exasperation. When she lifted her head back up to meet his gaze, her eyes were emotionless. ¡°Remember that enchantment I have been spellcrafting?¡± Realization flashed in Kiel¡¯s eyes. So that¡¯s the reason! She needs a magic artifact to place her enchantment on. And she decided that a jewelry piece would be the most fitting. Kiel let out a breath of relief he didn¡¯t know he was holding. So it wasn¡¯t any of the disturbing reasons his pessimistic mind managed to come up with. Of course, he shouldn¡¯t judge Elaru with common sense. She probably had no idea that couples usually come here to shop for engagement rings. She just wanted to buy a jewelry piece to place her enchantment upon. A ring would be the smallest and easiest to carry. It made perfect sense that she wanted to buy a ring. He pinched the bridge of his nose again, the iciness in his eyes slowly dissipating. ¡°Alright. Go buy it. I¡¯ll wait for you.¡±If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Elaru stared at him annoyed. For several seconds neither one spoke. ¡°Darn it, Kiel. I said I need your help. Why are you treating a jewelry shop like a death zone?¡± Do you want me to spell it out for you?? Everyone would think we are a couple! Who knows what strange rumors would start going around! ¡°Why do you need my help? I don¡¯t care what ring you pick. It¡¯s your business. It has nothing to do with me.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°Remember that conversation we had a few days ago? I told you I would get you a magical artifact that you will use to fool everyone into thinking it is a mana purifying artifact.¡± They needed to hide the fact that they are soulbound from everyone. And if an argel such as himself could use both augmentation and transmutation magic, it would be a dead giveaway. Unless he had a mana purifying artifact that could be used to explain his ability to use pure mana. Or rather, an artifact that everyone would think was a mana purifying artifact ¨C a dummy, a decoy. Kiel¡¯s pupils widened, but before he could say anything, Elaru looked him straight in the eye, her gaze piercing to the deepest part of his heart. ¡°I brought you here so you can pick a ring you like that I will use as a model to create a magical artifact.¡± Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Suddenly, countless images of the last 3 days flashed in his mind: ¡°What is simpler to get, a dummy artifact or an arcane contract forbidding you to use transmutation and arcane magic? The artifact is much simpler and cheaper to obtain.¡± ¡°How long will it take you to obtain such an artifact?¡± ¡°A few days. I can get it before the Ashar entrance exams start.¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°Spellcrafting.¡± ¡°How good are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never met anyone better at it than me.¡± ¡°What kind of spell are you crafting? Is it for the exams?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a secret. But yes, it will be quite helpful for the exams.¡± Kiel¡¯s heart beat erratically. Could it be¡­that instead of preparing for the exam¡­she spent this entire time making him that artifact? All so he would be allowed to use transmutation magic on the exams? All so it would be easier for him to score higher on the exam? ¡°Why?¡± Kiel breathed out in a weak voice. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go buy an unidentified artifact from the auction house?¡± Elaru sighed gently. ¡°Did you think any artifact would work? There are several very important requirements for it that can¡¯t be met unless it is a custom made artifact.¡± Kiel wanted to ask ¡°What requirements?¡± but when his hoarse voice came out of his throat, the words spoken were different. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you hire an enchanter to make it for you?¡± ¡°Do you think trustworthy enchanters who can spellcraft and mystify a spell in several days of time grow on trees? Never mind trustworthy, do you have any idea how rare it is to find an enchanter who can mystify spells?¡± Kiel¡¯s mouth went dry. Mystification was a process of rewriting and modifying a spell pattern in such a way to make it difficult to recognize. It includes a lot of techniques of changing the structure of the spell, introducing noise and useless spell fragments into the spell pattern. It was similar to encryption ¨C it made the end result hard to understand. Only spellcrafters of the highest order understood the theory of magic to such a degree they could manipulate it in such an intricate way to completely change the spell appearance while still retaining its effects. Mystification made the spell longer and more difficult to weave while not adding any additional effects to it. Sometimes it even caused destructive interference inside the spell, decreasing its effects. And yet, this seemingly useless, counterproductive ability was an incredibly sought after skill. Often when clients ordered custom made artifacts, they would want them made in such a way so only they themselves would know the function of the artifact. Especially if it was a battle related artifact. Which person would want their enemy to know the exact effect of their magical artifact? Mystification was also used to make spells harder to break. After all, if a mage can¡¯t tell what spell they were looking at, how would they know how to break it? Since Kiel needed people to think his artifact was a mana purifying artifact, naturally, the spell on the artifact needed to be mystified so that no one would be able to tell that it was actually a dummy. Kiel stumbled a step back. Could it be¡­? At that time¡­? He remembered the spell she was spellcrafting. A day later the spell looked nothing like the spell she was spellcrafting the day before. He had thought it to be a different spell¡­but could it be that she actually mystified the old spell, making it look different? Kiel stepped another step back, he suddenly felt a bit dizzy. ¡°Mystification? Is there anything you can¡¯t do?¡± Didn¡¯t he already ask her this question before? He expected her to gloat about it but instead of the expected smirk, she smiled bitterly. A flash of sadness passed through the depths of her eyes. ¡°There are many things I can¡¯t do. In fact, I have several serious disabilities. I just know how to hide them well¡­¡± Kiel suddenly felt uncomfortable, something inside of him seemed to twist painfully. He had never seen such an expression on Elaru before. She was always in a good mood, never letting him see anger or pain. Not showing a single glimpse of the secrets hidden deep down inside of her. He wanted to say something to lift the awkward air. But before he could do so, Elaru seemed to flip a switch, her mood did an 180-degree turn. All traces of the previous mood vanished replaced with her usual smiling expression. ¡°I told you. I have never met someone who can spellcraft better than me. Naturally, I wouldn¡¯t hold myself in such high regard if I couldn¡¯t even mystify my spells properly.¡± Kiel stared at her smiling face for a while but couldn¡¯t distinguish anything new from it. The more she smiled, the more he felt like Elaru Wayvin hid the entire world behind that smile. She knew him well, but he didn¡¯t know her at all. ¡°Why do you want to go to Muni? The way I see it, if you are as incredible when it comes to spellcrafting as you claim, your knowledge of magic is already deeper than most Muni professors. What could Muni possibly teach you?¡± With such deep knowledge of magic, there weren¡¯t many magic-based professions she couldn¡¯t do. Spellcrafters were usually also enchanters, artificers, array masters or engineers. Don¡¯t tell me she actually wants to change professions to become something totally different like an animal handler or alchemist? Elaru twirled around, showing him her back. She looked back to the ring shop in front of them. ¡°The more you know about something, the more you understand just how little you actually know.¡± She murmured, more talking to herself than Kiel. She then turned her head to the side, locking eyes with his. ¡°If I wanted to expand my knowledge¡­where else could I go? Muni is the holy land of magic. If the knowledge can¡¯t be found there, then it can¡¯t be found anywhere else in the lands under the Shield.¡±
To wonderful people who are supporting Aethernea on Patreon: Thank you so much! This episode is dedicated to Alexander Aguilar . Thank you so much for your support! You. Are. Awesome. <3 Coming up in the next episode: Hearing that, Kiel felt as if a cold bucket of water splashed over his head. He almost spit out blood from anger. Elaru paid no attention to the merchant, still staring at the ring as if entranced. Kiel looked back at her strangely. Is there something special about this ring? ¡°What do you mean?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you intend to steal it?¡± Kiel¡¯s face darkened. Kiel finally opened his mouth, his face still blank, he slowly spoke out. ¡°Can¡¯t we just go to a normal restaurant?¡± Episode 46 – Engagement Ring Shop In the previous Episode: After the exams, Elaru picks Kiel up and takes him to a high-class shop selling rings. Kiel finds out that over these several days, Elaru had been spellcrafting an enchantment that will be placed on the ring of his choice. She has also mystified the enchantment so no one would be able to tell that his magical artifact is a fake mana purifying artifact.
She then turned her head to the side, locking eyes with his. ¡°If I wanted to expand my knowledge¡­where else could I go? Muni is the holy land of magic. If the knowledge can¡¯t be found there, then it can¡¯t be found anywhere else in the lands under the Shield.¡± She has a point. Muni wasn¡¯t only a teaching institution. It was also a research institution with more staff than students which produced new breakthroughs in the field of magic study every year. There was much more to Muni than just classes. All professors were masters in their respective fields of study. Being mentored by one would allow you to learn knowledge that you can¡¯t learn anywhere else. Muni also had the finest library of magic related books in all the lands of Halnea. If you wanted to learn magic, no matter how advanced, where else would you go besides Muni? Kiel had successfully managed to change the subject from her efforts to make him a magical artifact, to her purpose in coming to Muni. However, even though the conversation steered away, his mind and heart were still hopelessly stuck on her seemingly selfless efforts in helping him out. He clenched his fists hard, trying to hide the turmoil he felt inside. He didn¡¯t know what he should be feeling right now. He didn¡¯t even know what he was currently feeling. He only knew that whatever these emotions were, they weren¡¯t pleasant. There was a tightness in his chest and a bitter taste in his mouth. Elaru used this opportunity to wrap her hands around his. The warmth spreading out from her body pressed against his arm made the unpleasant feeling subside a bit. Currently, the thought of shrugging her arms off didn¡¯t even occur to him. She pulled on his arm gently, letting her soothing warm aura envelop him. Under her urging, relaxed by her aura, he stepped forward. Completely lost in his own thoughts, he had forgotten his previous complaints about entering the ring shop. Only when the merchant asked how he could help, did Kiel snap out of his thoughts. Dazed, he looked down at the table filled with shiny silver rings; his mind unable to concentrate on the matter at hand. In the background, he heard the voice of the merchant. ¡°Are the young lord and lady looking for engagement rings?¡± He couldn¡¯t see Elaru¡¯s face but from her words he could tell she was smiling. ¡°We haven¡¯t made any definite decisions yet. We would like to see your wares first.¡± The merchant winked at her knowingly. ¡°Why of course!¡± Hearing that, Kiel felt as if a cold bucket of water splashed over his head. He almost spit out blood from anger. This is why!! This is exactly why I didn¡¯t want to go here!! Why couldn¡¯t you have explained it properly?? Why do you insist on speaking in such an ambiguous manner!? It¡¯s as if you want to be misunderstood! The merchant started bringing out different types of engagement rings and explaining their materials. ¡°See anything you like?¡± Elaru¡¯s voice reverberated inside his head. As if she could tell exactly what he was feeling she added. ¡°Quicker you find the right ring, the quicker we can leave.¡± That statement jolted Kiel out of his daze and his gaze focused on the rings. He scrutinized them one by one, quickly pointing towards several rings. ¡°Could I see this one, that one and the one over here.¡± The merchant looked at him strangely. ¡°Young lord, those aren¡¯t engagement rings?¡± Kiel¡¯s cold gaze made the merchant jolt, quickly correcting himself. ¡°But of course, creating a matching ring to the ring of your choice is a simple matter! Don¡¯t worry about it young lord. Just pick whatever your heart desires and we will do our best to accommodate.¡± Kiel inwardly cursed. He let his coldness seep out instead of keeping up his friendly fa?ade. ¡°What kind of rings are you looking for? Enchanted rings? Diamond rings? Gold, silver, platinum?¡± The merchant asked. Kiel frowned. It was a good question. What price range could Elaru afford? He glanced at her just in time to see her smile at the merchant. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. As long as it is to our liking.¡± Kiel got the urge to pick the most expensive ring just to get back at her. But after the initial impulse, he discarded the thought. He intended to pay her back the price. He didn¡¯t want to owe her anything. Picking something expensive would only make it harder to return the favor. He inspected different rings until a peculiar one caught his eye. It had no jewels and was made out of two different types of materials. The outer part of the ring looked to be made out of white gold. Intricate patterns like wines spread over the elegant ring. In-between the embossed patterns could be seen a shiny black material. It was simple yet very beautiful. He turned it around, his face darkening when he saw the price tag.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. How can something without any jewels be so expensive? Elaru paid attention to his facial expressions, and just when he was about to put the ring back, she took it into her hand instead. She carefully inspected the ring, staring at it as if she wanted to devour it. Seeing her interest, the merchant quickly started advocating the ring. ¡°A very elegant choice suiting the peerless grace of young lord and lady. It is as if this black diamond ring was made to be worn by you.¡± Kiel looked at the merchant speechlessly. You sure know how to flatter¡­ So this black metal is actually a precious rock? No wonder it is so expensive. Elaru paid no attention to the merchant, still staring at the ring as if entranced. Kiel looked back at her strangely. Is there something special about this ring? Don¡¯t tell me she can actually afford this? Suddenly Elaru came out of her strange mood and smiled brilliantly. Kiel was just about to stop her and remind her that it is too expensive when she placed the ring back on the stand and exclaimed. ¡°Thank you for your service. I have to admit your wares are quite high class. We¡¯ll definitely be back in the future.¡± She winked at the stunned merchant who seemed to be too entranced by her bright smile to realize what was happening. Elaru pulled on Kiel¡¯s arm leading him out of the shop. Before the merchant could come back to his senses, the two of them had already left the shop. Kiel stared at her dumbfounded. Isn¡¯t this where you are supposed to say ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the price! If you like this one, then I¡¯ll get you this one.¡±? Bah¡­why do I feel like a female in this relationship? He shook his head and transmitted his displeasure.¡°Wait¡­why are we leaving? I still haven¡¯t picked a ring yet.¡± Elaru smiled mysteriously. ¡°Didn¡¯t you just pick that black diamond one?¡± Kiel frowned. ¡°No. That one was too expensive.¡± Elaru chuckled musically. ¡°Everything in this shop is too expensive.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow started twitching. Then why did you even bring me here?!? Are you making fun of me?! Elaru glanced at his frosty expression, but her smile didn¡¯t lessen in any way. ¡°I brought you here to pick a ring. But I never said I¡¯d buy you the ring.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you intend to steal it?¡± Kiel¡¯s face darkened. Elaru¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. ¡°What do you take me as? A common thief?¡± For a moment, Kiel almost felt guilty for thinking that¡­before she added: ¡°Stealing from this place is too arduous of a task. Don¡¯t get me wrong. If I wanted to steal the ring, those few buffoons couldn¡¯t stop me. Stealing it isn¡¯t difficult. Keeping it is the difficult part.¡± Kiel patiently waited for her to explain. She paused for a while, giving him a meaningful look. ¡°Jewelers mix mana crystal dust inside the alloys which uniquely identify the rings. Removing the dust would be a very arduous task that couldn¡¯t be accomplished without melting down the ring. Even if I transmuted the ring into another shape, the owners would still be able to recognize that it is theirs. Not only that, but they also tag the rings with a special substance the smell of which bloodhounds can track. Only after purchasing the ring would they neutralize the substance. While it is possible for me to steal the ring and counter all these measures, the time and effort are really not worth it.¡± Kiel stared at her, a stoic expression frozen on his face. Oy, oy. Don¡¯t you know a bit too much about stealing jewelry? He shook his head and exhaled slowly. Just attribute it to her knowledge of tracking. Marking stuff is related to tracking. Yes. If asked in the future, I¡¯ll claim to have had no idea of any potentially illegal activities of Elaru Wayvin. He decided to steer the conversation into safer waters. ¡°If their rings are identifiable then using them as a dummy artifact is out of the question. If they investigated the ring in the future, they would realize that it was purchased in their shop thus it couldn¡¯t be a mana purifying divine artifact.¡± Elaru nodded her head. ¡°Correct. Which is why my intention in bringing you here wasn¡¯t to buy you a ring.¡± Then why did you bring me here? Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. If all jewelers marked their rings, then buying a ring was out of the question. They would need a non-marked jewelry piece. Could it be that the purpose of this visit wasn¡¯t to buy him a ring but rather to find a ring he liked so that they could make a custom ring similar to it? ¡°You said you were bringing me shopping. How misleading¡­¡± Kiel grumbled. Elaru grinned, her eyes glittering teasingly. She could tell that Kiel had figured out the reason for their visit here. ¡°Window shopping is still shopping.¡± Only according to your logic. Kiel shook his head. ¡°How about we shop for food instead of jewelry?¡± Before she could respond, he added. ¡°No window shopping this time.¡± Elaru laughed musically, the sound incredibly soothing to the ear. ¡°Alright. I know just the place.¡± * * * Kiel stared blankly at the building in front of him. This situation¡­it was disturbingly similar to the one before that¡­ Serves me right for letting Elaru lead the way to the restaurant. ¡°I know Ashar like the back of my hand.¡± she said¡­Isn¡¯t this place an overkill?! Kiel finally opened his mouth, his face still blank, he slowly spoke out. ¡°Can¡¯t we just go to a normal restaurant?¡± ¡°Nope. This is exactly the place we need to go.¡± Elaru exclaimed in self-satisfaction. Kiel felt the urge to face-palm, especially since her statement didn¡¯t raise his lie detector. She honestly thought that they needed to go here and nowhere else. The multi-story building in front of him looked like a giant black pearl surrounded by a forest of green gardens. The pearl was made out of special black glass that prevented people from seeing inside. However, people inside of it could see the outside clearly. Like a crown, a black marble ring surrounded the pearl that looked like a balcony. Since it was high up, Kiel could only see the pillars supporting it which were carved into shapes of dragons. The gate of the restaurant was the most luxurious looking, with thickest pillars, on top of which a large sign stood: Black Pearl. If you wanted to find a more expensive restaurant, you wouldn¡¯t be able to find it! Kiel was familiar with the Black Pearl restaurant. His brother loved to spend his time here. Black Pearl was a high-class restaurant that had branches in every major city. However, the quality of food and service wasn¡¯t the reason for its fame. Black Pearl provided nobles with maximum security and privacy. Younger generation nobles took their dates here where they could enjoy both the food and their dates in privacy. Older generation nobles used the place to strike secret business deals safe from prying eyes and ears. Since the restaurant was a neutral yet extremely secure ground, nobles could relax and enjoy their time there. Kiel exhaled slowly and tried to reason with her. ¡°In this place, the waiters are dressed in higher class garments than us. They won¡¯t let us in looking like this.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel stared at her dumbfounded. That confidence¡­ ¡°¡­you are not¡­talking from experience¡­are you?¡± Elaru patted Kiel on the shoulder. ¡°Ye of little faith. If I didn¡¯t, would I have brought you here?¡± She thought that Kiel¡¯s natural way of speaking was much more enchanting than this side of him that tried to conform to the norms and appear as noble as possible. Kiel was the first to speak up. ¡°Out with it. What are you up to?¡± Suddenly, his tea didn¡¯t taste good. Something¡­isn¡¯t right¡­ Venric Rroda¡¯s instincts, sharpened over many years of plots and backstabbing, were itching. Episode 47 - Black Pearl In the previous Episode: Elaru brought Kiel to a jewelry store to pick a ring. Kiel took a liking to a certain ring, but they left the store without buying anything. After that, Elaru took Kiel to the Black Pearl ¨C a high-class restaurant, to have lunch. Black pearl is a restaurant with high privacy and security that nobles often visit when they want to do something in secret. Kiel would prefer it if they went to a normal restaurant and doesn¡¯t understand Elaru¡¯s motives for coming here.
Episode 47 ¨C Black Pearl Kiel exhaled slowly and tried to reason with her. ¡°In this place, the waiters are dressed in higher class garments than us. They won¡¯t let us in looking like this.¡± To tell the truth, Kiel wasn¡¯t dressed like he was going to a party, but he was in no way dressed shabbily. While his garments were practical, they were also stylish and made it hard for people to mistake him for a commoner. Elaru, on the other hand, was more casually dressed. ¡°Black Pearl doesn¡¯t discriminate based on what you are wearing. As long as you look like you have enough money to dine here.¡± Elaru looked Kiel up and down. ¡°They will be able to tell you are a Rroda right away, so even if you dragged in a half dead person in blood-stained rags, they¡¯d still let you in and treat you like an honored guest.¡± Kiel stared at her dumbfounded. That confidence¡­ ¡°¡­you are not¡­talking from experience¡­are you?¡± Elaru deadpanned: ¡°I always talk from experience.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s face stiffened and after a moment of silence, he responded. ¡°Dragging half dead people in? Do assassins and thieves dine here too?¡± ¡°Anyone with enough money is welcome. Fugitive or not.¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°Black Pearl even has a deal with the Peacekeepers that prevents them from storming in and disturbing the guests. If a fugitive comes to dine here, they would be completely safe from capture until they leave the premises of the Black Pearl.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed. ¡°Then the question is¡­do you have enough money for us to dine here? Cause I sure don¡¯t.¡± Elaru patted Kiel on the shoulder. ¡°Ye of little faith. If I didn¡¯t, would I have brought you here?¡± Without waiting for Kiel to respond, she turned her back to him and started walking towards the entrance of the restaurant. Frowningly Kiel looked at her back. Her long red ponytail was glittering like silk, jumping with her every step. Her narrow waist and ample bottom looked alluring even in baggy clothes. After a moment of reluctance, he sighed and followed her in. As they entered, what greeted them was a small reception hall with many guards watching over the entrances and exits. A violet carpet path led them from the entrance to the reception desks around which were positioned many servants in tuxedoes. As soon as Kiel and Elaru entered, a servant stepped forward from the wall of servants, coming to greet them. He slightly bowed and exclaimed. ¡°Welcome to Black Pearl my lord and lady. I will be your personal servant today. Do honored guests have any special instructions for this lowly one?¡± If the guests wanted to go to a specific floor or booth, had reservations, or perhaps companions already waiting for them inside, they would be able to tell it to the waiter so he could bring them where they wanted to go. Since the moment he stepped foot into the restaurant, Kiel had started wearing his friendly smile. His usually straight back and his aura of elegance and refinement intensified. Making his bearing nothing short of perfection. Like a gracious noble he was, Kiel nodded to the middle-aged waiter and spoke in a husky, enchanting voice: ¡°We have come to enjoy a meal. That is all.¡± Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched when she heard his voice. It wasn¡¯t that Kiel¡¯s voice usually wasn¡¯t extremely pleasant to the ear. On the contrary, he naturally possessed a deep, sexy voice that could easily make women lose their mind. But when he was doing his best to be as perfect as possible, he even exercised control over his voice to be more soothing to the ear. She found it funny how nobles did their outmost to appear as perfect as possible. Yet why was it that that they had a single fixed definition of perfection? They trampled on individuality and enforced their own outdated ideals. And they even did it with a sense of self-righteousness as if stuffing their own kin into a single mold was only proper. She thought that Kiel¡¯s natural way of speaking was much more enchanting than this side of him that tried to conform to the norms and appear as noble as possible. His natural way was unique and thus carried much more charm than the usual demeanor every ¡°proper¡± noble used. The waiter bowed again and then motioned for them to follow him. He led them towards a corridor out of the reception hall. Many numbered, sturdy looking doors greeted them from the both sides of the wide corridor. It looked as if they were in a hotel instead of a restaurant. Some doors had white numbers, and some had black numbers. Most black numbered doors had servants standing next to the door. The waiter stopped in front of a door with a white number 137 and opened it wide, motioning for the two following him to enter. The waiter didn¡¯t cast an unlocking spell nor did he have some kind of a key. The door wasn¡¯t locked.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Inside the door was a small room. It might be better to call it a booth. It had a rack where one could leave their coat and a dining table surrounded by a comfortable looking black leather couch. Besides the entrance, there was an additional door leading to the bathroom. The wall opposite of the entrance to the room wasn¡¯t a wall at all. It was made out of glass, and one could look at the beautiful garden scenery outside. Black Pearl Restaurant didn¡¯t have a hall filled with tables like ordinary restaurants. Every customer was given their own booth where they had absolute privacy, not coming in contact with other guests. The waiter wanted to help the two take off their bags but Kiel waved him away saying: ¡°We¡¯ll call you when we are ready to order.¡± The servant bowed and exited the room to stand in front of it, waiting for further instructions. When the servant exited, Elaru wasted no time in rotating the locking mechanism located under the table. It established a magical array which locked the door (and turned the numbers on the door black). The two of them sat down on the couch, facing each other. Kiel was the first to speak up. ¡°Out with it. What are you up to?¡± He wasn¡¯t stupid. If Elaru brought him here, it wasn¡¯t to enjoy the expensive food. Nor was it to have a private chat with him. If she just wanted to talk to him, using their mental link would be enough, and they could eat anywhere. Therefore, she had a purpose in mind that required secrecy and security that they wouldn¡¯t have anywhere else in Ashar. ¡°Patience, iceblock. How about we order our food first?¡± She smiled mysteriously and picked up a leather-bound menu from the table. * * * (Meanwhile in the Rroda mainhouse) Venric Rroda sat on his royal chair, lavishly decorated teacup in hand, slowly sipping tea. One would think that an image of an old man sipping tea would look relaxing. The people standing with their heads lowered in front of his desk would disagree. It looked anything but soothing. Chilling, scary, disturbing. There were countless other words more fitting to describe it. After taking that agonizingly slow sip, Venric finally spoke up. ¡°The entire day, you vigilantly waited in front of the university yet you saw no sign of Kiel Rroda? Correct?¡± The leader of the burly men gulped quietly before responding. ¡°That is correct your excellency. Neither Kiel Rroda nor Elaru Wayvin arrived to take the exams.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Venric slowly murmured in seemingly amiable voice. Yet it caused the men¡¯s backs to be drenched with cold sweat. He continued, his voice suddenly turning icy. ¡°I hope that is indeed the case¡­otherwise¡­¡± As he spoke the last word, the men in front of him could no longer endure the pressure and almost dropped to their knees. Seeing Lawrence doing a slight motion as if shooing them away, they realized they were free to leave and quickly, as fast as their shaking legs allowed, they made their way out of the room. Venric paid no attention to their exit. His eyebrows slightly wrinkled, he seemed to be deep in thought. He took another small sip of his tea, barely wetting his taste buds. Something¡­isn¡¯t right¡­ Suddenly, his tea didn¡¯t taste good. Venric Rroda¡¯s instincts sharpened over many years of plots and backstabbing were itching. Something is definitely off. Venric¡¯s frown deepened, his mouth curling into disgust. He pushed his teacup aside. ¡°Lawrence. There is something wrong with this tea. Get rid of it and brew me a 1000 Year Old Goldleaf.¡± Lawrence blinked several times, a trace of confusion flashing in the depths of his eyes. Nonetheless, he picked up the tea cup. ¡°Right away, your grace.¡± Before he could leave, Venric added: ¡°Also, purchase an updated D.I. report on Kiel Rroda¡¯s & Elaru Wayvin¡¯s movements.¡± D.I. was the name of the information related quest lodge, ran by the Etezza family, which specialized in accepting and offering intelligence gathering quests and selling information. ¡°As you wish, your grace.¡± Lawrence bowed his head in respect. * * * After their ordered lunch arrived, Kiel and Elaru enjoyed a high class meal. Kiel had to admit that the high price of Black Pearl was well deserved. All food was extremely meticulously prepared, tantalizing to the taste buds without exception. Whether it melted inside the mouth or had a crunchy texture, its tastiness could not be compared with food from other restaurants. The only complaint was the below average portion size. Black Pearl hired mages who specialized in cooking related magic which explained the consistent taste. After finishing her meal, Elaru moved the plates to the side, locking her eyes with Kiel¡¯s beautiful light blue ones. Her face was solemn as she started her explanation. ¡°As you might already know, this room is completely isolated from the outside. The glass is one sided so we can¡¯t be seen from the outside. The room is enchanted with a sound isolating enchantment preventing people from hearing what we are talking about. Walls and even the glass are extremely hard and durable with a high mana resistance, preventing people from breaking in or casting magic on them for whatever purpose. The locking array allows us to lock the room from inside preventing even the Black Pearl personnel from entering. Even scanning the room with the mana sense is difficult, as the walls, doors and glass are mixed with special dust gathered from Surreal Phantasms which repels our Minds from passing through it.¡± She paused briefly, inspecting Kiel¡¯s unsurprised expression, before continuing. ¡°My point is, Black Pearl is one of rare places in Ashar where we can be sure that what happens in this room will be a secret shared only by you and me.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Indeed¡­this is exactly the reason why my brother chooses to bring girls here instead of a love hotel¡­ Elaru didn¡¯t continue her talk and instead reached her hand down to her thigh, picking up several needles which were strapped there. Kiel¡¯s heartbeat sped up. What did she intend to do with acupuncture needles?? She placed the needles on the table in front of her and then picked up her backpack that sat next to her. She rummaged through it until she found a small platinum box that looked like a ring case. Kiel didn¡¯t even have the time to speculate what was inside before she opened it to reveal a black marble. There were small specks of bluish light inside the marble as if they were stars on the night sky. Elaru picked up the marble in the palm of her hand, and carefully weaved a Morph spell whose roots stretched into the marble. In front of Kiel¡¯s eyes, the black orb, as if liquid, slowly changed shape. It seemed to flatten and inflate, and then suddenly, a hole appeared in the middle. From the shape of a small donut it slowly transformed into the shape of a ring. Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, realizing what she was doing.
Please take the time to vote for Aethernea on TopWebFiction! It helps support Aethernea. Coming up in the next episode: The silky surface of her palm and her soft fingers touched his own, causing a strange sensation to come over Kiel. It was extremely comfortable and pleasant, and in the same time, her soft touch seemed strangely¡­erotic. Sweat was slowly sliding down the side of Elaru¡¯s face, yet her expression showed nothing but deep concentration. She took hold of Kiel¡¯s hand again, making his heart skip a beat and gracefully slipped the ring onto his ring finger. It was an absolutely perfect fit. Kiel¡¯s lips pressed into a thin line. Why do I feel like a girl in this relationship? Kiel slammed his hand on the table creating a loud smacking sound. ¡°Idiot!¡± Elaru¡¯s eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she finally responded in an apologetic voice. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you mention anything before?¡± Kiel¡¯s cheeks imperceptibly reddened. Episode 48 - Ring Crafting In the previous Episode: Elaru brought Kiel to Black Pearl restaurant. The privacy of the restaurant will ensure that what transpires between them will be known only to the two of them. Elaru takes out a strange black pearl and Morphs it into a ring shape.
Episode 48 ¨C Ring Crafting Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, realizing what she was doing. She intended to craft the ring herself! Elaru stretched out her other hand towards him. ¡°Give me your right hand.¡± If she had requested his hand in any other situation, Kiel would have snorted and ignored her. But this time was different. This time, Kiel understood the reason behind her actions. With a slight frown, but no reluctance, he offered her his right hand. She took it into her own smooth hand, turning his palm upwards. Soothing warmth spread from her flesh onto Kiel¡¯s. Her actions seemed so tender and careful as if his hand was a fragile piece of crystal that with a single wrong touch would shatter. At a normal state of mind, Kiel would have found her actions amusing. But when the silky surface of her palm rubbed against the back of his own hand, when her velvety fingers came into contact with his own fingers, his state of mind was anything but normal. A strange sensation came over him. The touch was extremely comfortable, even pleasant, yet at the same time, this innocent touch seemed strangely¡­ erotic. When that word entered his mind, Kiel¡¯s entire body shivered, and he averted his gaze elsewhere, trying to find something else to distract himself with. Yet, the hands were among the most sensitive places on the body; no matter how he tried to ignore her touch, he was unable to focus his thoughts elsewhere. The mark of the bond, residing on the back of his hand near the wrist, seemed restless. It pulsated as if calling Elaru¡¯s fingers to move just a bit downwards. Just a bit down and they would come in contact with it. While Kiel was trying to understand the strange behavior of his mark, Elaru picked up the ring-shaped marble and slid it on his ring finger. When it reached the base of the finger, she tightened it until it fit perfectly, then loosened it a bit so that it didn¡¯t touch his skin. When she estimated the size to be right, she removed the ring and placed his hand down on the table. The sudden loss of warmth jolted Kiel awake from his contemplation. He blinked a few times, clearing his thoughts. His eyes rose up to see Elaru picking up her needles from the table. ¡°Something strange happened just now. My mark was responding to your touch.¡± Kiel¡¯s voice came out huskier than intended. Elaru¡¯s actions paused, and she stared at him with an unreadable look. Her lips tightly pressed together, trying not to show that she found the current subject unsettling. Her throat suddenly dried up, and she grabbed a glass of honeymead to take a sip. Kiel inspected his mark of the bond and abruptly his eyebrows furrowed. ¡°Look! The mark has grown a bit.¡± Still wearing a poker face, Elaru looked down at the black mark and nodded. ¡°Yeah. It grew a bit.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes lit up. This is excellent news! The distance they could be apart from each other would most likely grow too! ¡°Quick!¡± Kiel extended his hand towards Elaru. ¡°Touch it. If it grew like this just because you held my hand for a few seconds, maybe it can grow further if you touch it directly.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes widened into saucers, without any warning, she spat out the honeymead she was drinking straight in Kiel¡¯s face. Her grip on the needles loosened and they slipped out, their fall creating a melodic high pitched ding. She quickly covered her mouth and nose with her hand, leaving only her eyes visible, which seemed to be tearing up. Kiel¡¯s hand stood frozen in the air, his eyebrow twitching, honeymead dripping down the side of his face. What¡¯s with that reaction!? Sluggishly, he wiped the spit off of his face in disgust, shooting a chilling glare in Elaru¡¯s direction. ¡°Can¡¯t you, for once, behave like a proper lady?¡± She looked at him with a wronged expression. She opened her mouth to say something several times, but in the end, she decided against it and covered her eyes with the palm of her hand. How can you say that with a straight face?! After wiping off the honeymead and spit with a napkin, Kiel went to wash his face in the bathroom. Internally he was grumbling and swearing the entire time. Granted, he was annoyed, and not mad. As he remembered his own outburst a few days ago, he couldn¡¯t be too angry at her. After washing his face, Kiel looked at his own reflection. The crystal clear droplets of water were sliding down the sides of his face, parts of his hair were also wet, sticking out as if he had used hair gel. His mind returned to the mark of the bond, replaying what happened. As he reached the part with Elaru spitting her honeymead in his face, he froze in horror. Suddenly, he felt dizzy, as if someone had just hit him with a heavy hammer. He slumped down to sit on the toilet seat, covering his face with his hand. But even his long slim fingers couldn¡¯t cover the pink blush covering his usually pale cheeks.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Why is it that you never realize your own inappropriateness but when I say something you pick up on it right away?! Are you actually just pretending to be stupid in that area?? He stood there petrified for a time. Until the sound of knocking reached his ears. Followed by that irritating to the mind yet pleasant to the ear voice. ¡°Iceblock? You ok? Are you taking a dump?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Iceblock?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Then why are you still in there?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I hate you so much¡­¡± ¡°???¡± * * * When Kiel returned to sit at the table, both of them decided to pretend like the previous situation never happened. Truthfully, Kiel wanted to bring up the matter of the mark growing, but he felt too embarrassed to do so. He wore a cold, emotionless mask on his face, and Elaru returned to what she was doing before he had interrupted her. She picked up the needles she had dropped and cast a Morph spell on each one. Her spells were incredibly dense, so dense that Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief. If he could see mana, her spell would surely be so blindingly bright, eclipsing everything else. Elaru paid no attention to Kiel¡¯s shock and moved the roots of the spells inside the needles bit by bit as if it was awfully difficult to do so. As she exercised the control over the spell, the needles melted and blended into a single blob of metal. This process of melting was sluggish, unlike the prior process with the black marble. Sweat slowly slid down the side of Elaru¡¯s face, yet her expression showed nothing but deep concentration. Kiel didn¡¯t know what the needles were made out of. Initially, he thought it to be silver, but since the material obviously had a high mana resistance, it couldn¡¯t be silver. High mana resistance was the only reason that came to mind which could explain her slow and arduous process of spellcasting. Is it made out of Pitium? Pitium was a titanium-platinum alloy that retained the benefits of both metals ¨C hardness of titanium and high mana resistance of platinum. The degree of hardness and mana resistance depended on the ratio of titanium and platinum. If Kiel had known that the silvery metal was actually pure platinum, he would have spit out the honeymead he was currently sipping. Among the 6 million people inhabiting the lands of Halnea, the total count of people capable of casting a spell on platinum absolutely didn¡¯t exceed 2 digits. Luckily, he didn¡¯t find out. Otherwise, he would have felt especially awkward for scolding Elaru¡¯s previous outburst while doing the same several minutes later. After the needles had been completely melted into a blob, Elaru moved the slim black ring close to it. The blob gradually grew many tendrils. It wrapped itself around the black ring like vines, giving it a silver frame and an inner pattern very similar to the black diamond ring they saw in the jewelry shop. After the ring was completed, Elaru let out a long breath of relief and wiped the sweat off of her forehead with the napkin. She took hold of Kiel¡¯s hand, appearing even more careful than the last time. The suddenness of the move made Kiel¡¯s heart skip a beat. She gracefully slipped the ring onto his ring finger. It was a perfect fit. Kiel¡¯s lips pressed into a thin line. Why do I feel like a girl in this relationship? Elaru didn¡¯t seem to notice the sourness on his face. Instead, she smiled in satisfaction and looked at Kiel with glittering eyes. ¡°What do you think?¡± Kiel suppressed the rising frustration and looked at the ring deeply. The pattern had slight differences when compared to the ring in the jewelry shop, but to him, this pattern looked even better. He was about to let out a rare word of praise when he noticed a serious issue. ¡°Why in bloody tarnation did you put it on my ring finger?!¡± Elaru stared at him gobsmacked. ¡°Ugh¡­ People usually wear rings on the ring finger?¡± Kiel slammed his hand on the table creating a loud smacking sound. ¡°Idiot! Those are engagement rings! They wear engagement rings on the ring finger!¡± He took the ring off and tried putting it on his middle finger, however, the ring was too tight. It couldn¡¯t even reach the root of the middle finger. He then took it off and tried putting it on his index finger, but the texture of the ring was too smooth so being even a little loose made it easily slip off. Elaru¡¯s eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she finally responded in an apologetic voice. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you mention anything previously?¡± Kiel¡¯s cheeks imperceptibly reddened. He couldn¡¯t say that her touch was too distracting, causing him not to notice which finger she put it on. He chose to not answer her question. ¡°Fix it. I can¡¯t wear it on my ring finger.¡± Elaru sighed in resignation. ¡°It¡¯s too late now. You should have told me that earlier.¡± Kiel¡¯s lips pressed tightly into a line, a vein started pulsating on his forehead. ¡°Can¡¯t you just Morph it a bit to make it fit on my middle finger!?¡± Elaru responded with a deadpan expression. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have the ability to do so.¡± Kiel frowned. What does that mean? Elaru sighed again and took the ring back. She placed it into the small platinum box the black marble was formerly in. She looked at Kiel¡¯s sullen face and scratched her head looking quite apologetic. ¡°Ugh¡­ look at the bright side. The ring finger of your left hand is still empty. You can put an engagement ring there in the future.¡± Kiel covered his eyes with the palm of his hand and growled in a deep, husky voice. ¡°You are, again, missing the point. I don¡¯t want people to think I am involved with a female.¡± Elaru stared at him blankly. ¡°Why? Don¡¯t tell me you are gay?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t dignify that with a response.¡± He shot her a glare through the fingers of his hand that were covering his eyes. ¡°Also, if I by some remote possibility, end up marrying someone in the future, people would think I have two wives.¡± Aren¡¯t you overthinking things? Elaru grimaced. ¡°It isn¡¯t that unusual for nobles of high status to have several spouses.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes abruptly turned icy, his aura agitatedly dropping down in temperature. ¡°Devoting yourself to a single person is the whole point of marriage. If you can¡¯t even do that, how can you expect that person to devote themselves to you? My father might be scum, my brother might be scum among scum, but don¡¯t you dare group me together with them!¡± Sore spot, huh? Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched, her eyebrows raising up giving her a sheepish look. ¡°I take it you are against polygamy?¡± Kiel snorted coldly. Elaru chuckled wryly. At least we are not talking about the rings anymore? Yay? An uncomfortable silence enveloped the room. A few moments later, Elaru coughed awkwardly and tried to ease the hostile aura. ¡°I agree with you. While it is possible to love multiple people very much if you try to sit on two chairs you won¡¯t be able to fully occupy either one.¡± Kiel nodded his head in agreement. ¡°At last, we agree on something.¡±
This episode wasn¡¯t supposed to be funny. But while I was rereading it I realized that I made Kiel say a rather funny line and couldn¡¯t force myself to remove it. So I decided to turn it into a funny skit. Coming up in the next episode: ¡°I might be incredible when it comes to creating and even mystifying spells, but I cannot create magic artifacts for other people¡¯s use.¡± A surge of anger rolled through Kiel¡¯s veins, he wasn¡¯t in the good mood to begin with. He simply didn¡¯t have the patience to deal with this! Kiel stared at him with a blank expression. What¡¯s your deal? Do I know you? What¡¯s with the blatant provocation? Kiel smiled politely yet the next words he said were anything but polite. ¡°Everything you said since opening your mouth has been humorous. Could it be that you weren¡¯t trying to be funny?¡± Don¡¯t tell me¡­did he¡­steal your girlfriend? Episode 49 - Meeting in the public library In the previous Episode: Elaru uses platinum and a black marble to create a ring that will be turned into a magical artifact for Kiel. Kiel discovers that she had been spellcrafting the enchantment for the artifact for the past several days.
After the creation of the ring, Elaru chose not to enchant it. When Kiel inquired about her decision she smiled wryly and gave him a puzzling answer: ¡°I might be incredible when it comes to creating and even mystifying spells, but I cannot create magic artifacts for other people¡¯s use.¡± A magic artifact is an object given long-lasting magical properties by a mage. Placing an enchantment on an object was one of the ways to create a magical artifact. The hardest part of this process is designing the enchantment spell. After that, the only thing an enchanter needed to do is cast it upon an object. Since Elaru¡¯s weaving was quite good, enchanting artifacts shouldn¡¯t pose a problem for her. Perhaps her family forbade her from creating magic artifacts for outsiders? Whatever the case, Elaru refused to comment on it. She led him to the central part of the city, telling him that she had some business there, and then she unceremoniously left him to wait for her. Instead of feeling thrilled to get some peace and quiet, Kiel¡¯s mood slowly turned foul. He wasn¡¯t sure why, but her leaving him there just like that, irked him to no avail. * * * Warm red rays of sunset passed through the tall windows, illuminating rows upon rows of books. The soft rays flickered on Kiel¡¯s white skin, giving him a magical glow as if he was a god who descended among mortals. Subjected to many fawning and curious gazes, he sat at a round table with a thick book in hand. While waiting for Elaru he had decided to visit a public library. Tomorrow¡¯s exam would include a written test. While Kiel was confident in his knowledge of magic theory, he wasn¡¯t conceited enough to come take the exam without any previous preparations. Also, he chose a subject of ¡°spell replication¡± as his special exam subject, but while he did have the skills required for it, he wasn¡¯t familiar with the subject at all. Which is why he intended to procure some books on spell replicating. Kiel had just finished the book he was reading, picking up the next one ¨C a booklet with the compilation of previous Muni questions, when suddenly a disdainful snort reached his ears. In the otherwise quiet library, the snort appeared loud and piercing to the ear. Kiel lifted up his head and looked sideways at the source. To the right of him, sat a tall mage reading a book on advanced applications of precious materials. The pale-faced argel looked at him scornfully from the corner of his eyes. He wore a dress shirt and a woolen sweater, like one might see in a university student. However, the air about him was stiff and tidy. While he did give off a scholarly vibe, there was also a trace of nobility in his countenance. His blond and black hair, gelled neatly to the side, coupled with his rectangular, smart looking glasses, made his angular features look even sharper. His dark brown eyes, that appeared almost black, locked with Kiel¡¯s, cold disregard glittering within. He snorted again and pushed his rectangular glasses further up his nose. Kiel stared at the male with a blank expression. What¡¯s your deal? Do I know you? What¡¯s with the blatant provocation? After staring at the man for several seconds, Kiel looked down to his own book expressionlessly. He had no intention to waste time on irrelevant people. However, it seemed that irrelevant people wanted to waste their time on him. As he read on, the cold gaze of his neighbor made it harder and harder for him to concentrate on what he was reading. Finally, after few minutes of struggle, Kiel put down his book and looked at the blond expressionlessly. ¡°Can I help you?¡± The pale argel who didn¡¯t look much older than Kiel snorted derisively again. ¡°Yes. It would be helpful if you got lost from my sight. Your face is disturbing my studying. And besides, if you think that last minute studying would let you ace the written exams, you are dreaming.¡± A surge of anger rolled through Kiel¡¯s veins, he wasn¡¯t in the good mood to begin with. He simply didn¡¯t have the patience to deal with this! He often complained how his face was more trouble than it is worth, but this was simply ridiculous! I did nothing to provoke you, and you have the gall to tell me to get lost?! Who do you think you are?! Judging from blond¡¯s arrogant behavior and stiff demeanor, it was likely that he had a high social position. Although his clothes weren¡¯t flashy and eye-grabbing, they were obviously expensive. Since it wasn¡¯t strange for nobles to choose a discrete outfit when trying to keep a low profile, it wouldn¡¯t be strange if this man was a noble. Even if you are a noble, what do you think of me as?! Chopped liver? Yet, even though Kiel was fuming inside, besides the slight chill permeating his aura, his face was still as blank as before. He blinked twice as if trying to make sense of the situation before replying: ¡°If you find my face unpleasant to the eye, that is your problem, and you should solve it by yourself. There are plenty of vacant seats at other tables. Also, thank you for your concern. However, my exam performance has nothing to do with you.¡± In other words: why don¡¯t you mind your own business and take your stuck up mug elsewhere? The man snarled, glaring icy daggers at Kiel. ¡°I was here first and was enjoying a relaxing read before you showed up. Naturally, you should be the one to move.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. As for your exam performance¡­¡± The man chuckled darkly. ¡°I am taking the exams too, and I find your behavior insulting. Thinking that you are guaranteed a spot? That you are the most talented person who doesn¡¯t need to work hard? Muni isn¡¯t a place that welcomes slackers! Don¡¯t think lightly of thousands of people who shed sweat and blood for a chance to enter Muni!¡± Slacker? Doesn¡¯t work hard? Idiot! I am obviously in the category of those shedding sweat and blood! You think you can just take a glance at someone and know what kind of person they are?! Under the hateful barrage of words, Kiel showed no sign of agitation. However, deep under his skin, his blood started to boil. What he hated the most was when people thought they knew him, that they understood his true self. His pale blue eyes met the dark eyes of the argel. In an amiable voice, Kiel spoke out: ¡°This library isn¡¯t your private property where you can decide who gets lost. Everyone has an equal right to be here. If something or someone in this place irks you, just go elsewhere. Also, I am revising the needed knowledge for the exams, while you are reading a completely unrelated book. Aren¡¯t you the one who is taking it lightly?¡± Boom! Take that buttcracker! You think I am a little meep you can bully as you please? Dream on! The man stared at Kiel dumbfounded for a few seconds before he regained his composure, his face turning unsightlier by the second. ¡°What a treacherous tongue of a zissk! Too bad your mouth can¡¯t be used to ace the exam! Morally deprived people like you will sooner or later get divine retribution!¡± Invisible sparks were flying everywhere. The tension in the air was thick causing a chill in the surroundings. People around them stopped reading and turned their eyes towards the two. Kiel stared at the blond for several seconds before letting a chuckle escape him. You can¡¯t win with reason so you are spouting out baseless accusations? With so little firepower you dare to pick a fight with me? You think my name as a Rroda is just for show? Funny, you are just too funny! The argel¡¯s face darkened, through gritted teeth, he spoke: ¡°Do you find my words funny?¡± Kiel smiled politely yet the next words he said were anything but polite. ¡°Everything you said since opening your mouth has been humorous. Could it be that you weren¡¯t trying to be funny?¡± blond¡¯s eyes widened and in a fit of rage he got up from his seat, making his chair cause a loud scraping noise that attracted the gazes of everyone in the reading section of the library. ¡°You!¡± Kiel didn¡¯t even let him regain his composure before opening his smiling mouth once again to land another hit. ¡°Is this your first time in a public library?¡± The man snorted in anger, not realizing that that question was a trap. ¡°Of course not, unlike some slackers, I am diligent in my studies!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed with mirth for a moment, before he feigned innocent confusion. ¡°Oh. I assumed it was your first time since you don¡¯t know the basic rules of conduct in a public library.¡± With his thumb, he pointed backward, to the large sign: ¡°No loud noises. Keep quiet.¡± The blond¡¯s previously pale face reddened, his eyes narrowed into slits. If a look could kill, Kiel would have been dead 10 times over. His body shook with fury, finding it difficult to speak. He chuckled sarcastically. ¡°Good! Very good! You Rrodas sure know how to flap your mouth!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes slightly narrowed. So you know I am a Rroda? And yet you are picking a fight? He quickly inspected the clothes of the man once again, not noticing any family crests that could explain his origins. The colors of his hair and eyes were common so he couldn¡¯t use it to guess his origins either. However, clearly, since he dared to offend a Rroda, he had someone powerful backing him up. Before inciting an all-out war, it would be better to find out who he¡¯s offending. ¡°Did my family somehow offend you?¡± The blond ground his teeth, his eyes flashing dangerously. ¡°Offend?¡± He chuckled angrily again. ¡°Tell me, is there anyone who Rhur Rroda didn¡¯t offend?!¡± Kiel¡¯s face blanked, and his body froze as if struck by lightning. Rhur Rroda. The future head of Rroda family. The number one heartthrob of the noble ladies. The famous ladies¡¯ man of the younger generation. The bane of Kiel¡¯s existence. His older brother. Kiel lamented internally. If Rhur pissed him off previously it is no wonder he got angry seeing my face. Me and Rhur look too much alike. Perhaps he had jumped on the warmount too quickly? After several seconds of silence, Kiel sighed dejectedly. ¡°What did he do this time? Don¡¯t tell me he stole your girlfriend?¡± The fury flickering in the argel¡¯s eyes erupted as he heard the question. The blood rushed to his face, dying his cheeks completely pink. The pink blush made the handsome blond appear somewhat cute, his cold countenance nowhere to be seen. ¡°No!!¡± The man defended himself, his glasses slipping down to the base of his nose, almost falling off. Your beet red face says otherwise. Kiel scratched the back of his head. No wonder he is so pissed. He must have come to read in peace and quiet when suddenly, a Rhur Rroda lookalike appeared to haunt him and remind him of his greatest humiliation. The anger and annoyance Kiel felt towards the unknown blond, transferred to Rhur. First, there were Rhur¡¯s friends, and now even his enemies are going out of their way to bother Kiel! Freaking Rhur! It is always you. Future successor or not, one day I¡¯ll have my revenge! Just you wait. Meanwhile, the pressure spread to envelop the entire seating area, people who weren¡¯t mages found it hard to breathe. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. An enemy of my enemy is my friend, right? I should try to salvage the situation. If he finds out that I am not like Rhur and in fact are not on good terms with him, there is a chance that this enemy before me would turn into an ally. Kiel exhaled and tried to remove any signs of hostility, looking apologetic and amiable. ¡°I apologize for the inappropriate behavior of Rhur Rroda. I hope you won¡¯t blame the entire Rroda family for the hot-blooded actions of a family junior. We in no way approve of his behavior.¡± Kiel noticed that the tension in the air was starting to dissipate, the rage of the blond slowly simmering down. Success! Pleased with himself, Kiel continued with his diplomatic approach: ¡°I implore you to show the dignity and grace of a noble and view the uncomfortable situation from a higher vantage point: Many unfortunate individuals don¡¯t even know that their girlfriend has been unfaithful. A fickle woman easily swayed by my brother¡¯s sweet words isn¡¯t worthy of your affection. Such women don¡¯t make a good wife or girlfriend material.¡± As Kiel finished with his sweet worded attempt to salvage the situation he was surprised to find the face of the blond suddenly turn completely red and entirely livid. The man¡¯s hands were shaking in fury, steam almost coming out of his ears. His tidily combed hair wasn¡¯t as neat as initially, strands started curling with sweat and sticking out. He suddenly erupted with mana, the sudden increase of density causing his glasses to crack. ¡°It was my sister you nincompoop!!!¡± The blond let out a quivering shriek that caused everyone in the reading section of the library to look towards them. Keil¡¯s mouth twitched, and his eyes widened. Is this ¡°shooting oneself in the foot with an arrow¡±? No! What arrow? This was clearly a cannonball! There was simply nothing of the foot left to walk away on!
Coming up in the next episode: The sudden ear-splitting wail startled the cloaked figure, and they almost lost the balance, but he quickly stabilized himself. He clutched his heart, breathing in deepheavy breaths. His eyes were still wide as if he had just seen a ghost. ¡°Good thing the room is sound proofed¡­¡± The cloaked figure murmured. The fatty inspected the ring, his eyes glittering as he saw the black layer under the platinum. ¡°Is this kirine?¡± Episode 50 - Weaving Guide for Dummies In the previous Episode: Elaru leaves Kiel to attend to her own matters. Kiel has a conflict with a blonde noble who has something against Kiel¡¯s older brother Rhur.
Episode 50 ¨C Weaving Guide for Dummies The center district of Ashar was full of cafes, shops and public institutions, such as the Ashar Public Library. It had very few residential houses which weren¡¯t too large. However, their prices were exorbitant. Among those residential houses was an odd one with luxurious insides that could even be called tacky. Inside the house, a peculiar looking elibu waddled down the gaudy corridor illuminated by the glow of crystals. The man was almost wider than he was tall, making him look like a giant multicolored ball. His exact age was difficult to determine because his inflated face had no wrinkles to be seen. From his attire and attitude, he would appear to be middle-aged, but his plump round face made him look childishly cute. His garments were vividly colored, even the countless jewelry he wore had multicolored gems, seemingly without any kind of color coordination. The man took slow steps and sighed tiredly several times before he finally reached the door to his bedchamber. He was finally done with his work. Now he could relax and get some well-deserved rest. He would read a few books, order something good to eat, and perhaps even take a hot bath filled with sweet smelling bubbles. The thought of food¡­and bubbles¡­but mostly food¡­made his mouth reveal a satisfied smile that stayed on his face for some time. When he opened the door to his bedchamber, what greeted him inside was a complete and utter darkness. The night had already fallen, and there were no lit lamps in his room. His house might not look like much from the outside, but it was actually pretty high class, with many enchantments and magical arrays. Thus he didn¡¯t need mundane lamps, all he had to do was rotate a switch next to the door and the entire room would be enveloped in crystal light. The man proceeded to do just that, after entering his room and closing the door, his meaty fingers found the switch and he quickly rotated it, aligning the magical array and activating the illumination spell. When the crystals shined down from the ceiling, bathing every corner of the room in bright light, his gaze instantly landed on a black figure that stood out like a sore thumb in the vividly colored room. The figure, dressed in a black cloak, was balancing on a chair with their feet up on the small coffee table. While balancing, the figure was whirling a small dagger like a toy, tossing it up and down, and catching it by the handle each time without exception. When the fatty¡¯s eyes landed on the figure, they almost popped out of their sockets. The shock gave his heart a jolt, and he let out a high pitched scream that sounded more like a shriek of a porkling getting slaughtered than a scream of a man. The sudden ear-splitting wail startled the cloaked figure, and they almost lost their balance. After quickly stabilizing themselves, with all chair legs on the ground, they caught the dagger flawlessly and let out an exclamation of surprise: ¡°What the¡­?! Why are you screaming??¡± Dressed as an assassin! Concealing your presence! Twirling the murder weapon in your hand! Waiting for me in my bedroom to slit my throat in the darkness of a night! What do you mean why?! Who wouldn¡¯t scream!? The fat man recognized the voice, but he didn¡¯t respond right away. He clutched his heart, breathing in deep heavy breaths. His eyes were still as wide as if he had just seen a ghost. ¡°Good thing the room is sound proofed¡­¡± The cloaked figure murmured. Otherwise, the scream would attract every servant in the house¡­ The fatty finally regained his wits and spoke out with raspy breaths. ¡°Stop¡­doing¡­that! Do you want to give me a heart attack?!¡± The cloaked person shook their head in exasperation and sighed. ¡°Goddas¡­you are so feeble¡­¡± The fatty, whose name seemed to be Goddas, finally calmed down enough to wobble towards the cloaked person, slumping down on the chair opposite of them dispiritedly. ¡°What do you want this time?¡± The fatty whined. The gaze of the cloaked figure caused his hair to stand on end. The hood of the cloak cast shadows over the person¡¯s face so the fatty couldn¡¯t actually see the cloaked man¡¯s eyes. Not just the eyes, his other facial features couldn¡¯t be seen clearly either. The pudgy man didn¡¯t even know if the cloaked person was an argel or an elibu. The only reason why he thought the person to be a man was because of the deep, husky voice and tall stature. After staring at Goddas for several seconds, the figure produced an elegant looking platinum ring and tossed it towards him. Goddas caught the ring with some difficulty and then inspected it on the palm of his hand.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°I need you to enchant this ring for me.¡± The cloaked man elaborated. The fatty¡¯s eyes glittered as he saw the black layer under the platinum. ¡°Is this kirine?¡± Kirine was an extremely precious mineral with strange mana resistance properties. As long as the mana inside kirine didn¡¯t reach a set threshold, kirine acted as if it didn¡¯t have any mana resistance, allowing all mana to pass through it unimpeded. However, once the amount of mana inside of it reached the threshold, its properties would suddenly shift. Kirine would become extremely resistant to all outside mana making it near impossible for mana to enter. However, mana already inside kirine would still enjoy zero resistance and could move in and out of kirine unimpeded. This ¡°selective mana resistance¡± of kirine had far too many wonderful applications such as protecting enchantments from attempts of breaking them. Once an enchantment was cast on kirine and the flip threshold was reached, no one would be able to cause damage to the enchantment without breaking the chunk of kirine. And of course, enchanters would include a strengthening spell inside the enchantment that would make it exceedingly difficult to break the chunk of kirine. Unfortunately, the sparse quantities of kirine available made it so it couldn¡¯t be used in large artifacts such as weapons and armor, for even a small pearl of kirine was considered an incredible fortune. The cloaked figure nodded, confirming the fatty¡¯s speculation. ¡°Damn, you are always so extravagant.¡± Goddas whistled with a mix of thrill and envy. The cloaked figure snorted and motioned his hands towards their lavishly decorated surroundings. ¡°You are calling me extravagant?¡± The fatty ignored the statement and instead extended his palm towards the cloaked figure. ¡°What spell do you want me to enchant it with?¡± Without further ado, the cloaked figure produced a long and thick scroll. When the fatty unraveled the scroll, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. The longer he stared at the pattern, the darker his face became. ¡°Are you joking?!¡± Goddas slammed his fat hand filled with rings down on the coffee table. ¡°This¡­this is¡­simply absurd!!¡± The cloaked person didn¡¯t respond. ¡°This pattern is too dense, too complicated, too long! It¡¯ll take ages to figure out how to cast it!¡± Fatty glared at the cloaked person. Sure. He owed the cloaked man a favor. But that favor would definitely not cover a long research on how to successfully weave such a leviathan. The cloaked person was unperturbed. He suddenly produced a stack of papers which were morphed together at the corner. ¡°That¡¯s why I brought you my tips and tricks on how to cast it successfully.¡± Goddas stared at the man dumbfounded for several seconds, before lowering his gaze to the stack of papers. As he read the title written on the first paper, his mouth started twitching, his face falling. ¡°Weaving Guide for Dummies¡± Are you making fun of me?! My face might look dumb, but it¡¯s just a fa?ade! With shaking hands, he took the stack of papers and flipped through it. The more he flipped, the stranger his expression became. Wow. It sure is thorough. It dissects every line, mentions all areas to be wary of. It even lists common mistakes in weaving and how to avoid them. No wonder it is called ¡°weaving guide for dummies¡±. Even an idiot would be able to successfully cast this with the guidance of the manual. Fatty sighed dejectedly. I wish my other clients brought me a manual too¡­ ¡°Even with your¡­guide¡­it will take me at least 5 days¡­¡± Fatty conceded. Without blinking, the cloaked person interrupted: ¡°I¡¯ll come pick it up in 2 days.¡± Fatty almost spewed out blood from anger. ¡°Frakk! Freaking unreasonable!! I am not a miracle worker!! If I can¡¯t do it, I can¡¯t do it!¡± The cloaked person looked at the fatty strangely. ¡°Don¡¯t try to con me. You have entire 2 days. That¡¯s longer than it took to design the spell.¡± This time, Goddas ended up spewing blood for real. ¡°$%&#!! Who is conning you?! I am not frigging conning you! Who the frakk can design this in two days?! I am not a monster! I am just a regular guy!¡± The cloaked man stared at Goddas, not showing any change in emotion. ¡°If you were just a regular guy, would I be here, talking to you?¡± Goddas stared at him gobsmacked. Tsk¡­what an expensive repayment of a favor. Scam! You are totally scamming me! Last time I accept a favor from you! Tsk tsk tsk! Fatty¡¯s round face turned red, making him look like a tomato, but he couldn¡¯t refute anything the man said. If he further claimed that he can¡¯t do it in 2 days, it would be like claiming that he needed more time to read a book then the time it took the author to write it. After grinding his teeth for a while, Goddas finally conceded. ¡°Fine! But this is the last time! After this, we are even!¡± The cloaked men nodded and got up to leave. Just as Goddas was about to let out a breath of relief, the man suddenly stopped in his steps. Without turning around to face him, he added in a seemingly amiable tone: ¡°Oh, by the way¡­on my way in, I noticed you got a new protective barrier set up.¡± Goddas suddenly felt cold sweat drenching his back. Indeed. He spent all his savings on new protection enchantments in hopes that this cloaked fellow won¡¯t be able to waltz in as he pleases anymore. The air in the room suddenly felt stifling, fatty¡¯s heart raced. The cloaked man¡¯s arm rose towards Goddas. Goddas felt his heart jump in his throat, the chair he was sitting on let out creaking noises under his shivering. The fingers of the raised arm suddenly twisted, and the cloaked man¡­gave Goddas a thumbs up. Fatty¡¯s mouth dropped down to the floor. ¡°Excellent craftsmanship. Expensive, but it is a great investment. Along with all the previous security measures, your place might be the most secure house in Ashar.¡± The man nodded to Goddas in approval. ¡°This feeling of security¡­ah! It must feel really great.¡± The fatty couldn¡¯t take it anymore, and he flipped the coffee table in a burst of anger. Are you making fun of me?!! Huh, huh?! Secure my ass! You still managed to get in!! You get in every bloody time!! Do you find it enjoyable to put salt on a fresh wound?! You! You!! All my savings!!!! Gone!!! Is this a conspiracy to con me out of my money?! Do you work for the security company?! Troll! Buttcracker!! I hate you!!! I can¡¯t even sleep in peace anymore!! After finishing with his tantrum, Goddas noticed that somewhere in the middle, the cloaked man disappeared. Leaving behind only an open window. Fatty looked at the pitium bars on the window and started swearing again. ¡°Frakk! You can even morph pitium?! Why not just go straight through the walls?!¡± At this moment, the fatty¡¯s round face looked extremely pitiful. He gazed down at the colorful robes he was wearing and let out a weak whine: ¡°The stress is getting to me! I¡¯ve lost weight!¡±
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Over my dead body!!¡± Venric growled out, crumpling and tearing at the papers. And what about the marriage? Who will inherit whose name? If he married an elibu, that problem would be dealt with. His eyes flared venomously. Their message was clear: if we weren¡¯t at the library, if fights weren¡¯t forbidden, I would have already pummeled you into nothing! ¡°Rroda vermin! I challenge you to a duel!!¡± The blonde exclaimed in a loud tone so everyone in the reading section could hear him clearly. Episode 51 - Those with ability don’t need luck In the previous Episode: Elaru leaves Kiel to attend to her own matters. Kiel has a conflict with a blonde noble who has a bone to pick with Kiel¡¯s older brother Rhur. Venric Rroda asks Lawrence to purchase a report on Kiel & Elaru¡¯s movemements.
Episode 51 ¨C Those with ability don¡¯t need luck (Meanwhile, Rroda mainhouse) A vein pulsed on Venric¡¯s forehead, his face pale and contorted into a scary grimace. In his shaking hands, he held a stack of papers. The trembling caused the papers to rustle, the soft sound piercing through the otherwise deathly quiet room. His tea was slowly cooling off to the side, seemingly forgotten. Yet it wasn¡¯t that he no longer wished to drink it, in fact, his mouth was uncomfortably dry. It was simply that he didn¡¯t dare to sip it. For what he was reading was so mind-boggling that he would surely end up either choking on the tea or spewing it all over his papers. The slowly accumulating anger could no longer be suppressed, it reached the upper limits of Venric¡¯s tolerance erupting in one swell swoop. Venric grabbed the first thing that came under his hand and threw it to the wall in a temper tantrum. That thing ended up being the luxurious teacup. The force of his throw was so large that it created a loud boom when the teacup met the wall. The chandelier and the shelves shook from the impact. Yet, there was no sound of shattered porcelain. There was only a hole in the wall, housing the teacup which was stuck inside, unable to fall to the ground. If one looked at it closely, the teacup didn¡¯t have a single nick or crack. The gems were still as luxurious and eye-catching as ever. Even the dust and debris of the broken wall seemed to just slide past the glossy teacup. ¡°Over my dead body!!¡± Venric growled out, crumpling and tearing at the papers. Those papers, those blasted papers, were the report on today¡¯s activities of Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin. The report clearly stated that both had arrived and participated in the exams. It even divulged their results. Unexpectedly, both had achieved perfect scores. Venric was only mildly surprised when it came to his grandson¡¯s scores. It might appear that he ignored Kiel¡¯s existence, but actually, he kept close tabs on the boy. Any potential liability had to be closely monitored. Consequently, he was aware that the boy had been working hard and showed considerable talent and ability when it came to using magic. It was quite a pity that he was a mere non-mage. The fates were even crueler than Venric himself. Therefore, while he did feel surprised that the boy¡¯s ability reached full points, he wasn¡¯t overly shocked. What shocked him was that the redhead showed an ability not any lesser than the boy. In fact, the report spoke of her ability quite highly. Allegedly, it was so high that the instruments broke while trying to measure it. This had never happened before in the history of Ashar University exams. The more he learned of Elaru Wayvin, the more he understood just how little he knew. The more he learned, the more he realized just how much he had underestimated her. The more he learned¡­the warier he became. However, what caused him to reach his current rare state of distress was what followed after. Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin went shopping for engagement rings. Who gave you the permission to get involved with a female?! Even thinking about marriage! When did you intend to inform me, huh?! This was not only a huge face slap to him, but also a slap to the dignity of the whole Rroda family. A wyrm they fed and groomed for 18 years had grown up to disrespect them and elope without any regard for their future development. This was foreshadowing a scandal. And what about the marriage? Who will inherit whose name? Not just anyone could be allowed to wear the Rroda name. Only the worthy could wear it. Under no circumstance would random individuals be allowed to become a Rroda. The Rroda name was noble. Anyone who wore it was, by extension, a noble. You think nobility can be decided upon so easily? So easily that anyone can just marry and become a noble?! What if the two wanted the bastard child to inherit the name Wayvin? That possibility, although minor, also crossed his mind. And that possibility was even worse. What would that mean? That would clearly mean that a noble discarded his own noble name, his own noble status, of his own free will. Wouldn¡¯t that be a slap in the face of every noble? Everyone would hold the Rroda family in contempt, laugh at them, jeer at them and mock them. They, who have been discarded by a wyrm. They who allowed a non-mage to shame them.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Wouldn¡¯t that be clearly declaring: I am not one of you. You are beneath me. Who wants to be a Rroda? Who wants that empty title? I¡¯d rather wear a common name than be associated with you. Saying that Venric Rroda was furious would be putting it lightly. If Elaru Wayvin turned out to be a powerful individual, someone of high value to them. Someone who they would want to recruit. Venric Rroda would even consider allowing the marriage. For if Elaru Wayvin wouldn¡¯t shame their family and would bring them benefits, why oppose it? It would even deal with the problem of that bastard child¡¯s future offspring. Ever since the bastard child was allowed to wear the Rroda name, Venric had been worried about the possibility of an offspring. The bastard child was a non-mage. If he was allowed to proliferate, wouldn¡¯t there be a possibility of more non-mages appearing within the family? If he married an elibu, that problem would be dealt with. If marrying that elibu would bring extra benefits, Venric would welcome the girl with open arms. However, they showed no respect towards him as the family head, showed contempt to the Rroda family, showed no hesitation to drag their name through the mud. Even if it would be beneficial, out of principle, Venric Rroda vowed that he would never allow that marriage. Over. My. Dead. Body. They even proceeded to dine in Black Pearl. Is he following the footsteps of his older brother? Is he openly provoking him, declaring that he was eloping with the girl? ¡°If Rhur can do it, why can¡¯t I?¡± Venric Rroda¡¯s eyes flashed murderously. ¡°Lawrence.¡± Lawrence, who had been standing quietly, without moving even a twitch, like a statue, finally moved and spoke: ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± ¡°Those fools that previously claimed that Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t arrive to take the exams. Deal with them.¡± Venric paused briefly. He wasn¡¯t stupid or hasty. Of course, a question occurred to him: how did they manage to slip past my men? It could be that the men were momentarily distracted. Or it could be that they disguised themselves, so the men couldn¡¯t recognize them. They were either incredibly lucky or shrewd ¨C already perfectly aware he had sent men after them. ¡°Also, send trackogs to smell them out. Kiel Rroda¡¯s smell should still be lingering on his luggage. Find and bring me Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin. There is no need for courtesy. I don¡¯t even care how. Just bring them to me.¡± Lawrence bowed deeply and responded calmly. ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± * * * Kiel stared at the livid blond in front of him who looked as if he wanted to massacre him where he stood. Like he wanted to pierce Kiel with thousand needles, shred his body into ten thousand pieces. The blond¡¯s face was so red that one could almost see steam rising from it. It might even be hot enough to fry an egg. His limbs were twitching as if he was barely restraining himself from strangling Kiel. His eyes flared venomously. Their message was clear: if we weren¡¯t at the library, if fights weren¡¯t forbidden, I would have already pummeled you into nothing! No matter how furious he was, he didn¡¯t want to create too big of a scene. He couldn¡¯t openly attack him either. A noble publicly assaulting another noble would be a scandalous event. Even if Kiel didn¡¯t pursue the matter, avoiding involving peacekeepers, it would still not be beneficial to the blondguy in any way. If he wanted to deal with Kiel, he would need to use another method¡­ ¡°Rroda vermin! I challenge you to a duel!!¡± The blond exclaimed in a loud tone so everyone in the reading section could hear him clearly. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched, but he responded in a calm and collected tone. ¡°Actually, my name isn¡¯t Vermin, it is Kiel. And you are?¡± ¡°You dare provoke me without even knowing who I am?¡± He let out a derisive laugh. ¡°Listen well! I am Gaine Farhice!¡± Kiel frowned. What a cliche bad-guy behavior! It¡¯s like he is taking his lines from random bad guys from cheap novels. This is ridiculous! And to make matters worse, this guy with bad conversational skills was actually the younger generation genius of the Farhice family, first in line for the family head position. Farhice family was an extremely powerful and influential noble family of engineers and array masters. Their domain was one of top 5 biggest cities of Halnea, the famous city in the clouds ¨C D¡¯Arca. Rhuuuuur! Of all the girls you could have targeted, why must you target the sister of the future family head?! Kiel got the urge to kick Rhur so hard he would fly all the way to D¡¯Arca, and then some more, so he could fall off the edge. Luckily, his internal thoughts didn¡¯t show on his face. ¡°I have no desire to fight with you. There is no enmity between us.¡± ¡°No enmity?¡± Gaine laughed coldly. ¡°Coward! You dare to blabber your mouth but don¡¯t dare take responsibility!¡± Kiel sighed and finally put his book down. It seems that there was no way to salvage this situation and appease Gaine¡¯s anger. Still, he didn¡¯t want to gain a lifelong enemy because of something so stupid. ¡°If you are adamant on settling the score, why not opt for a friendly contest? How about we compete in who will have the higher score in Muni exams? That should settle it, right?¡± The two stared into each other¡¯s eyes, daring the other to look away first. One pair of icy blue against one pair of frosty black. Their staring contest lasted for a while. The tension in the air reached all-time high. Gaine¡¯s eyes flashed with coldness, he seemed to have finally gotten his temper under control. ¡°The loser has to publicly apologize to the winner.¡± Kiel had expected Gaine to suggest the stakes. He didn¡¯t want to apologize to this arrogant buttcracker, but even if it came to it, he could do it. He could put on a kind and dignified mask and sing praises to the heavens, all to uphold his image of a perfect prince. Therefore, without hesitation, he nodded. ¡°Alright. Good luck.¡± Gaine glared at him coldly. ¡°Those with ability don¡¯t need luck.¡± A stinging pain pierced through Kiel¡¯s chest as he heard that line. Gaine turned and stalked away, not looking back even once. ¡°Those with ability don¡¯t need luck.¡± A famous quote by Alann Farhice, the ancestor who established the Farhice family. The man whose deeds became legends. The only non-mage in the whole history of Halnea that managed to shake the hearts of everyone and stand on the top of the world. The only commoner who managed to gain the title of nobility, not through marriage, but through his own power. The man who Kiel couldn¡¯t help but look up to. His mother always used to tell him stories about Alann Farhicewhen he was little. However, the first time he heard that quote was actually from a person who inadvertently changed his life forever. A person whose existence gave him strength and encouragement to strive for the top, made him believe that if he worked hard enough, he could one day be the second Alann Farhice. He never thought that one day the line that changed his life would be used against him. And it came from the mouth of a Farhice. Kiel clenched his fists, his gaze heated up. The blood inside of him started to boil. My apologies Alann Farhice. To this descendant of yours¡­I¡¯ll show no mercy!
Meanwhile¡­ (And just to be clear, 2k in 3h is my max speed without editing. Editing can take as much as the writing itself and even more. Also, the speed doesn¡¯t include the time it takes me to come up with the story.) Coming up in the next episode: The man¡¯s face was calm, showing neither confusion nor agitation, as he asked: ¡°What is this? A shopping list?¡± ¡°Frakk! Don¡¯t you dare pin this on me!! I am innocent!!!¡± If you are trustworthy than the entire Shadow Lodge filled with criminals is trustworthy too!! However, in his eyes glittered amusement. What encouragement?! The bastard is enjoying this! It was your fault in the first place!!! And you have the gall to pretend you don¡¯t know what happened?!? Episode 52 - Herb Garden Fire Previously: Elaru¡¯s exams didn¡¯t go well. She ends up breaking the testing equipment. Deora Thayn, one of the examiners, is furious and would want nothing more than to get Elaru disqualified. Zerel Reysic, on the other hand, finds Elaru interesting.
Episode 52 ¨C Herb Garden Fire ¡°1 speedometer, 1 mythril cube, 10 velvet curtains, 25 mahogany desks¡­¡± A middle-aged man recited, in a deep voice extremely pleasant to the ear. It caused shivers to the people present as if listening to the melodic purring of a lunar. Although middle-aged, one wouldn¡¯t be able to tell his real age at all judging from his flawless pearly white skin which was without any blemishes or wrinkles. Even the skin of his long elibu ears was flawlessly smooth and radiant. However, the hair falling down his back like a waterfall of silk was even more radiant. The strands were whiter than the freshly fallen snow, seeming to glow in the darkness of the night, making one¡¯s fingers twitch, yearning for nothing more than to caress it. His bright purple eyes, which seemed to hide magic itself within their depths, quickly darted left and right as he read the parchment in front of him. The man¡¯s face was calm, showing neither confusion nor agitation, as he asked: ¡°What is this? A shopping list?¡± The two men standing in front of his desk shared a strange look. One of the two, Zerel Reysic, flipped his long, dark purple hair and smiled good-naturedly. Even his yellow eyes seemed to be smiling, looking like bright crescent moons. He seemed to be completely relaxed in the presence of the white-haired man. Unlike Zerel, the mood of the third person was anything but relaxed. Deora Thayn tried to keep his emotions off of his face, yet he was never good at it. Large crystal drops were sliding down the side of his face, and his back was already completely drenched. Deora tried to mimic the same look Zerel had on his face, but his forced smile ended up looking even worse than a crying expression. Even an idiot would be able to tell that he was feeling guilty and nervous about something. Let alone the white-haired man, who had always been praised for his intelligence. Deora glared at Zerel, trying to convey the message with his eyes: ¡°You tell him.¡± Zerel pretended not to understand him and blinked his eyes innocently. After what seemed like two hours instead of two seconds, Deora bit his lip and spoke out. ¡°Uh¡­it¡­isn¡¯t a shopping list¡­it is a damage report¡­¡± The white-haired man¡¯s face didn¡¯t change at all; his expression still as dignified and noble as ever. Saying that he looked like a flawless porcelain doll would be an insult, for even a master craftsman couldn¡¯t reproduce this aura of divinity. If Kiel were here to see his delicate and refined face, he would instantly feel a sense of comradery. But then Elaru would probably ruin the moment by suggesting them to join ¡°Too-pretty-to-be-male¡± club. Both Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic were nobles and very handsome individuals. But there was handsome, and then there was Arite handsome. The difference between the two was like the difference between ugly and beautiful. The radiance of the Arites eclipsed everyone and everything else. And the person standing in front of them was no other than Eruan Arite, the headmaster of the Ashar University of Magic. ¡°Go on.¡± The melodic voice of Eruan Arite that sounded extremely pleasant to Zerel sounded like the voice of a demon to Deora. ¡°It isn¡¯t my fault this time! It was caused by an examinee!¡± Deora proceeded to explain the select details of the incident. Through the entire explanation, Eruan Arite showed no change in expression. He patiently listened with his fingers crossed, resting on the table in front of him. ¡°So, sir, I believe we should ban Elaru Wayvin from participating in the exams.¡± Deora concluded in, what seemed to be, a righteous tone. Eruan stood silent for several moments, observing Deora and Zerel with his vivid purple eyes. ¡°In your opinion, do you believe the incident to be an intentional breaking of Muni property?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°No.¡± Both Deora and Zerel chose to answer at the same time. The two looked at each other. Deora glaring daggers at Zerel, while Zerel still smiled innocently. ¡°Deora, I¡¯ve already heard your side of the story. Zerel? What are your thoughts on the matter?¡± As Eruan¡¯s voice fell, Zerel didn¡¯t waste time and explained. ¡°The speed of the weaving went over the theoretical limit which is why the speedometer broke. It wasn¡¯t that the girl wanted to break it ¨C she just wanted to showcase her fastest casting speed. No one could have predicted that the glass couldn¡¯t take the heat.¡± Deora¡¯s face looked exceedingly ugly as he listened to Zerel¡¯s words. He wanted to speak up, but a single calm yet piercing look from Eruan shut him up. ¡°The second incident¡­we aren¡¯t sure of the cause. Whether the cause had something to do with Elaru Wayvin has yet to be confirmed. And even if that was the case, I don¡¯t believe it to be intentional.¡± Zerel paused briefly, his mouth twitching into a sly smirk. ¡°And, if I might add, the cube broke in Deora¡¯s hands.¡± To reinforce his point, Zerel pointed towards Deora. Deora¡¯s face was completely red at this point, ready to explode. He couldn¡¯t contain it in any longer, and he roared out: ¡°Frakk! Don¡¯t you dare pin this on me!! I am innocent!!!¡± Eruan¡¯s eyebrows furrowed just a little bit, but it was enough to silence Deora. His big yellow eyes looked almost ready to cry. His lip was entirely red from how much he was chewing on it.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. After silencing Deora, Eruan¡¯s purple gaze landed on Zerel. ¡°Are you really clueless to the reason or are you pretending to be clueless?¡± Eruan Arite was many things, but he wasn¡¯t an idiot. He was very familiar with Zerel¡¯s personality. He was also familiar with his worth. If Zerel said he doesn¡¯t know something, then it was more probable that he was lying. Eruan stared closely at Zerel¡¯s face. However, he didn¡¯t find any signs of deceit. Zerel¡¯s annoying smile never wavered. ¡°Would I ever lie to you Eri?¡± Yes. Definitely. ¨C was what crossed through both Deora¡¯s and Eruan¡¯s mind. ¡°Neither one of us was able to find any clues on the matter. Eri, we really don¡¯t know how it happened!¡± As Eruan heard the name ¡°Eri¡±, his eyebrow briefly twitched. However, he chose to ignore it. ¡°If it isn¡¯t intentional, we have nothing more to talk about.¡± Deora couldn¡¯t help but exclaim: ¡°Does that mean that Elaru Wayvin won¡¯t be banned from the exams?!¡± ¡°Naturally. Since it isn¡¯t intentional, we have no basis on which to disqualify her.¡± Eruan sighed softly, for the first time showing signs of tiredness. The night had already fallen and yet he was still in his office, swamped with work. He didn¡¯t have the time or patience to deal with Deora. Hearing Eruan¡¯s soft sigh, Deora figured that he wasn¡¯t too angry, so he couldn¡¯t help but show his displeasure. Like an angry toddler, he stomped his feet and grumbled: ¡°Why are you taking his word over mine?! It is intentional! It is definitely intentional!¡± Zerel looked at Deora, smiling slyly as if telling him: ¡°Why do you think? I am more trustworthy than you.¡± A vein started pulsing on Deora¡¯s forehead. If you are trustworthy than the entire Shadow Lodge filled with criminals is trustworthy too!! Eruan seemed to completely ignore Deora¡¯s question and instead change the subject. ¡°Your story explains the damages to the two artifacts¡­however¡­¡± As the word ¡°however¡± entered Deora¡¯s ears, he involuntarily shivered. Was he wrong? Could it be that the bad part was yet to come?? ¡°However, what happened to the rest of the objects on this damage report list?¡± Deora froze. He had conveniently skipped over that part. He didn¡¯t mention how he erupted into flames and ended up trashing the entire classroom. He hoped that Eruan wouldn¡¯t catch on to it and decide to ask about it. Deora looked towards Zerel, afraid that Zerel would tell on him. Zerel looked back at him reassuringly, encouraging him to speak. However, in his eyes glittered amusement. What encouragement?! The bastard is enjoying this! Deora gritted his teeth. ¡°Ah¡­that is¡­the jelly was hot so the room caught on fire¡­¡± Eruan gave Deora a blank look. ¡°What were you two doing at the time? Watching it spread? Why didn¡¯t you put it out?¡± Silence fell over the room. Deora opened and closed his mouth like a fish. He couldn¡¯t really speak the truth. But he couldn¡¯t really find a reasonable explanation either. Zerel, for some reason, (which must have been devious) chose to stay silent. After several seconds of silence passed, Eruan was the first to break it. His face still as calm as ever, he spoke. ¡°I see.¡± Did he reach a conclusion on his own? Phew. So, I don¡¯t have to explain? Just as Deora was about to let out a breath of relief, thinking that the headmaster Eruan was done with his questioning, the next statement fell like lightning, making him dizzy. ¡°As usual, I¡¯ll be deducting the damages from your monthly pay.¡± Frakk! Of course he knew that it was my fault! Headmaster Eruan opened the first drawer of his desk and picked up the first paper from the top of the stack. He looked over the paper and commented. ¡°The remainder of your February pay should cover the damages.¡± Deora gaped stupidly. He wanted to cry, but there were no tears. He felt wronged but couldn¡¯t complain. Just as he thought that the incident was finally over, he noticed the strange look on Zerel¡¯s face. That look! Zerel spoke up gently in an innocently curious tone. ¡°February pay? But Eri! We are in August.¡± Eruan looked at Zerel and explained patiently. ¡°Deora¡¯s August pay has already been confiscated because of the damages caused by the incident that happened last March in the stables.¡± Zerel¡¯s face contorted, showing sudden enlightenment. ¡°Ah!¡± He exclaimed in realization. He looked back at Deora with a knowing look. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that the September¡¯s pay was also¡­?¡± Eruan responded in the same emotionless tone. ¡°15th of May, Herb Garden Fire.¡± Zerel didn¡¯t bother to conceal a snicker. He remembered that one. The look the herbalists had on their faces as they saw all their precious herbs go up in flames couldn¡¯t be described with words. One had to see it firsthand. Deora stood rooted to the spot, his face pale and tight-lipped. ¡°Could it be¡­that your pay for the next 6 months has already been deducted to cover for your vandalism?¡± Zerel exclaimed. The statement seemed to wake Deora up, and his face turned from his previously pale one into tomato red equal to the color of his hair. ¡°Shut up! It isn¡¯t vandalism! It was an honest mistake! How was I supposed to know that those herbs were flammable?! You set me up!¡± Zerel pretended to ponder for several seconds before feigning confusion. ¡°Say¡­aren¡¯t herbs usually flammable?¡± Deora¡¯s cheeks puffed up, he looked about ready to explode once again. It was your fault in the first place!!! And you have the gall to pretend you don¡¯t know what happened?!? That day, Deora was teaching his class about herbs that could help in treating burns and creating fireproof artifacts. Therefore, he took his class to the Herb Garden so the students could see the herbs. As he was entering the Herb Garden, he met Zerel, who was leading his class out of the garden. Zerel¡¯s class was about surviving in the wilderness so he often took his students to the Herb Garden to point out common but useful herbs. Unlike Zerel, who was familiar with the layout of the Herb Garden, Deora, who almost never came to Herb Garden, because his classes had nothing to do with herbs, didn¡¯t know where he needed to go to find the fireproof herbs. ¡°Good-naturedly¡± Zerel pointed him in the ¡°right¡± direction, and he found the herbs. Surprisingly, in the middle of the class, a student spoke up claiming that Deora had misidentified the herbs. Deora, as proud as he was, felt insulted. How could he make a mistake? It was clearly the herb he was looking for! Angered, wanting to show everyone that he didn¡¯t make a mistake and wipe away the blemish off his reputation, he set the herbs on fire to prove they were the right ones. They weren¡¯t. Zerel had deliberately pointed him to the wrong section of the Herb Garden that contained herbs very similar in appearance. So, the only thing Deora managed to prove is how fast a fire can spread inside a greenhouse. The worst thing about the matter was that no one could prove that Zerel¡¯s ¡°mistake¡± was deliberate so Deora ended up being the only one punished. And yet, Zerel dared pretend he didn¡¯t know what happened! Deora¡¯s eye whites were red with blood, his eyebrow was uncontrollably twitching, trying to control his temper. He couldn¡¯t erupt in front of the headmaster. Eruan might look calm and amiable, but that was exactly what made him so scary. A completely calm and rational person who couldn¡¯t be influenced by emotions of pity. To Deora, his holy appearance looked anything but holy. He had to wait until they were out of the headmaster¡¯s room. Wait. Wait. Endure! Unfortunately, Zerel, being the exact bane of Deora, didn¡¯t give him any chance to endure: ¡°What about November¡¯s pay?¡± As Eruan opened his mouth to respond, Deora bellowed: ¡°Don¡¯t answer that!!¡±
As of 22nd of October, 2016, Aethernea joined GravityTales site. Aethernea is and still will be available on Aethernea.com, and here on royalroad, however, rules of GravityTales state that their releases have to be 5 chapters ahead of releases everywhere else. Therefore, every chapter that you will be reading here is at least 5 chapters behind the current release. P.S. Here is a new anime-ish picture of Elaru I¡¯ve been working on. ;)It is still a work in progress, so expect a full body picture in the future. Coming up in the next episode: If they couldn¡¯t conceal it, their whereabouts would be found out during the night. Kiel sharply inhaled when he realized that a spell everyone overlooked could be used in such a way. Hearing that, Kiel stumbled in his step, looking at Elaru as if she grew two heads. ¡°Who in their right mind would stake a divine artifact in a bet?!?¡± Although annoyed, Kiel remained perfectly polite, showing the flawless bearing of a noble. However, his patience was running very thin. Inwardly, he was already swearing and snarling. Episode 53 - Reflection Barrier Previously: Elaru leaves Kiel to attend to her own matters. Kiel spends the time studying in the public library. Meanwhile, Venric Rroda is furious at his subordinate¡¯s inability of catching Kiel and Elaru. He orders more men to mobilize and use trackogs to help them in their search.
Episode 53 ¨C Reflection Barrier Kiel spent several hours in the public library waiting for Elaru. By the time she appeared, it was already the closing time of the library. Before leaving, Kiel bought several books on spell replicating. Public libraries all over Halnea also served as bookshops. For a certain fee, one could come in and read the books, but couldn¡¯t take the books out of the library unless they bought them. The stories say that it was Alann Farhice who first came up with the idea of a public library. It is said that in his youth, Alann used to work in an old bookshop and that there were always people who came to read, not buying anything or buying a single book, just to avoid being thrown out. So Alann figured: if you are going to read anyway, I might as well make it easier for everyone and earn an extra profit. And thus, the first public library was established. Needless to say, it had been flourishing ever since. Besides revising his knowledge on magic theory, Kiel had also inquired about books on Aetherneal gifts and divine magic. He didn¡¯t have high hopes, so he wasn¡¯t too disappointed that the closest thing to divine magic he could find was a compendium of known divine artifacts. When he had asked the librarian about the subject, the librarian pointed out several larger books on various magic-related subjects that dedicated a page or two on the matter of Aetherneal magic ¨C all of which he had previously read in his school studies. One would be hard pressed to find a Halnean who hasn¡¯t previously heard about gods and Aetherneal magic. Both played a large role in the history of Halnea and still held an important role in culture and religion. Children came in contact with ¡°the divine¡± from an early age through fairy tales, legends, and myths. However, beyond the stories passed through word of mouth, there was nothing. Most of the heritage accumulated through tens of thousands of years was lost in the Great Mage Wars, either completely destroyed or buried in the layers of rubble in the depths of the forbidden zone. Not only did the authoritative information on the matter disappear, but even the gods had followed suit, not showing themselves to mortals ever since. Most people attributed the lack of information to the results of the Mage Wars. But not Kiel. Something so important couldn¡¯t just disappear. Even if all the books were lost, people still lived. And they would pass on their knowledge to their descendants. That knowledge couldn¡¯t disappear unless someone made it disappear. And even if the knowledge disappeared, how is it that in the past millennia, no one researched Aetherneal magic? Surely, there were plenty of people to research it. Without a doubt, every noble family had their people research their Aetherneal heirlooms and inherited Aetherneal gifts. The research was there. But the results were never made public. Perhaps only the elite were allowed to know the truth. Therefore, he had to become one of them. All roads led to Muni. After picking Kiel up, Elaru told him that things were getting a bit complicated. She had noticed many different batches of men in Rroda uniforms, patrolling the city with trackogs in tow. Even though she wasn¡¯t with him, her Aethernea of Sight could cover a wide range so she had still kept a close watch on his surroundings. In the case of trouble, she would have warned him telepathically. Luckily, he spent his day inside the library and didn¡¯t roam the streets. It made it difficult for them to find his scent. Still, it was only a matter of time, unless they took preventive measures. Both of them had to conceal their presence and closely control every drop of their mana so they wouldn¡¯t leave a mana trail behind them that the trackogs could follow. They flew up in the air, and Elaru latched on to Kiel¡¯s arm once again. He didn¡¯t show any signs of resistance this time. For some reason, she always latched onto him when she needed to cover them with a light bending barrier. Her precautions didn¡¯t end with Invisibility. Even if they didn¡¯t leave a mana trail, they would still leave their scent. If they couldn¡¯t conceal it, their whereabouts would be found out during the night.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Luckily, Elaru was well versed in concealment. She weaved a peculiar augmentation spell similar in appearance to Acceleration, using her own body as the anchor point of the spell. Then she branched out the roots of the spell to create a thin, spherical web of roots around them. This method of targeting was the difference between barrier spells and normal sustained spells. Barrier spells targeted a region of space instead of concrete objects. Usually, a mage would create a wall or a veil made out of spell roots. To make the spell move with the caster, the core of the spell would be placed on the body of the caster, effectively anchoring it there. Any sustained spell could be used in such a way to turn it into a barrier spell. The spell Elaru had enshrouded them with was actually named Reflection. It was derived from Acceleration, altered to change the velocity of particles that entered its area of effect in such a way to push them out of it. The area of effect was exactly the thin layer of the barrier, which meant that any particle that touched the barrier would be repelled back. Reflection belonged in the category of protection spells, and most argel mages knew of it. However, most argel overlooked the spell, very rarely using it. On first thought, one would think that the spell could be used as a great protective spell, repelling attacks of other mages. One would be both right and wrong. Faster the object moved, harder it would be to repel it. Heavier the object, harder it would be to repel it. If an object was coated with foreign mana denser than the Reflection spell, the spell couldn¡¯t reflect it. And worst of all, if the object were already under the effect of someone else¡¯s Acceleration based spell, the two spells would cause interference with one another. After all, both are trying to alter the velocity of the same object. In such a scenario, the spell that was already on the object before it entered the area of effect of the Reflection would have priority. Reflection barrier would be able to win over the other spell only if its level was considerably higher than the spell on the incoming object. Because of all these limitations and drawbacks, most mages couldn¡¯t make good use of the Reflection spell, making it useless in their hands. Kiel too had rarely used it in the past. He simply didn¡¯t have enough mana to support its usage. When Elaru had used the spell, he was both surprised and confused. He was confused as to why she would cast the spell. Until she revealed the hidden effect of Reflection, which was not written in any of the textbooks he had read before. Particles inside of the barrier would also be repelled upon touching it, not letting any of the particles from inside to leave the confines of the sphere. And what is ¡°the scent¡±? The scent was created by residue particles that drifted through the air, reaching the nose! If Reflection prevented particles from leaving, that would mean that it would prevent their scent from spreading! Kiel sharply inhaled when he realized that a spell everyone overlooked could be used in such a way. Such was the nature of magic. The magic was the tool, and how and for what purpose it was used depended on the user. After his initial confusion had been resolved, all that was left was the surprise: Elaru, as an elibu, couldn¡¯t cast augmentation magic before the Aetherneal bond, yet she seemed to be quite familiar with it. It looked as if she was just as familiar with augmentation magic as she was with transmutation magic. Not only did she proceed to use advanced flying magic only hours after they became soulbound, but her casting of Reflection also seemed natural, even knowing the hidden effects as if she had used it a thousand times before. When he asked her about it, her response was: ¡°Papa passed on to me a mana purifying artifact when I was little, so I have never actually been just a transmutation magic user. Papa thought me all three types of magic equally in preparation for the future. That¡¯s why my understanding of magic is quite complete. I also have a very good memory, so I always remembered the unfamiliar magic other people used and recreated it later on. So even if papa didn¡¯t insist on teaching me all three types of magic, it wouldn¡¯t have changed anything.¡± Kiel almost gaped at that response but restrained himself at the last second. ¡°Didn¡¯t you put on a longing face and tell me that you¡¯ve always wanted to fly? If you had such an artifact, wouldn¡¯t you already be able to fly?!¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°I didn¡¯t lie. After I had perfected my usage of acceleration magic, Papa didn¡¯t let me continue using it. Being able to fly and then suddenly becoming unable to fly is even worse than not being able to fly in the first place.¡± She sighed sadly as if recalling a painful past. ¡°He said it would be better for my future development if I could be fast even without usage of acceleration magic.¡± No wonder. Kiel almost facepalmed himself. No wonder she used it all so naturally. As if the distinction between transmutation and augmentation didn¡¯t matter at all. Kiel let out a long breath. ¡°Do you intend to use that artifact as an explanation for why you can use pure mana?¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°Can¡¯t. I don¡¯t have it anymore.¡± ¡°Oh, did your father take it away?¡± Kiel¡¯s raised his eyebrow questioningly. Elaru replied nonchalantly: ¡°No. I lost it in a bet.¡± Hearing that, Kiel stumbled in his step, looking at Elaru as if she grew two heads. ¡°Who in their right mind would stake a divine artifact in a bet?!?¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°It was an important bet.¡± Seeing her nonchalant behavior, as if she was talking about the weather, Kiel¡¯s eyebrow started twitching violently. ¡°You don¡¯t even seem sad about your loss. Wasn¡¯t your father mad about it?¡± Elaru looked at him for a few seconds in confusion. ¡°Why would he be mad? Loss? What loss? I was actually the winner of the bet.¡± Kiel covered his face with his hand. He didn¡¯t know how to proceed with this conversation. It was like he was trying to communicate with an alien. Everything was upside down. Thus, the two ventured to the outskirts of Ashar and spent the night camping in the woods. * * * ?Tuesday, 28th of August 1449 A.W.? Muni Exams: Day 2 After a while of waiting, the door to the room 307 finally opened revealing a tall elibu with bluish gray hair tied behind his head. Kiel¡¯s examiners were still Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert. Kiel walked in, followed by the swarm of groupies. Ever since he appeared in front of his designated classroom to take the exams, he had been assaulted by both males and females, trying to get in his good graces. They had asked him how he managed to achieve such a good score, what his name was, and all kinds of other questions. Some of them even introduced themselves. Although annoyed, Kiel remained perfectly polite, showing the flawless bearing of a noble. However, his patience was running very thin. Inwardly, he was already swearing and snarling. If I was mediocre looking and my score wasn¡¯t so high, would you have taken a second look at me? Opportunistic. Feeble. Selfish. Shallow. That was the inner nature of people. When everyone settled down inside the classroom, Rau Eryey motioned his white, slim hand towards a large glass apparatus in the middle of the room. ¡°Today¡¯s first exam will test your spell control.¡±
I will be writing an Aethernea side story about Alann Farhice in the future, because Alann¡¯s story is simply too funny to not be told. He is nothing like the books portray him. ;) In fact, Alann was one of those freeloaders who went around bookshops, reading stuff without buying anything. It was after he got blacklisted by all bookshops in the city that he found a way to get back at them by stealing their business. But that is a story for another time ;) Aethernea patrons will be the first one to lay their eyes on Alann¡¯s story, several chapters of which will be given to them as a support reward for October. When (and if) it will be available for non-patrons to read is currently unknown. Coming up in the next episode: When the words left Kady¡¯s mouth several gasps could be heard. It is said that the gods were flawless entities, the embodiments of aperfect balance of opposing elements. That statement only made the elibu smile even wider while the faces of argel turned unsightly. You call that a fair treatment?! Episode 54 – Spell Control Exam Start! Previously: Kiel and Elaru arrive to Muni to take second day¡¯s exams. Kiel¡¯s examiners are still Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert.
Episode 54 ¨C Spell Control Exam Start! When everyone settled down inside the classroom, Rau Eryey motioned his white, slim hand towards a large glass apparatus in the middle of the room. ¡°Today¡¯s first exam will test your spell control.¡± The testing apparatus consisted of a large vertical tube the size of a grown adult man. As if the tube was the night sky, the glass was littered with countless small silver stars, welded into the glass itself. The tube stood raised on a short metal stand. One could see a square shaped opening on the bottom of the cylinder. ¡°I will now explain how the test will be conducted.¡± Rau pointed towards the glass cylinder and cast a trigger spell to activate the artifact. As soon as his trigger spell landed on it, the countless silver stars came to life. Each one of them started glowing a bright neon light. The vivid rainbow-colored stars extended their tentacles until they stretched into countless thin threads creating a spider web ¨C The previously empty insides of the glass cylinder suddenly became a labyrinth of threads. The stars continued to wiggle periodically moving their tentacles and shifting the layout of the web. ¡°The goal of the test is to exercise your control over a cube-shaped magical artifact, bringing it from the bottom of the cylinder up to the top, inserting it in the cube-shaped indentation on the top of the cylinder.¡± Everyone¡¯s eyes followed Rau¡¯s pointed finger to see a cube-shaped indentation on the very top of the glass tube. ¡°The artifact will need to pass through the web as fast as your ability allows, touching as few threads as possible. You can think of it as an obstacle race. Avoid obstacles in the shape of threads, reach the goal as fast as you can.¡± Rau pointed towards the metal stand of the glass tube, on which, one could see a strange hourglass filled with a blue liquid. ¡°You will be able to read the score from the markings on the hourglass.¡± What was strange about the hourglass was its bottleneck. A small metal spike was inserted into the bottleneck of the hourglass blocking the flow of the blue liquid. It looked like someone impaled the hourglass on a needle protruding from the metal stand. While the examinees were inspecting the glass tube and the hourglass, Kady Ailert, who was sitting at the teacher¡¯s desk, stood up and approached Rau. In her hands, she held two fist-sized cubes ¨C one white, one black. She passed the black cube to Rau, keeping the white one to herself. Kady turned towards the examinees, smiling softly. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes giving her a gentle appearance. With a flick of her hand, a flock of black and white cubes came flying from the teacher¡¯s desk towards the examinees. Each examinee received one cube, including Kiel, who gracefully caught a white cube. The shiny stone surface of the cube was smooth and cold to the touch. Glancing around himself, Kiel realized that all elibu received a black cube, while all argel got a white cube. Kady patiently explained: ¡°As you might already know, the only way to test someone¡¯s spell control is to have them perform a spell and monitor their control over the spell¡¯s effects. That implies that the spell is required to create direct reality altering effects ¨C it can¡¯t be a trigger spell. The fairest method to test your spell control would be to have everyone cast the exact same spell. However, this is impossible because argel can only cast augmentation magic while elibu can only cast transmutation magic. Technically speaking, the only way that would allow everyone to cast the same spell would be if they used a mana purifying artifact. However, there are several thousand examinees while we possess only a several dozen mana purifying artifacts in total. Therefore, this solution isn¡¯t feasible.¡± Kady extended her hands which were holding a white cube so that everyone could see it more clearly. ¡°This is an artifact prepared for augmentation magic users that responds to heat. To make it move, you will need to heat it up and cool it down appropriately. And to do so, you are required to use the Temperature augmentation spell.¡± When the words left Kady¡¯s mouth, several gasps could be heard. Temperature is a perfect spell a.k.a. a complete spell. A complete spell is a spell that is an incarnation of an aspect, allowing the spell to exercise complete control over it. It is said that the gods were flawless entities, the embodiments of the perfect balance of opposing elements. The magic formed through their will was just like them ¨C complete. When the gods wished to heat up their meal, they wouldn¡¯t use a Heating spell. No, the temperature itself bent to their will. Whether they wanted to heat it up or cool it down ¨C it was all the same.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The perfect spells mortals picked up from the gods became the basis of their magic. Through research, mortals discovered that those perfect spells were made out of two opposing spell fragments. Those two opposing elements when brought together canceled each other out. And yet, if one could achieve a perfect unity of the opposing elements, if one could fuse them into one, they would form a complete entity. A complete spell. Because achieving that perfect balance was extremely difficult for mortals, they instead started using those two spell fragments as standalone spells. And thus, from Temperature, Heating and Cooling were created. From Velocity, Accelerate and Deaccelerate were created. Those standalone fragments were many times easier to cast and had become the building blocks of magic, leaving the complete spells in the back of everyone¡¯s mind. Why would anyone bother using a difficult spell when one could achieve their goal easier with a simpler spell? Complicating things would be simply inefficient, even stupid. The only time mages would use complete spells would be when they needed to cast both incomplete variants to reach their goal. Such as in this spell control exam, where they would be required to both heat up and cool down the object at any time. In such a scenario, while the complete spell would be harder to cast initially, it became much more efficient than if the mage had to continuously switch between casting a Heating and a Cooling spell. The reason why some of the people gasped when they heard they would be using a Temperature spell was exactly because they rarely used it in the past. Therefore, they weren¡¯t confident in their ability to control it properly. While argel were sweating and frowning, the elibu in the room looked at them with a self-satisfied smirk. Seeing the dark mood of argel in the room, Kady chuckled and added: ¡°Don¡¯t worry everyone. Muni exams don¡¯t discriminate based on race. Elibu will also be using a complete spell ¨C the Light.¡± That statement only made the elibu smile even wider while the faces of argel turned unsightly. You call that a fair treatment?! Naturally, the reason for their dissatisfaction was that elibu almost always used the Light spell instead of its incomplete variants. Elibu often used the Light to control the color of objects. Because of the elusive nature of color perception, they often weren¡¯t sure which of the two incomplete variants they should use. They would just cast the Light spell and tinker the color until they were satisfied. Seeing the agitated argel in the room, Rau frowned and spoke out icily: ¡°What¡¯s the matter? The Temperature and the Light are both complete spells of the same rank. Our spell control exam always requires you to use complete spells because they allow us to more thoroughly examine your spell control. Since that is always the case, you should have expected it and prepared for it. Also, if your affinity for incomplete variants is good, the same should be the case for the complete variant.¡± No one could say a word of complaint, for he was right. Since the Temperature used spell fragments of Heating and Cooling, when one used it to increase the temperature, it would feel the same as if they were controlling a Heating spell. For they would be using the Heating spell fragment of the Temperature spell at that moment. While the argel will not be as proficient in weaving their complete spells as elibu, this test didn¡¯t test weaving but spell control. The slightly cold voice of Rau continued. ¡°Pay attention. We will now demonstrate the usage of these artifacts.¡± Rau slowly weaved the Light spell, pushing his mana under the surface of his black cube. From the Light spell, he spread the spell roots to cover the surface of the cube entirely, like a web of mana strings. Everyone felt a mana pulse when his spell activated. ¡°The sides of the cube will absorb light, the more light they absorb, the faster the cube will move. You will need to control the intensity of the light produced by the Light spell to control the speed of the cube. The achievable speed of the artifact is limited. After you reach the maximal allowed speed, the increase in light intensity will stop increasing the speed of your cube.¡± Rau placed his finger on one side of the cube and said: ¡°The target of my Light spell is the space slightly above the surface of the cube. The light will be generated above the cube so that the rays of light can enter the cube and be absorbed. When you start using the cube, you can choose to project the light towards the cube only, but for the sake of my demonstration, I will project light both towards the cube and away from it. This way, you will be able to see what intensity of light I am using and how it affects the movement of the cube.¡± Just as he said that, the side of the cube where he had placed his finger previously started glowing, spreading soft rays of white light to the surroundings. The light made the previously black side of the cube look gray. As soon as the surface turned grayish, the cube suddenly moved in the direction that side of the cube was facing, which in this current case, was upwards. The cube started slowly flying up. ¡°The direction of movement depends on which side of the cube you are lighting up. If the side you are lighting up is the upper side, it will move upwards. If you light up the front side, it will move towards the front. You are allowed to light up several different sides at once.¡± Suddenly the left side of the cube turned gray too. Immediately, the cube started flying diagonally, towards the upper-left side. ¡°If you light up opposite sides of the cube, they will cancel out each other, and the cube won¡¯t move in that axis.¡± Rau lit up the right part of the cube too, and the cube suddenly stopped moving diagonally, moving straight up like before. After that Rau started lighting up different sides of the cube, making it dance in the air, sometimes going in circles, sometimes zigzagging. Slowly, he increased the intensity of the light, making three sides of the cube turn completely white. The movement of the cube accelerated considerably. Kady watched Rau¡¯s demonstration patiently for a while before adding: ¡°The same principle applies to the white cube too. The only difference being that the black cube of elibu absorbs light, while the white cube of argel absorbs heat. Which is why argel are required to control the temperature of the sides of the cube.¡± Kady then cast the Temperature spell on her white cube, covering the surface of the cube with mana roots just as Rau did before her. As she heated up the front side of the cube, the white surface turned orange, looking like molten metal. Immediately, the cube vaulted forwards. Kady proceeded to heat up and cool down different sides of the cube, making the cube dance in the air similarly to Rau¡¯s cube. After several seconds of demonstration, Kady¡¯s cube floated down on her hand. Her gaze passed from face to face, her soft smile never leaving her face. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s move on.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel could see a spell rotating inside the cube. Keeping his distance was the optimal course of action. This smile couldn¡¯t be compared to his usual smiles. It was like comparing the brilliance of the sun to that of fireflies. The eyes of the examinees were wide, their mouths gaping. ¡°Hotter! Hotter!¡±¡°Faster! Faster!¡±¡°Put more power into it!¡±¡°Harder! Slam it harder!¡± Episode 55 - Mana Control Exam Demonstration Previously: Kady Ailert and Rau Eryey explain how Kiel and Elaru will be tested in the upcoming spell control exam. Examinees are given a cube that they will control with complete spells ¨C Temperature and Light. Through their control, the cube will pass an obstacle race against time. Kady and Rau demonstrated how to use the cube with the Temperature and Light spell.
Episode 55 ¨C Mana Control Exam Demonstration After several seconds of demonstration, Kady¡¯s cube floated down on her hand. Her gaze passed from face to face, her soft smile never leaving her face. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s move on.¡± She controlled the cube, heating up its sides, making it fly out of her hand and slide into the opening on the bottom of the cylinder. As soon as the cube entered, a click could be heard and suddenly, the needle piercing the hourglass pinned on the metal stand of the glass tube, moved back, letting the blue liquid pass through the bottleneck. The liquid slowly seeped into the bottom half of the hourglass, drop by drop. Kady controlled the cube, making it fly upwards, expertly avoiding the brightly colored strings. After a while, for the sake of the demonstration, she stopped her cube and intentionally made her cube come in contact with the strings. As soon as the cube touched a string, as if it was made out of the most fragile substance imaginable, the string instantly snapped. When it snapped, the needle piercing the hourglass moved back. In that short moment, the dripping speed of the liquid increased considerably. The number of drops that would usually need several seconds of time to slide down passed through the bottleneck in an instant. After the cube had passed through the web of threads, Kady made it enter the indentation on the top of the glass tube. When it slid inside the indentation, a soft click was heard, and the needle in the hourglass moved to block the flow of the liquid. After the demonstration, Kady looked around the room and inquired: ¡°Are there any questions? If not, you may begin with your practice.¡± After waiting several seconds without anyone speaking up, Kady snapped her fingers. The sand hourglass on the teacher¡¯s desk flipped upside down. ¡°You have 5 minutes. Begin.¡± Before starting to weave, Kiel inspected the cube thoroughly. He could sense a complicated spell, rotating slowly in the center of the cube ¨C the enchantment that turned this cube from an ordinary cube into a magic artifact. Kiel started weaving the Temperature spell carefully. After getting down the basic shape of the spell, he pushed his mana through the surface of the cube. This action was easier than he expected it to be ¨C the material of the cube didn¡¯t put up much resistance. He continued weaving the Temperature under the surface of the cube, surrounding the spell in the center. He was careful to keep his spell from coming too close to the enchantment spell. If his spell touched the enchantment spell before he managed to fully form it, the enchantment spell would cut through his non-solidified mana like a hot knife through butter. Even if his spell didn¡¯t come into direct contact with the other spell, if it came too close, the two spells could experience destructive interference. If the nature of the reality altering phenomena caused by the spells conflicted, it would cause a battle for supremacy between the two. Keeping his distance was the optimal course of action. After positioning the spell inside the cube, he spread the spell roots outwards. His mana created a web of threads on the surface of the cube. Unlike elibu who had to target the area above the surface of the cube as their source of light, Kiel had to directly heat up the surface of the cube, so his spell target was naturally the surface itself. After everything was weaved flawlessly, his mana congealed, and a soft pulse of magic power verified his success. Carefully he heated up one side of his cube, slowly getting used to the controlling the velocity through temperature. Kiel too had not cast Temperature much in his 18-year old life. But unlike the rest of the examinees, he was confident in his control. As a non-mage, he wasn¡¯t able to cast many spells, but Heating and Cooling were among the spells he could cast. He used it to dry his hair after showering or dry his sweat drenched clothes. He used it to heat up or cool down his meals, adjust the temperature of water in his bath and even used it to heat up his weapons to have a stronger penetrative power. Since he was proficient in both of them, Temperature, which was made out of the two, should pose no problem. Even so, he wasn¡¯t overconfident. Instead, he was diligently trying his best to familiarize himself with moving the cube. Controlling mana and controlling the finished spell greatly differed. Mana was the extension of a mage by default, even babies could move their mana. It came as naturally as using one¡¯s own limbs or breathing. One needed to practice his mana control to polish it, just like children needed to constantly practice drawing to one day be able to become great painters. Once polished, regardless of what they needed to paint in the future ¨C whichever spell they needed to weave, it would become much easier to accomplish.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. However, spell control was like suddenly gaining a new limb. It wasn¡¯t inherent or inborn. One would need to get used to the new limb ¨C when the spell activated, the mage needed to find a way to connect deeply with the spell. To ¡°feel¡± the spell. To sync with it, to integrate with it, to unify with it, until it became a part of themselves. Because every spell was different, the process of ¡°feeling¡± the spell depended greatly on the spell itself. It was as if mages switched between having an extra arm, an extra leg and then later, gained a tail or a wing. Someone might quickly get used to having a tail, while others might keep stumbling for a while. It wasn¡¯t uncommon for mages to have a certain affinity towards some spells while being unable to integrate well with other spells. ¡°Feeling¡± the spell was very similar to the concept of empathy. Some people could relate well with certain emotions and situations, other couldn¡¯t. Some mages hypothesized that mage¡¯s ability to synchronize with a spell is related to their inborn affinity for magic. Some claimed that it depended on the sensitivity of mage¡¯s Mind or even their intelligence. And some insisted that both spell control and mana control were influenced by mages state of mind ¨C the emotions and even personality. Perhaps it was the combination of all those different factors. The only thing that Kiel was sure of was that at the beginning, his spell control could only be called average. However, through his hard work it had gradually improved over the years. His understanding towards it naturally increased so that surely had an impact on his spell control. Yet, to him, it felt as if the more he loved magic, the more magic loved him back. As if magic was an intelligent being who initially disliked him so it wasn¡¯t easy to control. But when he opened his heart to it, it accepted him. Kiel caught himself smiling gently as the cube floated around him gracefully, completely under his control. This smile couldn¡¯t be compared to his usual smiles. It was like comparing the brilliance of the sun to that of fireflies. This one¡­was a genuine smile. This radiant smile caused the hearts of everyone who looked at it to skip. Both males and females were equally mesmerized by its beauty. There were quite a few people who suddenly lost control of their cubes at that moment. Several girls felt their faces heat up, the warmth spreading inside of them, making them feel as if they would melt on the spot. The scene in front of their eyes was strangely harmonious. The blue hair and eyes of an enchantingly handsome boy, covered by the orange light of the molten cube, dancing around him like a fawning fairy. A loud yet gentle voice of Kady cut through the air like a knife, bringing people out of their stupor back to reality. ¡°5 minutes are up. Stop practicing.¡± * * * What the heck is this?? This is supposed to be a serious occasion! An exam! What¡¯s with you guys¡­?! The eyes of the examinees were wide, their mouths gaping. Elaru and Arion stood among the crowd of examinees staring at the scene in front of them in a stupor. Arion¡¯s face looked stuck between laughing and disbelief, while Elaru stood there with an incredulous expression on her face. The scene in front of them left everyone speechless. Deora Thayn was supposed to demonstrate the process of their testing. Initially, he wanted to show off his incredible spell control and avoid all the threads inside the glass tube. After all, Deora Thayn excelled in controlling flames. Controling temperature was also considered his domain. If he couldn¡¯t score perfect points, no one could score perfect points. However, everything changed with only a few words from Zerel Reysic: ¡°Little Dei, you know what would be even more awe-inspiring? Hitting all the threads instead of avoiding them!¡± At the time, everyone looked at Zerel and Deora blankly. Don¡¯t tell me that vulpy of a professor intends to coax Firecracker into doing something stupid? Who would fall for something so obvious? After a slight pause, Zerel sighed apologetically. ¡°No. Wait, forget I said anything. That is too difficult, even for you.¡± And thus¡­they were currently watching out a peculiar scene. Deora was moving the cube frantically, left and right, with the speed of an arrow and the might of a hammer. His cube zigzagged around the glass cylinder like a bouncing rubber ball, hitting everything in sight. Sweat dripped down Deora¡¯s forehead as he controlled the cube to ¡°kill¡± as many strings with one move as possible. With a heated almost bloodshot gaze, he concentrated on the task at hand as if it was a life or death battle. Zerel stood to the side of the glass tube, smiling coyly, his yellow eyes squinted into a crescent shape that looked too charmingly sly. He cheered and clapped, spurring Deora on. ¡°Nice moves little Dei!¡± ¡°Kill them all!¡± ¡°Uuuu! Combo attack!¡± ¡°As expected of little Dei! Your skills are amazing!¡± ¡°You can do it!¡± Cool, little Dei! Too cool!¡± The cheers got more outrageous the longer it persisted. ¡°Hotter! Hotter!¡± ¡°Faster! Faster!¡± ¡°Put more power into it!¡± ¡°Harder! Slam it harder!¡± The faces of the examinees turned from white to black to red. Arion was already clutching his stomach, tears were spilling from the corner of his eyes, yet besides whimpering, he didn¡¯t dare make a sound. Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched, and after a while, a strange gleam entered her eyes. These two¡­they are too amusing! She was the first among the examinees to let out a sound. She started clapping too, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°Awesome! As expected from the king of flames! You are definitely the best!¡± If you can¡¯t beat them, join them. Deora¡¯s chest puffed up with pride, the golden lock of hair in the middle of his head standing up proudly like the tail of a peacowl. That¡¯s right! You know it! For a moment, Deora even forgot that he was supposed to hate Elaru. His confidence and satisfaction radiated out of his every pore. Zerel¡¯s eyes glittered mischievously when he looked over to Elaru. Their eyes locked, neither said anything but the exchange was obvious. Birds of a feather, flock together. * * * Meanwhile, in another classroom, examinees were already taking the test. However, Kiel showed no intention of stepping up to take the test yet. Other examinees decided to take their test before Kiel. If he went before them, it would only serve to land a heavy blow on their confidence. If Kiel went first, then no matter how proud they would have been with their result, it would look crappy in comparison. It was better to leave the best score for last. Naturally, there were those who thought that Kiel¡¯s result wouldn¡¯t be as high as yesterday. Weaving was a matter of practice. His yesterday¡¯s results didn¡¯t sound too outrageous if one thought about the amount of work behind it. But spell control was different ¨C hard work alone couldn¡¯t let one reach the pinnacle. Even among nobles, it would be rare to find a well-rounded person who was proficient in controlling all spells. However, the reason why Kiel decided to wait until everyone else was done had nothing to do with being considerate.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Impossible!¡±¡°That¡¯s not fair!¡±¡°There is something wrong with this cube!¡± His incomparably sharp words made everyone fall silent. The more he thought about it, the sweatier his palms and the redder his eye whites became. Seeing her beautiful yet dangerous visage, Deora¡¯s face turned unsightly, and he immediately exclaimed. ¡°No! You are not allowed to go first! Absolutely not! You are going last!¡± It¡¯s not like she was a jinx or incompetent. It¡¯s not like everything she touches would break.It was an unlucky coincidence.Just coincidence. Episode 56 - Kiel’s Spell Control Exam Result Previously: Kady Ailert and Rau Eryey explain how Kiel and Elaru will be tested in the upcoming spell control exam. Examinees are given a cube that they will control with complete spells ¨C Temperature and Light. Through their control, the cube will pass an obsticale race against time. Kady and Rau demonstrated how to use the cube with the Temperature and Light spell. Meanwhile, Zerel dupes Deora into displaying his spell control skills and destroying all threads instead of avoiding them. Zerel cheers Deora on, and Elaru decides to join in and cheer too. Kiel let other examinees take the test before him, making him the last one to take the test.
Episode 56 ¨C Kiel¡¯s Spell Control Exam Result However, the reason why Kiel decided to wait until everyone else was done had nothing to do with being considerate. What all of them didn¡¯t know was that Kiel willingly chose to go last. And it was because he was studying the layout of the web and movements of the strings. They weren¡¯t completely random. Because if they were random, if an examinee was unlucky, it could lead to the situation of him being unable to reach a perfect score because the layout of the labyrinth was unfavorable. The movement had to have a certain logic around it that ensured that the score didn¡¯t depend on luck or timing. By watching the strings while others were taking the exam, he had managed to figure out the pattern. Even if his spell control was lacking, by predicting the movement of the strings, he could increase his exam by several points. When it was his turn, he was itching to put his observations into action. Kiel stepped forward, holding his white cube in hand. After reaching the glass cylinder, he showed his exam pass to Rau and proceeded to start the test. Gracefully, his cube floated down, to the opening. Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed, watching the strings instead on his cube. As soon as he heard a soft click, a bright light flashed in his eyes. Under his control, the cube flew gracefully, like a bird. It zigzagged and circled around, but mostly, it shot upwards at full speed. It looked as if the strings moved away from the cube on their own. It didn¡¯t look as if he was avoiding the web at all. It looked as if the web was avoiding him. The eyes of the examinees popped out of their sockets. The heck?!? What the..?! Is there something special about his cube?? Is he cheating somehow?! Rau Eryey stared at the situation within the cylinder with surprise flashing in the depths of his eyes. Kady was more direct about it. She smiled in satisfaction, her face showing understanding. As expected from a Rroda, he figured out the pattern! Intelligence is one of the most important qualities of a mage. We might not test for it directly, but that doesn¡¯t mean we don¡¯t indirectly reward intelligence. Even though this overbearing yet graceful dance of the white cube, looked easy and flawless, it wasn¡¯t so at all. Kiel¡¯s mind was stretched to its limit of concentration. His control of the cube was meticulous and precise. If the movement of his cube was off by even a width of a toothpick, he might end up touching the strings. Kiel¡¯s face remained calm and collected. The only sign of his considerable strain was the cold sweat dripping down the side of his head. Only when the cube lodged itself on the top of the cylinder, followed by a soft click, did Kiel¡¯s sharp gaze relax. ¡°Very well done.¡± Kady praised, scribbling down on her papers. ¡°Fully deserving of 25 points.¡± As she said that, the other examinees, whose faces looked ghastly, finally reacted. ¡°Impossible!¡± ¡°That¡¯s not fair!¡± ¡°There is something wrong with this cube!¡± ¡°Yes! Exactly! The strings were moving away from his cube!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this cheating?¡± ¡°How could this be allowed?¡± As the examinees exclaimed in shock, the usually calm face of Rau Eryey darkened. A chill entered into his dark green eyes and seeped out through his voice: ¡°You dare question the fairness of our university?¡± His cold voice pierced the room, making everyone feel as they had just been stabbed with a needle. ¡°Even if our exams were partial, what right would you have to complain? Are we obliged to make it fair? Muni is the property of the Arite family. Who they wish to accept is entirely up to them. Not only do they give this incredible opportunity to everyone regardless of status and background, but even the costs of study are covered, not requiring you to pay any education fees. Yet instead of being grateful, you have the gall to sully our reputation and voice complaints about the fairness?¡± Rau sneered. ¡°Do you think that a person capable of reaching a perfect score in 3 different tests needs to cheat a few more points out of us as to be accepted? Aren¡¯t you just looking for an excuse for your own incompetence? To pin the blame for your own lack of ability on our ¡®lack of fairness¡¯?¡± His incomparably sharp words made everyone fall silent. This Rau Eryey seemed like a calm and fair person; he was even from the Eryey family which is known for their magnanimity and kindness, so why are his words so¡­deadly? The uncomfortable silence was interrupted by the warm motherly voice of Kady. ¡°What prof. Eryey is trying to say is that you are free to file a complaint to the headmaster directly. However, I assure you, all white cubes are exactly the same. What you¡¯ve just witnessed wasn¡¯t cheating. It wasn¡¯t that the strings moved away from the cube, rather, it was that this young man chose the right flight path.¡± Kady¡¯s hands reached for a pocket on the teacher¡¯s uniform, from which she pulled out a pocket watch. She glanced at it briefly before putting it back in her pocket.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°Since we are ahead of schedule, I can give you a few minutes to try using this cube yourself.¡± She smiled softly. ¡°That should dispel your doubts about this cube being different from the others? Correct?¡± Kiel stared at the two professors that, for some reason, seemed to be in harmony with one another. Instead of feeling warm because of their protective behavior towards him, he felt a chill. Is this a ¡°good-peacekeeper, bad-peacekeeper¡± routine? * * * Surprisingly, after Deora¡¯s violent display of prowess, nothing strange happened. People had expected his frenzied cube to slam into the glass and break it, but the cube never touched the glass even once. Deora Thayn might be gullible and hot tempered, but his spell control was worthy of admiration. Even though the bottom of the hourglass was filled with blue liquid to the brim, it was plain to see that his spell control could have easily scored full points. After his demonstration, he didn¡¯t ask if anyone had any questions, glaring at Elaru briefly as if telling her: ¡°I won¡¯t give you a chance to ask any questions today!¡± Zerel then proceeded to flip the hourglass on the teacher¡¯s desk, where he was currently sitting leisurely, declaring that they had 5 minutes to practice. This time, when the cubes came flying, Elaru was ready for it and controlled her mana thoroughly to avoid them. Luckily, clapping and spurring Deora on didn¡¯t help her be accepted by the crowd. Therefore, she was again ostracized, making other people stay away from her. Which inadvertently helped her out because she didn¡¯t need to control her mana to stay away from their cubes as well. Elaru didn¡¯t mind the hostile behavior, neither from other examinees nor from Deora. Instead, her mind was on the black cube in her hands. Even before she had received it, she had already thoroughly inspected the spell inside of it. The spell was designed to absorb the light, converting it into energy for moving the cube. More energy equaled to more speed. Initially, she wondered if different wavelengths of light would produce a different increase in speed, but after understanding the enchantment, she realized that the color of the light made no difference. She also confirmed that the previous words of Deora were true ¨C the cube did impose a limit on the speed, or rather, it had a limit on how much light it could absorb. If one produced more light than it could absorb, the light would just get reflected back, to avoid damaging the cube. Elaru smiled in satisfaction. She was very proficient in using Light. In fact, that was the first spell her father taught her, so she could use it to camouflage the color of her eyes. The Light was a spell that in its complete form was the embodiment of light. It could be used to create and destroy light in its area of effect (or to be more precise, transmute mana into light and vice versa). Elibu often used it to light up the darkness or change the perceived color of objects. When rays of light hit an object, some frequencies of light are absorbed by the object, while other are reflected. What eyes see and perceive as color is exactly those frequencies of light, that the object reflected instead of absorbing. If one could change the wavelengths of the reflected light, one would change the color of the object. Therefore, elibu would enshroud the objects with a Light spell, creating light of a specific wavelength that corresponds to their target color, and destroying existing wavelengths of light that were undesirable. Not only did this allow mages to control the perceived color, but it could also be applied to create illusions. Elaru proceeded to cast the Light spell, exactly like Zerel had (lazily) done moments before. Soon, her cube was dancing in the air swiftly and gracefully. During the entire duration of 5 minutes, Deora stared at Elaru closely, as if expecting something bad to happen. Will she end up breaking something? Will the cube go out of control? Will this cube break too? The more he thought about it, the sweatier his palms and the redder his eye whites became. Unlike him, Zerel was leisurely looking at Elaru, however, in the depths of his golden eyes, he seemed to be excited or, rather, expectant? Other examinees were wary of Elaru too, glancing her way every once in a while. If somethings went wrong, wouldn¡¯t they be the first ones to get hurt in the process? Due to their stretched nerves, everyone felt that those 5 minutes lasted much longer. Deora kept checking the hourglass every few seconds, cursing the sand within to speed up. As soon as the last drop of sand fell through, he slammed his hand on the teacher¡¯s table. ¡°Time¡¯s up! Stop practicing!¡± No one dared to disobey. In the matter of several seconds, everyone was tightly gripping a motionless cube in their hands. Deora¡¯s stern expression turned into a smirk, satisfied with the absolute obedience he instilled in others. ¡°Who wants to go first?¡± Everyone looked towards Elaru. Elaru hesitated for a moment but stepped forward in the end. Seeing her beautiful yet dangerous visage, Deora¡¯s face turned unsightly, and he immediately exclaimed. ¡°No! You are not allowed to go first! Absolutely not! You are going last!¡± No one was surprised by the rejection. The faces of examinees displaying wisdom, understanding and just blatant ¡°as expected¡± expression. Deora and Zerel had even purposefully reallocated this group into a different timeslot so it would be their last group. That way, even if Elaru ended up breaking the apparatus, they wouldn¡¯t need to lose time because no group would be using the apparatus after them. Naturally, they wouldn¡¯t let her take the exam before other examinees because if she broke the equipment, all their efforts in changing the timeslot would be meaningless. Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. Nonetheless, she silently and obediently stepped back. * * * Almost two hours had passed before Elaru was allowed to step to the ¡°stage¡±. For the first hour, she had watched people take their exam with interest. Her eyes closely watching the moving strings. After that, she gradually lost interest and just stood at the corner, with a blank face and a distant expression. She only briefly came back to her senses when Arion took the exam so she could give him thumbs up and a bright smile. His performance wasn¡¯t disappointing at all. His score was the highest one in the group. It wasn¡¯t as incredible as Deora¡¯s, but it could in no way be considered bad. Elaru wasn¡¯t surprised. Urwin family wasn¡¯t a noble family nor a family known for their magic, but they were famous and wealthy nonetheless, which allowed them to marry their offspring to talented mages. Each new generation of the family would be better at magic than the last. It wasn¡¯t surprising that they managed to raise someone capable of passing the exam. At last, it was Elaru¡¯s turn to be examined. All eyes once again converged to her. The emotions flickering on their faces ranged from excitement and expectation to gloating in the misery of others. Now that they managed to complete their tests, they couldn¡¯t care less if the apparatus broke. In fact, most of them would enjoy seeing the spectacle. Even Zerel¡¯s eyes showed expectation. Deora was the only one whose mood was sour. He disliked this elibu because it was her fault that he ended up punished by headmasterEruan. He was afraid that if she ended up breaking something, he¡¯d be the one to pay for it again. Naturally, that caused his hair to stand on end and his palms to get sweaty. He pressed his lips tightly together and inspected the exam pass Elaru had given him. Seeing the unlucky number written on the exam pass, his expression turned even darker. Elaru resisted rolling her eyes at the strange mood in the room. Yesterday, she was obviously unlucky. She didn¡¯t do anything wrong, yet things ended up being broken. It¡¯s not like she was a jinx or incompetent. It¡¯s not like everything she touches would break. It was an unlucky coincidence. Just coincidence.
About conversion of light into mana: I know what you are thinking: ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean that mages can absorb light to power their magic?¡± The answer to that question is: in theory yes, in practice no. Usage of magic obviously costs mana, so for the conversion of light into mana to be profitable, the gained mana has to be larger than the cost of the spell. However, to achieve this, the mage has to be in an area with a lot of intense light, and his execution of the spell has to be flawless so that the spell is as efficient as possible. It would also require a mage to channel the Light spell for a while so he could gain enough mana from it. Usually, this function of the Light spell is only used to transfer energy when mana cannot be used to transfer energy, like in this exam, where mages are creating light and that light is transferred inside the artifact into energy. It is also sometimes used by mages to ¡°transfer mana¡± to their comrades, in cases when it is of absolute importance that a certain comrade has enough mana, such as if he is a healer. This would surely also make you wonder: if people can use this method to transfer mana to people who are running short on mana, can elibu non-mages simply find an elibu mage to act as a battery for them? Again, in theory yes, but in practice no. Non-mages usually wouldn¡¯t have enough mana to start the transfer process, because the channeling mana cost of turning light into mana is costlier than vice versa. There is also a great loss of energy when transferring mana into light and then back into mana, so the battery mage would need to have many times more mana than what the non-mage would be able to use in the end. This transfer process would also take time and effort. Not to mention, which mage would wish to become a battery for a non-mage? The non-mage would have to come from a respectable and rich family for a mage to be willing to become their battery. However, non-mages are non-existent in such families, Kiel being the rare exception. Even if Kiel wanted to have someone act as his mana battery, he wouldn¡¯t be able to pay that person nor would that person want to become his battery unless Kiel¡¯s status was very high (when I say high, I mean someone famous and respectable, and not just someone who is a bastard child with noble blood). Kiel would need to gain recognition from his family and/or wealth, plus a mana purifying artifact that will purify his augmentation type mana so he would be able to cast a Light spell which is a transmutation spell. And gaining such an artifact is actually harder than the former. For to gain access to it, you already have to be among the most important people in the lands of Halnea. Coming up in the next episode: Deora¡¯s heart leaped to his throat. ¡°Step away from the tube! Do NOT touch it!!¡± Papa did tell me that boys enjoy teasing girls they like¡­ Elaru¡¯s ears drooped down, and she coughed a few times to clear her head. What¡¯s with that bashful look? His eyes widened. Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s because of my sudden change in behavior? Could it be¡­that she finds this side of me attractive? At that moment, something shocking happened! Episode 57 - Elaru’s Spell Control Exam Result Previously: Kiel aces his spell control exam. It is now Elaru¡¯s turn to take hers, and she is the last one in her group to take it. All the examinees in the room with Elaru are expecting her to mess it up again.
Episode 57 ¨C Elaru¡¯s Spell Control Exam Result Elaru resisted rolling her eyes at the strange mood in the room. Yesterday, she was obviously unlucky. She didn¡¯t do anything wrong, yet things ended up being broken. It¡¯s not like she was a jinx or incompetent. It¡¯s not like everything she touches would break. It was an unlucky coincidence. Just coincidence. And lightning is not likely to strike the same place twice. She was confident that nothing would break this time. But just to be sure, she approached the glass tube closely. She came so close to the glass tube that her nose was almost touching the glass. Deora¡¯s heart leaped to his throat. ¡°Step away from the tube! Do NOT touch it!!¡± Elaru raised her hands up in surrender and stepped back half a step. ¡°Alright. Alright. I am not touching it. Not touching.¡± ¡°Step. Further. Away.¡± Deora repeated through gritted teeth. Elaru¡¯s eyebrows furrowed slightly but soon it was replaced by innocent and honest expression. She didn¡¯t move back but instead tried to reason with him. ¡°Take it easy Fa¡­ir and venerable professor. If I am closer to the glass tube, I can monitor the behavior of my cube better and ensure nothing untoward happens.¡± ¡°Move away!¡± Deora was persistent. Seeing Elaru¡¯s pitiful expression Zerel intervened. ¡°Let her be little Dei. Look at that honest and upright face. She clearly has no bad intentions. What happened yesterday was only bad luck. I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t happen again.¡± As he spoke, the smile never left his eyes. More perceptive people among the examinees could tell that Zerel¡¯s words held a trace of teasing in them. They didn¡¯t seem sincere at all. The crafty vulpy clearly wanted something to go wrong. Deora wasn¡¯t as perceptive. He hesitated, looking between Elaru¡¯s pitiful expression and Zerel¡¯s reassuring look. Zerel pretended to cough, placing his hand in front of his mouth. However, both the keen ears of elibu and Deora standing next to him caught the words within the cough: ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you aren¡¯t worried this would spread and ruin your just and upright reputation? Some people might say you were unreasonable and bullied the examinees.¡± The corner of Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. What just and upright reputation? Other elibu also displayed strange expressions. What a clear attempt of manipulation. Even an idiot wouldn¡¯t be so stupid to fall for it. However, when Deora heard the cough, his foul expression turned blank and then after that his face turned serious, displaying an aura of an upright gentlemen. The jaws of almost everyone present dropped down. Seeing Deora attempting to act as a noble and just gentleman looked as wrong and out of place as seeing a dragon wearing a hat. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s start the test. We have no time to waste.¡± For a moment, Elaru felt sorry for Deora. Being so gullible and easy to manipulate while surrounded by nobles who are naturally treacherous and manipulative¡­one could imagine the kind of life Deora led. This kind of pure simpleton could only exist in the Thayn family. If he were born anywhere else, the nobles would have devoured him by now. Elaru quickly glanced at Zerel, but from his sly expression, one could see no sense of shame or guilt. It was as if tricking Deora was second nature to him. Could it be that the reason why these two were paired to hold the exams together was because Zerel was so proficient in controlling Deora? Or was it because Zerel asked to be paired with him? Does he¡­particularly enjoy making life difficult for Deora? But I can feel no enmity from Zerel towards Deora. It¡¯s as if he isn¡¯t being mean for the purpose of tormenting Deora¡­ An involuntary shiver went down Elaru¡¯s spine. Could it be¡­that Zerel actually¡­likes Deora? Her eyes darted from Zerel to Deora quickly, a soft blush appearing on her face. Papa did tell me that boys enjoy teasing girls they like¡­ Elaru¡¯s ears drooped down, and she coughed a few times to clear her head. Her suddenly strange behavior didn¡¯t escape Deora whose gaze was glued to her from the start. The suddenly lovable appearance of the little elibu made him taken aback.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. What¡¯s with that bashful look? His eyes widened. Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s because of my sudden change in behavior? Could it be¡­that she finds this side of me attractive? Deora abruptly averted his eyes to look at the papers in front of Zerel, avoiding looking at Elaru. A blush could be seen spreading to his ears. Not bad. Now that I look at her, she is quite pleasing to the eye. And anyone that can appreciate my charm is surely not a bad person. Zerel is right, it was just bad luck. This girl is not bad at all. Deora nodded to himself a few times. He only looked towards the cube when he was woken up by gasps of surprise. Elaru had started the exam, and her control of the cube was exquisite. It looked as though she could see the future, reacting to changes in the layout before they happened. The neon strings seemed completely incapable of touching the cube. Like a meteor, the cube passed through the net, not touching a single thread. Everyone¡¯s breath caught in their throat, but it wasn¡¯t because of the incredible spectacle. The minds of examinees were going in a totally different direction. They were expecting an accident, an anomaly. The strange behavior of the cube only increased their expectations. It¡¯s coming! An accident will happen any second now! Maybe the cube is going to fall apart like in the last exam? No. I bet it¡¯s going to melt! No! The cube is going to slam into the glass and break it! Look how it is constantly flying towards the side of the glass tube where the elibu is standing. It¡¯s like it is trying to break out of the glass tube. Everyone was on edge, watching the cube fly gracefully through the web. Not many noticed how the cube seemed to almost exclusively stick to the front side of the cylinder, even when the optimal path would have been closer to the back side. Even fewer people noticed the pale face of Elaru, the slight crease of her brows and the sweat dripping down her forehead. Finally, the cube reached the top of the hourglass. A click was heard, and then¡­! At that moment, something shocking happened! Everything functioned as it should. Nothing broke. Some faces showed disappointment, some showed confusion. Soon all of their gazes concentrated on the blue liquid hourglass, but it wasn¡¯t to read the score. It wasn¡¯t over yet! The accident could happen any second. Since their expectations weren¡¯t fulfilled earlier, now would be the last opportunity for something unpleasant to happen. One second passed, three seconds passed, soon, more than six seconds passed. And then! Still, nothing strange happened. Is that it? What? Nothing broke this time? How anticlimactic! Elaru stared speechlessly at the disappointed faces and quiet grumbling. The depression spread thickly in the air as if mist. What is with you people? When the equipment broke previously, you swore at me and sent me murderous glares. And now that nothing wrong happened, you are disappointed? There is simply no pleasing you. Even Zerel, who previously always wore a smile, sighed dejectedly. Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched as she looked at the faces of examinees. What is with this atmosphere?? I scored full points! Where is the awe and praise? Everyone? Clapping? Gasps? Anyone? The room was eerily quiet. Deora was the first to break the silence. ¡°Wonderful performance. Full points.¡± He smiled, overjoyed that finally, nothing went wrong. He nodded a few times, pretending as if he hadn¡¯t been worried at all and everything was just as expected. Everyone¡¯s gaze turned to him, looking at him as if he grew two heads. What is with this situation? Why is everything upside down? The jinx didn¡¯t break anything. Firecracker didn¡¯t explode. Eerie! Too eerie! Examinees looked at each other, their hair standing on end. Murmurs of ¡°Creepy¡­¡± and ¡°Can we go now?¡± were heard through the room. Zerel sighed again, shaking his head in disappointment. ¡°Yes¡­you are dismissed.¡± The examinees quietly left the premises, a strange atmosphere still in the air. Unlike the rest, Elaru didn¡¯t leave immediately. She walked towards the teacher¡¯s desk and extended her hand, asking for her exam pass back. Deora quietly hummed a happy tune and returned her exam pass. When his fingers inadvertently touched Elaru¡¯s, the tune suddenly caught in his throat and his ears turned red. To divert attention away from his strange behavior, he bashfully turned towards Zerel and exclaimed in a pleased tone: ¡°You were right Zerel. It was just bad luck. Thanks for being so thoughtful.¡± When Zerel heard Deora¡¯s delighted words and saw his bashful expression, Zerel felt like he had just swallowed something sour. If Zerel were a lunar, all his fur would have stood on its end, and he would have started hissing. That pleased, even happy, expression on Deora¡¯s face dealt a heavy blow to Zerel ¨C as if a thousand arrows pierced his heart. His face contorted into a pained expression, and he clutched the chest region of his robes. He never thought he would ever see Deora acting bashful. Or be happy because of something he did! And even admit he was right! And..and¡­even thank him! This¡­this! This is simply preposterous! Creepy! Unnatural! Disturbing! Stomach-upsetting! This was simply a nightmare! It made his skin crawl. Zerel¡¯s plans had never backfired like this before. Zerel wasn¡¯t a violent person. He was a perfect scholar and a gentleman. Yet currently, his hands itched to punch Deora so he wouldn¡¯t have to see that¡­strangely disgusting expression. Zerel painfully swallowed the bile threatening to emerge from his throat. He shivered involuntarily and started rubbing his hands as if suffering from a cold even though his back was drenched in cold sweat. He threw one last displeased look at Elaru, before turning his head away from both of them as if offended in some way. Elaru stared at the two professors in a daze before she slowly walked out, unsure whether she should be glad nothing went wrong or sad that she had disappointed so many people. This¡­who was it that told me getting full points on Muni exams was a glory unlike any other? She walked slowly, with a blank face. Is¡­this a good thing? Should I break something in the next exam instead? She only regained her senses when she saw Arion waiting for her in front of the classroom. He had a bright smile on his face, as if he wasn¡¯t among the ones with a disappointed face previously. He patted her on her back and consoled. ¡°There¡­there¡­don¡¯t be sad. You did your best.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched, and she got the urge to smack him. Must you insist on rubbing salt in my wound?? * * * After meeting up with Kiel, the trio decided to have lunch before the second exam. However, since they weren¡¯t yet students of Muni, they couldn¡¯t enter the dining hall to eat. And because Kiel and Elaru were ¡°on the run¡±, if they wanted to eat outside Muni in a restaurant or a tavern, they needed to make themselves untraceable. Naturally, they couldn¡¯t do so if Arion was trailing behind them like a shadow. Luckily, Kiel thought ahead and realized that such a situation might occur. Therefore, they stopped at a small shop on their way to Muni, where they bought several sandwiches. As a result, they spread Elaru¡¯s spidersilk blanket under a tree in the park-like courtyard and enjoyed a picnic. Well, Elaru and Arion enjoyed it. Kiel was too busy swallowing down snide remarks instead of the food, and grumbling inside his head to enjoy the meal. Darn freeloader! Like a gum stuck on the sole of my shoe, just can¡¯t seem to get rid of you! I bet that if anyone managed to create an Urwin-repellenthe¡¯d become rich overnight. Heck, even I would gladly spend my savings to buy an Urwin- repellent!
Coming up in the next episode: That feeling of being surrounded by people, yet feeling completely alone. The feeling when being with others only made one feel more lonely. When his mind reached this train of thought, Kiel¡¯s eyes pupils couldn¡¯t help but involuntarily shrink. The second exam of the day tested their ability to multicast. Episode 58 – Multicasting Exam Start Previously: Kiel and Elaru took their spell casting exam and had a picnic while waiting for their second exam of the day. Arion was once again glued to the duo, joining them in their picnic.
Episode 58 ¨C Multicasting Exam Start After a while of trying to shoo Arion away, Kiel gave up and instead concentrated on reading the books he bought yesterday. No matter how he tried to politely tell Arion to get lost, he seemed completely oblivious to it. Kiel even suspected that the guy was just playing dumb and was actually a shameless, cunning bastard. However, at least he wasn¡¯t the kind of a person who would annoy Kiel to death with pathetic attempts to suck up to him. Arion didn¡¯t seem to be interested in ingratiating himself to Kiel at all. Perhaps he stuck around them because he found them amusing in some way. Perhaps he just preferred being with them instead of being alone. Even though the idea of enjoying other people¡¯s company sounded alien to Kiel, he was aware that most people weren¡¯t like him. That most people didn¡¯t prefer being alone. That thought distracted him. What about Elaru? Does she prefer being alone, or does she prefer having company? Was she like him, or was she more like Arion? On the first glance, she seemed to enjoy having company, but at times, she had a desolate air about her. That feeling of being surrounded by people, yet feeling completely alone. The feeling when being with others only makes one feel more lonely. It was a feeling that he recognized. A feeling that was very familiar to him. When his mind reached this train of thought, Kiel¡¯s pupils couldn¡¯t help but involuntarily shrink. For he realized, that he hadn¡¯t felt that feeling for a while. Several days to be precise. Being with Elaru was infuriating, irritating, unpredictable, and often humiliating and awkward. Yet out of all the emotions it evoked within him, loneliness was not among them. * * * Elaru and Arion¡¯s second test of the day was in the last timeslot allocated for the second test, right before the start of the written test. (No doubt it was the doing of Deora and Zerel who thought Elaru would break their equipment.) The written test was the last test of the day which everyone had at the same time to prevent leakage of exam questions. Kiel¡¯s second exam started earlier, so he was the first one among the three to leave. Once again, he waited in front of the designated classroom for several minutes, surrounded by the horde of people licking his boots and wagging their tails. Once again, he smiled and politely conversed with them, displaying his noble and elegant bearing. Once again, he inwardly cursed and grumbled, wanting nothing more than for all of the people to shut up and go away. Once again, he was unable to speak the truth, unable to discard his kindhearted and dignified image, unable to just be himself. For the first time, he wished nothing more than to just go back to that sunny clearing, on that soft blanket under the tree where he sat a few minutes prior. He wouldn¡¯t even mind Arion¡¯s and Elaru¡¯s presence. Oh, how low he had fallen that he wouldn¡¯t even mind the annoying duo. Luckily, it didn¡¯t take long for the doors of the classroom to open revealing Rau Eryey who invited them in. His dark hair that looked like silk was still as neat as it was this morning and his face showed no signs of fatigue. The desks and chairs have been moved to the edges of the classroom, leaving enough empty space for the exam equipment. Two different sets of equipment were sprawled over the floor in the middle of the room. When everyone came inside the room, Rau closed the door, and Kady started explaining the contents of the exam. ¡°The second exam for today tests your multicasting.¡± Multicast or Simultaneous Cast Count was a metric that represented mage¡¯s ability to cast multiple spells at the same time and their ability to simultaneously control those spells. It was a mix of good weaving, spell control and ability to multitask. Kady walked towards one of the two apparatuses that stood further away from the teachers¡¯ desk. It was made out of many small glass objects littered over the floor. The objects were connected by glittering strings and shaped into all kinds of different forms such as cubes, stars, spheres, donuts, pyramids, and more.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Through the black half-transparent glass the objects were made out of, one could see that each object contained a small dark marble in its center. Laying in the center, surrounded by glass objects, was a compass-like object acting as the hub for all the strings. ¡°This apparatus will test how many simultaneous spells you are able to cast.¡± Kady cast a trigger spell on the compass like object. Right after that, the previously dark marble inside the glass pyramid lit up, emitting dazzling golden light. ¡°To start the test, cast the trigger spell upon the object that lit up.¡± Kady pointed towards the glowing pyramid. ¡°We will show you the trigger spell later.¡± Kady then weaved the trigger spell so that its spell roots targeted the pyramid. As soon as her trigger spell activated the light coming from the marble inside the pyramid went out. In its place, two other objects light up. Kady chose one of the objects and cast the same trigger spell over it. However, surprisingly, nothing happened. ¡°For the lights to go out, your trigger spells will need to trigger the glowing objects at the same time. Only if they are activated at the same time will you manage to deactivate them and pass the current stage.¡± This time, Kady cast two trigger spells, targeting the two glowing objects. As soon as her spells activated, the glowing objects dimmed. However, right after their light went out, another four objects lit up. ¡°Each time you manage to deactivate all glowing objects, new objects will light up at random. The number of newly lit objects will always be higher than the number of objects you previously deactivated.¡± Kady then proceeded to cast the trigger spells over and over. After the number of lit objects had reached 20, she stopped and pointed towards the compass like object. ¡°This device will display your score. It calculates the score based on the amount of time it takes you to successfully pass a stage and the number of passed stages.¡± Kady then cast another trigger spell to reset the apparatus before moving towards the second apparatus in the room. The second apparatus was near the teacher¡¯s desk and was made out of a large pink cactus surrounded by a spiral of cubes. Almost the entire body of the cactus, as well as the spikes protruding from the surface, looked as if they were made of pink jelly. The metal base of the cactus had another compass like device embedded into it. In a spiral around the cactus, black and white cubes were placed alternatingly. The cubes looked exactly like the cubes they had used in the previous test. ¡°Here, in the second part of the Multicast exam, you will be controlling the same cubes you were controlling in the previous exam.¡± Kady cast a trigger spell upon the cactus to activate the apparatus. As soon as her spell activated, the spikes on the cactus extended to one meter in length. The spikes turned into wiggling tentacles. The tentacles started out thin but got thicker at their ends, where they formed a circular opening. On the opening of one tentacle formed a pink bubble. ¡°This test requires you to control the cubes to pop bubbles.¡± Kady cast a Temperature spell on a seemingly random black cube in the spiral of cubes. Her cube flew up towards the pink bubble. As soon as the cube touched the surface of the bubble, it popped. However, after it popped, two new bubbles formed on two random wiggling tentacles. ¡°Similarly to the previous apparatus, more bubbles you pop, more bubbles will form. And the only way to pop the bubbles is if you touch them with your cube at the same time.¡± Once again, she controlled the same cube as before to touch a bubble, but this time, the pink bubble repelled the cube and didn¡¯t pop at all. Kady then cast another Temperature spell on another cube and used the two cubes under her control to touch the bubbles simultaneously. Only then did they pop. ¡°Just like in the previous test, the score is calculated based on the time taken to complete the test and number of passed stages.¡± Kady¡¯s gaze passed slowly from face to face, before she continued: ¡°Naturally, to minimize the impact of your casting speed on the results of the test, you are allowed to cast Temperature and Light on the cubes before the start of the test. Then, once the test begins, you can wholeheartedly concentrate on controlling those spells. As for the number of cubes you should put under your control beforehand¡­that is up to you. Choose the number you are comfortable with, a number that will not degrade your performance. You can later increase the number of cubes under your control when the test requires you to do so. Your Multicast score will be calculated by adding up the scores displayed on the two apparatuses, dividing them by 2 and rounding up to the higher whole number.¡± Kady waved her hand and the stack of papers on the teachers¡¯ desk flew over. Each examinee received one paper. Kiel looked down at the paper and instantly recognized that the pattern drawn on the paper was the trigger spell they need to cast over the glass objects. It was an extremely simple pattern that everyone should be able to weave without issues. Naturally, they gave them a simple pattern, since this test didn¡¯t test how well they could weave, but rather, how many different things they could weave at once, regardless of the quality of the result. ¡°Any questions?¡± The motherly voice of Kady Ailert resonated in the quiet room in which only the rustling of papers could be heard previously. After waiting for a few seconds without anyone speaking up, Kady nodded. But it was unclear whether it was towards the examinees or Rau. For at that moment, Rau opened the door to the classroom and motioned for the examinees to leave. ¡°In the following exam, you will be required to cast a lot of simultaneous spells which will make the situation hectic and hard to supervise. To prevent any interventions from a third party that might not be caught by us, you will be required to wait outside the classroom until it is your turn to take the exam.¡± In other words, the examinees would go in and take the test one by one. The rest of the examinees would (im)patiently wait outside for their own turn. * * * Kiel was thrilled to volunteer to take the test first. That way he wouldn¡¯t have to wait and would be done immediately. He was surrounded by a horde of people ¨C a long wait would be a nightmare. Perhaps he could even return back to Elaru and Arion before their test started and spend some more time studying under the warm sun. Judging by Kiel¡¯s cold and dark personality and white skin, one would think him to be a creature of the night that preferred staying indoors. However, even though Kiel disliked many things, the sun wasn¡¯t among the things he disliked. On the contrary, he loved sunlight. Everything looked better under the warm rays of sunlight. When the rays danced over his face, he felt energized. Another of the rare things that he liked was the relaxing green color of the grass and leaves. He also very much liked the refreshing scent of flowers and herbs. Forests have acted as his sanctuary for years, making him develop a special attachment to the greenery. However, staying outdoors also had its drawbacks, so he was the kind of person that exercised moderation. He preferred to read and practice his skills outdoors, while sleeping, bathing and eating was better done indoors. Encouraged by the prospect of reading under the bright sunlight, Kiel became the first examinee among his batch to take the Multicasting test.
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel entered the main hall of the White Quarters which was filled with tables and chairs just like the main hall of Red and Blue Quarters. Creating something out of nothing and replicating the existing was very different and required different skill sets. They screamed bloody murder, looked pale and disheveled and tripped over one another as they ran for their lives. Episode 59 – I am Kiel Rroda Previously: Kiel entered the classroom to take his Multicasting exam. All other examinees are waiting for their turns in front of the classroom.
Episode 59 ¨C I am Kiel Rroda After handing his exam pass to Rau Eryey, Kiel approached the first apparatus. It was made out of exactly 100 glass objects of various shapes and sizes. Therefore, the number of objects that he would be required to activate simultaneously couldn¡¯t exceed 100. If he could cast 100 simultaneous spells fast enough, he would be able to achieve full marks. Kiel felt a bitter-sweet feeling as he gazed down on the pretty glass figurines. When he took the exam last year, this Multicasting test was the first one that he failed to complete flawlessly. It was the start of his downfall. He remembered it quite clearly. He tended to remember bad memories extremely clearly. And this one was a memory he would never forget. This first apparatus required him to cast trigger spells over and over again. While the trigger spells couldn¡¯t be any simpler, requiring very little mana, for a non-mage like him, even that amount was too much. If he gave it his all, at most, he would be able to cast 100 of those trigger spells before his mana was completely depleted. And the only reason why he would succeed in casting that many was because of his flawless execution. Yet, even if he used up all his mana casting those trigger spells, he could at most reach 10 points. And after that, he wouldn¡¯t have any mana left to use on the second apparatus. Therefore, his final result would be 5 points. The Temperature spell that he would need to cast to control the cubes used in the second test was about 3 times costlier to cast than those simple trigger spells. The upside was that he only needed to cast it once and he would be able to control that cube until the end of the test. Since there were 50 white cubes in the spiral, he deduced that at most, he would need to control 50 cubes. If he spent all his mana on the second apparatus, he would be able to control around 30 cubes at most. Therefore, Kiel calculated that if he went all out on the second apparatus, he would be able to reach around 16 points ( the final result being 8 points). Since he paid close attention to the demonstration of his examiners, he knew how many spells he would need to cast for the first 15 points or so of both apparatuses. He used that knowledge to calculate mana cost efficiency of every single point. Like a beggar he savored every drop of his mana, trying to find a distribution of his mana between the two apparatuses that would allow him to score the highest score possible. The second apparatus had a rather stable cost efficiency, while the first apparatus had high cost efficiency at first, but it kept dropping sharply. In the end, he calculated that he should aim to reach 6 points on the first apparatus and spend the remainder of his mana on the second apparatus. Because he made a pause before taking the second test, and because reaching the final stages of the second test took some time, his mana managed to regenerate somewhat, letting him score 14 points on the second apparatus. That way, his final score managed to reach 10 points. 10 measly points. He remembered clearly how shocked the examiners were when he scored 6 points on the first apparatus. He remembered that humiliation clearly. He remembered how he gnawed on his lips unconsciously until they were blood red. He remembered how his cheeks burned in shame. He remembered how he was glad that other examinees weren¡¯t allowed to spectate. Glad that their reverence didn¡¯t turn into scorn and contempt. If they were allowed to watch, his disgraceful score would have spread far and wide. He would never be able to live down the humiliation. Just thinking of the shame he suffered the year before made his blood boil. Never again! I will never again allow myself to be humiliated like that! His gaze towards the crystalline objects turned heated. This time around, all of you will dim for me! I won¡¯t spare a single one of you! His eyes narrowed into a chilling glare that could make anyone¡¯s hair stand on end. Good thing that his face wasn¡¯t turned towards the two professors, for they would be shocked to see that graceful and amiable noble turn so chillingly murderous in an instant. Without further ado, Kiel concentrated all his attention on the task at hand. He started weaving the trigger spell upon a small glass sphere which was currently the only object which was glowing with light. Since the trigger spell was beyond simple, it only took him an instant for that light to dim.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Two more objects lit up, but an instant was all it took for them to dim once again. Glass objects kept lighting up and dimming. Lighting up and dimming. Over and over again in and endless cycle. This cycle repeated so fast that both Rau and Kady were startled. 6 objects. 8. 12. 16. On and off they went. Kiel didn¡¯t pause at all. It looked as if he was in life and death struggle. As if the glass figurines had offended him somehow and he had to destroy all of them without mercy. He wasn¡¯t even breathing. He was too focused on destruction to breathe. The eyes of the two professors were turning wider and wider. This boy! Such incredible multicasting potential! It looked as if he wasn¡¯t weaving at all. As if every light his gaze lands on would immediately be put out. As if it required no thought or effort. As if it was only natural for the magic to bend to his will. If weaving was like writing letters, then what he was doing was not writing letters but stamping them with a seal! Stamp, stamp, stamp. One swell swoop and the spell was formed. Kady¡¯s face turned solemn, her omnipresent soft smile fading away from her face. Kiel¡¯s casting speed managed to reach 25 points, so it was understandable that he was able to weave trigger spells fast. However, to weave all of them simultaneously wasn¡¯t something that could be explained by casting speed alone. It was as if casting had long become an instinct. Something that required very little thought and concentration. Or was it that his mind was able to perfectly divide its attention into so many different tasks? Kady¡¯s gaze fell towards Kiel¡¯s back where she noticed a single sword sheathed. Her brows furrowed. With such great ability to multitask, it is a waste for him to practice using a single weapon. Didn¡¯t his family notice that he had the potential to practice dual wielding? Or perhaps they wanted him to master using a single sword before switching to dual wielding?
  1. 55. 60.
Like a machine, Kiel cast and cast, noticing not the state of his own body. His gaze never left the flickering lights in front of him. He didn¡¯t even know that his back was drenched with sweat.
  1. 80. 85.
Kady was on the edge of her seat, her eyes glued to the boy in front of her. Will he make it to 100? She had never seen all 100 figurines light up. Finding someone who could divide his attention into 100 spells was easier said than done. She had been a professor at Muni for more than 24 years. In that time, she had seen various geniuses who managed to score full points in various tests. Yet she had never seen anyone score perfect points on this apparatus. 21 years ago, there was a golden generation of geniuses, among which some managed to reach perfect points in Multicasting. At the time she was just an assistant professor. While she did participate in the exams as an examiner, none of those geniuses were in her batch of examinees. Therefore, she had never seen all 100 objects light up. Until today. Her breath couldn¡¯t help catch in her throat at the amazing sight of 100 lights glittering in the room. Eerie. Magical. Otherworldly. The glass crystals dispersed light everywhere, bathing every corner of the room with flickering lights. The room looked like the night sky, full of glowing lights. Both Kady¡¯s and Rau¡¯s eyes fell on Kiel¡¯s face, and their breath couldn¡¯t help but catch in their throats. Bathed in glittering light, the flawless skin and shiny hair of the boy was sparkling. It enhanced his godly beauty, leaving the mortal realm far in the dust. No mortal could hope to compare with this beauty. His black clothes were drenched with sweat and clung to his body tightly, revealing all his perfectly sculpted muscles. Each one of his movements, each one of his hairs, everything created a perfect harmony. His light eyes that usually already looked as if they were glowing stood out like two torches bathed in icy flames. Rau clicked his tongue. No wonder the noble status of Rrodas was never questioned even though they have neither Aetherneal gift wielders nor a magic specialty. With such godlike beauty that could even rival the Arites, even if all of them were non-mages, there would still be countless suitors asking for their hands in marriage. But how come I¡¯ve never heard of such a treasure in the Rroda family? I don¡¯t even know the name of this boy. If Rrodas had such a genius among them, why would they keep him hidden away in the dark and instead spread Rhur Rroda¡¯s name as the only genius of the younger generation? As I see it, the looks and demeanor of this boy is no worse than Rhur¡¯s but his magic capabilities surpass even Rhur. He also appears to be more hardworking and serious than Rhur. No matter how I look at it, he seems like a better candidate for the future head of the family. Rau¡¯s eyes widened in realization. Could it be¡­that they find this boy as a potential threat? That they don¡¯t wish him to become the future head of the family? Is that way they purposefully decided to keep him in Rhur¡¯s shadow? Could he be¡­a child from the side branch? Or an illegitimate child? Rau¡¯s eyebrows furrowed slightly, and the corner of his mouth twitched. An internal strife within the Rroda family? How interesting! The glittering lights in the room finally dimmed, and Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. His breath was so hot that it turned into visible white steam when it came into contact with the air. His clear light blue eyes watched the compass in the middle of the glass figurines twirl and twirl until it finally settled on a number. 25. Rau couldn¡¯t hold his tongue anymore and asked: ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, could you tell me your name? As an examiner, I shouldn¡¯t be asking about your personal information, so it is perfectly fine if you don¡¯t wish to tell me.¡± Kiel finally turned towards the teacher¡¯s desk. His mouth opened, and as if divine music, his husky voice made the two shiver. ¡°It is alright. I don¡¯t mind.¡± Of course, he didn¡¯t mind. This was his time to shine. This was his first step towards fame. What he wanted was to rise to the top, to let his name spread far and wide. For everyone to recognize him as an unrivaled genius of his generation. For his entire family to regret slighting him until their intestines turned green. Kiel¡¯s mouth spread into a brilliant, heart-stopping smile that neither Rau, who was a straight male, nor Kady, who was old enough to be his mother, could resist. ¡°I am Kiel Rroda.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Judging by his elegant manner and behavior, one would think that his only regret was the lack of someone to serve him tea. The examinees warily gazed at the two, expecting them to start with the comedy show. Shrill screams and a panicked mob were everywhere, trying their hardest to run away from the building. Episode 60 – Cubes vs. Bubbles Previously: Kiel scored full points on the first half of his Multicasting exam. He is left with the second half that he is determined to ace as well.
Episode 60 ¨C Cubes vs. Bubbles Kiel stared at the pink cactus that looked perverse no matter how you looked at it. Bright pink, glossy, rubbery. With tentacles that moved rhythmically around it like grass on the breeze. Who designed this test?? Kiel shook his head to clear his head from the distracting thoughts. He had this exact same reaction last year when he saw the cactus. Currently, there was one pink bubble waiting for his cube on top of the cactus. Kiel looked at the cubes positioned in a spiral and started weaving Temperature spells over the cubes one by one. He didn¡¯t hurry with the weaving, making the quality the priority. 3 cubes, 6 cubes, 10 cubes. In less than 10 seconds all 50 white cubes littered on the floor were under his spell. He made them float a bit upwards before setting them down in the same position they were previously in. He didn¡¯t need to move all of them right now. It would be better to leave them on the floor until the cactus starts spewing more bubbles. It was one thing to have 50 cubes under his control, and completely another to control the movements of all 50 cubes. Placing cubes under his control was like creating another limb and leaving it to lie around, instead of moving it. He could have 1000 arms for all he cared, but that didn¡¯t mean that he could use all of them at the same time. It was the difference between ¡°having¡± and ¡°using¡±. Therefore, while it didn¡¯t pose much trouble for him to sustain 50 Temperature spells, controlling all 50 of them at the same time would be something that even he couldn¡¯t do easily. The reason why Kiel decided to place all 50 cubes under his control from the start was so that the cubes were ready for usage as soon as he needed them. He didn¡¯t want to lose time on weaving in the middle of the test. That would only make him lose points. When he was ready to proceed, he moved a single cube towards the bubble. As soon as his cube touched the bubble, it popped, and the exam started. It didn¡¯t take long for a swarm of cubes to be flying through the air like snowflakes. Left, right, up, down. Everywhere one looked there were flying cubes trying hard not to hit one another while exterminating their common foes ¨C the bubbles. The struggle lasted for some time until the bubbles suffered a devastating defeat. Cubes vs. bubbles Score: 25 ¨C 00 * * * Elaru¡¯s and Arion¡¯s Multicasting test was set to be inside a building by the name of White Quarters. White Quarters was a very similar building to the Red and Blue Quarters, the difference being the color theme. Contrary to its name, the building was made out of black marble, however, all decorations, curtains, and carpets were pure white like the freshly fallen snow, creating a beautiful contrast between black and white. Unlike the main hall of the building that was very similar to the other Quarters, the classrooms themselves seemed to be different. At least the classroom in which their test took place was different. The classroom was probably used for a class that had something to do with herbal medicine or alchemy, for the shelves were filled with all kinds of strange medicinal items ¨C multi-colored pickled eyes, flower seeds, bright colored liquids. There was even a large glass tank, as tall as a wine barrel, filled with a thick bright red liquid, which was pushed into the corner of the room where it wouldn¡¯t be in the way or attract gazes. A soft medicinal aroma spread through the air that wasn¡¯t unpleasant but rather had a calming effect. Unsurprisingly, professors who awaited them inside the room were still Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic. One would expect the two to be tired after almost 8 hours of exams. Yet, Deora although a bit disheveled, still didn¡¯t lack any of his usual vigor. Zerel on the other hand still looked as tidy as ever, his face completely relaxed, a soft smile on his lips. Judging by his elegant manner and behavior, one would think that his only regret was the lack of someone to serve him tea. The examinees warily gazed at the two, expecting them to start with the comedy show.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. However, perhaps they had already performed their show in another group because Zerel seemed too lazy to do anything this time. Or perhaps even he had a sense of propriety, knowing what amount of trouble making is considered too much. Zerel didn¡¯t speak a single word. Occasionally he would glance at examinees and Deora, occasionally he would inspect his own fingernails. Under his smile hid extreme boredom. During Deora¡¯s explanation and demonstration of the exam, Zerel didn¡¯t interject at all. Only sporadic soft sighs could be heard. Examinees didn¡¯t know what to think about this. It seemed¡­too normal. Some of the people fidgeted, feeling uncomfortable in the extremely peaceful atmosphere. Some involuntarily yawned, making sure to do it when Deora couldn¡¯t see them. Soon enough, it was the time to take the exam. And Deora unceremoniously kicked them all out of the classroom. * * * Kiel walked out of his classroom like a proud warlord after a successful conquest. Neither glass figurines nor bubbles could defeat him. He had fully repaid them for his previous grievances. Not a single one was spared. After extricating himself from the crowd of people in front of the classroom, he made his way out of the building. He checked the time on his pocket watch and realized that Elaru and Arion had probably already packed up and headed towards their designated classroom. Therefore, instead of going to the courtyard, he made his way towards the White Quarters where their test was supposed to take place. Kiel entered the main hall of the White Quarters which was filled with tables and chairs just like the main hall of Red and Blue Quarters. The dome on the top of the hall was made out of transparent crystal glass that glittered like diamonds. It didn¡¯t seem to block the sunlight at all, and the insides of the building were bathed in sunlight just as radiant as the park outside. Kiel decided to take a seat and wait for Elaru here. He didn¡¯t know how long he would need to wait before she finished her exam, so he didn¡¯t want to look like an idiot and wait for her in front of her classroom. He¡¯d rather sit here comfortably and read his book on spell replicating. He was nearing the end of the book too. His memory was quite good and reading the book once would be enough to pick up 90% of the information within. He might have been born as a useless non-mage, but the fates at least gave him great memory and intelligence to make up for it. For him, studying was much easier than practicing magic. He never had any problems with learning theory. And the book he was currently reading actually contained a lot of knowledge he already knew. Since spell replicating was dependent on the mage¡¯s ability to weave magic, the great portion of the book actually talked about weaving spells: how to weave them flawlessly, how to weave them to increase the end performance of the spell, how to weave fast and how to optimize speed vs. quality. It described many things to be wary of when trying to weave spells such as optimal distances between certain symbols and lines, optimal mana concentration based on purpose, and all other knowledge one should know if they want to become incredible in weaving magic. Since he was already incredible in weaving, most of this information was useless to him. The part of the knowledge that he did find useful was related to enchanting. That¡¯s because the job of spell replicators was to replicate enchantments most of the time. Artificers would spend a lot of time designing, forging and transmuting an artifact. Enchanters would then spend a lot of time creating or modifying the spell that would be enchanted on that magical artifact before carefully enchanting it. Together, artificers and enchanters would produce a magical artifact. After they are done producing the artifact, unless the artifact was a custom made unique artifact, it would need to be mass produced. However, utilizing those incredible artificers and enchanters for such manual labor as mass production would be a waste of talent and money. Therefore, in their stead, duplicators and spell replicators are used, which are much cheaper and easier to raise. Duplicators would create a replica of the artifact, and spell replicators would then enchant that replica with the same spell as used in the original. Creating something out of nothing and replicating the existing was very different and required different skill sets. Spell replicating wasn¡¯t an overly complicated profession, and there were many spell replicators around. Of course, just like in every profession, reaching the top was very difficult and required immense ability. The people standing at the summit were very respected and sought after. After reading the books he had purchased, Kiel was confident that he would be on the higher end of the ladder of spell replicators. He had the weaving skills, and soon he would also have all knowledge needed. If his mana sense were as accurate as Elaru¡¯s Aethernea of Sight, Kiel would even dare say that he would be among those people standing at the summit. Therefore, Kiel was enjoying the sunlight and reading his book in a very relaxed and content manner, ignoring all curious and fawning looks directed his way, mostly from females. Luckily, holding a book in one¡¯s hand was a universal ¡°do not disturb¡± sign, so no one was rude enough to bother him. However, surprisingly, he still ended up being disturbed. An uproar happened within the building. Shrill screams and a panicked mob were everywhere, trying their hardest to run away from the building. They screamed bloody murder, looked pale and disheveled and tripped over one another as they ran for their lives. They scampered like they were running away from a rampaging psycho, spreading unrest among all other examinees, screaming for everyone to run for their lives. Some of them couldn¡¯t even wait to take the stairs, so they just jumped over the railing to escape as quickly as their acceleration let them. The commotion was so desperate that some people even ended up being pushed off which resulted in them screaming as they fell from the higher floor to the main hall. Kiel even thought he saw Arion among the unfortunate people who got pushed off. He looked up from his book, confusion written all over his face. The people around him seemed to be just as confused as him. Was there a fire or something? Some of the people ended up joining the mob in their frantic escape, while others continued sitting like Kiel, not knowing what to do. Kiel looked towards the second floor, which was the direction from which the mob initially came from. However, no rampaging beast came chasing after them. He spread his mana sense to cover the corridor but didn¡¯t notice anything strange. Kiel waited for over a dozen seconds, but he still couldn¡¯t figure out what was going on. In the end, he shrugged and returned to reading his book. Whatever. He wasn¡¯t the kind of person who would blindly follow the crowd. Even if there was a rampaging beast around, he was confident in being able to escape. And besides, this was Muni, every teacher was an incredible mage capable of handling whatever trouble popped up. He wasn¡¯t a brainless coward like the rest of the people. Wouldn¡¯t he be throwing out the face of the entire Rroda family if he ran with his tail between his legs? In the times of need, it was the job of nobles to display their superiority and show an example to the common folk. Kiel¡¯s calm and unperturbed face suddenly froze. Wait¡­isn¡¯t Elaru¡¯s classroom on the second floor?
Coming up in the next episode: Before their brains could even process what was happening, a miserable high pitched scream pierced through the corridor. The mournful emotions it carried caused shivers in all who heard it. Between the graceful fingers of her left hand, she held a blood-soaked dagger. Each one of the girl¡¯s steps left a bloody footprint. ¡°Murder!¡± ¡°Help!!!¡± ¡°Someone please help!¡± ¡°Call the peacekeepers!!¡± ¡°Run!!¡± ¡°Out of the way!!¡± Episode 61 – Murder in the White Quarters Previously: Kiel finished his Multicasting exam and decided to wait for Elaru¡¯s exam to finish. He sat in the main hall of White Quarters, (where Elaru was taking her exams) reading his books on spellcasting, when an uproar happened. A terrified, panic-stricken mob tried their best to escape from the building screaming bloody murder the entire way.
Episode 61 ¨C Murder in the White Quarters (Several minutes earlier) In front of the room 211, a crowd of people was impatiently waiting for their turn to take the Multicasting exam. Some of them were fidgeting on their feet, some of them were looking around, and some were chattering among themselves. Regardless of what they were doing, their actions were interrupted by several loud crashes and sounds of glass breaking. Before their brains could even process what was happening, a miserable high pitched scream pierced through the corridor. The mournful emotions it carried caused shivers in all who heard it. The most peculiar thing was that the source of the bellow seemed to be the room in front of them. Every person in the corridor near the room, without exception, looked towards the door with the number 211. People pricked up their ears, but for several seconds nothing else could be heard from the inside. They exchanged glances and shrugs, still unable to settle the chill racking their bodies. Just as they finally managed to relax their tense nerves a bit, the door to the now silent room opened, attracting the gazes of everyone present. A person slowly walked out of the room. She was a stunningly beautiful female, but at that moment, no one paid attention to her beauty. For the girl looked like she had just walked out of a blood-filled battlefield. Her white shirt and puffy sleeves had several large crimson red stains. The red viscous liquid dripped down the slim fingers of her right hand. Between the graceful fingers of her left hand, she held a blood-soaked dagger. Gracefully she brought the dagger close to her lush red lips. Her plump lips parted, and a soft pink tongue came out, licking the red liquid from the tip of the knife. Her enchanting eyes glittered with amusement, and her mouth formed a sinister grin. After the disturbing yet brilliant smile followed a soft chuckle which caused everyone¡¯s breath to catch in their throat. A dark red drop slid down from the corner of her mouth, down her chin, and finally dripped down to the floor. The drop caught the light and glittered magically, attracting the bloodshot eyes of everyone present. When the drop hit the floor, the soft dripping sound sounded like thousand hammers in the ears of people present. For when their eyes fell to the floor alongside the drop, they noticed that the ground was already soaked with blood. Each one of the girl¡¯s steps left a bloody footprint. The small portion of the classroom that could be seen from the opened door was filled with craters that were quickly filling up with the same disturbingly red liquid, creating pools of blood. The eyes of the people present bulged out, wide in horror as they stared at the female in front of them that seemed unperturbed. Cold sweat had already drenched everyone¡¯s back and the giant drops were flowing down their foreheads like a waterfall. The female paused briefly, her eyes passing over the horrified faces of people present. She didn¡¯t seem to care about their fear at all. In fact, she grinned even more widely, a grin befitting of a demon, so incredibly beautiful yet so incomparably deadly. She flicked her hand, pointing her thumb over her shoulder towards the room. ¡°Who¡¯s next?¡± Her beautiful, melodic voice breaking the dead silence sounded like a call of death. As soon as that sweet voice echoed in their ears, the silence was destroyed by another shrill scream. This time, the scream didn¡¯t come from the room, but from the people gathered in front of it. After the scream, more screams followed, along with a stampede of people scampering about, running away in panic. Without any thought about grace or manners, the gathered people pulled one another, tripped over one another, clawed, Accelerated, and did everything they possibly could to escape from the scene of the crime as fast as they possibly could. ¡°Murder!¡± ¡°Help!!!¡± ¡°Someone please help!¡± ¡°Call the peacekeepers!!¡± ¡°Run!!¡± ¡°Out of the way!!¡± All kinds of panicked, almost incomprehensible yells could be heard shaking the entire building.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The girl whose beauty could rival the gods themselves, watched the sweat-drenched backs of the escapees. Her eyebrow slightly furrowed, unsure what course of action she should take in such a situation. Should she stop them? Give chase? Or just let them be? * * * (10 minutes later) When principal Eruan Arite got word that a squadron of peacekeepers was requesting entrance to Muni, he felt puzzled. What could have possibly happened to warrant the deployment of peacekeepers? Did someone get their things stolen while they were within Muni? Was a fugitive among the examinees trying to enroll in Muni? But if that was the case, they could have waited for them to come out. Unless the fugitive was extremely dangerous and they were worried that he or she would pose a threat to the people within Muni? The peacekeepers insisted on going towards White Quarters immediately, but Eruan Arite refused to let them reign free in his university and invited them to his office first. Muni was his domain. Peacekeepers held no power or authority here. They couldn¡¯t even enter and exit without his permission. Peacekeepers rarely meddled in Muni business, for it was the responsibility of headmaster Eruan Arite to uphold justice and order inside Muni. It was entirely up to him whether he wished to involve them or not. And most times he had no desire nor need to involve peacekeepers. Muni was one of the safest places in Halnea. Not even the peacekeeper headquarters were safer than Muni. Muni was filled with genius mages more than capable in providing assistance and resolving any kind of immediate crisis. Even if he ignored the eternal guardian watching over Muni, what about all of the enchantments and protective measures they had invested into Muni over the last millennia? Even if the current chief of peacekeepers herself told Eruan Arite that a malicious person was causing trouble within Muni, Eruan Arite wouldn¡¯t easily believe it. So how could he believe a claim as preposterous as the one he was currently hearing. Both of Eruan¡¯s white eyebrows rose, and his long white eyelashes that looked like fans blinked repeatedly. His face still remained the definition of calm as he asked softly: ¡°A murder? In my university?¡± The leader among the peacekeepers, dressed in a valiant golden armor, slightly bowed and explained. ¡°We have received a report with many witnesses claiming an elibu female examinee to be the perpetrator.¡± The man paused slightly, unsure whether he should refer to the white-haired man in front of him as principal or headmaster. Both terms basically meant the same thing and were used interchangeably, but they weren¡¯t sure which term the man preferred. Since they currently needed to watch their words as to not give him any reason to kick them out, the leader of the peacekeepers felt conflicted. In the end, he chose not to use either of the titles and instead just avoid referring to the white-haired beauty. ¡°Please allow us to enter and investigate the report.¡± Eruan Arite stared at the peacekeeper calmly. ¡°Who is the victim of the so-called murder?¡± The peacekeeper squadron leader frowned and looked uncomfortable. He opened his mouth a few times before he finally managed to squeeze out a response. ¡°Two Muni examiners.¡± Judging by his awkward expression, he seemed to be purposefully avoiding speaking of their names for even he, himself, found it hard to believe that those two would be the victims of murder. He would be more inclined to believe if someone told him that the two were the perpetrators. The strange behavior of the peacekeepers didn¡¯t escape Eruan¡¯s notice. It only reinforced his own conviction that there was some kind of a misunderstanding. ¡°Your activities would disturb the written exams, and I cannot allow that. We are investigating this incident ourselves as we speak. Please wait for the results of our investigation.¡± Before the peacekeepers could protest, Eruan added: ¡°Don¡¯t bother trying to convince me otherwise. If I let you do as you please, who would answer to complaints from the examinees claiming that their performance was lowered because of your thoughtless actions? What if the person you arrest ends up being a victim of someone else¡¯s malicious slander and ends up unable to enroll into Muni because you made her miss the exams? How would you make it up to that innocent child who due to your mistake had lost their greatest life opportunity?¡± The peacekeepers looked at the unperturbed man speechlessly with wide eyes. The headmaster did not say anything that was unreasonable but¡­but¡­ What kind of logic was this?? The leader of the peacekeepers finally found his voice and exclaimed: ¡°Will you be able to shoulder the responsibility of more deaths if the perpetrator is indeed guilty and ends up endangering more lives while you are obstructing our duty?!¡± Eruan Arite smiled softly. ¡°What responsibility? Every examinee has signed a statement absolving Muni of any responsibility in case of damage or death. Inside Muni, their lives are their own responsibility.¡± The jaws of the peacekeepers couldn¡¯t help but drop down in shock. What the¡­??? What kind of logic is this?!? Where is your conscience? Don¡¯t you care at all about their lives?? Don¡¯t you care at all what the public would say about this scandal?? The faces of peacekeepers were turning from black to white to red and then back to black. Just as they were about to protest and try to make this unreasonable man see some sense, a knock was heard. ¡°Come in.¡± Headmaster Eruan Arite didn¡¯t hesitate at all and immediately voiced his melodic permission. When the peacekeepers saw the argel who came in, their faces lit up. ¡°Vice-principal Icya! Please help us!¡± The middle-aged lady wore her hair up in a tidy bun. She was dressed in elegant, skin tight purple uniform with golden, white and black details, quite similar to the uniform worn by the headmaster. The difference being that her uniform looked less majestic and consisted of a tight skirt, while the headmaster, of course, wore pants. While the purple uniforms of the headmaster and vice-principal were colored in the same royal purple that was closer to blue than red, the color looked totally different on each of the two. The color of Eruan Arite¡¯s eyes was the same shade as the uniform which created a flawless harmony between him and the uniform. As if the uniform was made to be worn by him alone. It made him look magnanimous, holy and divine even when the words coming out of his mouth were anything but magnanimous and holy. However, the vice-principal Icya, besides the several black strands, had a head full of dark magenta colored hair that was closer to pink which clashed with the royal purple color of the uniform, making her strict and cold features even more pronounced. Her cold teal eyes completely ignored the hopeful expressions of the peacekeepers and walked up briskly towards Eruan Arite. She bowed her head slightly in recognition and exclaimed. ¡°Reporting to the headmaster. I have investigated the claims of the murder as per your command.¡± Eruan Arite nodded his incomparably graceful head, the movement causing his snow-white silk like hair to tickle his shoulder. ¡°Report.¡± ¡°Yes, headmaster.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Elaru jumped towards the glass figurines as if she intended to step on them. Cold sweat broke out on Deora¡¯s forehead, and he screamed: ¡°What are you doing?!? Get down! Now!¡± Suddenly, he realized what he just said and hurried to correct himself. ¡°Stop! Don¡¯t come down! Don¡¯t you dare touch the figurines!¡± ¡°I¡­ Hate¡­ You¡­ So¡­ Much.¡± Deora squeezed out between clenched teeth. Deora¡¯s head snapped back to glare at Zerel. ¡°We aren¡¯t allowed to do that!¡± He hissed. ¡°It¡¯s against the rules!¡± Deora¡¯s pupils shrunk. ¡°What the¡­?!¡± What is she doing?! Episode 62 – Elaru’s Multicasting Previously: Kiel finished his Multicasting exam and decided to wait for Elaru¡¯s exam to finish. He sat in the main hall of White Quarters, (where Elaru was taking her exams) reading his books on spellcasting, when an uproar happened. A terrified, panic-stricken mob tried their best to escape from the building screaming bloody murder the entire way. Headmaster Eruan Arite has receiveda visit from peacekeepers asking him to let them into Muni so they could investigate a murder report.
Episode 62 ¨C Elaru¡¯s Multicasting (15 minutes earlier) When Deora finished explaining the test, Elaru was eager to try it out first. Usually, she wouldn¡¯t mind waiting for a bit and monitoring other people taking the test, but her Aethernea of Sight caught Kiel¡¯s visage sitting in the main hall. She didn¡¯t want to make him wait for her. Therefore, she was the first one to volunteer to take the exam. Deora hesitated a bit, the whole reason why they moved this group of examinees in the last time slot was because of the red headed jinx. Perhaps they were worrying too much? After all, she didn¡¯t break anything in the previous exam. Those accidents should have just been bad luck? Deora looked towards Zerel. Zerel just shrugged, not caring about it at all. This nonchalant behavior finally helped Deora make the decision to allow it. If Zerel had urged him on, Deora would have felt a bit suspicious. After all, he had drawn the short stick too many times when dealing with Zerel. But this time, Zerel was too lazy to care. That made Deora feel confident in his decision. Nothing bad would happen this time. He resolutely nodded and stepped aside so that Elaru can come back into the room. Elaru gave him her exam pass and approached the first apparatus made out of glass figurines. She gave the figurines a measuring look. Her glittering teal eyes darted left and right, deep in thought. Just when Deora was about to lose his patience and order her to start the test already, Elaru sprang into action. Unfortunately, the kind of action she started doing wasn¡¯t what she was supposed to be doing. Elaru jumped towards the glass figurines as if she intended to step on them. Deora let out an involuntary screech, and his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. Zerel¡¯s lazy posture suddenly straightened up, and glitter of amusement returned to his disinterested eyes. Elaru¡¯s lithe body passed through the air, and just as her foot was supposed to make contact with the fragile glass figurines, it stopped in midair. Her entire body was floating in the air as if it held no weight. She paid no attention to Deora¡¯s jaw that almost dropped to the floor, or Zerel¡¯s mouth finally twitching into his almost omnipresent smile. Elaru crossed her legs and sat. In midair. Her perky butt was almost touching the glass figurines. Cold sweat broke out on Deora¡¯s forehead, and he screamed: ¡°What are you doing?!? Get down! Now!¡± Suddenly, he realized what he just said and hurried to correct himself. ¡°Stop! Don¡¯t come down! Don¡¯t you dare touch the figurines!¡± Elaru smiled comfortingly, using her beautiful features to calm down the firecracker who was about to explode. ¡°I am changing my vantage point. If I view the array from above, it will be easier to keep track of everything. I am also closer to the figurines like this, so the distance the mana has to travel is less. Thus I will be able to activate them faster.¡± Deora¡¯s eyebrows furrowed, trying to process what she just said. Zerel didn¡¯t need as much time to understand her words, in fact, he even smirked and gave her a peculiar look. If anyone else saw that look, they wouldn¡¯t be able to understand what it meant. But Elaru understood. ¡°Liar.¡± The vantage point from directly above in this case wasn¡¯t as good as just standing outside and looking down at it. While the distance the mana had to travel in both cases was negligible, since mana could travel almost as fast as lightning. Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. Deora¡¯s eyes darted from the figurines to Elaru and back again, his face becoming paler by the second. He was searching his memory for any rules that would forbid this action, but he was coming up empty. He finally looked towards Zerel, as if searching for the last lifeline, as ridiculous as it was to put his hopes on Zerel. Deora squeaked out. ¡°Is this allowed?¡± Zerel¡¯s smile grew wider, and he shrugged. ¡°Why not?¡± Deora grit his teeth. ¡°But what if she falls down and breaks the artifact?¡±A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°When Eri had these made he took into account that you would be likely to drop them and break them, so he made them out of especially durable glass and even added a durability enchantment.¡± Deora¡¯s previously pale face turned red. ¡°He didn¡¯t make them durable because of me!! Anyone could end up breaking them accidentally! It was just common sense to make them durable!! Who would make an artifact out of a fragile base material?!¡± Zerel¡¯s eyes twinkled. ¡°Since you understand that, why are you so worried about a thin little girl ending up breaking the figurines? It¡¯s not like she will be playing airbalt with them.¡± Zerel chuckled softly. ¡°Since when did you became such a scaredy-pet?¡± Deora¡¯s eyes almost burned holes into Zerel with the intensity of his glare. ¡°I¡­ Hate¡­ You¡­ So¡­ Much.¡± Deora squeezed out between clenched teeth. Zerel clutched his heart in mock pain. ¡°That can¡¯t be¡­! I thought we were close friends?¡± Deora barred his teeth at Zerel. ¡°Friend?! With you?! With a friend like you who needs enemies?!¡± Zerel¡¯s face contorted into a pitiful expression. ¡°You are so cruel little Dei. Stomping on my honest feelings like this. Didn¡¯t I always look after you like you were my own little brother?¡± ¡°You call that looking after?! No wonder all your brothers and cousins turn tail and run as soon as they see you coming their way! Deciding not to make you their family head was the best decision your family head ever made!¡± Zerel waved his hand dismissively. ¡°That¡¯s where you are wrong. It was me that didn¡¯t want that position. It is too boring. They can have it. I don¡¯t want it.¡± Deora smirked and challenged. ¡°Is that so? Didn¡¯t look that way to me.¡± Zerel shook his head sadly. ¡°See, that¡¯s why you need me to look after you. You are so clueless and naive. If I let you go alone into this cruel, cruel world, you¡¯d be taken advantage of.¡± ¡°Ah, so you decided to take advantage of me instead? Wait! Don¡¯t change the subject!¡± Zerel suddenly smiled, a smile that caused Deora¡¯s skin to crawl. ¡°Little Dei, if I really wanted the family head position, do you really think anyone would dare to say no?¡± Deora gaped. He opened and closed his mouth like a fish but couldn¡¯t find an adequate response. He¡¯s totally right. Considering how his siblings and cousins run away at the sight of him, none of them would dare tell him no! Heck, even the family head himself didn¡¯t dare force him into an arranged marriage! Their exchange was suddenly interrupted by an awkward cough. ¡°May I?¡± The two suddenly remembered the reason why they were here in the first place, and their eyes landed on the red head in front of them. Deora¡¯s ears turned pink. He squeezed out an awkward smile and nodded. ¡°Yea¡­go ahead¡­¡± Seeing Deora finally agree, Elaru smiled at him radiantly, so brightly that Deora actually involuntarily shielded his eyes, before he realized what a strange action it was. He then looked away, a tinge of pink spreading from his neck and ears towards his cheeks. After dealing with the troublesome firecracker, Elaru finally started the actual test. Her smile faded away replaced with deep concentration. She weaved the trigger spell upon the glowing glass figurine and started the test. One after the other, figurines constantly lit up and dimmed. Even Deora had to admit it was an impressive sight. No wonder that the noble family behind this girl placed enough importance on her to give her something as precious as a mana purifying artifact. Or at least, that¡¯s what Deora thought. Gravity was an augmentation spell, so the girl was either an Arite or had a mana purifying artifact. The likelihood of the latter being much higher. Multicasting was known to be among the most difficult tests on the exam. A test very rarely aced. And yet, they were witnessing someone do it so casually, seemingly without even breaking a sweat. Even Deora had to admit that he couldn¡¯t have done a better job at it. This girl was an absolute genius mage, no matter how one looked at it. When the final figurine dimmed, both Deora and Zerel forgot to note down the score and just watched the apparatus in shock. Well, the shocked one was mostly Deora, with his mouth so wide he could catch a tiwi bird in it. Rather than shock, Zerel displayed surprise and interest. His eyes glittered so brightly one would think he was a child who just found a new fascinating toy to play with. After finishing the test, Elaru accelerated her floating body away from the glass figurines and then dispelled her Gravity spell that made her weightless. She landed on her feet gracefully, and without further ado made her way towards the second apparatus. When she arrived in front of the pink jelly, Elaru let out several deep breaths to calm her state of mind. She then stared at the pink abomination with what seemed to be¡­ displeasure? Her eyes darted around the cactus, and even her feet started to circle around it, as if she was searching for the optimal place where to stand. The more she moved about, the darker her face became. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she involuntarily bit her lips a few times, making her naturally red lips even redder. After a few circles, she started casting Light on the black cubes littered over the floor. Each time she placed a cube under her control, the cube would follow her around as she walked in a circle. When she reached her original, starting position, all 50 cubes were flying around her in tow. Zerel¡¯s eyes squinted into an undisguised glee. ¡°Do we even need to continue with this test? The test didn¡¯t even start yet, and she is already controlling all of the cubes. Why not just save the time and just send her off?¡± Deora¡¯s head snapped back to glare at Zerel. ¡°We aren¡¯t allowed to do that!¡± He hissed. ¡°It¡¯s against the rules!¡± Zerel shrugged but didn¡¯t say anything more. Elaru threw a few annoyed glances at the pink cactus in front of her, mumbling something along the lines of: ¡°I hate this shade of pink the most¡­¡± and then, instead of starting the exam, she pulled her goggles out from under her scarf and placed them over her eyes. The goggles were tinted, and no matter how much Deora tried to see the expression hidden under them, it was to no avail. Something is off about this girl. Deora¡¯s frown deepened. Why is she constantly doing strange things that make no sense? Unlike Deora who had a bad feeling about all of this, Zerel¡¯s grin only grew wider and wider. His expression practically screamed ¡°Fascinating!¡± After her goggles were securely set, Elaru finally made her move. A single cube flew towards the pink bubble in front of her. As soon as the bubble popped, two other bubbles appeared. Both of the bubbles were to the right of the cactus. As soon as they appeared, Elaru moved like a shadow and appeared right in front of the bubbles. What followed were two popping sounds as the cubes touched the bubbles. And then 4 new bubbles appeared, one on each side of the cactus. Elaru hesitated for a single moment, before gritting her teeth and suddenly stepped towards the cactus. Her body swayed left and right gracefully, like a branch on the wind, flipping and dodging. Completely avoiding all the tentacles as she approached the cactus. The cubes followed her into the fray, all 50 of them, and they too carefully avoided the tentacles. Deora¡¯s pupils shrunk. ¡°What the¡­?!¡± What is she doing?!
Coming up in the next episode: Could it have backfired? Was it really impossible for mortals to change fate? ¡°Where is everyone?? What did you do?!¡± ¡°Of course you are fine. I am worried about the other guy.¡± She scratched her head and grinned sheepishly. ¡°The other guy has a giant hole in the middle.¡± Episode 63 – Out of Control Previously: Elaru had aced the first part of her Multicasting exam and is now taking the second part. She places all 50 cubes under her control and charges straight towards the pink cactus. Instead of staying out of the range of its tentacles, she keeps avoiding the tentacles while popping bubbles.
Episode 63 ¨C Out of Control Both of the men stared at the girl in front of them that popped bubbles one after the other while seemingly dancing inside the danger zone. ¡°Is this even allowed??¡± Deora let out a raspy breath, his eyes glued to the slim figure in front of him. Zerel¡¯s eyes also never left her figure as he shrugged. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°But she¡¯s¡­she¡¯s¡­¡± Deora stumbled for words. ¡°What is she doing?¡± Zerel smirked and whispered. ¡°I think she finds the cubes easier control the closer they are to her. Therefore, she decided to approach the bubbles instead of staying out of the range of the apparatus.¡± Deora frowned. ¡°But that makes no sense!¡± He had never heard of such a thing. Controlling a spell was exactly the same no matter the distance. The only thing the distance impacted was the travel of mana. If the distance was larger, then the mana needed to travel for a longer time. But a few meters of distance made absolutely no difference. No matter how he looked at it, the redhead was only making it harder for herself. This way, she didn¡¯t even have a clear view of the bubbles, and she also needed to constantly avoid touching the tentacles. Elaru flipped and twirled very expertly as if she wasn¡¯t doing anything difficult at all. There wasn¡¯t a single drop of sweat on her, yet she continuously kept popping bubbles, very rarely leaving the proximity of the cactus.
  1. 20. 22.
Zerel¡¯s eyes darted left and right with profound interest, trying to capture every detail, studying the movements of the girl as if she was a most fascinating creature. Deora¡¯s face became redder and redder. The girl¡¯s clothes weren¡¯t revealing or tight fitting at all. But somehow, when she moved and danced about gracefully, it had an inexplicable beauty and charm to it.
  1. 26. 28.
By the time the 30th bubble popped, Deora¡¯s face was completely red, and his hands were covering his eyes. However, they weren¡¯t doing a good job at it, revealing many holes for his eyes to see through. It wasn¡¯t that he wanted to see this spectacular show, it was rather that he, as the examiner, had to see it. Whether he liked it or not. He kept grumbling ¡°Indecent.¡±, ¡°Scandalous!¡± and ¡°Improper.¡± the entire time. His face was so hot that he could have fried an egg on it. Zerel, on the other hand, was having a blast watching the show. The only reason why he refrained from cheering and clapping was because the examiners weren¡¯t allowed to do anything that might distract the examinees from doing their best in the exams. While Deora looked as if he was watching a stripper dance, Zerel looked as if he was watching a fascinating arena match, his face not showing any reddish or pinkish tint.
  1. 34. 36.
Deora caught the expression on Elaru¡¯s face which was perfectly calm and focused. The cubes around her moved in perfect harmony, not hesitating a single moment to pierce the bubbles. It seemed as if Elaru wasn¡¯t using her eyes to see at all. It was as if everything happening around her was perfectly captured by her mana sense. Therefore, she needed not see it.
  1. 40. 42.
Deora¡¯s breath caught in his throat. Even Elaru¡¯s face wasn¡¯t as calm as collected as before. Her eyebrows furrowed into a frown. Crystalline beads of sweat glistened on her forehead. 44. Elaru gritted her teeth, her eyes involuntarily turning fierce, as if she hated these pink bubbles the most in the entire wide world. Come on. Come on! Come on!! Elaru chanted inside her head. Just a bit more. Just a bit more! When the 47th bubble popped, the entire fleet of 50 bubbles appeared almost instantaneously. Their position made Elaru¡¯s pupils involuntarily shrink. Some of them were close to the cactus, some of them were at the absolute edges of the tentacles. Finally, what she dreaded the most happened. Several tentacles stretched to their utmost limit, creating bubbles which were on the absolute outer edge of the field of tentacles. Since the bubbles appeared on the diametrically opposite edges of the cactus, even if she hugged the cactus, they would still be¡­ No! Elaru¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously. I won¡¯t give up now! I need just an instant! If I can do it for just an instant that would be enough! Her eyes turned bloodshot, and a vein could be seen pulsating on her neck, but the cubes around her all honed in on the bubbles. With utmost accuracy, they collided, not wavering for even a second. The popping sound of 50 bubbles reverberated inside her head like a gong beat. In that split second of elation, her tightly stretched control relaxed. It relaxed for only an instant. But in that instant, the rapidly moving cubes slipped past the edge. Exactly 6 cubes surpassed the 1-meter radius from her own body. It was only an instant; it was only a single centimeter. Yet, at that moment, the Light spell cast on the cube seemed to come alive.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. The glittering symbol seemed to grow frantic. It started wriggling and twisting as if in agony, struggling left and right. It lashed out like a whip in all directions, deforming completely out of shape. The reality-altering phenomena around the cube didn¡¯t even have the chance to dissipate when the deformed Light spell slashed through the center of the cube ¨C around which, the enchantment powering the cube was still revolving peacefully. It would have been fine, it wouldn¡¯t have mattered, if only Elaru had not opted to weave her Light spells denser than normal. If her Light spell were less dense than the enchantment, it would have been her Light spell to suffer the consequences. Yet she knew from the start that the task in front of her wouldn¡¯t be simple, therefore, for the sake of increasing her own control over the Light spells, she weaved them especially dense. And those dense Light spells, like hot knives through butter passed right through the enchantments, splitting them in half. Luckily, active spells were resilient entities with a high degree of self-recovery. Breaking spells wasn¡¯t an easy task at all. One had to know exactly where to aim, for only if the weak points of the spell were hit would the spell be damaged beyond repair. The first cube, which got its enchantment split into two, dropped almost to the floor before its enchantment recovered and it stabilized, several centimeters above the ground. Even the second cube and the third suffered the same fate, staggering for a moment before recovering and slowly drifting to the ground. The fourth and the fifth cube were even luckier ¨C they weren¡¯t affected at all; the wriggling Light spell fell apart before it managed to come into contact with the enchantments. This unfortunate incident would have been resolved without any damage. Everything would have been perfectly fine, and Elaru would have gotten full points of the exam. If only there were 5 cubes. But there were 6. Perhaps it was just bad luck, or perhaps it was fate, but when that 6th Light spell wriggled and twirled, it sliced through a very peculiar point on the enchantment spell. It sliced through the bridge between the main enchantment and the limiter fragment whose purpose was to limit the maximum movement speed of the cube. The wriggling Light spell was already falling apart, its reality-altering effect was chaotically pulsating between releasing no light and releasing an extremely intense light. However, the cutoff limiter evaporated into smoke much faster. It took only a single moment, before any of the present people could react, the already fast moving cube turned into a blur. It shot out of control like an arrow and collided with the floor with a loud resounding crash. In only a blink of an eye, with speed hardly discernible by the eye, the cube rebounded off the floor, and like a bouncing rubber ball alternated between hitting the ceiling and the ground. Leaving craters in its wake. By the time a 4th crater was smashed into the floor, the hard corner of the cube had broken off, altering the movement path of the cube. Instead of hitting the ceiling once again, it lodged itself straight into the large glass tank filled with the red liquid standing in the corner of the room. The sharp sound of breaking glass didn¡¯t even register in everyone¡¯s ears when the cube once again rebounded and crashed through the window above Deora¡¯s head. Deora¡¯s mouth wasn¡¯t even done dropping to the floor when a sound of a soft yelp and a thump reached their ears. The cube hit something large in the courtyard and caused it to unceremoniously fall over. Deora¡¯s jaw almost dislocated, his bloodshot eyes looked through the cracks of his fingers, that were protectively shielding his face, at the floor, where several conspicuous craters had formed. His eyebrows started twitching violently, especially when he noticed that a bright red liquid started pooling inside those craters. His eyes followed the rivers of red until they landed on the big hole in the glass tank, from where a bright red healing potion was spilling in large quantities. Since the hole in the tank was actually in the lower regions of the tank, the pressure of the liquid above the hole caused the healing potion to spray out of the hole in jets as if it was a fountain. Elaru stood rooted to the spot with her mouth pressed tightly into a line. Her few crystalline sweat drops suddenly turned into a river. Her mind was already coming up with many disaster recovery plans. This situation had surprised even Zerel, and his usually nonchalant and relaxed expression was nowhere to be seen. His eyes were wide with surprise but unlike the horror that was slowly showing in Deora¡¯s expression, Zerel¡¯s mouth twitched into a smirk. He found the entire situation incredibly funny, or perhaps, satisfying in some strange way? He looked at Deora¡¯s comical expression and snickered slightly. He then proceeded to scribble down a score next to Elaru¡¯s examinee number. That¡¯s when a miserable scream finally broke out of Deora¡¯s throat. That wail was so soul crushing that anyone would feel deep sympathy for the poor lad. Well, anyone but Zerel. His smirk only widened into a grin. Deora¡¯s eyes darted between Elaru and the glass tank, between murderous intention and panic. After a few short moments of indecisiveness he finally made his choice and like a mad person dashed towards the ruptured glass tank. He slid to the floor and tried to patch the hole with his fingers, like a desperate man in the middle of an ocean with a leaking ship. However, his efforts only managed to change the trajectory of the spraying liquid. It splattered over his shirt and pants making him a miserable sight to behold. ¡°What are you waiting for?!?! Quickly! Morph the hole away!!¡± He screeched at Zerel. All he could think about was the monetary value of liters upon liters of high-grade healing potion that was literally slipping between his fingers. Zerel, however, showed no intention to get over there and have his expensive clothes soiled. He even gave him a look clearly saying: ¡°You can¡¯t be serious? Do you know how hard it is to clean a potion stain? There is a reason why alchemists wear lab coats.¡± The first one that couldn¡¯t bear the sad sight of Deora was Elaru. She might be a lot of things, but she wasn¡¯t heartless, and she felt extremely guilty to have caused such an incident. She completely disregarded her own ¡°safety¡± and made her way next to Deora. She placed one hand on the glass tank and grabbed Deora¡¯s hands with the other, removing them from the opening so she could morph the hole away. Deora yelped from the touch as if he had been seared by it, quickly snatching his hand away. It didn¡¯t take Elaru long to shift the glass around and patch the hole, but by the time she was done, the glaring red liquid had soaked through her white shirt and puffy sleeves.
About the enchantment spell on the cube The elibu cubes react to the light intensity and transform it into acceleration. However, to avoid any potential injury and control the execution of the test, they had to limit the speed the cube could achieve. Otherwise, someone could hit it with a laser beam, and the cube would shoot out like a meteor. Therefore, they placed a limiter spell fragment when designing the enchantment. The purpose of such a fragment is to limit the performance of another spell fragment in a certain way. In the current scenario, they placed the limiter fragment on the Light spell fragment inside the enchantment which absorbed the produced light and transferred it into mana. It limited the performance of the Light spell fragment so that it could only absorb a max specified amount of light. The mana produced by such an absorption wasn¡¯t actually used to power the Acceleration of the cube. Instead, it went into a control spell fragment, whose function was to control the power channeled into the Acceleration spell fragment. More mana that the control fragment received, more power the Acceleration spell would get, thus increasing the velocity of the cube. When Elaru¡¯s Light spell went out of control, it rapidly pulsated between releasing little light and releasing a lot of light, for several moments before dying. Since the limiter fragment wasn¡¯t there to limit the speed, the cube shot out uncontrollably. I hope that explains the gist of it, do let me know if something is unclear and you¡¯d like me to clarify. Coming up in the next episode: Could it have backfired? Was it really impossible for mortals to change fate? ¡°Where is everyone?? What did you do?!¡± ¡°Of course you are fine. I am worried about the other guy.¡± She scratched her head and grinned sheepishly. ¡°The other guy has a giant hole in the middle.¡± Episode 64 – An Innovative Method of Torture Previously: After acing the first part of her Multicasting exam, Elaru placed all 50 cubes under her control and charged into melee range of the pink cactus. She kept avoiding its tentacles and popping bubbles. At the end of her exam, the last batch of bubbles appeared at the edge of the cactus¡¯s range. When her cubes slipped past the edge, the Light spell went out of control and damaged one of the enchantment spells on one of the cubes. The cube went out of control and shattered a hole in the middle of a glass tank filled with healing potion. Deora acted quickly and tried to stop the potion from flowing out, he asked Zerel to help him Morph the glass to shut the hole, however, Elaru was the first one to arrive and help him.
Episode 64 ¨C An Innovative Method of Torture Only when the precious potion stopped leaking out of the tank did Deora come back to his senses. Like a raging dragon, he grabbed towards Elaru as if he wanted to pull her up by the neck, but she reflexively jumped a few steps back out of his range. ¡°You! You!!¡± Deora¡¯s shaking finger pointed towards Elaru, steam was almost coming out of his bright red ears, and his eyebrow was violently twitching the entire time. Finally, he couldn¡¯t hold it in, and flames suddenly enveloped his body. Just as he was about to throw a fireball in Elaru¡¯s direction, an image of headmaster Eruan flashed in his mind. He gritted his teeth and put out the fire. Instead of using flames, which had a high chance of causing more damage, his gaze landed on the remnant glass shards littered over the floor. His eyes flashed with fury and the largest pieces of glass floated up into the air. Their sharp edges glittered dangerously towards Elaru. Almost tangible killing intent swept over her, and her body subconsciously and instantaneously reacted. She pulled out two daggers strapped around her waist and cast a Protection spell on her own body. Protection spell was a wide-spread dual spell (dual spell is a spell that had both an augmentation and transmutation based variant). The augmentation variant of Protection was based on Velocity while transmutation based variant was based on Morph. Protection created a barrier around the body made out of particles of air (or anything else at hand) woven into a protective suit around the body. After the suit of air is created, it would be enveloped by a Piercing spell which was also a dual spell. The augmentation variant of Piercing is based on Velocity, and its purpose is to prevent the change of velocity from external sources. Which is to say that if an object, be it an arrow or a sword, collided with those particles, the Piercing spell would raise the velocity of the particles in the opposite direction of the attacking object, in an attempt to negate the outside force. If the force behind the Piercing was higher than the attacking power, the foreign object would not be able to proceed further and would stop before making contact with the skin. The transmutation variant of Piercing would do the same thing, albeit in a roundabout, slightly less efficient way. It would control the shape of the protective suit, making it so that it wouldn¡¯t allow the attacking object to bend it out of shape. The sparks were flying in the air, both literally and figuratively, as Deora was trying hard to suppress his flames while glaring daggers at Elaru. ¡°You two¡­there is no need for such hostilities. It¡¯s only a few liters of healing potion and a single cube. It¡¯s really not worth getting upset about.¡± The mischievous voice of Zerel cut through the tense atmosphere. His voice reminded Deora that there was one extra person in the room that he hated very much. The floating glass shards turned towards Zerel, followed by Deora¡¯s murderous yell: ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who claimed she wouldn¡¯t break anything else?!? That it was all just an accident?!¡± Zerel raised his hands in surrender and smiled softly. ¡°I stand corrected.¡± Deora¡¯s homicidal gaze almost caused Zerel¡¯s clothes to spontaneously combust. Zerel shook his head dejectedly and somewhat helplessly. Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched. That expression¡­ is so obviously fake! Can¡¯t you resist provoking the firecracker even once? Can¡¯t you even attempt to disguise that gleeful glint in your eyes?! ¡°It must be her entrance number. That number is really unlucky.¡± Elaru¡¯s jaw almost dropped down. Seriously?? You are going to blame it on my entrance number? Deora¡¯s eyebrow twitched, and he glared at the exam pass in Zerel¡¯s hand. ¡°You call that unlucky?!?¡± Elaru internally shook her head. There you go. Even Deora wouldn¡¯t be gullible enough to attribute this to an unlucky number. ¡°It¡¯s not just unlucky! Cursed! It is clearly cursed!¡± Elaru¡¯s head snapped towards Deora, her eyes wide in shock. This guy! How has natural selection not yet killed you off?? Her eyes landed on fire that was desperately trying to combust on Deora¡¯s body.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Ah. So, that¡¯s how. He might be st¡­gullible, but he has some firepower. Elaru shook her head and looked at the number written on her exam pass. A few months back, she had intentionally waited for a while before entering the line. She had wanted to get this number. She wanted to prove that there was really no such thing as fate. Or at least, that she could overturn it. Also, she thought it would be fun to see the faces of everyone when they see that number on top of the leaderboards. Don¡¯t tell me that this number is really, actually, unlucky? Don¡¯t tell me that my efforts backfired? Did I shoot myself in the foot? Is it really impossible for mortals to change fate? Elaru shook her head again. For the love of Origin, these two can really switch topics fast. She looked at Deora who was busy staring holes into her exam pass, looking at it as if it was his mortal enemy that he wanted to vanquish no matter what. She should probably interfere before Deora actually ended up doing something stupid that would increase her chances of getting kicked out of Muni. Deora¡¯s red face was contorted into pure and simple fury, and Zerel seemed to be blissfully enjoying the previously mentioned fury. An involuntary smirk made its way on Elaru¡¯s face. ¡°Cursed or not, it doesn¡¯t really matter. As prof. Zerel said, the damages this time aren¡¯t that great. The windows and the floor are easily fixed with Morph. I am sure that prof. Zerel would even gladly help out shoulder some of the responsibility as your partner in this difficult time.¡± Zerel¡¯s face froze, and his eyebrow imperceptibly twitched as he saw the calculating smirk on Elaru¡¯s face. She continued. ¡°You can forget the cube, no one will need it in the exam anyway. It¡¯s not every day an examinee appears that can reach the full score. As for few liters of healing potion¡­ if you don¡¯t say anything, who will know that it got spilled on your watch?¡± Deora¡¯s eyebrow twitched. It sounded good in theory, but if headmaster Eruan found out about it¡­ Deora involuntarily shivered. It would be better to just be honest about it. If he was honest about it, Eruan would punish him but wouldn¡¯t get a¡­ wait! Why would he get punished? He didn¡¯t do anything wrong! It was this blasted redhead that broke stuff! He didn¡¯t spontaneously combust this time! As long as he continues keeping his temper in check and doesn¡¯t break anything, there was a high chance that he wouldn¡¯t get punished for this. Deora forced a smile. ¡°Right, right. It¡¯s not that big of a deal.¡± He then glared at Zerel. ¡°Zerel, my partner.¡± He squeezed the word partner through his teeth as if it was the vilest thing he couldn¡¯t bear to voice. ¡°I hear you would gladly help shoulder the responsibility by cleaning up this mess. Chop-chop! We have no time to waste. Headmaster Eruan would be absolutely furious if we didn¡¯t finish our exams in time for the written exam.¡± Zerel frowned and almost¡­ pouted? Then he glared at Elaru. His gaze clearly conveyed: ¡°I blame you! If it weren¡¯t for your nasty meddling, Deora wouldn¡¯t have realized that I can actually clean this up!¡± If it were any other time, he might have argued and refused to do it. But he had to admit that Deora was right. There weren¡¯t many things that could provoke Eri into losing his cool. Unfortunately, causing their examinees to be late for the written exam, was one of the things that could, indeed, turn him into a demon incarnate. Even he, who loved seeing the world burn, was careful to not provoke Eri¡¯s wrath. Seeing Deora fly the glass shards towards the window, and Zerel, grudgingly envelop them with his Morph as soon as Deora released his Acceleration, Morphing them back into a whole, Elaru finally sighed a breath of relief. She twirled her daggers and intended to put them back into their sheaths when she noticed that they were dripping with healing potion. When she was helping Deora fix the glass tank, the potion splattered all over her, and apparently, even reached her weapons. Since healing potion was a magical potion, she couldn¡¯t remove the stains by utilizing magic. Since the density of mana inside the potion was high, she couldn¡¯t target it with her magic. She would need to clean this mess up the old-fashioned way ¨C with soap and water. Elaru started cleaning her dagger with the edge of her shirt, but her shirt was also dripping red, and just as she managed to wipe it off, a few more drops of red would land on the dagger. Elaru ¡°tsk¡±-ed and instead opted to lick the remainder of the drops off of her dagger. Such a high-grade healing potion was actually quite beneficial to the body, even if one wasn¡¯t injured. The red potion reminded her of honey, it was viscous and sweet, though not as much as honey. It carried more of a medicinal taste to it. She sheathed the freshly cleaned dagger, took her exam pass from the teacher¡¯s desk and pocketed it. She turned to leave when she heard Deora call out to her. ¡°Oi, jinx. Tell the next examinee to get his ass in here to be tested.¡± Elaru didn¡¯t stop in her steps and just murmured a ¡°Sure.¡±. She brought the second dagger to her mouth to lick off the healing potion and opened the door to exit the classroom. As the medicinal liquid touched her tongue, her eyes suddenly started glittering with amusement. What would happen if I actually cut someone with a dagger dipped into healing potion? Wouldn¡¯t the wound heal right away? What a perfect way to torture someone without leaving any evidence! Elaru let out a soft chuckle. This method might actually be useful for me in the future. I should remember it. Her eyes landed on the numerous faces in front of her, which displayed no small amount of shock. Oh right. Deora told her to tell the next examinee to come in to take the test. She pointed her thumb backward towards the room and smiled encouragingly. ¡°Who¡¯s next?¡± * * * Elaru stood stoned and speechless with a blank face, still with her dagger in hand, and thumb pointing backward. After several seconds of staring dumbfoundedly at the escaping crowd, a voice could be heard from within the room. ¡°Next? Oi, jinx! Why is no one coming in?¡± Elaru didn¡¯t know how to respond. After waiting for several seconds without a response, a head full of bright red hair peeked out of the room. ¡°Where is everyone?? What did you do?!¡± Deora Thayn stared daggers at Elaru, pointing his finger straight at her face. Elaru sighed dejectedly. ¡°Why do you assume I did something? I just passed the message as you told me.¡± Deora¡¯s eyes narrowed. It was awfully noisy out there. What¡¯s with the commotion? He looked around and noticed a horde of people running out of the building. ¡°What¡¯s happening? Why are people leaving in such a hurry? Is there a fire somewhere?¡± His frown deepened. ¡°But I didn¡¯t start a fire this time.¡± After a few seconds, an additional head full of dark purple hair poked out into the hallway. After noticing that the hallways was completely devoid of all examinees, Zerel smiled happily. ¡°Good news little Dei! It seems that our work is done for today.¡± Both Elaru and Deora stared at Zerel speechlessly.
Coming up in the next episode: Elaru smiled brightly. ¡°I am fine. Thanks for asking.¡±Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. He barely suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. ¡°Of course you are fine. I am worried about the other guy.¡± He didn¡¯t know why, but suddenly he felt that today was a very nice day. It was almost¡­ as if¡­ he was actually¡­ happy? Elaru ignored his protest and gazed at him with a strangely affectionate gaze. It was as if she was looking at someone dear to her. It made Kiel feel strangely uncomfortable. ¡°ELARU!!!!¡± This painful, suffocating feeling in his chest had to disappear. Elaru burst into her designated classroom with glee. Episode 65 – A Heart Condition Previously: After the disaster in which Elaru broke a hole in a glass tank filled with a healing potion, she came out of the classroom and under the instruction of Deora asked for the next examinee to enter to take the exam. The examinees waiting in front of the classroom missunderstood and ran away in fright.
Episode 65 ¨C A Heart Condition Deora looked around and noticed a horde of people running out of the building. ¡°What¡¯s happening? Why are people leaving in such a hurry? Is there a fire somewhere?¡± His frown deepened. ¡°But I didn¡¯t start a fire this time.¡± After a few seconds, an additional head full of dark purple hair poked out into the hallway. After noticing that the hallways was completely devoid of all examinees, Zerel smiled happily. ¡°Good news little Dei! It seems that our work is done for today.¡± Both Elaru and Deora stared at Zerel speechlessly. After a few seconds of staring they snapped their head towards the railing in front of the classroom, where a brown-haired guy was clumsily climbing up. After his feet touched the ground, he let out a breath of relief and scratched his head in confusion. ¡°The heck? What¡¯s with the panic? Some bastard even pushed me off the railing! Good thing I can Accelerate, or I¡¯d be a pancake right now!¡± Zerel¡¯s face fell, and he sighed dejectedly. ¡°Ah, it seems I spoke too soon. I guess we aren¡¯t done for today after all.¡± Arion looked at Elaru and then blinked a few times in confusion. ¡°Elaru? What happened to you? You look like you¡¯ve just walked out of a butchery.¡± Elaru opened her mouth to respond but no words came out. Luckily, Deora interrupted her and waved Arion over. ¡°Come on! Are you here to take the exam or to pick up girls?¡± That put an awkward end to the conversation and the two professors let the disheveled Arion enter the room. As soon as Arion walked in, Deora glared daggers at Elaru threateningly behind his back. I¡¯ll remember this! Will never trust you again! He then ¡°humph¡±-ed one final time before slamming the door shut. As the door slammed shut, a sudden series of crashes was heard. The three inside the room looked towards the shelf that was previously filled with glass jars. Apparently, each time the renegade cube created a crater it had jolted the jars closer to the edge of the shelf. But it wasn¡¯t until Deora slammed the door that they finally toppled over to the floor. Deora stared at the broken glass with bloodshot eyes. The strange eyeballs that were previously inside the jars seemed to stare right back at him. When Elaru heard a miserable scream erupt from inside the room, she didn¡¯t dare dally any longer and quickly made her escape by jumping off the railing, exactly where Arion had fallen off previously. * * * While Elaru was gracefully falling off the railing, she saw Kiel sitting at a table, peacefully reading a book, completely undisturbed by the commotion around him. When the people around the hall saw her approach them, for some reason they turned pale and ran away. It made Elaru finally realize why people were running away. That they probably mistook her potion stains for blood. She rolled her eyes. What a bunch of cowards. Fortunately, Kiel didn¡¯t show any sign of doing the same. In fact, he only turned to look at her when he heard his name called in that soft and comfortable voice he was familiar with. Kiel looked up, his icy blue orbs meeting Elaru¡¯s teal ones. His eyes proceeded to drop down to Elaru¡¯s shirt. When he noticed the red stain, his eyebrows furrowed. ¡°What the¡­? Is that¡­?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes widened, and she hurried to explain. ¡°No! It¡¯s not¡­¡± But before she could finish, Kiel¡¯s next words silenced her: ¡°¡­a healing potion?¡± Elaru stared at Kiel dumbfoundedly before involuntarily nodding her head. ¡°Yeah. It is.¡± Kiel searched her face suspiciously. ¡°Why is your shirt drenched with a healing potion?¡± Elaru smiled brightly. ¡°I am fine. Thanks for asking.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. He barely suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. ¡°Of course you are fine. I am worried about the other guy.¡± Elaru scratched her head and grinned sheepishly. ¡°The other guy has a giant hole in the middle.¡±If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. She only realized how wrong that sounded after she said it, but before she could elaborate Kiel raised his eyebrow. ¡°You ruptured a healing potion tank?¡± Elaru gaped at him, before exclaiming bewilderedly: ¡°How did you know?¡± Kiel snapped his book shut. ¡°Why else would you be covered in a healing potion? It is drunk, not applied externally. The only way you could have it all over you is if someone spilled a bottle on you. And judging by how large the stain is, it had to be a very large bottle. Considering how it has ¡®a giant hole in the middle¡¯ and healing potions are common goods usually kept in tanks, it was obviously a ruptured tank.¡± Elaru nodded, her eyes glittering with appreciation. ¡°They could have been blood stains, though. Everyone else seems to think so.¡± She motioned her hands towards the escaping crowd. Kiel¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t miss the approval glittering in her eyes. He didn¡¯t know why, but it made him feel strangely satisfied. His mouth involuntarily twitched into a small smirk. ¡°Not everyone is gifted with common sense. You don¡¯t reek of blood. You reek of medicine.¡± Kiel got up from his seat. ¡°And also, if it was an ordinary liquid or blood, you could have Cleansed it.¡± Elaru sniffed her shirt and frowned. ¡°It doesn¡¯t reek, it smells sweet. Like a perfume.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrows rose, and his smirk widened. ¡°What perfumes have you been using?¡± Elaru stared at him speechlessly. Her lack of response only made Kiel¡¯s smirk grow wider and wider. He finally managed to make her speechless. It was such a glorious moment. The self-satisfaction he felt right now couldn¡¯t be put into words. He didn¡¯t know why, but suddenly he felt that today was a very nice day. It was almost¡­ as if¡­ he was actually¡­ happy? Finally, Elaru managed to respond with: ¡°I see your point.¡± ¡°How did you end up rupturing a tank anyway?¡± Kiel raised one eyebrow inquisitively. ¡°As expected of a guy worthy to be my soulmate. Your deduction ability is marvelous.¡± Elaru responded with her trademark beautiful wide smile, that could make anyone forget what they were talking about. Anyone but Kiel. ¡°Don¡¯t change the subject.¡± Elaru ignored his protest and gazed at him with a strangely affectionate gaze. It was as if she was looking at someone dear to her. It made Kiel feel strangely uncomfortable. She spread her arms and exclaimed. ¡°Come here, you.¡± Kiel froze and stared at her dumbfounded. She didn¡¯t let him stare for long. When she realized he had no intention of coming to her, she moved towards him in an attempt to give him a hug. Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and he dodged her like a startled lunar, his eyebrow twitching. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare get that red stain on me too!¡± Her honest smile suddenly turned into a cunning smirk. ¡°Oh, so you¡¯d let me hug you if there was no stain?¡± ¡°Of course not!¡± Kiel refuted right away, his eyebrow violently twitching. Elaru¡¯s keen eyes didn¡¯t miss the soft tinge of pink spreading over his cheeks. Her grin only grew wider as she lunged towards him like a lupax attacking its prey. Kiel reacted quickly, raising his hand towards her head. She slammed face first into his palm, and he grabbed her head with the soles of his fingers as if she was an airbalt ball. His slim fingers kept her at an arms distance, unable to come closer. Since his arms were longer than hers, all she could do was flail about futilely. Through the cracks between his fingers, he could see her giving him a somewhat disappointed and wronged look. A muffled pout reached his ears. ¡°You¡¯re so mean!¡± Seeing such a strange look on her usually smiling face made the sides of Kiel¡¯s mouth twitch into a smirk. For a moment, he got an urge to pet her head like she was a child or a baby animal. She was a strange creature, but he had to admit, she was sometimes quite cute. But then she would ruin it by doing something insufferable. Like licking his hand in revenge. ¡°ELARU!!!!¡± * * * Luckily there were not many people left in the White Quarters. So, no one witnessed the disgraceful exchange between the two. Kiel couldn¡¯t calm the shivers going down his spine for a while. Imagine! This incident could have caused all his hard work in maintaining his image go up in smoke! Elaru was dangerous. Very, very dangerous. He was slowly getting used to being himself around her. And that was too dangerous. A slip up in public was just a matter of time. Kiel repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists the entire way towards the building where he was supposed to be taking the written exam. He needed to distance himself from her. Pretend not to know her. He couldn¡¯t let this continue. This painful, suffocating feeling in his chest had to disappear. He resolutely decided that as soon as they entered Muni, he would break his ties with her. He would pretend not to know her. They would only communicate in secret, mostly telepathically. From a safe distance. Now that he had made the decision, there was nothing more that he needed to worry about. It was the best decision he could make. Everything would be alright. So why is it that the painful feeling didn¡¯t dissipate at all. Not only didn¡¯t it disappear, it seemed to be growing more painful by the minute. Kiel¡¯s pupils shrunk and a chill went down his spine. It can¡¯t be! Can it?! Could it be that I¡­?!? That I developed a heart condition?? Is it because Aetherneal bond put a strain on our bodies?! The negative aftereffects could include damage to internal organs! Darn it! He knew something so powerful had to have bad side-effects! Kiel swore and cursed for some time inside his head. His resolve to find out more about Aetherneal bond grew by the minute. After all, now it had become a matter of life and death. For all he knew, one day, his heart might fail in his sleep and he wouldn¡¯t even know how and why he died. Just as he was collecting his thoughts and noting down the changes so he could discuss it later with Elaru, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. These changes almost exclusively happened when he was thinking about how to deal with the troublesome redhead! He resisted the urge to face-palm himself and chuckled wryly. Why did his mind travel down to the worst-case scenario when there was a simpler solution? What heart condition? For a smart guy, sometimes he was just too dense. He shook his head. So, that¡¯s how it is. It¡¯s not a heart condition. It¡¯s just stress. He should just take some time to meditate and drink some tea with relaxing effects. Kiel nodded in satisfaction. Problem solved. * * * The last exam of the day was the written exam testing their knowledge and understanding of magic. The exam was filled with multiple-choice questions they had to answer so to prevent the leakage of exam questions, all examinees would take the exam at the same time. Which meant that all 5642 examinees had to be fitted into classrooms and supervised. Luckily, Muni provided all examinees with a contract they needed to sign, that specified they would not be allowed to cheat in any way. Therefore, since they couldn¡¯t cheat, supervising the exam became much easier. Providing that many arcane contracts was, naturally, very expensive. Muni wouldn¡¯t have opted to do it if they had any other choice. How could they ensure fairness and lack of cheating in a room full of argel whose eyes can see the hairs on a caterpillar 20 m away? After realizing how many different things they would need to enchant and provide, that wouldn¡¯t even solve the issue of cheat sheets, they figured that those arcane contracts were much cheaper than the alternative.
Coming up in the next episode: Elaru burst into her designated classroom with glee. It didn¡¯t take her long to realize that everyone in the room was staring at her. ¡°To the Arena!¡± Elaru pointed to the distant building, grinning ear to ear. Episode 66 – The Arena Previously: After the multicasting test, it is time for the written exam that tests examinee¡¯s knowledge of theory of magic.
Episode 66 ¨C The Arena Elaru burst into her designated classroom with glee. Unlike the classrooms where she was previously taking the tests, which were small with movable desks and chairs, the current classroom was a big auditorium for large lectures with many rows of benches surrounding the podium in a 120-degree arc. Elaru found the seat marked with her number and sat down, only to realize that everyone in the room was staring at her. Was it because of her examinee number that was considered unlucky? Was it because she was a natural attention magnet with her beautiful, otherworldly appearance? Was it because she wore her quest seeking equipment full of weapons? Perhaps it was because of her powerful, charismatic aura? Or because her excitement and glee radiated from her in waves through her mana? Maybe it was because her body curvature was too eye-catching, especially for the male population? No. It was probably because of the large red stain on her shirt. If it were any other girl, she would feel shy and uncomfortable being seen in stained clothes. Her cheeks would burn, and she would look down. Not Elaru though. She wore it with pride as if it was a mark of honor. She looked at the people gazing at her and gave them a confident, brilliant smile. The smile that was more radiant than the sun and more beautiful than the night sky. Naturally, everyone that saw it averted their eyes, pink and red blush spreading on many faces. However, many of those embarrassed looks were drawn back to her as soon as her eyes moved to scan another individual. They couldn¡¯t help but stare. However, they didn¡¯t like being caught doing it. Both girls and boys avoided her gaze. Both girls and boys equally blushed when she smiled at them. But the attention didn¡¯t bother Elaru at all. She could have been standing naked, and she would still radiate that confidence that disregarded anyone else¡¯s opinion. While sweeping the room with her gaze, Elaru¡¯s noticed Arion sitting a few desks away from her. He waved at her and grinned widely. She waved back and continued with her sweep until her gaze landed on the supervising teacher. Surprisingly, it was neither Zerel nor Deora. It was a female elibu in her thirties with long wavy, marine blue hair. The woman was petite in build and very pretty. She seemed to be a patient and kind type of a teacher. When Elaru¡¯s eyes landed on the lady, the lady smiled kindly and averted her deep green eyes away with a slight blush. Elaru¡¯s bright smile widened, her teal eyes glittering mischievously. Elaru didn¡¯t have the standard type of education, a written test was a concept unfamiliar to her. But luck seemed to be on her side this evening. If she didn¡¯t understand something, she was sure that the nice professor lady wouldn¡¯t mind helping her out. * * * The situation in Kiel¡¯s classroom wasn¡¯t much different from the situation in Elaru¡¯s classroom. Saying that Kiel was a devilishly handsome individual would be selling him short. He attracted gazes wherever he went. His cold charm attracted girls like fragrant flowers attracted bees. Kiel sat straight, not scanning the room at all, as to avoid meeting the eyes of anyone he didn¡¯t like (which would surely be everyone). Nonetheless, he still managed to meet the eyes of some bold females who didn¡¯t quickly look away like the rest but smiled at him ¡°charmingly¡± instead. Kiel returned a polite smile. They swooned. He hoped they failed the exam. A professor was already in the room when Kiel entered. He remembered him from last Friday when he came to sign up for the exam. It was that kind looking argel that reminded him of a pechuh, with chocolate colored hair and eyes. He sat there, smiling brightly at everyone. Before Kiel had graced them with his presence, most of the girls had their fawning gazes on¡­ what was his name? Ahon Tonrai? He was handsome and had a gentle, calming aura which made people subconsciously like him at first glance. * * * Kiel had finished his test long before the time ran out and spent the remaining time under a tree in the courtyard with a book in hand. Elaru and him didn¡¯t agree on a specific place where to meet. Previously, they had forgotten to set a meeting place after their mana control exam (the annoying presence of Arion Urwin was to blame). However, after the exam, Elaru still managed to find him without any problem.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. That¡¯s when he realized that agreeing upon a meeting place was pointless. Like a trackog, no matter where he hid, she would hone in on him and find him. To her, he probably looked like a burning torch of blue constantly poking her in the eye no matter where he was on campus. Kiel almost didn¡¯t notice when a large mop of red entered his vision. The red of her hair blended perfectly with the crimson red sky. Kiel checked left and right but didn¡¯t see any trace of Arion Urwin. ¡°Where¡¯s your shadow?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but wonder. Elaru blinked her long eyelashes. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I mean Arion.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Her eyes lit up in realization, then she smirked deviously. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you¡¯d miss him so. The next time I will definitely bring him along.¡± Kiel glared half-heartedly and got up from his seated position. ¡°Did you finally realize how irritating his presence was and decided to intentionally avoid him?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Elaru nodded. ¡°I dodged him because we can¡¯t go out of Muni the usual way but instead have to turn invisible. Naturally, we can¡¯t let him tag along.¡± Ah, so that is why. Kiel let Elaru latch onto his arm as she usually did whenever she intended to turn them invisible. The feeling wasn¡¯t bad at all, once he got used to it. It helped that Elaru never actually plastered herself to him, or acted clingily. Her way of doing it seemed¡­ just right. Her grip was gentle but firm. Not too tight, not too light. He never had the feeling like he was being dragged along. Rather, that they were walking side by side in a comfortable and relaxed manner. It was a subtle, nonobtrusive feeling that one would frequently forget. In fact, often times, they would remain like this even after the invisibility had been lifted. Most of the time, Kiel would remember this comfortable sensation only after the warmth disappeared. ¡°Do you have any places you want to go to today?¡± Kiel decided not to beat around the bush and asked right away. Yesterday she had dragged him along to the ring shop and after that to Black Pearl restaurant. He hoped she didn¡¯t have any similar plans today. Elaru looked at him strangely before starting to laugh musically. The sound of her laughter was a pleasant sound like no other. People they passed by turned around in a daze, looking left and right trying to find the source of the soft heartwarming laughter. ¡°If that line came from anyone else, I¡¯d think they were asking me on a date.¡± Kiel shot her another glare. ¡°Luckily, you know better. Now answer the question.¡± Elaru smiled mischievously. ¡°No. I don¡¯t have any plans today. Why? Do you have plans?¡± ¡°Yes. I chose battle royale for my practical exam. However, while I do have some experience in martial arts, my battling experience is limited.¡± He suddenly glared at Elaru. ¡°If I had known earlier that I¡¯d be participating in Muni exams this year, I would have thoroughly prepared. But since I am out of time, the best I can do is to observe as many battles as I can and try to learn from them as much as possible.¡± The two had finally left the premises of Muni and flew up above Ashar. Kiel was just about to continue his explanation when Elaru interrupted him. She pointed to a large colosseum like structure in the central district of Ashar and grinned ear to ear. ¡°To the Arena!¡± * * * If someone grabbed a random person on the street and asked them what was everyone¡¯s favorite source of entertainment, be it children, adults or old people, their answer would always be the same ¨C the Arena. The only place where killing and harming others was perfectly legal, and in fact, encouraged. Of course, the reason for that was because people who died inside the Arena didn¡¯t stay dead. The backbone of every Arena was a divine artifact which held power to revert bodies to their previous state. Even if the body of the mage was completely disintegrated, this fate-defying Aetherneal artifact could undo it. Unfortunately, divine artifacts didn¡¯t grow on trees. They were ancient, priceless, extremely rare treasures, the number of which was very limited. Therefore, because the number of similar restoring artifacts could be counted with fingers of two hands, only the large cities had an Arena. The Arena was officially called the Warlord Hall and was run by the Tanyer noble family, however, everyone just called it the Arena. Just like everyone called the home city of the Tanyers ¡°the Arena city¡± instead of Malia. The Arena was a conspicuous circular building so wide that one could fit an entire airbalt stadium inside. One would expect a building with 30 floors to tower above every other building in Ashar. One would be wrong. That¡¯s because the floors of the Arena didn¡¯t go upwards towards the sky but downwards towards the earth. Instead of being a tower, it was actually a pit that went deep underground. Whenever an earthquake struck the city, people would joke that it was caused by a fierce battle taking place in the Arena. Whether fierce battles could actually cause earthquakes was something Kiel didn¡¯t know. Just like how he didn¡¯t know what floor to go to. Ever since the two entered the ground floor, which acted as the reception hall and the waiting room, Kiel remained rooted to the spot and fixedly stared at the large boards up on the walls that included information about ticket prices and the timetable of upcoming battles. There were one vs. one fights and team battles that went from 2 vs. 2 and up to 8 vs. 8. There were tournaments and restricted battles which imposed limitations on mages such as the type of magic used. There was even a special battle format that consisted of a large number of mages raging a simultaneous all-out battle against each other. Thirty available floors and a myriad of different available events made Kiel unable to reach a decision on which kind of ticket he should purchase. They sold general purpose daily tickets for specific floors, which allowed access to regular matches. And then there were special tickets for special events and matches featuring famous warlocks. Mages that made their living through fighting mage battles in the Arena were called warlocks. All the powerful ones were famous celebrities often featured in the Warlord magazine. The tickets to their matches would reach exorbitant prices, and nobles would often have fierce struggles to get front row seats. This wasn¡¯t Kiel¡¯s first time visiting the Arena, but it was his first time buying his own tickets. So, he needed to familiarize himself with everything that was available first. Elaru patiently waited for approximately half a minute, before she sighed and interrupted his pondering. ¡°You should start by watching the regular matches. Choose the floor and buy the appropriate daily ticket.¡± ¡°Thank you, captain obvious!¡± Kiel snapped. Elaru looked at him with her eyes narrowed. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t have enough money to buy the ticket?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°It¡¯s not that. The problem is picking the floor.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel stared at Elaru dumbfounded. That was actually¡­ impressive? Informative? Quite helpful?He got the impulse to praise her but couldn¡¯t bring himself to do it. A tinge of pink spread across his cheeks and he turned his head away. Elaru looked up at Kiel in surprise. His usually indifferent and calm gaze currently contained¡­excitement? Elaru¡¯s eyes widened and she gazed at Kiel in shock. Then she slowly raised her hand and placed it on Kiel¡¯s forehead. ¡°You¡­actually¡­shared something personal with me? Kiel, are you feeling well?¡± Was he a non-mage like me? But why would my father treat a non-mage with so much respect? ¡°This is my great great great¡­¡± The man motioned towards a boy sitting next to him ¡°Uh¡­I am not actually sure how many generations it has been¡­ great son.¡± Episode 67 – Choosing the Arena floor Previously: After they were done with their entrance exams for the day, Kiel and Elaru go to the Arena, where Kiel hopes to watch as many battles as he can and increase his experience in the field of magic battles. However, Ashar¡¯s Arena has 30 different floors to pick from with different activities so Kiel finds it hard to choose which floor to go to.
Episode 67 ¨C Choosing the Arena floor Elaru patiently waited for approximately half a minute, before she sighed and interrupted his pondering. ¡°You should start by watching the regular matches. Choose the floor and buy the appropriate daily ticket.¡± ¡°Thank you, captain obvious!¡± Kiel snapped. Elaru looked at him with her eyes narrowed. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t have enough money to buy the ticket?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°It¡¯s not that. The problem is picking the floor.¡± The floors were separated by the general rank of warlocks participating and the types of events they were participating in. Kiel had a general idea that he probably shouldn¡¯t pick anything below B rank, but that eliminated only half of the floors from his choice. Elaru¡¯s mouth shaped an ¡°ooh¡± before she started pondering. ¡°You should pick a floor running A ranked battles. Those are floors 21-24.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. ¡°Why A-ranked? I think my level is closer to B rank than A rank. Watching A ranked battles right from the start might delay my progress.¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°As you probably already know, Muni exams are scored in a way that reaching 25 points in the practical exam would mean that the person is comparable to A+++ ranked mage. However, since the practical exam allows for a large degree of creativity and provides you ample opportunity to utilize your smarts, it is possible that you could reach 25 points while having strength below that rank. Often it is the basic spells used in an unorthodox way that makes the difference between a win and a loss.¡± She continued telepathically. ¡°If you want any chance of scoring full points, you¡¯d need to be at least an A ranked warlock. From what I¡¯ve observed of you while you were a non-mage, your martial arts were B rank at most, and in the period of two days it is impossible for you to reach A rank in martial arts.¡± Kiel nodded in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s what I was thinking as well. Previously, since I had very little mana, the only way I could increase my fighting strength was to practice martial arts. Now that I don¡¯t lack mana, things are different. Since I am more accomplished in magic than martial arts, I should adjust my fighting style to focus more on magic instead of physical attacks.¡± Kiel paused and looked Elaru in the eyes. ¡°Therefore, since I can¡¯t reach A rank in two days and need to alter my fighting style, I should aim for the peak of B rank, and therefore watch the top of B ranked battles.¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°Who says you can¡¯t reach A rank in two days? I said that it is impossible for you to reach A rank in martial arts. However, if you change your fighting style to focus on magic like you mentioned, it might be possible for you to become an A ranked warlock in the span of two days.¡± Kiel¡¯s legs almost gave out. As if becoming an A ranked warlock was as easy as that! It takes years of hard work and battle experience! He, on the other hand, only had two days! Two days! Seeing Kiel¡¯s frozen expression, Elaru decided to elaborate. ¡°Think about it. You scored full points up to now, which means that as a mage, you are already A+++ ranked. That means that you certainly have the capabilities to reach the same rank as a warlock. Since you already have the prerequisites, you just need to watch as many battles as you can and learn from them how to display your A+++ ranked power in battle. You are a quick study, aren¡¯t you? It might be impossible for you to reach A+++ rank as a warlock in 2 days, but A rank or even A+ rank is possible.¡± Elaru paused slightly, giving him a triumphant look. ¡°And if you want to reach A rank you should start by watching battles of A ranked warlocks. If that goes well, later on, you can move onto S rank battles.¡± Kiel resisted the urge to facepalm. ¡°Being an A ranked warlock is very different from being an A ranked mage! Just because one is an A-ranked mage, it doesn¡¯t mean that he has what it takes to reach the same rank as a warlock.¡± Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°Well, yeah. But are you honestly saying that you don¡¯t have what it takes? Even before the bond you were quick-witted, had a high reaction speed and a great natural instinct for combat. After the bond, all of it should have improved even more.¡± Her words carried strong conviction. She spoke with such confidence it seemed as if she knew him better than he knew himself. If it came from anyone else, Kiel would have thought them to be spouting infatuated meepshit. But Elaru clearly wasn¡¯t infatuated with him nor trying to ingratiate herself to him. She wasn¡¯t even intentionally praising him. She was just stating her opinion. And she firmly believed in that opinion. A tinge of pink spread across Kiel¡¯s cheeks, and he turned his head away. She believes in my abilities this much?Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Having her place her trust in him, somehow, that feeling didn¡¯t feel bad at all. When was the last time someone who actually understood me believed in my abilities? Kiel searched his memory but couldn¡¯t recall. Sure, the general populace in Beyd thought him to be a god. But those people didn¡¯t know any better. Coming from them, those words only sounded like insults. Like rubbing salt into his wounds, only reminding him that he was merely pretending to be someone great. But coming from Elaru who saw right through him, the effect was exactly opposite. Kiel looked towards the boards detailing the events on the floors 21-24, but before he could inspect which events are going on there, Elaru interrupted once again. ¡°Floor 23 should be the best choice. I recognize the names of warlocks that are fighting there.¡± She read out several warlock nicknames. ¡°Those 3 have a fighting style that is completely magic based. They should be a good material to study from.¡± That was actually¡­ impressive? Informative? Quite helpful? Kiel gaze again dropped down to the redhead next to him. He stared at her speechlessly until she couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°What?¡± ¡°Elaru¡­why are you so knowledgeable regarding warlocks and the Arena?¡± Elaru raised an eyebrow. ¡°Because I, like most people, visit Arena often?¡± Kiel inspected her closely. That sounded reasonable. He couldn¡¯t tell why, but he had this nagging feeling that there was something suspicious about it. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me¡­ that your father¡¯s special education method included long stays inside the Arena?¡± Elaru¡¯s expression suddenly froze. She wanted to say something a few times but swallowed it down. Finally, she settled for. ¡°Uh¡­actually, yeah. There is no better place to learn fighting than the Arena. I know the Ashar and Malia Arenas like the back of my hand.¡± ¡°Eh? You¡¯ve been to Malia too?¡± Kiel suddenly completely forgot about the ticket he needed to buy. Elaru looked up at Kiel in surprise. His usually indifferent and calm gaze currently contained¡­excitement? ¡°Too? Have you actually been to Malia?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow furrowed when he saw Elaru¡¯s obvious surprise. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve never been outside Beyd¡­in fact, I go to Malia once a year. My father feels an obligation to buy me a birthday gift each year, but still doesn¡¯t know anything about what I like. So each year, he buys me the most expensive Arena ticket he can find. He figured that everyone loves warlock battles so I should be like every other male and like it too. Then he takes me to Malia and pretends to be a good father for one day.¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes widened, and she gazed at Kiel in shock. Then she slowly raised her hand and placed it on Kiel¡¯s forehead. ¡°You¡­actually¡­shared something personal with me? Kiel, are you feeling well?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow started twitching, and he growled out in between gritted teeth. ¡°Keep doing that, and it will be the last time I share anything personal with you.¡± As if she was burned with fire, Elaru removed her hand from his forehead and put her hands up in surrender. ¡°No! No. Apologies. Please continue.¡± Kiel glared at her. ¡°I¡¯m done sharing.¡± Elaru pouted, her long ears dropping down sadly. Then she looked up at Kiel from under her long eyelashes and asked hopefully. ¡°Don¡¯t be mad at me? How about I throw in something personal about me in return?¡± Kiel refrained from commenting and just gazed at her coldly. ¡°I actually really wanna get to know you better. You are my mate, after all. We are buddies for life; we are supposed to be able to trust each other and help each other.¡± She spoke softly in such a pitiful tone that Kiel was struggling to stay mad. In the end, he just rubbed his temples and sighed in resignation. ¡°Fine. My favorite warlocks are Trickster and Double. Yours?¡± When his voice fell, Elaru¡¯s eyes lit up and her mouth involuntarily morphed into a brilliant smile. ¡°Is that so?¡± Her grin slowly morphed into a smirk. ¡°You¡¯ve got great taste!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he looked at her suspiciously. ¡°Why do I get the feeling you are teasing me?¡± Elaru shrugged. ¡°I meant what I said. In fact, they are my favorites too!¡± Before Kiel could further ponder over her somewhat strange behavior, Elaru changed the subject. ¡°Since you like them, I assume you saw their match live?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Kiel nodded. ¡°More than one actually.¡± Elaru¡¯s smile got so bright Kiel couldn¡¯t bear to watch it any longer and averted his gaze towards the workers selling tickets. ¡°Two daily tickets to the 23rd floor.¡± ¡°One ticket, actually.¡± Elaru interrupted. Kiel looked back at her. ¡°I¡¯ve got an all-floor long term pass.¡± Of course you do¡­ I am the noble here so why is it that you are the rich one instead? Kiel shook his head, grumbling internally, and bought his ticket. He then turned towards the large spiral staircase that went along the edges of the pit to the bottom. Instead of taking the stairs, he decided to jump down into the pit instead. Of course, there was a contraption called ¡°the elevator¡± but that was for elibu. And Kiel had never ridden one before so it was safer to use the old-fashioned way and just jump into the pit. Elaru followed him happily, even trying to talk to him on the way down. She seemed awfully happy to converse about their mutual favorite warlocks. ¡°Which one of their matches was it that converted you into their fan? Trickster¡¯s and Double¡¯s, I mean?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t even need to think to recall that one match. The first match of the two warlocks he had seen. * * * (8 years ago) It was a clear and sunny day in the Arena city. Unfortunately, Kiel mood wasn¡¯t nearly as clean and sunny as the weather. On the one hand, being brought to Malia was certainly more enjoyable than staying at Beyd. On the other hand, watching warlocks battle, while truly entertaining, only served as a reminder that he would never be able to be anything more than just a spectator. It served to remind him that he was weak. And still, even after 4 years of working hard to become an incredible mage, he was still weak. Sometimes he felt that all that effort was in vain. That perhaps, 4 years ago, he had made the wrong decision. Alas, his father had no idea that bringing him to the Arena every year might not have been a good birthday present. But if he complained about it, his father would surely ask him what he would prefer as a present. And then he wouldn¡¯t be able to respond. For the things he wanted, weren¡¯t things that he was willing to tell to his father. If he told him the truth, his father would have that distant and miserable look in his eyes. And then the mood of the entire trip would plummet down even further to the point where he would wish that he wasn¡¯t even on the trip. To the point that Beyd would look pleasant. So, he stayed silent and followed behind his father like an obedient little noble boy, as they made their way into the VIP seats of the Arena. Only when he heard his father greet someone did he finally show some interest and looked up.
Coming up in the next episode: That one look at the man made Kiel¡¯s hair stand on end. Was he a non-mage like me? But why would my father treat a non-mage with so much respect? ¡°This is my great great great¡­¡± The man motioned towards a boy sitting next to him ¡°Uh¡­I am not actually sure how many generations it has been¡­ great grandson.¡± It was as if the two of them were fire and ice, exact opposites.And like fire and ice didn¡¯t quite get along, Kiel instantly felt like the two of them wouldn¡¯t get along either. Even though the two had barely spoken to each other, even though they only met today, even though they might be too different to get along, at that time, none of it mattered.For their feelings were in complete sync.For their feelings were the same. Fate had a strange way of playing with people.And a single twist of fate could turn best friends into irreconcilable enemies. Episode 68 – Trickster and Double Previously: Kiel remembers a time, 8 years ago, when his father brought him to Arena city to watch a warlock battle. It was his first time seeing warlocks Trickster and Double fight. When the two of them entered the VIP seating area, his father greeted an unknown man.
Episode 68 ¨C Trickster and Double In the best-positioned seats in the entire Arena, sat an extremely beautiful-looking argel who didn¡¯t look past 30. Yet, even though Kiel¡¯s father was a councilman and a firstborn son of the family head, even though he was older than this elegant man, his tone of voice when talking to the man was extremely respectful. As if he was talking to someone of a higher social standing than him. Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. The lands under the Shield were governed by the Council of 7, and since his father was one of the 7 councilmen, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone higher in status than him. Even if this man were the head of a noble family, his father wouldn¡¯t show him this amount of respect. Kiel¡¯s eyes focused on the man, inspecting him thoroughly. His skin was white and flawless, his build lean with well-defined muscles that could be seen through his tight fitting red clothes. The man¡¯s face was effeminate and refined, it didn¡¯t pale in comparison to Kiel¡¯s father¡¯s looks at all. His long black hair was let loose and fell like a waterfall down his back. There were bright red strands weaved within the black. That one look at the man made Kiel¡¯s hair stand on end. Kiel couldn¡¯t feel any mana around the man, the man¡¯s appearance didn¡¯t look intimidating at all nor did he show any kind of hostile behavior, yet Kiel felt as if he was looking at a fierce dragon that could devour him with one bite. This person gave him an even more imposing feeling than the feeling Venric Rroda, his grandfather, gave off. He felt as if this man was more powerful than anyone he had ever met. But that made no sense. Why would he feel that way? The strange man didn¡¯t even have Mage Armor protecting him! For a moment, Kiel even questioned if the man was a non-mage like himself. But he dismissed it almost instantly. The only time his father would treat a non-mage with this much respect would be if the lands of Halnea were a monarchy and this person were the emperor. Since that was not the case, this man was clearly not a non-mage. Perhaps he felt that no one would dare cast a spell against him and felt that Mage Armor was unnecessary? Kiel¡¯s pondering was interrupted when he heard his father introduce him to the man. ¡°This is my youngest son, Kiel. He is diligently studying all the time, so I took him out to have some fun for a change.¡± ¡°We are in similar situations it seems.¡± The man laughed pleasantly and motioned towards the seat next to him where sat a young boy. ¡°This is my great great great¡­¡± The man paused his speech for several seconds before continuing. ¡°Uh¡­I am not actually sure how many generations it has been¡­ grandson.¡± Kiel stared at the man trying his hardest not to gape. Did he hear him correctly?? The smile on Kiel¡¯s father¡¯s face never wavered. He even chuckled. ¡°So many generations, and yet he looks just like you. If I didn¡¯t know better, I¡¯d say he was your own son.¡± The man stared at Kiel¡¯s father speechlessly for several seconds, and then he looked back at the boy, then he looked back at Kiel¡¯s father. His eyebrows furrowed and he started murmuring under his breath. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me those bastards lied to me? But lately, I was careful not to sire any childr¡­ except that one time¡­ It can¡¯t be?¡± The boy sitting next to him finally averted his gaze from the arena and looked the man straight in the eye. The boy¡¯s gaze was fiery, but the words he spoke were cold-blooded: ¡°Grandpa, stop embarrassing me.¡± Kiel wasn¡¯t the only one rendered speechless by the blunt words. Even the ¡°grandpa¡± clutched at his heart as if it had just received a heavy blow. Kiel¡¯s big pale blue eyes finally switched from the man to the boy. His features were as beautiful and delicate as Kiel¡¯s, his skin just as white and flawless. Kiel had to double check to confirm that he was, in fact, a boy. The boy had long, silky and shiny black hair that any girl would be jealous of, falling down his back. Through his hair ran a few streaks of bright red hair. In every way, he looked like a miniature version of his¡­ grandfather? Kiel blinked his large eyes and met the gaze of the boy. The eyes of the boy were incredibly heated, like molten lava. It shocked Kiel into averting his gaze away. It wasn¡¯t that the boy glared at him, or that his emotions were excited. No. His eyes were literally like molten lava. They looked as if they were burning, bright orange with golden lights and occasional red spots. Those eyes were exactly the opposite of Kiel¡¯s eyes.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Where Kiel¡¯s eyes looked like an iceberg, the boy¡¯s eyes looked like lava. While Kiel had an icy air about him even when he was trying to be friendly, the boy in front of him was the exact opposite. The boy displayed complete calm that was bordering on apathy, but even so, his gaze had the power to draw people in, stirring them into admiring their beauty, setting one¡¯s heart on fire. It was so full of vitality and power one would find it hard to stay calm headed. Kiel¡¯s father motioned Kiel to sit on the seat closest to the boy, probably hoping that Kiel would enjoy having some company of the same age. It showed exactly how little his own father understood his personality¡­ Kiel turned his head towards the stage but continued to gaze at the boy curiously from the corner of his eyes. That¡¯s how he noticed that the boy returned his gaze. The boy measured Kiel with equal fascination. It seemed like he noticed that he and Kiel shared a lot of similarities. Namely, they seemed to be the same age and shared beautiful faces and black hair. However, what caused their mutual fascination with each other wasn¡¯t their similarities but their differences. Where Kiel¡¯s hair had vivid blue strands, the other boy had vivid red. Where Kiel¡¯s eyes were icebergs, the other boy¡¯s were lava. Where Kiel had a reserved, cold air about him, the other boy had unbridled heat. It was as if the two of them were fire and ice, exact opposites. And like fire and ice didn¡¯t quite get along, Kiel instantly felt like the two of them wouldn¡¯t get along either. For starters, the boy¡¯s Mage Armor was very dense, and he had an imposing bearing. Which created a sharp contrast with Kiel¡¯s measly Mage Armor of a non-mage. Also, the boy was obviously a noble, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be sitting here, yet he didn¡¯t have that stiff aura of nobility at all. Rather, he had an aura of power and confidence. There was something wild about him. Even though he looked perfectly neat and tidy, although he was perfectly calm, there was just something about him that clearly told everyone that he wasn¡¯t a person you would want to provoke. He seemed like a person who isn¡¯t worried about how others perceive him, a person not bounded by etiquette and rules of the nobles. Kiel had only just met the boy, but he already felt jealous. Why is it that I have to hide who I really am to be accepted while you can act as unbridled as you want? People claimed that opposites attract, but as Kiel gazed at the boy, he felt very sure that he would never be able to be friends with that person. Like a woman seeing an equally beautiful female that could be a potential love rival, it was an irrational dislike on first glance. Kiel did his best to not show his true feelings and smiled politely at the boy. The boy looked at him, but instead of returning his smile, he frowned in what seemed to be confusion. ¡°Why do you smile if you want to frown instead?¡± The words coming from the boy¡¯s mouth made Kiel¡¯s smile freeze. ¡°Some people have to smile even when they don¡¯t want to.¡± The boy¡¯s frown deepened, but he didn¡¯t question Kiel further. Instead, he averted his gaze to the stage. Kiel noticed how the boy¡¯s gaze suddenly lit up with passion. The previous frown disappeared, and all that could be seen from the boy was pure excitement and revere. As if that apathetic fa?ade melted to reveal a pure child underneath. What could cause that boy to suddenly turn so¡­ emotional? Kiel followed the boy¡¯s gaze down to the stage. There stood two elibu teenagers standing next to each other, grinning and waving to the audience. One blond, one redhead. Trickster and Double. Although their two opponents had also arrived on stage, no one paid them much attention. It was obvious with just a glance who the real stars of the show were. The world of the warlocks was mostly dominated by argel warlocks, for it was quite hard to compete with someone who could Accelerate and fly without the ability to do the same. Yet these two teenagers had proved to everyone that even elibu had what it took to stand on the top. Even if fate denied them the ability to Accelerate, they would crush that fate and show everyone that no dream is impossible. Trickster and Double were far from the most powerful warlocks. At the moment, they were only A-ranked. But they managed to move hearts of every plebian out there, argel and elibu alike, that dreamed of something big. Those two didn¡¯t even have the support of a noble family, yet they managed to stand their ground in a world exclusive to argel. This was exactly the reason why seeing their fight managed to move Kiel¡¯s icy heart. If two elibu not much older than him could become famous warlocks, then he, a non-mage, could he achieve his dreams as well? Surely his dreams weren¡¯t any more preposterous than trying to beat flying opponents much faster and stronger than you? Surely his quick thinking and intelligence weren¡¯t any less than of those two? If they could use theirs in such a way, then he too¡­! Then he¡­ He had truly chosen the right path 4 years ago. Kiel¡¯s gaze stayed glued to the exciting match from start to finish. He had even forgotten his distaste towards the lava boy sitting next to him. He was sure that during the match, he had forgotten to breathe several times. He was also sure that during the match, the gaze with which he stared down at the stage was exactly the same as the gaze of the boy sitting next to him. Excitement, reverence, respect, hope. Even though the two had barely spoken to each other, even though they only met today, even though they might be too different to get along, at that time, none of it mattered. At that time, they felt as if they were closer than brothers. As if they could become best friends after all. For their feelings were in complete sync. For their feelings were the same. Perhaps the string of fate binding people together is weaved by none other than feelings. Maybe their fate started on that day. Or perhaps, if one traced the strings of fate, one would find that it all started long, long before that. Whatever the case, no one could have predicted, that those same feelings that caused them to feel a sense of comradery on that day, would one day turn into feelings that would forever pit them against each other. Fate had a strange way of playing with people. And a single twist of fate could turn best friends into irreconcilable enemies. * * * Ever since that match, Kiel started loving warlock battles. Those same matches that previously reminded him of his weakness now reminded him that no matter how weak he was, with enough conviction and effort, he too could become strong. Just like Trickster and Double.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°What is this? An alchemic recipe?¡± ¡°If it was manually made, it wouldn¡¯t have turned so chaotic and the backlash would have been visible.¡± ¡°I believe it was caused by an artifact or a spell similar in effects to Mana Twister divine artifact.¡± Episode 69 – To ban or not to ban Previously: When Elaru was taking her Multicasting exam, the Light spell, that she was using to control flying cubes, went out of control and damaged one of the enchantment spells on one of the cubes. The cube went out of control and shattered a hole in the middle of a glass tank filled with healing potion before flying out of the window. Because Elaru and the floor of the classroom ended up covered by red liquid (healing potion), the examinees in front of the room thought that there was a homicide and ran out of the building in panic. After reporting to the Peacekeepers standing guard in front of Muni, Peacekeepers requested entry into Muni from headmaster Eruan Arite. Eruan Arite received them but denied them access to Muni, deciding to investigate the events internally.
Episode 69 ¨C To ban or not to ban ¡°10 Shadow Lunar eyes, 1 liter of Firescale dust¡­¡± Eruan Arite recited a list of strange items in a deep monotone voice. After reading out the list, his emotionless purple eyes looked towards the two standing in front of his desk. ¡°What is this? An alchemic recipe?¡± Zerel Reysic stifled a giggle. Who says Eri has no sense of humor? He obviously knows it is a damage report, but he still pretends to be ignorant. Unlike Zerel, who seemed to be highly amused, Deora Thayn didn¡¯t pick up on the humor. He was biting his lips, and his eyes were red, as if on the brink of shedding tears. ¡°It¡­it¡¯s¡­¡± Deora stammered. ¡°¡­a dam¡­damage report.¡± Eruan¡¯s calm eyes landed on Deora¡¯s trembling form. ¡°But it isn¡¯t my fault!! I was well-behaved this time! I didn¡¯t do anything wrong!¡± Deora proceeded to explain. Eruan Arite listened patiently until the end of the explanation. And then, in a calm voice, as if all of this wasn¡¯t even related to him, he spoke out: ¡°You have caused me quite a bit of trouble this time. Peacekeepers had barged in claiming they¡¯ve received a murder report. I had to pull a few strings so that the tomorrow¡¯s issue of the Sibyl wouldn¡¯t post an article about the so-called murder.¡± His emotionless purple eyes bore down onto Deora. ¡°Worst of all, a considerable number of examinees have missed their exam timeslots because they were too busy running away from the scene.¡± Eruan Arite closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. ¡°I even received a report from the infirmary that an examinee had been found unconscious in the courtyard with a large bump on his head.¡± He opened his eyes again and stared meaningfully at the two. ¡°Good thing that the renegade cube didn¡¯t cause any head trauma. Not to say that the experience wasn¡¯t traumatic for the boy. While he laid unconscious, he ended up missing the written exams.¡± Deora opened his mouth a few times but didn¡¯t know what to say. He did hear a strange thump after the cube shot out of the building. Perhaps he should have told someone about it? Maybe if he had done so, they could have healed the poor sod in time for the exams? Suddenly, Deora felt extremely guilty about the matter. Which was preposterous, since he was completely innocent! It was all the fault of that jinx! After staring at Deora and Zerel meaningfully for several seconds, Eruan Arite sighed and opened the first drawer of his desk, then he picked up the paper on top of the drawer. When Deora saw the paper, he started panicking. ¡°Noooooo¡­ don¡¯t deduct my pay! It¡¯s not my fault!!¡± Eruan Arite looked up at Deora and said a single sentence that made Deora freeze without speaking another word. ¡°Who was it that slammed the door so hard that the shelves toppled over?¡± The color drained slowly from Deora¡¯s face as he watched Eruan Arite scribble down stuff on that blasted paper with his elegant handwriting. Zerel took this opportunity to pat Deora on his back ¡°comfortingly¡±. ¡°Don¡¯t be too sad little Dei. There are 6 months left until March. You would have lost that pay anyways. So, what does it matter if you lose it now or lose it later?¡± Deora¡¯s bloodshot eyes turned to Zerel. Within them brewed homicidal rage. Zerel pretended not to see it and continued. ¡°Besides, the lodging and the meals are free. Even the uniforms are covered for. It¡¯s not like you are going to die if you don¡¯t get paid. Also, doesn¡¯t your family grant you any allowance? You are a noble from the main bloodline after all.¡± Deora glared so hard that the veins in his eyes almost burst. Zerel suddenly seemed to realize that he said something wrong and looked at Deora apologetically. ¡°Oh. I¡¯m sorry. I forgot that Thayns aren¡¯t well off¡­¡±The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Zerel suddenly covered his mouth with his hand bashfully. He then proceeded to correct himself. ¡°I mean¡­ what I meant is¡­ your folks are righteous and don¡¯t believe in spoiling their children. I really admire how Thayns have a policy that everyone has to work to get paid. It¡¯s because of your strict rules that the members of the Thayn family are so well respected by the commoners. You are nobles, yet you trade luxury for upholding justice and peace in the lands of Halnea. Respectable, respectable.¡± If Zerel had said these words at any other time, Deora would have thought them to be compliments. Zerel even said it in such an innocent and righteous tone. Yet currently, to the furious Deora, those words sounded like taunts and the soft apologetic smile looked simply derisive. Suddenly, Deora¡¯s pale face started flaming up. Literally, flames started climbing up Deora¡¯s neck. A soft cough caused the flames to freeze in their tracks. Both Deora and Zerel looked back at Eruan Arite who was looking at them emotionlessly. ¡°Zerel,¡± Eruan started. ¡°How would you explain the strange phenomena? Why did the Light spell go out of control?¡± Zerel wanted to just shrug and claim that he didn¡¯t have any ideas, but he saw the solemnity in Eruan¡¯s eyes and changed his mind. The situation was serious. This was not the time to test his patience. Zerel pretended to cough, swallowing down the lies he intended to say. He then slid his fingers through his long, dark purple hair before responding. ¡°It was quite a peculiar occurrence. Technically speaking, it is possible that Elaru Wayvin forcefully changed the spell shape after it was formed which caused the spell to fall apart and go out of control. However,¡± Zerel paused briefly. Eruan intertwined his fingers in front of him and continued calmly. ¡°However, you don¡¯t believe that to have been the case?¡± Zerel smiled coyly. ¡°If it were manually caused by her, the result wouldn¡¯t have turned so chaotic. And more importantly, she would have suffered from the backlash.¡± Everyone in the room understood the principle. Deforming an already formed spell and breaking it would be like twisting one¡¯s limb and snapping it. Not only would it be extremely painful, but it would also be extremely taxing, causing the mage to experience a mental backlash. Eruan¡¯s purple eyes flashed. ¡°And you believe she didn¡¯t suffer any backlash?¡± Zerel nodded. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice any signs of her suffering from a backlash. She even proceeded to cast a Morph spell to save the glass tank right after. If she was suffering from a backlash then achieving that precision and ease of casting would have been impossible.¡± Zerel¡¯s eyes glittered mysteriously. Eruan understood. If Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t suffer a backlash from the forceful deformation and destruction of the spell, it would mean that the spell had been cut off from her before it got damaged, like cutting off a limb. Whatever happened to a cut off limb wouldn¡¯t affect the original owner. But also, once cut off, the mage wouldn¡¯t be able to control it anymore. Which meant that the deforming and the chaotic behavior of the spell couldn¡¯t have been caused by the control of the mage. If Elaru Wayvin cut off her own spell to prevent herself from suffering a backlash, then the strange behavior the spell showed after that couldn¡¯t have been caused by her. This incident was¡­ as if a cutoff limb started spasming and moving by itself. How bizarre! ¡°A magical artifact?¡± Eruan murmured. Zerel¡¯s smile got wider. ¡°I once read a report on how the Mana Twister affects already formed spells. The report detailed an occurrence quite similar to this one.¡± Mana Twister was a divine artifact of the Thayn family. The artifact would exert control over all mana in its area of effect, twisting it out of control. The force with which the divine artifact could affect mana was even stronger than the mage¡¯s ability to control his own mana. This twisting force would interfere with the mage¡¯s weaving, making it impossible to cast magic in the area of effect covered by the artifact. Because of its ability to prevent the usage of magic, the Mana Twister was used as a core of Asinraz, the prison-island holding the most dangerous convicts. Most of the people only knew of the artifact¡¯s main usage. Very few were aware that this force didn¡¯t only affect raw mana, but also the already formed spells. When Deora heard the mention of his own family and one of their heirlooms, his ears perked up. He suddenly exclaimed. ¡°You can¡¯t be saying we had something to do with it!? That¡¯s preposterous!¡± Zerel rolled his eyes and smirked. ¡°Of course not. I think we would have noticed if Mana Twister was moved from Asinraz. Surely, there would be interesting headlines in the Sibyl. Perhaps ¡®A sin in Asinraz! A large-scale prisoner breakout!¡¯¡± Seeing Deora¡¯s suspicious and agitated face, unsure whether Zerel was messing with him, Eruan added calmly. ¡°Rest assured. No one is suspecting the Thayn family.¡± Eruan¡¯s calm words acted like a soothing tonic, calming Deora down. If headmaster Eruan Arite said so, then that was indeed the case. After reassuring Deora, Eruan turned his head full of white hair towards Zerel once again. ¡°Do you believe that someone is interfering with the exams in hopes of stopping Elaru Wayvin from enrolling? Or do you believe her to be the one in possession of the artifact causing the issue?¡± Zerel shrugged nonchalantly. ¡°All I know is that when the accident happened, Elaru Wayvin, was surprised and yet not surprised. As if she was aware that what happened might happen but hoped it wouldn¡¯t.¡± At any other time, Deora would have spoken up against Elaru Wayvin, pushing for the jinx to get banned from the exams. But Eruan¡¯s first question shocked him into silence. Could it be that he had been blaming the wrong person the entire time? That there was a sinister mastermind behind all of this? That it wasn¡¯t Elaru Wayvin who was the jinx, but someone interfering behind the scenes? The thought caused chills to go down Deora¡¯s back and his righteous Thayn blood to boil. He might be impulsive and shortsighted, but he would never punish the innocent and absolve the guilty. People might often forget that he was a Thayn, even he, himself, might often forget the fact. But the righteous principles of Thayns were rooted into their very bones. A subconscious part of them that was omnipresent, that they couldn¡¯t forget even if they wanted to. * * * Headmaster Eruan Arite watched the retreating backs of Zerel Reysic and Deora Thayn. After the door to his office was closed, leaving him alone in the room, his mind once again returned to the report laying on the side of his desk. Eruan Arite pushed the papers back to the center of his desk and stared fixedly at the image of a redheaded girl looking back at him. Unconsciously, his fingers thumped rhythmically on his desk. His eyebrows kept furrowing and relaxing. One would think that he was debating what to do with the red-headed troublemaker. One would think that the report on Elaru Wayvin and the today¡¯s ¡°murder¡± incident would be the reason for his strange behavior. One would be wrong. What was truly nagging Eruan Arite on this fine evening, was an irritating sense of familiarity that the image in front of him evoked inside of him. Did he see this redhead before somewhere? Eruan Arite had an impeccable memory. If he had seen the girl before, he would have surely realized it, if not remembered where he had seen her. Yet, he was sure only of one thing ¨C this was the first time he saw her face. Which meant that the sense of familiarity should be caused by the resemblance of her face to someone he knew.
Coming up in the next episode: If I ban her, would that draw out the person standing behind her in the shadows? ¡°Icya¡­ Tell me, does this face remind you of someone?¡± ¡°We are¡­dealing with a Shadow.¡± Episode 70 – Mana Crystallization Previously: After receiving the damage report from Deora Thayn and Zerel Reysic, Eruan Arite is left alone in his room contemplating the problem of Elaru Wayvin. On his desk lays a report on Elaru Wayvin and the ¡°murder¡± incident. Eruan Arite finds Elaru¡¯s face familiar.
Episode 70 ¨C Mana Crystallization Did he see this redhead before somewhere? Eruan Arite had an impeccable memory. If he had seen the girl before, he would have surely realized it, if not remembered where he had seen her. Yet, he was sure only of one thing ¨C this was the first time he saw her face. Which meant that the sense of familiarity should be caused by the resemblance of her face to someone he knew. Yet, no matter how he searched his memory, he couldn¡¯t come up with the face of a person that this redhead reminded him of. He even tried concentrating on specific features. Such as her hair and skin color. There was, indeed, several people he knew quite well that had a matching hair and skin color, but that¡¯s where the similarity ended. No matter how he looked at the girl, her face didn¡¯t resemble those individuals at all, not to mention that her race was wrong. If he covered the rest of her face and looked just at her eyes, the sense of familiarity grew, but at the same time, he couldn¡¯t point out a single person with eyes like those. The more he thought about it, the more puzzled he became. Perhaps her features were in the exact boundary of being similar enough to invoke the sense of familiarity while being different enough for him to be unable to point out who they reminded him of? Eruan shook his head. Was this matter really worthy of his time? For all he knew Elaru Wayvin¡¯s looks could be just a fa?ade. Not her true appearance. Regardless, he could just ban her from participating in the exams, and the matter would be dealt with. Or would it? What if, later on, it turned out that he banned her without just cause? That he pinned the blame on her that wasn¡¯t hers to bear? And what if the face he was looking at was indeed her real appearance? What if his subconscious mind was trying to tell him that remembering who she reminded him of was important? That remembering would allow him to pinpoint her origin. And that her origin was important? If I ban her, would that draw out the person standing behind her in the shadows? Or would that¡­ just make her disappear? Eruan¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°Icya¡­ Tell me, does this face remind you of someone?¡± He could feel his vice-principal frowning deep in thought. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Perhaps¡­ Vaguely it reminds me of¡­¡± She didn¡¯t need to continue. Eruan could tell who she was referring to. ¡°Ignore the hair and skin color. Concentrate on the face.¡± ¡°The lips are also similar¡­¡± Eruan closed his eyes and sighed. He could tell that his vice-principal also felt a sense of familiarity, but it was much less potent than his. It was so slight that it might as well not be there. She couldn¡¯t help him with this matter. Eruan Arite rubbed his tired eyes and sighed again. Ban or not to ban? Eruan¡¯s mind suddenly cleared. I don¡¯t make uninformed decisions. The optimal course of action would be postponing the final decision until I have more information on the matter. He wasn¡¯t worried about the potential destruction of his property. Material things were easy to fix. Even if the entire building was demolished, his abundance of resources would result in it being fixed in a matter of days. On the other hand, elusive things such as reputation and relationships were much trickier to fix once damaged. Eruan Arite would much rather sacrifice the material to save the elusive. * * * The temperature in Ashar was still rather warm, yet, there was a room inside the Rroda manor where that warmth seemed unable to reach. Judging how deathly quiet and still the atmosphere inside the room was, judging by the omnipresent chill permeating the air, one would think the room was empty. One would be wrong. Venric Rroda sat at his desk, a deep frown etched onto his face. His butler Lawrence stood to the side, as motionless as a statue. Venric was usually in a bad mood, but today, his mood was unusually foul. If any of the other nobles found out that he had spent several days and countless men trying to find his own rebellious grandson, and still failed to catch him even though he knew exactly the place where he would be at ¨C the amount of ridicule he would receive would be never-ending. To say that Venric Rroda was furious would be an understatement. Yet even though he was bursting with rage, he could do nothing about the facts. No matter how many men and trackogs he sent out, no matter where he sent them, the only result he received was a no result. He even sent out ¡°camouflaged¡± men that blended with the crowd and tried their best to look in no way related to the Rroda family nor like they were looking for someone.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Yet all his efforts failed to catch any scent of his grandson. He even caved in and bought another D.I. report, hoping that the famous Etezza family of spies and assassins could enlighten him as to why his efforts returned no result. The report mentioned places where the two rebellious teens were seen such as the Black Pearl restaurant and the public library, however, it too contained no information on their current whereabouts. He didn¡¯t know whether he should feel pleased or frustrated. Pleased that even the Etezzas couldn¡¯t find any information, meaning that it was natural that his men failed. Frustrated that he had paid for a report that contained no useful information and still had no clue of their whereabouts. What baffled Venric Rroda was that Kiel Rroda and Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t miss any of their exams, which meant that they had to enter Muni. Yet his men were stationed at all entrances and saw no trace of the two. Venric concluded that the two brats had the means to avoid detection. Thinking further about the issue, his men were either unable to recognize them or see them. The two also had to control their mana so precisely to not leave any of it behind that could be tracked. Thirdly, they had to have means to not leave any scent behind them. If his men ran into someone whose mana and scent couldn¡¯t be detected, they would have stopped them. Since they reported no such person, it would mean that they didn¡¯t see Kiel Rroda at all. As in, he was completely invisible. Since his useless grandson couldn¡¯t possibly turn himself invisible, this invisibility was either granted to him by a magical artifact or it was the doing of someone else. Elaru Wayvin came to mind. The mastermind behind all of this had to be her. And if it was her that enabled the two of them to remain undetectable and untraceable for several days, her skills were nothing to laugh about. It is one thing to hide in the large city, it¡¯s completely another to constantly pass right under their noses when they were vigilantly looking for any possible trace of them. Venric Rroda¡¯s frown deepened and he let out a frustrated growl. Elaru Wayvin doesn¡¯t exist. No past or background. Untraceable and undetectable. All the information slowly connected inside Venric¡¯s mind. ¡°We are¡­dealing with a Shadow.¡± Venric mused to himself. Shadows were a special existence among mages ¨C individuals who could completely conceal their presence and avoid all attempts of tracing them. They were an existence everyone dreaded ¨C ultimate spies, thieves, and assassins. Shadows usually worked for the Shadow Lodge, a mysterious quest lodge that Peacekeepers have unsuccessfully tried to root out for centuries. A Shadow was the worst kind of mage to deal with. Just thinking about it gave Venric a headache. There were only two ways to deal with a Shadow. One, lay a trap for the Shadow. Two, deal with the employer behind the Shadow. But how could he lay a trap for Elaru Wayvin when he had no idea what she was after? Without knowing what she was after, how would he even find her potential employer? The only thing he knew was that she was participating in Muni exams. However, Muni wasn¡¯t his turf. He was limited with what kind of traps he could lay there. Venric grunted. ¡°Lawrence, send someone to see a Shadow Lodge agent. Find out anything you can about Elaru Wayvin including whether she is one of the Shadows. And if she is, information about her employer.¡± He paused slightly before continuing. ¡°Also, post a high priority Shadow Lodge mission. Surely they have agents inside Muni. I¡¯d like to hire one of them to apprehend Kiel Rroda. Preferably without making a scene.¡± Venric¡¯s sharp eyes landed on Lawrence. ¡°I don¡¯t care about the cost. Kiel Rroda needs to be stopped from taking the exam.¡± Tomorrow¡¯s exam tested Mana Pool size. If he couldn¡¯t stop his grandson from participating, it would be revealed that he is a non-mage. A stain in the Rroda family name. Venric Rroda would spare no cost to wipe away that stain before it can sully the reputation of the Rroda family. ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± * * * Until the late hours of the night, Kiel and Elaru watched match after match inside the Arena. When they could barely keep their eyes open, they decided to call it a day and proceeded to camp in the woods as usual. On Saturday, Kiel had mana tempered his body and ended up falling unconscious for the remainder of the night. On Sunday, he had consumed the Firebird Flame pill to temper his body, so he fell asleep without manually tempering his body. Yesterday, on Monday, Kiel remembered to mana temper his body before sleep and would have done the same today, if it weren¡¯t for the fact that tomorrow¡¯s exams would require him to channel a large amount of mana. He couldn¡¯t risk lowering his performance in case his body couldn¡¯t fully recover from his mana tempering. Therefore, he decided not to temper his body and instead proceeded to sleep away his fatigue. * * * ? Wednesday, 29th of August 1449 A.W. ? Muni Exams: Day 3 Rau Eryey was calmly demonstrating the usage of a mana crystallizer, his silky gray hair floating about as if carried by the wind. It was a device which looked like a large flower pot or a cauldron decorated with many intricate engravings. If one spread their mind over the crystallizer, they would feel layers upon layers of complicated spells rotating inside the thick walls of the cauldron. To use the crystallizer, the mage would make their mana enter the cauldron. When enough mana enters the cauldron to support its activation, the enchantment inside the cauldron will start condensing a mana crystal. Technically speaking, mana was an ethereal substance, energy itself. Therefore, a ¡°mana crystal¡± wasn¡¯t actually a crystal made out of mana. Rather, it was a special kind of crystal which could entrap drops of mana within it. The crystallizer transmuted some of the mana into crystals that would trap the remainder of the mana within them. The process of crystallization looked as if the water was being condensed from air directly into ice. Small ice-like shiny crystals would start forming, growing and expanding to fill the entire cauldron, making it look like a treasure trove of diamonds, glittering beautifully under the light. The crystals looked precious and hard like gems, but in truth, they were neither precious nor hard. Like ice, they would melt easily, releasing trapped mana with every shed layer. They were a commodity that was in high demand for powering enchantments and magical artifacts, however, they weren¡¯t precious for there were countless people out there who made their living working on mana farms. Like normal farmers worked in the fields to grow crops, mana farmers grew mana crystals by using up the mana within their mana pools until not a single drop remained. Rau Eryey picked up the beautiful yellow crystal he had just formed and showed it to the examinees. The vivid color of the crystal attracted Kiel¡¯s gaze and made himfocus on it. Today, Kiel found it hard to focus on the demonstration, his mind kept wandering elsewhere. When Elaru and him checked their exam rooms today, they realized that coincidentally, Kiel¡¯s exam was in the first timeslot of the day. When they saw the timetable, they looked at each other briefly and then, without the need to exchange words, made haste to reach the classroom in time. They flew straight to his classroom without even removing their invisibility and Reflection barrier. Thankfully, when they arrived, Rau had just opened the classroom door and was ushering them in. He slid in stealthily, unnoticed among the crowd. And then, Rau Eryey started his explanation, that was completely the same as the test Kiel had participated in last year. Without a single change. Somewhere along the line, Kiel lost his focus. His gaze shifted from watching Rau in the foreground to the windows in the background. Unlike the previous sunny days, today, not a single ray of sunshine was allowed to pass through the thick curtain of gray clouds. Kiel didn¡¯t need to read the Sibyl¡¯s Weather Forecast to be able to tell what¡¯s ahead of them. A storm was coming.
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. If the guy had done it just to spite him, Kiel wouldn¡¯t have been surprised. But there was something strange about his behavior. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve introduced myself before. I am¡­¡± The guy offered his hand to Kiel. Kiel¡¯s thoughts started getting sluggish. His lids grew heavy. All he wanted to do was sleep. No¡­ I can¡¯t miss this exam¡­ if I miss it¡­ I will fail the entrance exams! Dusk Rose again blended in the crowd of examinees, keeping his target in his line of sight while not drawing any attention to himself. Episode 71 – Sudden Illness Previously: The third day of the exams arrived. Kiel and Elaru find out that Kiel¡¯s exam is allocated to the first timeslot of the day. They hurried to make it in time, flying invisible and concealed the entire way. Only when they reached the classroom did Kiel exit the invisibility barrier and stop concealing his presence, blending with the crowd of examinees. While Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert explain the following exam, which tests their mana pool size, mana regeneration and mana flow speed, Kiel finds it hard to concentrate on the explanation. Rau uses the mana crystallizerto condense a yellow mana crystal.
Episode 71 ¨C Sudden Illness It was only when the light reflected off of the dazzling yellow crystal that Kiel¡¯s gaze once again focused on the exam. He had never seen a yellow mana crystal before. Mana crystals were usually either blue, red or purple. Their color depended on the structure of the crystal that the crystallizer produced. Technically speaking, the crystal could be of any color, however, since the type of mana inside of the crystal was important for the future usage of the crystal and couldn¡¯t be determined without using the crystal, the Association of Magic imposed a rule on mana crystallization that stated that crystals had to be colored based on the mana type they held inside. Blue for transmutation mana, red for augmentation and purple for pure mana. The fact that the crystal in front of them was yellow, clearly stated that the crystallizer was neither issued nor certified by the Association of Magic. It was custom-made. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± Kady¡¯s warm voice snapped Kiel out of his thoughts. The examinees exchanged glances with one another, but no one spoke up. ¡°If there are no questions, then we can start the exam. Who wants to go first?¡± When the question was uttered, Kiel immediately took a step forward to volunteer. However, mid-step, he noticed that someone had already volunteered. It was one of the males in the room who didn¡¯t particularly like Kiel. After noticing everyone staring at him, the male looked around himself in a stupor, before looking back at smiling Kady. After a few seconds of fidgeting, as if he was fighting an internal battle with himself, he caved in to peer pressure and walked towards the crystallizer. Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. If the guy had done it just to spite him, Kiel wouldn¡¯t have been surprised. But there was something strange about his behavior. It was as if he ended up volunteering accidentally. But how do you volunteer accidentally? Did his legs give out making him stumble forward just at the right moment? Internally, Kiel chuckled and shook his head. Well, whatever. The test would only last between 5 and 10 minutes. Kady Ailert and Rau Eryey proceeded to usher people out of the room, allowing only the first person taking the exam to stay in the classroom. They explained that the crystallizer doesn¡¯t differentiate between mana of different people, so it was a measure to prevent any possible attempts of cheating. When the doors to the classroom closed, the previously silent examinees again crowded around Kiel. ¡°Pfft, that blockhead! Couldn¡¯t he tell that you wanted to go first!¡± a random girl sneered and batted her eyelashes at Kiel. At her exclamation, a bunch of other girls agreed and started cursing the poor fellow. A scent of perfume assaulted Kiel from all sides, with difficulty he kept his facial expression unchanged and breathed through his mouth. Individually, the perfumes might have been pleasant but mixed together they only made his stomach turn. Kiel¡¯s nose had gotten extremely sensitive after the Aetherneal bond. While it did make the world feel more vivid and the food tastier, it had its drawbacks as well. When surrounded by people, it was easy to get a sensory overload. Kiel smiled amiably. ¡°It¡¯s alright. There is nothing wrong with him wanting to go first.¡± Inwardly, he was already cursing the guy. He minded it! He minded it a lot! If Kiel had gone first, he wouldn¡¯t need to endure the torture called socializing. ¡°You¡¯re a good guy.¡± Another examinee praised Kiel. ¡°You don¡¯t get agitated because of such small matters. I wish I could be more like you.¡± Kiel turned to smile at the guy who spoke. He was among the denser looking ones. He had a wide, fawning smile on his unremarkable looking face. His elibu ears were drooping down, making him look a bit comical. The man was wearing a subtle cologne that was the most inconspicuous scent in the horrid mix of scents. Just as Kiel was deliberating how to respond as to keep his prince-charming image, the guy continued. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve introduced myself before. I am¡­¡± The guy offered his hand to Kiel.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Kiel scanned the offered hand, hesitating in shaking it for a split second. Truth be told, he preferred not to touch or be touched by people. But alas, he had to keep his perfect image which meant that being rude and not accepting the handshake wasn¡¯t an option. Therefore, Kiel accepted the handshake and nodded his head at the¡­ uh¡­ he already forgot what the guy said his name was. The guy seemed to pick up that Kiel wasn¡¯t particularly interested in him, and apparently thought that the problem lied in his gender. Therefore, he stepped back with a sly smile, allowing several girls to take his place. Kiel suddenly got a headache. Don¡¯t tell me that he thinks that I actually enjoy being swarmed by groupies?? Which part of my act gave him that impression?? Kiel resisted the urge to rub his temples. However, it became harder and harder to resist. The loud, high-pitched voices of the females did nothing to improve his state of mind. The headache only grew until suddenly, Kiel felt a bit queasy. The voices were too piercing, too loud. The scents were too nauseating. Kiel¡¯s vision started blurring. He blinked his long eyelashes repeatedly as if he was trying to fan away the sickness. But it didn¡¯t work as intended. The headache turned into a migraine. His own pulsing heartbeat seemed to be hitting his temples like a hammer. Finally, he couldn¡¯t resist closing his eyes and rubbing his temples. A sudden silence made Kiel open his eyes, only to meet many inquiring gazes. Someone must have asked him a question that he didn¡¯t catch. Kiel smiled wryly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t quite catch that. I feel¡­ a bit under the weather today.¡± The crowd immediately agreed with his statement and started talking about how lousy the weather was today and how it makes the mood too depressing. Kiel sighed a breath of relief internally and leaned back onto the railing. His legs felt weak. It was as if he had a fever. Don¡¯t tell me I caught a cold? You have to be kidding me! Isn¡¯t this change of events too abrupt? I can¡¯t be indisposed right now! I need to be in top shape for the exam! Blast it all! The voices around him started blending together, and he had a very hard time piecing the conversation together. He thought he heard someone saying: ¡°Mate, are you alright? You are looking a bit pale.¡± Kiel¡¯s thoughts started getting sluggish. His lids grew heavy. All he wanted to do was sleep. For a moment, he forgot that he needed to participate in the exams. The world was spinning. He didn¡¯t realize that he had lost his balance until he felt someone¡¯s arms catching him and holding him up. The broken pieces of the words that entered his ears seemed to mention infirmary. No¡­ I can¡¯t miss this exam¡­ if I miss it¡­ I will fail the entrance exams! The world started shaking. Kiel felt the person he was leaning on saying something in a comforting tone. That everything would be alright. That the healers in the infirmary would fix him up in a ¡®jiffy¡¯. That person held him up and pulled him towards a certain direction. Infirmary, one would think. Kiel felt a sense of dread and insecurity. He didn¡¯t even know who was taking him to the infirmary. Could he even trust that person? Could people in the infirmary even help him? Ironically, in this moment of need and helplessness, the only person he could think of was Elaru. A person that he knew very little about. A person he didn¡¯t quite understand. A person that he wasn¡¯t even sure he could trust. And yet, in his darkest hour, her face was the first one that came to mind. No matter how little he trusted her, he still trusted her more than anyone else. The last thing Kiel did before his mind turned to mush was to call out to her. * * * When Dusk Rose received his mission, he wasn¡¯t too thrilled about it. This type of mission wasn¡¯t something he usually accepted. If he hadn¡¯t been asked by higher-ups to take it, he wouldn¡¯t have accepted it at all. Apparently, there weren¡¯t many people qualified enough to take the mission, for the mission required one to be able to enter Muni. Since Dusk Rose was currently participating in the Muni entrance exams, he was one of the rare agents capable of taking the mission. The mission details stated that there was a possibility of another Shadow interfering with his mission, which meant that they needed to send someone capable enough to handle a Shadow ¨C another Shadow. And thus, the task fell onto Dusk Rose. Unlike the assassination missions he usually took, this mission required him to kidnap his target before they could take the exam and bring them outside Muni where they would be picked up by the client. When Dusk received an image, name and entrance exam number of the target, he suddenly felt much more interested in the mission. What a pretty boy! Such a pity¡­ Dusk clicked his tongue. And they say that we assassins are devious. Plots of the nobles are much more devious if you ask me. * * * The stormy Wednesday morning arrived, and Dusk Rose too arrived in front of Muni. The first thing he did was check when and where his own exams will be taking place. Apparently, in the afternoon. Dusk had the whole morning to take care of his target. Good. Dusk smiled. His smile froze when he noticed when and where his target had his exam. Dusk almost swore out loud. Why did it have to be the first timeslot?! Initially, he intended to catch his target while he was waiting for his exam, but now his plans needed to change. He didn¡¯t have any time to search for his target. If he ended up missing him, his mission would end up as a failure. The only way he could ensure that he would cross paths with his target was if he waited in front of the target¡¯s designated classroom. Thus, Dusk broke into a sprint and quickly made his way towards the classroom of his target. There, he blended into the crowd and patiently waited for his target to arrive. Time ticked too slowly. Before Dusk even knew it, the doors of the classroom opened, and the examiners asked them to enter inside. Dusk looked left and right, but there was no sign of his target. Is he running late? Should I wait for him in front of the classroom and stop him from entering? While Dusk was deliberating what to do, suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted, and he had to suppress the sudden jolt of his own body. His mana sense suddenly picked up an additional person. He seemed to appear out of nowhere! If Dusk wasn¡¯t on full alert, paying attention to everyone in his surroundings, he would have missed the appearance of an additional person. Dusk¡¯s pupils involuntarily shrunk. That person was not only concealing their presence, but they had even turned invisible! Imagine Dusk¡¯s surprise when he realized that that person was exactly his target. So a Shadow is indeed helping him! Cold sweat instantly covered Dusk¡¯s back. Good thing I decided to wait in front of the classroom. If I had decided to wait anywhere else, he would have passed right next to me, concealed and invisible. Unfortunately, now it was too late to stop his target from entering the classroom. Dusk Rose again blended in the crowd of examinees, keeping his target in his line of sight while not drawing any attention to himself. The examiners seemed to take hours to explain the exam. Dusk Rose waited patiently, keeping a low profile the entire time.
Coming up in the next episode: Time seemed to slow down as Dusk Rose gently kicked the guy in front of him, making him stumble forwards a few steps. ¡°Someone should take him to infirmary.¡± As the destination entered Dusk¡¯s gaze, he smiled slightly. Finally. Mission accomplished. Episode 72 – One-Touch Knock-Out Previously: While waiting to take his mana exam, Kiel feels sick and ends up falling unconscious. An unknown person is helping him towards the infirmary. The last thing Kiel does before falling unconscious is to call out to Elaru. Venric Rroda put up a mission in the Shadow Lodge, requesting a Shadow to infiltrate Muni, capture Kiel Rroda and prevent him from taking the exam. Dusk Rose is forced to take the mission as he is one of the rare people capable of entering Muni ¨C he is one of the examinees. Dusk Rose waited for Kiel in front of the classroom where Kiel was supposed to take his exam, however, Kiel arrived suddenly, in the nick of time and Dusk Rose had no time to act against him before they were ushered into the classroom.
Episode 72 ¨C One-Touch Knock-Out When the examiners finally asked who wanted to take the exam first, Dusk Rose noticed Kiel Rroda taking a step forward, and his heart skipped a beat. I knew it! He intends to go first!! Time seemed to slow down as Dusk Rose stealthily kicked the guy standing in front of him, making him stumble forwards a few steps. The guy looked around himself in a daze, searching for the person who pushed him forward. Dusk Rose had already moved away from his previous position and looked as innocent as possible. When the guy couldn¡¯t find the culprit, he decided to go with the flow and take the exam. Only then did Dusk let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. As soon as the examinees were ushered out of the room, Dusk Rose made his move. He approached Kiel Rroda waiting for an opportunity to join the conversation on how that unfortunate sod was horrible for going first. If Dusk wasn¡¯t concentrating fully on the job, he would have found it amusing. No. Scratch that. He still found it amusing. Even more so when he finally joined the conversation. Just like all of the fawning people around Kiel Rroda, Dusk spoke honeyed praises: ¡°You¡¯re a good guy. You don¡¯t get agitated because of such small matters. I wish I could be more like you.¡± Kiel Rroda turned towards him and smiled a radiant smile. Dusk¡¯s heart couldn¡¯t help but skip a beat. Goodness, gracious! Dusk couldn¡¯t help but lament that he was basically tasked with ensuring Kiel Rroda wouldn¡¯t pass the entrance exams. Such a pity. This beautiful person was someone Dusk Rose would rather date than plot against. Alas, the fates were cruel, and now, he would never get the chance. Dusk sighed internally, before clearing his thoughts and focusing on the task. Without giving Kiel Rroda the chance to respond to his flattering, Dusk offered him his hand. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve introduced myself before. I am¡­¡± Dusk Rose gave a random, made up name, to go along with his current random, made up face. Dusk closely watched Kiel Rroda who showed slight hesitation in taking his hand. Dusk¡¯s heart skipped a beat, his hand in the air seemed to hang there for eternity. Will he take it? Did he figure it out? Only a few seconds later did Kiel Rroda accept the handshake and nodded his head at Dusk. Dusk Rose resisted letting out a breath of relief. However, a gleeful smile still bloomed on his face. He stepped back from his target, as to not rise any further suspicion. From a few steps away, he watched Kiel Rroda in satisfaction. One-third of his work was already done. Mirth hid behind Dusk¡¯s currently brown eyes as he counted the seconds.
  1. 2. 3. 5. 8.
Kiel Rroda¡¯s white face was getting whiter by the minute.
  1. 15. 20.
Crystalline beads of sweat were starting to form on Kiel¡¯s forehead.
  1. 25. 27.
Dusk could tell that the sounds were starting to hurt Kiel Rroda¡¯s ears, for sometimes, when someone spoke loudly, he would slightly wince.
  1. 33. 35.
Kiel¡¯s long black eyelashes started fluttering. Dusk felt his face heat up. For the love of¡­ how can you still manage to look seductive in this situation?! Finally, Kiel Rroda closed his eyes and rubbed his templates. The people around him were talking about the exams. As soon as the topic changed to the practical exam, the smitten girls couldn¡¯t help but ask what scenario Kiel Rroda had picked. Everyone quieted down and perked up their ears to listen to his response. The sudden silence seemed to alarm his target, for he opened his eyes to look at the people around him. His mind seemed to be still working somewhat, for he immediately realized that someone must have asked him something and the crowd was waiting for his answer. Kiel Rroda smiled apologetically with a smile so beautiful anyone would instantly forgive all of his sins. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t quite catch that. I feel¡­ a bit under the weather today.¡± His response was more than enough to spark another round of conversations. Everyone wanted to share their displeasure about the horrid weather.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Clever response. Dusk thought. He is diverting attention from himself onto a topic everyone has a strong opinion on. When Kiel Rroda leaned against the railing, Dusk edged closer to him worried that he would accidentally fall off. That would cause a scene and make keeping a low profile more difficult. Any second now. Dusk¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Mate, are you alright? You are looking a bit pale.¡± He asked loudly, just at the right time, for almost immediately after that, Kiel Rroda¡¯s balance slipped. Dusk made a show out of catching him and holding him up. He was heavier than he looked. A testament that Kiel¡¯s slim body was densely covered with muscles underneath his elegant black clothes. Dusk put on a worried expression and touched Kiel Rroda¡¯s forehead. ¡°Oh no! You are burning up!¡± Gasps followed as the girls started panicking and wondering whether he had a cold and what they should do about it. Like an alpha male he was, Dusk Rose puffed up his chest and told everyone not to worry. ¡°I think it is best if I take him to the infirmary. The healers will instantly figure out what is wrong and how to help him. You guys, tell the examiners that we went to the infirmary.¡± Several girls offered to tag along, but as soon as Dusk reminded them that it might take a while and cause them to miss the exams, the volunteers evaporated into smoke. The male examinees didn¡¯t even try pretending that they were worried. They were obviously reveling in Kiel Rroda¡¯s misfortune. No one even considered lending a hand. It was hard to like a person who was better than them in every way. They might suck up to him, but internally, they would like nothing more than see him go down. No one, male or female, would risk missing their exams for Kiel¡¯s sake. People were shallow creatures that always seek their own benefit. Dusk Rose had never been more glad for this fact. For this exact fact allowed him to take possession of Kiel Rroda¡¯s slumped, semi-conscious self, without any resistance. Dusk Rose pulled his target up and carried him down the stairs into the main hall of the Blue Quarters. As he patiently helped Kiel Rroda out of the building, many curiously glanced their way. Dusk constantly sprouted words of encouragement and comfort towards the beautiful argel propped on his shoulder. However, his words were actually aimed at the passersby, to explain what was going on. That he was just taking him to the infirmary. That nothing big or interesting was in progress. It was so that they would lose interest and pay them no attention. When Dusk finally passed through the door, entering the courtyard, he let out a soft breath of relief. Unlike the main hall, the courtyard was desolate, almost completely empty of people. Because of the stormy weather most people preferred spending their time indoors, where they wouldn¡¯t need to worry about the potential rain. Dusk spread his mind all over the surroundings and looked left and right. The few people that were walking around paid him no attention. Excellent! Everything was going according to plan. Back when he received the mission, Dusk Rose spent some time thinking of the optimal way to complete it. Based on his own abilities, he could just use brute force and knock his target out easily. And then he could just turn invisible, conceal his tracks as best as he could, and quickly leave Muni. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t do that. Firstly, the requirements of his mission stated that he needed to be ¡°low-key¡±. An outright kidnapping of a noble would be a hot topic for gossip. The incident would surely appear in the tomorrow¡¯s newspapers. Therefore, since Kiel was surrounded by other examinees, he couldn¡¯t just knock him out in front of them. But since another requirement of his mission was to stop Kiel Rroda from taking the exam, that meant that he needed to act now. Before Kiel Rroda could take the exam. He couldn¡¯t wait for Kiel to go someplace without people around. Consequently, Dusk Rose was forced to come up with a way to kidnap his target without anyone realizing that he was, in fact, kidnaping him. If the mission had been taken by any other Shadow, this might have been difficult. But for him, whose Shadow nickname ¨C Dusk Rose ¨C was a rare rose species whose thorns contained a deadly poison, it was a minor task. Dusk Rose, just like the plant of the same name, was poisonous. Or rather, he was a master in using poison. True, most of his poisons were aimed at¡­ killing people¡­ not knocking them out. But that didn¡¯t mean that he couldn¡¯t do it. In fact, the very first poison Dusk Rose learned to make, and the very first one he was forced to develop an immunity to, was a rare brew developed by the Etezza family that caused the victim to feel sick and muddle-headed, eventually making them lose consciousness. Dusk Rose nicknamed it One-Touch Knock-Out, for it was used in a rather peculiar way. It was one of the rare poisons capable of seeping through the skin into the bloodstream. Thus, Dusk Rose spread it over his palm. One handshake was all it took for his poison to reach its target. One-Touch Knock-Out. And the best thing about it was that poisons which could be applied through skin contact were rare so most people wouldn¡¯t be wary of skin contact. Especially if it is skin on skin contact. Several minutes passed in silence as Dusk Rose walked slowly towards the exit of Muni. He never stopped or showed signs of getting tired. He did wish that he had the ability to Accelerate. That would make his speed much faster. Alas, he was an elibu and couldn¡¯t use augmentation magic. All he could do was speed-walk. Cause running would attract too much unwanted attention. Dusk could have turned the both of them invisible, then wrap his mind around them to conceal their aura. Although he couldn¡¯t control Kiel¡¯s mana, he could create a cocoon large enough so that everyone would only be able to sense a slight mana trail Kiel Rroda was leaving behind him. The reason why he chose to play the role of a dumb examinee helping his peer, was because he was in Muni. Muni was a mystical place which had a mysterious creature acting as its guardian. No one knew what kind of creature it was or what it could do. However, facts spoke for themselves: no one had ever managed to steal any Muni property, enter without authorization or mortally wound any of its residents. Muni was one of the safest places in all of Halnea. Dusk Rose didn¡¯t know whether the protection of the guardian extended towards the examinees as well, but he would rather not risk it. If he could avoid drawing attention from the guardian, he would do so. He figured that if he acted like a goody two shoes instead of a suspicious Shadow carrying an unconscious person, chances would be in his favor. Therefore, after considering all his options, Dusk Rose concluded that it would be for the best if no one figured out that something fishy was going on. And thus, this flawless plan was born. Now the only person Dusk Rose needed to be wary of was that other Shadow working for Kiel Rroda. Hopefully, he wouldn¡¯t run into them. Finally, after several minutes of speed walking, the main gate of Muni entered Dusk Rose¡¯s line of sight. Finally. All he had to do was pass the gates, and Rroda men would be waiting for him on the other side, to pick up his¡­ luggage. He was now close enough to make a mad dash through the gate even if something went awry. This mission was as good as completed. Still, Dusk Rose didn¡¯t relax his vigilance in the slightest. The only thing he did relax, was his face, which bloomed with a satisfied smile.
Coming up in the next episode: He offered his hand to Elaru and smiled friendlily. ¡°I am one of the examinees in his group. My name is¡­¡± Dusk Rose found it especially hard to conceal his glee when the redhead obediently shook his hand. Seriously?!? Dusk stared at Elaru Wayvin wide-eyed for several seconds before he snapped back to his senses and put on a goofy smile. Her eyes were getting misty and she was breathing hard. ¡°Is cold contagious?¡± She murmured. Episode 73 – Unexpected Air Traffic Previously: While waiting to take his mana exam, Kiel feels sick and ends up falling unconscious. An unknown person is helping him towards the infirmary. The last thing Kiel does before falling unconscious is to call out to Elaru. Venric Rroda put up a mission in the Shadow Lodge, requesting a Shadow to infiltrate Muni, capture Kiel Rroda and prevent him from taking the exam. Dusk Rose is forced to take the mission as he is one of the rare people capable of entering Muni ¨C he is one of the examinees. Dusk Rosepoisoned Kiel Rroda, making him display the symptoms of fever before the loss of consciousness. After Kiel fell unconscious, Dusk Rose took him from the scene towards the exit of Muni, under the pretense of bringing him to the infirmary.
Episode 73 ¨C Unexpected Air Traffic Finally, after several minutes of speed walking, the main gate of Muni entered Dusk Rose¡¯s line of sight.Finally. All he had to do was pass the gates, and Rroda men would be waiting for him on the other side, to pick up his¡­ luggage. He was now close enough to make a mad dash through the gate even if something went awry. This mission was as good as completed. Still, Dusk Rose didn¡¯t relax his vigilance in the slightest. The only thing he did relax, was his face, which bloomed with a satisfied smile. Unfortunately, that smile didn¡¯t last for long. Because, a second later, a redheaded elibu girl landed in front of him. To be honest, Dusk Rose noticed someone flying in his direction. However, he wasn¡¯t alarmed by it for he was going towards the exit. It was only natural that people would go to and from the exit. Although his mission report stated he should be wary of Elaru Wayvin, a potential Shadow, since she was an elibu, Dusk Rose, more or less, ignored air traffic. Elibu couldn¡¯t use augmentation magic. Therefore they couldn¡¯t fly. Dusk Rose halted his steps. His expression still stayed friendly and dumb looking, albeit without a smile. However, he was vigilant, ready for anything. His mind enveloped Elaru Wayvin, closely monitoring her aura for any changes. Her aura was extremely dense. It was among the densest auras he had ever felt. Experience told him that she was a person that shouldn¡¯t be underestimated. If her aura showed any signs of hostility or suspicion, he would act immediately to gain the upper hand. As soon as the girl landed in front of him, her eyes looked at the unconscious argel slumped on Dusk¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Eh?? Kiel? What¡¯s wrong?! Are you alright??¡± Surprise and worry could clearly be felt in her melodious voice. When Kiel Rroda didn¡¯t answer, her eyes moved away from him and settled on Dusk Rose. Dusk put his acting ability on full display and scratched his head sheepishly. ¡°Uh? You two know each other?¡± The redhead smiled softly and nodded. ¡°Yeah. We are close friends. And you are?¡± Kiel¡¯s right arm was draped over Dusk¡¯s shoulders, held in place by Dusk¡¯s right hand. Momentarily, Dusk let go of Kiel¡¯s hand and offered his hand to Elaru, smiling friendlily. ¡°I am one of the examinees in his group. My name is¡­¡± Although Dusk outwardly looked relaxed, he was closely monitoring the reaction of Elaru Wayvin. Would she figure out that something wasn¡¯t quite right? Would she shake his hand? Most people would have no chance of noticing the poison. People might be cautious of consuming drinks or inhaling strange smoke, but there was nothing suspicious in a handshake. In all his years of work, not one of his targets ever discovered One-Touch Knock-Out. The only ones that had a chance of discovering it were those like him, who were well versed in poison. This handshake was both a preemptive strike and a test. If she refused to shake his hand, that would mean that she was indeed a Shadow that he should be wary of. However, if she took it, the matter would be settled. At that point, it wouldn¡¯t matter whether she was a Shadow or not, she would succumb to the poison like everyone else. Time seemed to slow down, Dusk could see her hand moving towards his in slow motion. He could hear his heartbeat reverberating inside his head. This moment would decide everything. She shook it. She shook it without hesitation. Only then did Dusk¡¯s time start running normally again. ¡°Elaru Wayvin.¡± She introduced herself. ¡°So, what happened?¡± Dusk Rose found it especially hard to conceal his glee. Considering the thick layer of poison he coated his hand in a few minutes prior, Dusk concluded that a good amount of it should have still remained on his hand. More than enough to deal with the redheaded beauty. His mission had an optional objective. If he managed to capture Elaru Wayvin as well, that would bring him extra rewards. Since the time was tight, Dusk Rose intended to complete the main part of the mission first and then look for the redhead later. But since she so conveniently delivered herself right to him, Dusk was ecstatic. Opposed to what he was actually feeling, Dusk¡¯s face turned worried as he explained. ¡°I don¡¯t know. One second he was alright, and the next he suddenly lost his balance. He is burning up, so I think he caught a cold or something. I am bringing him to the infirmary. The healers should know what to do.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Elaru Wayvin nodded. ¡°Good thinking.¡± Then she smirked and pointed towards the direction Dusk just came from. ¡°Unfortunately, you are going the wrong way. The infirmary is that way.¡± Dusk¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Of course she would notice that he wasn¡¯t going towards the infirmary! Dusk froze only for an instant before his quick mind came up with an appropriate response. He facepalmed himself and laughed awkwardly. ¡°I¡¯m so stupid! I totally forgot to ask where the infirmary was!¡± Even as the words left his mouth, he lamented. No way would anyone believe such a flimsy excuse. And things were going so well! Now she would become suspicious. Not to mention how troublesome it would be if she made a scene. However, unlike what Dusk expected, Elaru¡¯s aura showed no hostility or suspicion. In fact, she looked at him half understandingly and half comfortingly. ¡°Don¡¯t beat yourself up about it. I understand. If it were me, I¡¯d hurry to help him too and totally forget that I don¡¯t know my way around Muni.¡± Seriously?!? Dusk stared at Elaru Wayvin wide-eyed for several seconds before he snapped back to his senses and put on a goofy smile. ¡°Good thing I ran into you. Mind leading the way?¡± ¡°Of course not. Let¡¯s take him to the infirmary together.¡± Elaru smiled brilliantly, making Dusk dazzled for a second even though he didn¡¯t like girls. That split second of stun was enough for Elaru to step closer to Dusk and grab Kiel¡¯s left arm. ¡°Here. Let me help you out.¡± Before Dusk could protest, she cast a sustained Acceleration spell on Kiel Rroda which nullified the effects of gravity, and made Kiel¡¯s body float. Since his Mage Armor dissipated as soon as he turned unconscious, she didn¡¯t have any trouble targeting him with her spells. Dusk swallowed down the complaints and instead inspected Elaru Wayvin. It wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad idea to let her ¡®carry¡¯ him. Holding Kiel up impaired his movement. This way, Dusk would be faster to react to any changes in circumstances. As he inspected Elaru, he noticed fine beads of sweat gathering on her forehead. And although it was hard to see because of her tanned skin, her cheeks were slightly red. The signs of poisoning are appearing just in time. ¡°Thanks. I was getting tired.¡± Dusk let go of Kiel¡¯s body and stretched his ¡®sore¡¯ shoulder. She¡¯d be out cold in less than a minute and then he would bring both of them out of Muni. Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t seem to be on her guard at all. She pulled Kiel by his arm and walked several steps in front of Dusk, turning her back on him as if she wasn¡¯t at all worried about any potential attack. It was a strange behavior for a Shadow. Shadows were usually very vigilant people. Turning their backs towards their enemies was asking to be killed. Could it be that she isn¡¯t a Shadow after all? Or is it that I did too good of a job in acting like an idiot, so she doesn¡¯t see me as a potential threat? Elaru¡¯s steps were getting more unsteady by the second. She wobbled left and right, bringing Kiel along with her. Soon it started looking as if she wasn¡¯t leading him by the arm but leaning on him. Dusk hurried his steps and caught up to her to stand side by side. That way, he could inspect her facial expression. Elaru¡¯s eyes were slowly getting misty, and her breathing was becoming more and more labored. ¡°Is the cold contagious?¡± She murmured. Dusk Rose shrugged. ¡°I think it is. I hope I don¡¯t catch it.¡± Elaru sighed softly and rubbed her temples with a pained expression. As she was rubbing her temples, she seemed to notice something strange and sniffed her right hand. Did she figure it out? Dusk¡¯s heart skipped a beat. The only drawback of One-Touch Knock-Out was that it had a specific flowery scent. No. Not likely. To mask the scent, Dusk Rose mixed it with several nonpoisonous flowers, creating his own hand cream that had a different scent. Even people who were familiar with One-Touch Knock-Out wouldn¡¯t be able to recognize it by scent. They would just think that his hands smelled of soap. No matter. It is already too late. Elaru Wayvin looked at Dusk with glazed eyes and murmured. ¡°Such a pleasant scent. What hand cream are you using?¡± Dusk almost stumbled in his step. If he wasn¡¯t closely monitoring both her actions and her aura, which didn¡¯t show any discrepancy, Dusk would have thought her to be teasing him. She is either extremely gullible or a better actor than me! And that said something, considering that Dusk Rose was a great actor. The only downside to his acting was that he was a rather emotional person. Since mana was in direct contact with his mind, his emotions passed onto it and showed in his aura. He had been trained in aura control, but he wasn¡¯t very good at it. The basis of aura control lied in controlling one¡¯s emotions. For one couldn¡¯t directly control the emotions carried by mana. Most people wouldn¡¯t notice the subtle changes in his aura before he got his emotions under control, but there were plenty very perceptive people who were quite sensitive to auras. That¡¯s why he was an assassin and not a spy. Assassins didn¡¯t need to engage in social interactions. They went in, killed their target and went out. There was little need for flawless aura control. Dusk Rose chuckled awkwardly and replied. ¡°Uh¡­ it is a family recipe.¡± Elaru Wayvin smiled slightly and started saying ¡°What family¡­¡± but before she could finish she stumbled in her step and fell forwards. Right on time. Dusk Rose reacted instantly and reached out to catch her. He pulled her into his chest and held her body in place by her waist. Her head dropped down lifelessly onto his shoulder. If an outsider were looking at this scene, he would think that the two of them were intimately embracing. If it had been any other male in Dusk Rose¡¯s place, he would have greatly enjoyed the sensation of soft flesh pressing against his chest. Especially because the redhead in his embrace was a peerless beauty. Yet Dusk Rose didn¡¯t enjoy it at all. If he had to embrace someone, he¡¯d rather embrace Kiel Rroda. Alas, he couldn¡¯t do that. If someone saw them, the tomorrow¡¯s gossip column would peg Kiel Rroda as gay. And the low-key part of his mission would be an utter failure. Although the redhead had fainted, her grip on Kiel¡¯s arm didn¡¯t lessen at all. Dusk Rose looked towards Kiel Rroda¡¯s body which was unstably floating. Spells wouldn¡¯t break when the mage fainted, and thus Elaru¡¯s sustained Acceleration was still active. However, since she was unconscious, she was no longer exercising control over it. Dusk reached out to grab Kiel, intending to bring the two out of Muni asap. Being forced to embrace a girl left a bitter taste in his mouth. Before Dusk¡¯s hand reached Kiel, he felt a hot breath tickling his ear and his hand suddenly froze midair. Dusk felt cold chills traveling down his spine. Not the good kind. What caused the chills wasn¡¯t the hot breath. No. It was the husky whisper that followed. ¡°Etezza family recipe, right?¡± Dusk¡¯s head snapped back to look at his shoulder, where the head of Elaru Wayvin was supposed to be lying. Simultaneously, his hand attempted to push her away from him. The redheaded vixen wasn¡¯t using his shoulder as a pillow like she was supposed to be doing. She stared at him with a coy smirk, without any trace of a blush, sweat or any form of sickness.
Coming up in the next episode: Dusk Rose¡¯s reputation as a Shadow wasn¡¯t for nothing. Instantly, he reacted by using a Morph spell to launch earth spikes at the girl standing next to him. The soft and musical tone lacking any hostility made his heart go cold. His expression transformed from a sincere and goofy expression into a cold, fierce glare. ¡°When did you figure it out?¡± Elaru patted his cheeks, still grinning. ¡°Nothing screams ¡®suspicious¡¯ more than a person with a false face. Episode 74 – Fa?ade Previously: After kidnaping Kiel, just as Dusk Rose was about to reach the Muni exit, he ran into Elaru Wayvin. Dusk Rose pretends to be an examinee from the same group as Kiel, and makes Elaru shake his poisoned hand. Elaru offers to show him the way to the infirmary and goes with them. However, after a while, she faints. Dusk Rose catches her body, however, a second later something unexpected happens.
Episode 74 ¨C Fa?ade Dusk¡¯s head snapped back to look at his shoulder, where the head of Elaru Wayvin was supposed to be lying. Simultaneously, his hand attempted to push her away from him. The redheaded vixen wasn¡¯t using his shoulder as a pillow like she was supposed to be doing. She stared at him with a coy smirk, without any trace of a blush, sweat or any form of sickness. Not good! Panic flashed in Dusk¡¯s eyes as he realized that the arm that was supposed to be pushing Elaru away wasn¡¯t responding to his commands. He attempted to jump away from the girl, but his legs weren¡¯t following his intentions either. They stood rooted to the spot. This was the moment in which Dusk realized he was in deep trouble. As an elibu, he couldn¡¯t use magic to make his body move. All he could do was attempt to attack the redhead with magic so she would voluntarily move away from him. Dusk Rose¡¯s reputation as a Shadow wasn¡¯t for nothing. Instantly, he reacted by using a Morph spell on the rock tiles they were standing on. His intention was to morph the tiles into spikes which would erupt from the ground and impale the redhead next to him. However, in the next moment, the only change that happened was the paling of Dusk¡¯s face. His Morph spell melted before it could fully form, like an ice cream under the hot sun. Their entire surroundings were covered by a cloud of dense mana. Her mana. Dusk Rose already knew that aura of Elaru Wayvin was extremely dense. But only now, when he was forced to use magic inside the area covered by her aura, did Dusk Rose realize just how dense it really was. What covered their surroundings couldn¡¯t be called an ¡°aura¡±. What surrounded them was Mage Armor. Since mana naturally seeped out of one¡¯s body into the surroundings, mages would contain their mana near their own body to form a dense layer ¨C Mage Armor. The mana which wasn¡¯t controlled would drift away aimlessly into the surroundings, becoming an aura. If aura was the water vapor, then the Mage Armor was the whirlpool of water. Elaru Wayvin possessed such a large density of mana that the scope of her Mage Armor covered not only her own body but her entire surroundings. Since she was now pressed right against the body of Dusk Rose, she created an area all around them in which Dusk Rose couldn¡¯t use magic. And worse still, if Dusk Rose wanted to use magic outside of the area covered by her Mage Armor, he would need to direct his mana to exit the area under her Mage Armor. However, no matter how he tried to direct his mana to exit the sphere of mana around them, her mana constantly pushed it back towards the center. He was stuck inside a whirlpool. And the only way for him to use magic was to use it in the area covered by his own Mage Armor. Unfortunately, his Mage Armor, like the Mage Armor of the majority of mages, only covered his own body. Dusk Rose¡¯s pupils shrunk. He walked straight into a trap!! He allowed Elaru Wayvin to come close to him! And he didn¡¯t even realize that he had entered her own Mage Armor! Even now, if he hadn¡¯t tried casting magic, he wouldn¡¯t have realized that he was under her Mage Armor. Elaru Wayvin knew how to conceal her own mana. She had wrapped her mind around her surroundings, only revealing slight gaps, creating an illusion that the mana density around her was much lesser than it actually was. In a single moment, their situations had reversed. Now, Elaru was the one holding up his own body from slumping down. Dusk Rose desperately tried to come up with a plan. A magic that he could cast on his own body that would help him overcome the current perilous predicament. If only he was an argel! If only he could cast Accelerate! Even if he couldn¡¯t move his own body normally, he could cast Accelerate to make it move. Not only could he Accelerate to escape her area of control but he could even use it to control his body like it was a puppet. Alas, he was an elibu. The demon that was Elaru Wayvin chuckled musically and twirled an acupuncture needle in her hand as if it was just a toy. ¡°Now, now. Don¡¯t make any sudden moves.¡± She warned in an overly cheerful tone that sent chills down Dusk¡¯s spine. ¡°I only disabled your limbs. Don¡¯t force me to knock you out.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. That¡¯s when it dawned on Dusk why his body wasn¡¯t moving. In his moment of distraction, she had inserted a needle inside his neck that blocked the nerves responsible for moving his limbs. The situation was going from bad to worse by the second. A cunning gleam of determination flashed inside Dusk¡¯s eyes, and he opened his mouth to scream for help, determined to act like a victim until the end. Hoping that the guardian of Muni would show up and help him out of his predicament. Ironic. That the guardian that he had been most wary of this entire time would be the one creature he would hope to see the most. However, Elaru Wayvin was still one step ahead of him. She put a finger over his lips seductively and hushed him. ¡°Shhh. If you start screaming, I¡¯ll be forced to turn you into a pin cushion.¡± Her soft and musical tone lacking any hostility made his heart go cold. His expression transformed from a sincere and goofy expression into a wronged look. Since his other options were sealed, he needed to adopt a new tactic: stall for time. ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Dusk Rose cried out with grievance. He would make her think that she won and distract her while he came up with an escape plan. Perhaps if he stalled for a while, the guardian would show up, and he wouldn¡¯t need to do anything. Elaru Wayvin smiled a smile so radiant that it seemed as if the sun suddenly came out from behind the clouds. ¡°There is no point in acting innocent. I knew of your intentions from the start.¡± The redhead patted his cheeks good-naturedly. ¡°Nothing screams ¡®suspicious¡¯ more than a person with a false face.¡± Dusk¡¯s back broke out in cold sweat. He stared at Elaru Wayvin as if he was seeing a monster. When most people wanted to change their appearance, they would utilize makeup. It was an easy way that anyone could do. It wasn¡¯t easy to see through and if done right one could become entirely unrecognizable. The downside of this method was that it was an art in itself, which consumed too much time and couldn¡¯t be adjusted and changed on the go. It needed premeditated preparation. The alternative to using makeup was to utilize magic. Unfortunately, altering one¡¯s appearance with magic wasn¡¯t as easy as it sounded. There were only two ways one could alter their appearance by magic. One could change the structure of their own face and body, such as by using Morph, or one could create an illusion through the usage of Light magic. Directly changing the structure of one¡¯s body was extremely dangerous. Not only was Morph a solid state spell whose effects persisted after the spell was lifted, but using it on the body without understanding body structure to near perfection could easily cause permanent damage, disability, and even death. The only ones that could utilize Morph to change appearance were Body Sculptors, a branch of Healers that specialized in beautifying rich people. The alternative to using Morph was by utilizing Light magic to create illusions. However, this option was not any easier than the former. Light mages needed to be artists capable of ¡°drawing¡± extremely realistic illusions. And no matter how incredible of a mage one was, if he wasn¡¯t a great artist as well, he wouldn¡¯t be able to fool anyone with their illusions. In conclusion, changing one¡¯s appearance with magic was a near impossible feat, with people capable of doing so being as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. There were only two exceptions to this rule ¨C two secret magic spells of the Etezza family ¨C Fa?ade & Mirage. Based on the Morph and Light spells, they were created by the god ancestor of the Etezza family who spellcrafted countless rules into the spell, defining mysterious laws. Etezza family treated these spells as their ancestral priceless treasure, teaching it to very few members of the family. Not only because the spells were priceless, but because they were level 15 spells ¨C the highest known spell level. Which meant that the mages capable of learning it were very few. The bare minimum requirement was for one to be an S-ranked mage. And even if one was an S-ranked mage, one would need to put years of effort into learning it. The benefit, however, was that the mage didn¡¯t need to know anything about the human body, nor how to paint realistic illusions. And since it was a secret spell, only those who were taught the spell would be able to recognize it when used by others. Which is exactly why Dusk Rose stared at Elaru Wayvin as if she was a ghost. Elaru Wayvin recognized that he was wearing a false face. And since his false face was created by Fa?ade, the only way she would be able to recognize the spell would be if she knew it herself. #$&%! Dusk Rose swore. If we are on the same side, why in the bloody tarnation was I given this mission?! Dusk¡¯s face paled further. Don¡¯t tell me I inadvertently stumbled onto a conflict of interest within the family? Or¡­ is this redhead a family traitor?! But why didn¡¯t anyone warn me about this?!? Or perhaps she was only guessing? Perhaps she wasn¡¯t sure at all! Focus! Dusk¡¯s training kicked in, and he instantly calmed down. There is no need for you to question your mission. Whatever the underlying reason is, it is none of your business. What you need to do now is stall for time. Dusk Rose scowled at Elaru. ¡°My face isn¡¯t fake. And even if it was, you couldn¡¯t even see my face from behind. How would you be able to tell if it was fake?¡± Elaru gave him a disbelieving look. ¡°Why would I need to see your face? You are using Fa?ade, not makeup!¡± So, she isn¡¯t just guessing! She really recognizes Fa?ade! Dusk Rose persisted. ¡°If you recognize Fa?ade, you should know I am not your enemy.¡± Elaru Wayvin shrugged. ¡°Which is why you are still perfectly fine and able to blabber your mouth. However, I am afraid I cannot allow you to complete this mission. It is against my personal interests.¡± Dusk Rose pouted. ¡°You are really unreasonable! This is totally not a conflict of interest!¡± Elaru gaped at Dusk Rose. ¡°Bloody meep! You used Fever Touch on me! How is knocking me out in my interest?!¡± Ah. Fever Touch. The actual name of my One-Touch Knock-Out. ¡°That was a misunderstanding. Besides, you are fine. Speaking of which, how is it that you are fine? Immune?¡± ¡°Yeah. Fever Touch was the first poison papa forced me to develop immunity to.¡± ¡°Makes sense, makes sense.¡± Dusk Rose nodded his head approvingly. ¡°But there is one thing that doesn¡¯t make sense at all. You said that you knew my intentions from the start. What intentions? Don¡¯t tell me you based all that on me going in the wrong direction? I was really going to the infirmary!¡± Elaru Wayvin stared at Dusk Rose speechlessly. Dude¡­ must you lie to my face so openly?Sheraised her eyebrow and smirked. ¡°I would think that someone capable of casting Fa?ade would have enough common sense to look at the guidepost.¡± Dusk Rose stared at her innocently. ¡°What guidepost?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Still playing innocent? Alright, let¡¯s try a different approach. Shesmirked and sneaked her hand inside the pocket of Dusk Rose¡¯s jacket. She pulled out a round badge with number 1385 on it. Dusk Rose¡¯s entrance exam pass. ¡°I see, I see. So, you were just an innocent examinee in Kiel¡¯s group¡­but wait¡­Kiel¡¯s number is 5642. How is it that number 1385 and 5642 are in the same group?¡± Elaru Wayvin grinned widely. Dusk¡¯s innocent smile froze. Since the groups were formed by taking 20 people with adjacent numbers, he couldn¡¯t be in Kiel¡¯s group!
Coming up in the next episode: Dusk Rose gaped. ¡°How do you know that?!¡± ¡°You are out of luck girly.¡± Dusk Rose gazed at her coyly. Episode 75 – Checkmate Previously: After kidnapping Kiel, just as Dusk Rose was about to reach the Muni exit, he ran into Elaru Wayvin. Dusk Rose pretends to be an examinee from the same group as Kiel, and makes Elaru shake his poisoned hand. Elaru offers to show him the way to the infirmary and goes with them. However, after a while, she faints. Dusk Rose catches her body. Elaru Wayvin uses this to launch a sneak attack on Dusk, incapacitating him. Dusk pretends to be innocent, hoping that he could stall for time or catch her off guard. Elaru however, easily reveals his plans.
Episode 75 ¨C Checkmate Elaru smirked and sneaked her hand inside the pocket of Dusk Rose¡¯s jacket. She pulled out a round badge with number 1385 on it. Dusk Rose¡¯s entrance exam pass. ¡°I see, I see. So, you were just an innocent examinee in Kiel¡¯s group¡­but wait¡­Kiel¡¯s number is 5642. How is it that number 1385 and 5642 are in the same group?¡± Elaru Wayvin grinned widely. Dusk¡¯s innocent smile froze. Since the groups were formed by taking 20 people with adjacent numbers, he couldn¡¯t be in Kiel¡¯s group! How did she know I placed my exam pass in that pocket?! The numbers on the exam pass were written with a signature ink, which acted as glue for mana. If one swept their mana sense over the badge, the large difference in density of mana inside the ink and the remainder of the badge would make it look like the numbers were glowing. The whole purpose of it was so that anyone could easily discern what numbers were written on the badge. Naturally, Dusk Rose was aware of this fact, so he specifically wrapped his Mind around the pass to prevent the Minds of others from being able to touch the badge, and therefore detect it. Since he was cautious to conceal the badge, it shouldn¡¯t have been picked up by Elaru¡¯s or anyone else¡¯s mana sense. How could he have known that no amount of effort could conceal his badge from Elaru¡¯s Aethernea of Sight? Those numbers glowed so clearly to her she could easily read them from a mile away. Dusk didn¡¯t dwell on it, it might have been a lucky guess for all he knew. He still smiled innocently, refusing to admit defeat. ¡°Did I say that I am in his group? What I meant was that our classrooms were right next to each other.¡± Elaru burst out into a fit of giggles. ¡°Your classroom is not even in the Blue Quarters. It¡¯s in the White Quarters. And your timeslot is in the afternoon!¡± Dusk Rose couldn¡¯t keep his face straight anymore. He gaped like a fish out of the water. ¡°How do you know that?!¡± Elaru¡¯s smile grew. ¡°I saw it this morning when I checked my own timeslot.¡± Dusk Rose ground his teeth. ¡°Of course. Blasted Eidetic memory.¡± Etezza family was a family of intelligence agents trading in information. Having a good memory was an important prerequisite for the job. Every one of them went through specific training making their memory much better than memories of other people. However, even within the Etezza family, very few managed to train their memory to the perfection of what mortal minds would allow. The memory of mortals, no matter how ¡°flawless¡± wasn¡¯t actually perfect. Not every single thing they see would stay imprinted in their mind. One still had to concentrate on things to remember them. Possessing Eidetic memory only meant that one had the ability to remember images clearly if they concentrated on them. However, since Elaru paid attention to remember her own and Kiel¡¯s timeslot, everything else she saw while she was checking the timeslot stayed imprinted into her memory as well. Dusk Rose had gone through the training too, but while his memory could be considered incredible when compared to an average person, he had never managed to reach the threshold of Eidetic. Since he was used to excelling in everything he did, this failure turned into a sore spot. Seeing him finally get agitated, Elaru patted his head like she was trying to cheer up a sulking child. ¡°Don¡¯t take it so hard. Your performance wasn¡¯t bad at all. In fact, you are quite outstanding for your age.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we the same age?!¡± She waved his complaint away. ¡°Don¡¯t compare yourself to a monster like me.¡± A vein started pulsing on Dusk Rose¡¯s forehead, his cheeks were getting flushed out of agitation. ¡°I should have figured it out when you mentioned the hand cream. You were obviously making fun of me!¡± ¡°Sorry. I couldn¡¯t resist.¡± She grinned guiltily and returned his exam pass back into his pocket. ¡°I mean, you were so cute. Using Fever Touch and Fa?ade against me. That¡¯s just¡­ cute.¡± This is ridiculous. Dusk Rose couldn¡¯t help but lament. I am a bloody assassin! I can¡¯t believe there is a person abnormal enough to call me cute! Still, no matter how unresigned Dusk Rose felt, no matter how he ground his teeth, deep down he was clearly aware that there was a large disparity between his own abilities and the abilities of Elaru Wayvin. The vixen put the pieces of the puzzle together as soon as she saw Dusk Rose holding Kiel Rroda. She recognized he was under Fa?ade, and deduced that his mission had something to do with Kiel Rroda.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. To avoid attracting the attention of passersby and the guardian, instead of confronting him directly, she pretended to be ignorant of the situation. She also couldn¡¯t afford to confront him while he held Kiel Rroda in his hands as a potential hostage. Therefore, the first thing she did after making contact was to take possession of Kiel¡¯s body. She approached them through the air, not only to catch Dusk off guard but also to display her ability to use augmentation magic. All in preparation to use her ability to make his body float as an excuse to take Kiel Rroda off of his hands. After taking possession of Kiel Rroda, she walked alongside Dusk for a while in order to slowly envelop Kiel Rroda inside her mana armor without raising suspicion from Dusk. If she confronted Dusk without enveloping Kiel with her mana, Dusk would have been able to cast spells on Kiel to threaten his well-being. After his well-being was finally secured, she could have run away or confronted Dusk. But whatever plan she initially had, it all changed when Dusk Rose shook her hand. For he had tried to poison her, and inadvertently made everything much easier for her. All she had to do was pretend to be poisoned and lure him into a trap. And pretending, for a Shadow of her caliber, was extremely easy. All Shadows had one skill in common ¨C their ability to conceal mana. They would wrap their mind around whatever they wanted to conceal from the Minds of others. For Minds couldn¡¯t touch the Minds of others. They usually used mana concealment to conceal their own aura and avoid detection of their presence. Mana concealing abilities of Elaru Wayvin were clearly extremely formidable, for not only did she manage to control her Mind in such an intricate way to conceal the true density of her aura, but she also recognized the Fa?ade spell, which meant that she had been taught the Fa?ade spell. And one of the prerequisites for being taught Fa?ade was the ability to conceal its usage. If Etezza family didn¡¯t conceal the usage of Fa?ade, everyone would be able to feel the entire spell pattern of Fa?ade, and then it would no longer be a secret spell. Others would be able to copy the spell pattern and use it themselves. Therefore, besides teaching their members how to use Fa?ade and Mirage, the Etezza family also taught them how to hide the spell pattern from the senses of others. However, since Fa?ade targeted the entire body, concealing the entire spell without concealing the entire presence of the person was near impossible. To bypass that, the Etezza family included a dummy spell inside Fa?ade. Their members would conceal the main spell pattern of Fa?ade while only leaving the spell roots and the dummy spell visible to the mana sense of others. Others would then think that Etezzas were using a common body strengthening spell, while only those familiar with the Fa?ade spell would be able to pick up on the little clues and recognize Fa?ade. As one of those people with formidable mana concealment abilities, it posed no trouble for Elaru Wayvin to conceal the casting of Heating on her own head in order to start sweating and create a blush. And then she just acted out the symptoms of poisoning and feigned fainting. Dusk Rose fell right into her trap and even caught her. Big mistake. Not only was he unable to defend against her acupuncture needles with his guard down in such close proximity, but also, because of her need to envelop Kiel in her Mage Armor, she had created a Mage Armor field around her. And Dusk walked straight into it. A prime example of shooting oneself in the foot! The depth of Elaru¡¯s plans left Dusk stunned. It seemed like she was several steps ahead of him every step of the way. And worst of all, he had no idea that he was even playing a chess game until checkmate! Dusk Rose had never felt such an overwhelming sense of helplessness. Like his fate was completely in the hands of another and he could do nothing to change it. Like no matter how he struggled, it would be completely futile. Initially, he intended to resist. He could use Morph on one of his concealed weapons to attack Elaru. However, after realizing the depths of her plans, he got the feeling that doing that would only needlessly provoke her. A person so calculative would have surely realized that he had concealed weapons. She would have surely gone through countless simulations of what he could do to oppose her. He was merely a chess piece whose entire scope of movement has been completely grasped by her. If he wanted to get out of his predicament, he needed to rely on outside help. On someone who was outside her calculations. Dusk Rose looked around helplessly, hoping that someone would pick up on his plea for help. That the blasted guardian would finally intervene. ¡°Don¡¯t bother.¡± The redheaded demon chuckled. ¡°No one will come to your aid. If you are stalling for time in hopes of the guardian intervening, you should give up now.¡± Dusk gritted his teeth and pressed his mouth into a thin line. He glared at Elaru but said nothing. ¡°No one is hurt. We didn¡¯t even fight. Why would the guardian bother with us?¡± Elaru continued. ¡°Do you think that thing would pay attention to the dealings of us mortals unless they go against its prime directive?¡± Dusk¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°What do you know about the Muni guardian?¡± Elaru grinned and shrugged. ¡°You don¡¯t really expect me to answer that? All information has a price. Information on Muni guardian¡­ you¡¯ve got nothing of value to purchase it with. Unless¡­¡± Elaru stroked her chin for several seconds as if pondering something. ¡°Unless you have the antidote for Fever Touch?¡± So, that¡¯s why she didn¡¯t directly knock him out. She didn¡¯t know the contents of the antidote! She wanted to bargain with him and make him reveal it. Dusk let out a cold laugh. ¡°You are out of luck girly.¡± As if I would help you out! Even if you offered me a mountain of gold, I would rather see your plans fall to pieces! Elaru didn¡¯t press the issue as if his response was within her expectations. She looked left and right, finding a nearby secluded spot behind a tree. She carefully brought both Dusk and Kiel along and hid them from view. Then she proceeded to check the contents of his pockets and bags. Dusk Rose didn¡¯t miss the opportunity to look at her coyly, enjoying that not everything managed to go her way. After her search of Dusk¡¯s possessions failed to show the desired results, Elaru started rummaging through her own bags and pockets. She brought out a bunch of bottles, but neither one of them was what she was looking for. Dusk Rose looked at her with a satisfied smirk. ¡°Heh, don¡¯t have the antidote either?¡± He asked teasingly. ¡°Of course I don¡¯t.¡± Elaru mumbled more to herself. ¡°Why would I carry an antidote to the poison I am immune to?¡± She looked at her pocket watch and frowned. Time was ticking, she needed to hurry, or else Kiel would miss his exams. Darn it. She thought. Better make a mental note to train Kiel¡¯s poison immunity in the future. At least for the poisons hard to defend against like Fever Touch. Dusk Rose¡¯s eyes glittered with glee. ¡°Too bad. Even if you take him to the infirmary, they will think it¡¯s just a cold. One-touch¡­I mean Fever Touch is almost undiscoverable. And even if they believed you when you tell them he was poisoned, they wouldn¡¯t know how to make the antidote.¡± She was doomed to fail! Kiel Rroda would most definitely miss his exams!
Coming up in the next episode: Dusk smirked. ¡°You¡¯re wasting your time. No matter how you search, you won¡¯t find that which is nonexistent.¡± ¡°How dare you perform robbery in broad daylight?!¡± There will certainly be a round two! Just you wait! Blasted woman! We are both colleague Shadows, right? We are working for the same family, right? Is there really need to be so vindictive?! It¡¯s all just business! Why take it so personally?! ELARUUUU WAYVIN!!!!! Episode 76 – An Unfair Trade Previously: After kidnapping Kiel, just as Dusk Rose was about to reach the Muni exit, he ran into Elaru Wayvin. Dusk Rose pretends to be an examinee from the same group as Kiel, and makes Elaru shake his poisoned hand. Elaru offers to show him the way to the infirmary and goes with them. However, after a while, she faints. Dusk Rose catches her body. Elaru Wayvin uses this to launch a sneak attack on Dusk, incapacitating him. Dusk pretends to be innocent, hoping that he could stall for time or catch her off guard. Elaru however, easily reveals his plans. Dusk Rose submits and instead finds pleasure in the fact that even though Elaru¡¯s plans ran deep, she couldn¡¯t prevent Kiel from missing his exams.
Episode 76 ¨C An Unfair Trade Dusk Rose¡¯s eyes glittered with glee. ¡°Too bad. Even if you take him to the infirmary, they will think it¡¯s just a cold. One-touch¡­I mean Fever Touch is almost undiscoverable. And even if they believed you when you tell them he was poisoned, they wouldn¡¯t know how to make the antidote.¡± She was doomed to fail! Kiel Rroda would most definitely miss his exams! Elaru had to admit that Dusk Rose was right. Fever Touch was a secret poison of the Etezza family that didn¡¯t stay in the blood system for long. Other than the Etezza family, no one else knew how to make the antidote. Even if she brought Kiel to the infirmary, they wouldn¡¯t be able to help him. She couldn¡¯t tell them how to make the antidote because she didn¡¯t know how to make it in the first place. She didn¡¯t even know the composition of Fever Touch, let alone the antidote. She could give healers the sample of the poison, however, finding the antidote would take days. By the time they found it, Kiel would have recovered on his own anyway. Elaru¡¯s eyebrows furrowed then relaxed, furrowed then relaxed. She seemed to be thinking about something, her eyes staring through things. Dusk Rose noticed her sudden loss of focus and an idea of rebelling sprung up in his mind. However, before he could consider the thought further, he felt a cold edge pressing down on his throat. ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it.¡± It only took a blink of an eye for Elaru to unsheathe her dagger and press it against Dusk¡¯s neck. ¡°I am not thinking. I swear! Not thinking at all.¡± Dusk Rose smiled wryly and immediately discarded the idea of rebelling. It wasn¡¯t a life and death conflict. The woman won¡¯t be too heavy handed with him anyway. She¡¯ll probably let him go. Unless he insisted on provoking her. And he wasn¡¯t stupid enough to invite a calamity that could be avoided. Elaru Wayvin continued to ponder her options for a while longer. The worry etched on her face made Dusk¡¯s lips twitch into an involuntary coy smirk. After snapping out of her thoughts and noticing the self-satisfied grin etched on Dusk¡¯s face, a mischievous gleam flashed in the depths of Elaru¡¯s eyes. She pushed Dusk¡¯s body into a sitting position under the tree and then started rummaging through his belongings again. Dusk¡¯s grin widened. ¡°You¡¯re wasting your time. No matter how you search, you won¡¯t find that which is nonexistent.¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t you worry about that.¡± Elaru winked. ¡°What I am searching for is quite corporeal.¡± She pulled out a small round container filled with hand cream from Dusk¡¯s pocket. Seeing his precious Fever Touch in the hands of the enemy, Dusk Rose turned livid. That was his custom mix! His lifeblood! ¡°How dare you perform robbery in broad daylight?! Even stealing a poison master¡¯s custom mix! Have you no shame?! No sense of honor?!¡± Even assassins, spies, and Shadows had their codex of honor, taboos that shouldn¡¯t be touched! ¡°Robbery? What are you talking about?¡± Elaru grinned so wide all her pearly white teeth were on display. ¡°I am not robbing you. I am just performing a trade. Your hand cream for my acupuncture needles.¡± ¡°Shameless witch!! Do you know how long it took me to refine that box of poison!? That¡¯s my sweat and tears you are holding! My personal mix! Give it back! How can you even compare the value of my mix with your single acupuncture needle?!¡± There weren¡¯t many things that could seriously provoke Dusk Rose, but taking away his sweat and blood was definitely among them. Before Dusk could protest more, Elaru flicked her wrist and another acupuncture needle embedded itself inside Dusk¡¯s neck. Suddenly, Dusk Rose became unable to utter a single sound. ¡°There. Now you¡¯ve got two needles.¡± Elaru¡¯s grin never wavered. As if that makes a difference!! Yet although he wanted to scream his lungs out, all Dusk Rose could do was glare at her venomously with bloodshot eyes. He was glaring at her so hard that the veins in his eyes were almost bursting. Elaru completely ignored the glower and positioned Dusk¡¯s limbs as if he was a manikin, making him look as if he was relaxing beneath the tree. If anyone passed by, they would surely think Dusk Rose was just enjoying the greenery in the courtyard. She even went as far as to take out a booklet from Dusk¡¯s bag and make it look like Dusk was reading it. She then admired her handiwork and chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s gonna rain soon. I hope you don¡¯t get soaked and end up catching a cold.¡±The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. She then winked at him and walked away, leading Kiel by the arm. To Dusk Rose, it looked as if she was swaggering away without a care in the world. As if she was rubbing it in, taunting him for being bested by her. Wait! You can¡¯t possibly leave me here like this? I can¡¯t even scream for help!! Dusk Rose¡¯s heart dropped to the pit of his stomach as he watched her leave his line of sight. If any of his brothers and cousins found out that he got one-upped by a girl of the same age and robbed in broad daylight, they would never let him live down the shame! Dusk proceeded to curse Elaru Wayvin to death inside his head. Then he proceeded to curse the 10 generations of her ancestors. But then he realized that he probably shared the majority of those ancestors with her. Therefore, he was cursing his own ancestors too. Hence, he switched to imagining all the different ways he could kill her after he got out of this predicament. He conveniently ignored the fact that he was a professional hit man and not a murderer ¨C he killed as a part of his job, never for personal reasons. Therefore, no matter how furious he was currently, after he calmed down, he wouldn¡¯t go as far as to attempt murder of the redhead. Payback, yes, murder, no. When he ran out of ideas how to slaughter her, he proceeded to comfort himself. There is no way she will cure Kiel Rroda in time. He¡¯ll end up missing his exams anyway. And then I can kidnap him later and still manage to finish this mission. There will certainly be a round two! Just you wait! Blasted woman! When Dusk Rose¡¯s initial agitation dissipated, he realized that Elaru Wayvin was no longer next to him, and thus, he was no longer under her Mage Armor. He could once again use magic to his heart¡¯s content. Dusk Rose almost cried from joy. Being able to use magic never felt more wonderful. He had always taken magic for granted. People just couldn¡¯t really appreciate things until they lose them. Is this how convicts feel after being released from Asinraz? Dusk Rose let out a breath of relief and pondered how to resolve his current predicament. Perhaps he should target the needles inside his neck with a spell? Although he couldn¡¯t use Accelerate to make the needles fly out of his neck, he could use Morph to change the shape of the needle. And what was ¡°changing shape¡±? It was simply repositioning the particles that the object was made out of. It was like molding clay. He could nudge the particles making the tip of the needle to increase the thickness of the parts of the needle that were outside of his neck. He didn¡¯t need to Morph the entire needle outside his neck, he just needed to move the particles making the tip enough to unblock his nerves. Then when he regained the ability to move his limbs, he could just use his hands to pull it out the remainder of the way. I can¡¯t believe she just left me like this! Mean woman! We are both colleague Shadows, right? We are working for the same family, right? Is there really need to be so vindictive?! It¡¯s all just business! Why take it so personally?! Dusk Rose let out several deep breaths to calm down and reach the state of complete focus. He needed to be extra careful and precise, because if he messed up, he could become permanently paralyzed. He proceeded to cast the Morph spell near the needle. Before the spell was fully formed, he started pushing mana inside the needle. He needed to create spell roots inside the needle to define it as the target of the Morph spell. Several seconds of concentration and silence had passed before Dusk Rose realized that something wasn¡¯t quite right. Wait¡­ why can¡¯t I push my mana into the needles? ¡­ ¡­ &$%€!!!! Platinum! They are made out of bloody platinum!!! Who the frakk makes their weapons out of platinum?!? If you make them out of platinum, then even you can¡¯t use magic on your own weapons! No way! Did you make them out of platinum on purpose to prevent your victims from using magic to remove the needles?!? Demon! Witch! Zissk! Poor Dusk Rose couldn¡¯t even scream out his frustrations out loud. Yet that didn¡¯t stop him from cursing and shouting inside his head. ELARUUUU WAYVIN!!!!! I better not miss my own exams because of you!!! Or else I¡¯ll grind your body into ten thousand pieces, mission or no mission!! * * * Meanwhile, Elaru Wayvin was racing through the air when she suddenly sneezed. Don¡¯t tell me I caught a cold for real? She didn¡¯t ponder it for long before returning her focus to the task at hand. She was flying above Ashar at the fastest speed Kiel¡¯s body could handle. The poison inside Kiel¡¯s body would disappear by itself in 5 to 6 hours, however, by that time it would be too late. He would miss his exams. She didn¡¯t have the antidote nor did she know the contents of the antidote. If she wanted to get her hands on it, she would need to ask an Etezza for help. However, Fever Touch antidote wasn¡¯t something Etezzas usually carried with them, since most of them were trained until they developed immunity to it. Therefore, she couldn¡¯t just grab a random Etezza and ask for the antidote. Even if she managed to negotiate and obtain their help, they would need some time to return to the mainhouse and pick up the antidote. That time would add up and cause Kiel to miss his exams. She could go directly to the Etezza mainhouse, but what good would that do? She couldn¡¯t just barge into the Etezza family manor and demand an antidote. One couldn¡¯t just meet a high ranking noble just because one wanted to. She needed to have contacts with someone from the main branch of the family to be let in. She was familiar with only two Etezzas from the main branch, neither of which was currently inside the mainhouse. Earlier, while she was still with Dusk Rose, she didn¡¯t get lost in thought as Dusk thought. Instead, she had concentrated on increasing the range of her Aethernea of Sight to check if they were home. Since they weren¡¯t there, her only option would be to break into the Etezza family manor by force to either find someone who she could negotiate with or downright steal the antidote. For Elaru, self-proclaimed as the greatest breaker in the entire land of Halnea, breaking into the Etezza manor wouldn¡¯t be impossible. Unfortunately, since she had no need to break into their manor in the past, she wasn¡¯t familiar with their enchantments, so breaking in would take some time. A time that she currently didn¡¯t have. Back then, while she was still restraining Dusk, Elaru had gone through all of her options and decided on the one that had the highest probability of success. She would put her hopes in Ixos Eryey, the unparalleled genius in the arts of healing and alchemy, proclaimed as the greatest alchemist in the entire land of Halnea. If she showed Fever Touch she stole from Dusk Rose to uncle Ixos, he would be able to determine the composition of the poison and reverse-engineer the antidote. While such a process might take days or even weeks for anyone else, Elaru had faith that to Ixos, such a thing couldn¡¯t even be considered challenging. And thus Elaru brought Kiel to the Eryey mainhouse, this time, not carrying him over her shoulder, but pulling him next to her, side by side.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Back in our Muni days, Zaal used to poison Reena whenever he intended to participate in some shady business to prevent her from interfering and foiling his plans.¡± Elaru nodded satisfied. As expected. Papa is always right. Picking a side between Thayn and Etezza is never the right choice. Unfortunately, Dusk Rose had mixed the poison with other herbs to mask its scent, so Ixos Eryey couldn¡¯t discern all of the components. As the fog inside his mind cleared, his heart skipped a beat. ¡°No!! The exam!¡± Episode 77 – The Antidote Previously: After failing to find an Etezza she is familiar with that can provide her with the antidote for Fever Touch, the poison Kiel had been poisoned with, Elaru decides to put her hopes in Ixos Eryey. Elaru incapacitates Dusk Rose and takes Kiel with much haste to the Eryey mainhouse to see Ixos Eryey.
Episode 77 ¨C The Antidote When Elaru explained her request to Ixos Eryey, the man¡¯s green eyes glazed up. ¡°Fever Touch?¡± Ixos¡¯ murmured, seemingly lost in reminiscence. He took out the stick of burselpine from his mouth, holding it like a cigar, lost in thought. ¡°Oh yeah. I know of that poison. Back in our Muni days, Zaal used to poison Reena whenever he intended to participate in some shady business to prevent her from interfering and foiling his plans.¡± Reena was the genius of the Thayn family and the current head of Peacekeepers. Zaal was the genius of the Etezza family, one of the 7 councilmen and rumored head of the Shadow Lodge. The two went to Muni together and were a part of the famous golden generation. People often joked that they were like an old married couple ¨C always at odds with each other, bickering and fighting, yet, also always protecting and looking after each other. Etezza family and Thayn family always had a love-hate relationship. Thayn family was a family of Peacekeepers that advocated justice and order, while the Etezza family was the family of spies, thieves, and assassins. Naturally, the two families didn¡¯t get along. However, even though they couldn¡¯t see eye to eye, they never erupted in open hostilities. They even helped borrow the hands of the other when necessary. It could be said that the two completed each other. Both needed the other to exist. Ixos Eryey let out a soft smile. ¡°Good times¡­¡± Then he sighed in lamentation. ¡°A pity. Zaal never let me anywhere near Fever Touch.¡± Of course he didn¡¯t! You would have found the antidote! Ixos Eryey sighed again. ¡°And your father never let me experiment on Reena. Something about staying out of Reena¡¯s and Zaal¡¯s relationship?¡± Elaru nodded satisfied. As expected. Papa is always right. Picking a side between a Thayn and a Etezza is never the right choice. Ixos¡¯ eyes focused again and, in fact, became extremely bright. It seemed as though he just realized that what was in front of him was a poison he had never seen before. He snatched the container out of Elaru¡¯s hands in a heartbeat, as if afraid she would change her mind. Then he looked at the box with glittering eyes as if looking at a priceless treasure. My precious¡­.Finally, I get to play with you. He even forgot to chew on the burselpine stick. Elaru stared at Ixos Eryey speechlessly. Seeing the usually apathetic Ixos show such passion never ceased to be¡­ disturbing. Ixos Eryey sniffed the poison gently like he was smelling a fine perfume. It almost looked like he was enjoying it. However, Elaru knew better. The reason why he smelled it was because he hoped that would be able to discern some of the used herbs through the scent. Unfortunately, Dusk Rose had mixed the poison with other herbs to mask its scent so Ixos Eryey couldn¡¯t discern all of the components. After smelling it, Ixos took the cream and placed it inside a strange circular apparatus. The apparatus was large and made out of metal. It had one entrance at the top and many thin glass tubes leaving through the bottom, leading to different bottles. Elaru wasn¡¯t familiar with alchemy, but she knew that the apparatus was used to separate different particles from each other. The device would create a radial Acceleration field which would exert the same amount of power on rotating all particles inside it at extreme speeds. Since particles with larger mass require more mana to reach the same speed as lighter particles, the different particles inside the liquid would end up moving at different speeds because of the difference in their mass. Eventually, different particles would end up being separated from each other and grouped with particles of the same kind. In no time, small drops of differently colored liquid exited through the tubes and dripped down to the bottles underneath. Ixos Eryey shook the bottles and sniffed some of them. Then he took some of his own concoctions of various colors and dripped them into the bottles. After he was done mixing various liquids, his bright eyes dimmed down. This poison didn¡¯t really present much challenge. After finding out the exact composition of the poison, Ixos Eryey stopped to think a bit. Combing through the various knowledge of medicine inside his head to come up with a counter. After a few minutes of silent pondering, he brought out many different herbs and proceeded to concoct an alchemic potion. Soon, Elaru held a small potion bottle filled with a clear liquid and scrunched up her eyebrows. ¡°How certain are you that this will work?¡±This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°100%¡± Ixos stated emotionlessly, with burselpine sticking out of his mouth. ¡°How long before he is completely cured?¡± Elaru couldn¡¯t help but inquire. It would be for the best if Kiel regained consciousness after she left the premises of the Eryey family mainhouse. Otherwise, that would raise many questions. Questions that she wasn¡¯t ready to answer. ¡°5 minutes or so.¡± Elaru smiled gratefully at Ixos Eryey. ¡°Thank you, uncle Ixos.¡± She even gave him a quick hug. Ixos Eryey froze for a second when he received the hug, after which he responded by petting her head. * * * Kiel Rroda felt as light as a feather, as if he was floating in the sky without any weight. Howling of the wind was strangely soothing to his ears. As his consciousness stirred, his Mind spread around him like a veil, touching, feeling the world. Kiel¡¯s eyelids slowly fluttered open to see an endless expanse of gray clouds. He was flying next to Elaru, surrounded by the Invisibility and Reflection barriers. The Reflection barrier shrouded them in a bubble and prevented any particle from entering or leaving the bubble. Besides preventing the two of them from leaving their scent, it also had an additional benefit that showed its value only at high-speed flying. Usually, if they were flying at high speeds, the air would be hitting their faces so hard that they would have trouble breathing and wouldn¡¯t even be able to open their eyes. This time, the air was hitting the Reflection barrier instead so they could enjoy their flight. However, judging by the sweat drops forming on Elaru¡¯s forehead, enjoyment was far from her mind at this point. Flying at such high speed for prolonged periods of time would be taxing for anyone. Elaru also had to sustain an Invisibility barrier and the Reflection barrier. The Reflection barrier was particularly hard to sustain under the constant barrage of air particles colliding with it like a tsunami. Elaru¡¯s mana regeneration was enough to sustain the consumption, however, the wild current of mana that she kept channeling surely put a lot of pressure both on her body and her mind. Just because her soul could sustain the magic didn¡¯t mean that her mind and body could. As Kiel blinked his sleep away, as the fog inside his mind lifted, his heartbeat couldn¡¯t help but accelerate in panic. ¡°No!! The exam!¡± Elaru didn¡¯t turn to look at him, seemingly concentrating hard on sustaining her spells. ¡°We¡¯ll make it.¡± She responded with conviction. Kiel looked at his pocket watch, and his heart dropped into the pit of his stomach. At this rate, we won¡¯t make it! Yet he didn¡¯t voice his worries out loud. Elaru was clearly doing her best. Complaining now wouldn¡¯t help at all. It might even impact her concentration and make them even later than they would be otherwise. He could ask her to release her Acceleration on him so he could fly by himself, but that would make them lose more time than they would gain. Kiel clenched his fist so hard that his fingers turned white. What happened? Why am I not inside Muni, but flying above Ashar? The last thing he remembered was feeling sick. But besides a slight headache and a feeling of grogginess, he felt perfectly fine now. What happened?? The questions were eating at him from inside. With great difficulty, he resisted asking them. He was afraid that Elaru couldn¡¯t spare any concentration on a conversation right now. However, Elaru caught on to his unvoiced questions and started the conversation on her own initiative. ¡°You got poisoned.¡± She stated blandly. ¡°Apparently, your family are losing their patience. They went as far as to hire a Shadow to kidnap you and prevent you from taking the exams.¡± Both his blood and the expression on his face turned icy cold. ¡°Oh?¡± Kiel stated frostily. ¡°I¡¯m surprised that they didn¡¯t just off me. Would have been much simpler.¡± Elaru glanced at him from the corner of her eyes. ¡°¡­I am glad you are taking this so¡­well.¡± Kiel snorted. Indeed. His blood wasn¡¯t boiling, his chest didn¡¯t hurt. There was no shock, no pain, no sadness, no sense of betrayal. No. What he felt right now was cold derision and despise. He had always known that the only person in his entire family that had any resemblance of familial affection towards him was his father. As for the rest of them, they either couldn¡¯t care less or would love it if he just dropped dead. The only reason why he wasn¡¯t buried somewhere in a ditch right now was because they didn¡¯t want to risk provoking the wrath of his father for an inconsequential person that posed no threat to them. He didn¡¯t dwell on the cold-blooded actions of his relatives. It was a pointless endeavor. What bothered him right now was only what happened while he was unconscious and whether he would make it to the exam. ¡°What happened? Explain it to me clearly.¡± Kiel demanded. ¡°Well¡­ you called out to me before fainting¡­ so I came.¡± She responded. Kiel waited for her to continue. ¡°I found you being carried towards the exit of Muni, so I interfered and snatched you. Then I went to find you an antidote for the poison.¡± ¡°You make it sound so simple. Snatching me from a Shadow? Snatching a bone from the jaws of a lupax would be easier.¡± Elaru tried a few times to say something but stopped herself. Finally, she sighed in resignation. ¡°I am familiar with that world¡­the darkness of society I mean¡­ Papa made me sign up to be an operative of the Shadow Lodge for some time.¡± ¡°¡­of course he did.¡± Kiel stared at her with a blank face. ¡°It was an educating experience.¡± She defended. ¡°¡­of course it was.¡± Kiel still stared at her with a blank face. Elaru stared back incredulously. Kiel seemed¡­ too¡­ emotionless about it? It wasn¡¯t that Kiel didn¡¯t believe her or didn¡¯t care about it, it was just that he already understood that Elaru Wayvin was a person with a shady background. There were simply too many clues. The things she knew couldn¡¯t be read in a textbook. She knew what could and couldn¡¯t be stolen, and how to lie and deceive people. She was proficient in avoiding detection, disappearing so that even one of the 15 noble families couldn¡¯t find her. Invisible, traceless. If she didn¡¯t have the qualifications to be a Shadow than no one had them. It didn¡¯t come as a surprise for him to hear her say that she was familiar with the Shadow Lodge. In fact, for a while now he suspected that she was either an assassin, a spy or a thief. Or all three in one package. She even admitted having broken out of prison. If he thought her to be as pure as a freshly fallen snow, he would be downright stupid. Although she claimed that she earned her equipment by doing perfectly ¡°legal quests¡± he clearly remembered her view on what¡¯s legal and what isn¡¯t: ¡°It¡¯s not illegal if I don¡¯t get caught doing it.¡± Recalling that statement, he didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry.
This chapter is dedicated to Christian (PapaD). Thank you so much for supporting Aethernea! I am so glad that you decided to try something ¡°different¡± and gave Aethernea a shot. ?? Coming up in the next episode: He wanted to know. He really wanted to know. They were still just two people unwilling to share their innermost self with others. Kiel¡¯s laugh became louder and more bitter. ¡°Does that mean that no matter how hard I try, no matter how powerful I become, I will never be able to hold fate in my own two hands?¡± Elaru looked down to her left hand. ¡°Perhaps, fate is not something one can hold in a palm of one¡¯s hand.¡± She murmured, her eyes glazing over with sorrow. Kiel¡¯s heart was thumping so hard that if she wasn¡¯t speaking telepathically, he would surely not be able to hear her voice. Even the loud sound of wind got completely overpowered by the frantic beats. Episode 78 – Fate needs two pairs of hands to hold Previously: Elaru goes to see Ixos Eryey, asking him to make her an antidote for Fever Touch ¨C the poison with which Dusk Rose knocked out Kiel. Ixos succeeds in making the antidote and Elaru hurries back towards Muni. Kiel finally wakes up after consuming the antidote and Elaru explains how he got poisoned by a Shadow hired by the Rroda family.
Episode 78 ¨C Fate needs two pairs of hands to hold Kiel shook his head and thought about Elaru¡¯s explanation that couldn¡¯t even be called an explanation, considering how lacking in details it was. He understood that she didn¡¯t want to talk about what happened. That she had many secrets she didn¡¯t want to share. If he asked her how she defeated the Shadow or obtained the antidote, would she even answer? Was it even a good idea for him to know the truth? He wanted to know. He really wanted to know. But if she told him about it, he would become an accomplice to a crime. Perhaps her choice to skim over it was not just a matter of trust. Perhaps she was protecting him in her own way. There were many ways to extract information from people in this world. Ignorance was sometimes the best defense. Not to mention that it was perfectly understandable why she wasn¡¯t willing to share her darkest secrets with him. They only knew each other for several days. If he were in her place, he wouldn¡¯t be sharing his illegal activities with her either. He would never let his emotions take control and prevent him from being cautious. Aetherneal bond connected their minds and souls, but it didn¡¯t make their hearts one and the same. They were still just two people unwilling to share their innermost self with others. Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as he dissected what happened and carefully chose which questions to ask. As he searched his memories, he realized he had no idea how he got poisoned in the first place. Was it the perfume? He did remember how nauseated he felt by the scents. But that didn¡¯t make sense. If it was in the air, why didn¡¯t anyone else feel sick? Did someone prick him with a needle? He remembered girls swarming around him. Grabbing his arms coquettishly. There were also people who introduced themselves. But surely, he would have felt it if someone pricked him? Finally, he squeezed out a question: ¡°How did I get poisoned?¡± This was something he absolutely needed to know. He never wanted this situation to repeat. What he despised the most in this entire world was being weak, being unable to protect himself, being a damsel in distress. Familiar bright red flames flashed through his mind. Never again! Only when his fist started producing cracking sounds did he realize just how hard he had been clenching it. Elaru glanced at him from the corner of her eyes and couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡°It was a rare poison called Fever Touch. It is transmitted through physical contact. The Shadow rubbed it on his palm.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°A handshake! I got poisoned through a handshake?!¡± Suddenly, a deep sense of helplessness swelled up within him. ¡°There is such a thing? How am I supposed to guard against that? Jump away in fright from any physical contact? Cover my whole body in cloth leaving no skin exposed? Wear gloves and a scarf?¡± That time, he promised that he would never again allow himself to be so helpless. That he would become strong. That he would work harder than anyone else, surpass everyone else. He thought that he could learn from this experience so that nothing similar would ever happen again, only to realize that he couldn¡¯t find a fault in his previous behavior. Should he stop shaking people¡¯s hands just because one person poisoned him through a handshake? Should he wear gloves for the rest of his life because of one time he was poisoned? Elaru smiled wryly. ¡°You¡¯re right. Living like that¡­ always on your guard¡­ suspicious of everyone¡­ it isn¡¯t a nice way to live. And for you, who is trying to be a social butterfly¡­ it isn¡¯t an option¡­¡± Kiel chuckled self-deprecatingly. ¡°Are you saying that there is nothing I can do about it? That I cannot prevent this from repeating in the future? That I¡¯ll always be someone¡¯s prey?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes glazed in thought. ¡°There are measures you could take to protect yourself¡­ You could develop an immunity for some of the poisons that are the hardest to defend against.¡± ¡°There are a countless number of poisons out there. I will never be able to develop an immunity to all of them. A weakness¡­ there will always be one that is my weakness.¡± Kiel argued. Elaru didn¡¯t respond. He was right.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. He could select a few to guard against, but different kinds of poison were so numerous that one couldn¡¯t even learn all of their names, let alone develop immunity to them. Kiel¡¯s laugh became louder and more bitter. ¡°Does that mean that no matter how hard I try, no matter how powerful I become, I will never be able to hold fate in my own two hands?¡± Elaru remained silent. Just like Kiel, she had always sought to control her own fate. She worked harder than anyone else, she had more opportunities and backing than anyone else. And yet, no matter how ¡°in control¡± she felt while dealing with the world around her, in reality, there were far too many things out of her control. Eighteen years of struggle and she was still no closer to changing her own fate. Elaru looked down to her left hand that was slightly trembling. ¡°Perhaps, fate is not something one can hold in a palm of one¡¯s hand.¡± She murmured, her eyes glazing over with sorrow. She stared at that hand, covered by dark markings, for a while. Suddenly her eyes widened until they became as wide as saucers. They brightened up, like two balls of flames. Her sorrowful expression morphed into enlightenment. ¡°Fate isn¡¯t something that can be held in the palm of your two hands.¡± Her right hand that was holding Kiel¡¯s arm suddenly grabbed Kiel¡¯s hand instead and brought their intertwined hands upwards to their eye level. ¡°Perhaps, fate is something that needs two pairs of hands to hold!¡± Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat, his mind froze, and he stared at their intertwined hands in a stupor. His eyes landed on Elaru¡¯s face. She was glowing brightly like the sun, excitement flickered in the depths of her eyes. ¡°Perhaps that¡¯s what Aetherneal bond is all about. A way to control fate!¡± Her eyes moved from their intertwined hands and locked with Kiel¡¯s. ¡°It takes two! It takes two people to control fate!¡± Kiel opened his mouth several times to respond, but his mind was completely blank. ¡°Kiel, alone, you will never be able to fully guard against your enemies.¡± Elaru exclaimed confidently. Kiel¡¯s face fell. That¡¯s not good news. Why are you saying it in such an uplifting tone? ¡°But, you are not alone!¡± She smiled brightly, and the whole world stood still. ¡°Not anymore. I am with you.¡± The brilliance of her smile grew even further. ¡°I will always be with you. It is alright if there are things you can¡¯t do. What you can¡¯t do, I¡¯ll do in your stead!¡± Kiel¡¯s heart was thumping so hard that if she wasn¡¯t speaking telepathically, he would surely not be able to hear her voice over the loud sound of his heartbeat. Even the loud sounds of wind got completely overpowered by the frantic beats. His emotions stirred. He could feel her sincerity through the bond, her emotions spilled into him. There was no greed, lust, or desire, no hidden agenda. Just pure and simple¡­ ¡­pure and simple what? What emotion is that? Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Elaru¡¯s bright smile turned gentle, and she looked at him with a strange sentiment. ¡°And what I can¡¯t do¡­ for that¡­ I have you.¡± Kiel felt a strange burning sensation erupt in the center of his chest. He could almost feel his always frozen heart melting under it. Abruptly he turned his face away from Elaru to hide the pink spreading over his cheeks. Silly. Sappy. Foolish. Ridiculous. I just don¡¯t understand how the brain of this girl is wired. One moment cunning and secretive, the other innocent and honest like a new born baby. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that emotions he felt through their bond couldn¡¯t be faked, if it weren¡¯t for the strong resonance between them, he would have thought that she was trying to seduce him. And ironically enough, it was working. He fought desperately to regain his calm. He didn¡¯t want to feel this way. These¡­ emotions¡­ were doomed to cause him endless trouble. Emotions¡­ were better left frozen and buried in the deepest parts of his consciousness. Replaced by calm logic. ¡°I don¡¯t want to rely on anyone. I want to be strong enough on my own.¡± Kiel exclaimed, his eyes still avoiding looking at Elaru. Elaru stared at him for several seconds before retorting: ¡°Relying on others isn¡¯t a sign of weakness. No one can be invincible by themselves.¡± Kiel¡¯s pupils shrunk and the disarray in his mind suddenly stilled. If he had been told this at any other time by anyone else, he would have paid it no attention. He would have thought it to be an excuse for personal weakness. But in the light of what happened today, Kiel realized that if he didn¡¯t have a connection to Elaru, if he didn¡¯t have a true ally, he would have been kidnapped and locked within the Rroda mainhouse. His dream of enrolling into Muni would have shattered into dust. And he would have been powerless to stop it. Not even gods were invincible, let alone he, a mortal. No matter how powerful he became, he would not be able to control everything by himself. If it were so easy to defend against a Shadow, then they wouldn¡¯t be as dreaded as they were. Even heads of noble families wouldn¡¯t want to antagonize a Shadow. And the more brilliantly Kiel shone, the more enemies he would attract. One day, something like this would repeat itself. And there would be no one to help him. An ally, huh? Kiel looked at Elaru from the corner of his eyes. Will you really be my precious ally, Elaru Wayvin? Are you truly someone I can trust? Kiel spoke out: ¡°For the sake of the argument, let¡¯s pretend that I want to be your ally.¡± Elaru smirked and gave him a knowing look. ¡°Sure.¡± Kiel ignored the look and continued. ¡°The question is, can I trust you?¡± His icy blue eyes locked with Elaru¡¯s teal ones. Could he really trust such a secretive person with unknown origin or goal? Kiel was neither na?ve nor optimistic. Logically speaking, she was not trustworthy at all. Yet, a part of him couldn¡¯t help but feel like he could trust her. Elaru didn¡¯t respond to his question right away. Her smile vanished and was replaced by a solemn expression. After a while, she sighed and finally replied. ¡°Friendship and love might fade. Allies might become enemies. But¡­ as long as you remain my friend, my ally, I will remain yours. You can trust that I will not betray you unless you betray me first. You can trust that I will guard your back. You can trust that I will help you to the best of my ability. You can trust that your enemies will be my enemies. That your troubles will be my troubles.¡± Her vow was resolute and sincere. And her actions validated her conviction. He didn¡¯t know what Elaru needed to do to overcome this tribulation, but he knew that it was dangerous. Yet, she didn¡¯t hesitate at all to come to his aid. And she didn¡¯t even complain how tricky it was. For all he knew, she might have gotten injured in the process. But even if she did get injured, would she even tell him? He got the feeling that Elaru Wayvin was the type of person who could get stabbed right through the chest and still walk away from the event smiling and claiming to be fine. A person who could get all her limbs cut off and still crack jokes about it. Regardless of right and wrong, like and hate, this type of person¡­ he couldn¡¯t help but respect.
This chapter is dedicated to Sarrow. Thank you for supporting Aethernea! I hope you stay around, reading and enjoying Aethernea, until the end. ^_^ Coming up in the next episode: After several seconds of silence, Kiel sighed again in resignation. ¡°So be it. Let¡¯s be allies.¡± They neither noticed that their flying speed was slowly increasing nor did they notice a black vine twirling itself around Kiel¡¯s hand, slithering on the top of his skin like a snake. Rau Eryey checked his pocket watch and frowned. ¡°We can¡¯t wait for him any longer. It is time for us to receive the next group of examinees.¡± Episode 79 – Kiel’s Mana Flow Speed Previously: Elaru goes to see Ixos Eryey, asking him to make her an antidote for Fever Touch ¨C the poison with which Dusk Rose knocked out Kiel. Ixos succeeds in making the antidote and Elaru hurries back towards Muni. Kiel finally wakes up after consuming the antidote and Elaru explains how he got poisoned by a Shadow hired by the Rroda family. Kiel realizes that he can¡¯t achieve everything alone, that he needs allies to watch his back as he walks to the top. Episode 79 ¨C Kiel¡¯s Mana Flow Speed After several seconds of silence, Kiel sighed again in resignation. ¡°So be it. Let¡¯s be allies.¡± Elaru¡¯s solemn expression brightened up instantly, her eyes glittered with happiness. ¡°For now.¡± Kiel added, but it didn¡¯t manage to splash cold water on her excitement. ¡°Mates until the end!¡± She grinned and shook his hand, confirming the deal. Kiel looked towards the horizon towards Muni, his heart feeling lighter than ever. Right now, he felt that even if he failed the exams, everything would be alright. The two of them would find a way. The responsibility wasn¡¯t his alone to bear. They would bear it together. Kiel chuckled huskily and glanced at Elaru teasingly. ¡°No one can be invincible by themselves? Really? Not even you?¡± He teased. Elaru grinned sheepishly. ¡°Especially not me.¡± ¡°And here I thought you can do anything.¡± The corner of his lips twitched, threatening to become a smile. Elaru giggled awkwardly.You have no idea how wrong you are¡­ ¡°Elaru¡­¡± Kiel interrupted her chuckle with a soft voice. ¡°Mmm?¡± She murmured. Kiel looked away from her, into the distance, purposefully avoiding her eye. ¡°Thanks¡­¡± His voice was so soft it was almost inaudible. Elaru didn¡¯t say anything, the only sign that she heard it was the soft smile playing at her lips. As they flew towards their destination, neither one noticed that their hands stood intertwined at their side. They neither noticed that their flying speed was slowly increasing nor did they notice a black vine twirling itself around Kiel¡¯s hand, slithering on the top of his skin like a snake. * * * Rau Eryey thumped his fingers impatiently on the teacher¡¯s desk while Kady Ailert sitting next to him stared worriedly at the clock on the wall of the classroom. Rau Eryey¡¯s silver eyebrows furrowed. ¡°We can¡¯t wait for him any longer. It is time for us to receive the next group of examinees.¡± Kady sighed in resignation, regret could be seen flickering in her eyes. ¡°Ah, what a pity. To fall sick during the exams¡­¡± She sighed again. ¡°Let¡¯s wait a few more minutes, and if he still doesn¡¯t arrive, we¡¯ll invite the next group in.¡± Rau shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s no use. No matter if it is a cold or the flu, since it has progressed to the point of him fainting, even if he was given the best medicine, it would still require half a day to reach full recovery.¡± Rau Eryey was not only from the Eryey family that was a family of healers, but he, himself, was also a renowned healer. His words were authoritative in the matter. ¡°Common medicine won¡¯t do, but don¡¯t forget that he is a Rroda. If he manages to contact his family in time, they could feed him one of the more precious elixirs.¡± Kady mused. Rau continued shaking his head. ¡°The Rroda mainhouse is too far away. Without teleporting, it is impossible to cover the distance in time.¡± The two stayed silent after that, watching the seconds ticking away. After a while, Kady got up from her seat reluctantly. ¡°Such a pity.¡± She murmured as she went to the classroom entrance to invite the next batch of examinees. She plastered on an amiable expression to greet the examinees and opened the door. The forced smile turned into pleasant surprise as she noticed a figure standing right in front of the door, with his hand up in the air, just about to knock on the door. Kiel Rroda¡¯s black and blue hair was a bit ruffled giving him a rebellious vibe. His pale blue eyes were calm, without any ripples, like the surface of a pool. He was momentarily surprised when Kady opened the door, but soon he smiled apologetically and was about to explain, however, she interrupted him. ¡°Quickly! Enter. We don¡¯t have much time left.¡± Kady ushered him in gleefully. Kiel let out an internal sigh of relief.So close! If he came a minute later, it would have been too late. In fact, initially, he was sure that they wouldn¡¯t make it. But when they arrived he realized that he had underestimated the speed they were traveling at.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. He got the urge to give Elaru thumbs up, but she had flung him towards the door without bothering to remove her Invisibility, so currently he had no idea where she was. And besides, since he appeared out of thin air, the examinees gathered in front of the classroom were already giving him strange looks, he didn¡¯t want to encourage strange rumors by giving thumbs up to an invisible person. Kiel quickly made his way towards the black, shiny cauldron in the center of the room. On the outside of the cauldron, in the middle, there was a handle in the form of an hourglass. To start the exam, Kiel needed to grasp the hourglass and twist it upside down. That would activate the crystallizer and would also make the sand inside the hourglass start flowing. When the last grain of sand from the upper half of the hourglass disappeared, the crystallizer would power down, and the exam would be over. Above the hourglass was a speedometer that would measure Kiel¡¯s mana flow speed and provide a score based on his average mana flow and maximum achieved mana flow. This crystallizer was specifically made for the exam, so its purpose wasn¡¯t only to crystalize mana. It would also keep track of mana entering it and calculate the mana flow speed. Mana Flow Speed was the speed at which the mage could transfer the mana from his soul to his aura, making it ready for usage. It was an important metric that could be used to determine how many spells the mage would be able to cast in a given time, how many spells the mage could sustain, and the mage¡¯s theoretical maximum possible casting speed. Kiel didn¡¯t dally around and instantly turned the hourglass upside down. As soon as he did so, the markings on the cauldron lit up and the space inside the cauldron twisted, creating a whirlpool. To achieve the highest score possible for his Mana Flow Speed, Kiel needed to quickly reach the highest mana transfer speed his body and soul could handle and keep it up as long as possible. Since Kiel had been mana tempering his body recently, he was aware of how much mana his body could handle so he didn¡¯t slowly increase his mana channeling speed but started off from a high speed right away. Kiel could tell that his and Elaru¡¯s shared soul was very close because the soul tendrils connecting his body to the soul were numerous and thick, not stretched at all. Like water flowing through pipes, his mana flowed from his mana pool through his soul tendrils into his body. Then it continued to flow through his flesh into the air around him, only to be sucked into the crystallizer by the whirlpool. Kiel concentrated to the best of his ability, constantly increasing his mana flow speed until his body started aching and burning. A huge whirlpool of mana surrounded him, like a tempest. The crystallizer greedily sucked in the whirlpool. Small glittering crystals started condensing inside the cauldron. Like plants they grew and grew, letting out a resplendent golden light. The hand of the speedometer kept moving to the right. 15. 18. 20. When the hand of the speedometer reached 20, it slowed down, as if indecisive. Each little twitch of the needle seemed to take forever. Each twitch caused a new wave of pain to rack Kiel¡¯s body. His every cell burned, yet stubbornly he refused to yield.I can still¡­ go on! He clenched his fists and grit his teeth, staring sharply inside the crystallizer, focusing all his attention on transferring his mana into the crystallizer as fast as possible. The sharp pain made his entire body shake. The sand inside the hourglass seemed to take forever to slid down the bottleneck.
  1. 22.
Although his body was bordering on collapse, burning and twitching painfully, his soul tendrils weren¡¯t bloated at all. Not a single one of them snapped. If his soul tendrils started snapping, it would mean that he had reached the highest mana flow speed that his soul could achieve. That he had achieved his highest potential and could no longer improve. However, achieving one¡¯s highest potential was almost impossible. For most people, their bottleneck, the thing stopping them from achieving their highest possible mana flow speed, was their body. In practice, the mana flow speed of the mage didn¡¯t depend on the amount and size of the soul tendrils, but instead, was a combination of mana resistance and tolerance of the body. Kiel¡¯s mind and heart raced. His blood boiled as he remembered how many rare mana tempering elixirs and pills his brother had been given by the Rroda family while Kiel received none at all. His nails dug into his palms as he remembered how his brother had been allowed to use the mana tempering room inside the Rroda mainhouse whenever he wished, while Kiel was denied entry. 23. Fierce, unyielding light flashed in Kiel¡¯s eyes. He refused to give up! He would reach the highest score even if it meant fainting under pressure! He would show his family that he didn¡¯t need their help! 24. Endlessly, mana flowed into the crystallizer showing no sign of slowing down. The blood slid down Kiel¡¯s fingers slowly, however, before it could drip down to the floor, the intensity of the mana around it caused it to turn into red mist. The glow of the crystallizer intensified, coupled by the constantly growing golden glow of the crystals, it covered up the red mist that started seeping out of Kiel¡¯s 7 orifices. Kiel placed his fists on the table on which the crystallizer was sitting to hold his body up from slumping down on the ground. He watched the speedometer intently with bloodshot eyes. 25. When the needle landed on the highest number, a boom reverberated inside Kiel¡¯s mind, and he swallowed down the mouthful of blood that threatened to come out. He exhaled a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding and finally slowed down the river of mana threatening to consume him. His hot breath turned into smoke when it reached the air. The smoke glittered with a pink color of blood crystals. Although Kiel¡¯s body shook in pain, his mouth morphed into a radiant smile. He barely registered the pain as endless glee erupted inside his heart. The changes to his body caused by the Aetherneal bond lowered the mana resistance of his body and increased its mana tolerance significantly. The mana tempering he had performed increased it further, slightly improving his body each time. And the cherry on top was the Firebird Flame Pill he had consumed. Its effects were downright miraculous. When he thought about how many different elixirs and pills his brother had consumed over the years, it caused Kiel to chuckle inwardly. All those expensive things paled in comparison to a single Firebird Flame Pill. Where on Halnea did Elaru get such a miraculous pill? Kiel shook his head. His body still wasn¡¯t as adept at channeling mana as his brother¡¯s. When his brother took the exam, he didn¡¯t need to cause damage to his body to reach 25 points. But Kiel wasn¡¯t dispirited because of that, his current goal wasn¡¯t to surpass his brother. It was to reach 25 points. Kiel focused once again at the crystallizer in front of him. Now that he had reached 25 points in Mana Flow Speed test, the speedometer won¡¯t drop down even if his mana flow speed lowered. All he had to do now was to ace the second part of the test, which tested Mana Pool size and Mana Regeneration. He would need to condense as large of a crystal as he could. Coming up in the next episode: Elaru¡¯s soul was simply an abomination that shouldn¡¯t exist. There was even scorn in the depths of their eyes as if saying ¡°A non-mage still hopes to enroll in Muni? How laughable.¡± Suddenly, Kiel had a bad feeling. As hairs rose on the back of his neck, a lightning flashed eerily in the sky. Elaru intertwined her fingers and stretched her arms out in front of her, smirking provocatively. This will be¡­ fun. Episode 80 – Quake and Thunder Previously: After being poisoned by Dusk Rose and cured by Ixos Eryey, Kiel makes it just barely in time to take his exam. Episode 80 ¨C Quake and Thunder Kiel looked at the hourglass and determined he had enough time to condense a large enough crystal to reach 25 points. In fact, as he spent his mana, he couldn¡¯t even feel the mana pool emptying itself at all, which was a rather bizarre phenomenon. Either the mana pool was so large that the amount he had used up was insignificant, or Elaru¡¯s mana regeneration speed was higher than Kiel¡¯s mana flow speed. Usually, mana flow speed was much higher than mana regeneration speed, which meant that mages could spend mana faster than they could replenish it. Most of the time, even when mages had higher mana regeneration speed than their mana flow speed it was because their mana flow speed was horrid, not because their mana regeneration was monstrously high. However, obviously, this was not the case with Elaru. Her soul was simply an abomination that shouldn¡¯t exist. The sand slowly slid down the hourglass. As soon as the last drop slid down, the glowing markings on the crystallizer went out, and the attraction force inside the crystallizer disappeared. Kiel let out a breath of relief. Rau Eryey and Kady Ailert quickly reached his side and complimented him. Rau reached his hands inside the cauldron and pulled out a large yellow crystal the size of a man¡¯s head. The crystal seemed to be quite heavy as he placed it on a weight scale next to the crystallizer with some difficulty. The meter of a scale quickly skyrocketed. Kady Ailert beamed as she looked at the number. ¡°Impressive.¡± She smiled. ¡°That is enough for 25 points. Congratulations. The great majority of examinees run out of mana before the end of the test. Your mana pool size is quite extraordinary.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Kiel nodded and smiled modestly. This situation was completely opposite of what happened last year when he took the test. He remembered the pitying gazes of the examiners clearly. There was even scorn in the depths of their eyes as if saying ¡°A non-mage still hopes to enroll in Muni? How laughable.¡± He remembered how they picked up a pinky-sized crystal from the crystallizer and wondered if they should even bother weighting it. He remembered how his cheeks burned in shame, how he had subconsciously pulled his hood tighter around his head as to conceal as much of his features as he could, otherwise he would die out of shame if the two examiners recognized him on the street. Today, he walked out of the classroom with his head held high, albeit with shaky footsteps. Today, there was no blush of shame on his face, only the sickly paleness due to the damage caused to his body. Today, his heart soared high in the sky, all the chains binding it crumbled away. With his current exam score, it was no longer a matter of whether he passed the exams. It was only the matter of how high he placed. * * * The gray curtain covered the sky completely, congregating into thick clumps that looked tangible. Although it was early afternoon, the courtyard of Muni was shrouded in shadows as if it was dusk. Kiel Rroda sat in the most secluded corner of Red Quarters main hall he could find. His body wasn¡¯t in the best of conditions, so his usually non-existent desire to socialize was even less existent. He was also worried that he might be attacked by a Shadow again, so instead of hiding in the middle of nowhere, he decided to hide himself in plain sight ¨C in the main hall that was full of people. Since he was mostly hidden from sight by the large pillars, he wouldn¡¯t be disturbed by random people, and yet, he was still close enough to the crowd so that the Shadow wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything excessive. Still, he hoped Elaru would be done with her exam soon so that they could leave Muni. He felt the safest when he was by her side, under Invisibility barrier. When they were Invisible and concealing their presence, he felt as if they were separated from the world, in a world of their own. Like nothing could disturb them or touch them. Kiel sighed softly and looked at his pocket watch. Elaru¡¯s exam should be starting soon. Hopefully, she¡¯ll be the first one to take the exam in her group so that he wouldn¡¯t need to wait for her much longer. If she wasn¡¯t finished soon, they would end up caught in a storm. Kiel looked up at the glass dome. The gray clouds reflected in his icy blue eyes making them look gray as well. Suddenly, Kiel got a bad feeling. Just as his hairs rose on the back of his neck, a bright light flashed in the sky. The sound of heavy rainfall reached his ears before the rumbling of thunder. The large raindrops heavily bombarded the dome like thousands of arrows, followed by an explosive sound of thunder that made the entire building shake as if hit by a cannon. ¡°Earthquake!¡± Someone screamed. The screech seemed to shake everyone awake from their shock, and they sprouted into action. Some hid under the tables. Some confusedly looked about, unsure of what to do. Some just sat there, watching the pillars and the ceiling vigilantly, hoping that they won¡¯t crumble and fall on their heads. Some huddled together like a herd of scared meep. The earth shook more and more violently under Kiel¡¯s feet. The harder the building shook, the more panicked the people became. Some of them could no longer keep their balance and stumbled to the ground.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The sounds of shock and distress spreading through the main hall were almost loud enough to overpower the rumbling of thunder. Initially, Kiel intended to continue sitting where he was, waiting for the earthquake to subside but then he noticed that his calm behavior was drawing too much attention from the people around him. In the chaos, people who retained their calm stood out like sore thumbs. His handsome and noble appearance, coupled with his peaceful demeanor with an unperturbed facial expression made people unconsciously look at him for support. Countless pairs of eyes looked at him, asking for comfort. Kiel swore inside his head.Darn earthquake! Just my luck!Outwardly, he smiled wryly and decided that in such a situation, the herd of headless meep was looking for him to lead them. He should speak a few comforting words and calm them down, right? This was an opportunity to make a positive impression. ¡°There is no need to panic.¡± Kiel spoke up in a soothing tone that pierced through the main hall like a hot knife through butter. ¡°The professors have already noticed the disturbance. If they deem that the building is in danger of collapsing, they will reinforce it with magic.¡± Kiel smiled gently. His smile instantly brightened the room and calmed down the hearts of everyone who saw it. Kiel continued: ¡°It definitely won¡¯t colla¡­¡± Before he could finish his speech, an agitated yell coming from a nearby table interrupted him. ¡°Meepshit!!!¡± Kiel¡¯s face froze. Why is it that recently nothing seemed to be going his way? Why was it that there were always people making trouble for him? How did he offend this guy for him to contradict him so openly? Kiel¡¯s eyes landed on an argel who yelled out. He had short, and spiky bright yellow hair layered on top of bloody red strands. His blazing eyes were the same bright, bloody red color as the highlights in his hair. Where other people were stumbling because of the earthquake, the blond was standing like a statue. Where other people were starting to calm down, the guy was getting more and more agitated. Kiel couldn¡¯t feel any hostility towards him from the argel¡¯s aura. In fact, the boy didn¡¯t even seem to have noticed Kiel.Wait¡­? Could it be that he isn¡¯t picking a fight with me but is actually really afraid of earthquakes? Should he try to calm this person down? Once again Kiel started speaking in his husky voice pleasant to the air. ¡°It¡¯ll be alri¡­¡± But once again, before he could finish he was interrupted by swearing. ¡°Damn it!¡± The blond screeched. ¡°There must be an incredible battle in the Arena happening right now!! Oi, oi! Does anyone know who is fighting in the Arena right now?!¡± He is¡­ agitated thinking that he was missing an exciting arena battle?? Wait¡­ he actually thinks the earthquake is caused by an intense arena battle??? Kiel stood unmoving and speechless, not knowing whether he should laugh or cry.Why do I keep running into weirdoes?! * * * Elaru Wayvin wanted to take her exam as soon as possible. Leaving Kiel on his own while there was a Shadow after him left her feeling uncomfortable. When she volunteered to take the exam first, Deora Thayn shot her down. ¡°No way! I am saying no to all of your requests from now on!!¡± Elaru blinked twice innocently looking at the furious looking Deora. ¡°In that case¡­¡± she mused. ¡°Can I¡­not go first?¡± Deora once again screamed ¡°No!¡± before she could finish. However, when he heard the end of her sentence the yell abruptly got stuck in his throat and Deora¡¯s face turned as red as a tomato. ¡°You think you are smart, don¡¯t you?!?¡± Elaru nonchalantly nodded her head. ¡°Yeah.¡± Deora gaped at her dumbfounded. Before he could recover, Zerel nodded his head approvingly with a sly smile. ¡°Since little Dei agrees to it, sure, you can go first.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t agree!!! I definitely don¡¯t agree!!¡± Deora roared, only to be completely ignored by both Zerel and Elaru. Zerel motioned Elaru to enter, his eyes squinted into crescent moons. Elaru walked in victoriously. ¡°OUT!!!¡± Deora slammed his fist on the teacher¡¯s table and pointed his finger to the door. ¡°You. Are. Not. Going. FIRST!¡± ¡°Little Dei, you already gave her your permission. Don¡¯t tell me you are going back on your word?¡± Zerel shook his head disappointedly. ¡°So much for virtues of a Thayn¡­¡± Deora ground his teeth, his face was so red that one could almost see steam coming out of his ears. ¡°You love seeing the world burn, don¡¯t you?¡± He spat out, glaring daggers at Zerel. If looks could kill, Zerel would have died ten thousand times in the most miserable way possible. Zerel smirked. ¡°Why do you think I chose to be partnered with you?¡± Deora once again slammed his fists on the table. ¡°I can¡¯t believe principal Eruan allowed you to supervise the exams! You shouldn¡¯t even be a professor with how you keep causing trouble!¡± Zerel¡¯s eyes widened, and he suddenly erupted into a fit of giggles. ¡°You¡¯re the one to talk. Truly a pot calling the kettle black.¡± Elaru took advantage of their squabble to approach the crystallizer and start the test before Deora could forcefully kick her out. She intertwined her fingers and stretched her arms out in front of her, smirking provocatively.This will be¡­ fun. And then, with the excited gleam in her eyes, she twisted the hourglass handle upside down. Deora and Zerel that didn¡¯t stop bickering when she activated the crystallizer suddenly turned silent. Elaru had finally retracted her mind cocoon, allowing the full extent of her aura to erupt unbridled. To every mind that touched her aura, it would seem as if they were suddenly swallowed by the rampaging sea and sunk to the bottom. The pressure of mana made the air inside the room feel heavy. It became stifling. Every breath became painful. Both Deora who was furious and Zerel who was amused, suddenly turned solemn, completely forgetting their argument. The crystallizer lit up with blindingly bright light and started producing a loud hum. The table on which the crystallizer was placed started shaking and trembling. Elaru¡¯s long ponytail started whirling and flapping like a flag, although there was no wind. The sea of mana surrounding Elaru created a whirlpool, two meters in diameter that swallowed both her and the crystallizer inside a chaotic tempest. The arrow inside the speedometer jumped to the right so fast that it almost broke off. Coming up in the next episode: The illumination crystals on the ceiling started flickering in and out and swaying dangerously left and right. He screeched miserably. ¡°STOP!!!¡± Drenched like a drowned lunar, his clothes sticking to his slim build like second skin, Dusk Rose walked towards the White Quarters slowly with a sullen face. Episode 81 – Conclusion of the Mana Exam Previously: Elaru creates a scene on her exam, the intensity of her aura causes the entire building to shake. People inside the main hall of the building are alarmed because of the earthquake. Kiel tries to calm down the situation. Meanwhile, Dusk Rose, the assassin hired by Venric Rroda to kidnap Kiel, is still stuck with Elaru¡¯sneedle inside his neck preventing him from moving. Episode 81 ¨C Conclusion of the Mana Exam The illumination crystals on the ceiling started flickering in and out and swaying dangerously left and right. Zerel¡¯s lunar-like eyes shined brightly like two huge ingots of gold. Excitement, curiosity, mirth, expectation, and interest intertwined together, making his aura wiggle around like a litter of mischievous, newborn vulpies. Deora¡¯s eyes widened, a tinge of panic seeping out through his aura. If his attention wasn¡¯t already preoccupied, Zerel¡¯s strange aura would have made his skin crawl. Elaru¡¯s black and red striped scarf started flying around like wriggling snakes. The dark sky seemed to get darker. And then suddenly, a bright flash of lightning illuminated the whole room. As if the crystals inside the black pot were the source of lightning, they shined with the same golden luster as the lighting. The hum of the crystallizer was getting louder and louder, eventually becoming a high-pitched buzzing. A tree of crystals spread out from the pot with numerous crystals dangling around like leaves. The roots of the tree looked as if they were pushing against the pot, trying to break out. As if, at any moment the pot would crack open. The earth shook dangerously, making the shelves inside the room creak and the items clatter. Deora¡¯s heart almost leaped out of his chest in alarm. He let out a miserable screech: ¡°STOP!!!¡± however, it was suppressed by the rumbling of thunder. Elaru either didn¡¯t hear him or pretended that she didn¡¯t. The torrent of mana passing through her skin seemed to distort the air around her, giving her a misty, ethereal glow. The crystal tree reflected in Elaru¡¯s eyes, the golden color mixing with her teal magically as if it was always meant to be there. Small beads of sweat dripped down the side of her head, glittering as if they were made of transparent crystal. Deora got up from his seat intending to stop the exam. This custom crystallizer was the most expensive exam device they had. Under no circumstance should he allow it to be damaged! Deora jumped over the table and Accelerated towards the crystallizer, however, just as he activated the spell, Zerel¡¯s pale hands wrapped around his ankle. ¡°Little Dei, we aren¡¯t allowed to interfere with the exam.¡± Zerel¡¯s pull made Deora lose his balance and stumble towards the exact black pot he had been trying to save. ¡°Ah! Little Dei! Careful!¡± Zerel exclaimed. It was hard to tell whether his worry and surprise was genuine or sarcastic. Horror overtook Deora¡¯s face as he fell face first towards the crystallizer. He recast the Acceleration in attempts to forcefully change his direction of movement, missing the pot by a hair¡¯s width. As Deora stabilized himself, cold sweat dripped down his face in streams. He took raspy breaths and glared at Elaru. ¡°Stop¡­ Right¡­ Now!¡± This time, Elaru seemed to take notice of his efforts and her gaze converged on Deora. She exhaled a hot breath that turned into white mist. The whirlpool of mana around her slowly slowed down and seemed to dissipate. Not even half of the sand inside the hourglass had flowed down the bottleneck. The exam wasn¡¯t supposed to be over just yet. Deora let out several deep breaths to calm down. His face was as red as his hair. He glared hatefully at Elaru as if she had massacred his whole family. ¡°Get out!¡± He squeezed out through gritted teeth and pointed to the exit of the classroom. Elaru blinked several times in confusion, and then her face fell, looking at Zerel with a wronged look. Her long ears drooped down pitifully. Zerel beamed brightly at her, stars glittering in his eyes. Elaru expected him to say something, but he just looked at her with a gaze that caused her to involuntarily shiver. It was a gaze a lupax used to look at a fat and juicy meep. The size of the crystal should be enough for me to score full points. I should just go¡­Elaru concluded.¡­before Firecracker explodes. Speaking of which, why did he hate her so much? She never did anything to provoke his ire! Elaru clicked her tongue before walking out of the room with slumped shoulders. Deora felt no pity for her. Instead, he snorted and bowed down to pull the crystal inside the crystallizer out. Usually, examiners would weigh the crystal to determine the exam score in the category of Mana Pool Size and Mana Regeneration. But actually, Deora wanted to remove the crystal so that the crystallizer can be used again by the next examiner. The crystal tree inside the pot looked like a fragile art piece. Deora grabbed it lightly, careful not to break it. Unfortunately, the fragile looking crystal tree that should have been feather light, turned out to be heavier than if it was made out of lead. Unprepared for the large weight, Deora didn¡¯t manage to pick it up. His pull only made both himself and the tree lose balance.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He stumbled towards the crystallizer, unceremoniously stubbing his toe on the leg of the table. Deora didn¡¯t even have the time to scream and curse, when the legs of the table, which had already been weakened by Elaru¡¯s mana whirlpool, finally snapped under the weight of Deora¡¯s falling body and the heavy crystal tree. The table toppled over to the floor, followed by the crystallizer in the shape of a round pot that beautifully rolled like a barrel. The pot crashed heavily on the ground causing the entire room to shake. A loud fracturing sound spread through the room. Sand slipped through the cracks in the now shattered hourglass, creating small sand dunes on the ground. The sand even entered inside Deora¡¯s shoes. The soft tapping sound of rain reverberated like hammers inside Deora¡¯s head. A brief silence settled inside the room before it was broken by a mournful howl. Elaru was debating whether she should wait in front of the room, thinking that perhaps the two examiners wanted to test her again later, when the loud crash entered her ears. The painful bellow that followed dispelled any indecisiveness she had. Clearly, it would be better for her to get lost as soon as possible. Therefore, with haste, she Accelerated away towards the main hall where Kiel had been waiting for her. Deora continued to scream in anguish for a long while after Elaru¡¯s retreat, taking his pain out on the crystal tree that shattered like glass, sprinkling shards all over the carpet. ¡°Eh??¡± Zerel complained. ¡°Little Dei, aren¡¯t you going to weigh the crystal?¡± ¡°&%$#! Do you want the scale to break too?!?¡± * * * * * * * * * * * * * Dusk Rose slowly walked towards the White Quarters, with a sullen face. His clothes stuck to his slim build like a second skin, making him look like a drowned lunar. His shoes made squishy, wet noises with every step. Dusk Rose couldn¡¯t help but flinch each time he heard the sound. His long thin braid that would usually jump around animatedly, now laid lifelessly, plastered against his back. During his attempts at removing the platinum needles out of his neck, he had dispelled Fa?ade and returned to his true appearance. His previously brown eyes turned as green as grass. His previously dark brown hair that fell around his face messily started darkening and twisting around. The strands around his head shortened while the hair on his back lengthened until it morphed into a braid that reached his waist. On first glance, his hair looked black, but under the light, it let out a vibrant green shine that created a beautiful harmony with the green of his eyes. His previously unremarkable and goofy face morphed into a delicate looking youth. His face wasn¡¯t eye-catching and would easily be disregarded by passersby. However, if one bothered to take a closer look, one would realize that his face was extremely easy on the eyes and could be considered as quite pretty. His seemingly ordinary clothes writhed around like snakes, rearranging themselves into a black leather outfit that gave Dusk Rose a dangerous look. After dispelling Fa?ade, it took some additional effort for Dusk Rose to morph his braid around the first needle, tightening it like a rope. After which, he finally succeeded in pulling out the blasted needle. Regrettably, while he was in the process of pulling it out, the anticipated storm finally erupted. The lightning split the sky in half, and a waterfall of rain followed, drenching him in water from head to toe in only a few seconds. The branches of the tree he was lying under were large and wide apart, providing him almost no shelter from the rain. On the upside, at least he managed to free himself in time for his own exams. As he walked towards his exam classroom, his face was frowning the entire time. After his exams, he needed to return to his handler and report the results of his mission. But¡­ how could he explain getting robbed and ¡°tied up¡± for hours under the rain?? That was simply too embarrassing to be put into words! He couldn¡¯t lie about what happened, that would be considered as a false report which is an ultimate taboo in the world of spies and assassins. However, he could word the happenings carefully and turn it into a less embarrassing version of what transpired. Something that wouldn¡¯t make all his cousins laugh their arses off for the next ten years. Unfortunately, no matter how he tried thinking about it, his encounter with Elaru Wayvin was simply too embarrassing. Perhaps he should glorify her achievements to make his loss look like something natural? But wouldn¡¯t that do Elaru Wayvin a favor by increasing her reputation? Dusk Rose ground his teeth. He didn¡¯t want to increase her reputation! He wanted payback! He sighed and reached into his pocket to get a handkerchief to wipe his nose that started dripping watery snot. Unfortunately, even his handkerchief was wet. Dusk Rose stared at his pretty handkerchief embroidered with flowery patterns sadly. His nose twitched, and he couldn¡¯t help but sneeze.Bloody tarnation! Don¡¯t tell me I caught a cold? Is this divine retribution or just plain and simple irony? * * * * * * * * * * * * * When the earthquake finally subsided, the people inside the main hall started calming down. Kiel continued his act of a flawless prince by going around helping people up from under the tables, and showing fake concern for their wellbeing, while internally, he was cursing his bad luck. Once he stepped up it was hard to step down, he had to act like a prince charming until the end. Thus, when he finally noticed Elaru coming down to the main hall, he was like a drowning man who had been thrown a lifeline. Quickly, he changed his direction of movement, going towards her. He placed his hand on her upper arm comfortingly and looked at her with deep concern. ¡°Are you alright?¡± His sweet tone and false concern gave Elaru goosebumps. ¡°I was fine until you asked about it.¡± Kiel tilted his head to the side and looked at her innocently. ¡°Whatever do you mean?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched, but in the end, she decided to play along. She grabbed his arm affectionately. ¡°You made me remember the appointment we have downtown. We should hurry. Otherwise, we¡¯ll be late.¡± If her statement was false, Kiel wouldn¡¯t have been surprised. They were acting out a play that would give them an excuse to leave the main hall. However, the bond told him that half of the statement was actually true.¡°You have some kind of an appointment? Is it to pick up the ring?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±Elaru smiled and led Kiel out of the main hall while he looked around at the crowd apologetically and nodded to the people present, politely excusing himself. Coming up in the next episode: The man interrupted him. ¡°Exactly. You don¡¯t see a Shadow. That¡¯s the whole point of the occupation. To not be seen.¡± ¡°Light? Is that your Shadow nickname?¡± Just as the man said his goodbye, lightning flashed once again illuminating the face under the cloak. At that moment, all his thoughts completely stilled. He could no longer look away. One look was enough.Enough for him to decide that this was a girl he had to have. Episode 82 – Picking up the ring Previously: Elaru finishes her exam. Kiel and her leave Muni and go to the city to pick up the ring Elaru left to be enchanted. Episode 82 ¨C Picking up the ring Goddas sat on the armchair next to the tea table in his room, wiping the sweat from his unusually pale forehead with his handkerchief. The dark bags under his eyes were a testament to how hard he had been working the last few days just to meet the set deadline. In a small box on the table in front of him stood a black and silver ring that looked elegant yet beautiful. After inspecting the ring for several seconds, Goddas sighed and looked out of the window to the storm brewing outside. The rain was falling like it wanted to drown the entire world. The lightning sliced down as if it wanted to split the world in half. When the lightning flashed, it was so bright that it hurt Goddas¡¯ eyes, so he looked away towards the ring once again. However, what greeted him was an empty table and a non-empty chair opposite of him. Goddas let out a loud screech that resembled a porkling getting slaughtered. However, the rumbling of thunder overpowered the sound. The cloaked person, sitting in the chair opposite of Goddas, looked at him calmly, waiting for him to stop screaming. Goddas panted for several seconds, with eyes bulging out of their sockets, before he finally managed to voice his complaints. ¡°Motherfrakker! Are you trying to kill me?! Must you always appear out of thin air without any sound?!? Can¡¯t you knock, announce yourself or ring a doorbell like everyone else?!?!¡± The person held the ring box and looked at Goddas as he was looking at an idiot. ¡°Have you ever seen a Shadow enter through the front door?¡± Goddas frowned. ¡°No but¡­¡± The man interrupted him. ¡°Exactly. You don¡¯t see a Shadow. That¡¯s the whole point of the occupation. To not be seen.¡± Goddas opened and closed his mouth like a fish. The man didn¡¯t let him regain his bearing and continued. ¡°Besides, why are you making such a fuss? You were obviously waiting for me, so how come you get such a scare when I actually show up?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of the way how you appear out of thin air! I have a heart of a pechuh that is easily startled!¡± The fatty whined miserably. ¡°Goddas¡­¡± The man stated solemnly. ¡°Don¡¯t insult the courage of a pechuh.¡± Goddas stared at him blankly for several seconds before he realized. ¡°Frakk! Are you making fun of me?!¡± The man waved the issue off, completely ignoring the red flush on fatty¡¯s face, and instead concentrated on the ring, scrutinizing it with both his eyes and his mana sense. The cowardly fatty would have been shivering and hoping that the ring was to the man¡¯s taste if it weren¡¯t for the fact that he was confident in his work. He knew that the ring didn¡¯t have any flaws. His work never had flaws. And indeed, the cloaked man nodded his head approvingly. ¡°Thanks for your hard work.¡± He looked up to Goddas whose face displayed a self-satisfied smile. ¡°Of course. I always do a good job¡± was written clearly all over his round face. The man chose not to comment further and instead changed the subject. ¡°This concludes our business. Consider your debt repaid. If you have a need for me in the future, just drop by the Shadow Lodge and ask for ¡®Light¡¯.¡± I finally managed to get rid of you! Why would I go look for you myself??Fatty thought, yet what he asked was: ¡°Light? Is that your Shadow nickname?¡± The man shut the box with one hand and pocketed it inside his cloak. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t suit you at all.¡± Goddas grumbled.Who in their right mind would nickname a Shadow ¡®Light¡¯? A shadow is anything but ¡®Light¡¯!¡± Wait!Goddas¡¯ eyes narrowed.Is it because he is proficient in using Light magic? The man ignored the comment and got up from his seat gracefully. ¡°I won¡¯t linger around needlessly. Take care, Goddas.¡± Light paused as he reached the window and looked back at Goddas one last time. ¡°¡®til next time¡­¡± Just as the man said his goodbye, lightning flashed once again illuminating the face under the cloak. It was only a brief moment, and in the next, the man was gone. However, that brief moment was enough for Goddas to imprint the man¡¯s face in his memory. It was a skinny man in his late twenties, with tanned skin and eyes as black as midnight. His hair was as dark as his eyes and slightly messy, framing his completely unremarkable face. It was one of those faces that didn¡¯t stand out in the crowd. A face that was neither ugly nor pretty, but simply average in every way. In fact, a few minutes later, Goddas had trouble remembering his exact facial features for they were simply too ordinary. Light huh? I better investigate this guy.Goddas thought. He had wanted to investigate this bane of his existence since the first time they met. However, he neither knew his name nor appearance, so he had nothing to investigate. This time, however, not only did the man reveal his Shadow nickname, but Goddas also managed to accidentally get a glimpse of his appearance. Now he could finally go down to the Shadow Lodge and ask around. He needed to know whether he could trust this guy not to kill him in the middle of the night. He needed to know how to guard against him. How to stop him from walking into his home as if he owned the place. Although the man never showed any hostility towards Goddas, the fatty would be hard-pressed to trust such a shady person. Now that he had repaid his debt, the man might deem Goddas¡¯ existence as unnecessary and decide to off him. The thought caused all fatty¡¯s hair to stand on end. He shivered involuntarily. Perhaps the man would come back one day, demanding Goddas to do more work for him? Even if he refused to pay for the work, what could Goddas do about it? How could he deal with such a person? Indeed, he should pay a visit to the Shadow Lodge. * * * * * * * * * * * * Kiel and Elaru landed in front of the main entrance of Black Pearl restaurant, hand in hand, and dispelled their spells so that would once again become visible and detectable. After Elaru finally got her hands on the finished magic artifact in the shape of a ring, she decided to take Kiel to Black Pearl restaurant once again. The security and privacy of the restaurant would allow her to divulge the secrets of the ring without worrying about potential eavesdroppers. And also, it was about time for them to eat lunch. So, going there was killing two birds with one stone. As soon as the two entered the restaurant, they were greeted by the same sight as last time. A servant stepped forward from the wall of servants to greet them. The man in tuxedo bowed respectfully. ¡°Welcome to Black Pearl my lord and lady. I will be your personal servant today. Do honored guests have any special instructions?¡± Kiel smiled back politely, his elegance and refinement of a noble on full display. And then he spoke out in his soothing voice: ¡°We would like some privacy.¡± Episode 82 ¨C Picking up the ring Goddassat on the armchair next to the tea table in his room, wiping the sweat from his unusually pale forehead with his handkerchief. The dark bags under his eyes were a testament to how hard he had been working the last few days just to meet the set deadline. In a small box on the table in front of him stood a black and silver ring that looked elegant yet beautiful. After inspecting the ring for several seconds,Goddassighed and looked out of the window to the storm brewing outside. The rain was falling like it wanted to drown the entire world. The lightning sliced down as if it wanted to split the world in half. When the lightning flashed, it was so bright that it hurtGoddas¡¯ eyes, so he looked away towards the ring once again. However, what greeted him was an empty table and a non-empty chair opposite of him. Goddaslet out a loud screech that resembled a porkling getting slaughtered. However, the rumbling of thunder overpowered the sound.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The cloaked person, sitting in the chair opposite ofGoddas, looked at him calmly, waiting for him to stop screaming. Goddaspanted for several seconds, with eyes bulging out of their sockets, before he finally managed to voice his complaints. ¡°Motherfrakker! Are you trying to kill me?! Must you always appear out of thin air without any sound?!? Can¡¯t you knock, announce yourself or ring a doorbell like everyone else?!?!¡± The person held the ring box and looked atGoddasas he was looking at an idiot. ¡°Have you ever seen a Shadow enter through the front door?¡± Goddasfrowned. ¡°No but¡­¡± The man interrupted him. ¡°Exactly. You don¡¯t see a Shadow. That¡¯s the whole point of the occupation. To not be seen.¡± Goddasopened and closed his mouth like a fish. The man didn¡¯t let him regain his bearing and continued. ¡°Besides, why are you making such a fuss? You were obviously waiting for me, so how come you get such a scare when I actually show up?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of the way how you appear out of thin air! I have a heart of apechuhthat is easily startled!¡± The fatty whined miserably. ¡°Goddas¡­¡± The man stated solemnly. ¡°Don¡¯t insult the courage of apechuh.¡± Goddasstared at him blankly for several seconds before he realized. ¡°Frakk! Are you making fun of me?!¡± The man waved the issue off, completely ignoring the red flush on fatty¡¯s face, and instead concentrated on the ring, scrutinizing it with both his eyes and his mana sense. The cowardly fatty would have been shivering and hoping that the ring was to the man¡¯s taste if it weren¡¯t for the fact that he was confident in his work. He knew that the ring didn¡¯t have any flaws. His work never had flaws. And indeed, the cloaked man nodded his head approvingly. ¡°Thanks for your hard work.¡± He looked up toGoddaswhose face displayed a self-satisfied smile. ¡°Of course. I always do a good job¡± was written clearly all over his round face. The man chose not to comment further and instead changed the subject. ¡°This concludes our business. Consider your debt repaid. If you have a need for me in the future, just drop by the Shadow Lodge and ask for ¡®Light¡¯.¡± I finally managed to get rid of you! Why would I go look for you myself??Fatty thought, yet what he asked was: ¡°Light? Is that your Shadow nickname?¡± The man shut the box with one hand and pocketed it inside his cloak. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t suit you at all.¡±Goddasgrumbled.Who in their right mind would nickname a Shadow ¡®Light¡¯? A shadow is anything but ¡®Light¡¯!¡± Wait!Goddas¡¯ eyes narrowed.Is it because he is proficient in using Light magic? The man ignored the comment and got up from his seat gracefully. ¡°I won¡¯t linger around needlessly. Take care,Goddas.¡± Light paused as he reached the window and looked back atGoddasone last time. ¡°¡®til next time¡­¡± Just as the man said his goodbye, lightning flashed once again illuminating the face under the cloak. It was only a brief moment, and in the next, the man was gone. However, that brief moment was enough forGoddasto imprint the man¡¯s face in his memory. It was a skinny man in his late twenties, with tanned skin and eyes as black as midnight. His hair was as dark as his eyes and slightly messy, framing his completely unremarkable face. It was one of those faces that didn¡¯t stand out in the crowd. A face that was neither ugly nor pretty, but simply average in every way. In fact, a few minutes later,Goddashad trouble remembering his exact facial features for they were simply too ordinary. Light huh? I better investigate this guy.Goddasthought. He had wanted to investigate this bane of his existence since the first time they met. However, he neither knew his name nor appearance, so he had nothing to investigate. This time, however, not only did the man reveal his Shadow nickname, butGoddasalso managed to accidentally get a glimpse of his appearance. Now he could finally go down to the Shadow Lodge and ask around. He needed to know whether he could trust this guy not to kill him in the middle of the night. He needed to know how to guard against him. How to stop him from walking into his home as if he owned the place. Although the man never showed any hostility towardsGoddas, the fatty would be hard-pressed to trust such a shady person. Now that he had repaid his debt, the man might deemGoddas¡¯ existence as unnecessary and decide to off him. The thought caused all fatty¡¯s hair to stand on end. He shivered involuntarily. Perhaps the man would come back one day, demandingGoddasto do more work for him? Even if he refused to pay for the work, what couldGoddasdo about it? How could he deal with such a person? Indeed, he should pay a visit to the Shadow Lodge. * * * * * * * * * * * * While Kiel was conversing with the servant, a couple was walking several dozens of meters in front of him. The two were dressed in expensive clothes, obviously noble in origin. The female was quite pretty, wearing a soft pink dress that was the same shade as the pink highlights in her blonde curly hair. However, standing next to the male, the pretty female seemed to lose all her color. For the beauty of the male belonged in a different realm entirely. They simply couldn¡¯t be compared. As Kiel¡¯s voice spread through the room, the man suddenly stopped in his tracks. His head snapped towards the source of the voice.That voice¡­ it can¡¯t be? A pair of icy blue eyes inspected Kiel Rroda and widened in surprise.What ishedoing here? The man didn¡¯t have enough time to be surprised for his gaze soon landed on the girl standing next to Kiel Rroda. At that moment, all his thoughts completely stilled. He could no longer look away. Elaru¡¯s long, red hair jumped around, glittering like the most exquisite silk, looking softer than the feathers of a cottonbird. The tanned skin was radiant and flawless, looking as soft as the skin of a newborn baby. The black marking covering the left side of her face, neck, and arm looked like intricate jewelry. The big teal eyes glowed like two apatite gems capturing the souls of everyone who saw them. The long, thick eyelashes fluttered like wings of a butterfly further perfecting the beauty of that which was already perfect. She wore loose clothes that covered the most of her exquisite body. However, it couldn¡¯t cover up the allure of her perfect curves. Not being able to see the exquisitely sculpted body underneath was more stimulating than if it had been laid out bare. Full, naturally red lips that looked edible, long slim legs, round perky breasts, narrow waist. Beautiful, elegant, exotic, unique. All those words seemed inadequate to describe the beauty of the girl in front of him. If one had to compare her beauty to someone, only Arites, the gods¡¯ favorite children, could possibly match her. But even they could only match it, not surpass it. He didn¡¯t know who she was. He neither knew her personality nor background. He didn¡¯t even know her name. Yet none of it mattered. One look was enough. Enough for him to decide that this was a girl he had to have. His eyes fell on the smooth fingers of her hand that were wrapped around the arm of Kiel Rroda, and a fire ignited inside of him, the likes of which he had not felt before. The existence of Kiel Rroda did nothing to douse the flames, on the contrary, it only added oil to the fire. It wasn¡¯t love at first sight. No. It couldn¡¯t even be called lust. It was a pure longing, or perhaps greed? Yearning for something that didn¡¯t belong to him. A craving to be the only one to possess a peerless treasure. Everything that belongs tohim, I will take. For that which was stolen from another tasted the sweetest. The blonde female noticed the strange behavior of her partner. No matter how she pulled on his arm, he didn¡¯t budge. Like a statue, he gazed in a certain direction, unmoving. The girl finally gave up and looked towards the same direction. As her eyes landed on Kiel Rroda, her pupils widened. She looked back and forth between Kiel Rroda and her partner.What a striking family resemblance!¡°A cousin of yours?¡± The girl bashfully asked. Her voice finally brought her partner out of his daze. The man didn¡¯t turn to face her as he replied: ¡°Not quite.¡± The man smiled a brilliant smile that was so bright one couldn¡¯t look at it straight. The girl lowered her head to hide the blush spreading over her cheeks. ¡°Well, well, if it isn¡¯t my little brother.¡± The man spoke up loud enough to reach the ears of Kiel. As soon as Kiel heard the voice, his smiling expression stiffened, and his eyes slowly moved towards the source. Elaru followed his gaze to see a devilishly handsome male that was a splitting image of Kiel Rroda. Their faces were so similar that they could easily be twins. Both of them had eyes of exactly the same icy blue color. Both had black hair with several strands of vivid blue. Besides their clothes and demeanor, the most noticeable difference laid in their hairstyle. While Kiel¡¯s hair was rebelliously reaching past his chin, the hair of this man was stylishly and neatly falling down to his shoulders. ¡°Let me guess¡­ your brother?¡±Elaru mused through the telepathic link. ¡°Rhur Rroda in the flesh.¡±Kiel confirmed. Coming up in the next episode: Rhur Rroda chuckled huskily and looked towards Elaru. ¡°And who might this fine lady be?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t miss the familiar heat hiding behind Rhur¡¯s eyes and his heart sank. ¡°We haven¡¯t seen each other in a long time, dear brother. How about we dine together and catch up?¡± His aura was enticing, enchanting, alluring. ¡°Does grandfather know you¡¯re in town?¡± Episode 83 – Rhur, Rhur Rroda Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel''s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda - Kiel''s older brother, and his date.

Episode 83 ¨C Rhur, Rhur Rroda

The first emotion a person would have upon meeting the two Rroda brothers would besurprise. Surprise that the features of the two were so similar that they could easily pass off as twins. After the initial surprise faded, what would be left in its wake would be fascination.Fascinationthat two people with such similar features could leave fundamentally different impressions, making it so everyone can tell them apart with ease. Both of the Rroda brothers wore black and blue clothes. Kiel¡¯s were simpler while Rhur had intricate golden embroidery showcasing his status. Kiel looked charismatic and mysterious, with a trace of unattainable vibe. Although only a year older than Kiel, Rhur Rroda was several centimeters taller and exuded a stronger air of maturity. His robes were looser, but showed more of his flawless white skin, especially around the neck area, bringing his allure to its fullest. He was stylish, refined and seductive. While Kiel had an untouchable vibe of virtue, Rhur was exactly the opposite ¨C approachable, enticing, enchanting, as if trying to lure one into sin. ¡°Fancy meeting you here, older brother.¡± Kiel smiled a bright, heart-stopping smile that instantly lit up the room. Rhur also responded with a smile. However, his was mysterious and seductive. The darkness hidden underneath the smile was as if designed to stir hidden fleshly desires of everyone who saw it. Although Kiel¡¯s smile was as bright as the sun, internally he was incessantly cursing his bad luck. Out of all the times, Rhur could have come here¡­ If either of them had arrived a few minutes later, they wouldn¡¯t have crossed paths with each other. Out of all people he could have run into, Rhur was on the top of his ¡°do not want to meet¡± list. Saying that the two brothers didn¡¯t get along would be a major understatement. Kiel greatly dislikedRhur¡¯smother, which made him negatively biased towards Rhur even before the two met. However,Rhur¡¯sprejudice of Kiel seemed to skip the bounds of prejudice and go straight for pure and simple ¡°loathing¡±. Yet, where Kiel opted for avoiding Rhur, the latter greatly enjoyed picking a fight with Kiel and often did his utmost to make his life miserable. Which is why there was no doubt in Kiel¡¯s mind of what was to follow. Rhur would certainly not let him go. Rroda family did their utmost to catch him and stop him from participating in Muni exams, going even as far as to hire a Shadow. If he simply avoided all Rroda family members, later on, he could pretend to have been ignorant of their search. That way he could avoid responsibility and say that he wasn¡¯t intentionally going against the family. However, if Rhur Rroda insisted on bringing him back to themainhouse, all his future plans would crumble into pieces. If he refused to go with him, a battle would surely erupt. Even if they managed to run away successfully, it would be disobeying the will of the Rroda family. It would be breaking all pretense of cordiality, an outright declaration of war. His grandfather would show him no mercy and even his father would be limited in what he could do to help out. However, if he obediently went to the Rrodamainhouse, he could salvage the situation. In worst case scenario, he wouldn¡¯t be able to participate in the last two exams. However, he should already have enough points to pass them. And there was always a chance that his grandfather would allow him to participate when he explained that he was no longer a non-mage. Unfortunately, that explanation depended on the ring Elaru had designed for him. A ring that he didn¡¯t yet know how to use. In fact, Elaru and Kiel had come to Black Pearl exactly with the intention of her explaining the usage of the ring. Rhur scanned Kiel and Elaru in a seemingly friendly way, his gaze lingering on Elaru longer than intended. Then he turned to face his date and spoke out in a deep, alluring voice: ¡°Ayah, meet my little brother, Kiel.¡± Rhur chuckled softly and motioned towards Kiel. Without waiting for Kiel to respond, he placed his hand on the back of his date like a proper gentleman and said. ¡°Little brother, this is lady AyahUfabel.¡± Kiel retained his bright smile and nodded politely. ¡°It is a pleasure, LadyUfabel.¡± The blonde female¡¯s face reddened, and she giggled. ¡°The pleasure is all mine.¡± She curtsied politely. ¡°And please, call me Ayah.¡± Kiel nodded politely. ¡°Ayah it is.¡± While Kiel and Ayah were conversing,Rhur¡¯seyes were glued on Elaru instead. Kiel didn¡¯t even finish his sentence before Rhur interrupted him. He stared right into Elaru¡¯s light teal eyes and purred: ¡°And who might this fine lady be?¡±This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Most girls would shy away from his gaze, some would boldly look at him passionately. And then there were those who would display hostility because of his reputation of a playboy. Either way, the number of ladies who could stare into his penetrating yet incomparably beautiful light blue eyes and show no reaction could be counted on the fingers of one hand. This one gaze was often the preliminary means by which Rhur gauged the personality of the female and how to deal with her. Elaru Wayvin didn¡¯t shy away from his gaze, nor show hostility. She held his gaze, refusing to look away first. Those teal orbs were like calm lakes, without displaying any particular emotion. That apathy madeRhur¡¯sblood boil. What he loved the most was tearing away the calm fa?ade and biting into the soft flesh underneath. ¡°Elaru Wayvin.¡± She responded neither politely nor impolitely, neither haughtily nor humbly. And then she smiled. She smiled, and the whole world stood still. Even Rhur, who was used to beautiful ladies, was startled for a moment before he recovered and chuckled huskily. Gently he extended his hand towards her. Elaru didn¡¯t hesitate and offered her own hand in response, intending to shakeRhur¡¯shand. However, a handshake wasn¡¯t what Rhur had in mind. As soon as her palm touched his, he grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips. Rhur looked at her sensually, as if there was no one else present and planted a butterfly kiss on the back of her hand. The kiss was soft and tender, yet incomparably alluring. It wasn¡¯t just a kiss, but rather, a promise of what would come if she gave in to the temptation. ¡°Rhur, Rhur Rroda.¡± He murmured, his voice vibrated deeply, the hot breath tickling the skin of Elaru¡¯s hand. As Kiel noticed the familiar heat hiding behindRhur¡¯seyes, his heart sank, and his smile stiffened. He recognized that look. And as soon as he saw it, Kiel understood that the situation had just gone from bad to worse. Rhur had found his next female target. Typical Rhur. Only you can flirt with another female in front of your own date. Kiel¡¯s eyes unconsciously flashed with a deep chill, and he grabbed Elaru by her other hand, pulling her back gently, out ofRhur¡¯sgrasp. Kiel glanced at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, gauging her reaction toRhur¡¯sobvious advances. He was surprised to find that Elaru, who was usually quite expressive, wearing her emotions on her sleeve, was currently completely unreadable. It wasn¡¯t just her face, even her aura was completely calm, without ripples. It was as though she had switched personalities, from a happy-go-lucky troublemaker to a calm and confident noble. Even he, who could feel some of her emotions through the bond, was unable to see through what she was really feeling. Her calmness also had a calming effect on his agitated mental state. His trepidation and anger calmed down. Being around this redhead caused him to feel a mysterious sense of security. Rhur finally looked away from Elaru, seemingly with much difficulty, and met Kiel¡¯s gaze instead. ¡°Little brother, long time no see. I¡¯ve missed you dearly.¡± His voice and expression contained an incomparable warmth and love. If Kiel didn¡¯t know better, he would think him to truly be a perfect image of a caring older brother. Long time? Not nearly long enough!Kiel growled internally, yet outwardly he still kept a polite smile and looked at Rhur with just as much fake affection. ¡°Indeed, it has been too long, older brother. I kept hoping that grandfather would let you visit me, but alas, he is too strict in managing your time.¡± Kiel¡¯s gaze that had been on Rhur moved to his blonde date. Rhur, of course, caught the sarcasm in his words. How could he be able to go on a date if grandfather was strictly managing his time? However, the sarcasm didn¡¯t seem to bother Rhur, on the contrary, his eyes displayed pleasure and triumph. ¡°Indeed. It¡¯s so lucky that we managed to stumble into each other like this. Little brother, come, we must catch up! Let us dine together.¡± Typically, even though Rhur highly enjoyed messing with Kiel, there would be a single situation in which he would choose not to associate with him ¨C when he intended to engage in certainactivitieswith a female companion. This was undoubtedly such a situation, which is whyRhur¡¯scurrent behavior filled Kiel with dread. Since Rhur suggested such an idea, preferring to associate with him instead of spending quality time with his female friend, it meant that what he wanted from Kiel took precedence. He either wanted to bring Kiel to see Venric or he had lost interest in his own date upon seeing Kiel¡¯s ¡°date¡±. Neither of the possibilities sounded pleasant. Kiel¡¯s guess was indeed correct. As soon as Rhur saw the ¡°date¡± of his little brother, he lost all interest in his own date. How could he enjoy AyahUfabel, while knowing that at that right moment, his little brother might be enjoying a woman far superior to his? It would be like eating bread while his brother ate a full course dinner! Rhur Rroda would be damned if he let that happen. He would be damned if he let Kiel Rroda beat him in any way. Therefore, Rhur decided to thwart Kiel¡¯s plans for a romantic evening and use catching up as a pretext of getting to familiarize himself with Kiel¡¯s ¡°date¡±. ¡°I am afraid we¡¯ll have to catch up some other time.¡± Kiel politely declined, appearing quite apologetic. Although he declined, Kiel didn¡¯t expect Rhur to let him go. Rhur was many things, unfortunately, persistent was one of them. Rhur gave Kiel a knowing look and sighed. ¡°I know what you are thinking, little brother¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat.What does he think I am thinking? That I am trying to ditch him as to avoid him apprehending me and bringing me to themainhouse? Or that I am worried he would actually steal my perceived ¡°date¡±? Rhur continued: ¡°¡­but you are worrying too much. The meal is on me. I know that those low-level delivery quests you¡¯ve been doing would be hard pressed to cover the bill. But how could I possibly let my little brother pay?¡± The silence descended on the lobby. ¡­ ¡­ What?Kiel had blinked several times before he realized what just happened.That buttcracker!!Kiel¡¯s smile froze. Truly a noble down to the bone. Spouting venom with each word and passing it off asconcern. You think I don¡¯t know what you are doing? Trying to embarrass me and show how much better you are so as to steal my ¡°date¡±?! You think I¡¯ll just let you do as you please?! Dream on! I can do the ¡°embarrassing¡± part just as well as you! ¡°My financial situation is fine, older brother. Thank you for your concern, but with how often you dine here with your female companions, I don¡¯t think you can afford to pay for my own meals too.¡± Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed slightly, andRhur¡¯sflashed with brief contempt. One could almost see sparks flying in the air. And the ball was back atRhur¡¯scourt, charging him for pinning his own indecent actions on others.Oooooo, smackdown!Elaru couldn¡¯t help but let out a slight giggle. ¡°Of course we wouldn¡¯t mind. But what about ladyUfabel? You two came here on a date. It wouldn¡¯t be fair towards her if we dined together, don¡¯t you think?¡± Kiel stood there with a stiff smile, searching desperately for an escape route, however, he could no longer refuse. Episode 84 – Lileron Passion Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel¡¯s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda ¨C Kiel¡¯s older brother, and his date. Episode 84 ¨C Lileron Passion Rhur continued: ¡°¡­but you are worrying too much. The meal is on me. I know that those low-level delivery quests you¡¯ve been doing would be hard pressed to cover the bill. But how could I possibly let my little brother pay?¡± The silence descended on the lobby. ¡­ ¡­ What?Kiel had blinked several times before he realized what just happened.That buttcracker!!Kiel¡¯s smile froze. Truly a noble down to the bone. Spouting venom with each word and passing it off as concern. You think I don¡¯t know what you are doing? Trying to embarrass me and show how much better you are so as to steal my ¡°date¡±?! You think I¡¯ll just let you do as you please?! Dream on! I can do the ¡°embarrassing¡± part just as well as you! ¡°My financial situation is fine, older brother. Thank you for your concern, but with how often you dine here with your female companions, I don¡¯t think you can afford to pay for my own meals too.¡± This time, it was Rhur¡¯s smile that stiffened. Wasn¡¯t Kiel implying that he brought females here all the time to feast on them instead of the food? Rhur paid attention to Elaru¡¯s reaction from the corner of his eyes. Her eyebrows rose slightly, and the corner of her mouth twitched. Underneath her calm hid amusement. Unfortunately, since he was paying attention to Elaru, he missed the reaction of his own date, which was ugly to behold. Apparently, she wasn¡¯t aware of Rhur¡¯s reputation as a playboy. Which was amazing in itself, considering how infamous Rhur was in the noble circle. ¡°Don¡¯t be silly, little brother. If the Rroda family successor couldn¡¯t afford a few meals, then wouldn¡¯t the whole Rroda family be a joke?¡± Rhur responded warmly, as if he truly cared for his younger brother. Yet, obviously, he was declaring how high his status was. Kiel spoke with just as much fake warmth. ¡°Older brother, of course Rroda family can afford it, but if you spend too much of our funds, grandfather will get angry. And considering how often he threatens to take away your position as a future successor, if you are not careful, he might actually do it.¡± Elaru did her best to not burst out laughing at the changing expressions of both Kiel and Rhur as they interacted with each other. Her previously calm eyes now glittered with hints of laughter. Her expression mirrored the expression of a spectator watching a good show. Rhur laughed warmly, as if what Kiel said was only a joke. ¡°That¡¯s grandfather¡¯s way of venting his temper. Everyone knows they are just empty threats. Even if he wanted to replace me, there is no one to replace me with.¡± Rhur was obviously implying that Kiel couldn¡¯t even contend for the position. Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed slightly, and Rhur¡¯s flashed with brief contempt. One could almost see sparks flying in the air. Rhur didn¡¯t let Kiel find an appropriate retort and took control of the conversation. ¡°Little brother, could it be that you don¡¯t want to dine together because you didn¡¯t come here for the food?¡± He looked between Kiel and Elaru several times, clearly implying that the two of them came here to do some indecent business. Kiel mirrored Rhur¡¯s earlier laugh. ¡°What kind of strange thoughts are you thinking, older brother? Why would we come here if not for the food? Don¡¯t tell me that you come here for other reasons?¡± And the ball was back at Rhur¡¯s court, charging him for pinning his own indecent actions on others. Smackdown!Elaru couldn¡¯t help but let out a slight giggle. That melodious giggle attracted Rhur¡¯s gaze onto Elaru. The warmth he faked turned into real warmth as he responded. ¡°What are you implying little brother? All I meant was that nobles often come here to engage in secret business deals.¡± Not good.Elaru¡¯s mirth instantly disappeared.We can¡¯t have him questioning our motives. If he shares his suspicions with the wrong crowd later, someone might connect the puzzle pieces and deduce the real reason behind our visit. Rhur continued. ¡°But since that is not the case, there is no reason for us to not dine together, little brother. After all, food tastes even better when in good company.¡± Kiel was thinking about how to get out of this and refuse once again when Elaru interrupted. ¡°Of course we wouldn¡¯t mind. But what about Lady Ufabel? You two came here on a date. It wouldn¡¯t be fair towards her if we dined together, don¡¯t you think?¡± Kiel felt like giving Elaru a high five. He couldn¡¯t have said it better himself! Looking at the lady¡¯s sour face, she had definitely hoped for some romantic time with Rhur. Unfortunately, his delight didn¡¯t last for long. ¡°I¡¯m sure Ayah wouldn¡¯t mind. Isn¡¯t that right, dear?¡± Rhur turned towards his date and softly propped her chin upwards to face him. The soft touch of his long fingers coupled by the seductive smile he gave her, made Ayah¡¯s mental faculties shut down. She stared at Rhur in a daze and subconsciously nodded her head. Rhur smirked in satisfaction and declared. ¡°Then it is settled. Waiter, bring us to a cozy little room.¡± ¡°This way, my lords and ladies.¡± The nearby waiter motioned for them to follow him. Kiel stood there with a stiff smile, searching desperately for an escape route, however, he could no longer refuse. He only recovered when Elaru pulled him by the arm.¡°It¡¯s fine. If we insist, he might get suspicious. We don¡¯t want anyone to suspect that we are doing something secretive in here. Only then did they move to follow the waiter. The waiter led them to a luxurious booth and gave them the menus. He then left the room to stand outside and await their order.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. However, the only one actually contemplating what to order was the blonde lady. Kiel and Rhur were too busy thinking about how to embarrass each other to think about food. While Elaru was too busy enjoying the spectacle. Therefore, they casually, almost randomly, picked something from the menu. Rhur then called the waiter back in and relayed their orders. Lastly, he smiled mysteriously: ¡°Also, bring us a bottle of Kelford Ridge.¡± Kelford Ridge was one of the expensive and classy wines that nobles usually drank with their important guests. ¡°A fine taste, milord.¡± The waiter complimented his choice. Kiel barely managed to prevent himself from rolling his eyes.What a show off¡­ He was practically gloating about his wealth and fine taste. Rhur then turned towards Elaru and inquired warmly. ¡°Is Kelford Ridge fine with you, Lady Wayvin?¡± Elaru smiled with just as much warmth as Rhur showed her. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I am not a big fan of Kelford Ridge.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Rhur cocked his head to the side inquiringly. ¡°What wine does Lady Wayvin usually drink?¡± Kiel looked at Elaru worryingly. Did she even drink wine? She seemed like a juice type of person. However, in a moment, Elaru showed that his worry was unnecessary. ¡°I prefer Lileron Passion.¡± ¡°Lileron Passion?¡± Lileron was a famous brand of wines, not any less illustrious than Kelford. Both Rhur and Kiel were familiar with the brand, however, this was their first time hearing of Lileron Passion variety. Rhur chuckled. ¡°A fine wine for a fine lady. So be it, I shall partake in thispassionwith lady Wayvin as well. ¡° Kiel felt like puking.Must you word it in such a way? How misleading! It simply sounded so wrong that it couldn¡¯t sound more wrong. He was shamelessly flirting right in front of his own date. Kiel averted his eyes and looked at Elaru instead. As she heard his response she seemed to be delighted. That delight caused Kiel¡¯s chest to tighten uncomfortably.Don¡¯t tell me that she is actually flirting back? Kiel looked away from Elaru¡¯s face, not knowing where to look at. Looking at Rhur made him feel unpleasant, but now, looking at Elaru didn¡¯t make him feel any better. As the only other person here, Kiel looked toward Ayah. ¡°How about we all enjoy Lileron Passion together?¡± Kiel suggested. If he had still been looking at Elaru, he would have noticed that that delight glistening in her eyes only grew when she heard his suggestion. Rhur seemed to catch on to the foul mood Kiel was in and he couldn¡¯t help but add more oil to the fire. ¡°Since when do you drink wine, little brother? Don¡¯t you prefer milk?¡± Rhur smirked. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°I preferred milk when we were children, older brother. However, I understand your confusion, considering how you preferred drinking wine in secret even back when we were little.¡± Rhur laughed awkwardly. Then he added under his breath, yet loud enough for everyone to hear. ¡°14 could hardly be considered as little¡­¡± Kiel pretended to cough, yet he also added under his breath: ¡°Indeed, considering that you were even younger when you lost your virginity.¡± Even though everyone pretended not to have heard anything, the atmosphere in the room grew more uncomfortable by the second. ¡°Bring us two bottles of Lileron Passion.¡± Rhur broke the awkward silence and ordered. The waiter nodded obediently. ¡°As you wish, sire.¡± Rhur then waved him off and the four were once again left alone in the room. Rhur gave no chance for the uncomfortable silence to descend again: ¡°When did you arrive in Ashar, little brother? How come grandfather didn¡¯t inform me of your arrival?¡± Rhur decided to probe Kiel, hoping to figure out whether Venric Rroda knew and approved of Kiel¡¯s coming. Considering how much Venric disapproved of Kiel, he wouldn¡¯t easily let him come to the big city. He had intentionally chucked him to the backwater town so it would be quite strange if he allowed Kiel to come to Ashar. Kiel either came on his own accord or got permission from their father. This question, however, came as quite a surprise to Kiel.Could it be that he doesn¡¯t know that the Rroda family is looking for me? Or is he intentionally pretending not to know? ¡°He must have forgotten to tell you. You know how busy he is. He doesn¡¯t have any time to inform you of every little matter.¡± Kiel responded. Venric was, indeed, aware of his arrival. Even if he wasn¡¯t the mastermind behind the mobilization of the Rroda men, Kiel had clearly declared his intention of coming to Ashar by sending his luggage to the mainhouse. Of course, Venric wouldn¡¯t approve of the matter, which is why Kiel wouldn¡¯t have asked him even if he had the time to do so. If the decision to go to Ashar hadn¡¯t been made in haste, Kiel would have gotten his father¡¯s permission. He was much easier to deal with than his grandfather. ¡°You are right.¡± Rhur agreed. ¡°He must have found it not important enough to inform me.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched.Oi, oi. Are you implying I am not important enough for your notice?! Both of the males were smiling gently, yet their eyes were sharp and cold. This wasn¡¯t a conversation, it was a word battle. The swords were drawn. Lightning was flashing, both literally and figuratively. The stormy weather outside had yet to calm down. Even the blonde female was starting to get uncomfortable. ¡°I¡¯m sure grandfather didn¡¯t want to distract you from your studies. He is always complaining that you are too distracted with entertaining the ladies to study properly.¡± Kiel chuckled. One could almost hear the sounds of stabbing. Elaru had to suppress the urge to clap, but her wide smile gave away her delight. Rhur smiled coldly at Kiel and decided to change the subject. ¡°So, what brings you to Ashar, little brother? Moving onto bigger quests? Did you finally get upgraded to a C-ranked quest seeker?¡± Rhur never failed to rub in how degrading it was for a noble to actually be a doing low ranked quests. Kiel laughed coldly. ¡°You sure have a good sense of humor, older brother. Of course, I am here for the Muni exams.¡± ¡°Muni exams?¡± This time, Rhur didn¡¯t need to feign surprise, it was very much real. The only three people who knew that Kiel was a non-mage were Kiel himself, his father, and his grandfather Venric Rroda. Kiel naturally didn¡¯t want anyone to know about his disability so he never told it to anyone. His father probably wanted to protect him and also kept quiet. Venric, as the shrewd and calculative person that he was, decided to keep it a secret to prevent other nobles from finding out. After all, it was a matter that would stain the honor of the Rroda family. Even if he chose to divulge it to someone, that someone wouldn¡¯t have been Rhur. Knowing of the ongoing conflict between the two brothers, Rhur was the least likely person to be able to keep it a secret. Therefore, Rhur was not aware that Kiel was a non mage, however, judging by the behavior of their father and grandfather, Rhur had figured out long ago that Kiel wasn¡¯t a competent mage. Otherwise, Venric would have held him in a higher regard. That¡¯s why it came as a surprise to Rhur that his little brother, who wasn¡¯t good in magic, decided to participate in Muni exams. Coming up in the next episode: How very touching. Kiel glared at Rhur and spoke slowly, venom almost dripping from his words: ¡°Thank you for your concern, older brother. However, you are worrying too much. My exams have gone quite well so far.¡± Rhur laughed merrily. ¡°That¡¯s the spirit! If you set me as your goal you won¡¯t go astray.¡± Surprisingly, to Rhur¡¯s delight, Elaru responded by giving him a comforting and understanding gaze. ¡°Don¡¯t feel discouraged. The difficult times will pass eventually¡± Rhur almost choked on his wine, his cheeks reddened as he tried his best not to burst out into a violent coughing fit. Episode 85 – Plucking Flowers Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel¡¯s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda ¨C Kiel¡¯s older brother, and his date. Kiel reveals that he is participating in Muni entrance exams. Episode 85 ¨C Plucking Flowers ¡°Muni exams are very difficult little brother. You shouldn¡¯t speak of it so lightly. Each year the exam results shatter the hopes of many, some of which never recover from the blow on their self-esteem. I wouldhateit if the same happened to you little brother.¡± Rhur spoke with false concern, looking at Kiel with furrowed eyebrows, a perfect image of a worried older brother. How very touching. Kiel glared at Rhur and spoke slowly, venom almost dripping from his words: ¡°Thank you for your concern, older brother. However, you are worrying too much. My exams have gone quite well so far.¡± ¡°I see. That is good.¡± Rhur smiled warmly. ¡°How long will you be staying in Ashar before returning to the village?¡± It was simply amazing how many blows one could incorporate within seemingly harmless words. Not only was Rhur pointing out that Kiel belonged in an insignificant village but he was also implying that he wouldn¡¯t pass the exams, and would, in turn, return to Beyd. ¡°I won¡¯t be returning to Beyd for the time being. Older brother, I wouldloveit if you could show me around Muni.¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to do so as well, however, even as a student of Muni, I am unable to bring other people inside. You would have to be a student of Muni to enter.¡± Rhur spoke regretfully. His acting ability was clearly the cream of the crop. ¡°Naturally. There won¡¯t be any issues. I am a Rroda after all.¡± Kiel smiled icily. Rhur delightedly took the opportunity to strike another blow: ¡°Well said. If a Rroda couldn¡¯t pass the exam, it would be downright embarrassing. Do your best, little brother, otherwise, if grandfather isn¡¯t satisfied with your performance¡­ even if I pleaded for you, I would be unable to help you escape punishment.¡± When did you ever plead for my sake?! You¡¯d pretend to help only to pin more crimes on my head!Kiel snorted internally, however, outwardly he smiled. ¡°Thank you, brother, for your kind intentions. Please be at ease. I won¡¯t disappoint grandfather. In fact, I might even beat your score.¡± Kiel winked. Just you wait. I¡¯d like to see your face when I actually do beat your score. As the two were bantering, the waiter returned with two expensive looking wine bottles and proceeded to serve it to everyone, before once again walking out of the room. Rhur laughed merrily, unaware that Kiel¡¯s words weren¡¯t just attempts to save face. ¡°That¡¯s the spirit! If you set me as your goal you won¡¯t go astray.¡± Kiel¡¯s laughter joined Rhur¡¯s. ¡°Older brother is indeed something else¡­ Unfortunately, I am afraid that I won¡¯t be able to follow in your footsteps. Our views and aspirations don¡¯t match.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Rhur brought his glass up in a cheering motion before putting it to his lips and taking a slow sip. The wine had a sweet taste and simply melted in one¡¯s mouth. Rhur had to admit it was one of the finest wines he had ever tried. How come I¡¯ve never heard of such a fine wine?Rhur wondered. He didn¡¯t even remember seeing it on the menu. He couldn¡¯t help but reevaluate Elaru Wayvin. She wasn¡¯t a noble, but her taste in wine was exquisite. Perhaps she often hanged around nobles? But then, how come he had never seen her before? He participated in all of the major parties and balls. He would surely not forget such a beauty if he had seen her before. He had never even heard of the Wayvin family. Rhur¡¯s mind wondered only for a moment before he remembered that he was supposed to be putting his little brother down: ¡°Luckily only a single person can become the head of the family, so little brother won¡¯t be required to shoulder the burden. Otherwise, you might be forced to walk the same difficult path as me.¡± Rhur then let out a sad sigh, as if being deemed as the next head of the family was an incomparably tragic matter. He looked at Elaru pitifully, blinking his long eyelashes, doing his best to invoke sympathy. To Rhur¡¯s delight and Kiel¡¯s shock, Elaru responded by giving Rhur a comforting and understanding gaze. ¡°Don¡¯t feel discouraged. The difficult times will pass eventually.¡± Kiel clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. Elaru continued: ¡°Once you take over as the family head, you will be able to relax and pluck flowers as much as you want.¡± Kiel¡¯s head snapped towards Elaru in shock and Rhur almost choked on his wine. His cheeks reddened as he tried his best not to burst out into a violent coughing fit. When people gossiped about Rhur Rroda, they often spoke venomous words, such as him being a flower boy or that he liked deflowering girls. When they mentioned ¡°plucking flowers¡± they were naturally referring to Rhur bedding innocent and pure girls, thus taking away their virginity. Elaru¡¯s pure and innocent facial expression was in complete contrast with the indecent, blunt words coming from her mouth.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. She had been behaving quite elegantly up to now, if Rhur didn¡¯t know better he would have thought her to be of noble origin, yet who would have thought that a moment later she would speak such inappropriate things?? Rhur¡¯s eyes widened as he stared at Elaru, whose face showed no indication that she had just spoken out of line. Ayah also stared, gaping like a fish. Kiel was first to recover from the shock. He pretended to cough gently, but was actually stifling his laughter. His laughter seemed to wake up Rhur from his daze. Rhur smiled wryly and let out an awkward laugh. ¡°One can¡¯t believe everything they hear. There are a lot of nonsense rumors out there. A few days back I heard a rumor saying that I am the most powerful warlock in the entire second year student body of Muni. People exaggerate a lot. I am only in the top 3.¡± Rhur attempted to salvage the situation, while still not missing the opportunity to brag. One had to hand it to him, it took considerable skill to pass off bragging as modesty and to twist a detrimental situation into a beneficial one. There was a reason why his infamous reputation never did anything to lessen his success with the ladies. By interacting with him, one would get an impression that he was a refined, talented and smart young master. Even when he flirted openly, he never went over the line and always acted the role of a perfect gentleman. When women actually met him face to face, it was quite hard for them to believe him to be the same man the rumors spoke about. They would easily reach the conclusion that the rumors were exaggerated, unfounded or far from the truth. While Rhur Rroda was a very alluring man, he made it look as if none of his seductive actions were intentional. When he courted women, he made one believe that he indeed cared deeply for them. Even when he discarded them, he did it in an incomparably graceful manner. Even though everyone was aware of how quickly Rhur Rroda lost interest in his women, changing them more often than some people changed socks, he was still extremely popular with both males and females. He was so good at playing the role of a dark lupax that the white pechuhs found him too irresistible and would present themselves on a silver platter, ready to be eaten. However, none of his friends were aware that this seemingly honest albeit frivolous gentleman was a liar and an actor of the highest caliber. It was one of the reasons why Venric Rroda chose to ignore his frivolous behavior and appointed him as the future family head over all of his other cousins of similar age. Elaru¡¯s eyes widened and she looked at Rhur as if he had said a rather surprising thing. ¡°Oh? You don¡¯t like flowers?¡± Rhur blinked his long black eyelashes repeatedly, unsure of where the current conversation was heading towards. Elaru then proceeded to cover her mouth in what seemed to be shock. She looked at him strangely and murmured. ¡°I.. See¡­ so you are¡­¡± It took a few seconds for the people present to realize what that strange look of hers meant. Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched into a satisfied smirk, while Rhur¡¯s soft smile froze on his face.She is insinuating that I am gay?? Rhur¡¯s face paled. He didn¡¯t mind if people called him a playboy, but he couldn¡¯t stand being called gay. It was one thing if women came onto him, but what if someone started the rumor that he was gay and men started coming onto him instead?? Rhur shivered. Considering how seductive he was, no doubt there would be a horde of men fighting for his favor. A mere thought of it caused Rhur to feel queasy down to his stomach. Not only that, but if girls thought he was gay, then they wouldn¡¯t see his flirting attempts as flirting but just him as acting friendly. How would he then proceed to seduce women in the future?? Therefore, Rhur rushed to correct the statement, least anyone started spreading that he also had an interest in men. ¡°No! What I mean to say is that I like flowers as much as the next guy. However, the rumors are highly exaggerated, there is no ¡°plucking¡± involved.¡± Elaru¡¯s strange gaze turned approving. ¡°Ah, I see. That¡¯s great.¡± She nodded. ¡°I hate guys who pluck flowers. Flowers should be cared for, not plucked.¡± How can she speak of such things with a straight face?? Rhur felt highly uncomfortable with the current subject. ¡°Indeed.¡± He murmured and opened his mouth again to try changing the subject. However, before he could continue speaking, Elaru interrupted him: ¡°What kind of flowers do you like the most? Roses? Lilies? ¡­Chrysanthemums?¡± Kiel barely managed to resist puking his wine out in a burst of laughter. Isn¡¯t chrysanthemum slang term for anus? He had the urge to applaud. Elaru¡¯s execution was simply too perfect. At this point, Rhur started sweating. There was simply no right answer to this question. He better change the subject. ¡°So, little brother¡­¡± Before he could finish his sentence, Elaru interrupted him again, still looking as innocent and pure as ever. ¡°I like all kinds of flowers. Especially blue and purple ones.¡± That sentence left Rhur staring at her in both shock and confusion.Wait¡­what? Is she saying that she is interested in females?? But what kind of females is she referring to? Blue and purple? What does that mean?? Kiel grinned widely. It was so satisfying to see Rhur suffer a loss. That facial expression of his was simply priceless. He wished he could paint a picture to immortalize it. ¡°Don¡¯t let your mind wonder too far, older brother. My companion is talking about real flowers, not the kind you are thinking about.¡± Rhur¡¯s face stiffened, and hearing Elaru¡¯s surprised exclamation didn¡¯t help him feel any better: ¡°Eh? Of course I am talking about real flowers. What did you think I was talking about?¡± She looked at Rhur strangely, tilting her head to the side in confusion, looking as pure as freshly fallen snow. Boom! Savage! Kiel was roaring in laughter internally, he found it extremely hard to not burst out into laughter out loud. Rhur stood frozen, unsure whether the hard to read girl in front of him was making fun of him or really clueless in the matter. He was usually quite proficient in reading people, and his reading told him that she was serious. But he simply couldn¡¯t believe that to be the case. Elaru looked helplessly at Kiel and asked curiously. ¡°I always thought it was very rude for people to call your big brother a flower boy in such a condescending manner. There is nothing wrong with liking flowers. Don¡¯t tell me that I misunderstood?¡± Coming up in the next episode: Rhur felt as if someone just punched the air out of his chest. Even the sweet wine seemed to leave a bitter taste in his mouth. ¡°How did you two meet? How long have you been together?¡± ¡°I see¡­ does that mean that Lady Wayvin is single?¡± Rhur couldn¡¯t help but wink knowingly at Kiel. ¡°Are you alright? You are looking a bit pale? Maybe you should drink more wine? That should return color to your face.¡± Episode 86 – Seduction Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel¡¯s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda ¨C Kiel¡¯s older brother, and his date. Kiel and Rhur engage in a word battle. Elaru pretends to be clueless and mentions Rhur¡¯s reputation as a ¡°flower plucker¡±.
Episode 86 ¨C Seduction Elaru looked helplessly at Kiel and asked curiously. ¡°I always thought it was very rude for people to call your big brother a flower boy in such a condescending manner. There is nothing wrong with liking flowers. Don¡¯t tell me that I misunderstood?¡± Kiel¡¯s face broke out into an involuntary smile. His heartbeat accelerated in exhilaration. This word battle had become just as thrilling as an actual battle. Seeing Rhur lose miserably gave him a delightful sense of pride. Joining hands with Elaru to beat a common foe¡­ this feeling wasn¡¯t bad at all. On the contrary, this feeling made his blood boil, made butterflies flutter in his stomach. This feeling was simply¡­ Wonderful. As Elaru¡¯s beautiful eyes stared at Kiel in feigned confusion, Kiel thought that today she looked more beautiful than usual. She was always incomparingly attractive, but today, she was too magnetic, too alluring. Even his icy heart couldn¡¯t help but feel moved as he gazed down at the beauty. This time, he wasn¡¯t being teased by her, this time, he was the third party watching her tease someone else. And at this moment, for the first time, he saw everything clearly. This side of Elaru¡­ was the side that he loved the most. As soon as the thought entered his mind, ripples of heat started coursing through his entire body. A side that he loved? Kiel¡¯s hot blood suddenly ran cold. This thrill, this glee was too addictive, too dangerous. He shouldn¡¯t allow himself to feel this way! He needed to stop it from the seed, for if it grew and spread, it would become resilient and ever-present, like weeds, impossible to root out. But how does one stop their own feelings? Kiel¡¯s solution was to stop thinking about it and bury it deep down. Unlike Kiel, Rhur wasn¡¯t feeling wonderful at all, in fact, he felt as if someone just punched the air out of his chest. Even the sweet, creamy wine left a bitter taste in his mouth. He was usually quite eloquent, but this redhead left him speechless. It was one thing if Kiel provoked him, and it was another if it was the girl he was trying to court. A thousand poisonous things that he could say came to mind, but he couldn¡¯t say any of them. Otherwise he would risk leaving a bad impression that would negatively impact his future plans. He wasn¡¯t even sure if the girl was taking jabs at him while pretending to be ignorant or if she was actually ignorant. Since he wasn¡¯t sure which of the two was the case, he couldn¡¯t settle on which course of action to take. All he could do was minimize his losses. He had to endure the urge to retaliate. Unfortunately, the waves of glee coming off from Kiel made the enduring inconceivably hard. When was the last time Rhur ate a loss while dealing with his little brother? He was usually the one to walk away victorious! It¡¯s fine. This minor sacrifice will be worth it in the end. He comforted himself. Fortunately, he didn¡¯t need to endure for long. Luck seemed to be in his favor, for right at this moment, their ordered food arrived. * * * Ayah poked her food around the plate, feeling as if the remaining three in the room had forgotten her existence. She kept glancing around, but no one in the room paid her any attention. She tried coming up with a way to join the conversation, but she felt like an outsider, as if butting in would only cause her to embarrass herself. Therefore, she remained silent, communicating only through her facial expression which was getting darker by the minute. Elaru ate as gracefully as ever, concentrating on her food and trying her best not to look at Rhur, who was sitting opposite of her. Each time she looked at him, she¡¯d get an urge to burst out laughing. Regretfully, she couldn¡¯t laugh, not only would it be inappropriate but it would also totally ruin the ignorant and innocent image she was trying to portray. Of course, Rhur would eventually realize she was pulling his leg, but she wanted to take advantage of playing the fool as long as she could. Once he realized that she was teasing him, the quick-witted playboy would tease right back making it very hard to secure an easy yet satisfying win. Unlike Elaru who tried her hardest not to look at him, Rhur, on the other hand, stared almost exclusively at Elaru. His eyes wandered towards her plump red lips that looked edible, like ripe cherries. Each time she licked them, he would feel a hard to repress the urge to take a bite on them. Each time he met her large teal orbs that were clear of all emotion, he got the desire to break that calm into thousands of pieces.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Either because of the wine he was drinking or because of his inner thoughts, a soft pink flush colored his pale cheeks, making him look even more enticing than usual. The gaze he stared at Elaru with was heated, looking at her as if she was the food he was dining on. And boy did he eat tantalizingly slowly, making every bite look erotic. One had to hand it to him, if there were a competition on grace and allure, he¡¯d definitely win first place. He nibbled on his food softly and sensually, as if he was nibbling on the ear of his lover. Then he licked his lips and let out a soft sigh of yearning. Kiel had an incomparably hard time enjoying his food. Each time his gaze accidentally wondered to Rhur or when he heard his soft sighs, Kiel¡¯s stomach would turn, and he would have the urge to puke. Bloody meep! Have you no shame?! I am right here! Right here!! Even your date is sitting right next to you! Rhur elegantly licked his spoon clean and then he placed the spoon between his puckered lips and fluttered his long eyelashes. Kiel almost choked on his food several times and felt like slamming his head against the table repeatedly. He wanted to treat Rhur as a clown, think of his actions as comedic, but no matter how he looked at it, ¡°funny¡± wasn¡¯t the word that he¡¯d use to describe it. Kiel was a straight male and quite disliked his brother, but even so, he had to admit that Rhur¡¯s actions were quite enticing. He imagined that if succubi and incubi of the fairy tales existed in the world of Halnea, they would all kneel down and take Rhur as their master. This wasn¡¯t Kiel¡¯s first time seeing Rhur in action. On the contrary, he had witnessed it many times before, to the point of turning indifferent towards it. Even though he would feel distaste, disgust, annoyance, and discomfort when he was forced to witness Rhur courting a female, he had always thought it as none of his business. Therefore, the impact of Rhur¡¯s actions on him was quite limited. However, today, he couldn¡¯t make himself step back and not care. No matter how he reasoned that it was none of his business, it didn¡¯t help at all. It bothered him. It bothered him to the point of barely being able to restrain himself from getting up and punching Rhur straight in the face. Unlike Kiel who was restless to the point of fidgeting in his seat, Rhur¡¯s actions didn¡¯t bother Elaru in the slightest. In fact, she found it quite amusing. It was tickling her mischievous nature and making her want to mirror his behavior, curious to see how the two brothers would react. However, she figured that Kiel wouldn¡¯t appreciate the gesture, and Rhur might misunderstand it as flirting, so she opted to not do it after all. After several minutes of silence, Kiel couldn¡¯t take it anymore, and he started a telepathic conversation with Elaru. ¡°Ignore him. Just don¡¯t look his way. He¡¯ll run out of food to play with eventually.¡± Elaru¡¯s responded with a giggle: ¡°Your brother is quite an interesting fellow.¡± Kiel felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach. ¡°He isn¡¯t interesting, he is dangerous. In the future, do your best to avoid him.¡± ¡°I can see that. Very dangerous.¡± She continued to chuckle merrily. ¡°I am serious.¡± Kiel spoke in a dreadful tone, as if talking about an incoming crisis threatening to destroy the world. ¡°I get that. But avoiding people is not my style. I prefer to fight it out head on. Don¡¯t worry. I can handle myself just fine.¡± ¡°Do you think all his previous victims wanted to fall for him? He is really good at getting under your skin. Believe it or not, he is currently restraining himself because he hasn¡¯t managed to get a feel for your personality quite yet. Once he gets a feel for what you are like, he¡¯ll adjust his behavior to be to your liking. Once the only bad point he has about him, his personality, is removed from the equation, all you¡¯ll be able to see is how wonderful he is. As far as I know, as of now, there hasn¡¯t been a single girl he had failed at wooing.¡± ¡°There is a first time for everything.¡± ¡°If I were you, I¡¯d rather not risk it. You can¡¯t choose who you fall for. It¡¯s better to be safe than sorry.¡± ¡°Mmmhmmm.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help but furrow his eyebrows. Elaru wasn¡¯t taking his warning to heart, and that was making him more and more annoyed by the second. Why did this issue bother him so much? I can¡¯t have my ally elope with the enemy. Kiel concluded. Whoever she chose to associate with was none of his business. As long as that person wasn¡¯t Rhur. Speaking of the demon, Rhur noticed that his target was avoiding looking at him, so he came up with a way to force her to look up ¨C he started a conversation: ¡°So¡­Lady Wayvin, how did you get acquainted with my little brother? Are the two of you¡­ an item?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he interjected before Elaru could respond. ¡°Our paths accidentally crossed and we hit it off quite well.¡± ¡°Oh? Considering how you abhor socializing, little brother, I thought that the only kind of people with which you¡¯d get along well would be the dead kind.¡± Rhur gave Kiel a brief cold stare which Kiel returned with triple the amount of iciness. How dare you bring my mother into this?! Kiel clenched his fist under the table until all his fingers turned white. Rhur turned once again to face Elaru, the ice in his eyes instantly melting. ¡°What brings Lady Wayvin to Ashar? Are you here for Muni exams too?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Elaru confirmed. ¡°Once you enter Muni, you can seek me out. I¡¯d love to show you around.¡± Rhur offered warmly. He wasn¡¯t confident that this beautiful redhead had what it took for her to pass, but he couldn¡¯t really say that out loud, could he? It would be better to pretend that he had faith in her. That way he¡¯d win regardless of whether she passed or not. And if she did, by some miracle, pass, then she¡¯d remember his promise to show her around and seek him out. ¡°Thanks for the offer, older brother. We will surely seek you out after the exams.¡± Kiel spoke out slowly. Rhur¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°So, you two are an item after all? I assume you haven¡¯t yet told grandfather about it?¡± Kiel stared at Rhur, deliberating how to respond. On the one hand, Elaru and him weren¡¯t romantically involved, so he should dispel the confusion and just be honest about it. Especially because his grandfather would throw a fit and make their lives difficult if he thought them to be together. Elaru was definitely not the kind of a girlfriend he would approve of. Not to mention that if people got the wrong idea, this would impact his social and school life in the future. On the other hand, denying their relationship was exactly what Rhur wanted to hear. Admitting it would be like giving him permission to court Elaru.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°I¡¯ll be happy to take her off your hands.¡± ¡°Well, it has been great to catch up with you, older brother. But Elaru and I have places to be and can¡¯t afford to entertain you any longer.¡± Kiel downed his glass of wine and declared. Kiel furrowed his eyebrows. What does she intend to do? This vixen¡­! She did it on purpose!! She has been teasing me all along!! ¡°As you wish, Rhur.¡± She spoke in a husky voice that gave Rhur pleasant chills. Episode 87 – Put it on my tab Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel¡¯s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda ¨C Kiel¡¯s older brother, and his date. Kiel and Rhur engage in a word battle.
Episode 87 ¨C Put it on my tab Rhur¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°So, you two are an item after all? I assume you haven¡¯t yet told grandfather about it?¡± Kiel stared at Rhur, deliberating how to respond. On the one hand, Elaru and him weren¡¯t romantically involved, so he should dispel the confusion and just be honest about it. Especially because his grandfather would throw a fit and make their lives difficult if he thought them to be together. Elaru was definitely not the kind of a girlfriend he would approve of. Not to mention that if people got the wrong idea, this would impact his social and school life in the future. On the other hand, denying their relationship was exactly what Rhur wanted to hear. Admitting it would be like giving him permission to court Elaru. In the end, Kiel gritted his teeth and responded: ¡°You misunderstood, older brother. Elaru and I are just good friends.¡± Rhur¡¯s smirk turned into a grin upon hearing those words. ¡°I see¡­ does that mean that Lady Wayvin is single?¡± Rhur winked charmingly. Elaru blinked a few times blankly. ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°How rare. Such a beautiful and talented young lady, yet single. Men of this world must be blind.¡± Rhur smirked, giving Kiel a meaningful look, as if saying ¡°I¡¯ll be happy to take her off your hands.¡± Kiel sighed. ¡°Dear older brother, not everyone has the leisure to entertain beautiful ladies like you every day.¡± Rhur chuckled. ¡°No need to beat around the bush, little brother. It seems to me you haven¡¯t found that special lady yet. Why don¡¯t I introduce you to some high-class ladies? Perhaps you will find one that is to your liking.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Rhur was insinuating that Kiel wasn¡¯t interested in Elaru, hoping to drive a wedge between them. He clearly didn¡¯t believe that their relationship was pure friendship with no romance involved. ¡°Thank you for the offer, older brother. I know that you are on pretty close terms with most noble ladies around our age. However, to be frank, I¡¯d be more interested in meeting those ladies that you haven¡¯t had close relations with.¡± Kiel smiled and looked at Rhur ¡°gratefully¡±. Rhur smirked and moved his glass in a toasting motion towards Kiel. Most people would think the expression to mean ¡°As you wish¡± but Kiel could tell that what he actually meant was ¡°Good luck. You will be hard pressed to find a lady I haven¡¯t done yet.¡± ¡°Well, it has been great to catch up with you, older brother. But Elaru and I have places to be and can¡¯t afford to entertain you any longer.¡± Kiel downed his glass of wine and declared. ¡°What places are those? Perhaps we are going the same way.¡± Rhur didn¡¯t wait for Kiel¡¯s response. He called for the waiter and requested for the receipt, worried that if the waiter wasn¡¯t quick enough, his brother and the redhead would slip away. Kiel was about to politely scold Rhur for putting his nose where it didn¡¯t belong, intending to get up and depart with Elaru, however, Elaru stopped him. ¡°Hold on. You wouldn¡¯t want to miss this.¡± Kiel swallowed his words and turned to look at Elaru. A mischievous glint was in her eyes. A glint that meant that someone was about to get a shorter end of the stick. Kiel furrowed his eyebrows. What does she intend to do? He followed her gaze to Rhur, who had just been handed the receipt. However, before he could figure out Elaru¡¯s intentions, suddenly Rhur¡¯s confident and soft smile stiffened, and his face visibly paled. Elaru took a sip of her wine and added cheerfully. ¡°Master Rhur, are you alright? You are looking a bit pale?¡± Her mouth couldn¡¯t help but curl into a sly smirk. ¡°Perhaps you should drink more wine? That should help with the blood flow.¡± Rhur¡¯s eyebrows started twitching violently. If he was a person with less poise, he would be spewing blood from frustration right about now. Drink more wine?! Help with the blood flow?!? This vixen¡­! She did it on purpose!! She has been teasing me all along!! Suddenly, Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in realization. His head snapped to the side, and his eyes zoomed in on the small text on the wine bottle. What he read left him speechless. Lileron Passion was a two-hundred-year-old limited-edition wine produced from a rare variety of grapes. Its price was no doubt staggering. No wonder it didn¡¯t appear on the menu. Even grandfather would not casually drink such wine. ¡°Elaru, just how expensive is Lileron Passion?¡± A merry laughter reverberated inside his head. ¡°Let¡¯s just say that your brother won¡¯t be bringing girls here for a while¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s lips involuntarily morphed into a wide grin, and he couldn¡¯t stop himself from blurting out: ¡°What¡¯s wrong, older brother? Don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t bring enough money to pay for the meal? Do you need me to lend you some coins?¡± Rhur¡¯s eyebrow started twitching more violently. Wasn¡¯t that the exact thing he asked Kiel earlier?! And that wasn¡¯t even the worst thing! He had promised to pay for the meal! He couldn¡¯t go back on his own promise!The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Rhur coughed softly, but his throat seemed to be a bit dry. ¡°You sure like to joke, little brother. How could I let my little brother pay with his hard earned quest money? If I, the future head of the family, don¡¯t have enough money to pay for my meals, then who would have enough money?¡± Although he said that, his next words directed to the waiter revealed the reality of the situation: ¡°Put it on my tab¡­¡± Rhur looked bitterly towards the wine bottle. How did the redhead know of this wine? It¡¯s as if she picked it straight from the list of top 10 most expensive wines! After getting his emotions in control, Rhur¡¯s smile returned to his face, and he looked back at Elaru. ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡­ I¡¯ll remember this.¡± Rhur Rroda wasn¡¯t stupid. As soon as he saw the bill, he realized that he had been played for a fool. This little red headed vixen was an extremely good actor. She was pretending to be ignorant and harmless while plotting against him from the start. And he fell for it. He even ordered two bottles of Lileron Passion. Those two bottles were more expensive than their weight in gold! Elaru grinned widely, finally revealing her true nature. ¡°I too will remember such a wonderful meal. We should repeat this in the future.¡± Then she motioned her glass of wine towards Rhur as if saying ¡°Cheers¡± and downed it. Rhur¡¯s eyebrow involuntarily twitched again. Only if you pay for it next time. ¨C he thought, but what came out of his mouth was completely different: ¡°I am looking forward to it. It was a pleasure meeting you, Lady Wayvin.¡± This female was a lupax in meep clothing. But that was alright. He preferred the feisty ones. It was much more satisfying to subdue those who are putting up a fight than those who surrender quickly. The more difficult to deal with his prey was, the more fun it was to catch it. Rhur wasn¡¯t discouraged in the least. No. It was quite the opposite. You won this round, Elaru Wayvin. But next time, it will be my win. Rhur¡¯s eyes lit up with even more fervor than before. Oh, how I will enjoy spanking you into submission¡­ He could barely restrain himself. He could barely wait. In fact, as soon as he got home, he would investigate this girl. He would not leave their next meeting to fate. ¡°The pleasure is all mine, Master Rroda.¡± Elaru responded with a small smirk still playing at the corner of her lips. ¡°Please call me Rhur.¡± Rhur smiled a dazzling smile that was no less brilliant that Kiel¡¯s pretty smiles. You can leave the ¡°master¡± for bed talk. Elaru responded with her own dazzling smile. Ayah looked away, those two smiles were so bright one couldn¡¯t look straight at them. ¡°As you wish, Rhur.¡± She spoke in a husky voice that gave Rhur pleasant chills. * * * The two ¡°couples¡± walked out of Black Pearl, the atmosphere around them looked perfectly amiable on the first glance. Luckily, even peacekeepers weren¡¯t allowed in the vicinity of the restaurant, let alone Rroda men, so Kiel and Elaru didn¡¯t run into an ambush on their way in and out of the restaurant. ¡°When will you be returning to the mainhouse, little brother?¡± Rhur asked. He needed to repay him for this trick the two of them played. And his own home turf would be the perfect place for it. ¡°I have a few more things to take care of before I stop by.¡± Kiel said nonchalantly. ¡°I¡¯ll be there in a few days.¡± ¡°Feel free to bring Lady Wayvin with you. I¡¯d love to show her around the Rroda mainhouse.¡± Rhur winked. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Lady Wayvin this, Lady Wayvin that, can you be any more annoying? The two couples moved towards the crossroads so slowly that they couldn¡¯t go any slower. Rhur wanted to see in which direction the two were going so he could choose to go in the same direction. Kiel, on the other hand, had exactly the same idea, which resulted in both of them trying to fall behind the other one. In the end, they reached the crossroads at the same exact time. The two brothers stared at each other, neither taking the initiative to choose a path. In the end, it was Elaru that broke the stalemate by pulling Kiel by the arm and Accelerating to the roof. She half smirked half smiled and waved Rhur goodbye in a relaxed, slightly taunting manner. Her being able to use Augmentation magic caught Rhur by surprise, so he didn¡¯t react to follow fast enough. Augmentation magic?! Isn¡¯t she supposed to be a commoner? Where did she get a mana purifying artifact?! When Rhur came back to his senses, it was already too late. The two of them had jumped down from the roof to the other side of the building, away from Rhur¡¯s line of sight. Before their feet even touched the ground, their auras completely disappeared. Rhur swore internally and decided to drop the pursuit. He didn¡¯t want to seem like a stalker. He shouldn¡¯t cling too tightly. After turning invisible, Kiel and Elaru waited for Rhur to leave, before returning to the Black Pearl restaurant once again. This time, disguised under two black cloaks. It would be both embarrassing and suspicious if the same two people who just left the restaurant came back once again. However, they couldn¡¯t leave before they fulfilled what they came here to do. * * * As soon as the two of them were once again alone in the room, they removed their cloaks and stared at each other. Both of their faces slowly morphed into wide grins, looking like two scheming vulpies. Finally, they could let loose everything they wanted to do and say. ¡°I should have known you had an evil plan up your sleeves!¡± Kiel let out a deep chuckle. ¡°Indeed. Considering how many times I¡¯ve one-upped you so far, you should have seen it coming.¡± ¡°Ah! So you finally admit to doing it!¡± ¡°Did I say one-upping? I meant to say team-upping with you to beat your brother.¡± Kiel rolled his eyes. ¡°We did make a good team. Did you see his face when he saw the bill?¡± ¡°Priceless!¡± Elaru burst out in laughter. ¡°I wish there was an artist here to capture the moment into a painting.¡± Kiel sighed regretfully. ¡°No need for the painter. His miserable expression shall forever stay imprinted in my memory. Oh, such poise, such elegance! Simply the epitome of grace!¡± ¡°Pffft!¡± Kiel could no longer contain it and joined in on her laughter. ¡°You have no idea. He is so graceful that if you punched him, he¡¯d fall down with such incomparable grace! Even if you pushed him down the stairs, he¡¯d do a fabulously graceful roll to the bottom!¡± ¡°Nooo!¡± Elaru covered her mouth with her hands in both shock and excitement. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you pushed him down the stairs before?¡± Kiel smirked. ¡°I was grounded for half a year, but it was totally worth it.¡± ¡°Uuuuu! Who would have thought that Kiel Rroda has a violent and devious side too?¡± Elaru¡¯s grin was so wide it couldn¡¯t get any wider. ¡°Nice! I wish I could have seen that!¡± She gave him a thumbs up. ¡°There are plenty of staircases in Muni¡­ if you know what I mean?¡± Kiel winked. ¡°Kyaaaa~~ Stop enticing me! If I run into him inside Muni, my hand just might accidentally slip¡­¡± The two laughed merrily until their eyes were red from tears and their faces hurt from grinning too much. Several times, they managed to calm down, only to look at each other and burst into laughter once again. It had been a long time since Elaru had laughed carefreely like this. And for Kiel, it had been an even longer time. A time so long that he couldn¡¯t remember ever laughing like this.
Coming up in the next episode: Buried deep down within him, there was a sleeping monster that was everything he didn¡¯t want to be. A dangerous, bestial, sleeping dragon capable of doing anything to get that which he desired. A ticking time bomb that just needed a trigger. ¡°How did you¡­?!?!¡± Abruptly, he stopped himself, realizing he almost gave himself away. ¡°I mean, you have me confused with someone else.¡± He hesitated and looked to the right where a youth was slumped face first on the bar, surrounded by several empty liquor bottles. One would think that the pretty faced youth was unconscious if it weren¡¯t for his mumbling under his breath and hiccups that shook his body every few seconds. ¡°Ah. You are either talking about Light or Night.¡± ¡°Can you be¡ªbelieve what happ¡ªened to me today? I got¡ªrobbed¡­¡± An especially vicious hiccup made him pause for several second before finishing his statement. ¡°In broad daylight!¡± Episode 88 – Light and Night Previously: Elaru picks up Kiel¡¯s ring and the two of them go to Black Pearl restaurant where she intends to give him the ring and explain its usage. Unfortunately, as they enter the lobby of the restaurant, they run into Rhur Rroda ¨C Kiel¡¯s older brother, and his date. Kiel and Rhur engage in a word battle, both trying to humiliate each other. Their stalemate is broken when Elaru joins the fray, and Rhur ends up suffering heavy monetary losses because of an overly expensive wine Elaru tricked him into ordering. The four leave Black Pearl after their lunch, however, Kiel and Elaru return back because they haven¡¯t yet accomplished their goal behind coming to Black Pearl restaurant. After they are left alone in a private booth, the two enjoy their victory over Rhur.
Episode 88 ¨C Light and Night The two laughed merrily until their eyes were red from tears and their faces hurt from grinning too much. Several times, they managed to calm down, only to look at each other and burst into laughter once again. It had been a long time since Elaru had laughed carefreely like this. And for Kiel, it had been an even longer time. A time so long that he couldn¡¯t remember ever laughing like this. For a moment, Kiel forgot all his inhibitions. He forgot that he was supposed to be suppressing these feelings that overflowed with no rime or reason, this rampaging tide of emotions that he couldn¡¯t help but fear. For what Kiel feared the most was the loss of control. He dreaded losing control of his own fate, yet, what he feared even more, was losing control of himself. For buried deep down within him, there was a sleeping monstrosity that was everything he didn¡¯t want to be. A dangerous, bestial creature ready to bare its fangs to anyone standing in its way. A ticking time bomb that just needed a trigger. No matter how he despised it, no matter how he tried to ignore it ¨C through his veins ran the blood of a Rroda. * * * In a small, secluded alley in the oldest neighborhood of Ashar, there was an old-fashioned bar. The wooden entrance to the establishment was rustic looking, while the blurred glass on the windows gave it a mysterious look. The insides were just as old fashioned as the outside, filled with wooden tables and chairs. In the middle of the establishment was a bar counter, behind which stood a middle-aged argel appearing to be in his fifties. He was tall and thin, with sunken eyes and a stiff, emotionless face. His neatly combed dark brown hair was littered with many gray strands. The man was wiping mugs and wine glasses, occasionally looking through the blurry windows to the outside, occasionally looking at the youth who half-sat at the bar counter and half-laid on top of it. A sound of jingling bells attracted the man¡¯s attention towards the entrance, where a giant black ball was trying to pass through the doorframe. The sight was quite bizarre, as if someone took a human sized airbalt ball, covered it with a black blanket and tried to roll it through the door only to get stuck. Although the sight was nothing short of hilarious, the bartender remained as apathetic as ever, no humor showing in his black eyes. After several seconds of wiggling, the ball managed to squeeze through the door and staggered to the bar, where it proceeded to occupy several bar stools. The bartender waited for the ball to catch its breath before asking. ¡°Goddas, how may I help you today?¡± The black ball gasped. ¡°How did you¡­?!?¡± Abruptly, the ball stopped speaking, realizing he almost gave himself away. No one was supposed to know who he was, that¡¯s why he came wearing a black cloak. The fatty coughed a few times before replying. ¡°I mean¡­ you have me confused with someone else.¡± The bartender stared at him speechlessly. How many people were there in Ashar that looked like a human sized riceball? How could he possibly confuse him with someone else? Goddas looked around himself, checking if there was anyone in the vicinity who could eavesdrop on his conversation with the bartender. His eyes landed on the slumped figure a few seats to the right of him. The head of the elibu youth was lying on top of the counter, surrounded by several empty liquor bottles. His black hair was tied in a long, thin braid, that hung limply down the side of his neck, almost reaching the floor. The youth was mumbling curses under his breath, seemingly complaining about something. Every few seconds a sneeze or a hiccup would shake his body, interrupting his mumbling. ¡°Don¡¯t mind him. You can speak freely.¡± The bartender didn¡¯t even bother to look at the youth. Goddas kept quiet for a moment, deliberating where to start. Goddas, like the great majority of people that come to this old bar, didn¡¯t come here to drink liquor. This unremarkable-looking bar was actually one of many branches of the Shadow Lodge. And this old bartender was a ¡°handler¡±. A person responsible for providing information both to the clients and to the agents working for the Shadow Lodge. If you wanted something done that wasn¡¯t quite legal, this was the place where you could get it done. If you wanted to take a well-paid shady job, this was the place where you could get it.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Lastly, if you wanted information about the activities of the Shadow Lodge and its agents, this would be the place to get it. And this information was exactly what Goddas was looking for: ¡°Recently I¡¯ve been dealing with a certain¡­¡± Goddas swallowed the curse word he almost spoke out, remembering that it might not be a good idea to curse a Shadow Lodge agent in front of another Shadow Lodge agent. ¡°¡­gentleman¡­ that I believe to be one of your Shadows. Therefore, I came seeking more information about him.¡± The bartender kept quiet, waiting for Goddas to elaborate. Goddas squinted his eyes and thought back to the blasted black cloaked buttcracker that always came unannounced and uninvited. He thought back to the face of the man, illuminated by the lightning flash and started to describe him to the bartender. He described the man, however, he omitted the fact that he already had a clue as to what the man¡¯s nickname was. The bartender remained quiet for several seconds before speaking out. ¡°The man you are talking about is most likely either Light or Night. The two of them are twins and SS ranked Shadows.¡± Goddas sucked in a breath. SS ranked?! The total number of mages ranked above S rank in the entire land of Halnea didn¡¯t exceed two hundred. Since only a small percentage of those mages were working for the Shadow Lodge, there couldn¡¯t be more than 20 SS and SSS ranked Shadows in the entire land of Halnea. What are the odds of running into one of those monsters? Goddas cursed his bad luck. The bartender gave Goddas a solemn look before continuing: ¡°Night is the older of the two. He is vindictive, overprotective of his younger brother, and has a knack for getting into trouble. The younger of the two, Light, has a¡­sense of humor¡­ He is patient and rarely loses his temper. Most of the time he has his hands full with keeping Night in check and out of trouble.¡± The bartender paused. ¡°For your sake, I hope you are dealing with Light¡­¡± Goddas gulped. It should be Light? Right, right?? He did say his nickname was Light! The fatty fidgeted in his seat. The old wooden floor under him squeaked in protest. ¡°Tell me more about them¡­ what¡­ what kind of Shadows are they?¡± The bartender looked down on the glass he was wiping, pausing slightly before responding. ¡°Night is a master at intelligence gathering. It is rumored that there isn¡¯t a single person more capable at reading people in the entire Shadow Lodge. He is an extremely tricky person to deal with. It is as if he can read your mind, you simply can¡¯t hide anything from him. On the other hand, Light is a master of breaking and entering. They say that there is no place that he can¡¯t break into. Both of them are great fighters, capable of disabling their opponents in a single exchange of moves. They are also calculative, prudent and they never leave a trace behind. Their mission success rate is 100%.¡± In other words¡­they have never failed a mission?! Suddenly, fatty¡¯s mouth turned dry. The words of the bartender seemed to trigger a response from the youth slumped at the bar counter. Suddenly he wailed miserably. ¡°100%! My flawless success rate¡­*hiccup* gone! GONE!¡± Goddas jumped up with fright, clutching his heart. It was quite startling for the half dead youth to suddenly become so lively. The bartender, on the other hand, didn¡¯t react at all. He completely ignored the drunk youth, not even looking his way. The body of the elibu jumped up with a particularly strong hiccup. Then he slumped back down miserably, letting out what seemed to be a sob. ¡°Gone¡­ all gone¡­¡± Only when the youth quieted down once again did Goddas recover from his stupor and remember what he had intended to ask: ¡°What kind of missions do they usually take?¡± Goddas squeaked. ¡°Assassinations? Thefts?¡± ¡°They used to do all kinds of missions non-stop up to three years ago. Nowadays neither of the two stop by the Lodge often. Back in the days when they were still doing missions, mostly they took infiltration, information gathering, trailing and client protection missions. There were occasional thefts and assassinations, but they were quite picky with their missions, preferring to take missions that target the scourge of the underworld.¡± Huh? Fatty¡¯s eyebrows rose in surprise. ¡°Shadows with a sense of justice? Queer!¡± ¡°There is no justice in this world!!¡± The half-dead youth suddenly screeched, making Goddas jump in fright once again. The youth continued his hiccup-filled speech: ¡°It¡¯s ¡ª not fair! I¡¯m just trying ¡ªto earn an honest living¡­¡± A sneeze interrupted his speech. ¡°¡­you know?¡± This time, the bartender finally looked at the youth, his expression completely speechless. An honest living? You are an assassin¡­ Fatty¡¯s expression, however, once the surprise passed, revealed what seemed to be empathy. ¡°Right! Right! Me too! I¡¯m also just trying to earn an honest living! It¡¯s not fair! The bad guys always take advantage of us upright fellows!¡± Light¡¯s face flashed in fatty¡¯s mind, and his cheeks puffed up. ¡°Bartender, give me two shots! One for me, one for my young friend over there.¡± Goddas slammed his hand on the bar counter, the countless rings on his fingers clattering. The bartender looked back at Goddas, just as speechless as before. He is dead drunk¡­ and you want me to give him another shot? Still, he complied, filling two glasses of liquor and passing them to the two idiots.Well¡­ whatever¡­ not my problem. The fatty downed the liquor in one gulp and let out a breath reeking of alcohol. ¡°So¡­ basically¡­ since I am not among the scourge¡­ I don¡¯t have to worry that they will off me in my sleep?¡± The bartender gave Goddas a condescending look. ¡°They are professionals. They don¡¯t kill for personal reasons. Unless someone puts a price on your head, they won¡¯t go out of their way to off you.¡± Goddas let out a sigh of relief. His tense muscles finally relaxed, and he slumped tiredly onto the counter. ¡°Still¡­ you should avoid provoking them. They might not kill you¡­but there are plenty of ways to get back at someone without resorting to murder. None of the people who angered them had a pleasant ending.¡± The fatty who finally managed to relax his taut nerves tensed up once again. ¡°W¡­what do you mean?¡± The bartender opened his mouth to respond, but the fatty suddenly interrupted him. ¡°No¡­ actually¡­ don¡¯t answer that.¡± I¡¯ll probably have nightmares. I¡¯m better off not knowing. ¡°Better yet, tell me, what is their background?¡± The bartender shrugged. ¡°No one knows. However, they were introduced into the Shadow Lodge by the vice-head personally.¡± The bartender gave Goddas a meaningful look. If the vice-head was willing to vouch for them, then their relationship with the vice-head wasn¡¯t simple. One could say that the two of them had the backing of the entire Shadow Lodge. Goddas rubbed his chin in thought, one could almost see the cogs in his brain turning. The youth sitting next to him noticed the glass of liquor he had been handed and finally, his head rose up from the counter. He looked gratefully at Goddas. Whether it was because of the cold constantly making him sneeze, or the liquor, both his perky nose and his cheeks were flushed red. He attempted to pick up the glass and bring it up in a cheering gesture, but he ended up spilling half of the drink. Goddas stared at the youth like seeing a comrade in arms. ¡°What¡¯s your story? Did you get bullied?¡± ¡°You have¡ªno idea!¡± The youth¡¯s elibu ears seemed to perk up in excitement. Finally, there was someone on whom he could unload his grievances. ¡°You won¡¯t be¡ªbelieve what happ¡ªened to me today! I got ¡ªrobbed¡­¡± An especially vicious hiccup made him pause for several seconds before finishing his statement. ¡°In broad daylight!¡±
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°I¡¯ve got one word for you: boobs.¡± ¡°Hey!! Who are you calling a sack of fat?!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we all customers? I pay for liquor shots, they pay for head shots¡­ all the same..¡± ¡°Me? Get poisoned? I am poison master! There is no poison I can¡¯t deal wi¡­¡± Episode 89 – Sack of Fat Previously: Goddas comes to a bar that acts as a branch of the Shadow Lodge. There he inquires about Light, a Shadow that had been coming uninvited into his residence. There he meets a youth on the bar counter drinking his sorrows away, and looking wasted.
Episode 89 ¨C Sack of Fat Goddas stared at the youth like seeing a comrade in arms. ¡°What¡¯s your story? Did you get bullied?¡± ¡°You have¡ªno idea!¡± The youth¡¯s elibu ears seemed to perk up in excitement. Finally, there was someone on whom he could unload his grievances. ¡°You won¡¯t be¡ªbelieve what happ¡ªened to me today! I got ¡ªrobbed¡­¡± An especially vicious hiccup made him pause for several seconds before finishing his statement. ¡°In broad daylight!¡± ¡°No!¡± Goddas gasped with much more surprise than needed. ¡°Who dares rob people in broad daylight?¡± He then lowered his voice sneakily. ¡°Is it one them¡­Shadows?¡± The youth nodded his head animatedly, then suddenly stopped and groaned painfully. What a terrible headache¡­ ¡°Tough luck¡­ what did they steal?¡± The youth¡¯s face turned very sour. ¡°My¡­ hand cream¡­¡± He hiccupped pitifully. ¡°Say what?!¡± Goddas¡¯jaw dropped and he stared at the youth dumbfounded. A hand cream?? You are this upset over a hand cream?! Frakk! What was it made out of?! Diamonds?! Must have heard him wrong¡­ Goddas turned his head to the side and attempted to stick his little finger inside his ear to clean it. However, his little finger was in no way little, so no matter how he tried he couldn¡¯t stick it in. After multiple failed attempts, Goddasfigured that he probably heard the youth right after all. It¡¯s just that¡­ Is ¡®hand cream¡¯ some kind of slang term? Is he referring to something else? Kids nowadays¡­ The youth was completely unaware of the thoughts running through fatty¡¯s head. He continued: ¡°That¡¯s not even¡ªthe worst thing!¡± In his mind flashed a beautiful face surrounded by black and blue hair. The youth¡¯s expression turned incomparably miserable. ¡°The worst thing is¡ªwatching handsome men¡ªfawn over stuck up b¡ª¡° He let out a loud sneeze. ¡°I have no idea¡ªwhat you guys see in¡ªwomen. Such nasty creatures¡­¡± Suddenly he shivered. ¡°¡­especially red-headed ones¡­¡± Then he proceeded to pout and press his index fingers together in a pitiful manner. ¡°I happen to love redheads. Spicy!¡± Fatty¡¯s mouth stretched into a lascivious grin. ¡°What do you mean what ¡°we¡± see in women? I¡¯ve got one word for you: boobs!¡± The youth let out an unresigned ¡°Bah!¡± and quickly downed the remainder of his glass with a condescending frown on his face. ¡°Nothing but a sack of fat!¡± Goddas¡¯ smile vanished from his face into thin air, replaced with a red flush. ¡°Who are you calling a sack of fat?! You skinny little buttcracker!¡± He slammed his ring littered hands on the counter and attempted to get off his seat furiously. However, the bar stools were bolted to the floor, so he only looked like a jelly struggling to squeeze out of confinement. ¡°What?¡± The youth was startled and turned to look at the funny scene. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean you¡­! Boobs!¡± The fatty¡¯s struggle ceased, and he turned his head to look behind himself. ¡°Where? Where? How big are they?¡± ¡°Argh!!¡± The youth slammed both his glass and his head back on the counter and bellowed. ¡°Clarence¡ªgive me another shot!¡± The bartender, whose name seemed to be Clarence, gave him an apathetic look instead of a drink. ¡°Go home. You are drunk.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± The youth shook his empty glass aggressively. ¡°Are you gonna¡ªrefuse me service?¡± He then slammed the glass back down impatiently. ¡°Aren¡¯t we all¡ªcustomers? I pay for¡ªliquor shots, they pay for¡ªheadshots¡ªall the same¡­¡± The bartender looked at the notorious Dusk Rose in front of him speechlessly. Only you¡¯d consider them the same¡­ The fatty finally turned his head back to the youth, a deep frown etched on his round face. ¡°Are you making fun of me?! There are no women here, skinny prick!¡± The youth ignored Goddas, still demanding another drink. After several seconds of intense staring, Clarence gave in and filled the youth¡¯s glass again. However, he couldn¡¯t help but comment: ¡°You better stop drinking before you get alcohol poisoning¡­¡± ¡°Hah!¡± Dusk Rose snorted and downed the glass in a single gulp. ¡°Me? Get poisoned? I am poison master! There is¡ªno poison I can¡¯t¡ªdeal wi¡­¡± His arrogant speech was interrupted abruptly by a higher force. Suddenly, what came out of Dusk Rose¡¯s mouth wasn¡¯t words¡­instead, he ended up throwing his entire guts out all over the bar counter. The fatty to the side screeched miserably and attempted to get off the stools he was sitting on, hoping to escape the danger zone. However, he couldn¡¯t retreat fast enough, and some of the bile ended up reaching him, to his unending horror. His screech turned ear piercing, he wiggled frantically like a fish caught in a net. The wooden boards the stools were bolted to finally couldn¡¯t take the strain, and they snapped. The stools fell back with a loud crash creating a large scar on the wooden floor with their impact. The bartender stood rooted to the spot, his always apathetic face finally turning unsightly.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. * * * In a small and inconspicuous alley, there was an old bar whose lights were always on, even in the dead of night. Not many people passed through this old and dirty alley, especially when it was raining such as today. This is why, when the doors to the old bar opened, there was no one there to see the old bartender carrying a youth by the back of his shirt like a mother lunar carrying her young. The bartender extended his arm over the threshold of the door and threw the youth face first into the dirt like throwing away trash. The youth¡¯s braid made a beautiful arc in the air before falling down across the youths back and bottom. The door to the bar stayed closed for several seconds before it opened again. A miserable scream could be heard from inside: ¡°Is there a need to be so vicious?? I already paid for the damage!¡± This time, the bartender kicked a giant black rolling ball through the door. The ball rolled straight over the youth, who was lying on the floor with his butt in the air, flattening him into a pancake, before it hit the house on the other side of the alley with a loud crash. No one paid attention to the crash, thinking it to be merely the sound of thunder. The slurred cursing of the youth enumerating every curse word in his vocabulary was drowned by the sound of rainfall. * * * The lightning was flashing dangerously in the sky, the thunder rumbled threateningly, yet, not even lightning and thunder combined could create as oppressing of a mood as the icy glare from Venric Rroda when he got news of the Shadow Lodge mission failure. He sat like a statue with his fingers crossed in front of him. On the first glance, one would think nothing was wrong. One would be wrong. Venric¡¯s icy eyes were flashing with thunder and lightning much more vicious than the storm outside. Kiel Rroda had somehow managed to take today¡¯s exams, even though Venric had sent a Shadow after him. Even though he lost a hefty deposit for hiring a Shadow, he was powerless to stop the reputation-sullying brought on by a bastard child. His current fury could only be imagined. Venric Rroda deduced that soon all other noble families will get word that the Rroda family had a non-mage among their midst. He figured that the next time his family members were forced to attend a party, they would be the laughing stock of the entire event. Indignation and regret filled Venric Rroda. He deeply regretted that he chose to spare that bastard child. He had 12 years. 12 whole years in which he could have offed him at any moment! Yet he chose to agree to his son¡¯s demands and spare the little non-mage. Venric Rroda felt a strong impulse to hire a Shadow of an even higher rank to off that bastard grandson of his right now, but his calm rationality overpowered the impulse. There was no point in doing that now. The deed had been done. Even if Kiel Rroda suddenly died, it wouldn¡¯t wipe off the stain on their family name. On the contrary, others might suspect that they were the ones that offed their own family member to hide the disgrace. Kiel¡¯s father would also throw a temper tantrum and become hard to deal with in case the bastard child died. In fact, that father of his was the only reason why Kiel Rroda was alive to this very day. Also, hiring a Shadow of an even higher rank come at an exorbitant price. It was simply not worth shouldering the cost just to give vent to his anger. Killing Kiel Rroda now would bring many drawbacks and no benefits. I¡¯ll let him be for now. Venric Rroda concluded. He won¡¯t be able to hide forever. Once the exams are over, he will not be able to enter Muni. Without the protection of Muni, it is only a matter of time until the two of them slip up and fall into my hands. Once they do¡­ how should I deal with them? Venric quietly pondered in the deathly silence of his study. Unfortunately, the silence was broken by several loud knocks. ¡°Grandfather, it is me.¡± Venric frowned. ¡°Enter.¡± The door opened to reveal his grandson, the heir of the family, Rhur Rroda, in all of his handsome, elegant glory. He waltzed in confidently with utmost elegance, a mysterious smile gracing his face. ¡°Grandfather, guess who I just ran into at Black Pearl?¡± Venric¡¯s frown turned into a death glare, and he growled out. ¡°I don¡¯t play guessing games.¡± Rhur Rroda didn¡¯t show any reaction to his death glare, noticing that there wasn¡¯t much hostility behind it. Rhur stopped right in front of his desk and sat down on one of the chairs which most people didn¡¯t dare to sit in. He then placed his arm on the desk and propped his chin up, looking at Venric with mirth and mischief. ¡°I ran into my little brother. On a date. With a girl.¡± Rhur chuckled musically. ¡°Can you beli¡­¡± Suddenly, the previously still Venric Rroda sprang into motion. His eyes widened, and he grabbed unprepared Rhur by the collar pulling him up. ¡°Did you catch them?!?¡± Rhur¡¯s confident and unperturbed expression turned into a stiff shock with a tinge of dread. ¡°Did I what¡­??¡± His stunned expression told Venric everything. ¡°You idiot!¡± Bellowed Venric Rroda. ¡°I mobilized half of our forces to catch that unfilial child, and our men couldn¡¯t find him. Yet you run into him and actually let him walk away!?!¡± Rhur was so startled by his words that he stuttered: ¡°W¡­what¡­? Well¡­ uh¡­ how was I supposed to know you were looking for them?¡± Venric Rroda released Rhur¡¯s collar and flung him back to his seat. Rhur¡¯s shirt was left looking ruffled, it even slid down his shoulder revealing his pearly white collar bone looking so seductive that Venric could barely restrain himself from strangling this lustful grandson of his. He settled for glaring at him with such dissatisfaction that it would make one¡¯s blood run cold and hair raise in alarm. The volume of Venric¡¯s voice lowered to normal. However, the tone contained acid that could eat a person alive. ¡°If you actually paid attention to what was going on in the mainhouse instead of loitering around in brothels¡­¡± Rhur¡¯s body suddenly shivered and broke out in goosebumps. ¡°I don¡¯t visit brothels.¡± He defended himself, looking at Venric in what seemed to be horror. ¡°What do you take me for? I am not that wasteful. Why would I pay for something that I can get for free?¡± Venric slammed his fist on the table loudly, making the entire desk shake. ¡°Silence!¡± It was a wonder how the desk didn¡¯t break down with the constant abuse it was getting. After all these years of interaction with Venric, Rhur could tell when he could act willfully and when he needed to shut up. Now was one of the times when he should wipe off his usual confidence and seductiveness in favor of filial piety and obedience. Why is grandfather looking for my little brother? Rhur couldn¡¯t help but wonder, but he didn¡¯t dare ask. Venric was reaching the limit of his patience. Rhur gulped silently, a crystalline bead of sweat rolling down the side of his head. Perhaps now would be a bad time to ask for more money? The silence descended onto the room once again. Rhur pulled his shirt back up, hiding his revealed skin, and then proceeded to sit as still as a statue, waiting for Venric to allow him to speak, or to shoo him out. Preferably the second option. He had no desire to converse with his grandfather when he was in such a foul mood. The next several minutes felt like hours. Although the temperature inside the room was cold, Rhur¡¯s back had long become drenched with sweat.
Author Note It always cracks me up when I realize that I wrote something that sounds dirty out of context XD ¡°no matter how he tried he couldn¡¯t stick it in¡± Coming up in the next episode: Venric¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously and he growled out. ¡°Who dares swindle a son of the Rroda family?!¡± Rhur coughed dryly, fidgeting in his seat a bit, before finally, briefly explaining what happened. Of course, his explanation glorified himself as a saint who was unjustly plotted against by his evil younger brother. Rhur¡¯s wry smiled turned so stiff that it couldn¡¯t look any more unnatural. Yet the berating still went on: ¡°If you spent half as much time studying as you spend flirting with women you would have already succeeded me as the family head!!¡± Old fart, just wait until I replace you. I¡¯ll pay you back for all of your temper tantrums. In fact, you¡¯ll be on top of my ¡°payback¡± list. Right after my little brother. Episode 90 – Cover Story Previously: Rhur comes looking for Venric Rroda. He tells Venric that he ran into Kiel inside the Black Pearl restaurant. Venric is furious because Rhur didn¡¯t catch Kiel when he had the opportunity to do so. Rhur wasn¡¯t aware that Venric had been looking for Kiel, and had unknowingly let him escape.
Episode 90 ¨C Cover Story Rhur gulped silently, a crystalline bead of sweat rolling down the side of his head. Perhaps now would be a bad time to ask for more money? The silence descended onto the room once again. Rhur pulled his shirt back up, hiding his revealed skin, and then proceeded to sit as still as a statue, waiting for Venric to allow him to speak, or to shoo him out. Preferably the second option. He had no desire to converse with his grandfather when he was in such a foul mood. The next several minutes felt like hours. Although the temperature inside the room was cold, Rhur¡¯s back had long become drenched with sweat. One could say that Rhur¡¯s grandfather ¡°doted¡± on him. However, Venric¡¯s definition of ¡°doting¡± wasn¡¯t the same as any other person¡¯s definition of doting. Venric was in no way loving or forgiving towards Rhur Rroda. He only restrained his temper more than with other people. He was also more lenient when giving out punishments and allowed Rhur a larger freedom of speech. Finally, Venric Rroda broke the silence: ¡°Why did you come to see me?¡± The solemn, cold gaze expressed that saying ¡°Oh, I just wanted to gossip about my little brother¡¯s romantic endeavors.¡± wouldn¡¯t be an acceptable response. Rhur gulped, his throat suddenly feeling dry. ¡°Ah¡­ you see¡­you could say that¡­¡± ¡°Out with it!¡± Venric snapped. ¡°I got swindled¡­¡± Rhur spoke out in a weak voice, uncharacteristic for him. Yet even that weak voice carried a special type of allure. Venric¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously, and he growled out. ¡°Who dares swindle a son of the Rroda family?!¡± Rhur coughed dryly, fidgeting in his seat a bit, before finally, briefly explaining what happened. Of course, his explanation glorified himself as a saint who was unjustly plotted against by his evil younger brother. When he finished his explanation, silence descended onto the room once again. The only movement in the room came from the violent twitch of Venric¡¯s eyebrow. Finally, Venric covered his face with his palm, looking as if he wanted to face-palm himself but barely managed to restrain it for it would not be an appropriate thing to do for a noble. ¡°How much did you say it cost?¡± Rhur smiled wryly and repeated the staggering number, after which, silence once again descended onto the room. This time, the silence lasted even longer than the previous silence. ¡°Rhur¡­ Take this as a valuable lesson. As the future head, you need to learn how to deal with such situations on your own.¡± Rhur jumped at the chance to show his obedience. ¡°I understand.¡± He chirped with fake gratefulness for the advice. Rhur waited for Venric to continue, but Venric waved his hand, telling him to get out. Rhur finally couldn¡¯t restrain himself and the question that he had wanted to ask all along burst out: ¡°About the next month¡¯s allowance¡­¡± Before he could finish a sharp ¡°No!¡± interrupted him. ¡°But the tab¡­¡± Black Pearl didn¡¯t even allow people to have tabs. The only reason why they made an exception for him was because he was a VIP customer who came to Black Pearl almost every day. Naturally, he had to take care of the debt as soon as possible. ¡°Take care of it by yourself!¡± Mercy didn¡¯t exist in the vocabulary of Venric Rroda. Rhur¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Not even two of his monthly allowances would be enough to cover that tab¡­ for how long would he need to live frugally to pay this debt off?? Rhur couldn¡¯t help but grind his teeth, a vicious light flashing in his eyes. ¡°What about punishing little brother? He is squandering family money just to get back at me!¡± Venric, who was trying hard not to lose his temper could finally no longer endure. He slammed his hand on the table and viciously berated. ¡°You dare speak about squandering money?! How much money do you squander each month in that restaurant?!¡± That left Rhur tongue-tied, but the rebuking didn¡¯t end there: ¡°Naturally, I¡¯ll deal with the bastard child but who are you trying to deceive? Playing a saint in front of me?! Don¡¯t insult my intelligence! Do you think I am not aware of your flaws?! If you didn¡¯t go out of your way to antagonize him, would he have deliberately sought trouble?!¡± Rhur¡¯s face paled. ¡°Kiel Rroda might be a useless bastard child, but his reputation is spotless! Hard working, polite, modest, never stopping to relax or indulge in worldly pleasures. Yet look at you! I can¡¯t even count how many different women you have been seen with in the previous month alone!!¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Rhur¡¯s wry smiled turned so stiff that it couldn¡¯t look any more unnatural. Yet the berating still went on: ¡°If you spent half as much time studying as you spend flirting with women you would have already succeeded me as the family head!!¡± ¡°Look at yourself! Do you think I¡¯ll let you succeed me if you are stupid enough to get scammed by your own brother?! Aren¡¯t you ashamed of coming to me crying for help?!? Are you not worried that you would become a laughing stock if people heard about it?? The future head of the Rroda family made a fool out of by a bastard child? And his younger brother at that??¡± ¡°What kind of heir are you?! Get out of my office before I ground you for the next half of the year!!¡± As soon as he received the command to get lost, Rhur¡¯s face lit up as if he received a life-saving grace. He scrambled to his feet (gracefully), bowed apologetically to his grandfather, with his face showing nothing but utter remorse and gratefulness for his grandfather¡¯s wise words. And then he bolted through the door (elegantly, of course). * * * As soon as Rhur was far enough from his grandfather, his docile expression was replaced with cold fury. The grinding of his teeth produced audible noises. Old fart, just wait until I replace you. I¡¯ll pay you back for all of your temper tantrums. In fact, you¡¯ll be on top of my ¡°payback¡± list. Right after my little brother. He added. His expression turning all the more unsightly as he thought how Kiel reveled in his misfortune. Rhur blamed this entire ordeal on Kiel. Yes, it was his fault. He would pay it back to him in due time. He diverted all his anger and hate towards Kiel, for there was no point in hating the redhead. After all, she¡¯ll be repaying this debt with her body. He would take out all his frustration out then and turn it into a healthy exercise. As he made his way to the other side of the mansion, all of the servants who ran into him avoided him in a large arc. None of them even dared to look at his face so they couldn¡¯t notice the storm brewing inside his pale blue eyes. Nonetheless, they didn¡¯t need to look at him; the aura he exuded was enough for all of them to feel like pechuhs in front of a lupax. * * * Rhur suddenly stopped his waltz in front of a pretty courtyard filled with all kinds of greenery. Most of the plants, however, had pink flowers all year round. Rhur was very familiar with this courtyard. This courtyard and the part of the mansion beyond it belonged to his mother. The sickeningly pink color that spread as far as the eye could see made his stomach turn. Forget it. His eyebrow twitched. I am not that desperate. Instead of proceeding onwards, Rhur did an 180-degree turn, walking away in the same direction he came from. I¡¯d rather take my chances and pay a visit to father. * * * In a lavishly decorated room beyond the pink courtyard lay a slim, middle-aged woman surrounded by female servants who were painting her long fingernails. The woman who was resting her eyes suddenly opened them and looked towards the courtyard, even though she couldn¡¯t see through the walls. ¡°Hmmm?¡± Her baby blue eyes narrowed and her perfectly sculpted eyebrows furrowed. Was that my darling Rhur? Her eyebrows stayed furrowed for several seconds, before they relaxed once again. Well¡­whatever. She looked at her right hand which the servant had just finished with. She admired her long, pink fingernails for several seconds before humming in satisfaction. Then she proceeded to flick her long black hair with pink highlights to the side in a dignified manner. * * * (Meanwhile, in Black Pearl Restaurant) ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get down to business.¡± Elaru wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, trying hard to concentrate on the issue at hand. Kiel clutched his stomach in the most discrete way he could and nodded his head solemnly. ¡°Indeed, no more joking around.¡± Although his facial expression was deathly serious, internally, he was sincerely hoping, praying even, for there to be no more sudden outbursts of laughter. Not only were these laughing fits painful, as demonstrated by the current painful cramping of his stomach muscles, but these laughing fits were also totally ruining his image of a cold and serious person. Kiel continued to nod his head repeatedly. Indeed. Elaru Wayvin is extremely dangerous. ¡°Close your eyes.¡± Elaru exclaimed. Kiel¡¯s nodding suddenly stilled, and he looked at her blankly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Close your eyes.¡± She repeated. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll explain the purpose of it later. For now, just do as I say.¡± Kiel stared at her skeptically for a while, however, in the end, he let out a sigh and closed his eyes. He had decided to make her his ally, so he should show some trust. It¡¯s not like she asked him to jump into a burning building. When he closed his eyes, Elaru pulled out a box, wrapped in foil, from a small satchel hanging from her belt. She placed the box in front of Kiel, careful not to touch the box as she removed the foil. A soft sound of cardboard paper let Kiel know that the box wasn¡¯t the only thing that fell out of the foil. Even though he had his eyes closed, through his hearing and mana sense, he could perceive what was going on quite clearly. ¡°Can I open my eyes now?¡± Kiel sighed again, seeing no point in this entire endeavor. ¡°Yes.¡± Elaru agreed. Finally. Kiel resisted the urge to roll his eyes and instead, opened them. The first thing he saw was a small ring box in front of which there was a note. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow rose as he picked up the note. On the note, there were only two words, written in an elegant, refined handwriting: ¡°Happy Birthday.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched, and he looked at Elaru gobsmacked. ¡°It¡¯s not my birthday.¡± His 18th birthday was several months ago. Elaru shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s a late birthday present.¡± Kiel stared at her speechlessly. Couldn¡¯t she just give him the ring? Why is there a need to call it a birthday present? Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched, and she stifled a giggle. ¡°Come on, don¡¯t give me that look. Just because you can¡¯t understand my thought process doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m insane.¡± ¡°Please enlighten me to your¡­ unique thought process.¡± Kiel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples in exasperation. Elaru grinned widely. ¡°Naturally, I am creating a cover story.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes suddenly snapped open, and he stared at Elaru with interest. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°What would happen when your family members find out that a previous non-mage suddenly has an abundance of mana and pure mana at that?¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°Naturally, they will ask questions.¡± She paused, looking at Kiel meaningfully. ¡°We already talked about what you are going to tell them.¡± Kiel nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll tell them that my latent potential finally awakened which resulted in my sudden abundance of mana.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Elaru confirmed. ¡°However, pure mana is something that can only be obtained through the Aetherneal bond or through a mana purifying artifact. Therefore, this ring will act as a dummy artifact. You¡¯ll pretend like it is a real mana purifying artifact.¡± Elaru paused again. ¡°When people notice you are in possession of a ¡°mana purifying artifact¡±, they won¡¯t find it strange because you are a noble. They would think that your family bestowed the artifact onto you. However, your family knows better. Therefore, they will start asking questions. Namely, where you got it.¡± Elaru motioned towards the box on the table. ¡°So, to avoid you having to come up with a lie, which could be easily exposed. I created a cover story that is true so you wouldn¡¯t have to lie.¡± She grinned. ¡°When they ask how you got the artifact, you¡¯ll tell them you got it as a birthday gift. If they ask further, you¡¯ll tell them you found it on the table when you opened your eyes. And you can even show them the birthday note. If they ask who gave it to you, you can say that you didn¡¯t ¡®see¡¯ who left you the ring and there was no name on the note.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel weakly protested. ¡°I¡¯m trying to be serious here. This is a potentially grave issue. What if this thing ends up devouring me whole?¡± ¡°Oh? Are we done calling them ¡°they¡±?¡± Kiel joked. Previously, when Elaru had mentioned a family that had been monopolizing the power of the Aetherneal bond for ages, she had never mentioned which family she was talking about. Elaru waved Kiel¡¯s shock away like swatting a fly. ¡°Yes, Kiel, I am among those one hundred. Shocking. Now, let¡¯s move on.¡± Kiel sighed. ¡°But is there a need to verify? Even if the ring wasn¡¯t a magical artifact, it would still behave in the same way if it was made out of kirine and platinum. Wouldn¡¯t its materials give out that it is a dummy?¡± Episode 91 – Mana Purification Artifact Previously: Elaru gives Kiel the ring she had made for him two days ago. It had now been enchanted with the spell she had designed and mystified. Elaru makes Kiel close his eyes and gives the ring to him as a late birthday present along with a happy birthday card.
Episode 91 ¨C Mana Purification Artifact ¡°When people notice you are in possession of a ¡°mana purifying artifact¡±, they won¡¯t find it strange because you are a noble. They would think that your family bestowed the artifact onto you. However, your family knows better. Therefore, they will start asking questions. Namely, where you got it.¡± Elaru motioned towards the box on the table. ¡°So, to avoid you having to come up with a lie, which could be easily exposed. I created a cover story that is true so you wouldn¡¯t have to lie.¡± She grinned. ¡°When they ask how you got the artifact, you¡¯ll tell them you got it as a birthday gift. If they ask further, you¡¯ll tell them you found it on the table when you opened your eyes. And you can even show them the birthday note. If they ask who gave it to you, you can say that you didn¡¯t ¡®see¡¯ who left you the ring and there was no name on the note.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in realization. Elaru gave him the ring, dubbing it as her birthday present to him, just so he could claim it to be a birthday present without having to lie about it. She even went as far as to make him close his eyes so he could claim that he ¡°found it on the table¡± and ¡°didn¡¯t see who put it there¡±. Since there was no name on the note, he could easily manipulate the truth and make everyone think he doesn¡¯t know who gave him the gift. She transformed truth into a cover story that could be used to deceive everyone without lying to them. This way, even if he was forced to sign an oath of truth, he would still have a way out. Even if someone suspected Elaru¡¯s involvement in this matter, the timeframe wouldn¡¯t match. His birthday was months before the two of them met for the first time, therefore she couldn¡¯t have been the one to give him the ring. Brilliant! Kiel¡¯s eyes lit up. Elaru was simply brilliant! However¡­ Kiel¡¯s eyes dimmed down again. ¡°If my grandfather believes the ring to be a mana purifying artifact, he would take it away from me to give it to someone who ¡°actually matters¡±.¡± Elaru smiled mischievously. ¡°I figured as much.¡± Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. ¡°You thought of a way to prevent him from taking the ring?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Elaru nodded with self-satisfaction. ¡°I¡¯m all ears.¡± Kiel motioned for her to explain. ¡°I¡¯ll explain that later.¡± She waved it off. ¡°Now, open it.¡± Without further ado, Kiel picked up the box and opened it. Inside of the box was the same ring Elaru had crafted for him the last time they visited the Black Pearl restaurant. The inner ring was made out of a black material, around which Elaru morphed a silver colored metal, encasing the black ring inside the silver ring. Kiel removed his right glove so he could slide the ring onto his finger. However, when he removed his glove, Kiel suddenly froze, momentarily forgetting about the ring. When Kiel and Elaru had established their bond, on the inner side of Kiel¡¯s right wrist a small black mark had appeared ¨C the mark of the bond. Back then it was only the size of a tiwi egg, looking like a miniature tribal tattoo. Later on, when the two of them visited Black Pearl for the first time, they noticed that the tattoo had grown. It was no longer the size of a tiwi egg, it was closer to a large cluckling egg. This time around, the word ¡°egg¡± was no longer appropriate to describe it. In fact, the marking didn¡¯t resemble an egg at all. It was as if that initial state of the mark was simply a seed. And now, from that seed sprouted black vines that twirled around Kiel¡¯s wrist like a bracelet. The mark resembled an ivy that was trying to climb up Kiel¡¯s arm. As Kiel stared at the black marking, which he would have thought to be extremely cool-looking at any other time, his mind couldn¡¯t even begin to consider the esthetical aspect of the marking. ¡°Awesome!¡± Elaru was first to break the silence. ¡°It has grown a lot. I imagine that the distance between us has improved significantly as well. Perhaps the bond is even on the threshold of some kind of power up?¡± Kiel remained silent. Elaru¡¯s eyes moved upwards to Kiel¡¯s solemn face, and her lips curled into a smirk. ¡°So¡­ it is safe to say that I¡¯ve¡­ grown on you?¡± ¡°Pffft!¡± Kiel let out an involuntary laugh that instantly broke the solemn atmosphere. She was saying that Kiel liked her better now while not forgetting to create pun on the growing behavior of the mark. ¡°Stop cracking jokes already¡­¡± Kiel weakly protested. ¡°I¡¯m trying to be serious here. This is a potentially grave issue. What if this thing ends up devouring me whole?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of anyone getting devoured by the Aetherneal bond.¡± Elaru giggled, clearly not taking the situation seriously. ¡°And I¡¯ve never heard of anyone establishing the bond in the first place! So how would we know what happens to the people who do it?¡± Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°Arites have been doing it for several millennia, and their family has been doing just fine.¡± ¡°Oh? Are we done calling them ¡°they¡±?¡± Kiel joked. Previously, when Elaru had mentioned a family that had been monopolizing the power of the Aetherneal bond for ages, she had never mentioned which family she was talking about. However, from the start, Kiel had known she was talking about the Arites ¨C the uncrowned kings of Halnea. It was the Arite family that established the lands under the Shield, and although Halnea wasn¡¯t a monarchy, everyone inherently understood that Arites stood on the top of the ladder. The populace called them ¡°the gods¡¯ favorite children¡± for Arites were inherently superior to normal people, whether it was their intelligence, beauty, magic ability or being the only ones capable of using pure mana without mana purifying artifacts. For ages, people had been using their name as a premium brand ¨C statements as ¡°your beauty can rival even the Arites.¡± or ¡°you can stand shoulder to shoulder with Arites¡± were the greatest of compliments.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Who would have known that the source of it all wasn¡¯t a blessing from the gods, but rather a power that existed within everyone? Kiel shook his head and his gaze returned to the ring, still safely sitting inside the box in front of him. He picked it up slowly and slid it on the ring finger of his right hand, exactly where Elaru had placed two days before. ¡°The enchantment on the ring has been mystified, so no one will be able to recognize the true function of the ring. For all intents and purposes, you can pretend like it is truly a mana purifying artifact.¡± Elaru spoke up, and then she proceeded to explain how mana purification works: ¡°To purify their mana, the user of the mana purification artifact needs to channel their mana through the artifact. When their mana passes through the artifact, it will get purified. As the owner of the mana, you would be able to feel which mana is pure and which isn¡¯t (pure mana feels lighter and is easier to control). However, other people won¡¯t be able to tell which particles of your mana have been purified and which haven¡¯t.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. ¡°It¡¯s great that they can¡¯t tell that all of my mana is actually pure, however, if the usage of artifact is that simple, then wouldn¡¯t it be easy to reveal that my artifact is a dummy? All they would have to do is channel their mana into the artifact, and they will realize that the ring isn¡¯t purifying it.¡± ¡°Ah, but, they won¡¯t be able to channel the mana into the artifact.¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°Usually, mana purification artifacts can only accommodate a single user. So only the person who is recognized as the current user will be able to channel their mana into the artifact.¡± ¡°How is the person recognized as the user? Is it through a trigger spell?¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°No. Divine artifacts are different from regular artifacts. Most divine artifacts in the shape of a ring recognize the owner to be the person who is currently wearing the ring. Even if the person steals the ring, as long as they place it on their finger, they would become the next owner. Not all divine artifacts are so lax when it comes to ownership. The more precious the artifact, the harder it is to become its owner. Before the great mage wars, mana purification artifacts were merely mass produced items, the least precious of all divine artifacts, which is why they have simple usage and ownership rules.¡± ¡°Ok, so the real mana purifying artifact would prevent the mana of others from entering, but this ring is a dummy. How will it prevent the mana of other people from passing through it?¡± Kiel interrupted. Elaru smirked. ¡°The outside layer of the ring is made from platinum. In the entire land of Halnea, there are less than 100 people who can cast magic on platinum, and even they can¡¯t easily channel mana through it. If anyone tries channeling mana through the ring, they will find it near impossible. And then, they would think that the reason why they can¡¯t channel the mana through the ring was because they aren¡¯t recognized as the owner of the ring.¡± Kiel looked at her skeptically. ¡°I think most people would just conclude it to be because it is made from platinum, not because of ownership difficulties¡­ wait¡­ it is made out of platinum?!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I saw you craft that ring!¡± Elaru waved Kiel¡¯s shock away like swatting a fly. ¡°Yes, Kiel, I am among those one hundred. Shocking. Now, let¡¯s move on.¡± Kiel stared at her speechlessly. Why am I even surprised? Of course she can morph platinum. In fact, at this point, I shouldn¡¯t be surprised even if she told me she was a god in disguise. He shook his head and decided not to raise the issue again. Elaru continued. ¡°This black inner ring is made out of kirine.¡± She paused, waiting for Kiel¡¯s surprise. However, this time, Kiel showed absolutely no response. His face was completely expressionless as if she was talking about the weather. Kirine? Super precious material? As expected of Elaru Wayvin¡­ Elaru blinked repeatedly, however, no matter how she blinked, Kiel¡¯s face stayed as expressionless as before. Uh¡­ could it be that he doesn¡¯t know what kirine is? ¡°As you probably already know, when enough mana fills kirine, it will synchronize with the mana to accommodate it better. Once kirine synchronizes with your mana, only your mana will be able to pass through it.¡± Elaru probed, carefully monitoring Kiel¡¯s reaction. However, neither his eyes nor his aura showed any surprise. Uh¡­ did I break him? Elaru suddenly pointed her index finger towards Kiel¡¯s head, intending to poke his cheek, half expecting him to just slump on the ground like a doll. Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he slapped her finger away. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ just testing¡­¡± Elaru mumbled. ¡°What are you testing? My patience?¡± Kiel glared at her half-heartedly. Elaru coughed awkwardly and then continued her explanation as if nothing happened. ¡°The enchantment is placed on the inner edge of the kirine ring. This thin layer of kirine containing the enchantment has synchronized with the mana of the enchanter, so you won¡¯t be able to channel your mana through it. However, the rest of kirine has still not been synchronized so you can claim it as your own. This way, not only will you be able to channel mana through the ring, demonstrating that the mana channeling function of the ring works, but the enchantment placed on the ring is also secure from any possible magic breaking attempts.¡± Elaru paused her explanation, waiting for Kiel, who was rubbing his temples, to confirm that he had processed the information. ¡°So basically, if anyone else tries to channel mana through my ring they won¡¯t be able to do so because of the high resistance of platinum combined with high resistance of kirine? Therefore, since they can¡¯t channel mana through my ring, they can¡¯t verify whether my ring can actually purify mana?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Elaru nodded. Kiel sighed. ¡°But is there a need to verify? Even if the ring wasn¡¯t a magical artifact, it would still behave in the same way if it was made out of kirine and platinum. Wouldn¡¯t its materials give out that it is a dummy?¡± ¡°No.¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°Many divine artifacts are made from platinum and kirine, including some mana purifying ones. In fact, gods preferred using rare materials and materials that mortals can¡¯t use to make their artifacts. It was a way to flaunt their divinity. Therefore, the fact that your ring is made out of platinum and kirine would only make it more likely that it is, in fact, a divine artifact.¡±
Author Note The name of the family Elaru mentioned at the beginning of the novel is finally revealed. Actually, the more sensitive ones of you should have been able to pick up on it already. I¡¯ve given you several clues, the largest one being the interaction between Eruan Arite and Icya Arite. It was especially clear in Episode 70 after Zerel and Deora left Eruan¡¯s office. Eruan then talked to Icya, but Icya wasn¡¯t in the room at all. Their dialogue was in italics, which meant that they were talking telepathically. I even worded it so you can figure out that they have a connection allowing them to sense each other¡¯s emotions: ¡ª-¡°Icya¡­ Tell me, does this face remind you of someone?¡± ¡ª-He could feel his vice-principal frowning deep in thought.¡°I¡¯m not sure. Perhaps¡­ Vaguely it reminds me of¡­¡± ¡ª-She didn¡¯t need to continue. Eruan could tell who she was referring to.¡°Ignore the hair and skin color. Concentrate on the face.¡± ¡ª-¡°The lips are also similar¡­¡± ¡ª-Eruan closed his eyes and sighed. He could tell that his vice-principal also felt a sense of familiarity, but it was much less potent than his. It was so slight that it might as well not be there. I also previously mentioned the Arite family as one of the three most powerful noble families who had never lost their position in the Council of Seven. Arites are a very peculiar family, a black meep among the other families ¨C they are the only noble family that has both elibu and argel members, as can be seen by the fact that Eruan is an elibu and Icya is an argel, yet both are Arites. The Arite family is very important to the plot, and we¡¯ll slowly unravel their countless secrets page by page. ?? Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Now let¡¯s talk about how you¡¯re going to fool everyone into thinking it is an actual mana purifying artifact.¡± Elaru rubbed her hands looking like a crafty old man. Elaru didn¡¯t get the chance to respond before Kiel continued: ¡°You say that no one will be able to tell the real function of the ring. What is the real function?¡± ¡°Is it safe for me to activate it?¡± Kiel asked with narrowed eyes. He didn¡¯t know what the ring would do once activated. For all he knew, the ring could let out a light beam and create a hole through the ceiling. Or perhaps it would turn his hair pink. I should have known!! She always has a trick up her sleeve! The temperature in the room was rapidly dropping, the air turned stifling, yet Elaru still continued smiling as if nothing was going on. Kiel brought his right hand to their eye level, showing his ring. Through gritted teeth, he spat out. ¡°¡®Handy¡¯ isn¡¯t the word I¡¯d use.¡± The relatively calm atmosphere in the room was instantly shattered by a loud slam of Kiel¡¯s hand against the table. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you thought that making a ring that *beep beep beep (censored the spoiler)* was a good idea!!¡± Episode 92 – Devour the Free Mana Previously: Elaru gives Kiel the ring she had made for him two days ago. It had now been enchanted with the spell she had designed and mystified. Elaru makes Kiel close his eyes and gives the ring to him as a late birthday present along with a happy birthday card.
Episode 92 ¨C Devour the Free Mana Kiel had to admit that he was impressed. Elaru has put a lot of thought into this. ¡°Of course, people would deduce that there is a possibility of your artifact being fake, but the possibility is higher that it isn¡¯t a fake. After all, you can use pure mana. And it would be impossible for them to channel mana into it and confirm that it is a fake. If they can¡¯t confirm it is a fake, then it is as good as real.¡± Kiel stared at the elegant ring glittering under the crystal light. It didn¡¯t look like an ancient artifact at all. But then again, most divine artifacts still looked the same way they did when they were made. They could be buried in mud and covered by dust, but they would never age. Unlike normal artifacts, which would eventually run out of mana and stop working, divine artifacts contained the eternal power of the gods ¨C they would never run out of energy. Which is exactly the reason why Elaru couldn¡¯t include a mana crystal inside this ring to power it. If she included a mana crystal, it would be clear that it wasn¡¯t a divine artifact. However, without mana crystals, how would one power it? When he voiced his concern, Elaru smiled. ¡°That¡¯s a good question. The ring has just been enchanted, so the enchantment has still an abundance of mana to power it. However, eventually, that mana will be used up, and you¡¯ll need to charge your ring. Since the ring wasn¡¯t enchanted by you, it can¡¯t be powered by your mana.¡± ¡°Naturally.¡± Magic could only be powered by the same mana used to cast it. Meaning that only the mana from the mage who cast the enchantment would be able to power the artifact. ¡°However, I included a Devour spell inside the enchantment, therefore, if you place a free mana crystal in the proximity of the ring, it will be able to absorb the mana contained inside the crystal.¡± Devour. An arcane magic spell with the ability to absorb free mana in its area of effect. Mana was a mysterious energy created inside a soul that was initially ownerless. A freshly created mana was flexible like clay, any mind that came into contact with it could mold it and claim it as its own. It was exactly because of this that Kiel could use the mana inside Elaru¡¯s mana pool ¨C as long as his mind was the first one to touch the freshly created mana, the mana would become his. Once the freshly created mana was claimed by a person, it could never again return to its original form. No other person could ever turn that mana into their own. However, mana was the energy that originally didn¡¯t belong in this world, and as such, it couldn¡¯t sustain its original form for long once it left the soul. If the mana didn¡¯t crystalize into a spell thus stabilizing, at most, in a few days, the mana would dissipate into the surroundings, becoming free mana of the world. Mana inside mana crystals was no exception. Unless special measures were used to stabilize the mana inside the crystal, it too would become free mana after a few days, albeit, it would remain trapped inside the crystal. Such free mana cannot be controlled and cannot be claimed. However, free mana still carried energy within it, just like light or heat carried energy, free mana also carried energy. And where there is energy, there is a way to use that energy. That¡¯s where Devour spell came into use. This arcane magic spell could be used to transform free mana into the same type of mana used to weave the Devour spell. Technically, the Devour spell could also be used by mages to replenish their mana, however, in practice, this wasn¡¯t viable. Unlike the gods who could impose their divine will on free mana to control it, the Devour spell could only transform free mana inside its area of effect into something usable, it couldn¡¯t attract free mana towards it. Since the concentration of free mana in the air was not high, and the area of effect of the Devour spell was extremely limited, it meant that the amount of free mana the Devour could absorb from the world couldn¡¯t catch up with the staggering amount of mana used to weave it. The Devour spell was only useful if it was used to absorb a large quantity of mana crystals, for the concentration of mana inside the crystals was countless times greater than the mana within the air. Therefore, the Devour spell was only used in the creation of precious magic artifacts which will need to be recharged in the future, or for weaving important large-scale spells that required many times more mana than was available to the caster of the spell, in which case, a large quantity of mana crystals would be used to supplement the lacking mana of the caster. ¡°Also¡­¡± Elaru continued. ¡°¡­I included a backup plan, in case you don¡¯t have any mana crystals at hand when the ring needs to be recharged¡­¡± She paused and looked at him strangely. ¡°¡­or if you are broke and can¡¯t buy any¡­¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°How thoughtful of you¡­¡± ¡°Yes. I thought of everything.¡± She nodded seriously. ¡°The backup plan is a Light spell I added to allow you to charge the ring with an intense light beam.¡± ¡°Great¡­¡± Kiel mumbled. He directed his attention back to the ring and started channeling his mana through it. He avoided the platinum and went straight for kirine. The more mana he channeled into kirine, the easier the channeling become. It didn¡¯t take long at all for him to feel like kirine was not putting up any kind of resistance at all. This phenomenon signified that it had successfully synchronized to his mana. Now, no one else would be able to channel mana through it. ¡°Alright. It¡¯s been synchronized.¡± Kiel declared. ¡°Good. Now let¡¯s talk about how you¡¯re going to fool everyone into thinking it is an actual mana purifying artifact.¡± Elaru rubbed her hands looking like a crafty old man. ¡°First things first, since mana purifying artifacts are divine artifacts, and therefore, really precious, no one wants to openly waltz around and show them off. That¡¯s like inviting someone to steal it. Therefore, don¡¯t show off your ring. Don¡¯t even admit that you have it to people other than your close family. In fact, it isn¡¯t likely that anyone would openly ask you about it anyway. Nobles have an unspoken rule to not inquire about divine artifacts of other nobles because divine artifacts are considered as family secrets. So, when you are using the dummy, you too, should be discreet about it. If you are not subtle about it, that would be strange, and we don¡¯t want people to think there is anything strange about your ability to use pure mana.¡± Elaru placed her right hand on top of the table. ¡°You should develop a habit to constantly channel mana into your ring. People in possession of a mana purifying artifact usually train themselves to subconsciously direct all their mana towards their artifact so they could purify it as soon as it leaves their soul. That way, the mana inside their aura would always be completely pure, and they could use it instantly in the moment of need. Unlike them, you don¡¯t need to worry yourself about which particles of mana are purified and which are not, you should just put up a show and roll your mana around your ring inconspicuously.¡± ¡°Alright, alright, I get it. I¡¯ve been acting for 12 years, this won¡¯t pose a problem.¡± Kiel sighed and rubbed his temples again. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about more interesting matters.¡± Elaru didn¡¯t get the chance to respond before Kiel continued: ¡°You say that no one will be able to tell the real function of the ring. What is the real function?¡± Elaru grinned, her eyes glittered mischievously. ¡°Activate it, and you¡¯ll find out.¡± Before she even finished her sentence, she transmitted an image telepathically depicting a simple trigger spell. For the purpose of conserving power, most enchantments were designed to have a sleeping mode in which the enchantment isn¡¯t altering reality. For example, there is no point for a ring artifact to waste mana with its continued activation if there was no one wearing it. One of the simplest ways to implement mana conservation was to make the artifact activate only in certain conditions, such as by performing a trigger spell in its vicinity. ¡°Is it safe for me to activate it?¡± Kiel asked with narrowed eyes. He didn¡¯t know what the ring would do once activated. For all he knew, the ring could let out a light beam and create a hole through the ceiling. Or perhaps it would turn his hair pink. The thought gave him shivers. Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°You can activate it without worry. Nothing bad will happen.¡± Upon receiving her confirmation, Kiel started weaving the trigger spell in the proximity of the ring. One needed to cast a trigger spell inside the artifact¡¯s monitored area. Otherwise, the artifact won¡¯t be able to ¡®see¡¯ the spell and therefore won¡¯t activate. The trigger spell Elaru showed Kiel was simple, so in no time at all, Kiel had finished weaving it. As soon as the last line was weaved the previously cold and lifeless ring reacted. It heated up to be the same temperature as Kiel¡¯s flesh and the previously black kirine started glowing with bright azure light. Kiel winced and involuntarily shut his eyes. However, his eyes didn¡¯t remain closed for long. A soft, warm sensation climbing up his arm made his eyes snap open again. The sight that greeted him left him speechless. The black marking on his right wrist blended into his flesh and disappeared without a trace. ¡°You enchanted it to hide the mark of the bond.¡± ¡°This way, you won¡¯t have to upkeep a color changing spell on your skin. Even if you are knocked out or asleep, our secret will still stay a secret.¡± Elaru purred. She looked at Kiel as if waiting to be praised. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°It is somewhat useful, but wouldn¡¯t the color revert back to normal if the ring was taken off? In fact, the whole premise of people being unable to verify whether my ring is fake lies on them being unable to take the ring off my finger. If they took it off and wore it they would instantly realize that the ring is a fake, wouldn¡¯t they?¡± Elaru nonchalantly nodded her head. ¡°Yeah, they would.¡± ¡°So, it doesn¡¯t really make much of a difference whether I cast a color changing spell myself or wear this. If I get knocked out, whoever knocked me out could just take off the ring to reveal the truth.¡± Kiel continued. Elaru¡¯s face revealed a devious smirk that gave Kiel the chills. ¡°Not exactly.¡± ¡°Not exactly?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow rose. ¡°Also, what should I do when my grandfather orders me to hand him my ring? Refusing him would bring me a lot of trouble.¡± Elaru¡¯s smirk only grew. ¡°Oh, no need to refuse. You can cooperate fully.¡± Inexplicably, Kiel suddenly had a bad feeling. ¡°What do you¡­¡± Kiel tugged on his ring. ¡°¡­mean?¡± He stopped talking and instead concentrated fully on taking his ring off. He tugged, pulled, and twisted for a whole minute before his hands stilled. He turned to Elaru and looked at her with his signature ice cold glare. ¡°El¡­a¡­ru¡­why¡­ can¡¯t¡­ I¡­ take¡­ it¡­ off¡­?¡± He pronounced every syllable clearly in a most chilling voice he could muster. ¡°Ah! I forgot to mention! It also comes with anti-theft function.¡± Elaru¡¯s face blossomed into a most wonderful smile, completely oblivious to the murderous chill being directed her way. ¡°¡­in other words¡­ no one can take it off¡­ including me?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: I should have known!! She always has a trick up her sleeve! The temperature in the room was rapidly dropping, the air turned stifling, yet Elaru still continued smiling as if nothing was going on. Kiel brought his right hand to their eye level, showing his ring. Through gritted teeth, he spat out. ¡°¡®Handy¡¯ isn¡¯t the word I¡¯d use.¡± Control yourself. Don¡¯t strangle her. You can do it. Self-control! ¡°Great. That makes me feel so much better. It¡¯s good to know that they¡¯ll have to pry the ring off my dead fingers.¡± The sarcasm dripping from his words couldn¡¯t be any more substantial. He lifelessly fell back on his seat like a deflated balloon. I can¡¯t believe I just said that. ¡°ELARU WAYVIN!!!!! This is not funny!!!!¡± ¡°However, it seems that little brother held some resentment towards me inside his heart, because he played a trick on me.¡± Rhur again sighed sadly as if the events that transpired pained him greatly. Episode 93 – Anti-theft Previously: Elaru gives Kiel the ring she had made for him two days ago. It had now been enchanted with the spell she had designed and mystified. She claims that she thought about everything and no one would be able to tell that his artifact was fake. She also claims that Venric Rroda won¡¯t take this artifact away from him.
Episode 93 ¨C Anti-theft Inexplicably, Kiel suddenly had a bad feeling. ¡°What do you¡­¡± Kiel tugged on his ring. ¡°¡­mean?¡± He stopped talking and instead concentrated fully on taking his ring off. He tugged, pulled, and twisted for a whole minute before his hands stilled. He turned to Elaru and looked at her with his signature ice cold glare. ¡°El¡­a¡­ru¡­why¡­ can¡¯t¡­ I¡­ take¡­ it¡­ off¡­?¡± He pronounced every syllable clearly in a most chilling voice he could muster. ¡°Ah! I forgot to mention! It also comes with anti-theft function.¡± Elaru¡¯s face blossomed into a most wonderful smile, completely oblivious to the murderous chill being directed her way. ¡°¡­in other words¡­ no one can take it off¡­ including me?¡± ¡°Handy, isn¡¯t it? Since even you can¡¯t take it off, it means that your family can¡¯t force you to hand over the ring.¡± I should have known!! She always has a trick up her sleeve! The temperature in the room was rapidly dropping, the air turned stifling, yet Elaru still continued smiling as if nothing was going on. Kiel brought his right hand to their eye level, showing his ring. Through gritted teeth, he spat out. ¡°¡®Handy¡¯ isn¡¯t the word I¡¯d use.¡± Seeing Kiel¡¯s twitching hand that seemed to want to wrap around her neck and strangle her, Elaru unexpectedly started giggling. ¡°It¡¯s about your hand, so I think ¡®handy¡¯ fits quite nicely.¡± The relatively calm atmosphere in the room was instantly shattered by a loud slam of Kiel¡¯s hand against the table. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you thought that making a ring that can¡¯t be taken off was a good idea!!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that it can¡¯t be taken off¡­ I mean, there are ways to get it off¡­¡± ¡°Like what?¡± Kiel growled. Elaru scratched her head sheepishly. ¡°Like having someone cut off my finger for the sake of obtaining my ¡°divine artifact¡±?!¡± Kiel spat out. If eyes could kill, Elaru would have been deader than dead. The red-headed troublemaker, however, showed no sign of being agitated. She rubbed her chin in thought. ¡°Easier said than done. It is stuck to the base of your finger. It¡¯s practically impossible to cut your finger off. All attempts would just end up cutting either your hand or the ring instead of your finger.¡± Kiel stared at Elaru in a complete lack of words. As if she didn¡¯t notice his gobsmacked expression she continued: ¡°Although, to be honest, if someone wanted your ring that badly, it would be easier to just cut off your entire hand at the wrist.¡± She then proceeded to make a chopping motion with her hand. ¡°And then, just disintegrate the hand, leaving only the ring behind.¡± With a violently twitching eyebrow, Kiel stared at Elaru in silence for several seconds before he finally managed to squeeze out: ¡°How reassuring¡­ instead of losing a single finger, I lose an entire hand¡­¡± Elaru attempted to give Kiel a reassuring pat on the back, but when she saw his expression, which looked like that of a rabid lupax that would bite her hand off if it came in his proximity, she decided against it. ¡°I hate to break it to you, Iceblock. But if you run into someone crazy enough to cut off your hand, the chances are that they are crazy enough to kill you too. If you¡¯re dead, it would make little difference whether you are missing a finger or a hand.¡± Control yourself. Don¡¯t strangle her. You can do it. Self-control! ¡°Great. That makes me feel so much better. It¡¯s good to know that they¡¯ll have to pry the ring off my dead fingers.¡± The sarcasm dripping from his words couldn¡¯t be any more substantial. Elaru gave him a solemn look. ¡°Let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves. There wouldn¡¯t really be any prying involved here. I mean, it won¡¯t come off even if you die. Have to¡­¡± She once again repeated the chopping motion. Kiel, whose mental faculties were too preoccupied on not strangling Elaru, didn¡¯t manage to stop his hand in time, and he ended up giving himself a facepalm. ¡°So, my only choices are an incomplete corpse or taking the ring to my grave? Fantastic!¡± ¡°Oh, come on Kiel¡­¡± Elaru rolled her eyes as if she was talking to an immature child. ¡°If you¡¯re dead, you¡¯re dead. What does it matter if your corpse is complete or if you take the ring to your grave? Dead people don¡¯t have feelings.¡± ¡°I bet that¡¯s what graverobbers tell to themselves!¡± Kiel growled out. ¡°Let me guess, ¡®papa¡¯ made you try that line of business as well?¡± Elaru¡¯s nonchalant behavior suddenly disappeared, replaced by an awkward cough. ¡°Touch¨¦¡­¡± Seeing Elaru¡¯s visible embarrassment made Kiel¡¯s anger suddenly dissipate into thin air. He lifelessly fell back on his seat like a deflated balloon. I can¡¯t believe I just said that. He looked up towards the ceiling and let out a sigh. That was a low blow¡­If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. He looked at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, but she didn¡¯t seem to be upset by it. That tinge of embarrassment quickly passed, and she was back to normal. In fact, judging by her aura, Kiel could tell that she wasn¡¯t mad at him at all. He closed his eyes tiredly and let out another sigh. ¡°What if one day Aetherneal bond gets broken? Am I supposed to carry a useless ring on my finger for the rest of my life?¡± After all, his initial intention was to find a way to sever this bond. ¡°If Aetherneal bond gets broken?¡± Elaru rubbed her chin in thought. ¡°You mean¡­ if I die?¡± She suddenly clutched her heart in an exaggerated motion. ¡°Oh, how cruel! Your soulmate dies, and you can¡¯t wait to get rid of the last thing she left you. How heartless, my only token of affection! You can¡¯t even wear it to honor my memory? Why not just rip out my heart and stomp on it.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help but glare at her. ¡°Continue down this line of thinking, and I just might do it. At least then I¡¯d be rid of a giant pest.¡± Elaru stuck out her tongue cutely. Kiel¡¯s glare deepened. ¡°But now, even if I get rid of said ¡°giant pest¡± I will never be able to forget it, for I can¡¯t get rid of what it left behind.¡± Kiel, once again, brought his right hand to their eye level, showing off the ring. ¡°Awww! How sweet! You won¡¯t be able to forget me until the day you die.¡± Elaru looked at him with large eyes and exaggeratedly started fluttering her eyelashes, then she proceeded to sigh in a sickly sweet way. ¡°Arrrgh! Or I¡¯ll just cut the finger off myself!¡± Kiel jumped on his feet in agitation, wanting nothing more than just strangle this annoying redhead. Elaru too, could take it no longer, and she finally burst out in merry laughter. ¡°Oh, Kiel! I¡¯m just messing with you! Of course, there is a way to remove the ring. Did you really think that I forgot to include a way out in my spells? I¡¯m not an amateur. ¡° ¡°ELARU WAYVIN!!!!! This is not funny!!!!¡± The musical giggle that couldn¡¯t be more pleasant to the ear echoed inside the room. ¡°It kinda is.¡± ¡°Tell me how to remove it right this instant!¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Elaru shot it down instantly. It¡¯s better if you don¡¯t know how to remove it. That way no one will be able to force you to hand it over.¡± ¡°Right. They¡¯ll just cut it off instead!¡± Kiel snorted, his body shaking with suppressed anger. Elaru rolled her eyes. ¡°This again?¡± She sighed. ¡°If it ever comes to the point where you have no choice but remove it to retain your limbs, I¡¯ll just telepathically tell you how to remove it.¡± Kiel breathed in and out deeply for a while, trying to calm down. He pinched the bridge of his nose and stood still for a while. Even though he was angry at Elaru for teasing him like this, even though that the idea of wearing something he can¡¯t remove made him uncomfortable, he had to admit it made sense. If his grandfather suspected that his ring was worth something, he would surely force Kiel to hand it over. The only way that Kiel could peacefully keep his ring would be if he didn¡¯t know how to remove it. Venric Rroda was a heartless bastard, but he wouldn¡¯t go as far as to cut his finger off. At least not while Kiel¡¯s father was alive. Elaru could be obnoxious, but her plan was well thought out. It was so well thought out that Kiel was convinced that hiding his mark wasn¡¯t the only reason why she made him wear the ring on his right hand. The little redheaded vixen probably also wanted him to conceal the future influx of mana that Kiel would be transferring through their marking. This way, everyone would think he was channeling mana through the ring to purify it. It wouldn¡¯t be strange if there were a lot of mana around the ring. No matter how displeased Kiel was with her, he couldn¡¯t quite bring himself to hate her. After all, Elaru Wayvin was doing all of this for his sake. She spared no effort to make him this ring. Also, no matter how much he hated to admit it, Elaru Wayvin was absolutely brilliant. She was brilliant to the point of him being unable to stifle the respect that was blooming inside of him, making his heart beat rapidly. * * * ? Zelaih, Capital City of Halnea, Rroda manor? Inside the Rroda estate within Zelaih, there was a large office. Within that office sat an extremely handsome, middle-aged man whose face looked as if he didn¡¯t know how to smile. His short black hair speckled with vividly azure strands, coupled with his icy blue eyes, gave him a sharp look that could chill a person to the bone. The aura the man exuded wasn¡¯t oppressive or chilling, but it still left one feeling like an insignificant wyrm in front of him. The man stared seriously into the icy blue eyes of a young man standing on the opposite side of his desk. ¡°What do you want?¡± The young man¡¯s face fell, and his stance suddenly changed to make him look like a hurt and vulnerable little tiwi. ¡°What? Can¡¯t I just visit my father?¡± His pitiful appearance invoked no sympathy from the middle-aged man. ¡°Cut the crap.¡± Rhur Rroda sighed. Alaric Rroda was a no-nonsense kind of person. Although he wasn¡¯t as cold-hearted as Venric Rroda, he wasn¡¯t easy to deceive either. There was no point in playing the sympathy card. ¡°Little brother came to Ashar a few days back. I took him to Black Pearl for lunch earlier today.¡± Rhur Rroda spoke out, a soft smile playing on his lips. Alaric¡¯s eyebrow instantly jumped up. Kiel came to Ashar? How come no one notified me of this? Rhur¡¯s soft smile suddenly turned into a sad smile, and he let out a soft sigh that clearly expressed how depressed and pitiful he felt. ¡°However, it seems that little brother held some resentment towards me inside his heart, because he played a trick on me.¡± Rhur again sighed sadly as if the events that transpired pained him greatly. Alaric¡¯s eyebrow rose even further up, almost reaching his hairline. However, he remained silent. Rhur continued. ¡°When I asked him what wine he would like to drink, he ordered Lileron Passion.¡± Alaric¡¯s pupils widened, and suddenly he let out a raspy cough, designed to mask the laughter that was threatening to erupt. Alaric Rroda, as an esteemed councilman of Halnea, often had business dinners and attended all kinds of high-class parties. He naturally knew of Lileron Passion. Alaric¡¯s solemn look still adorned his face, but the corner of his mouth kept twitching. Lileron Passion! Good one! Rhur Rroda didn¡¯t need to continue with his story. Alaric had already caught on to the main point. Nice try. Alaric barely contained himself from rolling his eyes. He spoke up, interrupting Rhur¡¯s tear-jerking play. ¡°A man¡¯s debt has to be paid by his own hands. What is the point of you taking your brother out for a meal if I¡¯m the one paying for it? It would make your entire gesture of brotherly love meaningless.¡± Brotherly love? Rhur¡¯s eyebrow twitched. The old man was clearly mocking him. Rhur smiled wryly. Of course you wouldn¡¯t help me out. You are always on his side. But I expected as much.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°You are not lying to me, are you?¡± Alaric couldn¡¯t help but exclaim.He¡¯d be more inclined to believe that his younger son was gay than he would believe that he got himself a girlfriend. In fact, Rhur had even tricked him into coming to a brothel once, yet he still walked out without as much as touching a woman. Alaric¡¯s glared at him icily. What blatant extortion! You little brat! So this was your plan all along! As soon as Rhur exited his father¡¯s office, his mouth broke out into a smirk. Your weakness is glaringly obvious making you too easy to manipulate, father. She looked at him with a solemn expression and spoke out in grave tone. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about sex.¡± Episode 94 – Extortion Previously: Elaru gives Kiel the ring she had made for him two days ago. Rhur visits his father, Alaric, in hopes that he would give him enough money to pay for his Black Pearl restaurant tab.
Episode 94 ¨C Extortion Rhur Rroda didn¡¯t need to continue with his story. Alaric had already caught on to the main point. Nice try. Alaric barely contained himself from rolling his eyes. He spoke up, interrupting Rhur¡¯s tear-jerking play. ¡°A man¡¯s debt has to be paid by his own hands. What is the point of you taking your brother out for a meal if I¡¯m the one paying for it? It would make your entire gesture of brotherly love meaningless.¡± Brotherly love? Rhur¡¯s eyebrow twitched. The old man was clearly mocking him. Rhur smiled wryly. Of course you wouldn¡¯t help me out. You are always on his side. But I expected as much. Rhur¡¯s eyes flashed with resentment, yet his face turned even more pitiful looking. It was so sad that anyone¡¯s heart would be moved, wanting nothing more than to comfort this unfortunate devilishly handsome beauty. ¡°I guess you are right, father.¡± Rhur sighed sadly. Then, surprisingly, he nodded politely to Alaric and declared. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be going back to Ashar, father. It was nice seeing you.¡± Rhur didn¡¯t wait for his father¡¯s response, and he turned his back to him, taking several steps towards the door. Alaric sipped his tea leisurely, his eyes following Rhur. He was waiting for Rhur to stop and say a few more heart-wrenching words, after all, it wasn¡¯t like him to give up this easily. And indeed, before reaching the door, Rhur stopped and turned his head sideways towards Alaric. ¡°Oh, I almost forgot. I¡¯m not sure if you are aware, father, but little brother got himself a girlfriend. A fine lady, if I must say. I had such a fun time chatting with them over lunch.¡± The tea Alaric was sipping suddenly came spouting out of his mouth, the solemn face replaced with utter shock. What?!? Kiel got a girlfriend?? ¡°You are not lying to me, are you?¡± Alaric couldn¡¯t help but exclaim. He¡¯d be more inclined to believe that his younger son was gay than he would believe that he got himself a girlfriend. In fact, Rhur had even tricked Kiel into coming to a brothel once, yet he still walked out without as much as touching a woman. Rhur looked at Alaric with such a pained expression, as if saying ¡°How could you even ask that, dear father?¡± and exclaimed. ¡°Father, of course, I wouldn¡¯t dare lie to you!¡± Seeing that Rhur seemed to be sincere, the cold aura of Alaric suddenly turned mild. This news seemed to have improved his mood considerably. Excellent! Best news I¡¯ve heard all year! I might get some grandchildren yet! ¡°Well, then. Until next time, father.¡± Rhur turned to walk away, pain still lingering in his eyes. However, as soon as he turned his back to Alaric, the pained expression was replaced with a smirk. What Rhur expected to happen, indeed happened right away. ¡°Wait!¡± Alaric stopped him from leaving. ¡°Come back. Tell me about this ¡®girlfriend¡¯.¡± Rhur internally snorted, but outwards he still looked like a pitiful child. ¡°Ah, I am not really in the mood to talk about it¡­¡± Alaric¡¯s eyebrow twitched, and his gaze turned colder once again. ¡°And let me guess¡­ you¡¯d feel much more talkative with a sack of mythril coins?¡± ¡°Who do you take me for, father? Money can¡¯t buy happiness.¡± Rhur denied it quickly, as if insulted by Alaric¡¯s words. Alaric¡¯s eyebrow twitched again. ¡°And what would make you happy?¡± Rhur looked at Alaric shyly, as if unsure whether he should say it or not. Unlike Venric, who would have slammed his hand on the table by now and demand him to speak up, Alaric was much more patient. He just sat there and watched the show, not playing along at all. When Rhur realized that Alaric wouldn¡¯t play along, he decided to speak up. ¡°What would make me the happiest is the love of my father, of course. That sack of mythril coins would be much more valuable than its monetary worth. Such a sincere show of fatherly affection would surely warm my heart.¡± As expected of my eldest son. Alaric¡¯s glared at him icily. ¡°Money can¡¯t buy happiness¡± my ass! This is blatant extortion! You little brat! So, this was your plan all along! Alaric ground his teeth, his temper flaring. The brat dares to extort his own father for some information!Good, very good! I¡¯ll remember this! Unresigned, Alaric searched his pockets discreetly, pulling out a platinum key. He then used the key to open up a drawer inside his desk. The drawer was filled with several heavy looking pouches. He grabbed a seemingly random pouch and threw it on the table. His careless throw of the pouch made a loose mythril coin fly out of the pouch, clattering loudly on the wooden table. Rhur, as the dignified noble he was, deemed it beneath him to grab that mythril coin since the whole sack was filled with mythril coins. He elegantly picked the pouch and inconspicuously weighed it before pocketing it. By his estimations, there should be around 90 mythril coins inside the pouch. To cover his tab in Black Pearl, he needed 70 mythril coins. Which meant that he even had an excess of 20 coins. That was almost as much as his monthly allowance!Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. And Rhur¡¯s monthly allowance was considered very high, even among nobles. Several gold coins could feed an entire family for a whole month. And a single mythril coin was worth 100 platinum coins, with each platinum coin being worth 100 gold coins, meaning that a single mythril coin was worth 10 000 gold coins. Instead of losing money and living frugally for a while, Rhur even made an extra money out of this whole ordeal! To say that he was thrilled and self-satisfied would be an understatement. ¡°Thank you, father. I appreciate your kind intentions.¡± Rhur¡¯s feigned immense sadness vanished into thin air replaced with a wide smile. ¡°Her name is Elaru Wayvin. She is quite beautiful, comparable to the Arites standard of beauty. Red hair, teal eyes. A voice that is music to the ear, elegant and graceful. Quite a powerful aura too. Apparently, she is currently taking the Muni exams.¡± Alaric rubbed his chin in thought. Excellent. If she becomes a student of Muni, her status would instantly rise. Then it wouldn¡¯t be a problem to marry a noble. Rhur smirked. ¡°Oh¡­ did I mention she is an elibu?¡± Alaric¡¯s face instantly fell. And here I was thinking about grandchildren¡­ darn it. His change of mood didn¡¯t escape Rhur¡¯s eyes. Inside he was laughing in glee. Serves you right, old man. How come you are never looking forward to my offspring? ¡°And personality wise, what is she like?¡± Alaric grumbled. Rhur ¡°hmmm¡±-ed, thinking for a while before responding. ¡°A good actor. Calm headed yet mildly spicy. That¡¯s the impression I got so far.¡± Alaric¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. A good actor? Kiel should be able to tell if she was insincere towards him? Right? I hoped he would find himself a pure hearted girl¡­ * * * As soon as Rhur exited his father¡¯s office, his mouth broke out into a smirk. Your weakness is glaringly obvious making you too easy to manipulate, father. He pulled the heavy pouch out of his pocket happily and walked to the nearby waiting room which was conveniently empty. Rhur sat down on the couch and opened the pouch intending to count the contents. He wanted to know just how much of a killing he made with this ¡°business¡± deal. However, as soon as he opened it his satisfied smile froze on his face. He stood rooted to the spot, his left eyebrow starting to twitch violently. Suddenly he turned the whole pouch upside down making the contents of the pouch clatter onto the table. Soon the whole table was filled with coins. The coins shined brightly under the sunlight reflecting their golden luster inside Rhur¡¯s icy blue eyes. That¡¯s right. Golden luster. Not bright blue luster of mythril. The entire table was filled with nothing but gold coins! The worth of this entire pouch of gold didn¡¯t exceed a single platinum coin, let alone a mythril coin! Rhur¡¯s hands balled into fists, and after 10 seconds of intense glaring at the miserly gold coins he couldn¡¯t help but slam his fist on the tea table. The wooden table couldn¡¯t take the force of his slam, and it broke into half with a loud snapping noise. What kind of a noble has a pouch of gold coins in his desk?!? Miserly! Petty!!! I¡¯ll remember this old man!!! * * * When Rhur exited his father¡¯s study, the servant that was patiently waiting to the side broke the silence. ¡°Sir, what about the monthly pay for the servants?¡± Alaric picked up a single mythril coin that Rhur had deemed it beneath him to take and threw it towards the servant. ¡°Go to the bank and change it into another sack of gold coins.¡± Actually, earlier, he had taken a mythil coin out of his pocket along with the platinum key. However, he hid it under his hand. Then he lodged the mythril coin stealthily on the opening of the pouch. Even his throw of the pouch was intentionally done to make the loose mythril coin come flying out, creating the impression that the whole sack was filled with mythril coins. ¡°Actually¡­¡± Alaric mused, and then took another mythril coin out of his pocket and threw it towards the servant. ¡°¡­also stop by the D.I. and purchase a full report on Elaru Wayvin.¡± He hadn¡¯t even finished his sentence when the sound of something breaking reached Alaric¡¯s ears. His usually solemn expression suddenly morphed into a grin. You want to extort money from me? Ha! Brat, you are 20 years too young! * * * (Meanwhile, Black Pearl restaurant, Ashar) Kiel Rroda had finally managed to regain his calm after the ring incident. It was really uncanny how easily Elaru Wayvin managed to rile him up. Perhaps the reason why no one else could rile him up was simply because he had never let anyone else inside his world. Because he had never depended on anyone and therefore it wouldn¡¯t matter what other people chose to do? Or perhaps it was because he had never run into someone like Elaru Wayvin, a devil with a brilliant mind on which common logic didn¡¯t work? Kiel let out another soft sigh, he had been sighing a lot the last few minutes. The two of them had completed the ring related business, so it was time to leave Black Pearl. Kiel looked down into his cup filled with honeymead. He wasn¡¯t thirsty, but he didn¡¯t like leaving his drink unfinished. That would be wasting money. ¡°What are your plans? Shall we go to the arena again?¡± Elaru¡¯s response surprised Kiel: ¡°We are not done here yet. There is something else I need to talk to you about. Something very important that no one else should eavesdrop on.¡± Kiel gave her an unreadable look before his gaze returned to his honeymead. ¡°Alright, go on.¡± Kiel placed the cup on his lips and slowly sipped. He was more playing with his honeymead than actually drinking it. His eyes returned to Elaru, who stared at him with a deathly serious expression. The solemn atmosphere gave Kiel goosebumps. It only became more unsettling when Elaru spoke out in a slow yet grave tone. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about sex.¡± Needless to say, the honeymead Kiel was sipping came out in a burst of coughing. In fact, he coughed so hard that his eyes, which were close to popping out of their sockets started tearing up. Kiel split his attention between coughing and staring at Elaru¡¯s still completely solemn face. Must have heard her wrong. Surely, must have heard wrongly. It took him some time to calm down his coughing fit. Elaru waited patiently for him the entire time. ¡°Can you repeat that? I didn¡¯t quite catch it?¡± Kiel finally squeezed out. ¡°I said¡­¡± Elaru stared right into his eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about sex.¡± Silence descended on the room. Kiel stared at Elaru with his own version of a gobsmacked and dumbfounded expression that consisted of a stiff, pale face, wide eyes and tightly pressed lips. Cold sweat was pouring down the side of his face making him look quite miserable. How can you say that with a straight face?! What is with this air of solemnity?!? Kiel¡¯s right eyebrow started violently twitching. He had to cough a few more times so get his voice back. ¡°You¡­want to¡­¡± Kiel swallowed down the saliva. ¡°¡­to talk about¡­¡± I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m saying this¡­ ¡°¡­ sexual intercourse?¡± ¡°Well, not the intercourse part specifically¡­¡± Elaru stated blandly. Thank the gods! Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding, but Elaru¡¯s next words made the remainder of his breath get stuck inside his throat: ¡°What I want to talk about is making babies.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: His entire body stood completely petrified, as if he had turned into a statue. When she mentioned the combining of two people as one, Kiel finally woke up from his stupor and his face fell. ¡°Stop. I know how children are made!¡± ¡°ELARU!!!!¡± Kiel spat out through gritted teeth, barely restraining himself from grabbing the redhead by the neck. ¡°Once you are admitted into Muni, you will be forced to sign a contract that you won¡¯t reveal any Muni secrets to the outside.¡± ¡°If people can¡¯t reveal the secret, how come you know about it?¡± ¡°Magical Contracts are spells.¡± She revealed a heartstopping smirk. ¡°Spells can be broken.¡± As his eyes adjusted to the light his breath caught in his throat.What stood in front of him was the most beautiful elibu female he had ever seen. Episode 95 – Practical Exam Start Previously: Kiel and Elaru talk about important stuff inside the Black Pearl restaurant.
Episode 95 ¨C Practical Exam Start ¡°Can you repeat that? I didn¡¯t quite catch it?¡± Kiel finally squeezed out. ¡°I said¡­¡± Elaru stared right into his eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about sex.¡± Silence descended on the room. Kiel stared at Elaru with his own version of a gobsmacked and dumbfounded expression that consisted of a stiff, pale face, wide eyes and tightly pressed lips. Cold sweat was pouring down the side of his face making him look quite miserable. How can you say that with a straight face?! What is with this air of solemnity?!? Kiel¡¯s right eyebrow started violently twitching. He had to cough a few more times so get his voice back. ¡°You¡­want to¡­¡± Kiel swallowed down the saliva. ¡°¡­to talk about¡­¡± I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m saying this¡­ ¡°¡­ sexual intercourse?¡± ¡°Well, not the intercourse part specifically¡­¡± Elaru stated blandly. Thank the gods! Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding, but Elaru¡¯s next words made the remainder of his breath get stuck inside his throat: ¡°What I want to talk about is making babies.¡± I don¡¯t¡­ I don¡¯t even¡­what? Kiel stared at Elaru speechlessly. I¡­ I can¡¯t even¡­ begin to fathom what is going through her head¡­ His entire body stood completely petrified, as if he had turned into a statue. Perhaps if it was a few days earlier, he would have just gotten up and walked away. But today, his mind turned completely blank. And then countless question marks popped up inside his head, overpowering any sense of rational thought. Elaru¡¯s hand twitched as if it wanted to try poking Kiel again. However, this time she managed to restrain the urge. ¡°To create an offspring, both the mother and the father need to provide their seed of inheritance. When their two seeds meet, if they are compatible, they will combine into a seed of life.¡± When she mentioned the combining of two people as one, Kiel finally woke up from his stupor and his face fell. ¡°Stop. I know how children are made!¡± Elaru gave him a wise look as if she was an ancient scholar. ¡°Patience, young mageling.¡± Is she making fun of me because I haven¡¯t had¡­ intimate¡­ relations with females!? Kiel placed his fingers on top of his eyebrow to forcefully stop the uncontrollable twitching. ¡°Mageling? Did you just make that word up?!¡± Elaru completely ignored his question and continued. ¡°The seed of life is then nourished inside the mother¡¯s womb, or the egg, depending on the species, until it grows into a fully functional body.¡± Kiel covered his face with his hand. I can¡¯t believe we are having this conversation¡­ ¡°The seed of life eventually gives birth to the consciousness ¨C the mind. The mind contains memories and knowledge and is the source of thoughts and feelings. The mind is the essence of what makes you ¨C you.¡± Kiel let out a low grunt of displeasure, however, Elaru continued to ignore him. ¡°When the mind gains self-awareness, it creates a projection of consciousness ¨C the Mind. The Mind is simply an extension of the consciousness, a way for the consciousness to perceive the energy of the world. If the consciousness is the sun than the Mind is the light emitted from the sun.¡± Elaru placed her index finger against her forehead. ¡°The lump of flesh inside our heads does not contain our consciousness. Our fleshly body which grows out of the seed of life is only a vessel, an interface our mind uses to perceive and interact with the physical world. Similar to how the soul tendrils act as the conduit for mana, the brain is only a bridge between our bodies and our transcendent mind.¡± Kiel let out a resigned sigh. He had no idea where this conversation was going, but at least it didn¡¯t seem to be going in an inappropriate direction. Since that was the case, he might as well just let her say what she intended to say, even though none of the things said so far were new to him. The topic of how life is created was not only thought in school but even the people who didn¡¯t go to school knew it, for it was a large part of culture and religion. Halneans believed that the seed of life produced a spark of consciousness which had the ability to communicate with the Origin. As soon as the Origin felt its existence, it would pull the new and weak spark inside a timeless dream where the spark would be sheltered and nourished by the Origin. It is believed that this dream was a trial set by the Origin. If the consciousness failed the trial, the spark would be extinguished and the seed of life would die. Otherwise, the creature would be bestowed with a soul as its reward. It is said that those who gained larger, better souls, had passed the trial with flying colors, while those who got miserable, small souls were those who barely passed the trial. This is why, even from the religious point of view, those blessed with an abundance of mana were admired as the favorite children of Origin, while non-mages were the discarded children, looked down upon by the society.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The Origin was absolute. Everything came from the Origin and would one day return to the Origin. Even the gods themselves could not oppose the will of the Origin. ¡°Now, the purpose of this baby making talk is this ¨C just like the soul tendrils can snap, the connection between your body and mind can also be severed.¡± Elaru continued. ¡°Unlike how the separation of the soul and the body causes damage to the body, the separation of the mind and the body harms neither of the two. If your mind left your body, your body would enter a state similar to a coma.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s talk about sex?!¡± Kiel made an air quotation marks. ¡°Would it have killed you if you just said you wanted to talk about this from the start?!¡± Kiel snapped glaring daggers at Elaru. Elaru tilted her head to the side cutely and giggled musically. ¡°Ah, but then I wouldn¡¯t have been able to see you acting all cute and embarrassed.¡± ¡°ELARU!!!!¡± Kiel spat out through gritted teeth, barely restraining himself from grabbing the redhead by the neck. ¡°In what way am I cute?! It was a completely appropriate response to an inappropriate topic of conversation!¡± ¡°Ok, ok, I¡¯m sorry, sorry.¡± She purred softly, trying to melt down the icy glare being directed her way. ¡°I can tell you aren¡¯t sorry at all!¡± ¡°Err¡­¡± Before the situation could degrade further, Elaru dropped a bomb that totally shifted the conversation onto another track. ¡°Tomorrow¡¯s practical exam will temporarily separate your mind and body.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, and he stared at Elaru. ¡°What?¡± She stood silent for a while, deliberating her next words. ¡°Have you ever heard about the Replica Dungeon?¡± Kiel furrowed his eyebrows in thought. ¡°I think I saw a guidepost with such a name inside Muni?¡± ¡°Right. It is a special place inside Muni.¡± Elaru dramatically paused her speech, locking her eyes with Kiel¡¯s. ¡°In fact, Replica Dungeon is the most precious place in the entire land of Halnea. It is the reason why everyone is trying to enter Muni. The reason why Muni managed to become the holy land of magic and an incredible power to be reckoned with.¡± Kiel¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°How come I haven¡¯t heard any information about such an important place?¡± ¡°It is normal that you haven¡¯t heard about it. It is considered as one of Muni secrets. And as a part of the Muni enrollment procedure, you will be required to sign an arcane contract preventing you from revealing any of the Muni secrets to outsiders.¡± Elaru comforted. ¡°If people can¡¯t reveal Muni secrets, how come you know about it?¡± ¡°Magical Contracts are spells.¡± Elaru revealed a heart-stopping smirk. ¡°Spells can be broken.¡± * * * ? Thursday, 30th of August 1449 A.W. ? Muni Exams: Day 4 The lightning storm had long passed, leaving behind only an occasional cloud. Even so, the plaza in front of Muni was enveloped in a thick cloud. A cloud of despair. The large board towering above the examinees was filled with over three hundred different numbers. Numbers that caused some to break out in cheers while the majority broke out into mournful cries. Over five thousand examinees had applied for the exams, yet only a bit more than three hundred had passed the first round of the exams. The lucky three hundred were segregated into more than a dozen different groups based on their chosen practical exam. As Kiel stared at his number displayed among the three hundred, he couldn¡¯t help but be elated. He already knew that his number would be there, so it didn¡¯t come as a surprise, nonetheless, seeing it there with his own two eyes gave him a special feeling of pride and satisfaction. His number was placed into group 4, and the place where his group would have the exam was ¡°4th floor of the Replica Dungeon¡±. In fact, all of the groups, including Elaru¡¯s 6th group, had their practical exam inside the, so called, Replica Dungeon. After confirming their assigned timeslot, Kiel and Elaru waited for their exam time to arrive in the large Muni courtyard. To avoid any potential trouble, they traveled under the Invisibility barrier, and even chose an inconspicuous place in the courtyard to rest in. They were worried that the Shadow that attacked Kiel yesterday would come back for another attempt. Fortunately, that didn¡¯t happen, and in seemingly no time, Kiel was standing in front of a large circular staircase located in the center of the university, that went deep underground. There were no holes from which one could jump down. One had to walk down the stairs until they reached their floor. Thankfully, Kiel¡¯s target was the fourth floor, so he didn¡¯t need to descend for long before stopping in front of a large door. He turned towards Elaru only to see her smiling at him brightly. She extended her fist towards him and this time, Kiel didn¡¯t hesitate to extend his own fist towards hers, completing that strange, special handshake she had taught him previously. Even though the meaning behind the handshake was clear. Elaru still felt the need to add: ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you.¡± She wore a wide smile on her face, and even her aura was warm and soothing, but when Kiel concentrated on feeling her mind, he felt a discrepancy. It might have been because their bond had grown in power, but he could now feel something buried deep down inside her. He felt a slight emotion that was so subtle he might have overlooked it if it weren¡¯t an emotion that was completely uncharacteristic for Elaru ¨C nervousness. As the tinge of anxiety touched him, he understood. She wasn¡¯t nervous for her own exam. She had unwavering confidence in herself. What she was worried about was him. It wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t believe in his abilities. It was just that he had too little time to prepare for the exam. It was also possible that he would have bad luck. Kiel stared at Elaru¡¯s flawless smile, and suddenly he felt closer to her than ever. He felt as if the two of them were not that much different after all. Elaru Wayvin, just like him, hid her emotions behind a flawless smile. It was just that she was much better at hiding her real self than him. Or perhaps the word ¡°hiding¡± wasn¡¯t adequate to describe what she was doing. She wasn¡¯t merely hiding her emotions, it was more like she was overwriting them with new ones. Replacing everything which she didn¡¯t want. Kiel responded with a small yet genuine smile. ¡°I¡¯ll be out soon.¡± * * * When Kiel walked through the entrance to the 4th floor of the Replica Dungeon what greeted him was a circular room that was almost completely empty. Many white egg shaped chairs were placed inside the room. Some of them were placed in a circle around the room with their backs against the wall, while some of them were placed in a circle in the center of the room with their backs pressed against each other. The white, shiny chairs created a sharp contrast with the walls and floors of the room which were made from a polished black stone. The brightness of the chairs momentarily blinded Kiel and he failed to notice the white person standing in front of the chairs. As his eyes adjusted to the light his breath caught in his throat. What stood in front of him was the most beautiful elibu female he had ever seen. She wore an elegant sleeveless white dress that revealed her perfect curves in a modest manner. and made her skin look even paler. Her hair was as white as snow, looking like it was made from strands of silver. It was styled up into a sophisticated hairstyle that looked classy enough to be worn on a ball, yet simple enough to be worn to work. Her skin was flawless and near translucent, giving her an appearance of a surreal entity. Intricate elibu markings decorating her left arm looked blacker than the deepest of thenight when compared to the rest of her completely white visage.
Coming up in the next episode: Aethernea of Sight?! ¡°May I have the honor of knowing your name?¡± ¡°We are not going to the arena today. Today, you have¡­¡± She slammed the thick book onto the table, smiling sweetly. ¡°¡­some last minute cramming to do.¡± One brief glance was enough to stir him to the point of almost swearing out loud. Can my luck get any worse?! Episode 96 – Replica Dungeon Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here. Most of the examinees have failed the first part of the exam, and only those few that passed are allowed to participate in the practical exams. Kiel and Elaru enter Muni and after waiting for Kiel¡¯s time of the exam, Kiel finally enters the 4th floor of Replica Dungeon to take the exam. The room he entered into is dark and filled with egg-shaped chairs. There, Kiel notices an elibu female.
Episode 96 ¨C Replica Dungeon What stood in front of him was the most beautiful elibu female he had ever seen. She wore an elegant sleeveless white dress that revealed her perfect curves in a modest manner. and made her skin look even paler. Her hair was as white as snow, looking like it was made from strands of silver. It was styled up into a sophisticated hairstyle that looked classy enough to be worn on a ball, yet simple enough to be worn to work. Her skin was flawless and near translucent, giving her an appearance of a surreal entity. Intricate elibu markings decorating her left arm looked blacker than the deepest of night when compared to the rest of her completely white visage. She had no wrinkles or blemishes on her face. Therefore, she had to be young, but Kiel found himself unable to tell her age. Her face was both soft like that of a child and sharp like the face of an adult. She had both the air of eternal youth and aged maturity. Her timeless face was exquisite, almost perfect, the only thing ruining the perfection was her complete lack of emotion. She looked as empty as a porcelain doll, leaving one feeling uncomfortable. Yet, what caused Kiel¡¯s pupils to shrink in shock was neither her beauty nor his inability to feel her presence. No. What caused his heart to still were her eyes. Her eyes were breathtaking, but that wasn¡¯t what shocked him. He felt as if those eyes could see right through him, as if everything was laid bare in front of those eyes, yet that wasn¡¯t the reason behind his shock either. No, what shocked him was that they were glowing in a way that was very familiar to Kiel. They were animated, filled with golden, pink and blue lights looking as if they weren¡¯t eyes but the night sky. Aethernea of Sight?! Kiel barely managed to stop himself from recoiling in shock. Who is this person?! This was Kiel¡¯s first time running into someone with an Aethernea who wasn¡¯t Elaru. And it was even the same Aethernea Elaru possessed! Judging by the pure white hair of this female, she was certainly an Arite ¨C Arites were the only ones in the entire land of Halnea who possessed a pure white hair color. However, that didn¡¯t make sense. Arites were noble and far above the mundane world. All their children were princes and princesses in the eyes of all Halneans. How could they send one of their own to serve as a host for examinees? Even if this female was punished for something she did, surely her punishment wouldn¡¯t come in the form of servitude? ¡°Welcome to the practical exam number 4.¡± The female¡¯s ethereal voice brought Kiel out of his stupor. That voice was just as timeless and beautiful as her face. And just as her face, it too had only a single flaw ¨C complete and utter lack of any emotion. ¡°Apologies for my lack of courtesy.¡± Kiel smiled apologetically and slightly bowed his head. ¡°I am Kiel Rroda, the examinee number 5642.¡± Kiel pulled out his exam pass and offered it to the female, however, to say that she showed zero interest in his exam pass would be an understatement. She didn¡¯t even spare it a single glance. Kiel awkwardly pocketed his exam pass. ¡°Take a seat.¡± The female motioned towards the edges of the room filled with empty egg chairs. That¡¯s when Kiel realized that the chairs in the center of the room were already occupied. The people slumped in the chairs were wearing Muni professor uniforms and looked like they were sleeping. Kiel nodded to the female and chose a random empty chair. He stepped towards the chair but then paused in his tracks and turned his head towards the female. ¡°May I have the honor of knowing your name?¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help but ask. He had to catch onto this strand of intel, perhaps it would lead him to more information on the nature of Aethernea? The woman stared at Kiel wordlessly, her expression just as blank and apathetic as before. Just when Kiel thought that she wouldn¡¯t respond, she finally opened her mouth: ¡°I am¡­ Mageheart.¡± Kiel blinked several times in confusion. Mageheart? What kind of a name is that? Is that some sort of a nickname? Kiel smiled politely in response and made his way towards the chair. When he finally sat down, the female spoke up. ¡°Let me know when you become ready for me to transport you to the site of the exam. When the process starts, you will experience a sudden loss of feeling for a brief moment. Don¡¯t panic, that is normal.¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Kiel gazed at the lady, expecting her to continue talking. He expected her to explain that they will be allowed to use up to two magical artifacts in the exam. He expected her to ask which ones he wanted to bring. In preparation for the question, he had even taken out a metallic egg from his pocket that the Elaru had given him yesterday. Since the only magical artifact Kiel possessed was the ring, Elaru decided to temporarily lend him her egg-shaped artifact. She said that she didn¡¯t need it and wouldn¡¯t use it anyway. However, it might come in handy to him. Since his exam was a battle type exam, in case he was injured and needed to take a breath, or if he needed to block a powerful attack, he could use the egg. The egg could establish a strong protective barrier around him that could stop anything from entering inside, be it a physical object, a person, mana, or magic. However, since it wasn¡¯t a divine artifact, it couldn¡¯t keep it up indefinitely. It would eventually run out of power. Depending on the power of the attacks against it, it could last from 20 minutes to several hours. However, since the duration of his exam was 30 minutes, he couldn¡¯t stay inside the barrier for long anyway. Otherwise, the exam would end. When she offered the egg to him, for a moment, Kiel thought about refusing. He wasn¡¯t used to receiving anything from anyone. Getting such a precious ring from her was already making him feel like he owed her, he couldn¡¯t shamelessly continue receiving her resources. But then he remembered, she wasn¡¯t just anybody ¨C she was his partner, his ally. The more powerful he became, the better it would be for her as well. They were in this together. Therefore, sharing of resources is only to be expected. Thus, he accepted the egg. Seeing Elaru¡¯s sincere, bright smile only made him feel like it was the correct choice. She then proceeded to spin the different parts of the egg like a Rubik cube until it was adjusted. She said that it was a form of a password. That only the person who knew the right way to align all the parts would be able to activate the egg. She left a single ring not adjusted at told him in which position he needed to rotate it for the egg to activate. Kiel clutched the egg in his left hand, waiting for the female to ask him about it. However, she remained silent. Only after a long moment of silence did Kiel realize that she was waiting for him to declare himself as ready. Perhaps she was able to see with her eyes that he had only two magical artifacts on him, so she didn¡¯t need to ask him which two he wanted to use. ¡°I am ready.¡± Kiel spoke out. The words had barely exited his mouth when the world around him turned completely black. He couldn¡¯t see anything, he couldn¡¯t hear or feel anything either. It was as if he was dreaming. He couldn¡¯t feel the existence of his body, he could feel neither pain nor the beating of his own heart. The only thing he could feel in this darkness was his own soul. It was still releasing mana, feeding his mind. Telling him that this wasn¡¯t a dream. That he was very much awake. This strange sensation didn¡¯t surprise Kiel. Mageheart told him that experiencing a brief moment of blackness was normal and that he would be transported to the site of the exam. However, teleportation never caused such a strange feeling. If it weren¡¯t for Elaru telling him the secrets of Replica Dungeon yesterday, Kiel would have been very confused. The blackness lasted only for several seconds before all feeling returned to Kiel. He blinked his eyes repeatedly until the world around him became clear. He was standing in a small dark stone room. The only light in the room was coming from the exit in front of him. Through the gaps in the bars sealing the exit, he could see a brightly lit patch of yellowish earth. He recognized it as the arena. He was currently in the waiting room for the participants of the battle. The other participants were probably in the similar rooms positioned all around the arena. Since the exit was barred, Kiel couldn¡¯t walk out immediately. So instead, he looked at his own hands and flexed his fingers. A ring, in every way identical to the ring Elaru had given him, was on his right hand. He could feel its enchantment clearly concealing the mark of the Aetherneal bond. He had been holding a metal egg before the ¡°transport¡±, and indeed, a metal egg was gripped tightly inside his left hand. Kiel pocketed the egg and looked towards his belt and his feet. Everything was in order. He even stealthily pinched the skin on the back of his hand. The sharp pain told him that everything around him was indeed real. He took a step forward and inhaled a deep breath. A pleasant musky smell of earth entered his nostrils. There was absolutely nothing strange about this situation. It was as if he had been teleported to a distant place where the exams were supposed to be held ¨C the Replica Dungeon. Yet he knew that all of it wasn¡¯t as it seemed. The words Elaru spoke to him yesterday echoed clearly inside his mind: ¡°Replica Dungeon is a subspace inside the basement of Muni. Each floor is a separate dimension sustained by the divine artifact created by the goddess Luvia Arite.¡± ¡°Everything inside the Replica Dungeon is a Replica ¨C a copy of an existing object.¡± ¡°For all intents and purposes, Replicas are completely identical to the original. The only difference being that they are sustained by the divine artifact and cannot exist outside of the Replica Dungeon.¡± ¡°The only thing that the Replica Dungeon cannot replicate is the soul. Even the gods cannot create the soul and thus neither can the artifacts they left behind.¡± ¡°Remember, everything inside the Replica Dungeon is a Replica ¨C even your body. The divine artifact will detach your mind and soul from your true body and reattach them to the Replica body.¡± ¡°Your true body will remain safe exactly where you left it, in the basement of Muni. Even though your soul will be temporarily attached to your Replica body, the artifact will ensure that your true body receives enough mana to sustain it until you repossess it.¡± ¡°Once the exam is done, the artifact will reattach your mind and soul back to your original body.¡± If not for Elaru¡¯s explanation, Kiel would have no idea that the body he was currently moving, the nose he was using to smell the earth, the eyes that he was using to see the particles of dirt, everything was only a copy. Suddenly, a loud voice coming from outside woke Kiel up from his inner thoughts: ¡°Welcome to the Muni practical exam. You will be pitted against 9 others in a free for all skirmish. Show us all your prowess. You can kill and be killed without worry. No one will truly die. All of the injuries of the people present will be completely healed upon exiting the Replica Dungeon.¡± If Elaru hadn¡¯t explained to him the nature of the Replica Dungeon, Kiel would have thought this place to be just like all other Arenas which were in possession of a Memory divine artifact with the ability to restore a damaged or destroyed body. Yet, Replica Dungeon wasn¡¯t like the Arenas. It was completely different. ¡°The battle will last 30 minutes. The more people that are left undefeated by the end of those 30 minutes, the lower your score will be. You have 5 minutes to prepare for the battle.¡± These 5 minutes of preparation were meant to give mages the opportunity to set up battle enchantments. Kiel used them to reinforce his body and sword. He even enveloped his body and sword in a Temperature isolation barrier in case some of the participants used Temperature based attacks. He thickened his mage armor and aura, so that he would have plenty of mana available for future use. He even cast a sustained Acceleration spell on himself so he would be able to fly at a moment¡¯s notice.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°We are not going to the arena today. Today, you have¡­¡± Elaru slammed a thick book onto the table, smiling sweetly. ¡°¡­some last minute cramming to do.¡± One brief glance was enough to stir him to the point of almost swearing out loud. Can my luck get any worse?! His section with battling advice was very brief and to the point. It contained a single word: ¡°Forfeit.¡± Kiel¡¯s heart thumped painfully in his chest.What was happening around him made him question the nature of his reality. Episode 97 – The Purge Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here. Kiel enters the 4th floor of Replica Dungeon to take the exam. The Replica Dungeon transports him to a large arena where his exam will be taking place. He has 9 opponents and 30 minutes. The more people that he defeats and the longer he stays undefeated, the higher would be his score. The examiners give the participants 5 minutes to prepare for the exam.
Episode 97 ¨C The Purge After the five minutes were up, the bars sealing the exit slowly lifted, giving Kiel a clear view of the arena in front of him. There was a large hourglass embedded into the wall of the arena right opposite of his exit. Kiel assumed that when all the sand passed through the hourglass that would signal the end of his exam. Other than the large hourglass, the walls of the arena contained other exits with rising bars, just like his. The other participants of the exams were surely behind those bars. The examiners have not explained exactly who Kiel would be fighting. From their words, one could infer that Kiel would be fighting other Muni exam participants. And in a way, that was the truth ¨C he would be fighting Replicas of the previous exam participants. Elaru had told him that the Replica Dungeon would pick nine opponents with different levels of abilities. Therefore, there would be both weak people and strong people among the participants. Based on previous data, there should be four participants who had achieved a result of 15 points or higher in their exams. Those are the ones he should be wary of. Out of all the people in this world inside the Replica Dungeon, besides the examiners, Kiel would be the only actual person. All others were just flawed copies of the original ¨C mere Replicas. The Replica Dungeon would remember every exam participant it had ever hosted, allowing it to Replicate them in the future. Perhaps Kiel would run into someone who had taken a battle exam 20 years ago, or perhaps he would run into someone who had taken it a year ago. Perhaps, a year from now, the new batch of examinees would be forced to fight a Replica of Kiel Rroda. The thought that inside this world there might exist another him was unsettling, to say the least. * * * (Yesterday, Black Pearl Restaurant) ¡°We are not going to the arena today. Today, you have¡­¡± Elaru slammed a thick book onto the table, smiling sweetly. ¡°¡­some last-minute cramming to do.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± Kiel looked skeptically at the huge book. ¡°Two days ago, I visited the D.I. and asked them to compile a list of all previous participants which:
  1. took the Muni exam in the last 30 years,
  2. had chosen a battle related exam,
  3. had achieved 15 points or higher.
I asked them to provide info on their fighting style and tips on defeating them. This report cost me a fortune, you better memorize it well.¡± Looking at the thick book that looked as if it had over 400 pages, Kiel¡¯s face fell. ¡°You want me to memorize a 400-page book in a single day?!¡± Elaru shook her head. ¡°No, not memorize but analyze. Find those that are a threat and remember how to deal with them.¡± * * * (Present) As Kiel exited the small waiting room, he hoped that the four, strong people that the Replica Dungeon chose for him would be among the ones whose details he managed to memorize. As soon as he passed through the exit of the room, Kiel halted his steps and carefully glanced at every other participant exiting their respective rooms. His argel eyes could clearly see their features even though the arena was larger than the size of two airbalt stadiums combined. His attention fell on the two participants left of him whose faces and features were completely unfamiliar to him. His gaze proceeded onwards, and after the third person who he didn¡¯t recognize either, there was finally a face that he recognized. It was an elibu girl with a light brown wavy hair reaching her chin. Although the girl couldn¡¯t be called a great beauty, she was still quite attractive. Her facial features were sharp and dignified like those of most elibu with deep eyes looking like two endless pits one could get lost in. Her eyes which looked like two shiny black beads had completely black irises making it impossible for one to tell them apart from her pupils. All in all, it gave her gaze depth unbefitting of her age. She wore skin tight, black battle suit and combat boots, which magnified her aura of dignity, power, and confidence. Since she lacked that usual bearing of a noble that held innate arrogance and aloofness, it was hard to tell whether she was a noble or a commoner. However, Kiel knew right away that she wasn¡¯t a commoner. For Kiel remembered her name ¨C Nelaira Helyot, a child of the Helyot noble family. That fact alone was enough to illustrate how strange her existence was. Unlike the rest of her family that specialized in arts and crafts consisting mostly of architecture and sculpture, to the great shock and dismay of the Helyot family, she chose a completely different path ¨C Nelaira Helyot became a prominent figure in the Purge.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The Purge was a special combat division ran by the Arite family whose purpose was to keep the lands under the Shield safe from the dangers outside. In a way, the Purge could be considered as an army, yet, they were neither trained, used, nor disciplined as an army. That¡¯s because a normal army participated in large scale battles, while the Purge engaged in many small-scale battles. One of the reasons why the lands under the Shield didn¡¯t have a true army was because there was no outside threat that could mobilize a large-scale attack. The other reason was the existence of the Shield that unconditionally protected the people under it. 1449 years ago, the Great Mage Wars were abruptly halted due to a sudden spread of a terrible disease ¨C the Ink. The god Aegis Arite, the ancestor of the Arite family, gathered the allied families together and erected the Shield of Aegis ¨C a large-scale spherical barrier that separated their land from the outside world, allowing them to survive the calamity. After the disaster, all that was left of the previous civilizations populating the large continent of Halnea were ruins occupied by terrible monsters created by the Ink ¨C the Tainted. And thus, the dangerous wilderness outside the Shield was titled as the Forbidden zone where only the Purge and people with special permission from the Purge could venture out to. The Purge were the greatly respected elites which excelled at combat and survival, and although Nelaira Helyot only joined the Purge after her Muni days, her combat prowess could not be underestimated. However, the reason why Kiel paid special attention to this person wasn¡¯t because she joined the Purge ¨C even though he did think that any elibu that could attain a high position in a field of work mostly dominated by argel deserved the utmost respect. It also wasn¡¯t because she had the courage to fight for her own path, different from what her family had planned for her, which resonated with his own private struggles. The reason why Kiel especially remembered Nelaira Helyot was because she became a Muni professor teaching classes related to the operation of the Purge. Since Kiel had always been quite interested in the mysteries of the forbidden zone, he figured that he would be taking her classes sooner or later, therefore, he found her worth remembering. Kiel¡¯s gaze didn¡¯t linger on Nelaira for long, he continued his inspection of other participants. The next face he didn¡¯t recognize so he quickly moved on to the 6th participant. It was an argel with a wild air about him. His hair was red and spiky, sticking out everywhere messily. There were several strands of hair on top of his head that were especially eye-catching which were colored in a warm yellow similar to the color of his eyes. Judging by his glare and wild aura, Kiel would have thought him to be a thug, if it weren¡¯t for his cute baby face that totally ruined the image, dispelling any fear that he could have evoked. Kiel instantly recognized this strange person as Deora Thayn. The report stated that Deora Thayn was specialized in Temperature manipulation magic and was especially proficient in using fire. While Deora Thayn, as a member of the Thayn family of Peacekeepers, had sufficient battle training, his specialty wasn¡¯t combat. The only reason why he had applied for the battle type Muni exam was because there were no other exams that would allow him to demonstrate his peculiar abilities. There were several reasons why Kiel remembered this person. Firstly, the report stated that Deora Thayn was currently an assistant professor at Muni teaching Temperature and Fire magic related subjects. While Kiel was not sure whether he would be taking any of his subjects, he still chose to remember his name. Secondly, Kiel chose to remember most people from the list who specialized in fire-related magic, for Kiel ever since his childhood despised fire the most. The mere mention of fire made his blood boil. Lastly, what was imprinted in Kiel¡¯s memory the most vividly was a queer tip for dealing with Deora Thayn: ¡°Will explode if called ¡®firecracker¡¯.¡± The tip was so strange that it had left Kiel staring at the report dumbfounded for some time, wondering what that tip actually meant. Deora Thayn seemed to feel Kiel¡¯s gaze because his eyes locked with Kiel¡¯s. No words were spoken, but Kiel imagined that the words accompanying that gaze would probably be along the lines of ¡°What the **** are you looking at, punk??¡± Kiel averted his eyes not wanting to inadvertently provoke a¡­ firecracker, and he continued his scan. There were only three people left that he hadn¡¯t yet inspected. The 7th person was unfamiliar to Kiel, however, the person after that was extremely familiar to Kiel. It was a tall argel with a long and wild mane of dark red hair. His hair was speckled with many strands of pure gold. No ¨C those strands weren¡¯t blond, they weren¡¯t yellow ¨C they were pure gold that shined in the sunlight dazzlingly. The eyes that accompanied the man¡¯s exquisitely chiseled face were equally as golden as his hair. Those eyes were so golden that they looked like they were made out of liquid gold, eerily shining under the sun. Those golden eyes both especially stood out against and greatly complimented the tanned color of the man¡¯s skin. The man¡¯s strong muscles bulged out under his clothes making him look like a god of war. His dashingly handsome face and strong body could make most females weak in the knees, and his powerful, thick aura screaming ¡°alpha-male¡± would conquer the rest. The man¡¯s bearing, clothes, aura, everything about him exuded power and prestige, making one feel inferior in every way. He was like an emperor looking down on all mortals. The picture Kiel had seen in the report couldn¡¯t compare to the majesticness of seeing Zor Arite in person. Nor could the emotions Kiel was currently feeling compare to those he had felt when he initially read about him. No, when he had initially read about Zor Arite, his body didn¡¯t freeze like it froze right now, nor did his face turn this unsightly. He also hadn¡¯t gotten an urge to slam his head against the wall out of frustration like he was feeling now. Out of all the powerful people I could have been pitted against, it had to be Zor Arite! Zor freaking Arite! Kiel couldn¡¯t help but grit his teeth to stop himself from cursing out loud. He remembered this person especially clearly, and it wasn¡¯t because he was an Arite, even though all Arites were considered as monsters not to be trifled with. It also wasn¡¯t because this person could use pure mana, like every other Arite. No. The reason why this particular argel was deeply imprinted in Kiel¡¯s memory was because his face was the first thing he saw when he opened Elaru¡¯s book of people to watch out for. He was the first person mentioned in the book. And it wasn¡¯t by accident. He was the first person mentioned because he was the most powerful one out of all the people in the report ¨C the leader of the golden generation of Muni, the previous heir of the argel branch of the Arite family and the appointed future head of the Purge. Not only that, but the person who wrote the report was very helpful in writing the advice for dealing with Zor Arite. Kiel remembered that advice by heart, every and each word. Well, that¡¯s because the entire advice consisted of a single word: ¡°Forfeit.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Saying that Kiel¡¯s luck was horrid would be an understatement.But, hey, at least it couldn¡¯t get any worse than this, right?Wrong.It could get worse.It could always get worse. Kiel took an involuntary step back, his heart thumping painfully in his chest. What was happening around him made him question the nature of his reality. The silence inside his mind was unbearable. Every second he spent waiting for the response seemed like hours. His heart kept accelerating, threatening to jump out of his chest. Is he suggesting we team up and beat down other participants of the battle? Episode 98 – Replica or Not Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here. Kiel enters the 4th floor of Replica Dungeon to take the exam. The Replica Dungeon transports him to a large arena where his exam will be taking place. Out of 9 other exam participants, Kiel recognizes 3 of them, with the third one being Zor Arite.
Episode 98 ¨C Replica or Not As Kiel gazed at the imposing presence of Zor Arite, he felt his hopes of a perfect score crumble into nothingness. Zor Arite was a giant, impassable mountain crushing all hope. He was a monster among monsters, a person that had effortlessly managed to achieve a perfect score in the Muni exams 21 years ago. A person whose power was enough to annihilate all of the remaining 9 participants, Kiel included, even if they ganged up on him. Saying that Kiel¡¯s luck was horrid would be an understatement. But, hey, at least it couldn¡¯t get any worse than this, right? Wrong. It could get worse. It could always get worse. Kiel confirmed this as soon as his gaze reached the final participant in the exam, who came out of the room right next to his. When Kiel¡¯s eyes landed on that familiar face, his face stiffened, and his mind was overcome with all swear words in his dictionary. The man finally turned his head, his gaze locking with Kiel¡¯s. His eyes widened in shock, and he let out a disbelieving exclamation: ¡°Huh? Little brother, what are youdoing here?¡± The person who stared back at Kiel was no other than his older brother ¨C Rhur Rroda. Or rather, it was a Replica of Rhur Rroda who took this exam last year. Kiel remained silent as if he didn¡¯t hear the question directed his way. Look at the bright side, I always wanted to give Rhur Rroda a beating. Kiel thought, but as soon as the thought entered his mind, his face darkened further. Unfortunately, with my current skills I¡¯m not qualified to give him a beating. Even winning a pyrrhic victory would be an issue. Completely unaware of Kiel¡¯s thoughts, Rhur¡¯s shock quickly dissipated, replaced by a frown. He gently flew towards Kiel, stopping at arm¡¯s length. Kiel¡¯s pupils contracted as he stared at the Replica of his older brother. All of his features were identical to Rhur¡¯s. Even his aura felt exactly like the aura of the real Rhur. Not just his appearance and aura, even his scent was the same ¨C Kiel could clearly smell Rhur¡¯s favorite cologne. Kiel was so preoccupied with trying to find a flaw that his mind barely registered Rhur¡¯s voice: ¡°Is this why you wanted to tag along with me and come to Ashar? To take the Muni exams? I must say that I¡¯m impressed you made it this far. However, your efforts are futile. You haven¡¯t finished high school yet, little brother. You can¡¯t enroll in Muni.¡± Kiel¡¯s body suddenly broke out in goosebumps. When Elaru had told him that everything besides the soul could be copied, including one¡¯s consciousness, Kiel was extremely skeptical. The idea that there could be another him inside the Replica Dungeon that holds his memories, and thinks, feels and acts exactly like him, made Kiel¡¯s hair stand on end. Seeing the Replica of Rhur Rroda, made Kiel feel like he had been hit with a hammer. How are Replicas mere flawed copies?! The person in front of him was in every way identical to Rhur Rroda. There was simply no difference. Not even a minute one. And worst still¡­this Replica of Rhur Rroda wasn¡¯t even aware that he wasn¡¯t the real Rhur Rroda. He thought that he was taking the exams right now! Rhur Rroda believed that he was the protagonist of this exam. In fact, every one of the participants thought that they were here to take the Muni exam. None of them realized that they were merely Replicas of the real people who had long ago finished this exam. Kiel took an involuntary step back, his heart thumping painfully in his chest. What was happening around him made him question the nature of his reality. If Replicas were identical to the original, if they behaved and thought just like the original, then what if he was just like them? What if he was only a Replica of the true Kiel who had long ago finished this exam? How would he know whether he was the real Kiel? Perhaps one of the faces he didn¡¯t recognize was the real protagonist of this exam. Kiel¡¯s mind spun. Is he the real Kiel Rroda? Or is he a Replica? Desperately he called out to Elaru. If he could contact her, that meant that she existed. And since she wasn¡¯t inside the Replica Dungeon, if she existed, then it meant that she was outside, in the ¡°real¡± world. And only the real Kiel could have a connection to a real Elaru.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. If Elaru could respond to him, then, surely, he was the real Kiel. The silence inside his mind was unbearable. Every second he spent waiting for the response seemed like hours. His heart kept accelerating, threatening to jump out of his chest. And then, when he finally heard a voice respond to him inside his head, to him it was the most beautiful voice in existence. ¡°Yeah? What is it?¡± Elaru¡¯s melodious voice was simply the divine music. At this moment, there was simply no sound more wonderful. Her casual response acted like a soothing tonic, calming Kiel¡¯s mind and heart. ¡°Uh, nothing. Never mind.¡± Kiel let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. I am real. I am not a Replica. Kiel inhaled a deep breath. Get yourself together! He ordered himself, yet his heart was still beating erratically, his mind was still running wild with possibilities. He might be the true Kiel, but¡­ what if what he thought as true wasn¡¯t true at all? What if the ¡°true¡± Kiel was also only a Replica? Since he can¡¯t tell the difference between the world inside the Replica Dungeon and the real world, then, how can he be sure that that which he called the real world was real? The blood inside him ran cold. What if the entire world of Halnea was just a Replica Dungeon on a larger scale? A world created by a divine artifact controlled by a being calling itself a god? What if what he called ¡°grass¡±, ¡°wood¡±, ¡°steel¡±, ¡°rock¡±, what if all of it was just a copy of a material from a higher realm? What if everything and everyone he knew were only Replicas? Kiel stared unblinkingly at the minute changes of expression on Rhur¡¯s face. Rhur didn¡¯t seem to be too pleased that Kiel wasn¡¯t responding to his questions, yet he still tried to be as perfect of a nobleman as he was supposed to be in public. A strange thought entered Kiel¡¯s mind. Would it even matter? Would it matter if that which he thought as ¡°real¡± wasn¡¯t really ¡°real¡±? In fact, what is ¡°real¡±? If he can smell it, touch it, feel it, interact with it in every way as if it was ¡°real¡±¡­ If there is no difference between that which is ¡°real¡± and that which is not, then that which is not ¡°real¡± would become real. What is real, what is true, what is unreal, what is false ¨C all of it is a matter of perspective. If he was a Replica in a world of Replicas, this false world of Replicas would be his reality. To him, the existence of the original would be ¡°false¡±. What is real is up to me to decide. Kiel¡¯s mind finally settled down. For me, this Replica world I am in is just as real as the outside world. Both worlds are just as real. That¡¯s right. Kiel¡¯s mind cleared. Replicas were just people from an earlier time, not much different than him. Like an image stuck in the past. A loud sound of snapping fingers woke Kiel up from his thoughts. ¡°Are you alright, little brother? You zoned out on me.¡± Rhur looked at Kiel with his eyebrow raised. ¡°It¡¯s ok to be surprised¡­ but get yourself together. We are in the middle of a battle royale. If your moment of distraction ends up causing you to get eliminated, grandfather would be livid. ¡®Dragging the Rroda name through the mud¡¯ and all that.¡± Rhur chuckled softly, his voice carrying affection and worry of an older brother that only Kiel would be able to recognize as completely fake. Personally, Rhur would be the first one to gloat if such a thing happened to Kiel. Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he finally responded. ¡°Thank you for your reminder, older brother. You know better than anyone how livid grandfather becomes when he considers something as ¡®dragging Rroda name through the mud¡¯.¡± Rhur¡¯s soft smile stiffened. Wasn¡¯t Kiel implying that Rhur often dragged the Rroda name through the mud and thus made Venric angry? ¡°You¡¯re welcome. We brothers have to stick together. Infighting would cause others to laugh at us.¡± Rhur beamed yet his smile didn¡¯t reach his eyes. ¡°Luck is on our side today, little brother. Let¡¯s show them the combined might of the Rrodas.¡± Is he suggesting we team up and beat down other participants of the battle? Kiel¡¯s expression showed no surprise. He and Rhur might be on bad terms, however, infighting, when confronted by a common enemy, would be simply stupid. Since there were ten people participating in the exam, a single person would find it extremely difficult to beat everyone by himself. Especially if other participants teamed up when fighting against them. That¡¯s why it would be beneficial to have an ally in such a situation. Well, Rhur could hardly be considered an ally, however, Kiel could trust that Rhur wouldn¡¯t pull any underhanded methods as long as there were common enemies to fight against. There was an unspoken rule in every noble family that should never be broken ¨C infighting was only allowed if it didn¡¯t negatively impact the interests or the honor of the family. It was absolutely the greatest of humiliation if an outsider reaped benefits at the expense of their family because of their infighting. It was the greatest taboo that could easily lead to one getting expelled from the family by the family head. If Rhur knocked his own brother out of the competition while there were other competitors he could have targeted instead, in the best-case scenario, people would look down and him and talk trash behind his back. In the worst-case scenario, Venric would be absolutely livid. No matter how much Rhur internally wished Kiel would receive the lowest score possible, showing that desire outwardly or contributing towards it would be unsightly. And besides, even if it weren¡¯t so, Rhur wouldn¡¯t go against his own interests no matter how much he hated Kiel. What mattered the most to the Replica of Rhur right now was to perform well in this exam. If he could use Kiel to increase his own score, then he would unhesitatingly do so. Thus, Kiel could trust him to a certain extent. Kiel glanced at the other examinees. No one had started fighting yet; they were warily looking around themselves, waiting for someone to make the first move. ¡°There are three other people we should be wary of.¡± Kiel pointed them out one by one. ¡°The golden eyed guy should be avoided at all costs. My information says he is stronger than both of us combined. The other two that are dangerous are the brown haired elibu and the ginger.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± Rhur mused. ¡°Where did you obtain this information?¡± Kiel looked at him like he was an idiot. ¡°From the D.I.¡± Duh. ¡°You are well prepared, little brother. Then let¡¯s avoid those three and take out the other five first.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Kiel nodded. The ten participants continued to warily eye one another, trying to determine which one of them would be the easiest prey. However, the stalemate didn¡¯t last for long. It was broken by the actions of Zor Arite. Unlike the rest of the participants, Zor Arite didn¡¯t seem wary at all. He looked around himself leisurely, seemingly not putting up any defenses. After inspecting every participant, unexpectedly, he sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes, as if he was completely disinterested in this exam. Everyone looked at him strangely. What kind of person would choose to sit down leisurely in a middle of an exam?!
Coming up in the next episode: Only when his body hit the floor did his head separate from his neck, slowly rolling off, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. In a split second, Kiel¡¯s mind considered his options and settled on an optimal course of action. One large spike ended up embedding itself in the thigh of the man while another one passed right through his shoulder, its bright red tip dripping blood on the other side. Unaware, his neck approached the sharp tip of the poisonous dagger, it was so close, almost touching the short hair at the back of his neck. Episode 99 – First Blood Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here. Kiel enters the 4th floor of Replica Dungeon to take the exam. The Replica Dungeon transports him to a large arena where his exam will be taking place. Out of 9 other exam participants, Kiel recognizes 3 of them, with the third one being Zor Arite.
Episode 99 ¨C First Blood The participant next to Zor hesitated briefly, looking at the hourglass. He then gritted his teeth and made his move. Seeing how unguarded Zor Arite seemed, he decided to make him his first target. The man unsheathed his sword and Accelerated towards Zor. In a blink of an eye, he appeared behind Zor and swung down his sword in an arc, aiming to chop off Zor¡¯s head in a single move. No one saw Zor act, however, in the next moment, the attacker froze in the middle of his move, his sword never finishing its slice. Several seconds of silence passed with neither Zor nor his attacker moving. And then, the body of Zor¡¯s attacker finally moved. The man slowly fell on his back like a lifeless sack of potatoes. Only when his body hit the floor did his head separate from his neck, slowly rolling off, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. No one saw or felt Zor move. No one knew when nor how the attacker was decapitated. From the beginning to the end, Zor seemed like an emperor who didn¡¯t deem it worthy for him to deal with a speck of dust that was his attacker. The serenity with which he remained leisurely sitting, even after the gruesome sight, made goosebumps crawl over everyone¡¯s skin. At that moment, all participants decided they would definitely not be the next one to provoke Zor Arite. Kiel too felt his hair stand on end. He remembered what Elaru had told him yesterday when he asked about her thoughts on Zor. Elaru had made a rather strange facial expression before speaking: ¡°Uh¡­ if you meet him in the exam¡­ consider yourself unlucky¡­ even if it was me with my Aethernea¡­ I¡¯d probably be unable to take him down in 30 minutes¡­¡± ¡°But what would you do if you were forced to fight with him?¡± was what he had asked next. ¡°I¡¯d just avoid him. If you don¡¯t provoke him, chances are he won¡¯t bother dealing with you.¡± Kiel had rolled his eyes in annoyance when she told him that. Only now did he realize that Elaru might have been right. If he wasn¡¯t even able to see what happened while he was paying attention, then, how was he supposed to fight Zor? He¡¯d just be a meep running happily towards the slaughter. Instead of committing ¡°suicide¡± he might as well do his utmost to avoid clashing with him. At least he¡¯d have a higher chance of living then. Kiel was among the first to snap out of his shock and survey the current situation. The reactions of other participants to the beheading didn¡¯t escape his keen eyesight. Rhur, Nelaira and Deora showed very little change of expression. However, the faces of the majority paled and broke out in cold sweat. There were even two people who looked both downright horrified. Their faces turned green, looking as if they would puke at any moment. In a split second, Kiel¡¯s mind considered his options and settled on an optimal course of action. If he wanted to survive this Battle Royale, he would need to conserve his energy as much as possible which meant that he would need to fight as little as possible. For that to happen, he needed to create an air of might that would deter others from targeting him. He either needed to show absolute dominance like Zor Arite, which, unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t due to his lack of power, or he should project a calm poise shrouded in an air of mystery, making it difficult for others to gauge his skill level. Unfortunately, even if he projected complete confidence, making others wary and deeming him as no pushover, eventually there would still be someone who would decide to fight against him. So, in the end, he could either wait for someone to attack him first, or he could take the initiative to attack. Waiting for someone to attack him first had a low possibility of him avoiding the first round of battles, but it also had a possibility of his first opponent being strong. On the other hand, attacking first would allow him the benefit of choosing his own opponent, and if he chose right, his overwhelming victory would discourage others from attacking him. Since the possibility of no one attacking him was low, Kiel decided to become the second person to initiate an attack. Kiel¡¯s mana decisively surged outwards, covering his surroundings and spreading towards the enemy closest to him like a water wave. Kiel¡¯s target had only just felt foreign mana enter his vicinity when that mana had already drilled into the ground around him, just outside of his Mage Armour, forming multiple Morph and Protection spells.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Simultaneously, Kiel Accelerated towards the person with such speed that he left a whirlwind of dirt in his wake. His goggles, which he had placed over his eyes in the 5 minutes of preparation time, shielded his eyes from the fierce wind blowing against his face. His scarf flapped behind him like a flag. The target of Kiel¡¯s attack, which was an argel with hair as black as his skin, tinged with several green strands, stumbled back half a step like a timid pechuh startled by a lunging lupax. The mage attempted to Accelerate himself away from his current position. However, his spellcasting speed couldn¡¯t compare to Kiel¡¯s. Therefore, before he could fly away, several large earth spikes erupted from the ground around him, attempting to impale him. Unlike Kiel, it seemed that he didn¡¯t choose to cast sustained Acceleration spell on himself before entering the arena. It was probably because he hoped to save mana and didn¡¯t think that he would be unable to cast it in time when he needed it. His thinking wasn¡¯t wrong. Not everyone had the luxury to waste as much mana as they wanted to, especially in a Battle Royale where they would most likely be forced to fight several battles in a row. Since Acceleration was the simplest spell to cast, he would have managed to complete it in the nick of time if he hadn¡¯t been caught totally off guard by Kiel¡¯s sudden attack. The mage swung his scimitar horizontally with as much force as he could muster, hoping to cut down the spikes before they could impale him. He succeeded in slicing two of them in half, but by the time his scimitar reached the third, the force behind the blow was spent. It didn¡¯t manage to cut through the spike and instead got stuck halfway. Although Kiel¡¯s spikes had a Protection spell cast on them making them more durable and difficult to break, the man¡¯s scimitar was a magical artifact which was not only sharp and hard by default, but it was also reinforced by protection magic. The protective enchantment on the scimitar wasn¡¯t something Kiel¡¯s quickly formed Protection spell could hope to overpower, and thus Kiel¡¯s earth spikes were cut apart with relative ease. As soon as the man realized his weapon had gotten stuck, he wisely chose to temporarily abandon it in favor of his own safety. He shifted his body in an awkward pose, attempting to dodge the rest of the earth spikes. Unfortunately for him, Kiel¡¯s multicasting was the cream of the crop, so the number of spikes attacking the mage simultaneously was impossible to dodge without sprouting wings. One large spike ended up embedding itself in the thigh of the man while another one passed right through his shoulder, its bright red tip dripping blood on the other side. Even though the man had cast Protection magic on himself that made it difficult for an attack to penetrate his skin, the Protection magic cast on the spikes themselves by Kiel was of a higher grade due to Kiel¡¯s flawless mana weaving. When the two Protection spells collided, the mutual interference resulted in the effect of the weaker spell getting overwritten by the stronger spell. Thus, the previously hard skin of the man reverted back to soft flesh. In the split second that the spikes reached the man, he finally managed to complete his cast of Acceleration, however, surrounded by spikes from all sides and even impaled by them, he had no room to maneuver in. He gritted his teeth and used Acceleration on his scimitar to dislodge it from the spike it was stuck in, sending it slicing down towards the spikes that managed to impale the man, in order to free him from his current predicament. Just as he managed to slice the two spikes apart, Kiel appeared in front of him, swinging his sword down with enough force to cleave the man into two. The only thing that the man managed to do before Kiel¡¯s sword reached him was to put up his scimitar in a defensive posture in front of his chest. When the two weapons collided, a deafening boom erupted outwards along with a whirlwind of mana. The force of the impact caused the man¡¯s feet to sink into the earth, creating large spider web cracks in the ground around him. Both of the man¡¯s hands with which he wielded his weapon turned numb from the force, and even Kiel¡¯s own hand fared no better. The wind and dust raised by the impact concealed the sharp movement of a small translucent glass dagger, which stealthily launched itself in a curve towards the back of Kiel¡¯s neck. The small, hard to detect Acceleration spell that had been cast on it had been concealed by the eruption of the man¡¯s mana. Kiel didn¡¯t seem to realize the severity of the danger lurking behind him at all. He didn¡¯t move to dodge, his eyes locked firmly onto the man in front of him. Suddenly, the man¡¯s eyes bulged out, and he coughed out a large mouthful of blood. Afraid that the blood would soil his clothes, Kiel retreated backward ¨C right in the direction of the small dagger. Unaware, his neck approached the sharp tip of the poisonous dagger, it was so close, almost touching the short hair at the back of his neck. Just a small graze and everything would come to an end. And then, just like that, the dagger that was about to pierce into Kiel¡¯s neck wavered, straying from its trajectory, missing Kiel¡¯s neck by an inch. Gradually, gravity overpowered it and it fell down lifelessly to the ground. The man¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t follow the falling dagger. Instead, he looked down slowly towards his own chest. A sharp spike was protruding through the left side of his chest, right where his heart ought to be. The man¡¯s lips moved forming the word ¡°how¡± but he never managed to voice it. The attempt only caused more blood to come spurting out of his mouth. His bloodshot eyes stared at Kiel hatefully before they slowly rolled back, and the man fell forwards face first into the dirt. The man never expected for the spikes he had cut off previously to be the most lethal ones. Not only did they remain flying in the air instead of dropping to the ground, but they even shoot towards his chest with flawless precision. At the moment that the man sliced off the tips of the first two spikes, Kiel had already started casting an Acceleration spell on the discarded tips. However, the man was too distracted by the spikes he hadn¡¯t cut yet and the danger of the approaching Kiel, to notice such a slight change of mana flow. And even if he had managed to detect it, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to dodge a pincer attack from two sides. If he chose to guard against the small flying spikes, then he would have failed to guard against Kiel¡¯s slash which was perfectly coordinated with the attack of the spikes. If the inconspicuous dagger that the man had sneakily shot towards Kiel had managed to reach Kiel in time, perhaps the outcome of this battle would have been different.
Coming up in the next episode: Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. His heartbeat echoed inside his head, overpowering all other noise. He had heard it, he had seen it, he had smelled it before. Yet, why was it that this time it felt different? Why was it that when it came as a result of his own actions that he found it hard to bear? She flicked her wrist, and as if responding to her gesture, hundreds of sharp icicles condensed from thin air and started raining down like a stream of needles. Deora looked at him provocatively, with his hands crossed. His red hair started waving upwards like flames. No, not just like flames, his hair was literally on fire! Episode 100 – Razorblood Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel attacks the person next to him and manages to slay him while barely dodging a hidden dagger thrown by the person.
Episode 100 ¨C Razorblood The man never expected for the spikes he had cut off previously to be the most lethal ones. Not only did they remain flying in the air instead of dropping to the ground, but they even shoot towards his chest with flawless precision. At the moment that the man sliced off the tips of the first two spikes, Kiel had already started casting an Acceleration spell on the discarded tips. However, the man was too distracted by the spikes he hadn¡¯t cut yet and the danger of the approaching Kiel, to notice such a slight change of mana flow. And even if he had managed to detect it, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to dodge a pincer attack from two sides. If he chose to guard against the small flying spikes, then he would have failed to guard against Kiel¡¯s slash which was perfectly coordinated with the attack of the spikes. If the inconspicuous dagger that the man had sneakily shot towards Kiel had managed to reach Kiel in time, perhaps the outcome of this battle would have been different. Kiel¡¯s eyes never left the man. Even when his ears caught the clatter of the dagger falling near him, his eyes still didn¡¯t leave the man¡¯s body. He wouldn¡¯t give his opponent a chance of retaliation, no matter how slim. Even before the man¡¯s body managed to fully slump to the floor, Kiel had sent another slash his way, separating his head from his body. After ensuring that the argel was ¡°deader than dead¡±, Kiel turned away from the corpse, swiping his sword from left to right swiftly. With a sharp swish, this seemingly meaningless slash made the blood soiling the sword splash outwards, returning the blood red sword to its original silver color. Kiel¡¯s cold, emotionless eyes surveyed the remainder of the battlefield. His body stood tall with his back straight. His composure was declaring that this short skirmish couldn¡¯t be considered anything in his eyes. That the result of it was completely within his expectations. His poise was flawless, his aura was chillingly icy. Yet no one knew that under this superficial calm, his heart was beating wildly. Ba-dump, Ba-dump, Ba-dump. His heartbeat echoed inside his head, overpowering all other noise. The bloodshot eyes of the man he had just killed lingered inside his head and the stench of blood was so unbearable that he stopped breathing through his nose entirely. He had never killed a person before. He had watched people die in the arena, so he was used to the gruesome sight. He thought that the entire process would be simple, that he wouldn¡¯t be phased by it. After all, what he was killing was simply a Replica. Regardless of whether he killed it or not, a Replica would disappear after the 30 minutes were up. He told himself that Replicas weren¡¯t really people and that he wasn¡¯t really killing them. But everything was just too real. The sound of blood dripping down the spikes to the hard ground. The emotions of pain and disbelief reflected in the man¡¯s eyes. The uncontrollable shivering of the man¡¯s body before it completely stilled. The atrocious metallic stench of blood assaulting Kiel¡¯s nostrils. He had heard it, he had seen it, he had smelled it before. Yet, why was it that this time it felt different? Why was it that he found it hard to bear when it came as a result of his own actions? He wasn¡¯t wrong to kill this person. If he didn¡¯t do it, some other participant would have done it. He would have died either way. In fact, this person wasn¡¯t a person at all. It was a Replica. But a Replica is also a person. A small voice whispered inside his head. It bleeds, it thinks, it feels. Just like everyone else. No different than a normal person. And this person, whose life you ended would never again see the light of day again. Even if the Replica Dungeon created an identical Replica at a later time, that Replica and this Replica would not be the same. This Replica was dead forever. Kiel gripped the handle of his sword so tightly that his fingers turned white. He had hoped that this Replica would disappear when he killed it. Hoped that he wouldn¡¯t have to look at its miserable corpse any longer. In the Arena, Memory artifacts would instantly reconstruct the body of the slain party so the audience wouldn¡¯t be able to see the gory sight for long. Yet, this wasn¡¯t the Arena, this was the Replica Dungeon. And the corpse of the Replica remained there unmoving as if to prove that it was very much real and not an illusion. That it had been alive and now it was not. This Replica was created for my sake. It lived for my sake and died for my sake. There is nothing wrong with it. Kiel argued. His eyes landed on the small near transparent dagger, lying lifelessly next to his feet. Even if I didn¡¯t kill it, would it have spared me? Those with an intention to kill should be prepared to be killed. The rest of the participants of the exam stared at Kiel with mixed emotions. The ease with which Kiel dispatched one of them left the rest feeling unsettled. In their eyes, it seemed as if Kiel just picked this person at random to attack, just because he was the closest one to him, not caring about whether this person was strong or not.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Kiel exuded sharp coldness and confidence bordering on arrogance. He stared at them defiantly as if asking them to hurry up, as if asking them ¡°what are you waiting for? Come at me.¡±. Yet none of them knew that that was exactly what Kiel wanted them to think. No one realized that Kiel picked this person intentionally. That he picked him because he didn¡¯t recognize his face, thus this person should have been among the weaker ones. That he picked him because the reaction of this person to the previous beheading wasn¡¯t pretty, which made Kiel believe that he wasn¡¯t an experienced fighter. None of them realized that this defiant, cold look of his was just a mask covering his inner turmoil. Several seconds passed, and then, almost simultaneously, Rhur Rroda and Nelaira Helyot made their moves. Rhur grabbed a handful of something from his pocket. When he opened his fist, countless small, red petals were revealed. He smiled towards Nelaira, who was the prettiest female in this batch of participants, and blew on the petals charmingly, as if blowing a kiss to his lower. However, even though he was gazing towards Nelaira, his petals floated towards the participant closest to the man Kiel had just killed. You can still flirt in this kind of situation?? Kiel stared at Rhur speechlessly. Nelaira, on the other hand, didn¡¯t seem to have noticed Rhur¡¯s gestures at all. She concentrated her attention on the female to her right. She flicked her wrist, and as if responding to her gesture, hundreds of sharp icicles condensed from thin air on top of the female and started raining down like a stream of needles. Kiel was familiar with Rhur¡¯s fighting style, for he had fought him before. Rhur was extremely proficient in using a sword and in fact, the reason why Kiel picked the same weapon was because he wanted to one day surpass Rhur. However, what was the most dangerous about Rhur¡¯s fighting style wasn¡¯t his exquisite swordsmanship, but rather, his ranged attack and control abilities. Rhur¡¯s opponent looked around himself warily, observing the blood red petals. In the end, he chose to move backward to create some distance between himself and the incoming petals. He didn¡¯t know what purpose they served, but whatever it was, it wouldn¡¯t be good for him. Although they looked completely ordinary and even his mana sense told him that other than being filled with Rhur¡¯s mana the petals contained no spells, he found it hard to believe that someone would choose to blow petals just to look cool. Do they have poisonous pollen on them? The man speculated and covered his nose and mouth with his scarf. And indeed, he was right to be cautious, although those petals weren¡¯t magical artifacts, they were in no way ordinary for they came from a very particular plant by the name of Razorblood. Rhur didn¡¯t wait for his petals to reach his opponent, in fact, he seemed to ignore them as if they were completely irrelevant. He smiled charmingly and flew swiftly towards his opponent with his sword drawn. Meanwhile, Nelaira¡¯s opponent Accelerated sideways, barely avoiding the icicles dropping down from the sky. Unfortunately for the girl, Nelaira had taken into account the possibility of her enemy dodging and, in fact, had already predicted in which direction the female would escape towards. Therefore, the girl ended up escaping from the frying pan into the fire and she slammed headfirst into a rock wall that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Nelaira lived up to her family name of Helyot. Only a family of master architects would be able to Morph a wall from the ground up and transmute the earth into solid rock with such incredible speed. Truly, the rumors are not exaggerated at all. Helyots have indeed brought their Morphing and Material Transmutation magic to its pinnacle. Unrivaled under the Shield! Kiel thought. Slamming with full speed into a rock wall left Nelaira¡¯s poor female opponent feeling as if someone had struck her head with a hammer. Her head buzzed and the splitting headache made her unable to concentrate on the fight. She stumbled back dizzily almost falling on her bottom. Regrettably, the place she fell towards was exactly the place from which she was trying to escape ¨C the patch of earth turned into a pin cushion by countless icicles. Nelaira didn¡¯t ease up on her opponent, on the contrary, she quickly morphed all of the small icicles together into a giant icicle that ended up creating a head sized hole through the chest of the poor girl. And thus, Nelaira¡¯s opponent remained lying there lifelessly, suspended above the ground. The only parts of her that managed to reach the earth were the abundant droplets of blood which slid down the giant icicle like snakes. Kiel shifted his attention from the man he just killed to the ongoing battles. As his mind became preoccupied with analysing the battles, his racing heart slowly settled down. He expressionlessly evaluated Nelaira and attempted to come up with a strategy to deal with her. He wasn¡¯t sure if Nelaira predicted that the girl would ram head first into the wall or if it was an unexpected bonus. Because, if the girl had hit the wall with any other part of her body, even if all of her bones in that part of the body shattered, she would have still been able to Accelerate away. However, the female just happened to hit her head. And a head injury was the most dangerous non-lethal injury a mage could sustain, for it compromised their ability to cast magic. And thus, Nelaira¡¯s victory was even quicker than Kiel¡¯s. In the brief time Nelaira took to dispatch her opponent, Rhur crossed swords with his own opponent. Well, actually, his opponent was an axe wielder, so they didn¡¯t technically cross swords, but the distinction made no difference. From the moment they clashed, the man was on the losing side, constantly retreating. Rhur¡¯s slashes were extremely fast and unpredictable, coming towards his opponent from inconceivable angles. They had exchanged less than 5 blows, but the man already found it extremely hard to persist. His back was drenched with cold sweat, and no matter how he wanted to retaliate, to show his superior body strength, he could only continue to defend. He knew that one moment of carelessness would spell his demise. Unfortunately, he had already unknowingly made that careless mistake. He was concentrating so hard on defending from Rhur that he had completely forgotten about the seemingly harmless petals surrounding them. A split second passed, and before anyone could realize what had happened, the axe-wielding man was gripping his throat with wide eyes threatening to fall out of their sockets. Through his fingers, streams of blood continued to pour out, and no matter how the man tried to stop the blood from flowing, it was all useless. Before he could even fly away Rhur¡¯s sword had already pierced through his heart like an arrow. Kiel was more focused on Nelaira¡¯s fight, so he too didn¡¯t see what had happened, but he didn¡¯t need to see it to know what happened. Rhur was very proficient in casting Acceleration, and he could cast it so fast that it was near instantaneous, not letting his opponent react to it in time. He chose a nearby petal as his spell target and launched it flying in an arc across his opponent¡¯s neck. No doubt, his timing was perfect, choosing the moment in which his opponent would be unable to defend against it. Though, even if his opponent could have defended against it by making a sacrifice, he wouldn¡¯t have done so. How could he have known that a soft petal under a simple Acceleration spell would be powerful enough to slash through his spell-reinforced skin?
Coming up in the next episode: Deora looked at him provocatively, with his hands crossed. His red hair started waving upwards like flames. No, not just like flames, his hair was literally on fire! ¡°Are they teaming up? Is that even allowed? Was there a mistake in exam setup?¡± The man started laughing uproariously. ¡°I don¡¯t know if he is really lucky of really unlucky!¡± ¡°What do you mean expensive?! Don¡¯t they grow in the poisonous bog our family owns?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a dislike, little brother, it¡¯s more of a fear. You need to learn how to deal with your fears. Therefore, this opponent is perfect for you.¡± Episode 101 – First Round End Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel and Nelaira manage to defeat their opponents. Rhur uses Razorblood petals to slice the neck of his opponent open.
Episode 101 ¨C First Round End He was concentrating so hard on defending from Rhur that he had completely forgotten about the seemingly harmless petals surrounding them. A split second passed, and before anyone could realize what had happened, the axe-wielding man was gripping his throat with wide eyes threatening to fall out of their sockets. Through his fingers, streams of blood continued to pour out, and no matter how the man tried to stop the blood from flowing, it was all useless. Before he could even Accelerate away, Rhur¡¯s sword had already pierced through his heart like an arrow. Kiel was more focused on Nelaira¡¯s fight, so he too didn¡¯t see what had happened, but he didn¡¯t need to see it to know what happened. Rhur was very proficient in casting Acceleration, and he could cast it so fast that it was near instantaneous, not letting his opponent react to it in time. He chose a nearby petal as his spell target and launched it flying in an arc across his opponent¡¯s neck. No doubt, his timing was perfect, choosing the moment in which his opponent would be unable to defend against it. Though, even if his opponent could have defended against it by making a sacrifice, he wouldn¡¯t have done so. How could he have known that a soft petal under a simple Acceleration spell would be powerful enough to slash through his spell-reinforced skin? He had no idea that those red petals came from the flowers of Razorblood, a notorious plant that fed on blood. On the outside, Razorblood looked like a harmless and beautiful bush with juicy fruits surrounded by countless flowers. However, when the creatures attempted to get its tasty fruit, those soft and delicate flowers would turn into razor blades. The secret of the transformation of soft petals into sharp and deadly weapons lay in the mana concentration within the petals. When the mana within the petals surpassed a certain threshold, the properties of the petals would change. Razorblood plant needed only to channel mana into its flowers, and in the next second, it would be bathing in the blood of its enemies. The legends say that Razorblood flowers were originally white, but because they were always drenched in blood, the blood had seeped into them turning them crimson. And while those crimson petals were now drinking the blood of Rhur¡¯s enemy, on the other side of the arena, Deora stood with his hands crossed radiating an air of might. He looked at the person next to him provocatively, as if daring him to try and attack him but made no move to start the fight. The man that was in the middle, between Deora and Nelaira, hesitated in his choice who to fight. Nelaira was a female, so he didn¡¯t feel comfortable fighting against her, but on the other hand, she was an elibu and as such considered an easy opponent to beat. His moment of hesitation caused him to miss his chance to fight Nelaira, who had chosen to fight with a female on her other side. And thus, since everyone else had started fighting, the man had no other choice but to pick Deora, who was the only one who hadn¡¯t fought yet. The man released several daggers from his belt and Accelerated them in an arc towards Deora. He then followed, flying towards Deora with a spear in hand. Deora looked at the daggers condescendingly, choosing to ignore them, and then averted his eyes towards the charging man. By the time the daggers reached Deora, the man had arrived several meters away from him, aiming to exploit the moment in which Deora will be forced to guard against the daggers. However, he never expected that Deora wouldn¡¯t attempt to guard against the daggers at all. In fact, he didn¡¯t even attempt to dodge. Deora¡¯s yellow eyes flashed, and suddenly a loud sizzling sound exploded outwards from Deora followed by a cloud of steam, swallowing both him and his opponent inside a dense curtain of mist. After the initial eruption, there were no other sounds to be heard. No slashing, parrying or any other sound of battle. It was as if Deora and his opponent weren¡¯t fighting at all. When the steam cleared, what was revealed was Deora standing in the same position as before, surrounded by a circle of molten earth. The air swirling around him was so hot that it caused a glaringly obvious heat distortion. Though, no matter how distorted his surroundings got, one thing was crystal clear ¨C there was no sign of his opponent or the daggers he had released. Deora remained standing there with his hands crossed. His yellow eyes arrogantly measured his remaining opposition while his red hair flickered upwards like flames. No, not just like flames, his hair was literally on fire! However, even though it was on fire, it didn¡¯t seem to be burning, leaving everyone who saw it with a puzzled expression. If the hair wasn¡¯t burning, then what was fueling the flames? Transforming mana into flames a.k.a. conjuring, wasn¡¯t something that could be achieved through the usage of augmentation magic. Conjuring was a specialty of transmutation magic. The circle of lava around Deora testified to the fact that he had used augmentation magic to raise the temperature of his surroundings to an astonishing degree. It was so high that both the daggers and his unsuspecting opponent melted as soon as they entered it, coupled with the speed at which Deora cast the spell on his surroundings, it left no time for his opponent to even cast a temperature isolation magic on himself. Deora¡¯s awe-inspiring fiery appearance left Kiel feeling unsettled. To Kiel, those beautiful flames flickering around Deora looked anything but beautiful.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. To say that Kiel hated fire would be an understatement. Seeing those harmless looking flame tongues caused a knot to press down on Kiel¡¯s stomach. Kiel let out a long sigh and averted his eyes to the ground, trying to stop his blood from boiling. He needed to stay clear headed. He couldn¡¯t afford to be affected by his personal dislike of fire. His eyes settled on the glass dagger dropped by the opponent he had killed previously. The mana the mage had imbued it with had dissipated already. After a brief moment of hesitation, Kiel made the dagger fly into his hand. Upon closer inspection, he could see it was coated with a thin layer of a greenish substance. Kiel wasn¡¯t well versed in poison, so he didn¡¯t know what the dagger was dipped in, but he didn¡¯t need to know what it was to know that it would be bad news to whoever got cut with the dagger. Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed with a faint chill, and he stealthily pocketed the dagger. Besides his sword, he had no other weapons, which was a big disadvantage when compared to Rhur who not only had hundreds of Razorblood petals, but also a sword that was a powerful magic artifact. And that¡¯s without including the other things Rhur was hiding in his pouches. After pocketing the dagger, Kiel once again looked around the arena towards the other participants. The sand had barely started slipping through the hourglass, yet out of the original 10 participants, only half were left ¨C Kiel, Rhur, Nelaira, Deora, and Zor. Zor was still sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, showing no intention to participate in the battle. Deora was trying to look awe inspiring in his pool of lava. Nelaira was calmly looking around, trying to decide who to fight next, and Rhur¡­ Rhur was flying in Kiel¡¯s direction. * * * High up, in the VIP seats of the arena, sat four people dressed in white and purple professor uniforms. If Kiel were here, he¡¯d recognize them to be the same people he had seen sleeping in the egg chairs. The first one was a burly argel covered in scars who made the regular professor uniform look out of place on his large body. His crimson hair was styled in a crew cut with zig-zagging orange stripes on the side. The second one was a solemn, dangerous looking argel with emotionless gray eyes and black hair with silver stripes tied at the back. The third was, surprisingly, a pale-faced elibu female with venomous looking dark blue eyes and wavy chocolate brown hair tied in a loose up-do. The fourth was a thin, young man with chestnut brown eyes and a layered hairstyle of which each layer was colored in a different shade of green. The examiners carefully observed Kiel, only occasionally glancing at the other participants. When they saw Rhur Rroda stopping to chat with Kiel, the young man with green hair couldn¡¯t help but comment: ¡°Are they teaming up? Is that even allowed? Was there a mistake in exam setup?¡± A burly argel covered with scars started laughing uproariously. ¡°I don¡¯t know if he is really lucky or really unlucky!¡± An elibu female with cold sapphire blue eyes cracked her knuckles. ¡°I¡¯d say he is unlucky. It is only natural to find another examine to team up with. Every year examinees attempt to team up. Having someone from the same family makes no difference in the end. However, what does make a difference is having a near-unbeatable opponent.¡± The burly argel snapped his head towards the elibu, a vein pulsing on his forehead. ¡°What do you mean ¡®near unbeatable¡¯?! There is nothing ¡®near¡¯ about it. He is unbeatable. Period.¡± Coldness flashed in the female¡¯s eyes. ¡°There is no one that is unbeatable. But, it is true that I¡¯ve never seen anyone manage to beat Zor Arite.¡± The burly man sighed, melancholy flickering in his eyes. ¡°Of course you haven¡¯t. I¡¯ve fought Zor several times back in my Muni days. Never managed to beat him. Such a pity that I no longer have a chance to settle the score.¡± The female snorted derisively. ¡°As if you¡¯d manage to settle it¡­¡± The burly man¡¯s head snapped back to her direction and was just about the yell ¡°What did you say?!¡± when the green haired man interrupted him with an exclamation of surprise. ¡°He is that strong? How come I¡¯ve never heard of him?¡± The burly man¡¯s anger was instantly replaced by contempt as he snarled. ¡°He was the leader of the golden generation 20 years ago. All of us old timers know his name but you, the younger generation, were still playing house back then.¡± The green haired man furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°Everyone has heard of the golden generation, but I haven¡¯t heard of Zor Arite.¡± The burly man¡¯s face twisted into a grimace of regret. ¡°If he hadn¡¯t died prematurely there would be no way that there would be people like you who haven¡¯t heard of his name¡­¡± The atmosphere in the room turned uncomfortable. The female was the first to speak up again, changing the subject and dispelling the air of solemnity. ¡°What are your opinions on the boy?¡± ¡°It¡¯s too early to tell.¡± The green haired elibu commented. The burly man disagreed. ¡°He is too green. Earlier he almost got finished off by that sneak attack.¡± The green haired man¡¯s face fell. Hearing the burly man say ¡°too green¡± always put him in a bad mood. Mostly because the burly man used that phrase often to refer to him, which coupled with his green hair color made it into a pun. He couldn¡¯t help but protest: ¡°I think that he noticed it. However, he chose to ignore it. Perhaps he was sure that it couldn¡¯t pierce his skin.¡± ¡°Regardless if he noticed it or not, choosing not to dodge it was too reckless. The dagger is poisoned. One graze and his exam would be over.¡± The burly man frowned. ¡°Hmmm, I wonder about that. His judgment seems solid. He picked the easiest opponent out of the 9.¡± The pale-faced female added. ¡°He didn¡¯t hesitate to finish him off at all. It¡¯s quite admirable.¡± A smile graced the lips of the green haired elibu reaching all the way to his chestnut eyes. ¡°It¡¯s good that he didn¡¯t let mercy cloud his judgment.¡± The burly man mused gruffly. The fourth examiner, an argel with emotionless gray eyes and an omnipresent dangerous frown didn¡¯t join the conversation at all. * * * Down in the arena, Rhur had reached Kiel and initiated a conversation. ¡°Well done, little brother. There are only three of them left. How about this, let¡¯s quickly take care of those two¡­¡± He pointed to Deora and Nelaira. ¡°And then let¡¯s join hands to beat the third one.¡± He pointed to Zor. ¡°Agreed.¡± Kiel nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll take the girl and you take the ginger.¡± ¡°No, no, no.¡± Rhur shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ll take the girl and you take the ginger.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you are thinking of flirting in such a situation? Older brother, get your act together.¡± Rhur clutched his heart and looked at Kiel with a hurt expression. ¡°You misunderstand. I am only thinking of your benefit, little brother. Bullying the fairer sex is not something to be proud of. But since I am the older brother, I have to look after you which includes taking upon myself the undesirable tasks.¡± How thoughtful¡­ Kiel stared at Rhur speechlessly trying to stop himself from shooting out a sarcastic remark. ¡°Older brother¡­ your worry is unnecessary. Let¡¯s be logical here. The ginger should be a perfect fit for your abilities. If you use your Sparkbloom petals he¡¯d be easily dealt with.¡± Other than the Razorblood petals Rhur had used earlier, he often used another variety of petals that was even more dangerous ¨C the Sparkb(l)oom petals.
Coming up in the next episode: Deora looked at her approach but didn¡¯t attack. Nelaira stopped a fair distance away and spoke up. ¡°Those two are plotting how to deal with us.¡± She tilted her head towards Kiel and Rhur. ¡°We better take them down first, before they manage to come up with a plan.¡± Kiel¡¯s mind felt incredibly sluggish, he was trying to remember the tips for dealing with Deora, but besides the word Firecracker, nothing else came back to him. It was as if all memorized tips evaporated as soon as he saw the endless rain of fire descend upon him. What the..?? Do you have something against me?! Did I kill your parents?! What¡¯s with this hate?? ¡°Should we call Deora over to watch this fight? He is not supervising any of the exams right now, is he? I¡¯d love to see his face when his Replica is beaten down!¡± The female¡¯s smirk only grew. ¡°To be caught off guard by a youngster who isn¡¯t even a warlock. Disgraceful¡­¡± Episode 102 – Simpleton Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel and Nelaira manage to defeat their opponents. Rhur uses Razorblood petals to slice the neck of his opponent open. Kiel and Rhur decide to each take one opponent, however, they can¡¯t agree on which opponent to pick. They end up bickering, neither one wanting to fight Deora.
Episode 102 ¨C Simpleton Kiel stared at Rhur speechlessly trying to stop himself from shooting out a sarcastic remark. ¡°Older brother¡­ your worry is unnecessary. Let¡¯s be logical here. The ginger should be a perfect fit for your abilities. If you use your Sparkbloom petals he¡¯d be easily dealt with.¡± Other than the Razorblood petals Rhur had used earlier, he often used another variety of petals that was even more dangerous ¨C the Sparkb(l)oom petals. Sparkb(l)oom was a rare flower similar in appearance to a chrysanthemum, discovered (and named) by Alann Farhice, which grew underwater in poisonous swamps. As one might guess by its name, its petals were highly flammable and quite explosive. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s true.¡± Rhur sighed sadly. ¡°However, I am out of Sparkbloom flowers. You should know how expensive and difficult to find they are. I can¡¯t always have them just because I want to.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched again. ¡°What do you mean expensive?! Don¡¯t they grow in the poisonous bog our family owns?¡± ¡°Yes, under the Shield our little bog is the only one with an environment in which Sparkbloom flowers can grow. And since it is such a small bog, the number of flowers is very limited. Most of Sparkbloom flowers I use come from the Forbidden Zone, and such merchandize is hard to come by.¡± Rhur explained. Kiel frowned, cursing inwardly. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that you are not confident in beating such a small fry? I always thought that my older brother was really an amazing fighter. Have I overestimated your abilities?¡± Rhur¡¯s eyes chilled. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s not the case. I can easily beat both of them, little brother. But there is no glory in defeating an elibu female, so I decided to let you take the glory of beating the ginger.¡± ¡°You are the future head of the family, it is in the family¡¯s interest for you to have as much of the glory as possible. Therefore, I shall take it upon myself to do such an arduous and unrewarding task and let you handle the ginger.¡± ¡°How about this, little brother? I¡¯ll take down the girl, and then I¡¯ll join you in fighting the ginger. It shouldn¡¯t take long for me to dispose of the girl and then we can join hands for the glory of the Rroda family.¡± From the corner of his eye, Kiel noticed that Nelaira had approached Deora and they seemed to be conversing. He had no time to argue with Rhur further. Otherwise, Nelaira and Deora might decide to team up, and the battle would turn into two vs. two, instead of two battles of one vs. one. Kiel¡¯s face stiffened, and he gruffly whispered under his breath. ¡°Dear brother, have you forgotten my dislike for fire?¡± Rhur chuckled huskily. ¡°It¡¯s not a dislike, little brother, it¡¯s more of a fear. You need to learn how to deal with your fears. Therefore, this opponent is perfect for you.¡± Kiel¡¯s pupils shrunk and a string of curses almost erupted from his mouth. He finally realized the truth of the matter. It wasn¡¯t that Rhur wanted to fight Nelaira, rather, he wanted Kiel to fight Deora! He was aware that Kiel hated fire! * * * While the two Rroda brothers were bickering, Nelaira was frowning. She wasn¡¯t stupid. Even before the two started talking she had realized that they knew each other. Let alone when they actually started planning how to team up against her. She looked towards Deora, who was standing calmly with a lofty air, seemingly not concerned about the conversation of the two Rroda brothers. Nelaira sighed softly, but in the end, decided to approach Deora. If the other two wanted to team up, the only choice left was for her and Deora to team up as well. Deora looked at her approach but didn¡¯t attack. Nelaira stopped a fair distance away and spoke up. ¡°Those two are plotting how to deal with us.¡± She tilted her head towards Kiel and Rhur. ¡°We better take them down first, before they manage to come up with a plan.¡± Deora snorted. ¡°Let them come. I am not afraid of anyone.¡± Nelaira frowned. ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate Rrodas. They might not have a signature magic of their own, but they are rich. Who knows what kind of dangerous items they are hiding inside their pouches.¡± Deora looked at her condescendingly. Nelaira stared back at him speechlessly. After waiting for a few moments for his response, Nelaira couldn¡¯t wait anymore. ¡°Uh¡­ how about this, I¡¯ll take the right one, and you take the left one?¡± Deora¡¯s only response was to look at her with even more scorn. Nelaira¡¯s expression froze and, suddenly, a thought hit her¡­ This guy¡­ could he be¡­ an idiot¡­?!This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. As soon as her mind reached that conclusion, her eyes widened, but then they flashed with a crafty light. ¡°¡­fine¡­ don¡¯t tell anyone I told you this, but I heard those two talking trash about you earlier.¡± As expected, Deora¡¯s scorn was replaced with fury. ¡°They did what!?!¡± Nelaira smiled internally. ¡°They called you flamebrains and said you¡¯d be easy to deal with.¡± To be even more convincing, she pointed to her long elibu ears and explained: ¡°They might be able to hide it from your short ears but not mine.¡± Deora gaped, and his entire body erupted into flames. ¡°Those bastards!!! How dare they?! I¡¯m going to turn them into ash!!!¡± He bellowed and without further delay Accelerated towards the two Rroda brothers. Nelaira barely managed to restrain herself from chuckling. Moron¡­ her eyes squinted into a crescent shape. But still, that naivety is¡­ kinda cute. * * * Kiel and Rhur were just about to continue bickering when they noticed a furious looking Deora charging their way with his body covered in flames. To make matters worse, not only was he furiously charging towards them but he also started throwing large fireballs their way. Kiel who already knew what Deora¡¯s specialty was, quickly turned tail and ran. Rhur, who wasn¡¯t as informed, was caught by surprise. His pupils narrowed, and his jaw stiffened, however, he wasn¡¯t considered as a great warlock for nothing ¨C his instincts quickly kicked in, and he managed to evade as well. As Rhur ran, his mind reeled. Fireballs?! The heck?! He is an argel! One could increase the temperature of a material, but that didn¡¯t necessarily mean that the material would spontaneously combust. Not all materials were flammable. Rhur had noticed that Deora had set his own hair on fire, but he thought that he was probably using it as a way to intimidate others, burning his own hair gel or hair spray. It was one thing to set something flammable on fire, and completely another to conjure fire out of nothing. Conjuring was the specialty of Transmutation magic of elibu. It wasn¡¯t something augmentation magic could do. Deora¡¯s casting was fast so others couldn¡¯t see clearly what kind of spell he was using, but even a brief glance was enough for everyone to realize that he was indeed using Augmentation magic. Augmentation and Transmutation spell patterns had distinct, very different styles and one could tell them apart with a glance. The two Rroda brothers darted in the opposite directions, forcing Deora to pick which one to follow. For a moment he was indecisive, looking left and right trying to decide which Rroda to pursue. Rhur was elegantly retreating with a stiff smile on his face, while Kiel was accelerating with a slight frown and tightly pressed lips. Deora looked at Rhur and his amiable demeanor. That one looks friendly. A good guy. Then he looked at Kiel whose eyes were completely solemn. This one looks like a spiteful sarcastic type! He must be the bad one! And thus, Deora changed his direction and Accelerated towards Kiel. Seeing a furious ginger charging his way, Kiel felt like crying, but no tears would come. If he knew the thought process which resulted in Deora picking him, he might have stumbled in his step and ended up incinerated. He¡¯d probably be forced to bite his lips to prevent himself from yelling out: ¡°How am I the bad guy?!? How can you judge that with a glance?!? Are you a moron?!¡± Luckily, Deora¡¯s unique thought process remained a mystery and didn¡¯t interrupt Kiel¡¯s state of mind. Seeing Deora concentrating his barrage on Kiel, Nelaira didn¡¯t stay idle either. She sent her mana Rhur¡¯s way and made her move. * * * Fireballs obscured the sky as they rained down on Kiel whose mind was preoccupied with preventing the sense of dread and panic brewing deep inside of him from coming to the surface. He hated fire. He really hated fire. If Deora could turn everything into ice sculptures, shattering them into dust, that would be fine. If Deora wielded lightning that could cause unbelievable agony to its targets before burning them into a crisp, it would be alright as well. At this point, he wouldn¡¯t even mind if Deora was as inconceivable as Zor Arite. Everything and anything was fine. Just not fire. Kiel¡¯s mind felt incredibly sluggish, he was trying to remember the tips for dealing with Deora, but besides the word Firecracker, nothing else came back to him. It was as if all memorized tips evaporated as soon as he saw the endless rain of fire descend upon him. The fireballs didn¡¯t just come from behind him. Mana could travel faster than he could Accelerate, making it so that no matter which direction he ran towards, fireballs would appear there before him. From all directions they honed in on Kiel, whenever he turned, they would turn as well, sometimes barely missing him. Even though Kiel couldn¡¯t feel the scorching air they left behind because he had cast a temperature isolation magic on himself, his clothes still got drenched in sweat and were sticking to his body closely. Temperature isolation was a variant of the Temperature spell whose purpose was to retain the temperature of the target preventing it from both increasing and decreasing. As long as Deora¡¯s fireballs didn¡¯t directly hit him, causing a head-on clash between spells, he would not get burned by their remnants. Actually, even if he did get hit by a fireball, there was a chance that he wouldn¡¯t get burned. There was a chance that his temperature isolation spell might withstand the fireball, or at least minimize its effects before breaking. However, Kiel had no intention to risk it by getting hit by a fireball. After all, Deora¡¯s specialty was fire magic. He was so good at it that he eventually got recruited into Muni. Kiel didn¡¯t think that his temperature isolation was powerful enough to resist an onslaught from a fire demon such as Deora Thayn. Luckily, Deora¡¯s limit was controlling less than 40 head-sized fireballs at once. So, no matter how many fireballs he created only 40 would be seeking Kiel at any given time. However, those 40 were enough to pressure Kiel to the point of not giving him time to retaliate. He continued to dodge, hoping that after a while of mad chasing, Deora would get tired or calm down. Yet, each time Kiel looked back at Deora, he looked more and more fired up, to the point at which Kiel couldn¡¯t help but wonder: What the..?? Do you have something against me?! Did I kill your parents?! What¡¯s with this hate?? * * * In the VIP lodge, the examiners were calmly observing the proceedings and commenting on it. Seeing Kiel retreat, the green haired man smiled approvingly. ¡°Creating some distance between himself and Nelaira and Rhur is a clever thing to do. It would be quite chaotic and easy to get hit by a stray attack if he stayed near their battle. Rhur Rroda is not a team player. He probably wouldn¡¯t mind if he hit him with a stray attack.¡± ¡°Hmm, prolonging the fight until Deora tires out isn¡¯t a bad plan. Deora is spending mana at an astonishing rate, he will inevitably run out of mana before the end of the exam.¡± The only female of the four mused. ¡°His strategical conserving of mana is quite fine as well. He is using just enough mana to avoid the fireballs and not a speck more. Such a fine mana conservation is quite admirable.¡± ¡°He is quite adept at hiding his strength. Does he intend to lull Deora into a false sense of security and then catch him off guard with a sudden attack?¡± The green haired man cupped his chin in thought.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Should we call Deora over to watch this fight? He is not supervising any of the exams right now, is he? I¡¯d love to see his face when his Replica is beaten down!¡± The female¡¯s smirk only grew. ¡°To be caught off guard by a youngster who isn¡¯t even a warlock. Disgraceful¡­¡± ¡°He has reached his limit.¡± Episode 103 – Deora’s specialty Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel and Nelaira manage to defeat their opponents. Rhur uses Razorblood petals to slice the neck of his opponent open. Kiel and Rhur decide to each take one opponent, however, they can¡¯t agree on which opponent to pick. They end up bickering, neither one wanting to fight Deora. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs.
Episode 103 ¨C Deora¡¯s specialty In the VIP lodge, the examiners were calmly observing the proceedings and commenting on it. Seeing Kiel retreat, the green haired man smiled approvingly. ¡°Creating some distance between himself and Nelaira and Rhur is a clever thing to do. It would be quite chaotic and easy to get hit by a stray attack if he stayed near their battle. Rhur Rroda is not a team player. He probably wouldn¡¯t mind if he hit him with a stray attack.¡± ¡°Hmm, prolonging the fight until Deora tires out isn¡¯t a bad plan. Deora is spending mana at an astonishing rate, he will inevitably run out of mana before the end of the exam.¡± The only female of the four mused. ¡°His strategical conserving of mana is quite fine as well. He is using just enough mana to avoid the fireballs and not a speck more. Such a fine mana conservation is quite admirable.¡± ¡°He is quite adept at hiding his strength. Does he intend to lull Deora into a false sense of security and then catch him off guard with a sudden attack?¡± The green haired man cupped his chin in thought. ¡°That might work.¡± The burly man gruffly said. ¡°After all, Deora is a simpleton¡­¡± The green haired man and the female shared a look. Indeed, everyone was thinking the same thing, but the burly man was the only one rude enough to voice it out loud. The burly man didn¡¯t stop there, he suddenly threw his head back and roared with laughter. ¡°Should we call Deora over to watch this fight? He is not supervising any of the exams right now, is he? I¡¯d love to see his face when his Replica is beaten down!¡± The green haired man smiled wryly. ¡°This¡­ would be a bit¡­ inappropriate?¡± The woman snorted coldly. ¡°Feel free to call him over if you wish. But when he ends up blowing up the entire VIP booth, causing chaos to the exam, you¡¯re the one who is going to be held responsible.¡± The burly man stopped laughing, his face turning unsightly. ¡°You think I can¡¯t restrain the pipsqueak?!¡± The female smirked venomously. ¡°Say, wasn¡¯t it you who got blown up into smithereens last time you made fun of him inside the Replica Dungeon?¡± ¡°You¡­ that was one time! One time! He caught me off guard!¡± The burly man bellowed, his face red with rage. The female¡¯s smirk only grew. ¡°To be caught off guard by a youngster who isn¡¯t even a warlock. Disgraceful¡­¡± The burly man abruptly got up from his seat, a vein pulsing on his forehead. He was about to start yelling out curses when an apathetic husky voice sounded out. ¡°Quiet.¡± When the fourth, grumpy looking man finally spoke out that single word, the entire booth fell into silence. * * * Some time had passed in awkward silence before the green haired man spoke up again in hopes of dispelling the oppressing atmosphere: ¡°We shouldn¡¯t bully Deora¡­¡± The female smirked. ¡°Right. That¡¯s Zerel¡¯s job.¡± The green haired man sighed. ¡°We really shouldn¡¯t, he has it bad enough. I hear he hasn¡¯t received his contribution points for several months already.¡± He didn¡¯t even manage to finish his sentence before the burly man erupted into uproarious laughter. ¡°I hear he won¡¯t be getting any for the next 6 months!¡± He continued laughing, not even stopping to wipe off tears from the corner of his eyes. The female¡¯s lips curled into a coy smile. ¡°He hasn¡¯t received his monthly pay since Nelaira went on sick leave. Without her around there is no one that can keep Zerel in check.¡± When Nelaira¡¯s name popped up, the room suddenly returned to the deathly silence with an air of solemnity. Even the burly man couldn¡¯t find it within himself to be jolly. * * * In the arena, Kiel was still under a heavy barrage of fireballs and to make matters worse, he was nearing the edge of the arena. If he chose to strafe left or right along the edge of the arena, Deora would catch up to him. And Kiel couldn¡¯t allow himself to get close to Deora. He clearly remembered how Deora¡¯s previous opponent met his end ¨C the high temperature around Deora burned him into ashes. I can¡¯t continue to run forever. Kiel grit his teeth. Considering how much mana Deora was spending, it was highly likely that he won¡¯t be able to last until the end of the exam. Unfortunately, it was very likely that Kiel would tire out before Deora. Avoiding fireballs required his utmost attention, it required him to be on high alert, tense and ready for a flawless and quick reaction. A single delayed response could be the difference between life and death. Kiel had to bring out his all, without any time to rest and recuperate. This state of alertness caused considerable mental fatigue and couldn¡¯t be sustained for long. In a battle of attrition, Deora, who was relatively leisurely, would definitely last longer than Kiel. Dodging was not a long-term solution. Kiel¡¯s eyes involuntarily darted towards Rhur. Rhur had said that he would finish his fight with Nelaira quickly and come to help Kiel out with Deora. However, the sight that greeted him was Rhur running around Nelaira leisurely. He wasn¡¯t giving it his all in the slightest! On the contrary, he was intentionally prolonging the fight!Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I can¡¯t believe a thought of relying on him even ran through my mind. Kiel couldn¡¯t help but let out a self-deprecating chuckle. I knew it would be like this. I knew¡­ Yet¡­ no matter how he tried to turn his blood and heart into ice for the last twelve years, in the end, that last tiny spark of hope simply refused to be extinguished. Perhaps that tiny flame was the last remnant of his past, of who he used to be. A relic of a time when he was happy, a time when the world was still beautiful. A memory that he wasn¡¯t willing to let go. A decisive light flashed in Kiel¡¯s eyes, and he suddenly switched his direction of movement, he flipped around and Accelerated towards Deora. Kiel¡¯s sudden, reckless move startled Deora, and he paused his charge, casting a Temperature spell on his surroundings, planning to incinerate Kiel as soon as he came near him. The fireballs also momentarily paused, giving Kiel that brief moment he needed to turn the situation around. Kiel channeled his mana into the ground below and Morphed a dome of earth around himself to act as a shield. Then he charged right past Deora, using his acceleration magic to bring the large ball of earth along with him. The thick walls of the dome helped to block the majority of the heat from reaching him. The temperature isolation he had cast on the dome broke down almost instantly. Right afterwards the earth making his shield rapidly heated up, turning molten. It started dripping down the sides of his shield, thinning the layers of the dome. However, in that short amount of time that the temperature isolation managed to buy Kiel, he was able to chill down his sword to sub-zero temperature, lowering it as far as his hasty casting of Cooling would allow. He was worried that the sword would melt when it neared Deora so he did his utmost to extend the amount of time it could stay within Deora¡¯s heat field. After the Cooling, the sword started radiating a bone chilling cold causing the moisture in the air to form intricate patterns of ice on the surface of the sword. Just as the last layer of the earthen shield melted into lava, Kiel sent his sword flying through the collapsing shield towards Deora. Seeing the sword that approached him as fast as a meteor, releasing steam as it swung down towards him, Deora switched his attention to defending from the sword and temporarily released control over his fireballs, stopping them from chasing Kiel. Initially, Deora didn¡¯t think that the sword could last long enough inside his heat field to reach him, however, when he saw the billowing steam waving around it like countless slithering snakes he realized the danger it posed to him. He quickly reacted to the change of circumstances and barely dodged. While Deora was dealing with the sword, Kiel had run past him, creating a considerable amount of distance between them. When Deora dodged the sword, Kiel chose not to attack again, making the sword retreat. It wouldn¡¯t be able to last for much longer inside the heat field, and Kiel didn¡¯t want to risk losing his main weapon. When Deora realized that Kiel had increased the distance between them, continuing to run the way they came from, he finally lost his patience. He had no desire to play catch. Especially because he was going all out and couldn¡¯t sustain his enormous mana consumption for long. ¡°Stop running away and fight me like a man!¡± Deora bellowed furiously. Naturally, Kiel ignored him. Only an idiot would stop to fight a melee fight with Deora. Kiel might not be in his best mental condition right now, but even if he were brain dead, he¡¯d know that entering a melee fight with Deora was tantamount to suicide. Deora stomped his feet, and suddenly a large wave of mana erupted outwards, chasing Kiel down like a tsunami. At a blink of an eye, Kiel was swallowed by Deora¡¯s mana, like a rock surrounded by a rapid river stream. Kiel wasted no time and erupted with mana as well, pushing Deora¡¯s mana away from him. He had to prevent Deora from getting his mana in his vicinity for if Deora chose to create fireballs right next to him, it would be impossible for him to dodge. However, apparently, Deora didn¡¯t expect for his mana to swallow Kiel¡¯s up entirely. His intention wasn¡¯t to create fireballs in Kiel¡¯s vicinity but rather, to restrict Kiel¡¯s movement. He used the wave of mana to weave a web of mana roots into a large dome which surrounded Kiel from all sides. Kiel¡¯s eyes widened, and he Accelerated with as much speed as he could muster, attempting to break out of the dome. However, his Acceleration speed couldn¡¯t be compared to Deora¡¯s casting speed. A moment later, the dome of spell roots let out a pulse of power and the entire world turned orange. The dome of mana turned into a dome of fire, trapping Kiel within a sea of flames. As the flames erupted coloring the entire world orange, Kiel¡¯s face paled, and his pupils shrunk. Fear and dread that he had been keeping in check suddenly burst out, turning into uncontrollable panic. His heart threatened to leap out of his chest, beating so hard that it made his entire body shake. His breath ran short and rugged. His mind blanked, overcome by irrational horror. He stood rooted to the spot, his legs refusing to move a single step towards the flames. Suddenly, the dome of flames started shrinking, jolting Kiel out of his stupor. With trembling hands he made a swishing motion, covering himself inside a large dome of earth. As soon as the shield of earth blocked Kiel¡¯s line of sight of the fire, his sluggish mind started to speed up once again. He reached his hand into his pocket, clutching Elaru¡¯s egg artifact. He didn¡¯t want to use it this early in the exam unless he had no other choice. Yet, he needed to be ready just in case his efforts failed short. Kiel gritted his teeth and forced himself to charge towards the wall of flames, attempting to break out. Meanwhile, Deora didn¡¯t stay idle. He directed a barrage of fireballs to assault Kiel¡¯s earth shield, making it shake and crack. Yet, Kiel kept reinforcing it and fixing it with more earth. As Deora realized that his fireballs didn¡¯t have the desired effect, his mouth turned upside down, and he changed his tactic. He didn¡¯t stop his assault but rather, he added a special fireball into the mix, or perhaps, it was more accurate to say that it was an airball. If Kiel¡¯s vision weren¡¯t being blocked by his earth shield, he would notice that there was something strange going on. For this special fireball had a very similar spell cast on it as the other fireballs, yet, to the naked eye it was completely invisible, and it didn¡¯t let out any flames or heat. When the examiners recognized this airball, they quickly covered their ears. It was Deora¡¯s specialty magic targeting hydrogen in the air to create an airball with a high concentration of hydrogen. Unfortunately, since Kiel couldn¡¯t see this strange airball, by the time he realized that it wasn¡¯t quite the same as the others, it was already too late to dodge it. The moment the airball slammed into Kiel¡¯s shield, Deora set it on fire. What followed was a scene from an apocalypse. The invisible ball ignited, and flames rapidly spread outwards making it look as if a flower was blooming. Looking like a miniature sun, it expanded and expanded until it swallowed everything. The explosion left a large crater around the epicenter, the blast shaking the whole stadium. The earth around the impact point cracked and disintegrated, and a large mushroom of dust and vapor rose into the air.
Coming up in the next episode: As he slammed hard into the ground, he coughed out a mouthful of blood and his consciousness blanked out. Yellow sparks rose into the air, flame tongues licked his feet. the crackling of fire was all he could hear. All color of the world had been drained, replaced by a sea of orange. He coughed, he wheezed, his whole body quaked. His chest constricted. He couldn¡¯t breathe. With every passing second his breaths became shorter, quicker, more rugged, more painful. The flames didn¡¯t wait for him. They etched closer and closer. Grew taller and taller. Episode 104 – The Fire Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel and Nelaira manage to defeat their opponents. Rhur uses Razorblood petals to slice the neck of his opponent open. Kiel and Rhur decide to each take one opponent, however, they can¡¯t agree on which opponent to pick. They end up bickering, neither one wanting to fight Deora. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball.
Episode 104 ¨C The Fire The moment the airball slammed into Kiel¡¯s shield, Deora set it on fire. What followed was a scene from an apocalypse. The invisible ball ignited, and flames rapidly spread outwards making it look as if a flower was blooming. Looking like a miniature sun, it expanded and expanded until it swallowed everything. The explosion left a large crater around the epicenter, the blast shaking the whole stadium. The earth around the impact point cracked and disintegrated, and a large mushroom of dust and vapor rose into the air. The blast was so loud that it caused people present to temporarily lose their sense of hearing. The shockwave reached even Rhur and Nelaira, pushing them back and suspending their fight. Even Deora, who was prepared for the explosion, was sent tumbling backwards. Yet, Kiel who was in the center of the explosion had it the worst. His earth shield disintegrated into nothingness as if it was made out of thin paper. The force from the explosion hit Kiel hard, shaking all his internal organs and sending him flying like a flame arrow with blood leaking from the corner of his mouth, his body enveloped in flames. As he slammed hard into the ground, he coughed out a mouthful of blood, and his consciousness blanked out. * * * If despair had a color it would be orange. A boy no older than six stared around himself with wide eyes. Those big beautiful eyes were usually icy blue, but today, one could see no blue in those large eyes. Their usual icy blue had been completely covered up by an orange reflection of flames. Yellow sparks rose into the air, flame tongues licked his feet. The crackling of fire was all he could hear. All color of the world had been drained, replaced by a sea of orange. Everything had been swallowed up by the ocean of flames spreading as far as the eyes could see. Orange. Orange. Everything was orange. Fueled by the wooden furniture, the flames climbed from the upper floor down to the ground floor, gliding down the curtains, sliding down carpets. The pretty potted flowers decorating the corridor were withering with speed visible to the naked eye. The sparks kept slowly torturing them, burning a hole after hole in their leaves. The boy¡¯s heart quivered as he noticed a special plant among them ¨C the one his mother and him had planted together. He had watched it grow into a small bud, slowly sprouting leaves, and finally opening its flowers. Yet now, the plant they worked so hard to nourish was getting eaten alive by the insatiable flames, never to see the morning sun again. The boy parted his cracked lips to scream for help, but his parched throat only managed to produce a weak whimper, followed by a violent coughing fit. The smoke entered his lungs like a slithering snake making him feel as if thousand of needles were pricking his lungs. He coughed, he wheezed, his whole body quaked. His chest constricted. He couldn¡¯t breathe. His eyes were bloodshot. The smoke was stinging them so much that he could barely keep them open. Large teardrops slid down the side of his face, but before they could reach his chin, they would dry up from the heat leaving only a wet trail behind. The boy¡¯s usually white face had turned red, it was so hot one could fry an egg on it. Soot covered his round cheeks and arms, making him look unkempt. His clothes that had long become soaked in sweat were constantly letting out steam, almost drying faster than the sweat could dampen them. Each time a stray bead of sweat managed to reach the flames, they would let out an excited sizzle climbing higher, almost competing among themselves to devour it. The fire wrecked his home to the point in which he barely recognized it. The pretty wooden house he had grown up in had turned into a cage threatening to swallow him forever. His uneven footsteps paused when he reached the lobby. There, framed on the wall was a half-burned drawing full of holes that were slowly spreading. He had drawn that picture after his first trip to the zoo. It was a picture of him, his mother, father, Clawy and all the animals he had seen in the zoo. Even though no one could recognize the species of the animals besides him, he had been very proud of the drawing. He had even finished coloring it completely, even though he usually got bored half wayLove this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Even his father had been extremely amazed when he had shown it to him for he was lost for words, looking at it with a strange expression. Yet, now, the flames were slowly gobbling up everything. As if foretelling his future, the holes spread until they swallowed up his mother and father, even Clawy, leaving him alone in the center. Disoriented, the boy stumbled among the flames. Each step he took caused a wave of pain to shoot towards his brain. The blood on his knees had dried making his pants stick to the wounds. With each stumble, his wounds would get torn open leaking fresh blood. And then, the heat would dry the blood making his pants stick to the wound. The cycle repeated and repeated until he grew numb to the pain. Agony. Terror. Despair. It drowned out all thought. The boy¡¯s body moved based on pure instinct. Like a little, frightened animal, avoiding the debris, avoiding the flames, seeking shelter, seeking a way out. His heart thumped hard inside his chest, overpowering all sound. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. With every passing second, his breaths became shorter, quicker, more rugged, more painful. As his eyes landed on the doorway out of the house, his eyes widened, and his heart skipped a beat. Yet just as the flicker of hope managed to ignite inside of him, the disaster struck, as if the gods themselves wanted to extinguish all hope. The fire burned through a large plank on the ceiling making it fall down like a guillotine. Adrenaline shot through the boy¡¯s veins giving his tired limbs a sudden burst of strength. He ran forwards and fell, rolling on the ground. He covered his little head full of damp, messy black hair with his scraped and blackened arms. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. His heart thumped erratically. The plank fell with a crash missing him by an inch. However, the cabinet next to him was not as lucky. The plank shattered it into pieces, the debris erupting everywhere. The boy barely registered that he had been hit by the wreckage, his body was already growing numb to the pain. When he removed his arms from his head, the first thing his eyes landed on was a familiar toy laying in front of him. It had been placed on top of the cabinet but fell when it shattered. It was an action figure dressed in a Peacekeeper uniform. ¡°Arnold!¡± The boy cried. Arnold was more than just his favorite toy ¨C he was his best friend. An upholder of justice, the nemesis of all bad guys. The two of them had gone on countless adventures together. From searching for ancient relics in the desert of a sandbox to getting lost in the jungle of grass. Half of Arnold¡¯s friendly, smiling face stared back at the boy eerily, the other half had already melted. The grinning face no longer looked amiable, but rather, unsettling. It was as if his best friend had been taken over by something sinister. The sight made the boy¡¯s heart clench and quiver. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump! Yet, the boy wasn¡¯t willing to just abandon it. That was Arnold, his Arnold! He reached to pick him up but as soon as his fingers touched the toy, he let out a painful howl. The toy scalded his fingers, fueling a fresh round of tears. The boy sniveled, tears streaming down his cheeks, he cradled his burned hand, slowly etching backwards, away from the toy which continued to melt, staring at him with a wide smile the entire time. Suddenly his other hand felt something soft and fluffy under it. His eyes moved down to see a familiar, beige bundle of fur under it. A tail. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump! The boy¡¯s eyes widened, and he shrieked. ¡°Clawy!¡± The bundle of fur was the boy¡¯s pet lunar. It was a beige, striped feline that loved chasing a ball of yarn and sleeping under the warm sunlight. Clawy didn¡¯t respond to the boy¡¯s call. He called out to it again and again, but it didn¡¯t move at all. The boy¡¯s eyes blurred with tears, and he crawled towards Clawy lying motionless among the rubble. ¡°Please, somebody help! Clawy is hurt!! ¡± Clawy must have been sleeping inside the cabinet. Clawy loved cabinet drawers. It would rummage through them, hide in them, and even sleep in them. The boy pushed and pulled. The broken wood pricked his hands. The agony of the scalded flesh getting pricked made his vision turn dark several times. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. It felt like an eternity of agony had passed before he finally managed to pull Clawy free of the rubble. The flames didn¡¯t wait for him. They etched closer and closer. Grew taller and taller. He scrambled to his feet, his small hands wrapped around the belly of the feline, holding it up clumsily. Clawy¡¯s legs hung down lifelessly, almost reaching the floor, making it look like nothing more than a ragdoll. He pulled the feline towards the door. It felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. Clawy¡¯s tail dragged across the floor like a duster behind them. When the boy finally reached the door, he placed Clawy down to free his arms so he could pull the door open. He grasped the metallic door handle only to scream his throat raw. It was scalding hot, so, so agonizingly hot. And worst still, the door refused to open. It was locked. He slammed his fists on the door. He banged and banged. But there was no one on the other side. His eyes fell on the window next to the door and hope rekindled inside of him. He pulled his aching body towards the window and resumed to bang and bang. He banged and banged until he had no strength to bang on it any longer. He banged until his legs gave out and he slumped next to Clawy. The window was reinforced with magic. How could a small child break it with his fists? The boy stared through the window to the world outside. He could see many moving silhouettes. There were people outside. They huddled together and ran around. They even threw some kind of spheres towards the house. Yet, why is it that no one came to get him out? Some of them stared right at him. He could see shock, pity, and anxiety on their faces. Some of them screamed something, but all of their voices blended together and he couldn¡¯t make out what they were saying. His vision had turned completely blurry, and his eyes were stinging so much that he could no longer keep them opened. He closed his eyes, yet, not being able to see the flames brought him no comfort. He could feel them drawing closer. He could feel his flesh slowly starting to burn to the point in which his open wounds helped ease his pain, for the blood doused his burning flesh. Helplessly, the boy huddled together with the furry creature and wailed. He sniveled, hiccupped and coughed. He cradled Clawy in his arms, swaying back and forward, and wept. Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump. The only solace the boy could find came from the soft creature in his arms. He stroked Clawy¡¯s beige fur that had turned several shades darker due to the smoke, hoping that Clawy would wake up soon. He hoped that it would swish its tail left and right animatedly. He hoped it would push its head towards his hand, asking to be petted. He hoped it would rub itself against his feet and look at him with its big, yellow eyes. Yet, the feline never again opened those glittering yellow eyes. He called for his mother. He called for his father. He called for anyone. And then he proceeded to beg for help. Beg for someone to come. It didn¡¯t matter who. Anyone would do. Anyone. And then his words became slurred from the tears to the point of becoming incomprehensible. His tongue dried up, no longer capable of wetting his cracked lips. Still, he remained sitting there powerlessly, hugging a motionless feline in his arms. Crying. Hurting. Waiting. Hoping. Yet no one came for him.
Coming up in the next episode: All his senses seemed to be compromised, unclear, failing. Every attempt of moving brought him incomparable agony. He had been too close to the center of the explosion. His mental state was nearing a collapse, his mana was moving around so chaotically that he had trouble controlling it. A faint sound of footsteps entered his ear. Slowly, they were approaching him, getting louder and louder with each step. Kiel had no time nor desire to ponder how he managed to survive the impact. He gritted his teeth, his hands feeling around for Elaru¡¯s egg. He needed to buy some time to recover. Is this the end? ¡°A pity. He is nowhere near Rhur Rroda¡¯s level of ability.¡± Episode 105 – Alive Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Kiel and Nelaira manage to defeat their opponents. Rhur uses Razorblood petals to slice the neck of his opponent open. Kiel and Rhur decide to each take one opponent, however, they can¡¯t agree on which opponent to pick. They end up bickering, neither one wanting to fight Deora. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers the past ¨C how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child.
Episode 105 ¨C Alive When Kiel¡¯s vision lit up again he was lying on his side, his entire body aching in utter agony. The flames had turned his stylish black clothes into scraps. His chest and arms were completely bare, and even his pants were in tatters. His head pulsed with a migraine. A high-pitched tone buzzed in his ears. He couldn¡¯t hear the crackling of the fire, he couldn¡¯t even hear his own heart beat. The sounds seemed far away, distant, quiet. It was as if someone covered his head with a pillow, muffling all sound. His long eyelashes fluttered, trying to clear his blurry vision. The entire world was spinning, making him sick to his stomach. Time seemed to trickle down slowly, like sand in an hourglass. Trickle, trickle; his blood dripped down sluggishly, rolling down his chin onto the floor. It slid down so slowly that it looked as if it was floating instead of falling. The dust was floating too; it covered up the sunlight, turning his entire world dark. All his senses were compromised, unclear, failing. How am I¡­ still alive?¡ªwas the first coherent thought to enter his mind. Brief flashes of what happened made his migraine intensify. His earth shield reinforced by a protection spell had helped block the majority of the impact created by the explosion. Otherwise, he would have diedon the spot. It had sent him flying like a kite with its string cut, yet because his body was archedforwards in a running pose, his body ended up curling up and rolling. Like a skipping stone, he bounced off the ground multiple times, each hit slowly dissipating the force. Ironically, his loss of consciousness made his muscles relax which helped absorb the impact. Therefore, even though his organs and muscles were bruised, causing him considerable pain, he suffered noserious internal injury. Yet, what baffled Kiel wasn¡¯t that he survived the physical impact ¨C it was because he survived the heat released by the blast. His temperature isolation had dissipated shortly after he lost consciousness, leaving him exposed to the temperatures high enough to melt steel. So how was he still alive?! Kiel¡¯s heart thumped painfully inside his chest, the adrenaline numbing his sense of pain. He stretched his mind out to cover the entire arena. Out of all his senses, only his mana sense was working properly. The sweep of his mind helped his heart calm down for he wasn¡¯t in immediate danger. There were no fireballs or firewalls chasing him. In fact, Deora was still recovering from the explosion himself and wasn¡¯t even on his feet. Seeing as Rhur and Nelaira were also looking disoriented and ruffled, Kiel figured that his loss of consciousness was brief. Unfortunately, that brought him little comfort. Kiel groaned, his attempt of movement bringing him nothing but agony. The husky sound of his voice spread like a beacon inside a silent world. It sent out ripples that stirred up his senses one by one. A burnt smell entered his nostrils, followed by the soft crackling of fire that sounded so near, as if itwas flickering right inside his ears. No¡­ wait¡­ Only now did Kiel realize that his hair was still on fire. He tried castingcooling magic on his entire body, including his hair, yet all his mana was in turmoil. Just like his collapsing mental state, it was darting around chaotically, refusing to heed his commands. He quickly focused on his casting, disregarding everything else. Temporarily he put the pain to the back of his mind, exercising his will over every particle of energy in his vicinity. Until his very last breath, he would remain the sovereign of this mana¨Chis mana. This was his world. A world where his will was law. The wild particles of mana suddenly jolted, stopping their rampage. Like scared little piwi, they struggled left and right but they could not break free of their shackles. Slowly, but orderly, they got into line, trickling towards Kiel¡¯s body and tracing a web inside of him. Finally, a pulse of magic power spread through his body, soothing his scorched flesh and putting out the remaining flames.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Once again, Kiel weaved a dense net of mana, covering his flesh, muscles, bones and organs. And then in the center of the net he drew up a Morph spell. Besides the ability to alter reality, spells had an extra function the mages could take advantage of ¨C an ability to extend the senses of the mage. The spell became the extension of the mage, an extra limb with its own senses. An Accelerate spell gave mage the ability to feel the velocity of the target so as to control it better; a Temperature spell made the mage very sensitive to the temperature of the target, and similarly, the Morph spell allowed the mage to feel the shape of the target, which was one of the reasons why using it to shapeshift was much easier than if one tried to achieve the same result with an Acceleration spell. The mage¡¯s ability to ¡°feel¡± through their spells was directly proportional to the density of their spell roots and their spell control. And Kiel¡¯s dense net of mana coupled with his fine spell control allowed him to directly feel all the little parts of his broken body through the Morph spell. His whole body including his inner organs was bruised, and three of his ribs were broken. Yet, miraculously, his skin wasn¡¯t badly burnt at all. It was red and painful, steam was even rolling off it. But, these burns¡­ were just first degree burns! How is this possible?! Kiel¡¯s mind reeled, but he had no time to ponder over the matter. He needed to fix himself up. He had no intention to give up on this exam. Kiel gritted his teeth and accelerated his broken ribs back into place, then he used the Morph spell to weld them back together. He was no healer, and he didn¡¯t know if Morphing broken bones like this would cause future troubles, but this body was just a Replica. He didn¡¯t need to worry about future consequences. If he wanted to continue this fight, he couldn¡¯t have his ribs threatening to poke holes inside his organs. After his ribs were put back into place, he found it easier to breathe. He attempted to sit up but ended up almost biting off his own tongue from the pain. Not only was his skin burnt but the muscles underneath were shredded into large bruises. He gave up trying to get up and tried to calm his breathing. It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m fine. I suffered noserious injuries. In fact, I¡¯m not even that burned. I¡¯ve had way worse! This is nothing! The dust started clearing, occasional ray of sunlight traveled through, illuminating Kiel¡¯s scrunched up face. Kiel released his Morph spell and attempted to create a similarly intricate web of spell roots, this time deciding to cast a Velocity spell. He needed to be ready to escape at a moment¡¯s notice. Since his body couldn¡¯t move, he would need to completely rely on magic to move it. However, before he could finish it, a faint sound of footsteps entered his ear. Slowly, they were approaching him, getting louder and louder with each step. Every step caused his heart to feel like someone was squeezing it. Through the dust Kiel could see a head of crimson hair. As he saw Deora, Deora saw him too, and he gaped. ¡°Why the frakk aren¡¯t you burned to a crisp?!¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed into a glare, his lips pressed tightly together, refusing to respond. His hands felt around, searching for Elaru¡¯s egg. He needed to buy some time to recover. His Velocity spell was incomplete, if he finished it now, only half of his body would be covered by it. If he accelerated in such a condition, with a single mistake he could easily end up tearing his own limbs off. The egg¡­! It¡¯s gone! Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He concentrated on his mana sense and quickly pinpointed the location of the egg. It had beenblasted out of his hand during the explosion and ended up quite a distance away from him. Hastily, he attempted to cast an Acceleration spell on the egg, hoping that he could make it fly towards him in time. Unfortunately, his Acceleration spell seemed to interfere with the spell the egg was enchanted with, making it shatter before it could form. Kiel¡¯s pupils shrunk, staring at the red ball of flames coming his way. The reflection of the fire inside his eyes covered up their original pale blue color. The fireball appeared to fly extremely slowly, but it was upon him before he could even blink. Kiel¡¯s heart sunk down into the pit of his stomach. He knew. He knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to dodge it in time. He didn¡¯t even have his sword at hand to try a last-ditch defense. It had also been blown away and was in an even more miserable state than him ¨C half melted. Is this the end? Is this how I will die? He could almost hear the voices of the examiners. ¡°He has reached his limit.¡± ¡°Is this all he amounts to?¡± ¡°A pity. He is nowhere near Rhur Rroda¡¯s level of ability.¡± Kiel closed his eyes. He hated those flames, he¡¯d rather not look at them any longer. Images of the past flashed in front of his eyes in a blur. It was as if time flowed in reverse. He remembered how he met Elaru, he recalled his time in Beyd, he remembered his first time in the Rroda mainhouse. The stream of memories flew faster and faster until it became a blur. Just as the fireball covered up his entire vision, the time seemed to freeze. And the memories also came to a sudden stop. * * * (12 years ago) ¡°Why aren¡¯t you coming out?¡± A voice sweeter than chocolate and more musical than bells tickled the boy¡¯s ears. He opened his bloodshot eyes only to meet two large lime green orbs. He froze, unblinkingly staring at the flawless small face in front of him. Am¡­ I dreaming? He blinked his eyes repeatedly. A girl so pretty can¡¯t possibly be real¡­ However, no matter how he tried blinking the hazy image away, those two beautiful eyes still stared back at him. Those eyes were like two jewels, so bright that even the red flames couldn¡¯t cover up their green luster. ¡°How long do you intend to sit there?¡± Only when the girl¡¯s soft lips parted did he realize that he wasn¡¯t dreaming. There was a girl on the other side of the window! The boy¡¯s eyes widened, and he hurried to respond with a raspy voice. ¡°The door is locked. I¡­ I can¡¯t break it open¡­¡± The girl¡¯s chest heaved up and down, her white dress stuck to her glistening skin like glue. ¡°¡­ the barrier¡­ why aren¡¯t you opening the barrier?¡± The boy felt as if his heart got pierced through with a knife. Is that why no one is coming to help me? Because they can¡¯t enter through the protective barrier surrounding the house?! He clenched his fists so hard that he yelped in pain. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know how to use magic.¡± The two large eyes stared at him unblinkingly for several seconds. Those two unfathomable eyes looked as if they held an entire universe inside of them. The diamond shaped pupil inside of them had shrunk down to the size of a needle. The girl whispered softly. ¡°You are¡­¡± Her gentle voice paused briefly before it struck Kiel¡¯s heart like a hammer. ¡°¡­weak.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: The boy bit his lips, his unyielding nature finally rearing its head. ¡°What is wrong with you? Are you going to stand there or help me?!¡± Suddenly the plank above Kiel¡¯s head snapped and fell towards his position. ¡°How¡­ how did you come in?¡± The boy turned his head to look at the small blonde girl. His resolution seemed to ripple through time and space. It was too fast.Faster than thought.Faster than time.Faster than reality. His blood seethed to the point in which the hot turned into cold. It boiled not from anger nor hate, it wasn¡¯t anxiety either.It was something else. Deora¡¯s face darkened, fury burned inside his yellow eyes. ¡°Congratulations! You¡¯ve successfully pissed me off!¡± Episode 106 – Willpower Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child.
Episode 106 ¨C Willpower The girl¡¯s chest heaved up and down, her white dress stuck to her glistening skin like glue. ¡°¡­ the barrier¡­ why aren¡¯t you opening the barrier?¡± The boy felt as if his heart got pierced through with a knife. Is that why no one is coming to help me? Because they can¡¯t enter through the protective barrier surrounding the house?! He clenched his fists so hard that he yelped in pain. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know how to use magic.¡± The two large eyes stared at him unblinkingly for several seconds. Those two unfathomable eyes looked as if they held an entire universe inside of them. The diamond shaped pupil inside of them had shrunk down to the size of a needle. The girl whispered softly. ¡°You are¡­¡± Her gentle voice paused briefly before it struck Kiel¡¯s heart like a hammer. ¡°¡­weak.¡± Weak¡­? Yes. He was weak. So very weak. He wished he could save his mother. He wanted to save Clawy and Arnold. Yet he couldn¡¯t even save himself. He had thought that he was smart, that he was talented, capable; he hadn¡¯t even started going to school yet, but he could already read well. Yet now, in this greatest moment of need, he couldn¡¯t do a thing! Not a single thing! A fresh round of tears started rolling down the side of Kiel¡¯s small face as he sobbed: ¡°I¡­ I¡­ it¡¯s not my fault I wasn¡¯t born a mage¡­!¡± His mouth upturned and he managed to glare back hatefully through the tears. ¡°And¡­ and¡­ I¡¯m just six¡­!¡± The girl cut him off. ¡°Age doesn¡¯t matter. Birth doesn¡¯t matter either. People are not born equal. But so what?¡± Her face scrunched up into a frown. ¡°Age? Birth? Unfairness of fate? Are you going to keep coming up with excuses for your own weakness? Does that make you feel better about yourself?¡± The boy bit his lips, his unyielding nature finally rearing its head. ¡°What is wrong with you? Are you going to stand there or help me?!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Are you going to just sit there and await your end?¡± The girl countered. ¡°Are you just going to let luck control your life and death?¡± The boy¡¯s eyes blurred, the girl¡¯s small figure turned into a blurry blob of blonde, black and white. ¡°No! Of course I don¡¯t want to!!¡± The girl¡¯s eyes flashed with an emotion Kiel didn¡¯t manage to catch. ¡°Then become strong enough to control your own fate! If your birth locks the doors around you, then break a hole through the wall! ¡®A path¡¯ is only a route someone else has traversed. Instead of following someone else¡¯s footsteps, become the person whose footsteps others will follow!¡± Kiel¡¯s mind shook, and pupils dilated. The girl didn¡¯t give him any time to process her words ¨C she reached out her hand towards the glass. ¡°Wait¡­! It¡¯s hot!¡± The boy gasped, but even before he managed to finish his sentence, the girl¡¯s palm had reached the window. The girl didn¡¯t yelp in pain as he expected her to. On the contrary, the glass around her hand seemed to be the one yelping in pain. It moved aside, as if it was water, creating a hole large enough for a child to pass through. The same window that wouldn¡¯t budge no matter how much Kiel tried to break it, moved aside like an obedient little puppy. The girl¡¯s lips curled into a soft smile, and she moved away from the window. ¡°If you can¡¯t take the shortcut, so what? Take the roundabout way! Just, never stop walking!¡± Suddenly the plank above Kiel¡¯s head snapped and fell towards his position. Kiel¡¯s heart threatened to leap out of his chest, the weak limbs that had long ago turned so tired that he could barely feel them suddenly got a burst of strength. His thin little legs pushed him forwards, and he fell through the hole, rolling like a rice dumpling, sheltering Clawy¡¯s furry body in his arms. Before he could even celebrate getting out of the house, his pink face slammed into an invisible wall. He stumbled back and fell on his behind. He had rejoiced too soon. The barrier was still there. No one could come in. No one could come out. The smoke had spread through the entire estate, making it difficult to see. It was as if a black mist had enveloped their surroundings. There were many black shadows moving on the other side of the wall. Kiel could even see strange balls hitting the wall causing visible ripples. ¡°How¡­ how did you come in?¡± The boy turned his head to look at the small blonde girl. The girl ignored his question and stared at the invisible wall. ¡°Open it. You know the trigger spell, don¡¯t you?¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°It¡¯s no use. I can¡¯t cast it!¡± The boy cried out, his lungs constricted painfully. Oxygen was running out, he couldn¡¯t breathe. ¡°Can¡¯t or won¡¯t?¡± The girl tilted her head to the side, her blond and black locks swaying left and right cutely. No matter how Kiel looked it, this girl was just too weird! He was hugging his scrapped knees, wetting them with his tears, close to choking on the smoke. The world was turning dark in front of his eyes. Yet that girl just stood there calmly like she was on a picnic. When she looked at the all-consuming flames around them, it looked as if she was looking at flowers. Like there was nothing dangerous about this situation. As if even if the sky fell down it wouldn¡¯t be able to shake her calm. The boy¡¯s shrill voice filled with hiccups was barely comprehensible. ¡°Yes, I am weak¡­ and useless! ¡­do you think¡­ I want to be this way?! ¡­I ¡­want to be strong ¡­stronger than anyone else! But¡­ but¡­ wishing for something hard enough¡­ isn¡¯t enough¡­ to make it true! I didn¡¯t choose¡­ to be weak!¡± The girl continued to stare at him unblinkingly. Even though she was breathing hard, even though she was drenched with sweat, even though her white dress was no longer white, there were no tears glistening in her eyes. ¡°You are wrong. Weakness is a choice. You decided that you don¡¯t have what it takes. You chose to stop fighting.¡± The boy gritted his teeth, but he had no strength to respond, his eyes were glistening with tears, he could no longer see the girl¡¯s face clearly. As if she knew that he couldn¡¯t see her, the girl squatted down in front of him, bringing her face towards his close enough for their noses to touch. She stared right into his eyes. ¡°You are afraid of failure. But don¡¯t you get it? You¡¯ve already lost. People who fight, suffering defeat after defeat, aren¡¯t the losers. As long as they are alive, as long as they are still fighting, they have not lost! Where there is a will, there is a way! The moment you stop fighting is the moment you lose!¡± Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and his eyes widened, reflected in them was the most beautiful smile in existence. A smile that had the power to turn night into day. A smile that was shining brighter than the fire around them. The girl stood up once again, extending her small hand towards him. ¡°Life is a battle¡­So fight! Fight! Fight! Fight with all you have until the day you die!¡± * * * ¡°Fight! Fight!¡± The melodic chant echoed inside Kiel¡¯s head. ¡°Where there is a will there is a way! The moment you stop fighting is the moment you lose!¡± Kiel¡¯s pupils shrunk until they were barely visible and his heart quivered. I¡¯m not the same as back then! Weakness is a choice! And I chose to be strong! The moment I stop fighting is the moment I lose! He stared at the fireball in front of him. Its flames were all that he could see. They were those same all-consuming flames that he detested the most. Flames that made his chest constrict and his blood run cold. Yet, that same blood had suddenly started seething as if it was a rampaging tide, as if it wanted to break free of its restraints. The mana around him that stood just as frozen as the flames started seething just like his blood. It started flickering like the fire in front of it. Red flames against blue flames. And until my very last breath, I won¡¯t stop fighting! His resolution seemed to ripple through time and space. It shifted and distorted. And then it shattered. Countless cracks spread in front of him. His entire vision contained only cracks. What stood in front of him was a dome of cracked earth, shielding him from the flames. He remembered that a thought of it flashed through his mind. Yet, he remembered not when and how he had cast it. It was too fast. Faster than thought. Faster than time. Faster than reality. It was an impossibility. Yet it stood right in front of him. Kiel felt as if fog that enveloped his mind suddenly lifted. All emotions that wrecked chaos inside his mind evaporated into thin air leaving only calm behind. Kiel¡¯s mind that resembled a stormy sea suddenly turned into a still lake. What am I afraid of? Pain? Failure? Death? So, what if I hurt? Is there a pain more excruciating than the pain of back then? So, what if I fail? I¡¯ll keep trying until I succeed! So, what if I die? In this world, I can afford to die a thousand times over! His blood seethed to the point in which the hot turned into cold. It boiled not from anger nor hate, it wasn¡¯t anxiety either. It was something else. A strong desire without a concrete target. Determination? Or perhaps it was simply¡­ Willpower. * * * Deora¡¯s eyes widened in shock. That speed¡­?!Seeing a wall of earth sprout up from out of nowhere, Deora halted his charge and instead took several jumps back, staring at the rock dome with a solemn look. This guy¡­! Deora suddenly had a bad feeling. There was something about this person that unsettled him. Perhaps it was the fact that he managed to somehow survive the explosion even though his spells broke down. Or maybe the speed with which he managed to morph an earth shield left him unsettled? Perhaps it was the look that flashed in his eyes a moment ago. Or maybe it was an instinct embedded into Deora¡¯s very bones. If he had gotten this feeling earlier, he would have picked to fight the other black and blue haired dude. Alas, now it was too late for regrets. Deora¡¯s pause allowed Kiel to go on the offensive. He released a large outburst of mana inside his dome, preparing for some kind of a spell. The mana inside the dome was so dense it made it hard for Deora to pick up what spells Kiel was casting. His mana sense received too much interference. Deora decided he couldn¡¯t afford to wait for Kiel¡¯s spell to finish casting and he erupted with the last of his mana, giving it all in his effort to bring Kiel down. He couldn¡¯t create a large explosion because he was too close to the epicenter, therefore he sent a few small explosive airballs that should have been powerful enough to shatter the shield. And indeed, several booms were heard in rapid succession, causing small tremors. The earth shield cracked and started falling apart like a broken egg shell. Deora sent several fireballs towards the crack, his eyes locked onto the hole, waiting to see the result. Time seemed to slow down. An impact could be heard. Yet, as the loud sound reached Deora¡¯s ears, his head snapped around, his body twisting. For the sound wasn¡¯t the sound of fireballs hitting Kiel. No. It was the sound of earth cracking. And it came from behind Deora. A figure jumped out of the hole in the ground, causing Deora¡¯s pupils to dilate and his heart to almost leap out of his chest. Deora¡¯s mind couldn¡¯t feel the person leaping towards him, but he could tell it wasn¡¯t an illusion. This attack was too quick, too silent, too unexpected! A glass dagger enlarged in Deora¡¯s vision, and he forcefully twisted his upper body to dodge the fatal blow aiming for his neck. His twirl almost sprained his back, but he managed to dodge the fatal blow by a hair¡¯s width. Deora hurriedly jumped back, too disturbed by the close call to even remember to curse. Kiel had intentionally filled his earth dome with mana to confuse Deora¡¯s mana sense, so he wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that Kiel was no longer within the dome. He had then concealed his own presence and dug an underground tunnel towards Deora. He even chose the perfect moment to launch a sneak attack, all for the sake of this all or nothing shot. Even Deora¡¯s explosions were used to cover up the tremors of the ground caused by Kiel¡¯s digging. Unfortunately, although his attack could be said to be flawless, Deora¡¯s reaction time was the cream of the crop. Before his mind could catch up with the events, his body had already reflexively dodged the blow. Deora rubbed his back with a dark face. Fury burned brightly inside his yellow eyes. ¡°Congratulations! You¡¯ve successfully pissed me off!¡± He spat between clenched teeth.
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s heat isolation spell he had cast on himself was slowly failing. It couldn¡¯t overpower Deora¡¯s heat field. Kiel lunged towards the egg with his fingers outstretched. He could almost touch it, he was almost there! His cooling spell was struggling hopelessly to overpower the heat field. Yet it was like a little pechuh trying to escape the jaws of a lupax. A futile effort. Kiel¡¯s fingers which were twisting the ring abruptly halted. His head rigidly turned back towards Deora. His eyes glazed over. There were originally two fingers, but they suddenly turned into four and then six. Episode 107 – Flashcast Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora.
Episode 107 ¨C Flashcast A glass dagger enlarged in Deora¡¯s vision, and he forcefully twisted his upper body to dodge the fatal blow aiming for his neck. His twirl almost sprained his back, but he managed to dodge the fatal blow by a hair¡¯s width. Deora hurriedly jumped back, too disturbed by the close call to even remember to curse. Kiel had intentionally filled his earth dome with mana to confuse Deora¡¯s mana sense, so he wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that Kiel was no longer within the dome. He had then concealed his own presence and dug an underground tunnel towards Deora. He even chose the perfect moment to launch a sneak attack, all for the sake of this all or nothing shot. Even Deora¡¯s explosions were used to cover up the tremors of the ground caused by Kiel¡¯s digging. Unfortunately, although his attack could be said to be flawless, Deora¡¯s reaction time was the cream of the crop. Before his mind could catch up with the events, his body had already reflexively dodged the blow. Deora rubbed his back with a dark face. Fury burned brightly inside his yellow eyes. ¡°Congratulations! You¡¯ve successfully pissed me off!¡± He spat between clenched teeth. ¡­haven¡¯t you been pissed off from the start? Are you saying that you¡¯ve been raging the entire time without being pissed off? Deora¡¯s absurd declarationmade Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitch, but it didn¡¯t slow down his actions in the slightest. Seeing that his attack had failed to kill Deora, Kiel didn¡¯t linger inside Deora¡¯s high-temperature field. Instead, he quickly made a split-second decision to go for Elaru¡¯s magic egg. He darted like the wind towards the egg artifact, accelerating to the best of his ability. Deora gave chase immediately with just as much speed, rushing towards Kiel like a rabid bloodhound in pursuit of his next meal. Conserving mana was not even in his vocabulary. All he thought about was not letting Kiel escape his heat field. He would destroy him even if he got defeated by someone else right after. Both men left dust in their wake as they chased each other. Deora¡¯s eyes were getting more and more bloodshot, the muscles on his limbs occasionally twitching, clearly nearing their mana tolerance threshold. He had stopped shooting out fireballs, concentrating his full power into his heat field, wanting nothing more than to just melt Kiel where he stood. Kiel didn¡¯t look any better than Deora, his face was pale, and his each and every movement caused him to break out in cold sweat. Or maybe it was just regular sweat, for the temperature around him was sharply climbing. His cooling spell was struggling like a small ship against the stream, getting rapidly overpowered by Deora¡¯s heat field. Just a bit more! He was almost there! 50 meters left! He was flying so fast that he couldn¡¯t even keep his eyes open against the violent air currents hitting his face. His protective goggles had melted in the explosion, and now they were obscuring his vision instead of protecting his eyes. He could almost hear his spell screaming, hopelessly struggling to overcome the heat field. Yet, it was nothing but futile effort. A little pechuh couldn¡¯t escape the jaws of a lupax. All it could do was delay the inevitable. Still, he persevered, and he ran. He ran so fast. So very fast. Yet he was not fast enough. His originally pale flesh got redder by the second. Steam was rising from his body, cloaking him in a veil of smoke. Every burning, agonizing second seemed to last forever. 20 meters! Kiel¡¯s lips cracked, his jaw clenched so tightly it had turned stiff. The remainder of Kiel¡¯s clothes caught fire, his thin, already charred hair started curling up from the heat. The air hitting his face felt like a stream of boiling water. Yet he still refused to scream, he still refused to give up. He could almost touch it, he was almost there! 5 meters! Kiel lunged towards the egg with his arms outstretched. His thin red fingers were desperately grasping towards the egg without any hesitation, even though he knew that the surface of the metal egg was probably even hotter than the molten air around him. Knowing that touching it would bring him even more agony than he was currently in. Knowing that touching that little egg would probably turn his hands unusable. Still, he felt no fear of pain.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. On the contrary, he felt grateful. Grateful that the egg didn¡¯t melt. 1 meter! Kiel forced his eyes open to find the ring on the egg that he needed to twist, however, he couldn¡¯t see a thing. His vision had already turned dark. His whole body had already turned stiff. His acceleration magic was the only thing keeping him moving. So close, yet that distance seemed infinitely far away. Each step, each inch closer took an eternity of agony. The particles of sand slipped through the hourglass slowly, like floating snowflakes. And then¡­ Finally! Kiel¡¯s fingers touched the cool surface of the egg. He grasped it with both hands, feeling for the middle ring, and then forcefully twisting his fingers with magic to rotate it. He rotated it arduously, managing to reach half way to the target position. But then¡­ Abruptly¡­ His movement halted. His fingers moved no longer. In fact, his entire body had stopped moving. Deora, too, stopped his charge. He stood frozen on the spot, his hand touching his cheek. Only now did the stinging pain on his face register. Deora¡¯s gaze landed on the red blood staining his fingers. A cut¡­? His eyes glazed over. There were originally two fingers, but they suddenly turned into four and then six. The swear word Deora intended to shout got stuck in his throat. The world started spinning, and Deora lost his balance. His body felt heavy, he felt himself falling. Thump. A cloud of dust rose into the air when Deora¡¯s body hit the ground. The dagger Kiel had thrown earlier in his sneak attack on Deora didn¡¯t manage to slit his throat, but it managed to graze his cheek. Kiel¡¯s intention was never to kill him with that shot. His goal was to leave a single poisoned cut. Yet, who knew that he would barely manage to live long enough for the poison to take effect? No wonder Deora Thayn ended up as an assistant Muni professor. His fire and temperature manipulation magic was state of the art. Without Deora¡¯s conscious control, his magic slowly dissipated. The scorching heat in the air around Kiel gradually returned to normal temperature. Yet, even before that, Kiel¡¯s struggling cooling spell had already managed to stage a comeback and shield Kiel from the heat. Without the heat field to suppress it, it had no trouble cooling down Kiel¡¯s pink flesh. Kiel¡¯s head rigidly turned back towards Deora, and then, he let out a suffocating breath of relief. It¡¯s about time!! What kind of a shitty slow acting poison is this?! * * * The entire VIP lodge was eerily silent. The faces of the examiners were showing a mix of emotions. Solemnity, shock, and respect being the most prominent of them. Deora had put Kiel Rroda in a sorry state. Yet, not one of the examiners looked down on Kiel. On the contrary. The youth with the pale blue eyes had left them feeling a mix of admiration and awe. Admiration of his unyielding nature. Respect for the way he managed to persist through the agony, not losing his consciousness. Without even thinking about giving up. It was one thing to be unafraid of death, there were people who could suppress their instinctual reaction of fear, especially within the Replica Dungeon where there was no true death. But how many of them could persist through having their flesh burned off of their bones without letting out any shrieks of pain, without shedding a single tear? How many could unhesitatingly follow their convictions even if it meant burning off their own limbs or twisting their own fingers? How many could retain that unyielding look of determination that left no room for defeat? Kiel Rroda could die in this battle. But his spirit would not be defeated. None of the people present could find it within themselves to consider it as a ¡°defeat¡±. Originally, they weren¡¯t too absorbed into the battle. But then¡­ Everything changed. Deora has created a large explosion. The flames consumed Kiel Rroda. Yet, they could not devour him. The examiners didn¡¯t even get enough time to recover from the shock that Kiel Rroda survived the flames when another hit shook their hearts. ¡°Flashcast¡­?¡± The solemn, gray-eyed man spoke a single emotionless word that somehow managed to incite a chaos in the minds of all people present. Flashcast. The word sent out ripples of shock into the minds of all examiners. Flashcasting was the closest mortals could come to replicating how gods used magic. An instantaneous spell casting without a need to weave mana. A task that mortals found near impossible to do. Even Arites, as godlike as they were, could not Flashcast. No matter how good of a mage one was, no matter how flawless their mana or spell control was, no matter how talented or knowledgeable they were ¨C they would never be able to learn how to Flashcast. Because Flashcasting wasn¡¯t something that could be learned. No matter who one¡¯s parents were, no matter how illustrious and powerful one¡¯s bloodline was, it would not help one gain the ability to Flashcast. Because Flashcasting was not an innate talent one was born with. Flashcasting couldn¡¯t be sought or found, couldn¡¯t be learned or taught. No books could help those that couldn¡¯t do it. And those who could do it needed no books. Flashcasting relied on the mental state of the user and was activated by something intangible that mortals had never managed to define or pinpoint. Even the legendary figures who had previously managed to successfully Flashcast were often times unable to reproduce it. Perhaps gods were the only ones who could truly understand how Flashcast worked. Perhaps for gods, seeing mortals Flashcast would be like seeing children play in the sandbox, turning a bucket of sand upside down and calling it a castle. As for mortals, even hearing of the term ¡°Flashcast¡± was rare, let alone witnessing it in action. Out of all the examiners present, not even one had previously seen Flashcasting in action. Seeing it for the first time left their hearts unsettled, their lips panting. What followed was their blood boiling, caused by Kiel¡¯s creative usage of magic, deception, and tactics. And they weren¡¯t the only ones whose blood was left boiling. There was one more person whose blood was very much boiling at this moment. Rhur Rroda. He looked at Kiel, who was lying on his back breathing heavily, and frowned, irritation flashing in his eyes. ¡°Tsk.¡± Kiel was in bad shape, but somehow, that brought Rhur Rroda no pleasure. Rhur had thought that he would enjoy watching Kiel struggle, but this spectacle¡­ it wasn¡¯t enjoyable at all! On the contrary, it left him feeling uncomfortable. He felt no pity or sympathy for his younger brother. So how come Kiel¡¯s suffering was so hard to swallow today? Perhaps it was because the battle didn¡¯t turn out how he had wanted it to turn out? Perhaps seeing Kiel in such a miserable state didn¡¯t make the spectators feel as if he had lost? Whatever the reason, it made Rhur¡¯s aura steam with suppressed anger. In a fit of unjustified rage, he stopped dodging Nelaira¡¯s attacks and decided to take his displeasure out on her. He waved his hand towards Nelaira, and suddenly a lightning snake darted from the tip of his index finger drilling into her in a blink of an eye. Nelaira¡¯s movement paused, her body painfully jerking. It wasn¡¯t just her body that halted, even her thoughts momentarily went blank causing her spells to pause as well. Rhur took advantage of this short moment of weakness and slashed down with his sword towards Nelaira. His slash was so abrupt, so sharp, so powerful, that the air left in its wake was enough to separate Nelaira¡¯s body into two. Slicing through her protection spell, slicing through her skin, slicing through flesh, and even her bones. The two halves hit the ground with a wet crimson splash. Her black eyes widened, staring with disbelief, before they glazed over. The thin lightning flashed by too fast. One could not defend against it unless they were expecting it. Even though Rhur¡¯s slash was also fast, the difference in speed between it and the lightning was as large as the distance between the sun and the moon. If Rhur had chosen to use his slash before paralyzing Nelaira, she, with her great battle capabilities, would likely have managed to dodge it or even guard against it with her transmutation magic. Even though the force of his attack was powerful, Nelaira¡¯s defense was even tougher. Not to mention that she refused to let him close in on her, constantly moving around and obstructing his movement with her spells. Initially, Rhur intended to drag out the fight until Kiel¡¯s fight was over, and then finish Nelaira off with an onslaught of razorblood petals. He was saving his trump cards for his battle with Zor. However, after seeing Kiel¡¯s fight, in a fit of rage, he changed his mind, revealing both his magic specialty¡­ ¡­and his divine artifact.
Coming up in the next episode: And this disruptiveness perfectly complemented Rhur¡¯s one-shot-kill battle style. ¡°What a silly question, of course you aren¡¯t alright! Stop torturing yourself and forfeit. You are in no state to continue this battle.¡± ¡°Should I give you a hand and end your misery?¡± Yet all efforts were futile. ¡°I lied. But don¡¯t blame me. I had your own good at heart. No need to thank me. Knowing that I helped my little brother conquer his fear is enough for me.¡± Episode 108 – Rhur’s greatest fear Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage.
Episode 108 ¨C Rhur¡¯s greatest fear Initially, Rhur intended to drag out the fight until Kiel¡¯s fight was over, and then finish Nelaira off with an onslaught of razorblood petals. He was saving his trump cards for his battle with Zor. However, after seeing Kiel¡¯s fight, in a fit of rage, he changed his mind, revealing both his magic specialty¡­ ¡­and his divine artifact. Rhur Rroda, as the Rroda family heir, had been given one of the sparse mana purifying artifacts Rroda family possessed as soon as he mastered using Augmentation magic. After tinkering with Transmutation magic for a while, Rhur Rroda finally managed to find a magic which suited him the best ¨C conjuring electricity. Usually, although Transmutation magic could be used to conjure the elements, its usage in battle was rather limited, for elibu couldn¡¯t ¡°move¡± the conjured elements, they could only Morph them around. However, for Rhur, who could use acceleration magic to control the movement of the conjured elements, the result was a force to be reckoned with. Since particles of light and electricity were the lightest, they could reach the highest movement speed, and as such, Lightning and Light attacks were the fastest. Rhur Rroda took that speed even further, trading attack power for casting speed, managing to reach almost instantaneous casting, which made his lightning near impossible to dodge. His speedy lightning attacks caused little direct damage, however, they were very painful and disruptive to his opponent. And this disruptiveness perfectly complemented Rhur¡¯s one-shot-kill battle style. Rhur Rroda was a person who caused a lot of controversies, however, no matter how much the people¡¯s opinions of him varied, there was one thing everyone agreed on ¨C Rhur Rroda had high battle capabilities. In fact, the only reason why he didn¡¯t get full points in his practical exam one year ago, was because he was unlucky enough to run into an opponent who perfectly countered him. His opponent had specialized in impregnable defense, rendering all Rhur¡¯s attacks ineffective. If he had been given enough time, Rhur would certainly have found a way to break through the defense. Unfortunately, when he finally clashed with the tricky fellow, the time remaining in the hourglass was not enough for him to turn the situation around. * * * After Deora and Nelaira had gotten knocked out of the competition, there were only three participants left on the battlefield. Zor Arite, who was still sitting leisurely with his eyes closed, seemingly completely disinterested in this exam. Rhur Rroda, who swiped his sword left and right to clean off Nelaira¡¯s blood. And Kiel, who flipped himself to lie on his back and rigidly attempted to search his pockets for a recovery ointment he regularly used in his martial arts practice to alleviate pain and accelerate recovery. Regretfully, let alone pockets, there weren¡¯t any pouches or bags left on him. Everything, but a single empty pocket on his pants, had been incinerated. All that Kiel could do was to glare at Deora¡¯s awkward unconscious figure and curse him internally. The entire time, he continued clutching Elaru¡¯s magic egg tightly, prepared to activate it at a moment¡¯s notice, in case Zor or Rhur made a move. However, it seemed that his worry was unfounded, for neither of the two acted out against him. Rhur, after sheathing his sword, made his way towards Kiel at a leisurely pace. His face that had been chilling a second ago turned warm and caring, which in Kiel¡¯s eyes was even more hair raising than his previous dangerous air. ¡°Brother, are you alright?¡± Rhur¡¯s worried voice reached Kiel¡¯s ears, then it abruptly turned self-deprecating. ¡°What a silly question, of course you aren¡¯t alright! Look at the miserable state you are in. It is all my fault!¡± Kiel¡¯s facial muscles twitched. He was trying his hardest not to reveal the murderous hate he currently felt. Shameless!! Rhur sighed sadly, seemingly oblivious to the murderous intentions of his little brother. ¡°If I had known you wouldn¡¯t be able to handle the ginger, I would have taken it upon myself to¡­ ai! Now it is too late¡­¡± Kiel could no longer stop himself from giving Rhur a hateful glare. This brother of his was simply a master of adding insult to injury! Rhur covered his mouth with his hand, his facial expression revealing nothing but pain and sympathy. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that pitiful look¡­ seeing you like this really hurts my heart, little brother.¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Kiel continued to glare at him wordlessly. Rhur sighed regretfully once again. ¡°I know you are worried about me and wish nothing more than to help me take care of this battle. No need to worry! I will manage. Hurry up and forfeit. You are in no state to continue this battle.¡± ¡°Are you done talking yet?¡± Kiel growled out in a hoarse voice deeper than his usual tone. Rhur smiled wryly as if he had failed in coaxing a child. ¡°If you are done, then either fight me, help me or get lost. I have no patience to listen to your bogus show of sympathy.¡± Kiel hissed under his breath. Rhur¡¯s face stiffened. What? You are not even going to pretend to be polite? You must be in a worse state than I thought! ¡°Eeeh?! You want me to give you a hand and end your misery?¡± Rhur put a hand to his ear as if he had trouble hearing Kiel¡¯s weak voice. Like **** I want that!! The vein on Kiel¡¯s forehead started pulsing. ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it!¡± ¡°I know what you are asking of me¡­ but little brother! I¡­ I just can¡¯t bear to hurt you!¡± Rhur¡¯s voice quivered. Kiel felt like puking blood. If this brother of his didn¡¯t kill him with his sword, he certainly would with his words. Rhur gave Kiel several more glances, looking truly heartbroken to see Kiel in such dire straits. Then he seemed to hesitate a bit, unsure what to do. Kiel thought that Rhur was probably wondering whether he should just kill him and pass it off as showing mercy. However, in reality, Rhur¡¯s thoughts were going in a totally different direction. He suddenly realized that his thinking was incredibly stupid ¨C killing Kiel now would indeed be showing him mercy! That would be too easy! He should suffer more. And thus, Rhur was hesitating about how he should go about making Kiel suffer more. After several seconds of hesitation, Rhur pulled out a box of high-quality recovery ointment from his pocket. ¡°Here, let me apply ointment for you, little brother.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened. Son of a¡­! He wants to torment me by ¡°gently¡± applying ointment! You sadistic ****! Cold sweat dripped down the side of Kiel¡¯s head. ¡°No! That¡¯s fine. I can do it myself.¡± ¡°No, let me. Look at how painful it is for you to move!¡± Rhur¡¯s vicious hands were approaching Kiel steadily. Wait¡­! This is just a Replica! That means I can use my trump card without holding back! Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°Dear brother, if anyone saw how much you want to rub ointment on another male¡­ people will start to talk¡­¡± Rhur¡¯s actions completely froze, and he stood there petrified for a long while. Finally, he threw the box of ointment towards Kiel and grudgingly turned away. His eyebrow twitching the entire time. Kiel let out a breath of relief he didn¡¯t know he was holding. Indeed, this secret move was always super effective. Rhur knew Kiel feared flames, however, in turn, Kiel knew that Rhur¡¯s greatest fear was to be mistaken as gay. Imagine how horrifying it would be for any straight male to be pursued by countless other males while being unable to bang a single girl. And then imagine just how many times worse it would be for a playboy like Rhur. It was simply the stuff of nightmares. Although Kiel had this ¡°secret move¡± in his arsenal, he had to use it sparingly, only when he had no other choice, because if he used it too often, Rhur would pick up on it and find a way to counter it. Luckily, this was only a Replica of Rhur so using this move wouldn¡¯t lower the number of times he could use it against the real Rhur. After settling the impending crisis, Kiel looked down at the ointment Rhur had given him. As expected of a Rroda heir ¨C it was the best kind of ointment money could buy. Not only did it soothe the skin and alleviate pain, but it would also rapidly heal any skin and muscle damage. In fact, the recovery effect was so strong that the only reason why it wasn¡¯t banned from usage in warlock battles was because it came in the form of an ointment. And applying ointment in battle without dying was very difficult. Not only would one need to use his hands to apply it but it also took considerable time. The usage of medicine in battles was a controversial topic. Not allowing the usage of medicine would by extension forbid the usage of poison. However, in real life battles, poison held an important role, especially when apprehending criminals without causing them serious harm. Banning the usage of poison would severely limit the battle tactic employable by warlocks and would encourage raw power battles over clever battle tactics. Therefore, Muni decided to allow the usage of poison in exams. However, since they allowed the usage of poison, then that meant that they couldn¡¯t completely prohibit the usage of medicine either. It would be like allowing the usage of swords but forbidding shields. However, if they completely allowed the usage of medicine, then there would be people who would bring powerful healing items that would allow them to quickly recover from the brink of death, which would give them an unfair advantage in Muni exams. The exams would then turn from a test of skill into a battle of who has more resources, with ¡°undying¡± people trading blows for blows. In the end, Muni decided to permit and prohibit the same list of medicines as the Arena. This list was long, and it wasn¡¯t something Kiel remembered by heart, however, there were some easy to remember rules that he did recall. One of those was that all ointments were allowed. Kiel hesitated only for a moment before deciding to apply Rhur¡¯s ointment. Surely, Rhur wouldn¡¯t go as far as to poison the ointment? This was expensive stuff, poisoning it would be wasteful even for Rhur. Not to mention that poisoning his own little brother in Muni exams would definitely make it into the ways-to-piss-Venric-Rroda-off list. Rhur wouldn¡¯t be stupid enough to do something that would infuriate Venric. Kiel¡¯s eyes rested on Rhur¡¯s back for a moment, before starting to apply ointment to every inch of his skin. As soon as the ointment touched his skin, a comfortable, cooling sensation spread through his skin and muscles, alleviating his pain. It took Kiel several minutes to fully apply the ointment. During this time, neither Zor nor Rhur made any moves to stop him. In fact, Zor didn¡¯t even look at him. Rhur¡¯s lack of hostile actions didn¡¯t surprise Kiel. If he had intended to kill him off, he wouldn¡¯t have given him a recovery item. The thought was depressing, but Rhur probably didn¡¯t find Kiel as a threat. He probably thought that he could take him out easily, with or without a previous injury. Therefore, his action of giving Kiel ointment would only bring benefits to Rhur. Not only would he be able to use Kiel to probe Zor, but he would also gain a reputation of a kind older brother and a just individual who wants a fair and square fight. Both Alaric and Venric Rroda would be pleased by his behavior. After applying the ointment, Kiel looked at the hourglass and decided to wait until his injuries recovered. Waiting until he was back to perfect condition would increase his chances of staying alive. And besides, the previous battles had taken less than 15 minutes. He had enough time to wait. ¡°Are you feeling better, little brother?¡± Rhur spoke up. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about how we will take care of the Arite.¡± He tilted his head towards Zor. ¡°What does your D.I. report say?¡± Kiel stayed silent for several seconds before replying. ¡°My report says that he is proficient in all kinds of different magic spells, making his battle style¡­ unpredictable. However, as proven by the decapitated fellow, the most dangerous of his abilities is his spatial magic.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Whatever Transmutation and Augmentation magic could do, Arcane magic could do better. As soon as Kiel mentioned spatial magic, Rhur¡¯s eyes widened in realization. ¡°Ah! So back then, when he decapitated the poor sod, he used an invisible spatial blade!¡± If Elaru were here, she would be able to use her Aethernea of Sight to see the spatial blade, but he couldn¡¯t do the same. ¡°Well yes, but since he can conceal magic, what is to say that this whole arena isn¡¯t filled with concealed teleport points?¡± The aura that assaulted them was terrifying. It was an imposing aura of an emperor, crushing all beneath his feet. His eyes were in the middle of narrowing when abruptly his diamond shaped pupils dilated in shock. Imperceptibly, his concealed spell changed its form, from attack to defense. Episode 109 – Spatial Magic Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment.
Episode 109 ¨C Spatial Magic ¡°Are you feeling better, little brother?¡± Rhur spoke up. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about how we will take care of the Arite.¡± He tilted his head towards Zor. ¡°What does your D.I. report say?¡± Kiel stayed silent for several seconds before replying. ¡°My report says that he is proficient in all kinds of different magic spells, making his battle style¡­ unpredictable. However, as proven by the decapitated fellow, the most dangerous of his abilities is his spatial magic.¡± Spatial magic was a prominent branch of Arcane magic that specialized in controlling and altering space. Unlike Transmutation and Augmentation magic that controlled either the state or the properties of their target, Arcane magic gave the user complete control over its specified domain. Whatever Transmutation and Augmentation magic could do, Arcane magic could do better. Not only that, but unlike the other two which could only target the physical world, Arcane magic, as its name implied, also allowed the mage to tap into the more mystical parts of the world. Such as giving the mage an ability to impact the intangible things like time, space, mana and the mind. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that arcane magic required pure mana, perhaps the transmutation and augmentation magic would have long been made obsolete. As one would imagine, spatial magic could be used to teleport, create Gates and portals or even subdimensions. Yet, the usage of spatial magic didn¡¯t end there ¨C space could be bent, twisted and torn to create various effects. Whether it was used for attack, defense or utility depended on the user. As soon as Kiel mentioned spatial magic, Rhur¡¯s eyes widened in realization. ¡°Ah! So back then, when he decapitated the poor sod, he used an invisible spatial blade!¡± A spatial blade was an offensive application of spatial magic that sent a ripple through space resembling a sword slash. It was one of the most dangerous offensive magics that ended up splitting whatever it passed through into two without fail. ¡°That¡¯s my conjecture as well.¡± Kiel nodded. ¡°Since we couldn¡¯t sense his usage of the spatial blade, it means that he is also quite capable in magic concealing.¡± In other words, Zor had wrapped his Mind around his spell when he was weaving it, so no one was able to detect it with their mana sense. Rhur¡¯s face paled. ¡°Now this is¡­ inconvenient¡­ If we can¡¯t see it or feel it, how are we supposed to avoid it?¡± Kiel fell silent. That was the same question he had been pondering as well. If Elaru were here, she would be able to use her Aethernea of Sight to see the spatial blade, but he couldn¡¯t do the same. Kiel finally got up from the floor, this time without the help of his Acceleration magic. His body was slightly sore but otherwise completely fine. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh in lamentation. If he had access to such high-quality ointment, he could have increased the intensity of his training. His moody thoughts only lasted for a moment, before he once again focused on the battle at hand. ¡°Zor Arite might be targeting space instead of a physical object, however, the basic rules of magic should still apply.¡± Rhur quickly caught on what Kiel was talking about. ¡°In other words, he still needs to create spell roots over the area of space he wishes to target.¡± Kiel nodded. ¡°Right. If we expand our mage armor to cover the area around us, he won¡¯t be able to create a spatial blade in our vicinity. And if a spatial blade enters the area covered by our mage armor we will be able to feel it through fluctuations of our own mana.¡± ¡°So, the optimal course of action is to constantly move about while keeping vigilant of the mana in our surroundings, avoid getting too close to him and instead attack him from a distance.¡± Rhur continued. His quick judgment aligned with what Kiel had been thinking, however¡­ Kiel sighed softly, giving Rhur a fleeting side glance. ¡°You make it sound so simple¡­but¡­what if he can teleport? One second he is sitting there, and in the next¡­¡± Kiel snapped his fingers dramatically. ¡°¡­he is right in front of us, slicing off our heads.¡± Rhur rolled his eyes. ¡°He can¡¯t just teleport anywhere. He needs to either set a prior teleport point or envelop a large area with his spell roots allowing him to teleport anywhere in the area covered by it.¡± Kiel looked at Rhur as if he was looking at an idiot. ¡°Well yes, but since he can conceal magic, what is to say that this whole arena isn¡¯t filled with concealed teleport points?¡± Rhur¡¯s eyes widened and rubbed his arms as if he felt cold. ¡°You are so pessimistic!¡± Now it was Kiel¡¯s turn to roll his eyes. ¡°I am just pointing out the worst-case scenario so we can be prepared.¡± ¡°Ok, ok. Fair enough. How about this¡­ You distract him with¡­whatever ranged attacks you can do¡­ And in the meantime, I shall set up a lightning net around him to limit his movements while simultaneously covering his vicinity with my Razorblood petals.¡± Rhur suggested.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched in annoyance. This bloody buttcracker wanted to use him as a decoy! A scapegoat! The first one to attack Zor Arite would be the first one to be targeted by his merciless retaliation. ¡°Dear brother¡­¡± Kiel put a special emphasis on the word ¡°Dear¡±. ¡°¡­creating a lightning net powerful enough to make Zor Arite hesitant to touch it would be quite difficult. Not to mention it would cost you a lot of mana that could be better spent otherwise. I have a better idea. I¡¯ll enclose Zor Arite in a dome of earth. He won¡¯t be able to pass through a wall and breaking it down will take him some time. While I am working on that wall, you use those petals of yours to distract him. You can even zap him with your lightning ¨C you should be capable of creating lightning powerful enough to cause him some damage, right?¡± Rhur¡¯s eyes flashed with annoyance. Neither of the two would budge, and further debate would only waste time. ¡°Hmmm¡­ how about we enact a play? Let¡¯s pretend that we had a falling out and start fighting each other. In our fight, we will seemingly accidentally approach Zor and fill the area in his vicinity with mana. And then, when the area is filled with our mana, we will stop fighting and instead simultaneously attack him.¡± Kiel rubbed his chin in thought. That wasn¡¯t a bad idea. If they managed to surprise him, it would be easier to proceed. And besides, they wouldn¡¯t even need to pretend to have a fall out. Falling out was far easier than actually getting along. ¡°Alright.¡± Kiel agreed. The two brothers shared a look, preparing to erupt in hostilities. However, at that moment, just before they could start their ¡°play¡±, something completely unexpected occurred! Zor Arite, who had been as silent and motionless as a statue the entire time, finally moved! He opened his golden eyes and gave the Rroda brothers an incredulous look. Then, in a deep and charismatic voice, he spoke out a sentence that made both Kiel and Rhur freeze. ¡°Rule number 1 of Warfare: don¡¯t let your enemy find out about your strategy.¡± Kiel¡¯s mind reeled. Could it be¡­?! Rhur¡¯s face paled. Don¡¯t tell me that¡­? Seeing their stiff faces, Zor elaborated. ¡°Yes. I can hear you¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s face fell. &@#$! I forgot! Arites have better senses than normal people!! Rhur¡¯s face fell almost simultaneously. Shit! That bastard has sharper ears than an elibu!! ¡°He heard everything we¡¯ve been saying??!¡± Kiel swallowed a lump that formed in his throat. ¡°Clam down, maybe he is just pretending he can hear us to throw us off our game¡­¡± Rhur chuckled awkwardly. Zor stared at them speechlessly for several seconds before adding: ¡°¡­by all means, please continue¡­ don¡¯t let me ¡®throw you off your game¡¯¡­¡± The two Rroda brothers shared a look. Rhur was still smiling, albeit a bit stiffly, and Kiel¡¯s expression seemed completely indifferent. To outsiders, it looked like the two brothers were taking the revelation quite well. As expected of nobles. But when the two brothers saw each other¡¯s expression, what they saw in each other¡¯s eyes was a shared sentiment: ¡°We are so screwed¡­¡± Followed by steely determination: ¡°It¡¯s every man for himself!¡± And thus, the two Rroda brothers darted left and right respectively, accelerating towards Zor in a pincer attack. Although Zor was now watching the actions of the two, he still didn¡¯t take them seriously, for he still remained sitting down leisurely. However, although he was sitting, he wasn¡¯t letting down his guard. His aura erupted outwards, expanding the range of his mage armor to cover a 5-meter diameter around him. When Rhur¡¯s and Kiel¡¯s mind touched that aura, they felt as if a mountain was pressing down on them. That dense aura was simply terrifying. It was an imposing aura of an emperor, crushing all beneath his feet. His aura wasn¡¯t as dense as Elaru¡¯s, it couldn¡¯t deal physical damage, but it was still one of the densest aura¡¯s Kiel had ever felt. Its density was more than enough to transmit Zor¡¯s emotions and convictions through, dealing a strong mental blow to every mind who felt it. Zor Arite could defeat opponents without even fighting. His aura alone could make weaker willed people faint from the pressure. Luckily, neither of the two brothers were weak willed, so after a brief shock, their mental state returned to normal, and they proceeded with their attack. Both of them also erupted with mana, expanding their own mage armor and sending the wave of mana in Zor¡¯s direction in preparation to cast spells. Seeing the two brothers¡¯ mana quickly approaching him, followed by the brothers themselves, Zor¡¯s eyes slowly narrowed. In fact, his eyes were still in the middle of narrowing when abruptly his diamond shaped pupils dilated in shock. His head snapped towards Kiel, completely disregarding Rhur. Kiel¡¯s heart shook. What was going on? Why was Zor giving him such a strange look? Why did he attract trouble today? First Deora and now Zor? Did he have a big target sign planted on him because he was the ¡°protagonist¡± of the exam? Kiel had no way of knowing that the Replica Dungeon had no way of tampering with the Replica¡¯s thought process. He had no idea that in this moment of shock, the concealed spell Zor was weaving abruptly changed its shape, switching from deadly attack to impregnable defense. Rhur proceeded with his attack, not putting much thought into Zor¡¯s reaction. In his opinion, his little brother was unlikeable to begin with, so there was nothing strange about him attracting aggro from enemies. Rhur took out a handful of petals from his pouch and threw them towards Zor. He then pointed his finger towards Zor and let out a lightning flash with balanced speed and attack power. Kiel¡¯s attack didn¡¯t fall behind either. He swiped his hand towards Zor, and the earth around Kiel shifted as if following his motions. Many spikes sprouted out of the earth, flying up into the air and swiftly whizzing towards Zor. Kiel¡¯s and Rhur¡¯s attacks reached Zor almost simultaneously. And just as simultaneously as they arrived, simultaneously they failed. Rhur¡¯s petals blew over Zor, however, none of them managed to reach him. One by one they stopped their descent as if they had hit an invisible wall. They slid down slowly, outlining the shape of a dome. Kiel¡¯s earth spikes were even more direct. They slammed into the invisible dome and crumbled into pieces, releasing a dust cloud that covered the dome like a curtain. When Rhur¡¯s lightning slammed into the wall, there weren¡¯t even any ripples in space. The lightning just rebounded and spread onto the surroundings, unable to breach the wall. Zor had created a spatial barrier, sealing off the region of space around him. Besides the metaphysical things such as mana and the mind, other things couldn¡¯t pass through the barrier. Reflection barriers targeted objects which touched them, preventing them from proceeding, which made it so they couldn¡¯t target objects which were protected by foreign mana. However, Zor¡¯s spatial barrier was different. Zor wasn¡¯t targeting objects which touched his barrier, he was targeting space itself. By changing space itself, the change would affect anything and everything that entered that space. This was the principle that the majority of protective barriers used. Even the magical egg Elaru had given Kiel was based on the same principle. And so, Rhur¡¯s and Kiel¡¯s attack was thwarted before it even began.
Coming up in the next episode: They had already lost the fight! Rhur¡¯s derisive words agitated Kiel so much that he spat another mouthful of blood. ¡°I lied to make you fight the ginger.¡± Rhur shrugged. ¡°But don¡¯t blame me. I had your own interest at heart. No need to thank me. Knowing that I helped my little brother conquer his fear of flames is enough for me.¡± Ignoring the agony spreading through his limbs, he glared at Rhur defiantly and stood with his back straight looking valiant and dangerous. Rhur countered with his own oppressive aura full of confidence, his aura seemed light, like the air yet corrosive like acid, making one feel chilled from inside out. His smirk transformed into a full blown enchanting smile. ¡°Good.¡± He purred in a husky voice. A limited repertoire of spells? Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed. No. Imagination is the limit! The entire world is my clay! Morph, Temperature and Velocity is more than enough! Episode 110 – Sparkbloom Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment. Kiel and Rhur team up to attack Zor.
Episode 110 ¨C Sparkbloom Zor had created a spatial barrier, sealing off the region of space around him. Besides the metaphysical things such as mana and the mind, other things couldn¡¯t pass through the barrier. Reflection barriers targeted objects which touched them, preventing them from proceeding, which made it so they couldn¡¯t target objects which were protected by foreign mana. However, Zor¡¯s spatial barrier was different. Zor wasn¡¯t targeting objects which touched his barrier, he was targeting space itself. By changing space itself, the change would affect anything and everything that entered that space. This was the principle that the majority of protective barriers used. Even the magical egg Elaru had given Kiel was based on the same principle. And so, Rhur¡¯s and Kiel¡¯s attack was thwarted before it even began. Both Rroda brothers realized instantly that blindly chucking things at the barrier would not work and halted their assault. Spatial barriers couldn¡¯t be broken by brute force. It was like trying to shatter space itself. Or it would be more accurate to say that doing that would be like trying to cool down an object by repeatedly hitting it ¨C there was basically no correlation with what they were doing and what they wanted to achieve. To continue their assault, they needed to bypass, overpower or break the barrier first. To bypass it, they would either need to use spatial magic to teleport their attacks inside the barrier or use metaphysical attacks, neither of which the two of them were capable of. Breaking a protective barrier wasn¡¯t any easier. Kiel had experienced this fact first hand 12 years ago, when he almost died because firefighters and peacekeepers couldn¡¯t enter inside the barrier shielding his house. They had even thrown many mana bombs attempting to cause irreversible damage to the spell making it fall apart, yet still failed. Attacking the spell pattern with mana denser than the spell itself wasn¡¯t enough to break a fully formed spell. Once a spell formed a reality-altering effect, the spell pattern and the reality-altering effect would form an intimate relation, reinforcing each other. If a spell pattern was damaged, the reality-altering effect would repair the spell pattern, and if the reality-altering effect was negated, the spell pattern would try to recreate it. This self-recovery process wouldn¡¯t fail as long as there was enough mana to power it, which was not difficult considering the fact that the recovery was very mana efficient. If one wanted to break the spell, one would need to sever the connection between the two by damaging the critical points of the spell pattern or destroying the entire spell pattern in one go. The critical points of the spells were like invisible strings connecting the spell pattern and the reality-altering effect, and one needed to accurately slice them all off at the same time for the spell to crumble. Unfortunately, not only were those ¡°strings¡± constantly moving along with the spell pattern, but they also couldn¡¯t be felt or seen. It was no wonder that Spell Breakers were an extremely rare and sought after variety. Regrettably, neither one of the two Rroda brothers knew the critical points of Zor¡¯s spell, but even if they did know, they would find themselves unable to locate those points because they couldn¡¯t feel the Zor¡¯s spell pattern at all ¨C he was still concealing it. If one didn¡¯t have Aethernea of Sight, it would be impossible to feel a concealed spell and thus impossible to pinpoint the weak points even if one knew their location on the spell pattern. Of course, they could attack the spell blindly, attempting to drain Zor¡¯s mana, but they would use up far more mana in their dense mana attacks than Zor¡¯s spell used up to repair itself. Their only alternative to spell breaking was to cause spell interference, attempting to overpower Zor¡¯s spell. If two spells attempted to create conflicting changes in reality, such as one trying to cool down a certain area while other was trying to heat it up, the two spells would cause destructive spell interference with each other, making the two spells wrestle for control over reality. In such a scenario, if the difference in level between the two spells weren¡¯t too large, the weaker spell would get overpowered, allowing the stronger spell to overwrite the effect of the weaker spell with its own. This was what happened to Kiel¡¯s first opponent who had strengthened his skin. The strengthening on Kiel¡¯s attacking spikes was stronger, and it overpowered the spell the man had cast on his skin. If a spell got overpowered, its reality-altering effect would be negated, however, the spell pattern wouldn¡¯t get broken. Once the spell interference passed, the weaker spell would be able to reinstate its reality-altering effect, regaining control over reality. If one wanted to completely break the spell through overpowering, then it could be done only if one of the spells was much more powerful than the other one, making it so that the losing spell couldn¡¯t even struggle before getting crushed. Like a dragon stepping on grass, it would be impossible for the stronger spell not to demolish the weaker one upon contact. This was known as dominating the spell. It was a rare occurrence that could only happen if the two opponents were on entirely different levels, such as if a master mage was fighting against someone who just started learning magic. The other possible scenario was if one of the opposing spells was an enchantment. When mages enchanted a magical artifact, they would have a lot of time to perfect their spell, so the spell levels of enchantments were higher than spell levels of spells cast on the go.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. It was almost impossible for a non-enchantment to overpower an enchantment, which was actually good news for Kiel. For he was the one with an enchantment ¨C he had Elaru¡¯s magic egg which worked in a similar way to Zor¡¯s barrier. If he used its power, it should be enough to overpower Zor¡¯s barrier, at least for a while. Rhur Rroda wasn¡¯t aware that Kiel had a way to salvage the situation, therefore his face was turning paler and paler by the second. He didn¡¯t know any spatial spells so he couldn¡¯t cause spell interference with Zor¡¯s barrier. He figured Kiel didn¡¯t know any spatial spells either, otherwise, he would have used them in his previous desperate fight with Deora. And thus, no matter how Rhur thought about it, it was impossible for the two of them to break Zor¡¯s barrier. They had already lost the fight! While they were struggling, unable to break through the barrier, Zor could take his time to slaughter them like slaughtering clucklings! Rhur stopped his approach ten meters away from the barrier, his face falling, his eyes hesitating. What to do? What can I do? It didn¡¯t take Rhur long to run through all scenarios and realize he had no way to fight with Zor. And thus, if he couldn¡¯t fight with Zor¡­ all that was left¡­ Rhur¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he flashed a fleeting glance in Kiel¡¯s direction. Kiel wasn¡¯t too far off, only a few meters away from him. He too had stopped approaching Zor and was hesitating on how to proceed. Kiel was pondering on how to use the egg the most effectively, however, in Rhur¡¯s eyes, his hesitation seemed to come from the same source as his. And thus, Rhur Rroda reached into his pouch to bring out another handful of red petals. He blew the petals all around himself, Kiel and the barrier, his eyes never leaving Zor. On the other hand, Zor¡¯s inscrutable gaze never left Kiel. While the two Rroda brothers assaulted his barrier, the man didn¡¯t flinch, in fact, he had no change of expression at all. The only change on his face that Rhur thought he saw was the slight twitching of his nose. Well, this is fine too¡­ The corner of Rhur¡¯s mouth quirked up into a smirk, and he snapped his fingers. And then¡­! BOOM! A series of loud booms once again shook the stadium. Kiel¡¯s pupils dilated as he flew backward like an arrow, feeling once again the same sensation of being blasted. He flipped several times in the air before his body reached the ground. Before his crash created a crater in the ground, the only thing he managed to scream out was: ¡°You bastard!! You said you didn¡¯t have any!¡± That¡¯s right. The second batch of flower petals Rhur scattered were not Razorblood petals. No. They were the highly explosive Sparkbloom petals. However, Sparkbloom petals were white in color. Yet, the petals Rhur scattered were red ¨C they looked no different than Razorblood petals! Clearly, Rhur had learned from his previous battles that it was more effective if his enemies didn¡¯t know which petal was explosive and which wasn¡¯t! He had dyed the Sparkbloom petals to be the same color as the Razorblood petals! This time, when Kiel hit the ground, he had landed on his feet and didn¡¯t lose consciousness. To prevent Kiel from realizing his intentions, Rhur had limited the number of petals he sent towards Kiel. Therefore, the intensity of the explosion wasn¡¯t on the same scale as the explosion Deora had created. Even so, Kiel still spat out blood, his eyes venomously staring at Rhur¡¯s smirking profile. This shameless older brother of his had decided that he had no chance of beating Zor, and thus it was time for him to target the only remaining person in the stadium. He didn¡¯t even give Kiel the chance to point out that he had a way to overpower Zor¡¯s barrier! Clearly, he had intended to eventually surprise attack him with his Sparkloom petals from the moment he denied having any! Naturally, Kiel didn¡¯t fully believe him, however, the abruptness of Rhur¡¯s move and the fact that the petals looked the same as the Razorblood petals caught Kiel off guard. ¡°I lied to make you fight the ginger.¡± Rhur shrugged. ¡°But don¡¯t blame me. I had your own interest at heart. No need to thank me. Knowing that I helped my little brother conquer his fear of flames is enough for me.¡± Rhur¡¯s derisive words agitated Kiel so much that he spat another mouthful of blood. ¡°I ought to thank you then, older brother.¡± He squeezed out through his gritted teeth. ¡°I think the best way for me to repay your kindness is by pointing out your own shortcomings. I¡¯ll be sure to give it my all.¡± Rhur chuckled musically. ¡°And here I was, about to suggest you forfeit. After all, you¡¯re not even 18 yet, why go through all this trouble if you can¡¯t enroll in Muni anyway.¡± Kiel used his actions to answer him. Ignoring the agony spreading through his limbs, he glared at Rhur defiantly and stood with his back straight looking valiant and dangerous. His aura complimented the image, becoming so chilling that it pricked the skin and made it hard to breathe. Rhur countered with his own oppressive aura full of confidence, his aura seemed light, like the air yet corrosive like acid, making one feel chilled from inside out. His smirk transformed into a full blown enchanting smile. ¡°Good.¡± He purred in a husky voice. ¡°Surrendering would be letting you off easy¡­¡± As if Kiel could read Rhur¡¯s mind he flashed to the left, avoiding a sudden lightning attack. He continued to accelerate around the stadium, zig-zagging and curving unpredictably. He couldn¡¯t ¡°avoid¡± Rhur¡¯s lightning attacks because the speed of lightning was faster than his dodging speed. However, he could make Rhur ¡°miss¡± him. If he moved fast enough, unpredictable enough, Rhur wouldn¡¯t know where to aim, and thus his chance of hitting Kiel would drop. Kiel was too agile, his reflexes were too quick, so Rhur didn¡¯t even attempt to use his petals to attack him. It would be just wasting effort. Unless Rhur managed to catch Kiel off guard or surround him with many petals, the only attacks of his that could hit him were lightning attacks. And even lightning attacks found it hard to hit him, as Rhur found out after zapping several times in rapid succession. Kiel was darting around seemingly randomly, plotting on how to attack Rhur. His current repertoire of spells was rather limited ¨C besides Morph, Velocity, and Temperature, there wasn¡¯t much else. Up to now, he was using the ground to launch attacks, however, this tactic wasn¡¯t suitable for his current opponent. Rhur was agile with great reaction speed and keen battle sense. Any earth spike Kiel launched would get sliced into pieces by his sword before it managed to reach him. Earth spikes while powerful, were too big, too heavy, too slow. It wasn¡¯t that Kiel¡¯s attacks were slow per se, it¡¯s just that he couldn¡¯t cast the spell in Rhur¡¯s vicinity because of the scope of Rhur¡¯s mage armor, so the time it took Kiel to weave a spell and make it reach Rhur, even though minuscule, was enough for Rhur to counter it. To battle against Rhur he would need faster, smaller and more flexible attacks. A type of attacks against which Rhur¡¯s slashes would be ineffective, such as fireballs, light or lightning. Or attacks that Rhur would have difficulty countering because it would require flawless accuracy. A limited repertoire of spells? Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed. No. Imagination is the limit! The entire world is my clay! Morph, Temperature and Velocity is more than enough!
Coming up in the next episode: An almost tangible bloodlust wafted out from him in all directions. The glittering crimson droplets dripping down his fingers looked as gorgeous as rubies. To his enemies, Rhur might look like a spoiled rich master. But Kiel knew better. The mask Rhur always wore was no thinner than Kiel¡¯s own. On the contrary, it had even more layers. Rhur¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously, and suddenly a lightning snake zapped towards Kiel. However, when lightning flashed by Kiel, before it reached the wall of the arena it switched direction, like a ping-pong ball. Episode 111 – Rroda blood Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment. Kiel and Rhur team up to attack Zor. After realizing they are no match for Zor, Rhur turns on Kiel, sneak attacking him.
Episode 111 ¨C Rroda blood Kiel accelerated left and right all over the stadium until he reached his half-melted sword that had been lying on the ground. Kiel¡¯s body flashed by, picking up the sword in the process. Seeing how Kiel still bothered to pick up that ruined piece of metal, Rhur couldn¡¯t help but chuckle huskily. ¡°Brother, if you need a weapon I can lend you my sword. Lest people say that I am bullying you.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t take advantage of you, brother. If you lent me your sword you wouldn¡¯t have anything to defend yourself with. If I won in such a manner, my victory would hold no meaning.¡± Kiel politely declined. He continued flying all over the arena, while simultaneously casting multiple spells on his sword. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about me, little brother. I¡¯m not even using my sword. Giving it to you would hardly have any impact.¡± Rhur continued. ¡°Which is why there is no meaning in giving it to me. I can manage all the same with or without it.¡± Kiel shot him down and heated up the blade of his sword until it turned orange. As he accelerated around the field, the molten sword left countless swirling ribbons of smoke in his wake, adding a dramatic charm to his actions. He had heated up the metal to more easily change its shape through Morph. The more rigid the material, the harder it was to mold it with Morph. Dense yet soft and flexible materials were the easiest to Morph. When Rhur noticed Kiel trying to morph his sword back into shape, he felt obliged to spout some more flowery words dipped in a heavy dose of venom: ¡°Brother, I wasn¡¯t aware you had skills in blacksmithing! Is that what you¡¯ve been doing the past few years in the village? Why didn¡¯t you apply for the crafting exam instead? It would have suited your capabilities better.¡± Kiel¡¯s cold face had no change in expression as he replied: ¡°Brother, you are praising me too much. This little skill of mine can¡¯t compare to your varied talents. Your skillset is so large that it is difficult for me to remember all that you are good at, besides fighting and flirting. Could you please remind me, what other areas are you proficient in again?¡± ¡°Ah, don¡¯t waste time trying to remember it little brother, lest you get a headache. You are better off spending your mental faculties on improving a single skillset until it is at least presentable.¡± While the two were trash talking back and forth, Rhur¡¯s attacking and Kiel¡¯s flying about didn¡¯t pause in the slightest. In fact, the tempo of their battle was steadily increasing. Besides running both his legs and his mouth, Kiel was also working on his sword, slowly familiarizing himself with the feeling of morphing metal. Distracted by all the multitasking he was required to do, he completely failed to notice that he had forgotten to cast a temperature isolation spell on his own body. Heat in his surroundings didn¡¯t register inside his mind at all. When his sword regained its sword shape, Kiel threw it up into the air, making it fly in an arc toward Rhur. In preparation of the inevitable clash, Rhur cooled down the temperature of his own sword to isolate it from the incoming heat, lest his sword got ruined as well. Since Kiel¡¯s sword kept flying around in an unpredictable way, Rhur had to pay more attention into guarding against it so the intensity of his assault dropped. Finally, the sword reached Rhur, slashing upwards in an angle that was hard to defend against. Rhur¡¯s response could be considered as perfect ¨C he sent his own sword flying out to meet Kiel¡¯s. The two swords clashed with a sharp clinging noise, sparks flashed from their impact point. The force behind Rhur¡¯s blow was greater, thus, Kiel¡¯s sword was flung back. Or was it? The handle of Kiel¡¯s sword was flung back, while the blade¡­melted down? The metal blade turned molten yellow and trickled past Rhur¡¯s sword like water. Rhur had yet to register what just happened when that glowing blob of metal scattered into countless droplets the size of a fingernail. The glittering drops of metal rained down on Rhur threatening to riddle him full of holes. Smoke enveloped the molten drops, obscuring their exact size and position. Rhur¡¯s pupils dilated; he quickly darted backwards, his arm swinging his sword furiously left and right, slicing down each droplet one by one. His sword moved so fast it left only a blur in its wake. A sharp sizzling noise marked each collision of Rhur¡¯s frozen sword with molten metal drops. Steam and smoke intertwined, forming a mist that billowed against Rhur¡¯s body, making it so that even Kiel couldn¡¯t see the result of his attack. However, the mist couldn¡¯t obscure Kiel¡¯s mana sense. He could feel the fate of every drop he had accelerated towards Rhur. Kiel didn¡¯t wait for the mist to clear or for Rhur to counterattack. He continued running around, already weaving his next attack, while keeping an almost fully formed Morph spell on standby, in case he needed to create an earth shield at a moment¡¯s notice.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. As the mist lifted, it revealed Rhur¡¯s tall and imposing figure. His mouth was no longer speaking trash, it was morphed into a smile one couldn¡¯t look away from. A smile that was like a blooming flower, beautiful, graceful, perfect in every way. Yet, that heart stopping smile, coupled by the look in his eyes and the feel of his aura was¡­ Downright terrifying. His light blue eyes burned with cold fury, so frosty that the cold could freeze one down to their bones. An almost tangible bloodlust wafted out from him in all directions. His black and blue hair fluttered around him gently. The crystalline drops of cold sweat glistening on his white skin made him look even more alluring than usual. Yet, his black, white, and blue image was suddenly invaded by another color. Streams of crimson unendingly gushed through a large hole in his upper arm, dying his entire right arm blood red. The glittering crimson droplets dripping down his fingers looked as gorgeous as rubies. Drip, drop. The parched earth hungrily drunk the clear red liquid. The scene was as beautiful as it was eerie, as striking as it was petrifying. Rhur Rroda, just like the majority of the Rroda family, was the most terrifying not when he frowned or spouted venomous words, but when he smiled in silence. For that smile was usually the last thing one saw. Rhur¡¯s left arm rose up towards his right arm, his slender white fingers touching the bloody hole. He shouldn¡¯t have allowed Kiel¡¯s sword to come so close to him. Yet, how was he supposed to predict such an unorthodox attack? Worst still, the smoke wafting from the metal projectiles obscured his vision, making him rely on his mana sense to hit them. However, if he wanted to accurately pinpoint the location of such small and fast items he would have to wholeheartedly concentrate on it. Yet, there was simply no time to switch his focus. It was already an incredible feat worth of admiration that he managed to defend against all projectiles but one. Yet, admiration was far from Kiel¡¯s mind as he stared at Rhur¡¯s fingers, which drilled into the red flesh like pincers, pulling out a pointy object resembling a short and thick metal nail. Rhur¡¯s face revealed no agony, neither his smile nor his icy cold gaze wavered. He didn¡¯t even look at the projectile before he crushed it in his palm. When Kiel had caused the metal liquid to scatter into drops, the spell roots targeting the metal were stretched apart until they snapped, making him lose control over all metal pieces but the one on which he anchored the main spell. He had directed that one to curve around Rhur¡¯s sword and penetrate his flesh bone deep. He had attempted to make it come out on the other side, but the reinforcement spell cast on Rhur¡¯s flesh and bones caused it to struggle until Rhur pulled it out. The mana available to the acceleration spell wasn¡¯t enough to rival Rhur¡¯s pull. Unfortunately, Kiel couldn¡¯t feed the spell more mana since it was not only stuck deep inside Rhur¡¯s mana armor, but even inside his body. All mana he attempted to send got pushed back by Rhur¡¯s mana armor. And thus, Rhur had managed to pull it out, and even crush it into dust as a show of might. This bloodthirsty side of Rhur didn¡¯t catch Kiel by surprise. To his enemies, Rhur might look like a spoiled rich master. But Kiel knew better. The mask Rhur always wore was no thinner than Kiel¡¯s own. On the contrary, it had even more layers. So, so many layers that even Kiel had no idea what hid underneath it all. To the outsiders, Rhur looked like a polite, modest, talented and kind gentleman. To the people who could see through that facade, he appeared to be a self-centered, vindictive playboy who enjoyed toying with women. While that was, indeed, true, it was only a small part of the whole truth. And even though Kiel couldn¡¯t see the whole truth, nor did he have the desire too, even an idiot could tell that a person who could pull out a bullet out of his mangled flesh without as much as a flinch was neither weak-willed nor easy to deal with. Would a shrewd and merciless person like Venric Rroda designate Rhur Rroda as the future family head if he was just a pretty face, easily controlled by his desires? Truthfully, Kiel was painfully aware that he didn¡¯t have the ability to kill Rhur with his previous surprise attack ¨C but his intention had never been to kill him. What he wanted was to buy himself enough time to implement a better plan! Without letting Rhur catch his breath, Kiel recast an acceleration spell on several scattered metal pieces that landed outside Rhur¡¯s mage armor, and sent them whooshing towards Rhur once again. Rhur let go of his sword, but it didn¡¯t fall towards the ground ¨C it flew up to slice down the metal pieces. He had learned from his previous mistake and this time he refused to let the metal projectiles close in on him. While his sword defended from Kiel¡¯s attacks, Rhur cast a Velocity spell on his own flesh, making the muscle and skin cells around his wound shift position and close up the hole. This matter would have been much simpler if he had used Morph, however, Rhur had been using this method of closing wounds for many years before he got his hands on a mana purifying artifact. He had used it so much that it had become second nature, something he did without much thought. Rhur¡¯s eyes flashed dangerously, and suddenly a lightning snake zapped towards Kiel. Kiel, who caught Rhur¡¯s change in expression managed to suddenly switch directions, accelerating to the side, missing the lightning by a hair¡¯s breath. However, when lightning flashed by Kiel, before it reached the wall of the arena it switched direction, like a ping-pong ball. The lightning continued to miss Kiel and then ¡°rebound¡± from the walls, and Rhur was constantly creating more and more lightning, fully showcasing his fine Multicasting ability. Soon they were arcing everywhere, covering the ground and the skies. It was no longer possible for Kiel to avoid them. He had enough trouble just avoiding one, let alone a whole bunch of them. Left with no other alternative, Kiel enveloped himself in an earth shield he had on standby for a while now. Just in time too, for not even a moment later an electric snake slammed into it.
Coming up in the next episode: Rhur¡¯s electric snakes that had been drilling into Kiel¡¯s shield, abruptly stopped. This was the disparity between the first-born son and a bastard child. Absolute agony. His every muscle twitched in sheer anguish, every passing second was an eternity of torment. He rolled until his back hit something hard, knocking air out of his chest. Episode 112 – True Agony Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment. Kiel and Rhur team up to attack Zor. After realizing they are no match for Zor, Rhur turns on Kiel, sneak attacking him. Rhur conjures a lot of lightning and Kiel morphs an earth shield to protect himself.
Episode 112 ¨C True Agony As the earth dome covered up the light reflecting in Kiel¡¯s eyes, he concentrated on his mana sense, feeling Rhur¡¯s position. He couldn¡¯t stay inside his earth shield for long, it lowered his mobility, making it easier for Rhur to surround him by Sparkbloom petals. Unfortunately, earth was currently the only material he had access to that would impede the lightning. If this lightning was conjured by an elibu, Kiel could create an area of vacuum to protect himself. The electricity conjured by an elibu wouldn¡¯t be able to pass through materials with very low conductivity. However, the same tactic wouldn¡¯t work against Rhur, for he wasn¡¯t relying on the properties of conductivity to propagate the lightning. He was directly forcing electrons to move through Acceleration. To him, it was easier to move the lightning if there was nothing in the way so not only would creating an area of vacuum not protect Kiel, it would actually help out Rhur. And thus, Kiel had no other choice but to put his carefully weaved spell into action early. Rhur¡¯s electric snakes that had been drilling into Kiel¡¯s shield abruptly stopped. Kiel couldn¡¯t see how Rhur¡¯s diamond shaped pupils widened in shock, but he could feel him rolling to the left quite clearly. His body probably moved on instinct because the reaction was quite abrupt. His instincts were quite correct, for a moment later, an invisible several meters wide air blade in the shape of an X passed through the place he had been previously. Even though Rhur managed to avoid the brunt of the attack, since the size of the air blade was quite large, the leg of the X still managed to hit Rhur squarely in the chest. For a moment, Rhur thought that Zor had managed to sneak an attack on him. But then he realized that what he had been hit with wasn¡¯t a spatial blade, for he was able to feel the changes in the airflow just before it hit. Kiel had used the Morph spell on the air to condense a dense X-shaped construct, then he reinforced it, locking the position of air particles to turn the air solid. Lastly, he accelerated it towards Rhur creating an airblast sharp enough to cut a person in half. Kiel figured if Zor could control space to cut down, why couldn¡¯t he control the air to do the same? However, concealing a spell took Kiel considerable time and effort, and this was why he aimed to buy time with his previous attacks. The force of the slash caused Rhur to fly backward like an arrow, lacerating his entire upper body, shredding his shirt into pieces. All of the lightning snakes attacking Kiel vanished into thin air. Rhur¡¯s body, which Kiel felt with his mana sense, was completely unmoving. There were no suspicious fluctuations of mana either. The bloodlust that had been seeping from Rhur¡¯s body evaporated, the density of mana in his vicinity slowly decreased. All signs pointed to Rhur being either unconscious or dead. Kiel morphed a hole in his earth shield, attempting to see whether Rhur was indeed disposed of. Logically speaking, that slash should have been enough to shred Rhur¡¯s organs into minced meat. However, as long as he didn¡¯t see it with his own two eyes, he would not assume him as dead. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t see anything. The dust his air blade had rose covered up his vision, making him unable to see the state of Rhur¡¯s body. To prevent Rhur¡¯s sudden rise from the dead, Kiel intended to impale Rhur several more times, and so, he started moving his mana towards the ground around Rhur. What followed was a volley of earth spikes which aimed at Rhur¡¯s chest, stomach, thigh, and shoulders. Besides the movement caused by the sudden eruption of spikes, Rhur¡¯s body didn¡¯t move at all. Rhur¡¯s body lay there immovable, impaled by several earth spikes. As the sound of blood dripping reached Kiel¡¯s ears, he finally let out a breath of relief and dispelled his earth shield.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Kiel made his way towards Rhur, intending to take away his sword. He still had Zor to fight, and any donations to his arsenal would be greatly appreciated. Just as Kiel entered Rhur¡¯s vicinity, abruptly, there was a bright blue flash. A web of lightning descended covering the entire area around Rhur, with him in its center. The lightning appeared far too fast, far too unexpected. It was something that not even someone like Zor would be able to dodge, let alone Kiel. Kiel¡¯s mind didn¡¯t even register what happened before he was hit with absolute agony. His entire body went rigid, writhing painfully on the floor. His jaw stiffened. He couldn¡¯t even scream. His every muscle twitched in sheer anguish, every passing millisecond seemed like an eternity of torment. Kiel¡¯s mind went blank. He couldn¡¯t even form a coherent thought, let alone use magic. As the dust cleared, Rhur¡¯s merciless eyes were revealed gazing down on Kiel¡¯s twitching form. He stood suspended in the air by Kiel¡¯s spikes. His shirt had disappeared, revealing Rhur¡¯s finely sculpted chest. Yet, his upper body was neither naked nor bloody. What met Kiel¡¯s gaze was not skin, not blood, but the blue metallic sheen of mythril. Rhur¡¯s entire chest was covered in a skin-tight flexible suit of mythril armor! The spikes aiming for Rhur¡¯s chest only served to give him a good punch, not penetrating through the armor at all. Blood flowed down the corner of Rhur¡¯s mouth, yet Rhur still continued to smile, as if to mock him. This was the disparity between the first-born son and a bastard child. While Kiel¡¯s pockets were almost empty of gold, Rhur was literally wearing mythril. Kiel¡¯s abilities weren¡¯t above Rhur¡¯s to begin with, let alone if Rhur¡¯s were amplified by the finest items money could buy. Rhur continued to stare unblinkingly at Kiel while he accelerated his body upwards, away from the spikes that had impaled his shoulders and thighs. He didn¡¯t mock him, yet his sneer stung Kiel even more than his words could. Rhur went as far to play dead, he willingly let himself get pierced by earth spikes, all so that he could get a chance to unleash that one sure hit attack. He had concealed both his spell weaving and his aura to make it appear as though he had fainted, like his bloodlust dissipated. But his bloodlust didn¡¯t disappear at all. It was still there, assaulting Kiel¡¯s mind, giving him a strong sense of dread and hopelessness. Nothing spoke more clearly of Rhur¡¯s hatred for Kiel than the fact that he was willing to let himself be impaled, just so he could make Kiel pay an even higher price. He leisurely made his way towards Kiel¡¯s twitching body, while wiping off the blood from the corner of his mouth with his thumb. Then he licked the blood off his thumb in a sensual yet terrifying gesture. The wounds on his shoulders and thighs already started closing themselves. Judging by the fact that he could still move his limbs, he had most likely shifted the key veins and nerves to avoid the earth spikes. Although his each movement must cause him a lot of pain, his limbs were still fully functional. Rhur¡¯s footsteps resounded inside Kiel¡¯s ears as he slowly walked towards him. Kiel tried to think, tried to cast spells, but the agony wrecking his body left no room for anything. Just as Kiel thought he would die, the pain suddenly stopped. Kiel barely managed to inhale a large breath when the pain started once again. Rhur was giving him hope only to cruelly squash it. Giving him pain release, only to make his next period of agony hurt even more. Rhur was worried that Kiel¡¯s heart wouldn¡¯t be able to handle the continuous stress so he deliberately made pauses. Accidentally killing him was out of the question! Pity that the lightning paralyzed Kiel¡¯s entire body. It would have been even better if he could scream, but alas, there was no way for him to do anything besides grunt. Rhur reached Kiel¡¯s side and then he carefully picked a spot on Kiel¡¯s body that would bring the most pain for the least amount of damage. And thus, he kicked Kiel hard in the stomach. Kiel¡¯s body flew up high, and then it hit the ground hard, rolling several times before stopping, enveloped in a cloud of dust. The lightning continued to course through his body, making his muscles violently convulse and contract. Kiel tried to make his arms move towards the last remaining pocket on his pants where he had stashed Elaru¡¯s magic egg, yet his body refused to listen to his commands. Once caught by Rhur¡¯s lighting, it was impossible to escape. Only when Rhur made small pauses in electrocuting him, would Kiel manage to twitch his hands towards his pocket a tiny distance. The movement was so slight, looking like nothing more than an involuntary spasm. And so, Rhur continued to zap him, and then stop, only to start right after. Each time he paused and saw Kiel open his mouth, he would zap him again, worried that Kiel would manage to scream out his surrender. He didn¡¯t want this to end. He savored every second of Kiel¡¯s agony like it was a fine delicacy. Slowly making his way towards him before violently kicking him in his stomach again, in the same spot as before, making him roll like a ball. Cold sweat had long drenched Kiel¡¯s entire body. The earth dust stuck to Kiel¡¯s wet body, making him look as dirty as a beggar. Kiel couldn¡¯t help but wonder: Would the examiners stop the exam? Would they declare the battle as his loss? Or would they allow Rhur to torture him slowly, until he died? Most people would be hoping for the pain to end quickly. Hoping for the third party to save them. Yet, what Kiel hoped was the exact opposite. He didn¡¯t want to be saved. He didn¡¯t want the battle to end in his loss. His icy blue eyes of his glared at Rhur¡¯s shoes unyieldingly. No matter how many times you kick me¡­ No matter how many times you humiliate me¡­ No matter how much each moment hurts¡­ It will never make me wish to die! It will never make me voluntarily give up! He was still breathing, wasn¡¯t he? The examiners weren¡¯t stopping the battle, were they? Then he could keep enduring! He would keep fighting in his own way until the end! His mouth was filling up with blood, but he couldn¡¯t open his jaw to spit it out. He wanted to activate his egg but the electricity made his limbs twitch uncontrollably, the most he could manage was to produce a slight twitch towards the pocket each time Rhur paused zapping him. Kick. Zap. Pause. Zap. Kick. Zap. Pause. Kick. Kiel was so dizzy he felt like throwing up. His eyes were starting to mist up. His consciousness was getting fuzzier and fuzzier. Even his sense of pain was starting to dull. Is this the end? Would it all end like this? So miserably? How did it come to this? He had dodged so many attacks, he had managed to land so many attacks on Rhur, so why was he on the losing end?! It wasn¡¯t supposed to be like this! Yet, no matter how he wished that this was only a nightmare, the reality didn¡¯t change for him. Not this time. He had already been pushed almost to the edge of the arena. Rhur¡¯s delight grew with each passing second. ¡°Tsk, tsk. Don¡¯t faint yet. We are just getting started.¡± He proceeded to kick him once again. Kiel closed his eyes, feeling his body hitting the ground again, knocking the air out of his lungs. Then his body proceeded to roll, and then suddenly, his back hit something.
Coming up in the next episode: As the lightning landed on his body again, Kiel managed to open his mouth to spew out a large mouthful of blood. If someone had told him he would be putting his last hopes into something so ridiculous, he would think the person to be making fun of him. Almost at the same time as he heard the click of the ring, the whole world turned white. Episode 113 – The Last Attack Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment. Kiel and Rhur team up to attack Zor. After realizing they are no match for Zor, Rhur turns on Kiel, sneak attacking him. Kiel almost manages to defeat Rhur, however, because of his mythril armor, Rhur survives and manages to catch Kiel off guard with his lightning. Rhur proceeds to torture Kiel with alternating between zapping him and kicking him in the stomach.
Episode 113 ¨C The Last Attack He had already been pushed almost to the edge of the arena. Rhur¡¯s delight grew with each passing second. ¡°Tsk, tsk. Don¡¯t faint yet. We are just getting started.¡± He proceeded to kick him once again. Kiel closed his eyes, feeling his body hitting the ground again, knocking the air out of his lungs. Then his body proceeded to roll, and then suddenly, his back hit something. Something soft. The sensation startled Kiel into opening his eyes. He looked through the hair falling over his face only to see that he had hit Deora¡¯s lying form. He had been pushed back so much that he had reached the scene of his previous fight! Before he could think of it any further, another lightning bolt fell on his body, zapping both him and Deora next to him. This zapping brought Kiel considerable surprise, for just as it started, he had heard a peculiar noise. His eyes widened, and he stared at Deora dumbfounded.What¡­? The poison wasn¡¯t fatal? Is it wearing off? Apparently, there was nothing like a good electrocution to pull back someone from the death¡¯s door, for the previously unresponsive Deora, let out a groan. His dark red eyelashes started fluttering, and his face scrunched up like a squeezed sponge. Clearly, he wasn¡¯t a morning person, but then again, with how ¡°gently¡± he had been woken up, Kiel would be surprised if hewasin a good mood. As Kiel felt subtle changes in the aura wafting out of Deora¡¯s body, a seemingly insane idea materialized inside his head. He attempted to open his mouth with all his might, but only when Rhur slightly paused with the lightning did he finally manage to spew out a large mouthful of blood. Before he could close his mouth, Rhur zapped him again. When the next zap paused, Kiel managed to let out a weak groan: ¡°Hey¡­¡± Then the lightning hit again. And then it paused. ¡°¡­you¡­¡± Zap. Pause. ¡°¡­darn¡­¡± Zap. Pause. ¡°¡­firecracker¡­!¡± If someone had told Kiel he would be putting his last hopes into something so ridiculous, Kiel would think the person to be making fun of him. Yet, as if he had said a magic word, Deora¡¯s eyelids snapped open revealing his bloodshot gaze. His eyes were a bit glazed, there was a brief flash of remembrance inside of them, before it was replaced with fury. At that moment, when Kiel looked into his crazed eyes, he had thought he could almost hear him bellowing ¡°A firecracker?! &%$@!! I¡¯ll give you a frigging firecracker¡­!¡± A lightning zapped Kiel once again, followed by a kick from Rhur who had just reached them. Only when Kiel was sent flying away from Deora by his kick, did Rhur have a clear view of Deora. However, by that time, he was already stepping over him, his gaze locked on Kiel¡¯s miserable form, so he didn¡¯t notice that his eyes were open. Rhur was just about to zap Kiel again when, abruptly, Deora¡¯s aura flared up, surprising Rhur into jumping back in shock. The surprise made Rhur break out of his zap and pause routine, involuntarily making a larger pause between zaps. Kiel seized that short window of opportunity to stuff a hand inside his pocket, grabbing Elaru¡¯s magic egg and quickly twisting the middle ring. No sooner had he heard the click of the middle ring, than the whole world turned white. Kiel was sure that what followed would have been the loudest boom anyone had ever heard, however, either his barrier managed to block the sound, or he had gone deaf before his mind could register the sound. Either way, the world went silent for the longest 20 seconds of Kiel¡¯s life. The only sound he could hear was the buzzing inside his head that almost seemed synchronized with the shaking of the ground beneath his feet.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Kiel closed his eyes, trying to swallow down his nausea and return his labored breathing to normal. His stiff muscles slowly relaxed and his heartbeat started slowing down. It took Kiel the longest time to finally recover from Rhur¡¯s abuse and settle down his mind enough to process what was going on. ¡°Will explode if called ¡®firecracker¡¯.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help but recall the tip on dealing with Deora.Wait¡­ that tip was actuallynota figure of speech? He will literally explode?!He didn¡¯t know what he was expecting when he chose to call Deora a firecracker, but surely it wasn¡¯tthis. How short tempered would someone need to be to choose to self-destruct and obliterate the entire stadium? When Kiel had initially read that tip, he had thought it to be a failed attempt at humor. Yet, now, out of all the things he had read, it turned to be the most useful tip of them all. It was ironic, really, yet not as ironic as Rhur¡¯s fate. Kiel opened his eyes, only to be met with a giant crater enveloping the entire arena. The circular stadium looked as if someone took a large bite out of it, leaving only a small portion of the building that was the furthest from the center of the explosion. Besides the two small islands that had been protected by Kiel¡¯s and Zor¡¯s barriers, nothing else remained inside the large crater. There was no sign of Rhur, Deora or any other participant. Not even blood stains remained. Who could have predicted that Rhur¡¯s hate for Kiel coupled with his sadistic nature would, in the end, cause him to lose the match? Kiel felt like laughing, but his stomach muscles ached too much for him to laugh. He regretted not being able to see Rhur¡¯s facial expression as he was blown up to smithereens. It must have been a wonderful sight. Kiel¡¯s mouth twitched into an involuntary smirk that looked more like a grimace, then he spat out some more blood to the ground next to him. His gaze wandered towards the hourglass which coincidentally happened to be in the part of the wall that avoided the catastrophe. There were still several minutes remaining in the exam. Unlike the hourglass, the VIP lodge, where the examiners had been sitting, was blasted off the map. However, it seemed like the examiners had escaped with their lives, for when Kiel concentrated on his hearing he could hear them chatting in the distance. ¡°And there it is. Deora¡¯s famous self-destruct.¡± A female chuckled. ¡°Arcor, doesn¡¯t this make you feel nostalgic?¡± A second, deep voice responded with an angry: ¡°Piss off!¡± A third, amiable male voice added: ¡°There was nothing better Deora could have done in the current situation. He was in no state to continue the battle. Might as well sacrifice himself to take out the enemies.¡± ¡°You think that git was thinking of strategy? He was clearly too angry to think. Since he wouldn¡¯t die in the exam, he just decided to go out with a bang.¡± The female sneered. Kiel rubbed his temples, hoping that a massage would help lessen his headache, and then he cast a Morph spell on himself again, trying to feel the state of his own body. Yet, just as he was about to begin the inspection, his body jolted as he felt a spell envelop his surroundings. A sound isolation barrier, few meters larger than his own protection barrier, had covered his little island. It was actually just a barrier that froze the movement of a thin veil of air, as to prevent the sound waves from passing to the other side of the barrier. ¡°What year is it?¡± Kiel¡¯s head snapped towards the source of the husky voice to see Zor, who was floating leisurely outside of Kiel¡¯s barrier with a frown creasing his brows. Like a phantom, he had appeared without any sound. Kiel didn¡¯t feel him approach, he wasn¡¯t even sure if he had teleported or flown here. His presence concealing was so flawless that if he weren¡¯t clearly standing in front of him, Kiel would have sworn that he wasn¡¯t there at all. What year is it? It was a strange question, yet instead of being confused Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed in an as-I-thought look. Zor had just confirmed what Kiel had suspected from the start ¨C Zor Arite knew that he was only a Replica. From the beginning, Kiel thought that it was highly likely that an Arite would know the secret behind the Replica dungeon and have a way to recognize whether they were the original or a Replica. However, when Zor had disinterestedly sat down, not showing any desire to participate in the battle, Kiel was almost sure that he knew. If he had thought himself to be a participant of the exam, he would surely want to show his worth as to score the highest possible score. Yet, he didn¡¯t care about it at all. He was only a Replica. After this battle, he would disappear. Regardless if he won or lost, it would all be the same. What was the point of battling then? Perhaps the only reason why he didn¡¯t outright forfeit was his pride. Or perhaps he was curious to find out what had happened in the years passed. ¡°It¡¯s 1449 A.W.¡± Kiel replied calmly. Zor stared at him for several seconds before opening his mouth again: ¡°Do you know me?¡± Does he want to know his own future?Kiel blinked several times before replying. ¡°No. I know your name, but we¡¯ve never met.¡± Kiel didn¡¯t know what he had said wrong, but after hearing his words, Zor frowned in displeasure. ¡°I suppose you are telling the truth, for if youhadmet me, you certainly wouldn¡¯t dare lie to me.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow jumped.Is that a threat? ¡°Alright.¡± Zor mused lazily. ¡°Tell me, what am I up to nowadays?¡± Kiel¡¯s expression turned awkward. How was he supposed to tell the guy that he was dead? He carefully picked his words: ¡°If you want to know information about your future achievements, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll have to disappoint you. Besides your name, I know nothing about you.¡± Zor¡¯s commanding voice turned icy. ¡°You want me to believe that you know nothing about the head of the Purge and the head of the argel branch of the Arite family? While you are at it, you might as well claim that you aren¡¯t a Rroda¡­¡± Now it was Kiel¡¯s turn to frown. ¡°The head of the Purge and the head of the argel branch of the Arite family is not you. It¡¯s Erdi Arite.¡± Zor¡¯s eyebrows shot upwards, almost reaching his red hairline. ¡°What? Mother still hasn¡¯t let me succeed her? I must have screwed something up quite badly.¡± Zor¡¯s sudden uncharacteristic outburst startled Kiel into forgetting the tact he was supposed to have: ¡°I¡¯d say.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help blurting out. ¡°You died.¡± Zor Arite seemed to take it better than expected. He had no change of expression, staring at Kiel as if they were talking about the weather. ¡°How did I die? What happened to Rine?¡± Rine? Who is Rine? His soulmate?Kiel shook his head helplessly. ¡°I don¡¯t know the circumstances of your death. I was a newborn when you died.¡± Several moments of awkward silence passed, before a powerful, oppressive aura assaulted Kiel¡¯s senses. Zor¡¯s mane started flying around him as if there was a breeze, and his golden eyes narrowed into a menacing stare. Why is he angry? It¡¯s not likeIkilled him!Kiel cast an Acceleration spell on himself, prepared to fly away in case Zor managed to teleport inside his barrier. However, Zor didn¡¯t teleport. In fact, Zor didn¡¯t even attack the barrier. He just pointed his index finger, as if to touch the barrier. And then, abruptly, the rings on Elaru¡¯s magical egg jolted and speedily twirled themselves around the egg. The rings didn¡¯t even stop spinning before Kiel¡¯s barrier had completely vanished. What did he do?!Kiel slid his hand into his pocket, simultaneously accelerating backward, his eyes wide in shock. He could feel the changes in the egg even though it had been in his pants. He brought the artifact out, hoping he could activate it again, but the rotations of the rings had completely changed. He had no idea how to set them up again! His plight didn¡¯t escape Zor¡¯s golden eyes, which grew colder and colder by the second. He didn¡¯t chase after Kiel, only watching him calmly. However, that caused no relief to Kiel, for a moment later, he almost slammed his back into Zor Arite, who had, in a blink of an eye, teleported from his previous position to stand right in his path. Kiel tried twisting his body around in midair, as to escape from the dangerous situation. However, Zor gave him no chance, his hand seized Kiel by the neck in a vice grip.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°There is nothing to reconsider.¡± Kiel squeezed out between gritted teeth, doing his best to disguise the displeasure he was feeling. ¡°All I said was the truth.¡± Zor pointed towards the metal egg Kiel had been gripping tightly in his right hand. ¡°Where did you obtain the Seed of Aegis?¡± His face froze, and he stared at Kiel in stupefaction as if he had just witnessed Kiel growing three wings, two heads, and a tail. However, it didn¡¯t matter. Zor¡¯s guard had clearly slipped. This was Kiel¡¯s last chance to turn the tables around! Kiel pricked up his ears, his heart leaped into his throat. Has the time finally arrived for him to unveil the secret of Elaru Wayvin? Kiel barely managed to hear him over the loud thumping of his own heart.Elaru Wayvin is¡­?Kiel stared fixedly at Zor¡¯s mouth trying to lip read what word he would say next. Episode 114 – End of Kiel’s Practical Exam Previously: The day of the practical exams is finally here and Kiel is inside a large arena created by the Replica Dungeon. Nelaira tricks Deora into attacking the Rroda brothers, and Deora ends up pursuing Kiel with a barrage of fireballs. Kiel runs away, dodging the fireballs, however, Deora manages to hit him with an explosive airball. Kiel loses his consciousness and remembers how he got trapped inside the burning house as a child. After waking up he gets into a life and death situation that makes him overcome his fear of fire and launch a counter attack on Deora. He manages to poison Deora, knocking him out of the competition. Seeing Kiel win his fight, Rhur finished Nelaira off in a fit of rage. Kiel manages to recover through applying a healing ointment. Kiel and Rhur team up to attack Zor. After realizing they are no match for Zor, Rhur turns on Kiel, sneak attacking him. Kiel almost manages to defeat Rhur, however, because of his mythril armor, Rhur survives and manages to catch Kiel off guard with his lightning. Rhur proceeds to torture Kiel with alternating between zapping him and kicking him in the stomach. Rhur kicks Kiel into Deora and zaps them both, waking up unconscious Deora in the process. Kiel calls Deora a firecracker and makes him self-destruct, destroying the entire stadium and killing Rhur in the process. Kiel manages to survive due to Elaru¡¯s magical artifact in the shape of an egg. After a short conversation with Zor, Kiel manages to provoke Zor into attacking him. Episode 114 ¨C End of Kiel¡¯s Practical Exam And then, abruptly, the rings on Elaru¡¯s magical egg jolted and speedily twirled themselves around the egg. The rings didn¡¯t even stop spinning before Kiel¡¯s barrier had completely vanished. What did he do?!Kiel slid his hand into his pocket, simultaneously accelerating backward, his eyes wide in shock. He could feel the changes in the egg even though it had been in his pants. He brought the artifact out, hoping he could activate it again, but the rotations of the rings had completely changed. He had no idea how to set them up again! His plight didn¡¯t escape Zor¡¯s golden eyes, which grew colder and colder by the second. He didn¡¯t chase after Kiel, only watching him calmly. However, that caused no relief to Kiel, for a moment later, he almost slammed his back into Zor Arite, who had, in a blink of an eye, teleported from his previous position to stand right in his path. Kiel tried twisting his body around in midair, as to escape from the dangerous situation. However, Zor gave him no chance, his hand seized Kiel by the neck in a vice grip. Kiel¡¯s leg that was heading straight for Zor¡¯s stomach paused an inch away as he heard Zor threaten: ¡°Move an inch, and I¡¯ll crush your neck.¡± Kiel had no doubt that a person revered as a genius of his generation, would certainly have a way to decapitate him with his bare hands. He once again remembered the tip on battling Zor: ¡°Forfeit.¡± I better not make any rash moves.Kiel decided. Zor Arite obviously didn¡¯t want him dead just yet. There might be a chance to reverse the current situation if he was patient. He still had an Acceleration spell and a Morph spell cast on his body. All he needed was a single moment of weakness. A single moment in which Zor loosened his guard. Perhaps this close proximity wasn¡¯t bad at all. It would make it hard for Zor to dodge his attacks if they are timed properly. If Kiel had wanted to enter close range combat with Zor, he would be unable to do so, but now, Zor had taken the initiative. ¡°You might want to reconsider your previous answer. I don¡¯t tolerate people lying to me.¡± Zor¡¯s cold voice interrupted Kiel¡¯s pondering. What previous answer?Confusion flashed in Kiel¡¯s mind. Was it so hard for Zor Arite to accept that he had no idea of the circumstances of his death?What arrogance! Who does he think he is? A god that everyone needs to worship? ¡°There is nothing to reconsider.¡± Kiel squeezed out between gritted teeth, doing his best to disguise the displeasure he was feeling. ¡°All I said was the truth.¡± Zor snapped his fingers and once again recast a sound isolation barrier around them. ¡°Alright. Then let¡¯s stop talking aboutme.¡±Zor¡¯s piercing golden glare could almost poke a hole through someone. ¡°Let¡¯s talk aboutyouinstead.¡± Zor pointed towards the metal egg Kiel had been gripping tightly in his right hand. ¡°Where did you obtain the Seed of Aegis?¡± ¡°A what?¡± Kiel followed Zor¡¯s pointing finger.Elaru¡¯s magical egg? Is that what it¡¯s called? At that moment, countless thoughts flashed through Kiel¡¯s mind. How did Zor know the name of Elaru¡¯s magical artifact? Overwhelming curiosity struck Kiel like a hammer, chucking the exam to the back of his mind. Even if he managed to sneak an attack in, it wasn¡¯t likely that he would be able to deal much damage to Zor Arite. Then, should he fish for information instead? Perhaps Zor could tell him some clues that could help him figure out the secret of Elaru Wayvin! ¡°Oh.¡± Kiel mused. ¡°Are you familiar with my magical artifact?¡± Unfortunately, the only response he got from Zor was him tightening his grip on Kiel¡¯s neck. However, Kiel didn¡¯t panic. Zor seemed to want something from him, perhaps he could profit from this misfortune? ¡°I can tell you everything I know, including where I got the Seed of Aegis, but¡­ it won¡¯t be for free. How about it? Promise to forfeit this match, and I¡¯ll tell you everything you want to know.¡± Kiel was half expecting Zor Arite to turn furious with his bargaining attempt, but instead, Zor chuckled deeply. ¡°Nice try. Unfortunately, I have no intention to throw this fight just to satisfy my own curiosity. Me, dying by your hand, would bring shame to the Arite family, not to mention it would sully my reputation.¡±If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. He still said ¡°my¡± even though he knew that he wasn¡¯t the real Zor Arite. But even though he knew that, he felt like he was the real one. Their feelings, dreams, and aspirations were the same. Even though he was a Replica, it made no difference, he was just as real as the real Zor Arite. They were the same. Kiel stared at Zor¡¯s unwavering determination and it was clear to him that there was nothing he could do to make Zor change his mind. He understood how he felt. If he had been in Zor¡¯s shoes, he would have made the same choice, even though he abhorred the majority of his own family. But still, even if he had no family or reputation to uphold, he would still refuse to forfeit. The idea of losing his life to someone else on purpose¡­ he just couldn¡¯t stand it! Even the thought that his death would help some stranger get a higher score on his exams left a bitter taste in his mouth. Why should someone else have an easy time in their exam when he had suffered in it this much? Finally, Kiel mumbled: ¡°This artifact is not really mine. A friend lent it to me.¡± No sooner had he finished speaking than Zor had asked another question: ¡°Who is your friend?¡± For a moment, Kiel hesitated. Was it really alright for him to tell the truth? Elaru didn¡¯t give him the impression that her egg was a sensitive topic. She treated it as if it was a common object she bought from a street stall. She didn¡¯t even try to hide that it was in her possession. If so, would it be alright if he admitted that it was hers? It should be alright? After all, this Zor Arite was just a Replica who would disappear forever in several minutes. Even if Kiel told him an earth-shattering secret, Zor wouldn¡¯t be able to tell it to anyone. He had even cast a sound isolating barrier around them so that the examiners couldn¡¯t hear their conversation. After reaching the conclusion that he wouldn¡¯t compromise Elaru¡¯s safety, Kiel finally decided to admit the truth. ¡°Her name is¡­¡± Kiel struggled to speak through his constricted throat. ¡°¡­Elaru Wayvin.¡± Kiel had focused all his attention on Zor¡¯s facial expression, so as to catch any flashes of emotions that might help him determine whether Zor found Elaru¡¯s last name familiar. However, as it turned out, he needn¡¯t bothered. For Zor Arite didn¡¯t even attempt to conceal his shock. His face froze, and he stared at Kiel in stupefaction as if he had just witnessed Kiel growing three wings, two heads, and a tail. Zor Arite knew something! Kiel had to restrain himself from sounding too eager, so he only opened his mouth to ask a question after several moments of silence had passed. However, before Kiel¡¯s voice could reach Zor Arite, the silence was broken by Zor¡¯s uproarious laughter. ¡°So that¡¯s how it is¡­!¡± It wasn¡¯t an angry or mocking laughter, nor did it sound like he was laughing at something funny. No, it appeared as if Zor Arite was¡­ Pleased? Zor¡¯s grip on Kiel¡¯s neck slipped, and his aura turned mild, no longer pressing down on Kiel. Kiel wasn¡¯t sure whether Zor was letting him go on purpose or because he found it hard to clutch onto him tightly through the uncontrollable laughter. However, it didn¡¯t matter. Zor¡¯s guard had clearly slipped. This was Kiel¡¯s last chance to turn the tables around! However, if he attempted to cast a new spell, Zor would have enough time to crush his neck. He needed a speedy attack that would leave no opportunity for Zor to dodge! Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed decisively. And he concentrated on the only two spells he had cast on his own body ¨C Morph and Accelerate. A moment later his two hands chopped towards Zor¡¯s hand that was clutching his neck, and his knee kicked towards Zor¡¯s chest, all three Accelerated to their highest possible speed. Zor¡¯s reaction speed was shocking. He surprisingly let go of Kiel¡¯s neck and blocked Kiel¡¯s knee with his hand leisurely, as if to stop a child from throwing a tantrum. However, suddenly, an ivory colored spike erupted from Kiel¡¯s knee and passed straight through Zor¡¯s hand like a hot knife through butter. It didn¡¯t stop there, it continued shooting into Zor¡¯s chest, barely missing his heart. Kiel had chosen to Morph his own bones and use them as weapons! The black robes Zor was wearing turned even blacker around the place where the ivory bone pierced his chest. A small crimson snake streamed down the ivory spike. Kiel stared at Zor in a stupor. He didn¡¯t even attempt to dodge or block the blow! Judging by his composed facial expression that showed no shock or panic, Kiel could tell that in Zor¡¯s eyes, all his actions were considered as child¡¯s play. Zor looked at Kiel¡¯s confused icy blue eyes and grinned widely. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the blood had colored his pearly white teeth crimson, Kiel would think that the injury he inflicted was just an illusion. In fact, it was as if Zor didn¡¯t even notice the injury. As if Kiel was just a little pechuh baring his teeth out of helplessness, he didn¡¯t even bother to feel angry at him. On the contrary, he even continued the conversation nonchalantly as if there was no spike sticking out of his chest: ¡°How close are you to Elaru Wayvin?¡± Kiel didn¡¯t know whether he should be feeling dumbfounded, insulted or appreciative. He shook his head and concentrated on the words Zor had spoken. It couldn¡¯t be that Zor Arite knew Elaru Wayvin? That was impossible. Elaru was 18 this year, but this Replica of Zor Aritewas made 21 years ago. So then¡­ Was he familiar with the Wayvin family or someone with that family name? Kiel instinctively grabbed the hem of Zor¡¯s shirt. ¡°Do you know Elaru Wayvin?¡± The question erupted from his mouth before he could even realize what he was saying or how silly his actions seemed. He couldn¡¯t help it, the desire to know the reason behind Zor¡¯s strange reaction was overwhelming. Zor¡¯s mouth morphed into a wide grin full of hidden meaning. His lips moved slowly as if he had difficulty talking. ¡°Elaru¡­ ¡± Kiel pricked up his ears, his heart leaped into his throat. Has the time finally arrived for him to unveil the secret of Elaru Wayvin? ¡°¡­Wayvin¡­¡± Zor¡¯s gruff voice continued. Kiel stared at Zor heatedly, waiting expectantly for him to finish his sentence. Zor¡¯s mouth formed what seemed to be ¡°is¡± and was just about to voice it. Kiel felt like screaming ¡°Hurry it up!¡± but he didn¡¯t dare interrupt him. Finally, Zor voiced that ¡°is¡± which he intended to voice, Kiel barely managed to hear him over the loud thumping of his own heart.Elaru Wayvin is¡­? Kiel stared fixedly at Zor¡¯s mouth trying to lip read what word he would say next. Yet, before Zor could form the next word, his body turned into countless motes of light, slowly evaporating into nothingness. Kiel¡¯s eyes widened in shock.No! Nonononononono! Elaru Wayvin is what??? The disappearing image of Zor Arite never finished his sentence. The only answer Kiel got to his question was a crafty grin. As Kiel saw that strangely familiar grin his whole body froze. After a moment of stiffness, his head snapped back towards the hourglass. There was no sand remaining in the upper half of the hourglass. His thirty minutes were up. Kiel finally realized that this entire time, Zor had never intended to finish his sentence. He was teasing him all along. The bastard had feigned difficulty speaking, waiting for the last strand of sand to pass through the hourglass, so that his words would forever remain unspoken, eating away at Kiel¡¯s heart. No wonder he didn¡¯t even bother dodging the attack! The time was about to expire anyway! Kiel couldn¡¯t help but wonder if Zor had something against him. Was this a form of revenge? Whatever the case, Kiel had to admit that this kind of payback was incredibly cruel. To be so close to the truth and yet, for it to slip through his fingers just as he was about to reach it. Kiel¡¯s jaw clenched, and his hands balled into fists. He was only remotely aware that Zor wasn¡¯t the only one which disintegrated. The world around him also turned into motes of light, vanishing into thin air. Even the blood Kiel had spit out earlier evaporated into glittering dust. That was the last thing Kiel saw before the world in front of his eyes turned black.
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel felt as if he hadn¡¯t seen her beautiful face for ages, and his heart almost lurched when she smiled at him brightly: ¡°How did it go?¡± Kiel was about to say ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡± But a new voice made his jaw stiffen, and his words got stuck in his throat: ¡°Can¡¯t you tell? When you see a face like that you are better off not asking for details.¡± ¡°Zor Arite.¡± Kiel spoke slowly, looking at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, gauging her reaction. It was almost eerie how Elaru didn¡¯t join the conversation at all. Kiel had never seen her so silent. Or so¡­solemn? Episode 115 – Zor Arite Previously: Kiel¡¯s practical exam ends and the entire world around him turns into motes of light.
Episode 115 ¨C Zor Arite When Kiel opened his eyes next, he was sitting back inside the quiet black room filled with white egg-shaped chairs. At first, he just stood there with a blank stare, his mind still trapped within those 30 long minutes that seemed to last for days. Then he let out a long sigh and marveled at how comfortable he felt in his own skin. He blinked repeatedly and clenched and unclenched his fists. The pain he had been previously feeling disappeared completely. His muscles that have been left sore by Rhur¡¯s electrocution were back to normal. His leg that had been pierced through by his own bone was no longer in bloody agony. It felt as if he was suddenly lying in a soft, cotton bed as opposed to the hard, cold marble floor. The feeling was surreal and as unsettling as it was comfortable. ¡°Is everything in order?¡± An emotionless yet pleasant to the ear voice reached Kiel¡¯s ears. His head snapped up to see Mageheart who, he could swear, wasn¡¯t there before. ¡°Yes. Thank you.¡± Kiel smiled politely to the white haired female. ¡°It¡¯s just taking me a bit to get used to being back in my original body.¡± ¡°Your practical exam is over. You are free to leave anytime.¡± Mageheart¡¯s pale face and purple eyes stared down at him calmly. Kiel wasn¡¯t sure whether she was just stating the facts or if it was a polite way to tell him to hurry up and leave. ¡°Ah¡­about my score¡­¡± Kiel murmured huskily. ¡°The examiners are discussing it right now. You will be able to see your score the day after tomorrow.¡± Mageheart explained in an emotionless voice. ¡°I see¡­¡± Kiel mused and finally got up from his chair. His body felt so much lighter than before, he was almost floating as he made his way towards the exit. He looked back to Mageheart just as he was about to exit, nodded at her and smiled a bright smile. ¡°Until next time, lady Mageheart.¡± He was just about to close the door behind him when he heard Mageheart say in a flat yet somehow, almost confused tone. ¡°I am not a lady. I am Mageheart.¡± Her words made Kiel almost trip on his way out.What the bloody meep was that supposed to mean? * * * As soon as Kiel exited the room, he came face to face with Elaru who had been waiting for him. Kiel felt as if he hadn¡¯t seen her beautiful face for ages, and his heart almost lurched when she smiled at him brightly: ¡°How did it go?¡± Only then did the full brunt of the last 30 minutes hit Kiel and his face fell. Horrible. He thought but didn¡¯t voice it out loud. He didn¡¯t need to voice it either, his sullen face spoke quite clearly. Was he defeated? Not quite, but¡­ He couldn¡¯t be considered victorious either. This type of ¡°victory¡± felt worse than a defeat. Kiel felt as if he was nowhere near prepared for this. He had no gear, no medicine, no specialization. He felt inferior, insecure, inadequate. ¡°What happened?¡± Elaru tilted her head curiously. Kiel was about to say ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡± But a new voice made his jaw stiffen, and his words got stuck in his throat: ¡°Can¡¯t you tell? When you see a face like that you are better off not asking for details.¡± Kiel¡¯s head rigidly turned to the side and only then did he notice that Elaru was not alone. Next to her stood an argel with warm chocolate colored eyes and light brown hair ¨C Arion Urwin, He must have run into Elaru when he was going down to take his own exam. Arion looked reproachfully at Elaru as if disappointed by her lack of emotional intelligence, and then he leaned closer to her nonchalantly and whispered under his breath: ¡°I reckon he must feel unsatisfied about his performance. No doubt he got some kind of a tricky opponent like his brother did last year.¡± By the way how Arion tried to speak without moving his lips, Kiel assumed that he was not supposed to hear that. However, he had sorely underestimated Kiel¡¯s hearing. ¡°You¡¯re right. My opponents were indeed tricky.¡± Kiel smiled brightly, forced to remain polite even though all he wanted to do was just glare and tell Arion to get lost. He had just gone through a mentally exhausting battle, he had no patience to deal with an overly noisy person like Arion Urwin. He expected some rest time, yet what was waiting for him was not anywhere near the peace and quiet he wanted. And as expected, even though Arion had just advised Elaru not to ask about it, he couldn¡¯t restrain his instinctual Urwin response: ¡°How so? Who did you get?¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Kiel didn¡¯t respond right away, torn between whether he should tell the truth or avoid answering. In the end, he decided that he might as well answer truthfully. ¡°Zor Arite.¡± Kiel spoke slowly, looking at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, gauging her reaction. He thought he saw her momentarily freeze but her expression soon turned half-shocked half-empathetic. Arion, on the other hand, sucked in a breath and exclaimed. ¡°Bloody meep! That is some horrific luck!¡± Tell me about it.Kiel suppressed an eye roll and instead motioned for them to move up the stairs, instead of talking in the corridor. The three of them slowly made their way upwards. ¡°Zor Arite was a genius, you know? One of the best men Purge ever had! He explored more uncharted areas of the forbidden zone in his 22 years of life than everyone else had in the last century.¡± Arion continued to chatter. ¡°Not only was he an amazing Purger, but he was also a genius warlock and a sealer. Such a pity that he died.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Kiel agreed, and this time, when he glanced at Arion, his irritation towards him lessened by quite a bit. This chatterbox might be annoying, but he was just a person he needed right now. For he needed information on Zor Arite. Kiel let out a sad sigh, looking as if he lamented the fact that the fates were so cruel to take away such a young and outstanding individual as Zor Arite. Then he added nonchalantly: ¡°It really makes me wonder how such a person could have died¡­¡± Arion¡¯s chocolate eyes beamed in pleasure that he knew the answer. ¡°Apparently, on one of his expeditions, his battalion ran into an extremely dangerous Tainted unlike any other seen to date. It was so vicious, so powerful, that none of the Purge stood a chance against it. Zor Arite took it upon himself to delay the monster, giving his men time to evacuate the premises.¡± Arion sighed sadly. ¡°They say it was an earth-shattering battle. Zor did his best to last until his men retreated, but he¡­ couldn¡¯t do the same. He had a Beacon, of course, could have teleported to the city, but he chose to die before putting innocents in danger. The monstrosity had bitten into his shoulder, you see, if he had teleported, he would be bringing it back to the city with him.¡± Arion paused to catch his breath. ¡°Zor managed to finish off the monstrosity eventually, after a strenuous battle, but at that point, he had no strength left to activate a Beacon. It was tragic, really, he ended up bleeding to death before the Purge managed to rescue him.¡± Kiel feigned paying close attention to Arion, but instead, his attention was on Elaru. Her face was an emotionless mask, and her aura didn¡¯t reveal any of her thoughts either. She seemed to be familiar with the story for she showed no surprise. However, she didn¡¯t show much other emotion either. One would expect her to have some kind of reaction, perhaps pity, anger, or sadness? But there was nothing. It was as if she was doing her bestnotto show a reaction. ¡°At least they recovered his body. It would be such an injustice for such a great man to rot inside a monster¡¯s stomach.¡± Kiel mused, thinking how with all the plots and treachery of the nobles, he would never believe a person dead unless he saw their body. ¡°Yeah, thankfully they recovered it. There was a big funeral and everything. The entire Purge assembled. There were lanterns and pyres, long speeches, everyone was crying. The ceremony lasted for two days and two nights. They scattered his ashes into the wind to forever watch over Halnea. After the funeral, the Purge even erected a monument in his memory in front of their headquarters.¡± Arion talked excitedly as if he had been present, his face beaming, which was quite ironic, considering that he was talking about a funeral. ¡°My mom told me all about it.¡± Arion added under his breath. ¡°She says it was the biggest event of the decade. Everyone attended. You know, it is rare for a member of Arite family to die young. If all nobles didn¡¯t make an appearance, it would be considered rude.¡± Kiel sighed again with feigned sadness and pity. ¡°How did the Arite family take it? Losing the future head of the argel branch must have hit them hard.¡± It was almost eerie how Elaru didn¡¯t join the conversation at all. Kiel had never seen her so silent. Or so¡­solemn? Arion didn¡¯t seem to notice the lack of Elaru¡¯s almost omnipresent smile, nor her peculiar behavior. ¡°Howcouldthey take it? They did their best to recover from it. But it didn¡¯t go so well. You see, Rine Arite was very close to Zor. She was simply devastated when he died!¡± Kiel¡¯s heart jumped at the mention of Rine¡¯s name. That was the person Zor had asked him about! ¡°What happened?¡± Kiel almost failed to restrain the urgency from seeping into his voice. ¡°Well, she was supposed to succeed her father, Meilin, as the head of the elibu branch of the Arite family, but Zor¡¯s death hit her hard, and she hasn¡¯t been the same ever since. Has been cooped up within the Arite mainhouse henceforth.¡± When Kiel failed to glean anything from Elaru¡¯s solemn face, his eyes dropped downwards, noticing that her fists were clenched so tightly that her tanned knuckles turned white. So, shewasagitated! Now if only he could figure out why¡­ Arion, completely oblivious to the tension, shook his head sadly and continued. ¡°Well, Rine recovered eventually. Married her older brother, Councilman Edaus Arite, and has had two kids with him. Although she still doesn¡¯t leave the mainhouse, she often appears on those fancy dress parties Arites throw every year.¡± Usually, a mention of a blood brother and a sister marrying would be a hot topic causing much gossip. However, the situation was completely different when it came to the Arite family. When it came to the Arite family, a shocking topic would be if one of them married an outsider. It was because, out of all families, Arites were the most bent on bloodline purity. They wanted to avoid diluting their divine bloodline inherited from their god ancestors. They laid the most importance in keeping their impeccable genes that granted them abilities above everyone else. This was exactly the reason why their unique hair and eye colors never spread outside of the Arite family. And it was also why all Arites had similar desirable qualities such as their astonishingly beautiful appearance, high intelligence, and high magic ability. Arites never married into other families, however, extremely rarely, they would allow their members to marry an outsider into the Arite family. Only those which had outstanding genes that would improve their already flawless gene pool, such as geniuses of incredible inherent talent or wielders of an Aethernea, would be allowed into the family. Arites selectively bred to create the most perfect offspring possible. It was a harsh practice that left no freedom for the Arite members to choose who to marry or have children with. Yet, it was undoubtedly very effective ¨C a prime reason why Arites stood above everyone else to this very day. It also created a strange cohesion inside the Arite family, making them the most united noble family which never had internal power struggles.
Coming up in the next episode: Arion blinked confusedly. ¡°Your guesses are too darn accurate!¡± ¡°Where did you get such a powerful artifact?¡± Kiel asked nonchalantly as if he was just making small talk. ¡°Fascinating.¡± Kiel almost purred in his husky voice.¡°You know, something very curious happened earlier in the exam.¡± Elaru¡¯s large eyes looked at Kiel so emotionlessly it was eerie.¡°Is¡­ that¡­ right?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed suspiciously.¡°Aren¡¯t you worried the Arite family will see you using one of their artifacts?¡± Yes, that was it. He was just being cautious. Kiel was quick to conclude that his sudden interest in Elaru¡¯s matters surely didn¡¯t imply that he had an interest inher. Cause that certainly wasn¡¯t the case. Episode 116 – Seed of Aegis Previously: Kiel¡¯s practical exam ends and the entire world around him turns into motes of light. Mageheart tells him that he will see his score two days from now. When he exits the room, he finds Elaru and Arion waiting for him. Kiel subtly extracts information from Arion about Zor Arite, finding out that he died a heroic death 18 years ago which had a great impact on the Arite family, especially Rine Arite who was close to Zor. * * * Arites selectively bred to create the most perfect offspring possible. It was a harsh practice that left no freedom for the Arite members to choose who to marry or have children with. Yet, it was undoubtedly very effective ¨C a prime reason why Arites stood above everyone else to this very day. It also created a strange cohesion inside the Arite family, making them the most united noble family which never had internal power struggles.
Episode 116 ¨C Seed of Aegis There was no discrimination based on ability because every Arite was extremely capable and thus valued by the family. There was no need for Arites to struggle for power to secure the future of their offspring, because, in the Arite family, personal ability decided everything. They also imposed many strict magical contracts onto their members to ensure the utmost loyalty of their members as well as ensuring that the Arite blood stays within the Arite family. ¡°Arites losttwosuccessors just like that? Tragic.¡± Kiel¡¯s forehead creased with a troubled frown. And this time, he didn¡¯t need to feign distress. Hearing that Rine Arite had not been the same since Zor died disturbed Kiel, because it was highly likely that Rine was the soulmate of Zor. What if the severing of an Aetherneal bond wasn¡¯t harmless after all and Zor¡¯s death had a hard impact on Rine on more than just an emotional level? ¡°Horrible, right? They never had something like that happen before, ever. Mentioning that event is a sure way to kill the mood of any party with Arites present.¡± As the three of them reached the exit of the Replica Dungeon, Arion looked left and right, and conspiratorially whispered. Abruptly, Elaru spoke up, for the first time during their conversation: ¡°Arion, you should hurry back down. Your exam will be starting soon.¡± Both Kiel and Arion looked back at Elaru startled. It was as if, today, Elaru and Kiel had completely switched roles. Kiel was the one happily conversing with Arion while Elaru was the one who wanted to shoo him away. Even Arion suddenly felt like this situation was extremely bizarre. He didn¡¯t quite want to leave just yet, especially because he finally felt as if Kiel was warming up to him, but there was no denying that Elaru was right. His practical examwouldbe starting soon. While Arion hesitated for a moment, Elaru¡¯s previously solemn face erupted in a wide grin, and she patted him on his back. ¡°Good luck and Godspeed!¡± ¡°How did you know I am participating in a race?!¡± Arion gaped, clearly misunderstanding Elaru¡¯s ¡°godspeed¡± statement. Elaru was startled but quickly recovered. ¡°A lucky guess.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Arion blinked confusedly. ¡°Your guesses are too darn accurate!¡± He waved at the two of them friendly. ¡°Well, then, I¡¯m off. See you guys later.¡± Both Kiel and Elaru plastered on a slight smile and waved him off. As soon as Arion¡¯s figure left their line of sight, both of their smiles were wiped off without a trace. ¡°Why the sudden interest in Zor Arite?¡±Elaru asked Kiel telepathically as they made their way towards the tables in the courtyard. Even though Kiel was trying to be subtle, his efforts might be able to fool Arion, but not Elaru who knew that he rarely showed interest in others. Instead of answering her, Kiel held up his hand towards her with the Seed of Aegis in his palm. ¡°Thanks. This egg of yours was very useful.¡± Elaru looked at him suspiciously, unsure if there was a hidden meaning in his words, but eventually took the egg back. ¡°Glad to hear it.¡± ¡°Where did you get such a powerful artifact?¡± Kiel asked nonchalantly as if he was just making small talk. ¡°Hmmm? Papa gave it to me.¡± Elaru murmured quietly. ¡°Is there a way to activate it or deactivate it remotely? It would be great if one could use it to guard their things while they were gone.¡±Kiel commented, looking up at the clear sky. ¡°Of course, there is. Didn¡¯t I use it to guard our stuff while we were in Hot Pot?¡±Elaru who was usually full of smiles was anything but smiling. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out where this conversation was going. ¡°Fascinating.¡± Kiel almost purred in his husky voice.¡°You know, something very curious happened earlier in the exam.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°When I ran into Zor Arite¡­ he just pointed his finger towards this egg of yours¡­ and just like that¡­ it deactivated.¡± Elaru¡¯s large teal eyes looked at Kiel so emotionlessly it was eerie.¡°Is¡­ that¡­ right?¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°Yes. Very curious. It was as though he¡­ knew how to operate it.¡±Kiel smirked, enjoying the feeling of finally getting under Elaru¡¯s skin. Elaru still showed no change of expression. Even her voice was flat.¡°Curious indeed¡­¡± ¡°He seemed very surprised to find me in possession of¡­what did he call it?¡±Kiel pretended to think.¡°Ah yes! The Seed of Aegis.¡± Elaru¡¯s face finally moved. She sighed softly and looked Kiel straight into his eyes.¡°Sheesh. You could have just asked about it. No need to beat around the bush.¡± ¡°But would you have answered if I just asked?¡± Elaru ignored his question.¡°The reason why Zor Arite knew how to use it was because¡­ well¡­ it¡¯s because he was the one who created it 22 years ago. And the reason why it¡¯s named the Seed of Aegis is because Shield of Aegis inspired Zor Arite to create it. This egg is basically a simplified version of the Shield of Aegis. And when I say simplified, I mean, a version that can be cast using arcane magic.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed suspiciously.¡°Aren¡¯t you worried the Arite family will see you using one of their artifacts?¡± Elaru frowned, and her mouth twitched into a pout.¡°It¡¯s not one oftheirartifacts. It was made by Zor Arite. It¡¯s one ofhisartifacts. If he chose to give it to someone, it¡¯s his business. Papa didn¡¯t steal the artifact. If he had, he wouldn¡¯t know how to use it.¡± Seeing that Kiel¡¯s suspicious look didn¡¯t lessen in the slightest, Elaru added.¡°Besides, I doubt there are many Arites who even know about its existence. His soulmate might be the only one who knows about it.¡± ¡°Rine Arite?¡±Kiel inquired. ¡°Yes.¡±Elaru confirmed. ¡°How did your father get his hands on such a precious artifact? Was Zor Arite on close terms with your dad?¡± ¡°If you want to hear details about it, you¡¯re going to have to ask papa.¡±Elaru shrugged. ¡°Well he isn¡¯t here for me to ask, is he?¡±Kiel snorted derisively. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll meet him eventually. After all, you¡¯re my soulmate.¡±Elaru¡¯s unusually solemn face finally returned to her usual radiant smile. And when that smile appeared, Kiel¡¯s doom and gloom inexplicably evaporated, leaving only curiosity behind:¡°But you doknowthe story behind it, don¡¯t you?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes twinkled mischievously as she shrugged, her lush lips slightly curved at the side. Kiel sighed in half-agitation and half-disappointment. He knew she wouldn¡¯t tell him. And the worst thing about it is that he didn¡¯t even have the right to be mad. She had no obligation to share her personal life story with him. And in fact, if she pried into his, he¡¯d be the first to get furious about it. But it didn¡¯t stop him from feeling curious. He wasn¡¯t even surewhyhe felt so interested in it. He never felt so interested in someone else¡¯s private matters before. Ah, but her private matters might involveyou. A voice whispered in his head.It is your right to investigate anything that might involve you in some way. Yes, that was it. He was just being cautious. Kiel was quick to conclude that his sudden interest in Elaru¡¯s matters surely didn¡¯t imply that he had an interest inher. Because that certainly wasn¡¯t the case. Not at all. ¡°What happened in your exam? Did Zor create trouble for you?¡± Elaru¡¯s musical voice interrupted Kiel¡¯s thoughts. She was back to her usually cheery self. ¡°Not really. He was quite pleasant¡­ compared to the other Replicas I had to deal with.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes flashed with displeasure at the memory. ¡°Which reminds me¡­ there is one point that bothers me that I wanted to discuss with you.¡± Kiel suddenly brought his hand to his eye level and cast a Temperature spell on it. ¡°At one point, one of the Replicas caused an explosion that should have burned me to a crisp¡­¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes that were looking at him diverted to look at his hand instead. Kiel kept increasing the temperature of his hand, testing if his conjecture was right, and indeed, the air around his hands started to move around agitatedly, creating visible heat distortion. However, even though the temperature was far above what mortal skin could handle, his hand was still not showing any signs of being burnt. ¡°So, I was right.¡± Kiel said more to himself. ¡°My body has a higher resistance to heat than normal.¡± Then he looked at Elaru inquiringly. ¡°Does this have anything to do with that pill you gave me?¡± Elaru¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up. ¡°Oh! You might be right! It has got a feather of a firebird as its main ingredient. It¡¯s highly possible that it has an additional effect of increasing fire resistance.¡± Without further ado, Elaru followed Kiel¡¯s suit and increased the temperature of her own hand. ¡°It indeed increased my fire resistance. Good catch.¡± Elaru seemed sincerely surprised by the revelation which made all other questions Kiel intended to ask die in his throat. She didn¡¯t know any more about this matter than he did. Kiel sighed, turned his head away from Elaru, and started walking towards the spot in the park where they usually rested between exams. Instead of his mood improving by the revelation, his aura turned even sourer. The blasted redhead wasn¡¯t even there, and she still helped him win over 3 out of 4 of his opponents! It was because of the Firebird Flame pill she had given him that he managed to survive and eventually defeat Deora. It was the D.I. report that she gave him with that ¡°Firecracker¡± tip that helped him defeat Rhur. It was her egg that made him survive that last explosion. And most likely, it was that same egg coupled with her name that made Zor behave so strangely. No. Don¡¯t think like that.He told himself. It was his own body and willpower that helped him endure it all. His own wit and skill that managed to dispose of all his enemies. It was his own ability that helped him cast that earth shield in the nick of time, saving his life, a feat he still wasn¡¯t sure how he managed to pull off. Besides, he was simply incredibly unlucky in this exam. First, he had gotten Deora, who wielded flames that Kiel had trouble dealing with because of a childhood trauma. And even if one ignored that, Deora wasn¡¯t a pushover in the slightest. His battle capability was surely close to 23 points, he must have lost points in his exam because of his rash behavior and lack of strategy, bringing him closer to 20, which would explain why he was chosen as one of his opponents. And then there was Rhur, whose battle capability was not a point short of 25, but who due to bad luck, got a lower score. And of course, the cherry on top was Zor, who was as close to invincibility one could get. What kind of shitty luck was this? How unlucky could he be to get three opponents whose battle capability was close to 25? Who said the Muni exams were fair?? It isn¡¯t that his battle ability didn¡¯t deserve 25 points, it¡¯s just that his opponents were all close or above 25 points, making him appear weaker than he actually was. While Kiel was torn between feeling powerless and unlucky, Elaru walked behind him, her eyebrows furrowed. She gazed at her hand that was turning slightly pink and then back at Kiel, her frown deepening. It was true that Firebird Flame pill helped increase fire resistance¡­but¡­ she had eaten two of them, while Kiel had eaten only one. So, why is it, that right now, her hand was almost burning, while its temperature was nowhere near the temperature Kiel¡¯s hand had just endured? She dispelled the temperature spell, her eyes sliding up and down Kiel¡¯s body, deep in thought.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Are you worried I would commit suicide?¡± The muscles of her face slightly twitched before she let out an incredulous, hoarse reply. ¡°I am not gay.¡± ¡°Welcome back, Elaria.¡± The female looked at Elaru up and down and then replied blandly. ¡°You are still alive. I¡¯d say your luck is pretty good.¡± Episode 117 – Elaru’s Practical Exam Previously: Kiel¡¯s practical exam ends and the entire world around him turns into motes of light. Mageheart tells him that he will see his score two days from now. When he exits the room, he finds Elaru and Arion waiting for him. Kiel subtly extracts information from Arion about Zor Arite, finding out that he died a heroic death 18 years ago which had a great impact on the Arite family, especially Rine Arite who was close to Zor. Elaru admits that her artifact is called the Seed of Aegis and that its original creator was Zor Arite, however, she refuses to reveal how her father got his hands on the artifact.
Episode 117 ¨C Elaru¡¯s Practical Exam ? The Purge headquarters, Ashar ? Nelaira Helyot stared at the items placed in front of her with a blank expression. Her gray hair fell around her head messily giving her a frightening appearance even when she was trying to look amiable. Although, she certainlywasn¡¯ttrying to look amicable right now. ¡°What is this?¡± She picked up a pink crayon and stared at Nalen Talath with a baffled expression. In response to her shock, he smiled a smile that made Nelaira¡¯s hair stand on end and responded in a sickeningly sweet voice. ¡°It¡¯s a crayon.¡± You don¡¯t say!Nelaira gawked at him strangely for several seconds, but in the end, she managed to swallow down all the witty remarks and settled for: ¡°Why did you bring me¡­crayons?¡± ¡°Because you asked for a tool with which you can draw and write, of course.¡± Nalen Talath responded in a tone that suggested that the answer was obvious. ¡°I asked for a pen or a pencil. Bloody meep, even quills would do! Why in the name of the gods did you bring me crayons?¡± Nelaira¡¯s voice broke midway. ¡°Pens, pencils, and quills all have sharp tips and can be dangerous if used (in)correctly. The damage you can do with crayons, however, is quite limited.¡± Nalen explained patiently as if he was explaining that one plus one equaled two. Nelaira rolled her eyes exasperatedly. ¡°What could I do? Poke a hole through layers of solid metal?¡± ¡°Better be safe than sorry.¡± Nalen Talath shrugged, which looked odd, considering that he still had his hands clasped behind his back. ¡°Are you worried I would commit suicide?¡± Nelaira asked in a low voice, avoiding looking at the slits that were Nalen¡¯s eyes. He, however, just wordlessly smiled. ¡°I assure you, if I really wanted to commit suicide, I could still do it, even with crayons.¡± Nelaira spoke grudgingly, her forehead creased in a frown. ¡°Do you want me to take away the crayons too?¡± Nalen still continued to smile amiably, his tone seemingly containing no sign of a threat. However, Nelaira knew better. As a Purger, she had a keen sense of danger, and no matter how close to her deathbed she was, her mind was still clear enough to pick up on it. Her face darkened, and she changed the topic, for the time being, pointing to the thing next to the box of crayons. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a romance novel you asked for.¡± Nalen resumed in the same tone as before, as if he was talking to a child who had trouble understanding what he thought to be obvious. Nelaira looked at the cover, her lips pressed tightly together.Is he testing me by bringing me such novels? If I didn¡¯t complain¡­would that be suspicious? She fidgeted slightly, before musing: ¡°This isn¡¯t romance, it is erotica¡­¡± Nalen¡¯s lips curled into a smirk. ¡°My mistake. I don¡¯t know my way around romance fiction. If you don¡¯t want it, I¡¯ll just take it away.¡± Nelaira flipped a few pages and frowned. ¡°¡­and it is about a lesbian couple¡­¡± Gods only know where he managed to find such a book. Lesbian fiction is very scarce. ¡°Is there a problem?¡± Nalen continued to stare at her smilingly, seeming not seeing any issues. The muscles of Nelaira¡¯s face slightly twitched before she let out an incredulous, hoarse reply. ¡°I am not gay.¡± ¡°Thank you for sharing.¡± Nelaira glared at him. ¡°My point is, I would appreciate it if you brought me what I asked for next time¡­¡± ¡°No promises.¡± Nalen Talah turned on his heels and leisurely made his way out of Nelaira¡¯s cell, not bothering to say any goodbyes. Nelaira continued to glare at his back until the doors of her room slammed shut, and the sound of Nalen¡¯s footsteps disappeared down the corridor. Even after she was left alone in her cell, she still didn¡¯t allow herself to smile in self-satisfaction, afraid that a single smile would ruin everything she had worked hard to achieve.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. * * * After Kiel had returned from his practical exam, several hours passed before it was time for Elaru to take hers. In the meantime, Elaru had mentioned what practical exam she had chosen. Unlike Kiel, who had applied for the Battle Royale, Elaru had applied for ¡°Apprehend and rescue¡± exam. According to her, she could have applied for several different exams and managed to get full points in each, however, the reason why she applied for this one, in particular, was because she wanted to showcase the range and keenness of her mana sense. Or rather, she wanted to use her Aethernea of Sight to create an impression that she had a very keen mana sense. This way, in the future, when she saw things that normal people wouldn¡¯t be able to, she could use her ¡°keen mana sense¡± as an explanation for it. By outright claiming to have a keen mana sense instead of trying to hide it, she would be less suspicious. People would take this reasonable explanation as truth and wouldn¡¯t bother prying deeper into it. She was basically hiding in plain sight. Thus, when the time of her exam arrived, she made her way towards 6th floor. Kiel politely wished her good luck but didn¡¯t send her off. * * * The room on the 6th floor of Replica Dungeon looked exactly the same as the room on the 4th floor ¨C it was entirely black with white egg-shaped chairs. The only difference between them was the large white number engraved on the door. When Elaru opened the door with the number six, what waited for her on the other side was an almost entirely white figure with the most flawless face she had ever seen. What followed the flawless face was just as flawless voice: ¡°Welcome back, Elaria.¡± As she heard the softly spoken sentence, Elaru¡¯s emotionless face was broken by an involuntary twitch of her mouth. She had not expected such a strange greeting. After all, this was her first time using the Replica Dungeon, and she had never seen, let alone talked to the white haired female before. But even so, when she intended to argue she realized she had no grounds on which to argue. She couldn¡¯t say that she hadn¡¯t been here before, nor could she claim that the white figure before her was a stranger. After a brief hesitation, Elaru settled for saying: ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡± The white-haired female paused, staring at Elaru blankly, before asking: ¡°Is that not your name?¡± Elaru opened her mouth to respond but closed it again. Then she opened her mouth once more, only to close it again. On her third attempt, what came out of her throat was: ¡°I have many names¡­¡± Her voice uncharacteristically apathetic, she continued. ¡°But currently, I am Elaru Wayvin. Refer to me as such.¡± The female fixed her emotionless purple eyes on Elaru. Most people would get lost in those purple eyes that resembled the night sky with their golden, pink and blue lights, yet, Elaru paid no attention to them at all. She didn¡¯t even wait for the female to offer her a seat and explain the proceedings. Instead, she went straight to the nearest empty chair and sat down. ¡°Alright, Elaru Wayvin.¡± The female confirmed in a voice even more apathetic than Elaru¡¯s, as if it was a contest of who could make their voice sound more dead. ¡°Which two artifacts do you wish to carry into the exam?¡± Elaru, however, ignored her question and asked her own: ¡°Is this safe? I¡¯m not going to die from this, am I?¡± The white-haired woman continued to stare at her emotionlessly. ¡°No one has ever died from the operation of the Replica Dungeon.¡± Elaru looked up unconvinced, locking eyes with the female. ¡°Oh? What about the incident from 18 years ago?¡± ¡°That fatality was not due to the operation of the Replica Dungeon.¡± ¡°Yeah, it was just bad luck.¡± Elaru sneered, but the female didn¡¯t seem to catch on to her sarcasm. ¡°I suppose it could be attributed to bad luck.¡± The white-haired beauty agreed straightforwardly. ¡°Right, right. I have no desire to lose my fragile little life due to ¡°bad luck¡±. And considering how unlucky I am¡­¡± Elaru¡¯s musical voice echoed in the black room with fake cheerfulness. The female looked at Elaru up and down and then replied blandly. ¡°You are still alive. I¡¯d say your luck is pretty good.¡± Elaru¡¯s soft smile turned into a gape. ¡°Is this your attempt at a joke?¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t have a sense of humor.¡± The female continued to respond in a plain yet completely serious tone. Elaru placed her hand over her face and exhaled tiredly.This conversation is completely pointless¡­ ¡°Mageheart, will there be a problem with the replication process?¡± ¡°No. The process will proceed as usual.¡± ¡°Will you be able to sustain my body through the absence of my mind and soul?¡± ¡°Yes. I am aware your current vessel requires high maintenance. Be at ease. I will supply it with enough mana to sustain it.¡± ¡°Alright. Then start the exam.¡± ¡°Which two artifacts do you want to keep?¡± The female repeated. ¡°My necklace only.¡± Elaru finally replied, holding her crystal pendant between her thumb and index finger. * * * When the world once again appeared within Elaru¡¯s eyes, she was standing in front of a tall sea of trees. She blinked her long thick eyelashes several times before her eyes focused on the argel man standing right in front of her. The man looked to be in his late fifties or sixties, making it difficult to tell whether his short gray hair was the result of his original color graying or if his hair color was originally gray. He was dressed in the Peacekeeper white and gold uniform that, judging by its awe-inspiring design, marked him to be of a high rank. The man¡¯s light gray eyes looked down strictly at Elaru. ¡°Good. You are finally here, cadet. We have no time to lose.¡± If the man had spoken to someone else, they would have surely looked behind themselves expecting to see the person the gray-eyed man was talking to. However, Elaru, whose Aethernea of Sight gave her a clear overview of her surroundings, realized immediately that the man was talking to her. It took only a moment for Elaru to comprehend exactly what was going on. The practical exam she had chosen was tailored for future Peacekeepers. So it wasn¡¯t surprising that the person in front of her treated her as if she was a Peacekeeper under his command. He was probably here to give her the details of the exam. Elaru decided to play along and did a salute of respect that consisted of placing a clenched right fist on top of the chest, where the heart ought to be. It was a customary way for the Peacekeepers and the Purge to greet their superiors. The man nodded at her, pleased with her actions, and continued: ¡°Last night, a band of bandits broke in and robbed our victim. They took 500 gold coins as well as a¡­ hostage.¡± The man¡¯s face momentarily contorted into a strange expression as he spoke the word ¡°hostage¡±. But a moment later he resumed, in his usual strict and down to earth voice: ¡°Our investigation shows that the perpetrators are hiding within this valley. We have narrowed down their possible hiding spot to a relatively small area. Your mission is to find their exact whereabouts and rescue the hostage. Your utmost priority is to secure your own life as well as the lives of your partner and the hostage.¡± Partner?Elaru¡¯s eyebrow shot upwards, but she didn¡¯t interrupt the man¡¯s speech. A Peacekeeper would be harshly scolded if they were rude to their superior. ¡°If you can manage to apprehend the perpetrators without causing them any serious injury, you should do so. However, if you feel it is beyond your capabilities, you are to shoot a signal flare, and we shall immediately send back up.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Why does this exam force me to have a mission partner? What is her role in this exam? Will she be helpful or a liability? It took Elaru considerable effort to prevent a fit of giggles threatening to erupt from her throat. Orie bowed politely, her soft pink lips spread in a sincere smile. ¡°Hi, just call me Orie. I¡¯m glad to be of service.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°But, who says we can¡¯t move on ¡®flat ground¡¯?¡± Episode 118 – Search Plan Previously: Kiel subtly extracts information from Arion about Zor Arite, finding out that he died a heroic death 18 years ago which had a great impact on the Arite family, especially Rine Arite who was close to Zor. Elaru admits that her artifact is called the Seed of Aegis and that its original creator was Zor Arite, however, she refuses to reveal how her father got his hands on the artifact. Elaru visits the Replica Dungeon, where she has an interesting encounter with Mageheart before the start of Elaru¡¯s practical exam. Upon entering the world of her exam, Elaru is faced with a peacekeeper who introduces the goal of the exam ¨C finding and apprehending several bandits.
Episode 118 ¨C Search Plan The man paused his speech, and his stern look lessened a bit. ¡°Any questions?¡± Elaru didn¡¯t hesitate at all, immediately firing a respectful barrage of questions: ¡°How many bandits are there?¡± ¡°A group of 4. However, it is possible that they had comrades waiting for them in the forest so there might be more of them.¡± ¡°Their races?¡± ¡°Two argel, two elibu.¡± ¡°Who is the hostage?¡± As Elaru asked this peculiar question, the stern man in front of her suddenly looked¡­awkward? Finally, he coughed and replied in a sour tone: ¡°Mr. Whiskers¡­¡± Elaru¡¯s barrage of questions suddenly died in her throat, her business expression replaced by an incredulous look. Several seconds of silence had passed before she continued, this time in an equally awkward tone: ¡°What does he look like?¡± The man steeled his expression as he replied. ¡°Thin, one-meter long body, brown striped fur¡­¡± However, even though he tried his best to be completely professional in his demeanor, his voice, that cracked and faded out, gave him away. This time, the speechless silence lasted for five seconds straight. Elaru knew that there was no robbery ¨C this robbery was just a made-up scenario. Examiners probably created a randomized terrain and hired several Quest Seekers to play the role of bandits. But even though Elaru knew this wasn¡¯t real, her mind couldn¡¯t help but imagine a band of idiots rummaging through a house of a rich old lady. Somewhere in the middle of their heist, one of the morons would come up with an idea to kidnap the old lady¡¯s pet and ask for ransom. Or perhaps, they would decide to take Mr. Whiskers as a hostage to ensure that they would be able to escape from the Peacekeepers pursuing them. Either way, no matter how she tried picturing four badass bandits, the whole situation kept turning comical inside her head. It took Elaru considerable effort to prevent a fit of giggles threatening to erupt from her throat. ¡°A pet lunar?¡± Elaru¡¯s voice jumped an octave and cracked at the end of her guess. ¡°No, a sh¨¦fur¡­¡± The man grunted. Elaru stepped back involuntarily with wide eyes, nearly blurting out: ¡°But sh¨¦furs don¡¯t have whiskers¡­!¡± However, seeing the constipated yet steely expression of the man, she figured that it would be better to just change the subject. ¡°Do you have the map of the valley? Any clues on which area the perpetrators might be in?¡± Relieved that the discussion was moving away from the awkward topic, the man¡¯s expression eased up briefly before resuming his strict businesslike demeanor once again. ¡°Your partner will explain the rest.¡± The man looked over Elaru¡¯s shoulder and signaled a person over. Elaru had noticed that the man in front of her wasn¡¯t the only other person present, however, she didn¡¯t have time to look around before the man started acting out his role. Thus, only when this person came forward to stand next to the man, was Elaru able to take her appearance in. She was an argel that looked young enough to be a university student herself. She wore a ranger uniform made out of olive green cotton and brown leather that traded beauty for practicality. Still, even though her uniform lessened the visibility of her curves, it couldn¡¯t cover up her charm. Her facial features were warm and gentle, especially her earnest honey colored eyes. Her chestnut brown hair striped with various shades of blonde and brown was braided messily into several knots behind her head and then released into waves. As Elaru¡¯s gaze scanned over the female, another face popped up inside her head. The aura of this female reminded her of the professor they had run into when Kiel was signing up for the exam. Ahon Tonrai, was it? Were they perhaps cousins or siblings?This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Sure enough, the next sentence of the gray-haired man confirmed her guess: ¡°This is Orie Tonrai. She is the gamekeeper of this mountain range. She knows the terrain well, and will help you in your search.¡± Orie bowed politely, her soft pink lips spread in a sincere smile. ¡°Just call me Orie. I¡¯m glad to be of service.¡± She spoke up with a voice just as warm and pleasant as her aura. ¡°Elaru Wayvin, nice to meet you.¡± Elaru mirrored Orie with her own bright smile. The stern look in the man¡¯s gray eyes eased up as he asked: ¡°Any further questions?¡± After pondering briefly, Elaru shook her head: ¡°No. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°In that case, you may begin. You¡¯ve got 25 minutes to complete the mission.¡± The man curtly nodded and then briskly walked away. ¡°Orie, do you have a map?¡± Elaru didn¡¯t even wait for the peacekeeper man to leave earshot before continuing her investigation. ¡°Yes.¡± Orie nodded and reached into the leather messenger bag resting on her hip. She pulled out a rolled-up parchment and handed it to Elaru. Elaru tapped her boot onto the floor, making a stump of earth shoot upwards reaching her chest. She spread the parchment on top of the stump and leaned over it. As seen on the map, the forest started at the south, at Elaru¡¯s current position, and spread far to the north, bordered on the east and west by two parallel mountain ranges. The map depicted paths, the river going through the forest, as well as several clearings and landmarks. East parts of the forest were marked as the potential hiding spot of the bandits. ¡°Can I write over the map?¡± Elaru inquired, flashing a soft smile at Orie. By her friendly actions, one would certainly not be able to tell that her question was only perfunctory. She was expecting a yes. After all, everything inside this world including the map was only a replica, it wouldn¡¯t matter even if she burned it into ashes. The only reason why she had bothered to ask was because the action of scribbling over someone else¡¯s possession without permission would be quite rude. Sure enough, Orie nodded right away, returning the smile. ¡°Go ahead.¡± Not only did she agree, she even pulled out an unsharpened pencil out of her pocket and offered it to Elaru. Elaru took it with a grateful smile, paying no attention to the fact that it needed sharpening. However, she didn¡¯t start writing with it right away. Instead, she started twirling it between her fingers, musing more to herself than to Orie. ¡°Once we locate the perpetrators, we should have at least 10 minutes of time to take care of them. That leaves 15 minutes of search time.¡± Orie blinked her eyelashes, standing silently to the side with a pondering look on her face. Elaru looked up from the map once again to stare at the gamekeeper. ¡°Orie, what kind of assistance are you able to provide during the mission? Can you help me fly or accelerate?¡± When Elaru realized she would be having a partner in this exam, the first question that entered her mind was: ¡°why?¡± What was the role of her partner in this exam? Was Orie Tonrai just a facilitator of the exam, or was she one of the examiners tasked with supervising her? Would this partner be helpful in some way or was she a liability? Is she here only to convey information or will she be able to participate in more than that? Did the exam also test some kind of teamwork? Once the perpetrators are located, will this partner join in on the fight or will Elaru be required to protect her? ¡°Ah¡­ sorry¡­ I am not allowed to help you with magic.¡± Orie bowed her head apologetically. ¡°Also, I don¡¯t really know how to subdue criminals with or without magic, so the most help I can give you, once you find the perpetrators, is to send a signal flare.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Elaru waved her apology away. ¡°I thought that might be the case.¡± ¡°But¡­I can help you find the quickest path to where you want to go and might be able to help you with tracking the bandits.¡± Orie¡¯s head rose up, and a warm smile returned to her face. ¡°I can also climb the trees and serve as a lookout if you¡¯d like?¡± Elaru nodded half-heartedly, her attention returning to the map. She stared at the map for several seconds in silence, and then once again started contemplating under her breath: ¡°Since I am an elibu and you aren¡¯t allowed to help, it isn¡¯t expected from me to be able to fly or accelerate. Which means that I am expected to cover the distance on foot.¡± Elaru paused before continuing: ¡°A highest average speed an A-ranked elibu peacekeeper can maintain for 15 minutes is 70 miles per hour. Considering that this is a forest and not a flat, empty field, the distance we can cover in an hour would be at most two-thirds of the distance we would be able to cover if running on flat ground. However, since we also need to track the bandits, the speed falls even further, being at most half of the original speed.¡± Orie nodded slowly, not quite understanding where this monologue was going. ¡°Thus, the maximum distance that an elibu can cover in 15 minutes is 8.75 miles.¡± Elaru stopped twirling the pencil and drew a half circle with the radius of 8.75 miles around their current position on the map. The half circle went right through the middle of the marked area where bandits were supposed to be, splitting it in half. ¡°Since the examiners would not give a task impossible to complete, the perpetrators are within this area.¡± Elaru tapped the end of her pencil on top of the lower half of the marked area. Elaru¡¯s eyes flashed imperceptibly. Now was the perfect time to do what she came here to do ¨C showcase the sensitivity and range of her mana sense. ¡°Now, the range of my mana sense is 1 mile.¡± Elaru lied. Papa told her that only wielders of Aethernea of Sight could go beyond the range of one mile, so the highest distance she could openly claim to be able to cover was one mile. Elaru proceeded to draw a curved path from the left edge of the marked area to the right edge and then back again, creating a jagged zig-zagging path. ¡°If we follow this path, I will be able to cover this entire area with my mana sense, and thus will be able to pinpoint the location of the perpetrators.¡± She measured the path with her gaze before declaring. ¡°Now, the length of this path is around 20 miles, which means that I will need to travel at the speed of 80 miles per hour to cover it all within 15 minutes.¡± Orie looked at Elaru strangely. ¡°But you just said that the maximum speed an elibu can achieve is 70 miles per hour? And that speed was on the flat ground?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Elaru smirked. ¡°But, who says we can¡¯t move on ¡®flat ground¡¯?¡± Orie cocked her head to the side, her eyebrows furrowing softly. ¡°You mean¡­?¡± ¡°Yes. We can travel by air.¡± Although transmutation magic of elibu cannot be used to accelerate and fly, Morph could be used to increase the density of air particles and lock their position, forcing them to remain in a certain ¡°shape¡±. This would, for all intents and purposes, turn the air solid, allowing the mage to walk on air. Orie¡¯s eyebrows furrowed even more. ¡°But this method isn¡¯t meant to be used for long range travel. Will you be alright?¡± If it were used for long distance travel, the mage would have to constantly recast the spell which would both require a large amount of mana as well as being very mentally and physically draining. Elaru blinked her long black eyelashes charmingly. ¡°I think you misunderstood. I don¡¯t intend to run on air.¡± As if to prove her point, Elaru¡¯s body started floating upwards, startling Orie. ¡°Why would I run when I can fly? The speed I can reach with Acceleration is a whole order of magnitude higher than my running speed.¡± Orie gasped at floating Elaru, finally understanding the purpose of this whole talk. This examinee had access to pure mana! Instead of searching for tracks to find the bandits, Elaru intended to fly over the entire region sweeping it with her mana sense!
Coming up in the next episode: Didn¡¯t they waste all that time and effort for nothing?! The short black-haired woman let out a soft, almost inaudible sigh.No wonder this girl gave Grisia so much trouble¡­ As she turned her back at Orie, she took the opportunity to quickly wipe off cold sweat from her forehead and let out a silent sigh.Man, this exam is hard! Episode 119 – Search Plan Explained Previously: Upon entering the world of her exam, Elaru is faced with a peacekeeper who introduces the goal of the exam ¨C finding and apprehending several bandits. Orie Tonrai, her exam partner, gives Elaru a map of the area which allows her to narrow down the potential whereabouts of the bandits. Elaru decides to quickly fly over the area and detect the bandits through her mana sense. * * * Orie¡¯s eyebrows furrowed even more. ¡°But this method isn¡¯t meant to be used for long range travel. Will you be alright?¡± If it were used for long distance travel, the mage would have to constantly recast the spell which would both require a large amount of mana as well as being very mentally and physically draining. Elaru blinked her long black eyelashes charmingly. ¡°I think you misunderstood. I don¡¯t intend to run on air.¡± As if to prove her point, Elaru¡¯s body started floating upwards, startling Orie. ¡°Why would I run when I can fly? The speed I can reach with Acceleration is a whole order of magnitude higher than my running speed.¡± Orie gasped at floating Elaru, finally understanding the purpose of this whole talk. This examinee had access to pure mana! Instead of searching for tracks to find the bandits, Elaru intended to fly over the entire region sweeping it with her mana sense!
Episode 119 ¨C Search Plan Explained ¡°Uh¡­ that is to say¡­ you are not going to look for tracks??¡± Orie¡¯s wide honey eyes stared at Elaru flabbergasted. Her left hand involuntarily flew up, tucking one of the stray strands of hair behind her ear.This¡­! This¡­? This method also works??In fact, Orie wasn¡¯t the only person with a dumbfounded expression, the expressions of the remaining examiners, who were observing the proceedings from several dozen meters away, were also quite colorful. They had prepared a complicated scenario, testing a wide variety of tracking techniques, containing twists and turns and false leads. Yet¡­in the end¡­their examinee would just skip it all and solve the problem by brute force?? Didn¡¯t they waste all that time and effort for nothing?! The face of Thaddeus Iphis, the peacekeeper who had explained the mission to Elaru Wayvin earlier, stood frozen with his jaw stiff and his gray eyes unusually narrowed. Next to him stood Zakaria Everlith, a short and thin middle-aged elibu, who looked as if a blow of the wind would be enough to snap her like a twig. She was usually the calm voice of reason, rarely showing much emotion in her milky green eyes. Yet now, her phlegmatic disposition cracked with a soft tremble of her lower lip. Even her long black braid seemed to slump. The only examiner who didn¡¯t have a constipated expression was Zerel Reysic, who chuckled in delight, his eyes narrowing into crescent moons due to his wide smile. ¡°Well, well¡­ a rather interesting method, wouldn¡¯t you say so?¡± No one responded to his question. ¡°Um¡­ are you sure this will work? What if the bandits are concealing their presence?¡± Orie voiced her protest. Elaru tsk-tsked as if Orie said something wrong. ¡°Mages who can perfectly conceal their presence don¡¯t grow on trees. If they were so capable, they wouldn¡¯t need to resort to petty thievery.¡± The redhead chuckled softly before continuing. ¡°But for the sake of argument, let¡¯s say that theyarecapable of doing so. Concealing their presence wouldn¡¯t make them vanish. They would still be very much corporeal. Their movement would cause branches to shift, grass to be trampled on. I just need to find an area where I feel the foliage moving without any apparent reason.¡± ¡°The range of their concealment should cover their immediate vicinity. You wouldn¡¯t be able to feel the branches or the grass until they walk past them.¡± Orie pointed out good-naturedly. If the bandits wrapped their minds around themselves to cover up their aura, then it would also cover any mana that was inside that mind cocoon, including the foliage in their vicinity, making them invisible for mana sense. Elaru¡¯s eyes twinkled mischievously. ¡°That might be the case, but wouldn¡¯t it be even more noticeable if grass and branches started popping in and out of existence?¡± If their mana concealment spread to foliage then as they walked foliage that entered their concealment would suddenly become invisible to mana sense, and foliage exiting the range of their concealment would suddenly become visible. Orie opened and closed her mouth several times. In theory, Elaru¡¯s method was possible, but in practice, whose mana sense would be sensitive enough to pick up such small anomalies in a large forest? Orie wanted to argue but couldn¡¯t quite find the right words to express her thoughts. She dreaded she would say something potentially insensitive or unkind. After several seconds of indecisiveness, she settled on: ¡°Will you be alright? Enhancing the precision of your mana sense to such a state must be very tiring.¡± Elaru shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. ¡°It¡¯s only for a short while. It won¡¯t tire me out at all.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Orie didn¡¯t persist on the topic further, deciding to pursue another train of thought. ¡°To be able to find the movements of bandits in such a way, your abilities are worthy of admiration. However, what if the bandits are standing still?¡± ¡°Then they would be even easier to find.¡± Elaru declared confidently, her mouth curving into a small smirk. If Orie had been an elibu, her ears would have surely drooped at the statement, however, since she wasn¡¯t, the only thing that fell was her shoulders.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. She displayed a helpless smile before motioning for Elaru to explain. ¡°If they had set up camp, then the area around them would be void of wildlife making it glaringly obvious. Creatures would vacate their vicinity and avoid coming close, while their concealment would hide the grass around them. All in all, it would create an obvious clearing. Not to mention that if they set camp, there would be equipment in the area ¨C tents, sleeping bags, and who knows what else. It would be a lot of effort to conceal it all. And if they don¡¯t conceal it, I will be able to feel the difference in mana density of their equipment and the air around it.¡± ¡°And if they are treading carefully? Flying invisible above the forest?¡± Even Orie was aware that she was grasping at straws here, but she still clung to hope. Hope that crumbled as soon as Elaru¡¯s playful smirk appeared. ¡°If your bandits were capable enough to both turn invisible and conceal their presence perfectly, you guys wouldn¡¯t have been able to catch any sign of them, let alone follow them to this forest. Why would such capable people bother robbing someone for mere 500 gold and even kidnapping their pet? Don¡¯t tell me they were bored and decided to play a prank?¡± Orie hung her head in shame, tucking another strand of her hair behind her ear. She couldn¡¯t bring herself to say anything else. Even the examiners weren¡¯t allowed to direct how the examinee tackled the problems presented in the practical exam. In a thoughtful attempt of comforting her, Elaru landed back on the ground and patted Orie on the back: ¡°Even if I don¡¯t give it my all and fly at a leisurely pace, I¡¯d be able to sweep this entire area within 5 minutes. If I don¡¯t find any trace of them in that time, I can go back and try to track them down using another method. I¡¯d lose only a bit more than 5 minutes of time. Considering that I don¡¯t need 10 minutes of time to take care of a couple of bandits, I¡¯d have plenty of time to go back and try another method of tracking.¡± This attempt of comforting only made Orie feel worse about the whole matter. She, as one of the examiners, was very clear on the exact abilities of the bandits, and she already knew that there was no chance of Elaru going back and trying another method. This brute force approach¡­would totally work. Not just that, assuming that Elaru¡¯s abilities corresponded to what she claimed them to be, this method was the simplest yet the most effective solution to the problem. Not only would she be able to find the bandits with almost one hundred percent certainty, but it would also be in the record time of 5 minutes. Not to mention that it would save her a lot of effort in finding and interpreting the clues¡­ Orie finally gave up, she smiled helplessly and softly murmured: ¡°Alright¡­ please, lead the way¡­¡± And thus, the strict peacekeeper and the thin black-haired woman also accepted the invertibility of the situation. The short black-haired woman let out a soft, almost inaudible sigh.No wonder this girl gave Grisia so much trouble¡­ The gray-haired peacekeeper rubbed his chin in thought before nodding. ¡°If her mana sense is truly so fate-defying, then she would be an excellent addition to the peacekeepers.¡± He proceeded to take out a small, folded piece of paper from his pocket and unraveled it in front of him. He then took out a pen from the same pocket and scribbled down ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± on the list of names. Trying to recruit a Shadow into the Peacekeepers?The black-haired female looked at the list from the corner of her eyes and couldn¡¯t help but wish her colleague luck: ¡°May the fates be in your favor.¡± Startled by her encouragement, the gray-haired man looked at her suspiciously for a moment before murmuring. ¡°Much appreciated.¡± As the examiners agreed with her method of doing things, Elaru let out an internal breath of relief. Most people in this situation would be worrying about how to find the bandits in such a short amount of time, Elaru on the other hand, was worried about how to come up with valid reasons as to why she could find them so easily. Actually, back then when she was inspecting the map, she had already used her Aethernea of Sight to do a sweep of the designated area, and she was able to find the bandits right away. However, she couldn¡¯t just say ¡°Let¡¯s go that way.¡±, appearing to find them by dumb luck. She could make a prediction of their position, for example, saying that bandits are likely to have settled down near the river. After all, tracking was an art of finding things that had much more to it than simply following tracks. A large part of tracking laid in fine detective work and deducing where things were. However, in the current situation, all the deductions she could make would be flimsy, for she didn¡¯t have enough information to make them. Even if she found the bandits following such unconvincing guesswork, the examiners wouldn¡¯t be impressed and would deduct her exam points. After abandoning the idea of predicting their position, she tried to actually follow their tracks. She took a quick look at the tracks leaving the clearing, but they were going north towards a crossroads, at which point it was difficult to say in which direction the bandits went because it was filled with many tracks leaving in different directions. Even though she knew the position of the bandits, finding how they got there would be troublesome. She would need to do a much deeper inspection to find the path the bandits took. She would need to gather clues, distinguish the different tracks, and use all her knowledge of tracking. In other words, she would uselessly waste much time and effort. And what kind of person would willingly waste so much time and effort to find that which wasn¡¯t unknown? Especially if it went contrary to her goal of showing off her ¡®mana sense¡¯. And thus, Elaru fell into a difficult predicament. She had to come up with a brilliant plan that would allow her to ¡®find¡¯ the bandits. In the end, she decided to just¡­use math. She narrowed down the search area and created a seemingly random sweep path that covered the entire region, but was actually drawn to go towards the bandits first, making it so that Elaru wouldn¡¯t actually need to sweep the whole region. As she turned her back at Orie, she took the opportunity to quickly wipe off cold sweat from her forehead and let out a silent sigh.Man, this exam is hard! * * * Two slim bodies flew through the sky with a speed of an arrow, not even leaving a multicolored blur behind. A beautiful redhead accelerated them onwards, hugging the brunette around the waist. The only sound that could be heard other than the whooshing of the air as it hit their faces, was a soft rattling of objects inside Orie¡¯s leather pouch hanging around her neck, that kept bouncing up and down, hitting her bosom. The two seemed to have blended into their surroundings as the birds didn¡¯t seem to notice them at all. The scene of the two beautiful females hugging, surrounded by the sea of green, might have been a picturesque scene if it weren¡¯t for the pale face and the tightly shut eyes of the brunette.
Coming up in the next episode: That face full of grievance made Elaru feel awkward and guilty, like she was a bandit bullying a weak and gentle virgin. To balance out the reactions of the other two, Zerel¡¯s eyes glittered mischievously. His mood was, in fact, so good that he didn¡¯t forget to add oil to the fire.¡°Wait, Thaddeus, go back. I think we flew right past them.¡± ¡°Aww! Look! He be purrin¡¯!¡± The man exclaimed with a toothy grin, his fingers full of calluses digging into the soft fur. The short, balding man with a golden earring sneered at him. ¡°What do ye think he is, a lunar? Fishbrain! He ain¡¯t purrin¡¯, he¡¯s hissin¡¯!¡± ¡°What are ye doin¡¯?!¡± The man gaped so wide he could have swallowed a tiwi. Episode 120 – Pirates Previously: Upon entering the world of her exam, Elaru is faced with a peacekeeper who introduces the goal of the exam ¨C finding and apprehending several bandits. Orie Tonrai, her exam partner, gives Elaru a map of the area which allows her to narrow down the potential whereabouts of the bandits. Elaru decides to quickly fly over the area and detect the bandits through her mana sense. * * * Two slim bodies flew through the sky with a speed of an arrow, not even leaving a multicolored blur behind. A beautiful redhead accelerated them onwards, hugging the brunette around the waist. The only sound that could be heard other than the whooshing of the air as it hit their faces, was a soft rattling of objects inside Orie¡¯s leather pouch hanging around her neck, that kept bouncing up and down, hitting her bosom. The two seemed to have blended into their surroundings as the birds didn¡¯t seem to notice them at all. The scene of the two beautiful females hugging, surrounded by the sea of green, might have been a picturesque scene if it weren¡¯t for the pale face and the tightly shut eyes of the brunette.
Episode 120 ¨C Pirates Occasionally, she would involuntarily open her eyes and look back worriedly (Can prof. Iphis keep up with this speed?), before closing her eyes hastily once again to suppress her nausea. The redhead, on the other hand, had a nonchalant facial expression, yet her back, drenched in cold sweat, revealed her true thoughts:Darn it! Why are you guys so slow? She had wanted to showcase her awesome abilities, starting with her great flying speed, but who knew it would turn out like this? Orie couldn¡¯t keep up with her speed, so Elaru was forced to carry her along. To make matters worse, Orie wasn¡¯t the only one who had trouble keeping up with her speed ¨C the examiners on their trail fell behind soon enough. Perhaps the problem lay in the fact that she had concealed their presence and made Orie and herself invisible? Without being able to feel them or see them, they might have some difficulty following them¡­? No, it was most likely the fact that the only argel of the three had two elibu deadweights he needed to carry along, while she only had one. ¨C Elaru concluded. Orie and her were slim and light females, but that peacekeeper had some muscle underneath the uniform, and those fancy robes of Zerel¡¯s certainly weighed enough to count as a half a person. When the camp site of the four bandits appeared in front of the two, Elaru wasted no time and quickly landed in the bushes nearby. If it was her alone, she would have continued hovering above the bandits and waiting for an opportunity to attack, however, her instincts told her that she should land as soon as possible. And indeed, her judgment was as outstanding as ever, for as soon as Orie¡¯s feet touched the ground she stuttered forwards and started emptying her stomach in the bushes. While Orie¡¯s body shook, Elaru kept awkwardly patting her back in what was supposed to be a comforting gesture. (Is this the fabled motion sickness papa told me about?) Orie felt so ashamed she wanted to disappear then and there. She wished she could just crawl under a rock and hide. Her face was red, her eyes turned glassy, and she was biting on her lip. That face full of grievance made Elaru feel guilty, like she was a rogue bullying a weak and gentle virgin. Yet, she couldn¡¯t help but also feel aggrieved due to the ordeal.How was I supposed to know that my speed might cause such a rare ailment?? They won¡¯t deduct points for this¡­right? In an effort to redeem herself, Elaru plucked a handful of nearby flowers and offered it to Orie, hoping that the flowery scent would alleviate her nausea. But when the flower scent mixed with sweet, aromatic smell coming from the leather pouch around Orie¡¯s neck, the results were less than satisfactory. Orie looked down at the bouquet of wild flowers and felt even more embarrassed. Her performance was inadequate, embarrassing! It was simply soiling Muni¡¯s flawless reputation. She even troubled a poor examinee to take care of her. A fail of an examiner! She was supposed to be a supervisor whose role was to draw out more information from the examinee that would help in their scoring. She was supposed to offer suggestions and advice that would serve as trick questions, but in the end, not only did she fail to dig out anything she was supposed to dig out, she was even dragging down this poor redhead. After a minute of retching, Orie finally managed to calm down a bit, or rather, she emptied her entire stomach, leaving nothing more to spew out. Elaru snapped her fingers and disintegrated the vomit so that the smell wouldn¡¯t spread and alert the bandits. She wanted to offer a handkerchief to Orie, but she realized that she didn¡¯t have one. Why would she need a handkerchief when she could simply Cleanse all contamination? By the time she determined what cloth on her body would be the most suitable to tear off to serve as a handkerchief, Orie was already wiping her mouth with her own. As she was wiping her mouth, Orie¡¯s eyes landed on the inconspicuous silver bracelet on her wrist, and suddenly, she felt like crying all over again. * * * Meanwhile, the remaining three examiners were greatly confused by the sounds of throwing up coming from the bracelet on Zakaria¡¯s wrist.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The strict face of the peacekeeper showed signs of worry, while he attempted to bring their flying speed higher. Zakaria pretended to not hear anything, her expression remaining as aloof as ever. Unlike the other two, Zerel¡¯s mood was so good he didn¡¯t forget to add oil to the fire: ¡°Wait, Thadi, go back. I think we flew right past them.¡± Zerel completely ignored the unsightly expression on Thaddeus¡¯s grim face, and continued: ¡°I think I caught a whiff of vomit a few bushes back.¡± * * * After Orie regained her composure, Elaru suggested for Orie to remain there, hiding in the bushes at a safe distance, while Elaru took care of the bandits. Since Orie couldn¡¯t help her subdue them, she would only be a liability. Noticing how Orie¡¯s smile turned stiff, Elaru hastily added: ¡°I need you to stay undetected and fire a signal flare if I run into trouble. If both of us end up captured without notifying anyone, our mission would be a complete failure.¡± In the end, Orie agreed to keep watch while Elaru stealthily made her way towards the campsite. Now that she was alone, she felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She floated through the forest silently, invisible to both sight and mana sense. On the way towards the camp, she noticed that the bandits had surrounded all paths towards their campsite with traps of various kinds. Most of them were completely nonmagical, making it difficult to detect with mana sense. Luckily, she had expected such a thing, so she was paying extra attention. Otherwise, even her Aethernea of Sight wouldn¡¯t have been enough to notice every taut string and covered hole. While she was making her way towards the bandits, she noticed that the three examiners had finally caught up with them. They picked up Orie inside their invisibility barrier (probably to question her on the wretched sounds they had heard) and flew above the forest to monitor the situation better. The four bandits had set camp on a small meadow next to the river and were in the process of grilling fish. Even though the mission information stated that there might be more than four bandits, Elaru could only see four of them in this campsite. The others either didn¡¯t exist and served to make the examinees reevaluate their plans or hadn¡¯t arrived yet. The most eye-catching bandit of the four was a large, burly, bald argel with a scary looking scar covering the right side of his face. He stood straight and rigid like he had something stuck up his behind and monitored the surroundings alertly. He had the bearing of an expert that would scare most people, yet, Elaru¡¯s expression as her eyes landed on the man was rather¡­unusual.Wait a second¡­these guys¡­! Her gaze quickly darted towards the campfire with the remaining three bandits. A thin, tall elibu with overly long limbs and sinister look in his eyes was looking around vigilantly, while magically dispersing the smoke from the campfire, to prevent anyone from detecting them due to the fumes. The remaining two bandits were sitting around the campfire roasting fish. Occasionally a grumbling of empty stomachs could be heard, followed by muffled swearing coming from the throat of a short bandit with a golden earring and a chin full of stubble. Initially, Elaru intended to sneakily rescue the hostage without the bandits realizing anything was amiss, and then go wild, fighting without worry. However, she was forced to discard that plan, for the fourth bandit was currently petting the hostage. The man had unruly black hair sticking to his forehead with sweat and a wide stupid grin that revealed few golden and several missing teeth. One meter long furry, fluffy tail was hanging around his neck like a scarf. Elaru instantly recognized the brown striped scarf as Mr. Whiskers. No, the bandits didn¡¯t skin the poor hostage and make a scarf out of him ¨C the scarf was literally the hostage. Sh¨¦furs were snake-like creatures that had long, fluffy fur instead of scales. Unlike their snake cousins, sh¨¦furs were popular pets due to their docile nature, ease of raising and, of course, magnificent fur. In fact, their fur was so soft and beautiful with natural dirt and water repelling properties that they were also raised by the Ruyle family on large sh¨¦fur farms for the purpose of clothmaking. ¡°Aww! Look! He be purrin¡¯!¡± The fourth bandit exclaimed with a toothy grin, his fingers full of calluses digging into the soft fur of his ¡°scarf¡±. The third bandit, a balding man with a golden earring sitting opposite of him, sneered: ¡°What do ye think he is, a lunar? Fishbrain! He ain¡¯t purrin¡¯, he¡¯s hissin¡¯!¡± Hearing the familiar voices, Elaru was forced to conclude:I know these guys! These guys aren¡¯t bandits! She shook her head, stepping over a taut string rigged to set loose a large and heavy tree log towards whoever triggered the trap.They are pirates¡­ Luckily, she didn¡¯t exclaim it out loud. Otherwise, the facial expressions of the examiners would certainly be an interesting mix of ¡°No way! She knows the men we hired? What are the odds??¡± and ¡°¡­ex-pirates one would hope? ¡­otherwise, the fact that you are familiar with them¡­¡± ¡°Na!¡± The fourth bandit huffed and turned his head away, looking towards Mr. Whiskers. ¡°Just ignore ¡®im, Mr. Whiskers. I know how ye really feel.¡± His eyes were gentle, loving even, but instead of evoking tender emotions, that look only made one¡¯s skin crawl. Without looking away from the creature, the man picked up one of the tree branches acting as a fish skewer and brought it closer to his face. After determining that the fish was done roasting, he lowered it towards Mr. Whiskers who unceremoniously turned his head away. The bandit didn¡¯t take a no for an answer and kept pushing the fish right into his face. After several seconds of staring, the third bandit couldn¡¯t help but gape so wide he could have swallowed a tiwi: ¡°What are ye doin¡¯?!¡± ¡°I be feedin¡¯ ¡®im.¡± The third bandit scrunched up his face in are-you-serious look. ¡°Fishbrain, sh¨¦furs don¡¯t eat fish!¡± ¡°Yer sure? He looks like one of ¡®em fish eaters.¡± The third man continued to gape in the mix of shock and disbelief. ¡°Where do ye plan to stuff that fish, ey? Sh¨¦furs don¡¯t even have a mouth!¡± ¡°A rodent without a mouth me ass¡­ Ye think I be stupid?¡± The fourth man waved the fish skewer agitatedly. ¡°Ye could¡¯ve fooled me!¡± Their argument might have continued further had it not been for the sh¨¦fur around the fourth bandit¡¯s neck. Apparently, the bandit¡¯s waving of the fish skewer made a sizzling drop of grease fall onto Mr. Whiskers. Whether it was because sh¨¦furs detested being dirty or because of the burning pain, Mr. Whiskers started twitching around in a craze, strangling the neck of his captor. The face of the fourth bandit turned purple, his eyes almost popping out. He dropped his fish skewer and grabbed the furry creature with both of his rough hands, trying his hardest to get him off. Unfortunately, he was an elibu so his strength wasn¡¯t that great nor could he augment it with augmentation magic, so no matter how he pulled, he couldn¡¯t make Mr. Whiskers loosen his hug.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Move aside!¡± He hissed and started waving the burning branch towards the purple-faced bandit. Due to his slick and shiny fur, Mr. Whisker¡¯s tail slid right out of the man¡¯s hand. The wide, horrified eyes of the bandits stared unblinkingly at the falling form of their comrade. A gruff, panicked scream of ¡°Noooo!¡± tore through the silent clearing. Elaru who had been watching the spectacle from a few meters away, had a devilish smirk on her face as she nonchalantly dropped her dagger. Episode 121 – Farce of an Exam Previously: Upon entering the world of her exam, Elaru is faced with a peacekeeper who introduces the goal of the exam ¨C finding and apprehending several bandits. Orie Tonrai, her exam partner, gives Elaru a map of the area which allows her to narrow down the potential whereabouts of the bandits. Elaru decides to quickly fly over the area and detect the bandits through her mana sense. Since her flying speed was faster than Ories, she ends up pulling her along. The speed of their flight causes Orie to feel motion sickness and she empties her stomach in the bushes near the bandits. Meanwhile, one of the bandits ends up dripping hot juices on Mr. Whiskers, who gives him a too tight of a hug.
Episode 121 ¨C Farce of an Exam At first, the bald bandit looked as if he didn¡¯t see anything, continuing to watch the surroundings, the sinister looking man let out a low chuckle and continued smirking, and the third bandit with the golden earring was too busy laughing his head off to do anything else. But as the fourth bandit¡¯s face started changing colors, they finally realized that this wasn¡¯t a laughing matter. While the other two were staring with their eyes wide, the third bandit, who was the nearest to the fourth bandit, jumped up to help his suffocating comrade. He grabbed the fluffy tail and tried pulling Mr. Whiskers off, but he only managed to pull the fourth bandit to his feet. The rough tugging of the two bandits surely wasn¡¯t a pleasant sensation for the sh¨¦fur, for the creature kept cramping up, squeezing even tighter. The bald bandit stood rooted to the spot, staring dumbly not knowing what to do, his previous imposing manner nowhere to be seen. The long-limbed sinister man was quicker in his thinking, and he grabbed one of the branches fueling the fire. ¡°Move!¡± He hissed and started waving the burning branch towards the purple-faced bandit. Feeling the burning sensation, Mr. Whiskers twitched away from the flames, making the fourth bandit stumble back uncontrollably, right in the direction of one of the traps. ¡°Aya! Careful!¡± The third bandit squealed, quickly grabbing towards the suffocating bandit to stop his stumble. He missed. The fourth man stumbled straight towards the taut string of the trap. In a moment of desperation, the third bandit accelerated towards his purple-faced comrade, and luckily managed to grab the closest appendage he could reach (Mr. Whisker¡¯s tail), stopping the fourth man¡¯s fall. Taking long strides with his long limbs, the sinister man swiftly approached, the torch burning brightly in his hand. Sensing the increasing heat coming his way, Mr. Whiskers started twitching his tail frantically, resembling movements of a flag flapping in the fierce winds, trying to make his assailant let go of him. The fur of sh¨¦furs was naturally slick and shiny, so it only took a second for Mr. Whiskers¡¯ tail to slide right out of the man¡¯s hand. Losing his support, the fourth bandit¡¯s suspended fall resumed, and he fell straight on top of the taut string. The wide, horrified eyes of the bandits stared unblinkingly at the falling form of their comrade. A gruff, panicked scream of ¡°Noooo!¡± tore through the silent clearing startling the nearby birds. Several seconds of terrified silence passed in which only the sounds of ragged breathing could be heard. Only when the fourth bandit¡¯s eyes rolled back into his skull, his face as purple as an eggplant, did the remaining three come back to their senses. The trap didn¡¯t activate! When their comrade fell, luckily the string ended up right under his knees, so he didn¡¯t snap it. Backs covered in cold sweat, faces scrunched up and pale, their frozen bodies snapped into action. The sinister man stepped over the string, swiftly waving the burning branch towards Mr. Whiskers, who, finally, loosened his grip around the fourth bandit¡¯s neck and slid away. Fortunately, a sharp intake of breath soon followed from the unconscious bandit and a collective breath of relief spread through the clearing, followed by an eruption of relieved swearing. Elaru who had been watching the spectacle from a few meters away with a devilish smirk on her face, waiting for the right moment to secure the hostage, chose this exact moment to nonchalantly drop her dagger to the ground with a mock ¡°whoops¡± expression. The unlucky fellows didn¡¯t even have the chance to relax their taut nerves before a loud snapping sound entered their ears, followed by a giant log which came swinging from the right. The sinister man didn¡¯t even have enough time to swear before the log hit him straight in the chest and sent him flying like a kite with its string cut, the burning branch in his hand flying in the opposite direction, towards the shrubbery. With eyes bulging out and mouth wide open in a half gasp, half grimace of pain, the bandit lost his consciousness even before his body hit the surface of the river. ¡°Shiiiiiet!¡± The third bandit screeched shrilly before realizing that the log missed him by a hair¡¯s breath. But just as he was about to let out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding, he realized that their hostage was on the run while their leader got knocked into the river.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°What are ye waitin¡¯ for?!¡± He scolded the frozen burly baldy. ¡°I¡¯ll save boss, ye go catch the critter!¡± Not waiting for the baldy to respond, he jumped into the river. As the baldy turned to run towards the escaping sh¨¦fur, Elaru took the opportunity while no one was looking to nonchalantly poke the previously suffocating bandit, who had yet to recover, in the neck with her acupuncture needle. Then she darted towards the burning torch, using a Fire Evanescence to extinguish the flames before they could spread further. (Energy Transmutation spells, such as Fire and Light were complete spells that were made out of two spell fragments: Conjuration and Evanescence. Conjuration part of the Fire spell was used to turn mana into flames, while the evanescence part was used to turn flames into mana.) Seeing the burly bandit jumping after Mr. Whiskers with gusto, Elaru smirked and flew towards him. The man had cast a quick acceleration spell on the ground towards which Mr. Whiskers was slithering to raise it up into walls and stop his escape. Mr. Whiskers briefly paused before changing the direction of his escape, however, the only way out of the encirclement was towards the bandit. The sh¨¦fur tried to slither between the man¡¯s feet, but the bandit had expected this outcome. He bent down to pick up the furry critter, and yelped victoriously: ¡°Gocha!¡± However, before his hands could close tightly around the critter¡¯s thin body, the bandit fell face first into the dirt with a dull thump, letting Mr. Whiskers slither away, out of his reach. The burly bandit didn¡¯t get up again. The only thing that moved up was a pinch of silver that flew out from the back of the man¡¯s neck before disappearing inside Elaru¡¯s invisibility barrier. After sheathing the needle, Elaru took a deep breath, adjusting her state of mind and briefly lifting her invisibility. In order to change her own emotional state, she thought about her childhood with Wade, concentrating on emotions such as affection, love, and tranquility, letting it suffuse through her aura. Only then did she approach the retreating sh¨¦fur, letting her aura gently envelop him. As soon as her aura touched Mr. Whiskers, his trembling subsided, and his head turned slowly in her direction. He offered no resistance as she picked him up, on the contrary, he took the initiative to wrap himself around her arm, slithering towards her torso to bury his head under her scarf. Meanwhile, the examiners were watching the proceedings with pot black faces. ¡°Aura contr¡­!¡± ¨C ¡°How did this exam turn into a farce?¡± The gray-eyed peacekeeper grunted, a vein pulsating on his forehead, interrupting Orie¡¯s gasp of pleasant surprise. Recalling her own part of the ¡°farce¡±, Orie covered her face with her slender hands dejectedly, only to remember that she was supposed to be intently watching the proceedings. Thus, she moved her fingers aside so she could peek between them. Only Zerel¡¯s face was glowing. ¡°I wonder what will go wrong next? Perhaps the shorty will jump into the water, only to remember he can¡¯t swim?¡± He chuckled rather hoping that his joke would come true. ¡°I wonder, will he be able to swim with those short limbs against the current carrying someone heavier than himself?¡± Regretfully, the shorty swam like a fish and quickly managed to pull the unconscious comrade out of the river. As expected of an ex-pirate, he even knew how to perform first aid for a drowning person, and soon bandit boss was spewing out water everywhere. Elaru, who was done dealing with the burly baldy quite quickly, was already upon them. She waited for the sinister man to spew out all the water, regaining his normal breathing before she struck. The shorty with the golden earring was preoccupied with thumping his boss on the back, while his boss was preoccupied with breathing so neither of them could react on time when two silver streaks came whizzing from their blind spots. Even if they were on high alert, dodging such a fast attack from an invisible enemy would be a challenge, let alone in the current circumstances. When the final two bandits fell down, losing their consciousness, Elaru finally dispelled her invisibility barrier. She nudged the two bandits with her foot, and the two floated up into the air next to her. Then she backtracked towards the first bandit she had knocked out ¨C the unfortunate moron who got strangled by a sh¨¦fur. She plopped the three bandits on top of each other, entangling them while not obstructing their breathing. Finally, she flew to pick up the last one and flung his big, heavy, burly body on top of the pile of skinny bandits. If they had been conscious, the three would have surely let out gasps of pain followed by strings of curses: ¡°Are ye friggin¡¯ kiddin¡¯ me?!¡± ¨C ¡°Vicious wench!¡± But then the unfortunate fellows would recognize the demon in question and the situation would do a 180 degree turn: ¡°It be the f¡­f¡­female devil!¡± ¡°Aaaargh! I knew that evil smile looked familiar!¡± ¡°Is the m¡­m¡­male devil here too?¡± ¡°Noooooooooo! We are changed people! We be earnin¡¯ an honest livin¡¯ now! Mistress, have mercy!¡± ¡°I knew this job sounded too good to be true!¡± ¡°I was thinkin¡¯ we¡¯d be drinkin¡¯ after this was done¡­¡± ¡°Aya! I was gonna book a room at the flower pavilion!¡± ¡°Fool! Think logically! We could share the cost to book it together and then we can take turns with the girls!¡± ¡°Boss is the best!¡± ¡°Boss, we¡¯ll listen to ye!¡± And then they would see that beautiful smile of nightmares asking them: ¡°What was that? Who¡¯s the boss?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Of course, it be ye, mistress!¡± ¡°Aye! Aye! What he said!¡± ¡°Mistress, we¡¯ll listen to ye!¡± Fortunately, the four were spared the scare, obliviously slumbering. The demon in question clasped her hands together in delight and let out a happy sigh. Then she gracefully sat down on the pile of bandits like a queen sitting on her throne, her posture dignified, powerful, charismatic. If anyone stumbled upon this sight, they would run away with their tails between their legs in horror. Yet, the redhead was hardly aware of how this would look in the eyes of the third party ¨C she even let out a melodious chuckle. ¡°This was too easy!¡± Then she snapped her head around in confusion. She could swear she heard a frustrated yell of ¡°What if I told you that Muni exams aren¡¯t supposed to be easy?!¡± * * * Thaddeus Iphis¡¯ face was as unsightly as it was ¡°argely¡± possible to be. His hands trembled as he pulled out the folded piece of paper from his pocket and violently crossed over ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± from the list. He stopped to take several deep breaths to calm down.While this exam was an embarrassing fiasco, the examinee is not to blame for this. Although she is somewhat peculiar, she does have an exceptionally high skill level. He sighed and wrote ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡± again on the list.Perfect invisibility, mana concealment, ability to take out her opponents easily without causing injuries and even the ability to use aura control. She would be a priceless addition to the¡­ His thought was interrupted by Elaru floating up several feet, only to plop down onto the pile of bodies with undisguised satisfaction as if she was a child slumping onto a soft sofa. She struck up a dignified pose once again, the majesty of the picture only ruined by the sound of a happy tune she was humming. Then she proceeded to look left and right, checking if anyone could see her (or rather, pretending that she couldn¡¯t see the invisible examiners), and once again rose up and plopped down, a coy smirk twitching at the corner of her lips, her eyes reminiscing about ¡°good old times¡±: Needless to say, Thaddeus proceeded to, once again, cross over the words ¡°Elaru Wayvin¡±, this time with enough force to, unfortunately, punch a hole through the paper.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Are my current user privileges high enough to lock out the current administrator?¡± ¡°Turning the Arities into enemies? What are you saying Mageheart?¡± A melodic chuckle reverberated inside the black room like a chime of bells. As her lonely back reached the exit to the room, she paused again, leaving the final words behind: ¡°Mageheart, delete all records of our conversation.¡± ¡°They say that she can see things others can¡¯t see.¡± Episode 122 – Three Years Ago Previously: Elaru rescues the hostage and apprehends the criminals, thus finishing her practical exam.
Episode 122 ¨C Three Years Ago Elaru opened her large teal eyes to meet two equally large purple orbs. Two heads, one red and the other white, stared at each other expressionlessly, silently, motionlessly. With identical facial expressions, the two females that at first glance had nothing in common, suddenly looked oddly familiar. The eerie silence persisted for several seconds before the redhead opened her lush lips to murmur softly: ¡°Mageheart¡­ is my compatibility ratio high enough to initiate a forceful switch of ownership?¡± ¡°No.¡± The white-haired beauty answered in an apathetic voice. Elaru closed her eyes and exhaled. ¡°How about in the future? Is it possible to raise it high enough?¡± ¡°Your compatibility ratio is currently on the rise. It might reach the required threshold in the near future.¡± Mageheart paused her response briefly. ¡°However, no matter how high your compatibility ratio may reach, you will not be able to initiate a forceful switch of ownership. Even if the current owner abdicates voluntarily or dies, you will still not be able to become my owner. I cannot go against the prime directive.¡± Elaru¡¯s tired face finally revealed a bitter smile, yet it did nothing to lessen the enchanting beauty of her being. On the contrary, seeing a stunning beauty with such an expression would only serve to make one¡¯s heart clench tightly. However, Mageheart showed absolutely no reaction. Though she had a ¡°heart¡± in her name, there was no heart beating in her chest that could clench in pain. Another moment of silence passed with neither female moving to break it. Reluctantly, Elaru got up from the egg chair, her teal eyes never leaving the purple ones. ¡°Are my current user privileges high enough to lock out the current administrator?¡± ¡°Yes. Unique entity Elaria has been assigned authority second only to the owner.¡± Mageheart confirmed. ¡°However, I would advise you against provoking the Arite family. The benefits it would bring you do not justify the price of turning the Arite family into your enemies.¡± Elaru¡¯s footsteps sounded in the otherwise deathly quiet room. ¡°Turning the Arities into enemies? What are you saying Mageheart?¡± A melodic chuckle reverberated inside the black room like a chime of bells. ¡°Arite family and me¡­¡± Elaru paused her walk several feet away from the white-haired woman. ¡°We¡¯ve been enemies from the start¡­¡± Mageheart continued to stare at Elaru Wayvin unblinkingly as the latter walked past her, almost brushing her shoulder with her own. ¡°¡­.mortals only have a single life. And you¡­¡± ¡°¡­andIam living mine.¡± The redhead interrupted her, pausing her stride to give Mageheart a side glare. ¡°And I don¡¯t need an artifact to tell me how to live it.¡± Once again, neither of the two females spoke, the only sounds breaking the deathly silence were Elaru¡¯s retreating footsteps. As her lonely back reached the exit to the room, her tightly clenched fists relaxed slowly. ¡°Mageheart, delete all records of our conversation. Also, stop collecting capability data on Elaru Wayvin and Kiel Rroda and delete all capability data already collected from your memory.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± * * * ? The Forbidden Zone, 5th of July 1446 A.W. ? (3 years ago) The flurry of snowflakes obscured the vision of the ten as they made their way through the thin mountain path. With a tall mountain wall to their left and a giant cliff to their right, each step they took was with the utmost caution, following the exact footsteps of the person in front. Due to the winds and low visibility they chose to proceed carefully on foot, instead of flying. They would fly up only in case they lost their footing. The argel in the group were prepared to cast Acceleration at a moment¡¯s notice, while the elibu were ready to activate the magical artifacts strapped to their boots which were enchanted to allow them temporary flight capabilities. As the ten looked towards the mountain peaks above, all they could see was white, and when they looked towards the desolate lands below, all they could see was black. The Ink had spread, destroying everything it touched, not leaving a single blade of grass behind. Even the gray bones of various creatures strewn across the ground were not spared from the corruption. Their black blood had long left them, seeping into the land itself; the putrid liquid still lingered within the cracks of the dry earth. Unlike the lands of death below, this mountain seemed white and pure, yet it was just as desolate. Perhaps the bones and blood were covered up beneath piles of snow. Or perhaps the Ink had never managed to spread up the mountain because there had never been much life in these parts to begin with.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Either way, the white landscape was a welcome view to the squad of ten. So welcome, compared to the alternative below, that they didn¡¯t even mind the cold. Although the breath leaving their bodies was white, although the clothes on their bodies weren¡¯t appropriate for the cold climate, their limbs weren¡¯t stiff nor were they shaking with chills. The argel members of the group used their temperature manipulation magic to keep themselves warm, while the elibu conjured flames to both light up the way and drive out the cold. Since fire conjuration magic could only conjure the flames and not control their movement, elibu would anchor the spell on a part of their bodies and weave the spell roots outside the body. The spell roots designated the area where flames would appear, and they would move along with the movement of the main spell. Therefore, if the main spell was anchored to a moving object, the flames would follow. Similarly to the floating flames, the ten followed each other. On the head of the procession walked a chocolate skinned elibu scout with markings all over his face and bald head. He periodically cast a Morph spell on their surroundings to feel the topology of the mountain range and determine which rocks were safe to step on. After him came a tall argel with blonde and black spiky hair whose red eyes acted as the eyes of the entire group. Afterward him followed Nelaira Helyot, who was checking out a large rolled up map parchment to pinpoint their position. ¡°It should be right ahead. We¡¯ll rest there tonight.¡± Her voice was barely audible through the wails of the billowing winds. Not long after her words fell, the squad reached a crack in the stone wall that was the height of almost two people and so thin that one could barely fit two fingers in. At first glance, there was nothing remarkable about that crack. It looked like any other crack one would find on cliff walls. However, when Nelaira¡¯s Morph spell activated on the vicinity of the crack, she was able to feel a shallow carving above the crack. Nelaira wasn¡¯t as knowledgeable about ancient runes as her fianc¨¦, but as the carving was among the more common runes she knew its meaning ¨C ¡°South¡±. This rune marked the south entrance leading to their destination. Confirming that she had reached the right crack, Nelaira spread her arms wide, and the cliff walls moved, enlarging the crack until it was wide enough to fit a person. The ten-man squad entered the darkness of the narrow passage, lighting it up with their floating flames. Several minutes of walking later, the narrow passage widened abruptly to a large corridor with a high ceiling. When Nelaira¡¯s conjured flames lit up their surroundings, they were met with an endless number of stairs going upwards towards the top of the mountain. This manmade path through the mountain had not been used for decades, yet it still looked brand new, sleek and shiny. There was not a speck of snow or dust visible on the stone surface of the passage. The stone stairs were intricately and lavishly carved by a Sculptor, depicting many different shapes and decorations into the stone. Although the ten could fly up the stairs, they chose to spread out and climb on foot, taking the time to inspect every shape and carving. To be honest, they didn¡¯t expect to find anything new that their predecessors missed, but they gave it a try anyway. The liveliest one of the bunch was an argel female in her late thirties. Her yellow eyes glittered with interest as she inspected the carvings. Her vivid red hair striped with yellow, that was tied to the side of her head swayed with each step. ¡°Such a well-hidden place! As expected of Zor Arite!¡± ¡°Zor Arite is indeed Zor Arite.¡± Nelaira nodded her head pridefully as if she was the one that discovered this place. ¡°Hmmm?¡± A blonde-black haired tall argel raised his eyebrow. ¡°While his achievements are not to be underestimated, I believe Rine Arite was responsible for discovering this place.¡± ¡°How so?¡± The red-haired woman looked at her other half curiously. Before the man could respond, an elibu man with pink curly hair interjected. ¡°Don¡¯t you know what they say?¡± The redhead¡¯s eyes lit up, and she hurried to inquire: ¡°What do they say?!¡± The pink haired man gave her a meaningful look as if his green eyes contained many secrets within. ¡°They say that she can see things others can¡¯t see.¡± ¡°Eeeeeh?¡± The redhead exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hands. ¡°Like what?! Ghosts?!¡± ¡°Pft!¡± Her husband, the blonde-black haired argel, broke out into a warm and husky laughter. The redhead gave him the evil eye, her every thought (¡°What are you laughing at?!¡±) clearly written on her face. Nelaira looked at her best friend strangely. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you believe in ghosts?¡± The redhead puffed up her cheeks and glared back. ¡°Why not? If we¡¯ve got phantasms then why not ghosts?¡± A middle-aged argel with graying black-green hair and a monocle covering his left eye interjected. ¡°They are not the same. Phantasm is a type of creature with an ethereal body, a ghost is a disembodied mind of a deceased.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± The redhead lifted up her chin proudly. ¡°Minds exist, so why couldn¡¯t it be possible for them to remain in this world after death?¡± The middle-aged man adjusted his monocle and continued in a matter of fact voice. ¡°When people die, the connection between their mind, body, and soul is severed. When the soul gets freed from the clutches of the mind, it returns to the Origin. Without the soul, the mind is an unstable, volatile existence that perishes soon after. Since the dead no longer possess a soul, they cannot¡­¡± ¡°What do you know about death?¡± The pink haired man waved his hand dismissively, interrupting the speech of his comrade. ¡°I bet there is a divine artifact out there that can sustain minds after death. If I were a god, I¡¯d surely create one. How great would it be if we could talk to our deceased family members every day?¡± The redhead nodded spiritedly. ¡°Exactly, exactly!¡± Nelaira laughed softly. ¡°Luki, stop corrupting Laica¡¯s poor innocent mind with your conspiracy theories.¡± The blonde-black haired man scratched his head in resignation. ¡°I hate to admit it, but he has a point. There might be an artifact out there that keeps the dead bound to this world.¡± Laica Iphis, the redhead, beamed, her mouth spread into a smug smile. ¡°Exactly. Ghosts could exist.¡± The argel with a monocle looked at the redhead disbelievingly. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious? Even if minds of mortals could remain after their death, we wouldn¡¯t be able to see them, hear them or feel them. They could be right in front of us and we wouldn¡¯t see any signs of their existence nor would they be able to perceive us. A mind without a vessel is a meaningless existence. Ghosts that you speak of are but a myth.¡± Luki Eryey, the pink haired man, frowned and rubbed his chin in thought. ¡°But what if minds of the deceased could possess a living person, taking over their body and soul?¡± His eyes lit up, and he pointed his finger upwards. ¡°What if the Arite family is making the spirits of their ancestors possess the younger generation and that¡¯s why all Arites are so talented?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: What was left of the buildings didn¡¯t look shabby at all. Every inch of stone was carved into delicate shapes that gave them an otherworldly, ancient charm. ¡°What do you think happened to these people?¡± The redhead spoke up in wonder. ¡°Tomorrow we¡¯ll take a day off to rest and recuperate. You are allowed to enjoy the scenery or explore the ruins.¡± ¡°When Zor Arite found this place, he didn¡¯t proceed further to the north, so we don¡¯t know what to expect in the Valley of Eternal Snow. Be prepared to fight against Tainted at any time.¡± ¡°Zel would be thrilled! While other people dream of finding magical artifacts, he dreams of finding diaries.¡± Episode 123 – Mountain Valley Sanctuary Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. * * * The blonde-black haired man scratched his head in resignation. ¡°I hate to admit it, but he has a point. There might be an artifact out there that keeps the dead bound to this world.¡± LaicaIphis, the redhead, beamed, her mouth spread into a smug smile. ¡°Exactly. Ghosts could exist.¡± The argel with a monocle looked at the redhead disbelievingly. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious? Even if minds of mortals could remain after their death, we wouldn¡¯t be able to see them, hear them or feel them. They could be right in front of us and we wouldn¡¯t see any signs of their existence nor would they be able to perceive us. A mind without a vessel is a meaningless existence. Ghosts that you speak of are but a myth.¡± LukiEryey, the pink haired man, frowned and rubbed his chin in thought. ¡°But what if minds of the deceased could possess a living person, taking over their body and soul?¡± His eyes lit up, and he pointed his finger upwards. ¡°What if theAritefamily is making the spirits of their ancestors possess the younger generation and that¡¯s why allAritesare so talented?¡±
Episode 123 ¨C Mountain Valley Sanctuary This time the entire group of comrades looked at him strangely, after all, everyone here was working for the Arite family. His words would be considered rude and insolent if they weren¡¯t just too much of a joke to be considered as slander. Used to the strange ideas constantly running through the pink-haired man¡¯s head, no one got agitated or took offense. Though the argel man with the monocledidhave the ugliest expression of the bunch as he spat out: ¡°Impossible. The mind would be incompatible with another¡¯s body and soul. They would mutually reject each other. Mind and body need to be birthed from the same seed of life to be compatible. And the soul needs to be the one gifted to the person by the Origin.¡± The pink haired man opened his mouth again to respond, however, before any words could leave his throat, Nelaira slapped him on the back of his head. ¡°More work, less nonsense.¡± The pink haired man rubbed the back of his head with a pout and mumbled under his breath. ¡°I¡¯m a healer¡­if you want to give me work to do, push someone down the stairs.¡± Nelaira¡¯s long ears twitched, and she put up her fist threateningly: ¡°If I were to push someone, you¡¯d be on the top of the list.¡±, though the threat of her action was sabotaged by the mirth glittering in her eyes and the smirk playing at the corners of her lips. The pink haired man rose his hands up in surrender: ¡°Ah! Lieutenant, what happened to section 32 of the Purge handbook ¨C ¡®protect the healer¡¯?¡± The only answer he got was the laughter of his comrades. * * * When the ten finally reached the top of the stairs, they were almost blinded by the bright red light of the setting sun. The stairs had taken them above the clouds, where the sky was red and clear. Where sunlight was warm, and the air was fresh and sweet. What greeted their sight was a small green valley surrounded by mountain peaks on all four sides. The soft red rays of the sunset made the valley glow like a scene from a fairy tale. Here and there, one could see dilapidated stone buildings protruding from the earth, covered in vines and moss. Strangely, the vines and moss didn¡¯t make the buildings look shabby at all, on the contrary, combined with the delicate shapes and carvings sculpted into every inch of the stone, it gave them an otherworldly, ancient charm. The stone pathways were also covered with sculpted decorations, although they could barely be seen under the overgrown grass and flowers swaying in the breeze, spreading as far as the eyes could see. Among the foliage one could occasionally see fluttering wings of night butterflies glimmering in the red light. Further into the valley, one could even see herds of wild meep, that looked like large, multicolored cotton balls with large, silky curls of wool and spiraling circular horns protruding from the sides of their head. With their long furry tails wrapped around branches, brown striped zuzels hung from the trees upside down, stuffing fruits and nuts into their mouth with their thin little fingers. As they nibbled on their dinner, their large beady eyes and huge fluffy ears remained alert in case there was a sneaky vulpy hiding in the bushes. Tranquility, awe, and satisfaction could be felt in the air as the ten slowly strode between the ruins. With rosy cheeks and bright eyes, they surveyed their green surroundings. The black skinned scout spread his mana sense, carefully probing the surroundings for any potential threat. Even though this place was supposed to be untainted, he was still very attentive, ready to retract his mind at the first sign of Ink. He also weaved a thin, intricate web of mana in the air, activating a Morph to feel the presence of any creatures capable enough to hide from his mana sense. Their logistic officer was looking for a good spot to set camp while recounting their remaining rations and deciding what¡¯ll be on the dinner menu.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. The archeologist of the group, the middle-aged man with the monocle was paying more attention to the stone decorations than where they were going. The pink haired man, who was the healer of the group, was looking at the herbs growing around, searching for anything of medicinal value. The remaining six members of the Purge, including Nelaira, vigilantly spread out with weapons in hand, ready to strike at the first sign of danger. The squad of ten proceeded on carefully, debris crunching under their boots with every other step. ¡°What do you think happened to these people?¡± The redhead broke the silence. ¡°The village probably got destroyed in the Great Mage Wars.¡± Her husband shrugged. ¡°If you ask me, this place is so secluded from the outside world that it wouldn¡¯t be a wonder if the War missed it, not to mention that the place so deep in the mountains would be very difficult to attack¡­¡± The pink haired man mused. ¡°And even if it did get destroyed, why wasn¡¯t it rebuilt after the war? A place such as this would have been an untainted safe haven, a sanctuary for the survivors.¡± ¡°Perhaps after the outbreak of Ink, there was no one left who remembered the existence of this place?¡± A tall argel with a green-orange crewcut guessed. ¡°Or the journey back was too dangerous?¡± The ten made their way towards a wide, flat meadow in the middle of the ruins. The place probably used to be a village square because there was a beautiful long dried out fountain in the middle. ¡°The area is secure.¡± Declared the black skinned scout. Nelaira nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Good. Let¡¯s rest here for the night.¡± As soon as her words fell, the remaining people sprung into action, displaying their practiced teamwork in setting up camp. Two argel men used their sharp blades to cut off the grass in their vicinity, revealing the stone tiles underneath. The husband of the redhead procured some wood, while his wife set up a campfire. The scout and a female comrade tracked down and caught a wild meep that strayed from the herd. Their logistic officer started preparing parts of it for dinner with the help of the pink haired healer who offered up his medicinal herbs as spices. The herbs not only enhanced the taste but also helped keep the ten in optimal physical and mental condition through the long voyage. The two also condensed fresh water for drink and made the nearest argel comrade set up a temperature enchantment that would keep the remainder of the meep cold. They even Morphed the bones of the meep to cover the meat with a thin layer of bone as if it was skin. It isolated the meat from the air and shielded it from bugs and bacteria. There was enough meat on the meep to last them for days, so they ensured it didn¡¯t spoil. While the rest of her comrades were working, Nelaira sat next to the fire, recording the previous day into her diary with the help of her corporal, the middle-aged argel with a monocle. The leaders of Purge squads were required to keep a diary of their exploration so that their discoveries wouldn¡¯t get lost in case of their death. The diaries they were given were magical artifacts that would transmit written text to a linked diary that was securely kept inside the Purge Headquarters. This way the leadership of the Purge could not only check the progress of the exploration but also pass orders to the expedition through the other diary. And in case the bodies of the squad needed to be retrieved in the future (due to them finding something valuable), the Purge would know where to start looking. * * * As everyone was seated around the campfire, eating their portions of the freshly grilled meep meat, Nelaira swallowed down a bite and spoke up: ¡°Everyone,¡± Her colleagues all stopped what they were doing and looked up. ¡°Tomorrow we¡¯ll take a day off to rest and recuperate. You can enjoy the scenery or explore the ruins. Previous exploration reports say there aren¡¯t any traps or hidden dangers in this place. But just in case, those that can¡¯t hold their own in a fight should take along someone else who can.¡± She gave a meaningful look at Luki, the pink haired man, who often forgot his surroundings when he was busy picking herbs. ¡°While there shouldn¡¯t be any Tainted around, there might be some dangerous wildlife, so you shouldn¡¯t relax your guard.¡± Nelaira took another mouthful of the meat before continuing. ¡°The day after tomorrow we will be heading north. The northern exit of this valley connects directly to the Valley of Eternal Snow. When Zor Arite found this place, he didn¡¯t proceed further to the north, so we don¡¯t know what to expect in the Valley of Eternal Snow. Be prepared to fight against Tainted at any time.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Everyone nodded in affirmation, Luki even added solemnly: ¡°Indeed. Constant vigilance is in order. We should keep our eyes and ears wide open and search it thoroughly. Who knows how many ruins are buried under the snow.¡± The serious atmosphere was instantly broken with a burst of uproarious laughter. ¡°Constant vigilance? When have you ever been vigilant?¡± ¡°If you kept your eyes and ears wide open you wouldn¡¯t have free time to come up you¡¯re your countless ridiculous conspiracy theories!¡± ¡°It¡¯s because I keep my eyes and ears wide open that I can connect the dots and find out things others have missed.¡± Luki self justifiedly declared. ¡°When have you ever cared about ruins? Plants are all that gets your blood pumping!¡± ¡°What ruins? You just want to search for that mythical flower that¡¯s supposed to grow there!¡± Luki shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly in response. ¡°So what? Imagine how magical that flower must be if an entire mountain range was named after it. Also,¡± He smirked. ¡°You¡¯re wrong. My pretty little wife also gets my blood pumping.¡± As if to prove his point he brought out a folded picture out of his pocket. ¡°See how many kids I have?¡± The uproarious laughter continued to revibrate through the valley for a long, long time, startling all creatures in the vicinity of the village square. * * * On paper, the main purpose of the Purge was to keep the Lands Under the Shield safe and explore the forbidden zone, but honestly speaking, what the leaders cared the most about was the discovery of new spells and powerful relics. Yet, what interested Nelaira the most, as a person who grew up in a family of architects, was naturally ancient architecture. Thus, it was only natural that she chose to spend her day off exploring the ruins of the village. She slowly strolled around the wrecked stone buildings constantly casting her Morph spell on them to feel every crevice and shape sculpted into the stones. Her stroll brought her up to the hill overlooking the village. Although little remained of the building on top of the hill, one could still tell that it used to be the largest and the most luxurious one. Someone important must have lived there. Nelaira¡¯s eyes glittered as she inspected the exquisite architecture with her Morph. She tried to picture just how much of an eye candy this building used to be.It must have been awe-inspiring, glorious! Her breath hitched as she was kicked out of her revery by a flaw inside an exquisitely carved pillar. The sense granted to her by her Morph spell detected an anomaly. An object stuck inside the stone. Someone had Morphed something inside the pillar!
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Zel would be thrilled! While other people dream of finding divine artifacts, he dreams of finding diaries.¡± Ink spread so fast it was visible to the naked eye. It was just like dripping a drop of black ink into clear water. His curiosity piqued,Lukiturned towards his escort. ¡°Hey, could you mow down the lawn?¡± His companion stared at him dumbfoundedly. ¡°You want me to do what??¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you. A fire dragon took a dump and then buried its droppings. Its droppings were hot and burned the adjacent foliage.¡± Episode 124 – Ashes Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. They decide to take one day off to recuperate. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins. * * * Her breath hitched as she was kicked out of her revery by a flaw inside an exquisitely carved pillar. The sense granted to her by her Morph spell detected an anomaly. An object stuck inside the stone. Someone had Morphed something inside the pillar!
Episode 124 ¨C Ashes Half curious, half excited, she pushed the object out of the stone pillar with her own Morph, doing her utmost to preserve the original shape of the pillar. Luckily, she was a master in this regard so even after the object had been pushed out, the pillar remained exactly the same, not a single carving was amiss. Only after ensuring that she hadn¡¯t ruined the exquisite piece of architecture, did Nelaira look down towards the object in her hand that had previously been hidden inside the pillar. It was a well preserved leather-bound booklet with no title on the cover. There were fleeting signs of mana on it, as if it used to be enchanted, but the enchantment had long run out of mana and evaporated. Curious, Nelaira flipped the book open gently, afraid that the wheels of time had made the book brittle although it outwardly looked fine. Fortunately, the inside was just as well preserved as the outside, no doubt being stuck inside a stone pillar helped. The book flipped open to the middle, to the position of a red silk bookmark. The bookmarked page was filled with runes written in a messy handwriting written in haste. Nelaira could tell at first glance that the booklet was a diary because of how every entry had a date on the upper right corner. She smiled warmly, even letting out a soft giggle: ¡°Zel would be thrilled! While other people dream of finding divine artifacts, he dreams of finding diaries.¡± Unlike her, who was only interested in the architecture and sculpture, her fianc¨¦ was interested in culture and knowledge of the ancient civilizations. That¡¯s why the best treat he could find in his exploration was a diary filled with random thoughts. Such diaries gave a wonderful glimpse into the everyday life and important happenings at the time. If the diary were written before the Great Mage Wars, it would most commonly contain some kind of research notes on various subjects that could be potentially extremely valuable to the current society, as a lot of knowledge had been lost during the Wars. However, most diaries they found were actually written during the Great Mage Wars, and besides the historical value, they didn¡¯t contain much else. After the start of the Great Mage Wars, people were worried that every day could be their last. Therefore, everyone wished to leave a part of themselves behind in case of their death. Thus, they wrote and left many diaries behind. Nelaira stashed the diary carefully in her bag, imagining the excited glimmer in the eyes of her other half when she returned with this little diary. He¡¯d be so sorry he hadn¡¯t gone with her on this expedition. She was right. What her fianc¨¦ would regret the most in his life was not going on this expedition with her. Nelaira proceeded onwards, not putting a second thought on the matter why the diary was hidden inside a pillar, after all, diaries contained private thoughts, it was only natural that the owner would hide it. She continued her exploration, completely unaware that this little book was neither of the things she expected it to be. Blissfully unaware of the staggering price she and her comrades would have to pay for stumbling upon this unassuming booklet. Unaware, that she might never again see that excited glimmer in the eyes of her fianc¨¦¡­ * * * While Nelaira was looking left and right at the architecture, Luki was busy looking for medicinal herbs. Usually, he would ask either Nelaira, the redhead or her husband, to escort him around, since he was on closest terms with those three. However, Nelaira went off exploring, and the two lovebirds wanted some alone time, so he ended up going with the comrade with the orange-green crew cut. Luki was fully focused on his work, hopping around excitedly and picking various herbs. Then, like a woman shopping, he would fill the arms of his escort with herbs while he continued striding around, looking for more ¡°merchandise¡±. His escort looked at him helplessly but said nothing. The pink haired elibu went through most of the nearby meadows until he reached a meadow near the village where he noticed a variety of interesting specimens. He noticed a bluish grass mixed within the greenery that most people would fail to notice, yet Luki recognized it as Silvermoon Root. The plant had wonderful healing properties, especially effective against swellings, burns, bites and irritated skin.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Luki checked the surrounding grass for snakes or spiders, and upon not finding anything dangerous he squatted down to pick it. Underneath the bluish grass was the actual root. Silvermoon Root looked similar to a long and thin silver carrot that just kept growing longer, burrowing deeper into the earth. Luki had to dig deep to be able to pull it out. Luckily, he could morph the earth away from the root, so he eventually managed to pull it out, careful not to damage it in the process. Luki intended to cast a Cleansing to remove the dirt from the root, but upon closer inspection, he realized that only the upper half of the root was contaminated with the brown soil. He wiped his finger across the lower half of the root and brought it up to his eye level. There was no soil on the root, rather, there was some kind of brittle gray dust. The pink haired healer looked back down into the hole he had created and widened it to reveal the soil in which the root had been growing. The upper layers of earth were normal brown soil, however, around two feet in, the soil became brittle and gray. Luki¡¯s heart almost jumped out of his chest, worried that he had inadvertently come into contact with Ink. But after the initial scare, he realized that it couldn¡¯t be Ink. If it were, the Silvermoon Root which was in contact with it would have withered away, followed by every other plant here. Ink spread so fast it was visible to the naked eye. It was just like dripping a drop of black ink into clear water. The black tendrils would spread in all directions until the clear water turned dark. This behavior and its black appearance was probably why the scourge had been named Ink in the first place. Still, he couldn¡¯t help but feel curious. If it wasn¡¯t Ink, why was this soil gray? As he dug deeper, he soon realized why. There was a thick layer of ash buried underneath the earth. Other than ash, there were also some kind of gray flakes mixed within, which crumbled with the lightest of touch. Curious.Luki mused.Did the people here use to bury the ashes of their deceased? His curiosity piqued, Luki turned towards his escort. ¡°Hey, could you mow down the lawn?¡± His companion stared at him dumbfoundedly. ¡°You want me to do what??¡± * * * Luki hoped that he would find a tombstone or some other landmark in this place, covered by the overgrown grass. He would be praised for his achievement if he found anything with writing on it. Unfortunately, even after mowing down the nearby area, there was absolutely nothing there. It probably got buried under the earth with the passage of time.Luki concluded. He wasn¡¯t an archaeologist, but after years of expeditions, he would be stupid if he didn¡¯t pick up a thing or two. Thus, Luki took some time to weave a large-scale Morph spell on the ground, hoping that he would be able to feel the monument. He wasn¡¯t a scout and didn¡¯t specialize in using large-scale Morph spells to feel the surroundings. However, he was a healer, and healers used the Morph spell to feel the bodies of their patients. The precision of his sensing ability was higher than anyone else in the group. It¡¯s just that doing a small but precise Morph spell wasn¡¯t the same as doing a large, less precise one. Thus their scout was still better when it came to large scale sensing. After the spell had been completed, Luki stood there, feeling the ground, for a long, long time. He felt many little rocks underneath the ground and even reached the bottom of the soil where the hard mountain began, yet, he couldn¡¯t feel anything that could possibly be a tombstone or a monument. Perhaps the ancient civilization had a custom of burying the ashes of their deceased without a tombstone? Becoming one with nature and all that? Luki rubbed his chin in thought and decided to Morph the upper layer of earth into a wall around the area to reveal the ash underneath. Soon, what greeted his eyes was a dense circular layer of ash the size of an average bedroom. Luki¡¯s green eyes narrowed.If they simply used this area as a graveyard, why would the distribution of ash be circular? Without a monument, how would they even know where to bury the ash? Unless of all of it was buried at once? Perhaps they had a giant pyre and buried the remains here? ¡°I say, a fire dragon probably burped here.¡± Luki¡¯s companion offered his opinion. Luki looked at the man with the crew cut strangely, unsure if he was joking. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, we should leave quickly. Dragons can be quite territorial.¡± A familiar voice floated over to reveal another comrade, who had probably gotten overwhelmed with pity for the comrade who had been forced to carry around plants, and thus decided to come help out. Luki returned his gaze to the ashes, deep in thought. Fire dragons did have a bad habit of setting things on fire. They are also known for burying miscellaneous stuff. It was possible that the dragon buried the remains of his activities. But¡­when had Luki ever simply accepted the most reasonable and likely answer? ¡°If the ash had been buried here for a long time, it would have been slowly dispersed and mixed with the soil. Yet there is still so much visible ash here.¡± Luki looked up, giving his comrades a meaningful look. ¡°Do you know what that means?¡± ¡°Uh¡­that we should warn the rest about a potential fire dragon threat?¡± Luki sighed sadly, mourning the severely lacking imagination of his companions. ¡°The quantity of ash is too large for it to be the remains of a simple fire. Someone burned a large quantity of matter and buried the ashes here within the last 20 years.¡± * * * When Nelaira returned to their campsite for lunch, she overheard a rather interesting conversation between her comrades: ¡°I¡¯m telling you. A fire dragon took a dump and then buried its droppings. Its droppings were hot and burned the adjacent foliage.¡± ¡°There is too much ash. No way would adjacent foliage leave so much ash behind. Are you saying he burned down half the forest compressed into ten square meters?¡± Luki argued. ¡°Or perhaps it had a lair here. All I¡¯m saying is that it¡¯s possible.¡± The argel with a crew cut shrugged his shoulders. Luki glared at him and tsked. Aurel Iphis, the husband of the redhead, sighed in resignation. ¡°Luki¡­only you¡¯d make such a fuss about finding some ashes.¡± Seeing Nelaira¡¯s approaching figure, Luki¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Lieutenant, help me out here.¡± * * * After receiving the summary of the situation, Nelaira had a strange expression on her face. As an expert with dealing with Luki¡¯s overactive imagination, she knew that the more one opposed him, the more he wouldn¡¯t let go of his view. So, she decided to take the opposite approach this time: ¡°Alright, for the sake of argument, let¡¯s say you¡¯re right.¡± The middle-aged argel with a monocle, who sat next to Nelaira, grunted: ¡°Don¡¯t humor him¡­¡± but Nelaira ignored him: ¡°Let¡¯s say that someone indeed buried the remains of a pyre here in the last 20 years. The question is, why would someone bother burying the ashes of a pyre?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Maybe they wanted to not leave any traces of their pyre? Perhaps what they did wasn¡¯t right and proper, and they didn¡¯t want others to find out about it?¡± ¡°Personally, I wouldn¡¯t go around talking about survivors without concrete evidence if I were you, Luki.¡± ¡°There might be survivors! A land we don¡¯t know of!¡± But if the war didn¡¯t destroy this place¡­ what did? Episode 125 – Aged Food Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. They decide to take one day off to recuperate. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins and finds a diary hidden inside a pillar. While picking herbs Luki finds a patch of land where a large quantity of ash is buried under the soil. He finds it suspicious but his comrades disagree. * * * ¡°Let¡¯s say that someone indeed buried the remains of a pyre here in the last 20 years. The question is, why would someone bother burying the ashes of a pyre?¡±
Episode 125 ¨C Aged Food Aurel Iphis sighed, deciding that the sooner they started playing along, the sooner they would finish with this ridiculous conversation. ¡°The only reason why someone would bother to bury the ashes would be either to hide them or because it was a part of some sort of ritual.¡± ¡°Or perhaps the ash was an eyesore?¡± The archeologist of the group grumbled. ¡°Right,¡± Nelaira nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s set the ritual aside for now. Why would someone want to hide the ashes?¡± ¡°To avoid leaving traces of their pyre? Perhaps what they did wasn¡¯t right and proper, and they didn¡¯t want others to find out about it?¡± Luki¡¯s eyes glistened. The archeologist with a monocle rolled his eyes. ¡°Or perhaps they just thought that it would be better for the environment to bury it.¡± Luki ignored him and continued adding more ideas to the mix. ¡°Perhaps there was someone on their trail, and they wanted to wipe off all traces that they were there?¡± ¡°Any other ideas?¡± Nelaira glanced over the group, but this time no one spoke. ¡°Alright. So then, since the ashes were allegedly buried in the last 20 years, that would mean that either Zor¡¯s expedition buried it or there are survivors in the forbidden zone.¡± Luki nodded his head like a cluckling pecking rice. Nelaira continued: ¡°Personally, I think the pyre was used to burn the bodies of our fallen comrades. Zor¡¯s expedition did have causalities and carrying dead bodies around would be impractical.¡± Luki interrupted: ¡°But weren¡¯t causalities caused by the Tainted? Since this place is untainted, the encountered Tainted would have attacked them before they reached this place. I doubt Zor Arite would carry tainted bodies up the mountain and risk infecting the remainder of his squad.¡± Silence descended onto the clearing. ¡°I still believe it the most likely that they had a celebration for finding this place and buried the ashes because they were unsightly.¡± The archeologist broke the silence. He was ignored once again. ¡°Perhaps they encountered the tainted on their way up and hid inside the passage through the mountain? The tainted comrades were in bad shape but not dead yet, so he had no choice but to carry them along, unaware that he was carrying them towards an untainted place?¡± The redhead offered. ¡°Tainted comrades are a liability, not only would they slow down the exploration but they would also potentially infect more people. Purge Rule 5, Tainted comrades are to voluntarily leave the squad and abort the mission.¡± Luki rolled his eyes. Nelaira gave Luki a strict look. ¡°So, what you are suggesting is that either Zor¡¯s expedition did some kind of strange ash burying ritual, burned the evidence of something they shouldn¡¯t have done, or that there are survivors in the forbidden zone?¡± Everyone sucked in a cold breath. After disregarding the possibility of Zor Arite doing something shady (the man was known for his upright, frank and unyielding character), of the remaining two possibilities, the more likely one¡­ ¡­could it be? Could there really be survivors in the forbidden zone? There had always been a possibility that the people in the Lands Under the Shield weren¡¯t the only survivors of the Mage Wars. However, since there had never been any evidence to support otherwise, the Purge were more inclined to believe that there weren¡¯t any survivors. The forbidden zone was a place of death, a dangerous land not to be ventured into lightly. And everyone that had survived the calamity due to the sacrifice of Aegis Arite, should be eternally grateful for the existence of the Shield of Aegis and the safe haven under it. If it turned out that long-term survival inside the forbidden zone was possible, that would change the public image of the forbidden zone from the barren land of death to the dangerous land of hidden treasure. Adventurers would be lining up to go into the forbidden zone, dreaming of finding priceless relics and striking it rich. Saying that strict control of entry and exit was for the safety of everyone would no longer be as effective. Thus, the Arites and the Purge had been fighting against this change of viewpoint for centuries, making sure that only the Purge and related personnel were allowed out, so that any treasure found would belong to the Arite family. Other noble families have been pressuring the Arite family for years, but since only the Arite family could control the Shield to allow entry and exit, and since there was no possibility of living in the dangerous lands outside, all other families could do was to suck it up and pay heavy fees if they wanted to take their own expeditions out and keep the found loot.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Or it could just be a fire dragon.¡± Nelaira shrugged. ¡°Personally, I wouldn¡¯t go around talking about survivors without concrete evidence if I were you, Luki.¡± The tense silence had lasted for several moments before it was once again broken by Nelaira¡¯s calm voice. ¡°Enough about this. Look at what I found.¡± Her eyes glittered as she pulled out a small leather-bound book. * * * Everyone was so thrilled about the little leather-bound diary, hoping to find some interesting research notes within, that all of them forgot about Luki¡¯s ashes. Even Luki, while not quite forgetting about them, was quite intrigued by the small diary. Perhaps there would be some scandalous conspiracies inside? Thus the archeologist of the group spent the remainder of the day with his nose inside the book, translating the contents of the diary to commonly used letters. The language of the ancients wasn¡¯t largely different from the current language. The most significant difference lay in the writing system. Ancients didn¡¯t write words through a combination of letters, but instead, they had a unique symbol for each word. Due to this, they had a countless number of different runes, which made it difficult for the populace to learn how to read and write. After the Lands Under the Shield were established, to make it easier to educate the commoners, the nobles came up with letters that represented different sounds and started writing out words how they were pronounced. Naturally, this caused the revolution of education and brought significant gains to the development of society. While the archeologist was transcribing the diary into the new writing system and adjusting the sentence structure to be easier to understand, everyone else resumed doing what they were doing. * * * Nelaira continued her exploration for the remainder of the day, until she had visited almost every single building in the village. All that was left were several buildings on the outskirts. She entered the ruined building, carefully watching her steps and sensing every crevice and rock, just like always. She spread her Morph into the ground also, in case the ground was unstable and shouldn¡¯t be walked on or if there was a hidden compartment in the floor where ancients loved to stash their secrets. Yet, this time, her exploration didn¡¯t proceed as usual. Her breath caught in her throat and her footsteps paused. For she felt that the land underneath her feet¡­ ¡­was hollow. Underneath this seemingly ordinary house, there was a cave, or perhaps a basement? However, no matter how she felt around with her Morph, she couldn¡¯t feel an entrance towards it. Grass and moss covered the stone tiles under her feet. There was no trap door, no enchanted artifact, nothing at all that could lead downwards. Could it be that the cave was naturally formed? She recast her Morph spell, specifically targeting the cave this time. Soon enough, her senses revealed that this hollow space truly wasn¡¯t a cave ¨C it was a cellar. She could feel the stone tiles used to build it. Yet, if it was man made why was there no¡­ And then it hit her. The owner of this house must have been an elibu mage. He didn¡¯t make a passage towards the basement because he didn¡¯t need it. He would Morph himself a passage whenever he needed to go into it. Perhaps he had something to hide in that little basement, and not having an entrance to it was one of the best ways to hide it. Nelaira¡¯s usual calm was replaced with excitement. Hidden areas were the most likely to yield treasure. Perhaps the owner of the house stored his finest possessions underground? While architecture was what she liked the most, she wouldn¡¯t say no to treasure. Every explorer who was in their right mind would be excited by the prospect of a hidden treasure trove. Nelaira deliberated whether she should call for her comrades. After all, if this was indeed a treasure trove, it might be filled with dangerous traps. But then again, she couldn¡¯t feel any magic when she swept the basement with her mind. How sophisticated and powerful could traps set by a villager to protect his basement be? Surely, they wouldn¡¯t be powerful enough to last for more than a millennium. Besides, it would be very disappointing if she called all her comrades only to find the cellar empty of treasure. In the end, Nelaira decided to check it out on her own. Just in case, she placed a signal flare on the floor next to her and set it to go off in half an hour if she failed to return from the cellar. That way, even if some misfortune came her way, her comrades would come rescue her immediately. Nelaira positioned herself above the place where she had felt a staircase going from the ceiling of the cellar to the floor. The owner probably used this same position to descend into the basement. Nelaira did the same, shifting the rock and dirt away and creating a tunnel downwards towards the staircase. What met her eyes was blackness so deep that she doubted even argel would be able to see what waited for her inside. Naturally, she wouldn¡¯t descend into the darkness just like that. She sent her mana flowing into the tunnel and the cellar, conjuring several balls of light to dispel the blackness. As the light warmly caressed the insides of the tunnel, it was revealed to Nelaira¡¯s eyes. The stairs were covered by small spider webs; evidently, they had not been used for a long time. Nelaira conjured flames around the stone staircase to clear the web and allow her passage further into the cellar. The flame tongues devoured the silky white strings greedily, spreading towards the webs deeper in, eating them up in a single instant. As she descended into the now well-lit cellar, she had to shield her eyes from the glitter that almost blinded her. For a moment, her heart skipped a beat, hoping she ran into a pile of platinum coins. However, her heart quickly settled down ¨C it was just a reflection from the many glass jars placed on the shelves. From the ceiling of the room hung several large dried hams while the floor was littered with tightly packed wine barrels. The walls of the room were covered with shelves which were filled with various pots and jars. There was simply nothing of value there. The place was just a normal cellar. Still, Nelaira didn¡¯t want to miss anything, so she carefully inspected the whole cellar, including the contents of barrels, pots, and jars. Perhaps there would be something of value within? Some kind of magical ingredient that might be able to last for a millennium without spoiling? Alas, there was no alchemic ingredients there at all. Clearly, the owner of the cellar was not a member of a crafting profession. The pots contained cheese and the jars contained dried fruit. The wine barrels were filled with what seemed to be plum wine. Would wine this old still be drinkable?Nelaira wondered. She walked for a few more steps before she froze, her pupils widening.This¡­old? Quickly, she backtracked towards the pots and jars and stared at their contents in wonder. If this village was destroyed in the Great Mage Wars, it would mean that all this food was more than fourteen hundred years old! So then¡­ How come that the dried fruit was still quite recognizable? It looked a bit old, but still edible? How come the cheese looked like¡­cheese? A bit dry and hard, but still very¡­cheesy?
Coming up in the next episode: Nelaira almost dropped the expensive apparatus half from the shaking of her hands, half from the sudden weakness in her limbs. ¡°Look, look! It¡¯s the translation of the diary you found.¡± He had figured out that he shouldn¡¯t expect any grandchildren from my sister due to her gift, so all his hopes are resting on me. I told the old fart that that rule is stupid. Everyone should be able to leave wherever they want whenever they want. If they get themselves killed or Tainted, that¡¯s their problem. Luki erupted in giggles before she could finish her sentence. ¡°Are you suggesting that Zor and his squad made cheese and wine during their brief stay here?¡± Episode 126 – Son of the Village Chief Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins and finds a diary hidden inside a pillar.While picking herbs Luki finds a patch of land where a large quantity of ash is buried under the soil. He finds it suspicious but his comrades disagree. Nelaira stumbles onto a hidden cellar in the ruins of the village that contains food. * * * Quickly, she backtracked towards the pots and jars and stared at their contents in wonder. If this village was destroyed in the Great Mage Wars, it would mean that all this food was more than fourteen hundred years old! So then¡­ How come that the dried fruit was still quite recognizable? It looked a bit old, but still edible? How come the cheese looked like¡­cheese? A bit dry and hard, but still very¡­cheesy?
Episode 126 ¨C Son of the Village Chief Nelaira grabbed the nearest jar of dried plums. As soon as she opened the lid a familiar scent of prunes assaulted her nostrils. With shaking hands, Nelaira returned the jar back to the shelf and took out a single prune out, holding it between her fingers so stiffly one would think she was worried she would get burned. Then she reached into her pocket to pull out her agometer, a strange looking pocket watch. Like a normal clock, it had three hands of different lengths. However, the numbers on the dial didn¡¯t go up to 12 or even 60 ¨C they went from 0 to 99. She placed the plum underneath the agometer, where there was a small hole, and pressed the button located on the top of the agometer. From the small hole extended a small, dim ray of light and the hands of the watch started to spin. No, that¡¯s wrong. The hands didn¡¯t start to spin. Only a single hand, the shortest one, spun, quickly stopping on the number 16. Nelaira almost dropped the expensive apparatus, half from the shaking of her hands, half from the sudden weakness in her limbs. * * * The sky was painted in the red hues by the time Nelaira made it back to their campsite, a deep frown etched on her pale face. Unlike her, the rest of her comrades were in a rather good mood. Those that weren¡¯t holding a piece of meat in their hands were holding a piece of paper, reading. Nelaira slumped down and grabbed the nearest meat skewer, digging into the meat with the ferocity of a rabid lupax. Luki, who was about to address her, changed mind and put back the glass vial he had almost pulled out of his robes. He concluded it was better to wait with his request until she was in a better mood. Unlike him, the redhead wasn¡¯t as perceptive to Nelaira¡¯s foul mood. Although Laica was Nelaira¡¯s best friend, the redhead¡¯s emotional intelligence was not high, to put it mildly. As loud and spirited as ever, she sat down next to Nelaira and shoved a piece of paper into her face. ¡°Look, look! It¡¯s the translation of the diary you found.¡± Instead of snapping at her, Nelaira showed just how coolheaded and patient she was by simply sighing and taking the piece of paper from Laica¡¯s hand. ¡°It¡¯s only the first part of the diary. There is plenty more to translate.¡± The middle-aged man with the monocle elaborated. ¡°Good work.¡± Nelaira mumbled between bites, her black eyes reluctantly settling on the writing.This might be exactly what I need to get my mind off things¡­ * * *
Hammer asked me to go out drinking with him tonight. He said he¡¯d ¡°borrow¡± an old bottle of wine his father was saving for special occasions. Does he think I¡¯m stupid? We¡¯ve never really gotten along, the only reason why he is trying to butter up to me is because he has a thing for my sister. What a retard. As if my sister would like someone like him. I¡¯m tempted to go just to see the look on his face when his father beats him senseless for wasting a bottle of a priceless wine on a pointless endeavor. But then again, I¡¯d need something stronger than wine to make it through the night without murdering him. ¡­ Cammy has been feeling down recently, no doubt tired of Hammer¡¯s endless pestering. I wanted to beat him up on multiple occasions, but she stopped me. She is really too kind for her own good. To cheer her up, I promised to take her to the Valley of Eternal Snow. Lupaxes have been attacking meep and porklings recently, so father is too busy trying to solve the issue, as a commendable village chief he always portrays himself to be, to notice our absence. I wish he¡¯d be too busy to pester me more often.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Every second sentence he says to me nowadays is how I should find a mate and marry, otherwise he¡¯d die of old age before getting any grandchildren. He had figured out that he shouldn¡¯t expect any grandchildren from my sister due to her gift, so all his hopes are resting on me. It¡¯s not like I don¡¯t want to find a significant other, it¡¯s just that there is really no one to choose from. I¡¯m not even that picky, it¡¯s the offered choices that are limited. The artificer¡¯s daughter is too power hungry, the baker¡¯s daughter is too fat, the healer¡¯s daughter is too young¡­ ¡­ Cammy and I spent the day playing in the snow like we used to when we were kids. I wish I knew how to produce such soft and white snow with temperature manipulation. Then I could turn one room of the mansion into the land of snow so that Cammy can go there whenever she likes. Perhaps I could bring back enough snow from the Valley of Eternal Snow to fill one room? It shouldn¡¯t melt if I keep it cold enough? Speaking of Camellia, she finally cheered up somewhat. Unfortunately, when we came back, we got another lecture on how dangerous it is to leave the valley. Father was furious, saying how everyone else is obedient and doesn¡¯t leave the valley without his permission, yet me, his own son, the next village chief meant to succeed him, is arrogant enough to ignore the rules. I told the old fart that that particular rule is stupid. Everyone should be able to leave whenever they want and go wherever they want. If they get themselves killed or Tainted, that¡¯s their problem. We just wouldn¡¯t let them back into the valley. Unsurprisingly, that did nothing to placate him, on the contrary, he got so much spit on my face that it took considerable effort to keep clear headed enough to try a different approach. I reminded him that we didn¡¯t go deep in, we never do. And there aren¡¯t any Tainted on the outskirts of the Valley of Eternal Snow. But he just doesn¡¯t listen, always treating me as if I was still a snot nosed brat. * * * Reading about the mundane life of the previous owner of the diary was a welcome change to Nelaira. It helped clear her mind and decide whether she should tell her comrades about her findings. Finding sixteen-year-old food inside the cellar had serious implications. And she didn¡¯t want to cause a commotion. Before she could think about it further, Luki noticed she was in a far better mood than when she arrived. Thus, he couldn¡¯t contain himself anymore, and he reached into his robes, pulling out a vial filled with gray dust. ¡°Lieutenant, could you lend me your agometer for a second?¡± Nelaira¡¯s face turned black at the mention of the agometer. ¡°Would you drop it already?¡± The archeologist of the group snapped at the pink haired menace. Nelaira took hold of the small glass vial and frowned. She could barely hear the bickering of her comrades in the background. She turned the vial upside down and let the ash slide out into the palm of her hand. She stared at the gray substance for several moments, noticing some small grayish and yellowish flakes within. She waved her forefinger, making the air shuffle the ash around to have a better look at the flakes. However, she wasn¡¯t quite gentle enough, because the flakes ended up crumbling into ash. She hesitated before taking out her agometer, whose all three hands were currently pointing to zero. She placed it on top of the ash and pressed the top button. When the shortest hand stopped at the number 16, she wasn¡¯t surprised. ¡°See, I knew it was made in the last 20 years.¡± Luki beamed. ¡°We never questioned its age, Luki.¡± The blond and black-haired man sighed, his red eyes showing utter helplessness. ¡°Right, we just questioned your sanity.¡± A female comrade grinned teasingly. ¡°My sanity is quite fine, thank you. In fact, I¡¯ll have you know I¡¯m much more perceptive then the lot of you. Perks of being a healer.¡± Luki waved his hand dismissively, before revealing a self satisfied smirk. ¡°Did you guys notice a problem in the diary?¡± ¡°What problem?¡± The archeologist snapped, ready to defend his translation to the death if necessary. Luki gave everyone a significant look, deliberately speaking slowly to rise tension. ¡°The writer mentions the Tainted. Since the Wars were halted due to the appearance of Ink, it means that the diary was written post Mage Wars.¡± ¡°So?¡± The redhead yawned, resisting the urge to rub her eyes. ¡°So¡­ if the wars didn¡¯t destroy this village¡­what did?¡± The deathly silence that spread through the camp lasted for several long seconds, before Nelaira¡¯s solemn voice cut through it like a knife. ¡°Actually, in my exploration, I stumbled onto a hidden cellar¡­¡± Luki was right. The man might have an overactive imagination, but he was no fool. Becoming one of the best healers of the Eryey family wasn¡¯t something a fool could achieve. Sharing her findings with him, and the rest of her squad, might shed some light onto the matter. * * * After Nelaira summarized her findings to her comrades, the camp fell into silence once again. The archeologist was the first to break the silence: ¡°Why would anyone hide a cellar that has just food stored within?¡± Luki chuckled at the question, and Nelaira could already feel a headache coming on. Yet, surprisingly, what came out of his mouth was not an another ridiculous theory: ¡°You don¡¯t have children do you? If I had a lot of dried fruits and cheese, I¡¯d make a secret cellar too. Otherwise, there would be nothing left of it when I return back home.¡± The statement made everyone pause in shock, and then the tense atmosphere was broken by a fit of laughter. ¡°That said,¡± Luki chuckled, ¡°There really are survivors in the forbidden zone!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get ahead of yourself.¡± A female comrade snapped. ¡°Sixteen years ago was exactly when Zor Arite reached this place. Instead of there being survivors¡­¡± Luki erupted in giggles before she could finish her sentence. ¡°Are you suggesting that Zor and his squad made cheese and wine during their brief stay here?¡± The image of Zor¡¯s elite squad of Purgers making cheese made the redhead snort out a loud giggle before she could stifle it. However, other than her and Luki, no one else laughed. Nostrils of the archeologist flared, and he glared at Luki derisively. ¡°It¡¯s possible that one of their members that was missing in action didn¡¯t end up dying, but instead settled here waiting for the next expedition to pick him up and take him back home.¡± Nelaira¡¯s quiet calm voice cut through the clearing. ¡°Plums are harvested in summer. Zor¡¯s expedition arrived here in October.¡± ¡°The survivor must have lived here for at least a year¡­¡± The archeologist spoke up. ¡°If the survivor waited for the next summer to harvest them, the age of the dried plums would be 15, not 16. Thus, these plums were harvested before Zor¡¯s expedition found this place, ergo, there really are survivors.¡± Luki rolled his eyes. ¡°We can¡¯t confirm that. Maybe plums mature late in this place.¡± The archeologist argued. ¡°What I want to know is, how come Zor¡¯s expedition didn¡¯t run into survivors here?¡± The redhead spoke up. ¡°What if they did?¡± Luki¡¯s green eyes gleamed mysteriously. ¡°Are you saying that the higher ups kept it a secret from the public?¡± Redhead¡¯s husband joined the conversation. ¡°That does sound plausible.¡± Nelaira frowned. ¡°Indeed, that is something Arites would choose to do¡­ but, you¡¯re forgetting an important point.¡± Luki smiled eerily. ¡°Why is it that this food stash hadn¡¯t been visited for years? What happened to the survivors? In fact, how come we didn¡¯t find any living quarters? Where did they eat and sleep? How was this village destroyed in the first place?¡± ¡°Here it comes¡­¡± Nelaira sighed helplessly. ¡°What if these ruins¡­¡± Luki¡¯s voice lowered mysteriously. ¡°Aren¡¯t as ancient as we thought?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°In fact, what if this village was destroyed¡­sixteen years ago? What if Zor Arite was pursued by a herd of Tainted and unwittingly brought them here? What if the Tainted were the ones to destroy this village?¡± Her fiance told Nelaira the story about this flower a few years back. He said that Zor learned of a fable regarding the flower on his expedition. Supposedly, it was some kind of a tragic love story about a goddess who got separated from her lover in this valley. Not many have ever seen this flower though. Supposedly it reveals itself only to those that it finds worthy. It was one quiet, tranquil night, when everything changed. Cammy heard them coming. Episode 127 – Valley of Eternal Snow Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins and finds a diary hidden inside a pillar. While picking herbs Luki finds a patch of land where a large quantity of ash is buried under the soil. He finds it suspicious but his comrades disagree. Nelaira stumbles onto a hidden cellar in the ruins of the village that contains food that is 16 years old. Nelaira gives their archaeologist the diary to translate. The writer of the diary is the village chief¡¯s son and he talks about his life. It seems the diary was written after the mage wars, which makes everyone wonder what destroyed the village if not the wars. * * * Luki smiled eerily. ¡°Why is it that this food stash hadn¡¯t been visited for years? What happened to the survivors? In fact, how come we didn¡¯t find any living quarters? Where did they eat and sleep? How was this village destroyed in the first place?¡± ¡°Here it comes¡­¡± Nelaira sighed helplessly. ¡°What if these ruins¡­¡± Luki¡¯s voice lowered mysteriously. ¡°Aren¡¯t as ancient as we thought?¡±
Episode 127 ¨C Valley of Eternal Snow Before anyone could interrupt his speech, Luki pointed his finger towards the sky and declared. ¡°In fact, what if this village was destroyed¡­sixteen years ago? What if Zor Arite was pursued by a herd of Tainted and unwittingly brought them here?¡± He gazed into the eyes of his comrades one by one, only to be met with stupefaction, annoyance, and skepticism. ¡°What if they fiercely fought to kill the Tainted and then hurriedly burned their corpses and affected foliage on a large pyre to prevent the Ink from spreading?¡± Luki smirked knowingly. ¡°Of course higher ups wouldn¡¯t want that story to spread. It would tarnish Zor Arite¡¯s illustrious name.¡± Nelaira didn¡¯t even bother to point out the many flaws that could be found in Luki¡¯s ridiculous theory. Instead, she turned towards her remaining comrades and murmured: ¡°I¡¯ll report our findings to the higher ups and await orders. You should keep this confidential. I don¡¯t want any rumors of survivors to spread once we return.¡± * * * Unsurprisingly, once Nelaira reported her findings and desire to investigate this village further, her request was denied. Their superiors wanted them to proceed towards the Valley of Eternal Snow. This all but confirmed that their superiors wanted to pretend that there were never any survivors here in the first place. Whether they were already aware of potential survivors back when Zor discovered this place or if the information was new to them, Nelaira couldn¡¯t tell. Unfortunately, the decision of their superiors only served to increase the intensity of Luki¡¯s conspiracy theories. Soon enough even the most resilient ones among his comrades couldn¡¯t be bothered to argue with him anymore. Which says something, considering how boring the journey was. The Valley of Eternal Snow wasn¡¯t actually a valley but an endless snowy plain to the north of the mountain. Besides snow and ice, there was nothing else there. Even wind and clouds avoided this tranquil place. It wasn¡¯t that the Valley of Eternal Snow wasn¡¯t beautiful, on the contrary, the light refracted and reflected in strange ways creating rainbows and bathing everything in a soft glow. The snow glittered under the sun like it was made from white glitterdust. It was so soft and crunchy under their boots that it brought them a strange satisfaction with each step. Ice crystals could be seen spread around the flatlands like flowers, so translucent and beautiful that when the ten initially saw them, they were fooled into thinking they¡¯ve discovered a new type of precious crystal. But after days of gazing into nothing but endless whiteness as far as the eyes could see, it was enough to make everyone grow tired of it. Luckily, there were no signs of Tainted, or anything else, for that matter, living or dead, in this snowy wasteland, much to Luki¡¯s disappointment. He kept frantically searching the horizon for a trace of red, hoping to find that mythical plant that was said to grow in this valley. Nelaira was familiar with the story of the flower for her fianc¨¦ had mentioned it to her a few years back. Supposedly, it was some kind of a tragic love story, Zor Arite brought back in his expedition, about a goddess who got separated from her lover in this valley. After getting forever separated from her lover goddess flooded the valley with her tears of grief. The warmth of her love turned into icy coldness that froze the flooded valley into never-melting crystal and snow, turning the once lush green valley into white flatlands. She bled out into the snow, her divine blood coalescing and turning into a crimson red flower that never withered. And thus, the Valley of Eternal Snow came to be. A place where there was no wind, snow, or rain. A place always bathing in the warm sunlight yet it remained eternally covered in never melting snow. Such a magical, serene place was naturally a perfect spot to build a shrine, which is exactly what the people of the old did. They built several shrines and temples from crystal worshiping the goddess, where they often came to meditate, pay their respects and utter their prayers. They even extended their worship to the flower, naming the entire mountain range after it. Not many have ever seen this flower though. Supposedly it revealed itself only to those that it found worthy. Which is to say that the flower was probably just an urban legend ¨C a plant that didn¡¯t really exist.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Still, convincing Luki that it was just a myth was a futile effort. No one even bothered. * * * All of their days were the same. If Nelaira didn¡¯t keep a diary of their expedition, they would have long lost count of the days spent trying to cross the snowy plain. Initially, they intended to search every corner for ruins buried under the snow, but when confronted by the sheer size of the plans with no end in sight, it became evident that it would take decades to search the entire snowy flatland. And that¡¯s under the assumption that they had enough food to survive that long. Which, as they soon realized, was a faulty assumption. They had prepared plenty of food before stepping into the valley, but now, all their preparations seemed awfully insufficient. With every passing day, their food reserves diminished with no way to replenish them. If they didn¡¯t reach the other end of the plains soon, they would have to decrease their food intake, and going hungry was certainly not a way to make this entire trip more bearable. What did make it more bearable, however, was the stream of translated diary entries their archaeologist kept pumping out every night before sleep. There was nothing particularly interesting about the diary but due to the lack of better entertainment it was worth its weight in gold. If the ten were told that at one point in their expedition they would find the lives of villagers exciting, they would have thought it was a hilarious joke. Yet right now, they couldn¡¯t laugh at this joke at all. This mundane diary portrayed a life that one would expect from a villager, which while a bit less advanced, wasn¡¯t all that different from the lives of villagers in the Lands under the Shield. They used the same basic magic spells, raised the same species of plants and animals and dined on the same food. Of course, there were minor cultural differences, such as their tendency to name their children by the names of mundane objects and plants, but nothing too major so far. So far¡­ Unfortunately, that kind of ¡®far¡¯ wasn¡¯t nearly far enough into the future. The change came too abruptly on a seemingly mundane, tranquil night. And it wasn¡¯t just the story in the diary that took a sudden unexpected turn, even the ten would soon experience a turning point¡­ * * *
Cammy heard them coming. She claimed they had no bad intentions and their numbers were few ¨C just several dozens, but father still gathered up everyone who could fight to wait for them at the exit of the passage, just in case the peaceful welcome didn¡¯t proceed as planned. Unfortunately, in the village this small, gossip spread faster than a wildfire. Soon enough everyone knew that we were about to receive unannounced visitors. Unable to restrain their curiosity, both young and old, those that could walk and those that couldn¡¯t ¨C everyone came out to see what the fuss was about. Father was worried that the visitors would be intimidated by the overly ¡°warm¡± welcome and tried to disperse the crowd to no avail. It wasn¡¯t any day that outsiders came to our village. In fact, if our history books were to be believed, there had been no visitors to our place since the wars ended. Luckily, the outsiders weren¡¯t the timid sort. They weren¡¯t even astonished by the welcome. Which wasn¡¯t surprising in the least, because they could probably hear the commotion and excitement from a mile away¡­ ¡­ Their four leaders were surprisingly young, but the sheer dignity and charisma oozing out of them was something not a single person from our village could compare with. Even their men looked like experts, exuding an innate air of power. Their group had both argel and elibu with all kinds of exotic shades of hair and eye colors that had not appeared in our village for a long time. Naturally, that caused all single males and females in the village to look at them with a heated gaze, like hungry lupaxes seeing a fresh piece of meat. I wish I could blame them for their inappropriate behavior, but that would be quite hypocritical of me. Their leaders were incredibly beautiful, so much so that some of the villagers thought they were incarnations of gods. There was a female among them that¡­well¡­ let¡¯s just say that I would be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t moved by her beauty and demeanor. ¡­ They said that they came from a place without Ink. A utopia, a huge piece of fertile land where Ink had never stretched its nasty tendrils. Truthfully, such a place sounded too perfect to be true. Even though Cammy ensured me that they weren¡¯t lying, I still couldn¡¯t bring myself to believe that such a place truly existed. Others were too thrilled at the prospect of us not being the only survivors to take my skepticism seriously. The outsiders were friendly and polite, thus we welcomed them with open arms. In fact, we showed them our finest hospitality by throwing a village wide celebration in their honor. We brought out our finest food and drinks. The dancers, led by Cammy, even put up a show of magic. They sang, glowed, flew and twirled with fire. I don¡¯t remember we ever had such a lavish party. The visitors very much enjoyed the dance, if the ogling eyes they directed towards my sister was any indication. * * * Unable to contain her excitement anymore, Laica jumped to her feet, slapping Nelaira with her red hair in the process. ¡°There might be another land of survivors out there that we don¡¯t know about!¡± She broke out in a wide smile, grinning ear to ear as she giggled triumphantly: ¡°Is this enough proof that there are indeed survivors in the forbidden zone?¡± She gave a side glance to their archaeologist comrade. He deemed it beneath him to give her a proper look and just added offhandedly. ¡°It¡¯s not like this happened yesterday. Such survivors might have already been wiped out by the Ink.¡± ¡°It is certainly possible that there is an untainted land we are unaware of out there¡­¡± Nelaira spoke up, giving Laica a side glance telling her to calm down. ¡°¡­but¡­ we shouldn¡¯t get our hopes up this easily. These visitors could very well be from the Lands under the Shield. When our lands were in the process of being established, the entry and exit weren¡¯t so strictly regulated as it is now. Perhaps some of the people left back then to search for survivors and invite them inside the Shield. These mentioned outsiders could very well be our ancestors.¡± The archeologist was quick to nod his head approvingly. His nod froze midway when Nelaira turned to him with a questioning look: ¡°When was this diary written?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure when it was written.¡± The middle-aged man with the monocle admitted. ¡°The dates are from the year 1430 A.O. However, I don¡¯t know what A.O. stands for, thus I can¡¯t calculate the year in A.W. (After Wars).¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you use the agometer to measure how old the diary is?¡± Laica suggested. Agometer was an arcane magical artifact enchanted to use a time spell fragment to sense the age of particles. It could accurately sense when that specific particle was created, however, it couldn¡¯t tell what form that particle took through the ages.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Who would welcome several dozen potentially Tainted individuals inside their sanctuary just like that? Don¡¯t tell me they forgot to check them for the presence of Ink?¡± They were surprised at how many marriages of mixed races we have in the village. Apparently, in the place where they are from argel and elibu rarely marry. They said we are blessed to have so many mana purification artifacts in our possession. Those two now share heated gazes and hold hands whenever no one is looking. They also sneak out alone every night and return only at dawn. And this time her conscience just didn¡¯t let her put the matter to rest. A weak and quiet voice that sounded incredibly like Luki whispered at the back of her mind: Why? Why do they want it destroyed so badly? What is it that they wish to hide? Episode 128 – Disobedience Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins and finds a diary hidden inside a pillar. While picking herbs Luki finds a patch of land where a large quantity of ash is buried under the soil. He finds it suspicious but his comrades disagree. Nelaira stumbles onto a hidden cellar in the ruins of the village that contains food that is 16 years old. Nelaira gives their archaeologist the diary to translate. The writer of the diary is the village chief¡¯s son and he talks about his life. It seems the diary was written after the mage wars, which makes everyone wonder what destroyed the village if not the wars. Nelaira wanted to investigate the possibility of survivors but her superiors ordered her to proceed towards the Valley of Eternal Snow. The diary speaks of outsiders that came to the village one day from a utopia without Ink. * * * The archeologist was quick to nod his head approvingly. His nod froze midway when Nelaira turned to him with a questioning look: ¡°When was this diary written?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure when it was written.¡± The middle-aged man with the monocle admitted. ¡°The dates are from the year 1430 A.O. However, I don¡¯t know what A.O. stands for, thus I can¡¯t calculate the year in A.W. (After Wars).¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you use the agometer to measure how old the diary is?¡± Laica suggested. Agometer was an arcane magical artifact enchanted to use a time spell fragment to sense the age of particles. It could accurately sense when that specific particle was created, however, it couldn¡¯t tell what form that particle took through the ages.
Episode 128 ¨C Disobedience ¡°It would show the age of the materials the diary was made out of, which in turn would show the age of the materials or creatures those materials were made from.¡± The archaeologist explained. ¡°The shown age on the agometer could be decades or even several centuries off from the actual time the diary was used. The agometer won¡¯t tell you how old the writing is, or even when the ink was made. It would calculate the age of the ink by the age of the oldest ingredient used to make it. Same with the leather, the age of the leather would include the age of the animal from which it was taken from. The paper would be as old as the tree that it was made from, which could have been centuries old before it was made into paper.¡± The archaeologist explained. The two girls would have inquired about the matter further if Luki didn¡¯t choose this time to interrupt everyone¡¯s excitement with a bucket of cold water: ¡°Don¡¯t you think this whole ¡®welcome¡¯ business was strange?¡± Nelaira resisted the urge to face palm herself and let out a tired sigh: ¡°Do enlighten us¡­what was strange about it?¡± ¡°Who would welcome several dozen potentially Tainted individuals inside their sanctuary just like that? Don¡¯t tell me they forgot to check them for the presence of Ink?¡± Luki rolled his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m sure they checked them in some way during the welcome. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t have welcomed them with open arms.¡± Nelaira frowned. ¡°Just because the diary doesn¡¯t mention them checking it, it doesn¡¯t mean they didn¡¯t check it.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Luki raised his hands in the air in surrender. ¡°Let¡¯s say you¡¯re right. What about the sister of the writer of the diary? How did she hear them coming and how was she sure they had no ill intentions?¡± ¡°She was an elibu. Elibu have long ears with very sharp hearing.¡± The archaeologist spoke slowly as if explaining it to a five-year-old child. ¡°She was probably coincidentally near the passage and heard them climbing the stairs.¡± Nelaira showed much more self-restraint than her archaeologist comrade, showing no impatience and annoyance through her own explanation. ¡°Peculiar.¡± Luki stroked his chin. ¡°I was under the impression that the writer of the diary was an argel. Which one of the two do you think is adopted?¡± His comrades stared at Luki dumbfounded: ¡°How is that relevant to the previous conversation?!¡± ¡°Does it even matter which one was adopted?!¡± ¡°The diary never clearly stated the race of the writer and his sister anyway!¡± ¡°Right! They could be of the same race but in possession of a mana purifying artifact.¡± * * *
Father invited their four leaders for a private dinner with our family. Apparently, the four of them were from the same family which held a high status in their land. It definitely showed in their elegant eating manners and sweet words. I could totally see them as princes and princesses from the fairy tales, it made me feel rather awkward to have them show interest in our plebeian way of life. Apparently, we have many different customs they found interesting or strange. Like how father chose to marry an elibu. They were surprised at how many marriages of mixed races we have in the village. Apparently, in the place where they are from argel and elibu rarely marry. They also praised the strength of our familial bonds and how united all the villagers were. There were several additional points they found fascinating, but to be honest, I wasn¡¯t paying much attention to the conversation. I was more interested in Cammy¡¯s strange behavior. She kept giving one of them strange looks¡­and I could feel some kind of fuzzy, warm feeling coming off of her. If I didn¡¯t know her any better, I¡¯d say she felt¡­ shy? Ok, alright, I admit, the guy she was looking at was very handsome. And in fact, I am also guilty of staring at that stunning goddess-like female more than was appropriate. But shy? When has my sister ever felt shy? I don¡¯t remember ever seeing her blush either. I always used to tease her that she acts like a grandma instead of a young virgin.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. When I brought the matter up later, she deflected the question and told me that I should give up on wooing the goddess I¡¯ve been staring at. Apparently, she already has someone else in her heart¡­ It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve fallen for the girl just like that! I wasn¡¯t really thinking about courting her¡­ And even if I wanted to court her, I wouldn¡¯t really care whether she has a previous lover or not. I¡¯m nothing if not persistent. ¡­ Father, Cammy and I brought the visitors on tour around the village. They were really surprised by the spells used in our craftsmanship. They said we are blessed to have so many mana purification artifacts in our possession. I¡¯m not quite sure what a mana purification artifact is though? If they do what their name implies, why would we be very blessed to possess such things? I can see how they might have some use for children to play with but¡­ other than that, aren¡¯t they¡­redundant? Well, whatever the case, the visitors invited us to go with them to this blessed land. They are talking about how advanced their own crafting is and how there are many academies of magic, warlock arenas, mage guilds and many other incredible things in their land. I have to admit that their descriptions of the place do sound very enticing. At one point I even felt like asking father to let me go with them to this place of theirs. But then I remembered that I¡¯ve been having this bad feeling ever since they arrived and my feelings are usually quite accurate. My sister continued acting disturbingly unlike herself. Instead of a wise older sister, she seemed like a normal, love-struck, teenage girl, although she is too old to be one. I didn¡¯t even need to see how that man and her kept blushing up to their ears, and giving each other sneak glances and gentle smiles, I could feel her emotions clearly dripping onto me. I did my best to shut her off and mind my own business, but it is only a temporary measure. I¡¯m not sure how long I¡¯ll be able to continue with it. ¡­ I confronted Cammy about her sudden interest in that man and didn¡¯t let her change the topic this time. She admitted she likes him very much. She said he is different from the rest. He is very handsome, smart and capable, yet not arrogant or selfish. He treats everyone with kindness, thinking of his men like they were brothers. Always thinking about feelings and desires of others before his own. She says that some of the visitors are looking down on us because we aren¡¯t as advanced as them and their society, but not him. He respects our tradition and doesn¡¯t look down on us in the slightest. She said she noticed him at the celebration when she was dancing. He was stunned by the beauty of her dance but had no indecent thoughts or desires about her. It was an innocent admiration and respect without any impurities or ulterior motives. I suppose that is rare among men. If she has to like someone, I suppose it¡¯s best she likes someone who isn¡¯t a chauvinistic pervert? ¡­ Cammy stayed up all night talking to him. I¡¯ve never seen her so excited, so happy. I suppose I should be happy for her. He is a fine man, in fact, both of the cousins are fine men. Too fine actually. It makes me feel unsettled at how perfect they seem. Still, I trust Cammy¡¯s judgment. If there was something wrong with them and their motives, my sister would be the first one to notice. My love life is not going nearly as well as hers. After meeting that goddess, other women are even less attractive to me. Even though Cammy told me to not entertain any hopes, I think I involuntarily developed a crush. I wonder what she thinks about me? Does she even notice me at all? I should probably ask Cammy about it, but then, I¡¯m afraid to find out. ¡­ I can¡¯t believe Cammy actually encouraged the girl to pursue her love! She knew I liked her and she went and set her up with someone else! Cammy tried to comfort me by saying that the bond between them ran too deep. It was just a matter of time before the two of them finally confessed their feelings to each other. She just helped speed it up. She says that she got tired of all the angst they felt. She says I have no idea how it feels to have to pretend to love another like a sibling while internally yearning for them in every way possible. She spewed a bunch of romantic nonsense about wanting to hold each other and never let go. I almost puked. This romance stuff is disgusting. ¡­ Those two now share heated gazes and hold hands whenever no one is looking. They also sneak out alone every night and return only at dawn. And no, the two I¡¯m talking about aren¡¯t my sister and her new boyfriend, though the two of them have been getting more and more lovey-dovey. I should probably pity the fool. If my sister set her eye on him, he¡¯d have no choice but to fall for her. It makes me wonder, is she being herself or is she being the person he hopes she was? Does he truly love her for who she is or for who she pretends to be? * * * Soon enough, even their only source of entertainment was taken away. One day, after reporting the translated contents of the diary, Nelaira was issued an order to dispose of the diary without further translation. To say that it took her by surprise would be an understatement. She stared at the command for hours, and then she proceeded to stare at the clear night sky for several more hours unable to fall asleep. She was just a lieutenant within the Purge. She had to obey the commands of her superiors without question. But she couldn¡¯t do it. She was never the type to follow commands blindly. She was always the type of person who put a lot of thought into reasons and consequences. And this time her conscience just didn¡¯t let her put the matter to rest. A weak and quiet voice that sounded incredibly like Luki whispered at the back of her mind: Why? Why do they want it destroyed so badly? What is it that they wish to hide? She shouldn¡¯t question it. She should follow the order. But she didn¡¯t want to. She wanted to know what happened next. What made her superiors want to destroy this little booklet. If she destroyed it just like this, the mystery would bother her for the rest of her life. In the end, Nelaira decided to delay the execution of the command. She would read the diary till the end and then destroy it. It would make no difference if she knew of its contents. She would keep quiet and no one would know that she had read it till the end. However, the command did forbid further translation, thus she had to explain to everyone the change. Their archaeologist should not continue to translate the diary and spread it around. She chose to keep the order of destroying it a secret and instead told everyone that their superiors wanted to contain the spread of confidential information and didn¡¯t want the diary translated among the squad. They were devastated. Especially Luki, who couldn¡¯t sleep at night not knowing what was inside that little booklet. (Imagine what scandalous stuff the big bosses wanted to hide!)
Coming up in the next episode: I thought that someone was intentionally spreading false rumors, but Cammy confirmed that they were indeed the descendants of that man. But she claims that they are good people with good intentions that shouldn¡¯t be condemned due to the sins of their predecessors. Father is seriously considering sending the young towards their blessed land. They said that they could teleport us there, without us being in any danger from the Tainted. They are more afraid of Ink than the prospect of being ambushed by an undying monster. They seem to think that even a little contact with Ink would taint them and doom them to a miserable fate of turning into a Tainted. How did they survive all this while if they don¡¯t even know how to purify Ink? We didn¡¯t separate on good terms. I was too mad that I had to stay behind. Too mad that she was leaving me behind. The last remaining entry in the diary she had yet to translate was short and hastily written, which made it more difficult to identify the runes used to write it. I can feel Cammy running frantically back to help us. Yet, I fear it is too late. Episode 129 – A. O. Previously: While writing a letter to her fiance, Nelaira thinks about the events that led to her current predicament. She remembers how her squad of ten found a hidden entrance to a long staircase climbing through the mountain, first discovered by Zor Arite. There they find a green valley filled with wildlife and ruins of a village. Nelaira uses her day off to explore the ruins and finds a diary hidden inside a pillar. While picking herbs Luki finds a patch of land where a large quantity of ash is buried under the soil. He finds it suspicious but his comrades disagree. Nelaira stumbles onto a hidden cellar in the ruins of the village that contains food that is 16 years old. Nelaira gives their archaeologist the diary to translate. The writer of the diary is the village chief¡¯s son and he talks about his life. It seems the diary was written after the mage wars, which makes everyone wonder what destroyed the village if not the wars. Nelaira wanted to investigate the possibility of survivors but her superiors ordered her to proceed towards the Valley of Eternal Snow. The diary speaks of outsiders that came to the village one day from a utopia without Ink. The outsiders were capable, beautiful people who were welcomed with opened hands by the natives. Both the writer of the diary and his sister set their sights on an outsider. One day, Nelaira had been ordered by her superiors to stop translating the diary and to destroy it.
Episode 129 ¨C A. O. The diary was returned to Nelaira¡¯s possession, and now she had to find a way to translate it without anyone finding out about it. She did study the subject of ancient runes in Muni so she could understand them somewhat. However, she doubted it would be enough to translate the diary. Thus, she came up with a plan. She started to volunteer for night guard duty often, so she could translate the diary when everyone else was sleeping. And so she could secretly sneak a peek at the ancient rune dictionary carried by their archaeologist when he was asleep. It took her considerably more time and effort to translate the remaining diary entries than it would have taken their archaeologist, but it helped that there wasn¡¯t much left of the diary to translate. After about a week worth of sleepless nights she was confident that her translation wasn¡¯t far off. * * *
When they offered to help us move into their blessed land, many villagers wanted to go, yet soon after, a rumor started spreading.The word on the street was that the outsiders were descendants of the madman that doomed us all.Now many villagers are vehemently opposed to leaving and are even proposing we kick them out of the village. I thought that someone was intentionally spreading false rumors, but Cammy confirmed that the outsiders were indeed the descendants of that man. But she claims that they are good people with good intentions that shouldn¡¯t be condemned due to the sins of their predecessors. I¡¯m worried that even Cammy can¡¯t see into their deepest, truest self. I fear that the apple doesn¡¯t fall far from the tree¡­ ¡­ Cammy took her boyfriend to the Lands of Eternal Snow. I feel happy for her, but also, kind of bitter. She used to only go there with me. I used to be the only one to admire her snow sculptures. And now¡­gods only know what the two are doing there¡­ alone¡­ together¡­ Gods, I hope morphing snow is all they are doing¡­ ¡­ The outsiders received new orders from their superiors. They split into two groups. My goddess, her man, and my sister¡¯s new boyfriend were ordered to move north towards the Valley of Eternal Snow, while the fourth one was ordered to help us move to their land. They claim that they can teleport us there, without us being in any danger from the Tainted. I volunteered to come with the group going towards the Valley of Eternal Snow because I am familiar with the place. They told me to stay close to them and avoid spreading my mind so as to not come into contact with Ink. What kind of instructions are those? If I don¡¯t spread my mind, I¡¯d be effectively blind to mana and magic. Are they so afraid of Ink they¡¯d rather run around blind? Apparently so. They are more afraid of Ink than the prospect of being ambushed by an undying monster. They seem to think that even a little contact with Ink would taint them and doom them to a miserable fate of turning into a monster. How did they survive all this while if they don¡¯t even know how to purify Ink? ¡­ Surprisingly, father didn¡¯t veto my decision to lead the outsiders through the Valley of Eternal Snow. Probably because even if I didn¡¯t volunteer, Cammy would have begged him to let her come. Usually, he would vehemently refuse to let her go anywhere even remotely dangerous, but I suppose he felt assured that her new boyfriend would protect her from any potential harm. And also, the fact that Cammy could hear the trouble coming from a mile away surely helped with his final decision. ¡­ I was supposed to go with Cammy and their group towards the Valley of Eternal Snow, but the other group expressed their desire to reunite with Cammy¡¯s group of outsiders after they finish teleporting us to their land. Apparently, not all of them were needed for the teleportation. Some of them would have already left with the other group, but they had to supervise the transport. Thus, instead of going along with Cammy¡¯s group, my departure would be delayed for several days until the other group was done with their business. Then I would lead them towards the Valley of Eternal Snow and reunite with Cammy.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡­ Cammy left towards the Valley of Eternal Snow today. I didn¡¯t see her off. I hate goodbyes, and we would see each other soon anyway. Also, I didn¡¯t want her to notice what was bothering me. I didn¡¯t want her to feel my irritation, annoyance that I had to stay behind. It might be irrational and unfounded, but it felt as if¡­ as if she was leaving me behind. As if my place in her life was taken by someone else. As if she had replaced me¡­ * * * Nelaira finally reached the last untranslated entry in the diary, still unsure of why her superiors wanted the diary destroyed. She doubted that perhaps purifying Ink had something to do with it. If there really was a way to purify Ink they wouldn¡¯t be so helpless against it nor would the forbidden zone be so¡­ well¡­ forbidden. But how would her superiors even know that the diary spoke of such a thing? It had never been mentioned before in the translated entries she had sent their way. Another possibility entered Nelaira¡¯s mind. Perhaps it was the lines about a madman who doomed them all? If these outsiders were indeed from the Lands under the Shield, then the mentioned madman would probably be Aegis Arite who had created the Shield of Aegis? But why would they refer to him as such? Could it be that the portrayal of the history books that glorified him as their savior wasn¡¯t as accurate as everyone thought? Could it be that he could have saved much more people than he chose to save? Could it be that he intentionally left some to rot outside the Shield? Only saving those that chose to submit or those that were the closest to him? It wouldn¡¯t be surprising if that was the case. After all, it¡¯s the victors that write history. It would explain why her superiors were afraid of writings left by the survivors. Any such writings could potentially reveal that they had been discarded by the Arites and left to die. They certainly wouldn¡¯t be willing for their virtuous and saintly image to take such a serious blow. Perhaps she was thinking too much into the matter. Perhaps she will never know the real reason behind it. There wasn¡¯t much left in the diary, and she doubted those last few words could explain the matter. After all, the last remaining untranslated entry in the diary was short and hastily written, which made it more difficult to identify the runes used to write it. * * * "They are burning down everything. Houses, people, books, parchments.Their superiors ordered them to wipe out our entire village, leaving not a single building standing, not a single person alive." Nelaira stood under the full moon with a pale face and shaking hands, staring at the piece of paper with the translation of the last diary entry she had just finished. This¡­can¡¯t be! Her grip onto the paper momentarily loosened and as if it was a moth attracted by the light, it floated towards the campfire. Nelaira made a weak attempt at snatching it back that only ended up pushing it further towards the fire. It took only an instant for the flames to devour it. Leaving only ashes and small paper flakes behind. Yellow and gray paper flakes. "And for what? All because they wish to keep their citizens chained under their rule! Unaware that pure mana should be everyone¡¯s birthright! Unaware that Ink is not as deadly as they think!" The last lines in the diary reverberated inside Nelaira¡¯s head like an endless chorus of buzzing bees. "I can feel Cammy running back frantically.Yet, I fear it is too late." Chills racked Nelaira¡¯s hunched up form as her mind connected all the clues. She suddenly regretted her decision to postpone the execution of her orders. This knowledge wasn¡¯t something she could just ignore. It was something that flipped her world views upside down. Something that could easily endanger her life if anyone found out. Yet, she couldn¡¯t think about her own predicament, for her mind was still captured by the final line of the writing. "This might be the greatest calamity we have faced after the outbreak." After the outbreak¡­ Nelaira¡¯s heart pounded hard against her ribcage. After¡­Outbreak¡­ A.O.! The realization hit Nelaira like a hammer, leaving her gasping for breath. These villagers¡­! They measured time from the outbreak of Ink! But the Ink¡­! The Ink appeared the same year the wars were halted! A.O. was no different from their own A.W. The year 1430 A.O. on the diary entries¡­ ¡­was 16 years ago! As she sat there, under the bright moonlight, covered in cold sweat, Nelaira was too absorbed in her horror to notice the moonlight reflecting on a monocle in her peripheral vision. A moment of weakness she would eternally regret. For had her vigilance not dropped that night, perhaps the fates of her squad and her would have been different. * * * Ashar, Thursday, 30th of August, 1449 A.W. As Kiel waited for Elaru¡¯s practical exam to start and then finish, he attempted to replicate some of the spells in his book on spell replication, however, his mind was simply not in it. No matter how he tried to concentrate, to not let his mind wander, it was a futile effort. Sometimes he would think about the opponents he had faced, other times, he would think how mysterious and unfathomable the Replica Dungeon was. Sometimes he would find his mind echoing with words of Zor Arite, other times, the words echoing inside his mind would be of Arion Urwin and Elaru Wayvin. Sometimes, his body would shiver as if he could feel the excruciating pain of electricity coursing through his muscles, other times, a flash of Elaru¡¯s aura would make comfortable warmth spread through his limbs. In the end, he stopped his studying and instead started meditating. Slowly, his worries and thoughts faded away one by one. He forgot about the pain of being burned and electrocuted, both of which he had experienced before. After all, he used to be Rhur¡¯s favorite practice dummy for his lightning magic. He put his curiosity towards the Replica Dungeon, gods and divine artifacts to the back of his mind. He would have plenty of opportunities to investigate them in the future. He stopped thinking about Zor Arite, for the life and death of that person had no relation to him. In the end, all that was left occupying his thoughts was Elaru. And she wouldn¡¯t go away. It didn¡¯t help that she was sitting next to him for the majority of the time. And when he finally rejoiced her leaving to take her practical exam, the girl was back before he could do anything about his problem. ¡°What the¡­ ? Why are you back already? Did you remember your time slot wrongly?¡± A single question blurted out incredulously, and the result was¡­ ¡°¡­and then I just knocked them out easily.¡± Elaru finally finished her self-satisfied narration of how she passed her practical exam and turned to face Kiel¡¯s unamused deadpan expression. It wasn¡¯t that he found her retelling boring, no, on the contrary, it was rather humorous. But he couldn¡¯t quite laugh when he compared it to his own 30 minutes of torture. And also, the story had disturbing implications¡­ ¡°Why is it that you are familiar with a crew of pirates?¡± Kiel unceremoniously homed in on the issue Elaru glossed over, giving her a penetrating look.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Papa, Wade and I¡­we¡¯ve spent last 18 years searching for something.¡± ¡°As for what I enjoy doing the most or hope to become in life¡­I don¡¯t know.¡± She admitted. ¡°I¡¯ve never thought about the future. I¡¯ve always been concentrating on the present.¡± ¡°And you think you might be able to find what you are looking for here in Muni?¡± Kiel probed. As soon as his thoughts entered that dangerous territory, Kiel shook his head and diverted his attention to another tangential thought: ¡°What about your mother? What happened to her?¡± But then, why was it that Elaru seemed to revere her father if the man used her ability when he needed it and left her to other people to take care of when he didn¡¯t? It really was a common occurrence in the noble families. Most of them married for benefits instead of love. Episode 130 – Life Story Previously: Elaru meets up with Kiel after finishing her practical exam in which she subdued a familiar crew of ex-pirates. * * * Elaru finally finished her self-satisfied narration of how she passed her practical exam and turned to face Kiel¡¯s unamused deadpan expression. It wasn¡¯t that he found her retelling boring, no, on the contrary, it was rather humorous. But he couldn¡¯t quite laugh when he compared it to his own 30 minutes of torture. And also, the story had disturbing implications¡­ ¡°Why is it that you are familiar with a crew of pirates?¡± Kiel unceremoniously homed in on the issue Elaru glossed over, giving her a penetrating look.
Episode 130 ¨C Life Story ¡°That¡­ is an interesting question.¡± Elaru grinned. ¡°Would you believe me if I said that I ended up boarding a pirate ship by mistake when I was young?¡± ¡°Did you?¡± Kiel raised an eyebrow questioningly. ¡°Yes.¡± She responded with a straight face. ¡°Then yes, yes, I would,¡± Kiel responded with a face just as straight as hers. Elaru was the first to discard the solemnity in favor of a chuckle. ¡°Only because you can tell I¡¯m not lying.¡± ¡°And because at this point, nothing about you would surprise me.¡± Kiel pointed out. ¡°And that.¡± Elaru grinned sheepishly. Kiel sighed and rubbed his temples. Elaru was¡­ a special kind of trouble maker. She didn¡¯t actively search for trouble, but one way or another ended up in it. He had a nagging feeling that she¡¯d bring that trouble to his doorstep too. And the worst thing about it is that he had no idea what kind of trouble to expect. He was left in the dark with no idea about what she was up to; no idea of her background and goals. Kiel sighed again, with a mix of frustration and helplessness. ¡°Do you ever intend to let me into your closed off little world?¡± Silence descended, slicing the cheerful mood like a sharp knife. Almost palpable tension rose in the air. Kiel stared at Elaru¡¯s poker face for a while, before he got tired of waiting for a response. She wouldn¡¯t give him any. He averted his gaze towards the fluffy white clouds above them pondering what to do. Elaru just didn¡¯t like talking about herself. That secretive nature of hers would probably not change anytime soon. She¡­ might be a bit similar to him after all¡­ at least in their tendency to keep people at bay. At first glance, one would peg her as an extremely outgoing and sociable person. She was charismatic, friendly, amusing, and cheerful ¨C a person most people would enjoy befriending. Not only did she make people enjoy spending time with her, but she was also capable in many ways making her a powerful ally. But when everything was said and done, did she truly have any close friends? Did she ever form any close ties, letting someone get truly close to her? To understand her? She hid it quite well, but she was just as unwilling to let people get close to her as he was. Elaru gave Kiel¡¯s impassive expression a side glance, and unbeknownst to him, a flash of sadness briefly touched her face. ¡°Papa, Wade and I¡­we¡¯ve spent last 18 years searching for something.¡± Kiel¡¯s head jerked towards Elaru so fast that it is a wonder how his neck didn¡¯t snap. He stared at her with wide eyes but didn¡¯t dare to even breathe too loudly let alone speak, afraid that anything he said or did would make her stop talking. ¡°We¡¯ve been to every corner of the Lands under the Shield, and when we failed to find it within the Shield, we resorted to going to the forbidden zone to continue the search.¡± Elaru sighed softly. ¡°Whenever the search turned too dangerous to bring two snot nosed brats along, papa would leave us to one of our uncles and aunts, or later on, leave us to fend for ourselves as a part of our training.¡± What kind of training would require two children to roam around alone, fending for themselves? Isn¡¯t training just an excuse? Kiel swallowed down the protest, not wanting to interrupt. Elaru¡¯s eyes grew distant, looking towards the horizon. Her mental voice also became soft and airy. ¡°We¡¯ve spent a lot of time in Ashar and Malia, spending a few months here and there in D¡¯Arca and Zelaih, and the remainder was spent traveling all over.¡± Her mouth morphed into a soft smile, directed to something Kiel couldn¡¯t see. ¡°I¡¯ve met so many people, learned and done so many different things. Even if I died right now, my life wouldn¡¯t have been a waste.¡±Contrary to her proud words, her smile held no mirth. Calling it sad, or perhaps melancholic, would be more appropriate. ¡°I¡¯m familiar with many different applications of magic and other magic related knowledge. But if you asked me what I specialize in¡­¡± Elaru paused to think before responding. ¡°I guess¡­ what I¡¯m best at is¡­surviving.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. She smiled softly as she looked at Kiel. ¡°I am great at stealth, combat, and detecting things, or rather, tracking things. I¡¯ve also spent considerable effort trying to gain a deeper level of understanding towards how magic works, thus I have significant abilities in enchanting, mystifying and magic breaking.¡± She fell silent for a moment, but she didn¡¯t seem to be quite done, so Kiel held in all questions that were brewing inside his head. ¡°As for what I enjoy doing the most or hope to become in life¡­I don¡¯t know.¡± She admitted. ¡°I¡¯ve never thought about the future. I¡¯ve always been concentrating on the present.¡± Another pause gave her some time to reflect. ¡°I suppose what I love is being challenged. I like novelty. Exploring, adventuring, discovering new things¡­¡± She mused. ¡°I suppose this way of life had become a bigger part of me than I thought.¡± Kiel waited for a long while for her to continue. She didn¡¯t. Don¡¯t tell me she intends to leave me hanging with the most important question unanswered? Kiel fidgeted uncomfortably for a while, his usually great patience degrading rapidly. Finally, he couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore: ¡°What are you guys looking for?¡± For a moment, many complicated emotions flashed on Elaru¡¯s face. Kiel suspected she wouldn¡¯t answer, but after a moment of indecision she mused: ¡°A way to change fate.¡± Kiel didn¡¯t believe in fate to begin with, so receiving such an answer would be inherently irritating; the fact that this answer shed no light on the matter only served to increase Kiel¡¯s frustration. People could call anything as fate, having an arranged marriage, growing old, even crossing the street every day to buy bread could be called fate. It was as if she didn¡¯t answer at all. Kiel couldn¡¯t stop the displeased frown from marring his face. ¡°What does that mean? What fate?¡± Elaru gave him a sheepish smile. ¡°That¡¯s a secret.¡± Another secret, huh? Well, he should be satisfied he managed to get her to reveal this much. ¡°However, I can tell you that I am specifically looking for knowledge related to gods, Aetherneal magic and the soul.¡± Elaru added. Everyone is looking to know more about that. Kiel thought. Those topics had always been the greatest of mysteries that both the mages and the priests had been trying to solve for many millennia. ¡°And you think you might be able to find what you are looking for here in Muni?¡± Kiel probed. ¡°Perhaps,¡± Elaru whispered. ¡°Muni holds the largest web of knowledge in the entire Lands under the Shield. Currently, it¡¯s my best bet.¡± Both of them fell silent, each absorbed in their own thoughts. Kiel was once again the first one to break the silence. ¡°I¡¯m also interested in such knowledge. Specifically, the knowledge relating to the Aetherneal bond.¡± I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m saying this¡­ ¡°I can help you in your search.¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t remember the last time offering help didn¡¯t leave a sour taste in his mouth. Usually, he offered assistance to people simply to uphold his flawless image of a kind and helpful person. Outside of pretending, he never had the urge to help anyone. He didn¡¯t care enough to help anyone. But this time, helping out was something that would benefit him too, for the topic of the search actually interested him. And perhaps it was also¡­ ¡­also because of Elaru. Because he wanted to understand her better. Because he wanted to know her better? As soon as his thoughts entered that dangerous territory, Kiel shook his head and diverted his attention to another tangential thought: ¡°What about your mother? What happened to her?¡± ¡°I think this is where I¡¯ll end my confession.¡± Elaru¡¯s melancholy evaporated, and through the mischievous glitter of her eyes, Kiel could tell that he wouldn¡¯t be getting anything else out of her today. Which frustrated him to no end considering how many more questions he had to ask. This story of hers raised more questions than it answered, such as¡­ How did her father manage to get them out of the Shield? The Arite family only allowed entry and exit to their Purgers and in rare cases, other noble families. One could argue and say that they somehow managed to sneak out, taking advantage of the time when the part of the Shield was naturally lowered to let someone else out, but the Arite family had employed various advanced measures to ensure that doesn¡¯t happen. So how did they manage to get out? The Purge would never let one of their men haul two children along, thus her father couldn¡¯t possibly be a Purger. Other noble families would also not offer two of their expensive spots to children. Unless their presence was necessary? Perhaps they wished to use them for their Aetherneal gifts? Elaru¡¯s Aethernea would no doubt be priceless in exploring the forbidden zone. If so, did Wade possess an Aethernea as well? Was this why Elaru¡¯s father kept hauling the two along instead of leaving them somewhere to have a normal childhood? It sure sounded like she had plenty of relatives that could take care of her so that shouldn¡¯t have been an issue. But then, why was it that Elaru seemed to revere her father if the man used her ability when he needed it and left her to other people to take care of when he didn¡¯t? If the man was as bad of a father as he sounded, using her for his own ambitions and not sparing the time to raise her properly, why would she respect him so? Why was she not like Kiel, detesting her own father? Kiel¡¯s father was a very capable man, both as a mage and a politician, yet when he thought about him, what appeared in his mind first was irritation and anger, not respect and love. And compared to Elaru¡¯s father, his almost looked like a praise worthy fatherly figure. Kiel was awakened from his thoughts by Elaru¡¯s unblinking, glittering eyes that simply dripped curiosity and expectancy out of their sockets. ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you to share your own life story now.¡± She pointed out. Oh no¡­ I have no intention to¡­ No, no. I¡¯m not¡­ No! Tsk! He could feel his resolve slowly cracking under her glittering eyes. Fine¡­ it¡¯s not like my life story is a secret¡­ He grumbled internally. ¡°It¡¯s not much of a story. I bet you could find people in a similar situation as me in every noble family.¡± Elaru returned him the favor he showed her by staying silent while he talked. ¡°My father and Rhur¡¯s mother were victims of a political marriage. They never had much affection for each other and produced an heir just out of obligation.¡± It was a common occurrence in the noble families. Most of them married for benefits instead of love. In fact, those that actually refused to marry whom their family assigned them to and instead married a person they loved were ostracized by the nobles. They were viewed as traitors who had turned their backs on the family that raised them. Of course, there were families where such things weren¡¯t viewed so negatively, namely the Thayn and Arten families, which didn¡¯t chase political power or monetary gain to begin with, so they left their members a bit more freedom about who to wed. However, no noble wanted to live like the Thayn and Arten families, a frugal life barely any different from the commoners. And as such, both political marriages and cheating on their spouses were the norm in the noble circles. Still, while it was common, mistresses and bastard children were still looked upon with scorn, so no one would usually talk about being one. It was a sensitive topic.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°To keep us safe from all the political problems, insidious plots, and a stigma of being a mistress and a bastard child, my father kept our existence a secret as long as he could.¡± ¡°Father brought me to the Rroda mansion where I was¡­¡± Kiel paused, trying to find a good word to describe it with. In the end, he settled for: ¡°¡­ educated.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a bastard child too, you know.¡± Elaru added nonchalantly. ¡°Let me guess, your mother¡¯s family didn¡¯t approve of your father?¡± Ready or not, the very last entrance exam was before them. In a few hours they¡¯d either walk away in defeat or move into Muni dorms. Episode 131 – Past and the Future Previously: Elaru meets up with Kiel after finishing her practical exam in which she subdued a familiar crew of ex-pirates. Kiel asks her about her background and this time Elaru does respond. She reveals that her father and her had spent the last 18 years searching for something. She says that she is specifically interested in topics concerning the gods, the soul and Aetherneal magic. Kiel offers to help her search for he is interested in information about Aetherneal bond. Kiel reveals that his father and Rhur¡¯s mother have no affection for each other.
Episode 131 ¨C Past and the Future ¡°My father accidentally met my mother, who was merely a commoner and a non-mage to boot, and somehow, they fell in love.¡± Kiel¡¯s face contorted, as if he had swallowed something sour. ¡°Opposites attract and all that nonsense¡­ anyway, my mother got pregnant and miraculously survived giving birth to me.¡± It took a while for Kiel to get the vile taste of love off his tongue before continuing. ¡°To keep us safe from all the political problems, insidious plots, and a stigma of being a mistress and a bastard child, my father kept our existence a secret as long as he could.¡± ¡°I lived a normal life of a normal child in a normal house in Ashar until it burned down.¡± Kiel spoke as if he was talking about the weather. ¡°My mother, whose body had always been frail due to her mana deficiency, didn¡¯t survive the ordeal. With a lack of a mother, and any form of maternal relatives, my father didn¡¯t have anyone else to leave me with and thus my existence was revealed to the Rroda family.¡± Kiel tried to hide the scowl threatening to emerge. ¡°It was a matter of time anyway. After all, I have the unique hair and eye color of a Rroda. Thus, although it pained grandfather greatly, he had no choice but to bestow Rroda for my last name.¡± His scowl turned into a mocking sneer. ¡°Well, it was either that or to make me disappear forever. The thought crossed his mind, I¡¯m sure.¡± A frown and a sneer battled for dominance on Kiel¡¯s face. ¡°Father brought me to the Rroda mansion where I was¡­¡± Kiel paused, trying to find a good word to describe it with. In the end, he settled for: ¡°¡­ educated.¡± But judging by the tone of his voice, ¡®torture¡¯ might have been a more appropriate word. The sneer won and practically radiated off Kiel¡¯s voice as he spoke: ¡°To the horror of my grandfather, it turned out I was a non-mage like my mother. It also turned out that I and Rhur get along as well as the fire gets along with water. Thus, at the end, they dumped me at Beyd as soon as I was old enough to take care of myself.¡± Kiel¡¯s expression subconsciously returned to a neutral mask, yet not even his reflexive repression of emotion could hide the true feelings from bleeding into his voice as he spat out: ¡°There you have it. Not nearly as interesting as your life story.¡± Elaru seemed to have picked up that there was more to the story from the way Kiel got agitated just by remembering it, thus she refrained from asking any questions. She stayed silent in thought for several seconds before speaking up in her melodic, pleasant voice: ¡°Being a bastard child isn¡¯t something you should necessarily be ashamed of. Your parents literally loved you into being. That¡¯s something to be proud of if you ask me. Even if it was out of wedlock.¡± Love, huh? Kiel wasn¡¯t quite sure he believed in such a thing. His father was certainly not a loving person. He would be more inclined to believe that the whole affair was his father¡¯s infatuation with something exotic coupled with a good dose of lust. And even if it truly was love, there was no way to prove it nor would anyone care about it. How can he walk with his head held high knowing that he was an illegitimate child? That his father cheated on his wife with a mistress? Most people would see him as a mistake. Something that shouldn¡¯t have happened. A disgrace. They would think that the Rroda family was very generous for admitting him into the family and allowing him to take on their family name. That he is indebted to them for raising him and giving him his current social status. Yet, no one would ever know that he hadn¡¯t had a single day of true happiness since the moment his mother died. Everything after was just a long nightmare with brief moments of sunlight passing through the shroud of darkness. ¡°I think you are better off than those that were sired out of obligation. An environment without love is bad for children raising. Just look at your brother.¡± Elaru winked at Kiel. Feeling her warm aura and seeing her cute mannerisms, Kiel couldn¡¯t help but let out a husky chuckle: ¡°You almost sound like you pity him. There is nothing about him to be pitied. He is the future heir of the Rroda family that has always had everything he ever wanted.¡± ¡°I doubt that¡¯s truly the case¡­¡± Elaru murmured, her teal eyes staring far into the distance as if she could see Rhur somewhere far away. ¡°These things can be quite difficult to discern from the surface. Perhaps he is even more miserable than you.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched in annoyance. Never mind her calling him miserable, he was learning to tolerate her frankness, but¡­ was she actually¡­ defending Rhur? ¡°You are thinking too much. He is quite happy with his life. Very self-satisfied. He believes himself to be standing on top of the world.¡±If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Yeah, but did you know?¡± Elaru smiled a smile too sad to be called a such. ¡°The view from the top is very lonely.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you are taking his side! I warned you this would happen. People around him always end up getting manipulated into liking him!¡± A ball of flames lit up inside Kiel¡¯s chest, searing and burning, threating to devour him whole. Elaru shook her head gently. ¡°I am not taking his side. As a fellow bastard, I¡¯m just pointing out that the meadow isn¡¯t necessarily greener on the other side.¡± And, just like that, a tepid stream doused the flames that burned inside his chest, spreading comforting warmth through Kiel¡¯s limbs. He looked at her with unconcealed surprise. ¡°Your parents aren¡¯t married either?¡± ¡°They wanted to marry, of course, but¡­ eh¡­ outside interference didn¡¯t let that happen.¡± Elaru shrugged, oddly nonchalant about it. ¡°Let me guess, your mother¡¯s family didn¡¯t approve of your father?¡± Kiel figured that since Elaru spent her childhood with her father, it was probably the party with the lower social status. ¡°Uh¡­ no, that wasn¡¯t quite what happened.¡± Elaru scratched her head awkwardly. Kiel motioned for her to continue, his eyebrow raised in interest. Elaru sighed. ¡°My birth is¡­ a complicated topic I¡¯d rather not discuss.¡± Seeing Kiel¡¯s face turning black, she added hastily: ¡°It a very well kept secret that I¡¯m not supposed to share.¡± ¡°Surprise, surprise.¡± Kiel grumbled. ¡°It¡¯s not like I would go around telling people about your matters¡­¡± ¡°You know that some families would rather kill off their bastard children than let them grow up. My situation is like that. If they find out about my existence, that would turn my life even more¡­ uh¡­ life threatening.¡± Elaru looked truly apologetic about the matter but her eyes were resolute. She wasn¡¯t even considering telling him about it. Kiel¡¯s eyes narrowed. Only those who had something significant to lose would consider killing off their bastard children. Elaru had once told him that she wasn¡¯t a part of a noble family. However, that didn¡¯t mean that she didn¡¯t have noble blood running through her veins. She could very well be a bastard of a noble family. That would explain why she was so beautiful, talented and an Aethernea wielder to boot. ¡°So you do have noble blood running through your veins.¡± ¡°Everyone born in the Lands under the Shield has noble blood running through their veins. After all, everyone is a descendant of the 14 noble families that established the Lands under the Shield.¡± Elaru rolled her eyes at his obvious attempt to wiggle out her confession. ¡°Yeah, but something tells me that your noble heritage is a bit closer to the present.¡± Elaru refused to comment on it. In an obvious attempt to change the topic, she spoke up: ¡°You forgot to share your aspirations. What will you study in Muni specifically?¡± Kiel gave her a knowing look, I-see-what-you-did-there was written all over his face. Elaru turned her head away in an attempt to feign ignorance. After a moment of silence, Kiel sighed and decided to let the topic go. He should be happy she shared this much with him today. He shouldn¡¯t press for more. After all, the two of them were still not close enough to share important secrets with each other. The only reason why he mentioned his own life story was because it wasn¡¯t much of a secret. A quick investigation or a D.I. report would tell her as much. And besides, now that her noble lineage was all but confirmed, there weren¡¯t many possibilities for the origin of her noble blood. After all, excluding Arites, there existed only seven elibu noble families and Elaru had to be related to one of them. Probably either an Etezza or a Reysic. The girl had stealth abilities that could even put legitimate Etezzas to shame. And considering that her father sounded like a treasure hunter, it was quite likely that he had some relation to the noble family of treasure hunters. They were practically the only family granted special treatment by the Arites in allowing them entry to the forbidden zone. Noticing that Kiel had gotten lost in thought, Elaru pouted and poked him on the cheek. Kiel reflexively glared at her and slapped her hand away. His glare melted soon enough when he saw her adorable pout and drooping ears. He shook his head and tried to conceal the upward curl of his lips. Kiel averted his eyes from Elaru towards the clear blue sky. ¡°When I was little I wanted to be a Purger or a Peacekeeper. As I got older I even had a phase where I wanted to be a Warlock. But¡­ as a non-mage, I could become none of the things.¡± Kiel paused. Why was he even sharing so much with this little vixen? Would she laugh at him? Every little boy dreamed of being those things. She would definitely point that out. Or not? He gave her a sneak glance from the corner of his eyes, but her facial expression revealed no ridicule or laughter just interest. Encouraged by her sudden civility he continued: ¡°I set my sights on Muni, trying my best to learn everything I could, hoping that perhaps I might become good enough to enroll. If I managed to enroll in Muni, even as a non-mage, I could also become someone. There are no better credentials than being a graduate of Muni.¡± Kiel sighed exasperatedly. ¡°But as you know, I failed the exam last year¡­¡± He paused to calm down his bitter feelings about the whole matter. After failing, he was quite depressed for a while. Not that he would admit that to anyone. ¡°Then I figured there still might be a way for me to reach the top. I still might be able to become a high ranked quest seeker. The world of quest seekers is a place where no one asks for your background or schooling. It¡¯s where you speak and earn credentials with your actions. There are no tests to pass, no people to impress, no one to bar my path because of my lack of mana. There are strict and unchangeable promotion rules and all that is looked at are your quest results. I might not be able to become a Warlock through this path. But there are often Peacekeeper missions posted in the quest lodge, so I could perhaps become a Peacekeeper in the future. And if I reach the top, the credentials of being a top quest seeker might be enough for me to be accepted into the Purge.¡± Kiel¡¯s face turned cold. ¡°But my father and grandfather thought that as a Rroda I should be managing quest seekers, not being one. That would be quite unbefitting of my status. Father intended for my aunt to bring me into the business of managing the quest lodge.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: He should pay the Rroda mansion a visit as soon as the enrollment procedure is done. What courses should he choose in Muni? What path should he pursue? Researching gods, Aetherneal magic and artifacts also sounded like a fascinating topic. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t find much on that topic in the books that had been available to him, so he was a complete novice to the field. But perhaps if he widened his knowledge about it in Muni he would be able to tell with certainty if it was the subject he wanted to pursue with the remainder of his life. For the first time ever, he actually felt¡­comfortable in a presence of another person his age. Not just that, Elaru was really pleasing to the eye when she was agreeable. There were not many who applied for the special exam, thus the remaining examinees would only appear here in the afternoon when the entrance exam results would be posted. Episode 132 – Change Previously: Elaru meets up with Kiel after finishing her practical exam in which she subdued a familiar crew of ex-pirates. Kiel asks her about her background and this time Elaru does respond. She reveals that her father and her had spent the last 18 years searching for something. She says that she is specifically interested in topics concerning the gods, the soul and Aetherneal magic. Kiel offers to help her search for he is interested in information about Aetherneal bond. Kiel reveals his past to Elaru. * * * ¡°And if I reach the top, the credentials of being a top quest seeker might be enough for me to be accepted into the Purge.¡± Kiel¡¯s face turned cold. ¡°But my father and grandfather thought that as a Rroda I should be managing quest seekers, not being one. That would be quite unbefitting of my status. Father intended for my aunt to bring me into the business of managing the quest lodge.¡±
Episode 132 ¨C Change Kiel¡¯s face scrunched up. ¡°Naturally, I refused. I don¡¯t want to spend my life pent up in an office reading about adventures and achievements of other people.¡± Elaru nodded her head in complete understanding. Such a life would be rather miserable. At least on this point, they could wholeheartedly agree with each other. ¡°Father thought that after a few days of doing manual labor I would learn my lesson so he had them issue me the lowest quest seeker rank in the Beyd¡¯s quest lodge.¡± Kiel snorted. ¡°I bet he is currently waiting for me to send him a letter begging him to let me come to Ashar and work in quest lodge administration.¡± Elaru grinned wide, showing her pearly white teeth. ¡°I¡¯d love to see his face when you show up wearing a Muni student uniform.¡± Kiel¡¯s mouth couldn¡¯t help but twitch upwards at the thought. The facial expression of his grandfather would be even more amusing. He should pay the Rroda mansion a visit as soon as the enrollment procedure is done. After all, he should pick up his luggage that should have already arrived at the mainhouse several days ago. Saturday. He concluded. I¡¯d pay them a visit on Saturday. ¡°What about now? Now that you are no longer a non-mage, I mean. What do you intend to do with your new abundance of mana?¡± Elaru¡¯s curious voice interrupted his thoughts. Kiel paused. He hadn¡¯t thought about it. It had been less than a week since he stopped being a non-mage. And since then Muni exams had occupied all his thoughts. Only now that he was certain he would pass did he stop to think about the future. What courses should he choose in Muni? What path should he pursue? While watching arena matches and fighting was something Kiel enjoyed, he doubted that a life consisting of nothing but combat would sit well with him. He wanted to have some kind of purpose, a sense of achievement. He wanted to contribute something meaningful, to become a person people would respect and remember. He didn¡¯t pursue power for the sake of power. To him battling prowess was just a means to an end. Therefore, he could cross off becoming a Warlock and fighting for the sake of entertainment. Catching criminals no longer interested him as much as when his heart was still pure and filled with thoughts of justice, which it hadn¡¯t been since his mother died. But solving mystery murder cases, while not impacting the magic society on a large scale, was still a meaningful contribution. Besides, the process involved in the matter might be quite exhilarating, so he shouldn¡¯t hastily write off the possibility of becoming a Peacekeeper. The only problem with becoming a Peacekeeper was that nobles usually didn¡¯t respect and appreciate Peacekeepers. They saw them as servants of the people, with no poise, social status or money. Not much different from how they viewed quest seekers or priests. And thus, his grandfather and father wouldn¡¯t really like the idea of him becoming a Peacekeeper. As for becoming a Purger? The thought of exploring an uncharted land and looking for lost treasure did make his heart beat faster. Who wouldn¡¯t be interested in doing that? But becoming a Purger was extraordinarily difficult with an exceedingly small number of elites managing to make it into the ranks of the Purge. And even if one made it in, that wouldn¡¯t mean they would automatically become treasure hunters. The vast majority of Purgers didn¡¯t explore the forbidden zone, but rather, looked for the Tainted in the vicinity of the Shield for the purpose of purging the Ink. Their method of purging consisted of getting rid of everything that had been tainted. Luckily, the Ink could only taint living things, so even if it seeped into the land, without living things to taint, it would eventually disappear. Or at least, that¡¯s what the experts on Ink claimed. Though none of them had actually seen it disappear, supposedly it took a very long time for it to dissipate. Other than joining the ranks of the Purge, he could become a researcher of Aetherneal magic, divine artifacts, and gods. It sounded like a fascinating topic, and if he became a prominent figure in the field, all noble families would be fighting to let him join their exploratory expeditions into the forbidden zone. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t find much on that topic in the books that had been available to him, so he was a complete novice to the field. But perhaps if he widened his knowledge about it in Muni he would be able to tell with certainty if it was the subject he wanted to pursue with the remainder of his life.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ll just pick courses that interest me.¡± Kiel concluded. He¡¯d probably pick a colorful mix of courses in his first semester to find out what he truly likes. And spend a large amount of time in the library investigating Aetherneal magic. He did tell Elaru he¡¯d help her look for whatever she was searching for. And maybe, just maybe, his future mentor would be able to help him in figuring out what path was the right one for him to pursue. Kiel shared a look with Elaru and a smirk couldn¡¯t help but twitch into existence on their faces. Neither of them knew what courses to sign up for. What would other people say if they knew that the geniuses in their eyes were even more lost about their own future than regular people? Neither of the two continued to speak, but the silence wasn¡¯t awkward. On the contrary, it was tranquil and comfortable. When she isn¡¯t causing trouble, Elaru isn¡¯t a bad person to be around at all, Kiel thought. For the first time ever, he actually felt comfortable in a presence of another person his age. Not just that, Elaru was really pleasing to the eye when she was agreeable, not causing trouble. That radiant smile that could topple cities, those deep eyes that reflected the entire universe, and that warm, comforting and uplifting aura that left soft air kisses on one¡¯s skin. It was quite remarkable if one thought about it, her presence alone could calm the mind and elevate the mood. * * * ? Friday, 31st of August, 1449 A.W. ? (Tomorrow) That Friday morning proceeded strangely identical as the morning before. The only difference being that there was no crowd gathered in front of Muni. There were not many who applied for the special exam, thus the remaining examinees would only appear here in the afternoon when the entrance exam results would be posted. As Kiel and Elaru flew over the heads of everyone, invisible as always, Kiel paid attention to the people going in the same direction as them. Chances were high that these people would be their future classmates. The most attention drawing among the students was a female duo of Arites ¨C Kiel could tell they were Arites due to their eye and hair colors. But even if he was color blind, he wouldn¡¯t be able to miss their origin. Their beauty alone was enough to draw attention wherever they went, coupled with their demeanor and powerful auras they left a long-lasting impression. Kiel glanced towards Elaru briefly, whose long ponytail flapped behind them like a flag or rather, a long red ribbon, glittering in the bright sunlight. Her bright teal eyes with golden lights looked soul stirring as they surveyed the surroundings with expectation. They would be moving into the dorms this afternoon, making this place their home for the next three years. And since Elaru never had a home, the feeling must have been new and exciting to her. When Kiel¡¯s gaze returned to the two Arite girls, suddenly they didn¡¯t look nearly as exceptional as before. A comparison could really drive people mad. He should stop comparing girls to Elaru, it was unfair towards them. Other than the two Arite girls, there were several other people that caught Kiel¡¯s attention such as a strange looking guy wearing rainbow-colored clothes and hair highlights, with a lollipop in his mouth, and a handsome dark haired elibu with teal eyes that reminded Kiel of Elaru¡¯s own teal orbs. Kiel looked back towards Elaru again, who was gently hugging his arm like she always did when they flew under the invisibility barrier. For some reason, it was easier for her to control their acceleration and the entire dome of spells if their arms were linked. He had attempted questioning her on this matter several times but she always avoided answering. Still, since she never took advantage of this physical contact in any way, this form of skin ship had stopped bothering Kiel. In fact, it was far from bothering him. Other than when she poked him, he didn¡¯t dislike her touch. Her skin was smoother than silk and softer than cotton. When her warm arms were wrapped around his, they put a very comfortable pressure on it. Her puffy sleeves, the texture of which reminded him of spidersilk, occasionally tickled his skin so lightly it might as well have been a soft breeze. And sometimes, when she hugged his arm tighter, her soft chest would cushion his arm in an enticing embrace. Of course, he didn¡¯t have any inappropriate thoughts about it. He just found it rather comfortable. Warm and soft. Just like he felt when a soft, furry creature rubbed itself on him. He¡¯d rather die than admit it but he quite liked soft, fluffy creatures. The mentioned creature landed and dispelled the barriers once the two entered inside Muni where Rroda men couldn¡¯t reach them. Kiel¡¯s heart twitched uncomfortably when the warm pressure lifted from his arm. It was that same feeling as when he forced himself to stop petting a lunar, least people laughed at him, and then instantly missed the feeling of the silky fur. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched and his mouth curled upwards. Elaru, with silky hair, large eyes and long animated ears, really reminded him of a pet lunar sometimes. She was also both playful, cunning and graceful, just like a lunar. Perhaps he should just think of her as such. Kiel caught himself before his hand could involuntarily rub her head. Maybe thinking of her as a fluffy creature wasn¡¯t such a good idea after all. * * * Elaru¡¯s and Kiel¡¯s special exam was scheduled to take place in Sapphire Quarters, which wasn¡¯t a surprise, for the building housed classrooms and laboratories for activities closely related to the Theory of Magic, such as enchanting, inscribing, spell breaking, spell replicating, and the like. The practitioners of such professions had to have a deep understanding of Theory of Magic thus they had much in common, even if the end result of their work wasn¡¯t the same. It was like how herbalists and alchemists both needed to have a deep knowledge of herbs and their medicinal properties. Though they did different things with the knowledge, it was still the basis of their profession. Thus, their two exams were scheduled to take place in the same building. They were even coincidentally scheduled for the exact same time slot. Hence, the duo made their way towards the building, which as its name suggested, was made out of blue stone. Unlike how the building was filled with examinees in the previous days, today it was almost completely empty. Even the main hall with its tables and chairs was vacant and silent. The only person they could see at first glance was a guy who was pushing a cart filled with artifacts towards the elevator. Kiel rejoiced at the feeling of privacy, a soft smile almost sneaking onto his face. Fewer people there were, the more relaxed he felt. Unfortunately, the lack of people also made Elaru more unbridled.
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel¡¯s heart almost jumped out of his chest and he barely avoided choking on his own saliva. Low blow!! You are too despicable!! How good would it feel if one day she would look at him like that for real? He should be a law abiding, perfectly cultured¡­ ah, forget it¡­ that perfectly mannered person was never him, to begin with. As he saw it, in the future his fangirls might just camp near this infernal device waiting for him to use it so that they have an excuse for ¡°accidentally¡± jumping into his arms. Episode 133 – Start of the Special Exam Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel and Elaru make their way towards Sapphire Quarters where the special exams will take place. * * * ¡°And if I reach the top, the credentials of being a top quest seeker might be enough for me to be accepted into the Purge.¡± Kiel¡¯s face turned cold. ¡°But my father and grandfather thought that as a Rroda I should be managing quest seekers, not being one. That would be quite unbefitting of my status. Father intended for my aunt to bring me into the business of managing the quest lodge.¡±
Episode 133 ¨C Start of the Special Exam Kiel felt a soft tug on his arm towards the direction of the elevator. ¡°Look. That guy is going to the fourth floor too. Maybe those artifacts he is moving will be in your spell replicating exam?¡± ¡°Mmhmm¡­¡± Kiel murmured his husky confirmation but made no steps towards the elevator. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you are afraid of elevators?¡± Redhead¡¯s long eyelashes fluttered in confusion, giving her soulmate an inquisitive look. ¡°Of course not.¡± Kiel snapped irritably. As if he would be afraid of such a thing. It¡¯s not like it would burn him if he used it. He couldn¡¯t even fall to his death due to his ability to fly. What was there to be afraid of? Other people might feel intimidated by the novelty of such a modern device and be afraid of making a fool out of themselves, but that was them, not him. He just felt that as a capable argel mage, using a device made for elibu would be a blatant squandering of mana crystals used to power the elevator. And also, flying by his own magic gave him more sense of control and security. Her large teal orbs inspected Kiel¡¯s face curiously. ¡°I see.¡± Strangely enough, she showed no signs of teasing as she asked: ¡°Then, have you ever used one before?¡± Kiel swallowed down a reflexive retort of ¡°Naturally.¡± And instead gave her a condescending, as-if-a-person-of-my-status-would-be-ignorant-of-such-a-thing look. Instead of giving him a smug smirk and calling him out on his lie, she chose to play along. Her face bloomed into a stunning smile that caused Kiel to reflexively shield his eyes from the eye-poking brilliance. Her ponytail swayed left and right excitedly, as if it was a wagging tail of a cute furry creature, tempting one to touch it. Her long ears perked up as if she was a little mischievous vulpy and her already large eyes widened even further, directing their warm gaze towards Kiel. ¡°Awesome! Then, let¡¯s use it together!¡± Her melodic, warm voice got stuck inside Kiel¡¯s ear like a catchy tune. His heart almost jumped out of his chest and he barely avoided choking on his own gulp. Why are you looking at me like I am a cute little puppy?! Worst still, how come that look had a strange empowering effect on the target of the gaze? Making one feel important and capable. You¡­you..! Seeing those large eyes that practically sang ¡°cute~ like~ happy~¡±, combined with her warm aura as the background music, Kiel¡¯s curses got stuck inside his throat. Instead, a soft pink tinge spread over his cheeks. Low blow!! You are too despicable!! It was one thing if Elaru acted insufferable, teasing him and provoking him. But that warm loving brightness¡­ how could he metaphorically hit a smiling soulmate?? That bright smile made him feel awfully helpless. And he hated feeling helpless the most. But¡­even so¡­even so¡­ Why was it that he couldn¡¯t muster up any hate for that look of hers? In fact, having such comfortable feelings directed towards him felt very¡­ nice? Kiel shook his head wildly, trying to forget that he just thought such an embarrassing thing. Thankfully, it wasn¡¯t hard to forget about it, Elaru¡¯s long fluttering eyelashes were distracting enough on their own. Fine¡­ Kiel sighed with bitter resignation. Acting like an ass for such a petty reason as taking an elevator would leave a bad taste in his mouth. He should be magnanimous just this once. He is in no way a good person, but he isn¡¯t a whiny ass either. Arguing over such a thing was pointless. Elevators were there to be used. It¡¯s not like they were doing something scandalous. And even if they were doing something outrageous, there was no one here to catch them doing it anyway¡­ No one to catch them in the act? Kiel¡¯s mouth curled upwards. That sounded like something Elaru would say! Since when did he start thinking like her? He should be a law abiding, mild tempered, perfectly cultured¡­ ah, forget it¡­ that flawless person was never him to begin with. Kiel chuckled wryly as the two made their way towards the circular platform. The large platform was separated into eight different areas whose shapes resembled pie slices. Kiel might have never used an elevator powered by gravity altering arcane magic, but the usage was so simple it didn¡¯t require previous instruction. To use the elevator, one had to step into the pie slice marked with the floor number they wanted to reach.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. As Kiel¡¯s exam was taking place on the fourth floor, the duo stepped onto the pie slice with four glowing circles representing the fourth floor. Before their feet could even touch the ground of their chosen pie slice, they were already pushed into the air, as if their bodies and the ground were mutually repelling magnets. They flew up, their arms linked, yet instead of feeling like they were flying, the feeling was closer to falling. The particles of air were also pushed upwards so the wind blew from under their feet, lifting their hair and clothes up. Kiel was glad that his shirt was skin tight, otherwise, he¡¯d end up showing his stomach to potential passersby like Elaru was currently doing. And boy was that view hard to look away from. Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched and he reflexively looked left and right to check if anyone was watching. Luckily, the Sapphire Quarters were empty today so there was no one to enjoy the view. Nevertheless, he nonchalantly grabbed the back hem of her shirt and pulled it back down, all the while pretending that he was looking somewhere else. Good thing she wasn¡¯t wearing a skirt¡­ Just as the thought whizzed by, their rapid ascension slowed down and gradually came to a stop. They were hovering in the air in front of the fourth floor and would remain hovering there until they stepped out of the elevator shaft onto the solid ground of the fourth floor. Kiel wasted no time in jumping back on solid ground. If he didn¡¯t get out of the elevator shaft quickly, there might be other people coming up or down which would cause a collision. The area of each ¡°pie slice¡± was enough for at least 10 people to fit without standing too close to each other, so it was unlikely that a collision would happen. More so because both the descent and the ascent would be slowed down considerably, giving users ample time to shift aside and avoid the collision. And even if a collision did happen, with the slow speed, there was no way anyone would get hurt by it. However, getting hurt wasn¡¯t what Kiel was worried about. As he saw it, in the future his fangirls might camp near this infernal device waiting for him to use it so that they have an excuse for ¡°accidentally¡± jumping into his arms. He should avoid the device in a wide arc in the future. Luckily, he could fly, unlike the unlucky elibu noblemen who have no choice but to either take the stairs or risk getting taken advantage of. Tsk, tsk, what a miserable fate. Kiel shook his head. When the two stepped out of the elevator shaft, the man who had used the elevator before them had just disappeared behind door S403. Elaru might have been right with her conjecture, for that was exactly the room number where Kiel¡¯s special exam was supposed to take place. The duo stopped in front of the classroom and turned towards the railing to look into the main hall. High up on the wall opposite of the entrance to the building, hung a large clock. ¡°It¡¯s starting soon.¡± Kiel decided to state the obvious instead of saying words of goodbye. Elaru didn¡¯t respond vocally. She just extended her hand towards him in a pose that had already become familiar to Kiel. He accepted her intentions and performed her cool little combination of fist bumps and high fives with practiced ease. Elaru grinned and stared into Kiel¡¯s icy blue eyes with almost enough fervor to burn holes into them. Before Kiel could send her an inquisitive look, she sent him a look of her own. Or rather, she sent him the memory of the look she just took, a look into the room in front of them as she saw it with her Aethernea of Sight. She was showing him how the enchantments inside the room looked like, in case any of them came up in his exam. And then, before Kiel could recover from the shock, she scurried towards the elevator. An encouraging smile that could melt the Lands of Eternal Snow, and poof, she disappeared inside the elevator shaft. Kiel stood there dazed for several minutes, trying to recall all the details of what he had just seen before he realized that he would be late if he didn¡¯t enter the room right about now. * * * In the first classroom of the empty sixth floor, Elaru stared incredulously at the three old men that were sitting behind the teacher¡¯s desk. Each one of them looked dignified and neat, with an air of an esteemed expert. They wore sophisticated white and purple professor uniforms that, unlike their skin, didn¡¯t have a single wrinkle on them. Their thinning, white, silky (facial) hair was as straight as a waterfall, no doubt carefully combed several times each day. The old man on the left stroked his thin mustache that fell down the sides of his mouth. The white silky mustache was so long that it reached his waist. The old man on the right stroked his white neat eyebrows, which extended from the outer corners to droop down the sides of his face, and then, also reached his waist. The man in the middle, didn¡¯t stroke his mustache or eyebrows. Instead, he was.. ¡­ ¡­ ...stroking his long white beard¡­ that fell down his chest like a curtain of silk until (surprise, surprise) it reached his waist as well. Elaru¡¯s lips pressed tightly together, trying hard to keep her thoughts from vocalizing: Are you guys competing on who can grow longer facial hair??? If it weren¡¯t for their obviously very different facial features, judging by their similar demeanors, Elaru would have thought that the three grandpas were brothers. Upon closer inspection, it wasn¡¯t just that the Mustache, Eyebrows, and Beard were competing in grooming their facial hair. They also seemed to be competing on who could put up a more convincing air of an old and wise expert. The realization made Elaru shudder with repressed laughter. Fortunately, the three seemed to think she was shuddering due to fear and awe caused by their magnificent presence, so they nodded their heads in satisfaction. ¡°Child, come closer.¡± They beckoned her in their deep, wise voices. The redhead stepped closer whose tightly pressed lips were still fighting hard not to let a chuckle escape them. ¡°Young one, you think you have what it takes to become a spell breaker?¡± Moustache gave Elaru a penetrating look as if he was trying to see right through her. Naturally, Elaru could come up with plenty of witty responses, however, she had no choice but to stay silent, lest she burst out into uncontrollable laughter. ¡°Many dream of becoming esteemed spell breakers. Alas¡­¡± Eyebrows let out a heavy sigh as if lamenting the cruelty of fate. Finally, after successfully stifling her laughter, all that Elaru could do was just to stare at the trio speechlessly. Must you guys be so dramatic¡­?
Coming up in the next episode: Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. How many times did you guys reverse this performance to get it so synchronized? Be honest, did you wait decades for someone to apply for this exam so you can finally put your practice into good use? ¡°Are you aware of the difference between the practical exam and the special exam?¡± The longer the hunchbacked grandma spoke, the stiffer Kiel¡¯s muscles became. Her unfocused milky gray eyes made Kiel¡¯s blood run cold. As if to crush the last shreds of hope remaining inside Kiel, the grandma clarified her words further: ¡°What we are testing in this special exam isn¡¯t your ability to perform spell replication.¡± ¡°How embarrassing! To sign up for a special exam only to not get a single point on it! Aren¡¯t you worried you¡¯d be a laughing stock to everyone?¡± He wanted to prove to all that he was better than them. That their mocking and derision can never conceal his brilliance. Yet, in the end, he had shot himself in the foot. In the end, he had been defeated. Not by them¡­ but by his own greed. Episode 134 – Special Gift Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel and Elaru make their way towards Sapphire Quarters where their special exams will take place. Elaru¡¯s special exam starts and she is confronted by three old geezers. * * * ¡°Young one, you think you have what it takes to become a spell breaker?¡± Moustache gave Elaru a penetrating look as if he was trying to see right through her. Naturally, Elaru could come up with plenty of witty responses, however, she had no choice but to stay silent, lest she burst out into uncontrollable laughter. ¡°Many dream of becoming esteemed spell breakers. Alas¡­¡± Eyebrows let out a heavy sigh as if lamenting the cruelty of fate. Finally, after successfully stifling her laughter, all that Elaru could do was just to stare at the trio speechlessly. Must you guys be so dramatic¡­?
Episode 134 ¨C Special Gift Unaware of the redhead¡¯s internal thoughts, Beard shook his head dejectedly, his long beard undulating left and right like a ribbon. ¡°Unfortunately, our department of spell breaking is destined to remain the university department with the least number of members¡­¡± Ah, no wonder you are putting on airs of esteemed experts that are above the mundane world¡­ Three old geezers were clearly gloating about being among the rare individuals capable enough to become spell breakers. The fact that spell breakers were a very sought-after bunch only served to enhance their pride. After all, if someone wanted to remove unwanted enchantments the only way to do it was to break the enchantment. Which meant that if enchanters wanted to fix defective magical artifacts, change their enchantments or even upgrade them, they needed a spell breaker to remove the previous enchantment. Of course, there were, even more, people who sought them for other, often times, less legal activities. Such as opening magically locked chests, safes, and doors or to enter magic protected areas. Breaking unwanted arcane contracts was also a popular request in the Shadow Lodge. Unfortunately, spell breaking required high skill requirements thus the demand for spell breaking services was high and supply far too low. The first requirement, an extremely sensitive and precise mana sense, already eliminated the vast majority of candidates. It was impossible to become a spell breaker if one couldn¡¯t see the details and intricacies of the spell they were trying to break. The second requirement, which eliminated the remaining candidates, was the ability to compress mana into a density that surpassed the density of solidified mana. When one weaved a spell pattern, the activation of the spell would cause the mana forming the spell pattern to solidify into a denser form. Since it was impossible to trigger mana solidification without the activation of a spell, trying to surpass the density of solidified mana without solidifying it was something that most people would never be able to do. It was like taking a bottle of water vapor and trying to compress it enough, through sheer force of will, so that it turns into liquid water. Theoretically possible, in practice downright implausible. And that wasn¡¯t even the last requirement. The last requirement was the ability to pinpoint critical points of a spell. While it was possible to break spells through sheer force by demolishing the entirety of the spell pattern, often times, the amount of mana needed to create a large high density mana blast was far beyond what even the best of mages could possess and control. Thus, mages had no choice but to resort to targeting specific areas of the spell pattern instead of targeting the whole spell. Unfortunately, critical points of the spell couldn¡¯t be seen or felt through one¡¯s senses. It required one to develop a special type of intuition acquired through one¡¯s complete understanding of Theory of Magic, enchantments, and one¡¯s vast spell breaking experience. That¡¯s why the majority of spell breakers were old master enchanters who had studied the field for decades. Adding the title of a spell breaker to a master enchanter was like placing a crown on top of their heads, a glorious achievement to be proud of. Therefore, it wasn¡¯t all that surprising that the old geezers in front of Elaru were acting so self-important. ¡°Other than our disciples, there is just us, three old men who are not long for this world.¡± Moustache lamented, his misty eyes looking far into the distance. You look quite energetic and healthy to me¡­ Elaru still stood at the same spot wordlessly. Judging by the vitality in your aura you should have at least 30 more years left in you¡­ Mages usually had a longer lifespan than normal people because frequent usage of mana served to temper their body, making it stronger and healthier. ¡°Indeed, we are getting old. I don¡¯t even remember the last time someone applied for the spell breaking special exam.¡± Beard added melancholically. Eyebrows nodded his head. ¡°Everything is forgotten with time. It slipped my mind that Muni still offered a spell breaking special exam.¡± The three¡¯s eyes misted up with melancholy and they let out lamenting sighs at the same time. Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. How many times did you guys reverse this performance to get it so synchronized? Be honest, did you wait decades for someone to apply for this exam so you can finally put your practice into good use? Finally, the three returned to the present and looked towards Elaru who stood rigidly in the middle of the room, trying not to reveal any of her internal thoughts. ¡°Child, don¡¯t be so tense. It is alright if you don¡¯t know much about spell breaking.¡± Beard gently remarked understandingly. ¡°Young one, don¡¯t be hard on yourself. You are far too young to be a true spell breaker.¡± Moustache added comfortingly. ¡°Be at ease, young lass. It takes decades of hard work to learn spell breaking. Of course we won¡¯t make things difficult for you.¡± Eyebrows stated good-naturedly. You guys¡­ Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched. I know you don¡¯t have any more exams to attend to after this but¡­She couldn¡¯t help but glance towards the clock on the wall. How long do you intend to continue blowing your own trumpet? Do you intend to start my exam anytime soon? * * * Meanwhile, on the fourth floor, Kiel knocked, put up his soft smile and waited several seconds before a man opened the door and invited him inside. The only remarkable thing about the man was his uniform of an assistant professor. Everything else, from his hair and eye color, face, and even his aura was so common and ordinary that Kiel¡¯s gaze unconsciously slid past the man towards the other people in the room. Behind the large teacher desk sat three professors, none of which was looked younger than the age of fifty. They were covered in wrinkles, their hair colors washed out, yet old age could not mellow out their aura and demeanor of prestige and authority.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. The old lady in the middle of the three, which had the deepest wrinkles and the whitest hair, spoke up in a low crisp voice: ¡°Good morning, young man. You must be¡­¡± Kiel curtsied respectfully, his polite smile never leaving his face. ¡°I am Kiel Rroda, the examinee number 5642.¡± His husky voice rumbled pleasantly making the listeners feel like they had drunk warm chocolate. While the old professors gauged Kiel contemplatively, he strolled to the center of the room, followed by the unremarkable man, who made his way towards a cart filled with magical artifacts standing next to the teacher¡¯s table. After several seconds of scrutiny, the trio nodded their heads approvingly. Contrary to Kiel¡¯s expectations, old grandma¡¯s following question stunned him into silence: ¡°Young man, do you consider yourself as gifted?¡± ¡°Err¡­¡± Kiel blinked his long eyelashes repeatedly, not sure how to respond. Saying yes would be haughty, but saying no would either feel insecure or sound like a pretentious attempt at modesty. Noticing Kiel¡¯s awkward silence, the three didn¡¯t press him for an answer. Instead, the grandma asked a different question: ¡°Are you aware of the difference between the practical exam and the special exam?¡± Apparently, the grandma didn¡¯t expect Kiel to answer that question either, for she continued soon after: ¡°The purpose of the practical exam is to test the examinees ability to perform a specific profession well in real life situations. It mostly tests skill in the said profession, which mainly consists of adaptability, knowledge, and experience.¡± Her eyes flashed with a mysterious glint. ¡°However, the special exam is different¡­ special, so to speak.¡± The tension in the room grew helped by the heavy curtain of silence. ¡°The purpose of the special exam is to promote extraordinary abilities. Its purpose is to give an extra chance to rare gifted people who otherwise wouldn¡¯t be accepted as students due to their lacking knowledge and experience.¡± Kiel¡¯s heart dropped to the pit of his stomach. He didn¡¯t belong in that group of people, did he? He had a feeling that the ¡°extraordinary abilities¡± the woman spoke of weren¡¯t the mundane kind such as high intelligence or creativity. ¡°We are an institution of learning, we are able to fix a lack of knowledge, teach you everything you need to know. We can even help you increase your skill as a mage. However¡­¡± The old grandma opened her milky gray eyes wide, giving Kiel a penetrating look. After a tense moment of silence, she continued drawling. ¡°There are certain things that we cannot help you nurture. Things that cannot be learned. A gift, so to speak. This exam is designed to set apart those that are gifted with an exceptional talent and those that are not.¡± The longer the hunchbacked grandma spoke, the stiffer Kiel¡¯s muscles became. Her unfocused milky gray eyes made Kiel¡¯s blood run cold. Unaware of the chill that was slowly spreading towards Kiel¡¯s limbs with each one of her words, the old lady proceeded. ¡°Knowing spell replication or being able to do it well doesn¡¯t make you gifted.¡± Was she implying that he wasn¡¯t gifted? That all those hours he spent reading books on spell replicating were wasted? That his skill in weaving mana was all but useless? That everything that he was and could do was but useless, unable to help him in this ¡°special¡± exam in the slightest? ¡°In fact, there is no special exam for most professions such as enchanting, inscription, engineering, healing, and so on. So then, why is there a special exam for some professions, such as spell replicating and spell breaking?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyes widened imperceptibly. He had always thought that the reason why some professions were tested in the special exam was because they weren¡¯t tested in the practical exam. He had thought that Muni wanted to give rare professions a chance through the special exam so that people wouldn¡¯t complain about there not being a practical exam that suited them. But¡­ could that be a misconception on his part? Was there another reason why very few professions were tested through the special exam? ¡°The reason behind it is that we couldn¡¯t care less about your profession in this exam. Rather, what we care about, what we are testing are special gifts. And very few of those special gifts can be best revealed through performing a profession related action, such an act of replicating a spell.¡± As if to crush the last shreds of hope remaining inside Kiel, the grandma clarified her words further: ¡°What we are testing in this special exam isn¡¯t your ability to perform spell replication. Rather, we are testing whether you possess the rare gift that is revealed through the process of replicating spells.¡± Kiel¡¯s knees almost gave out. It took every bit of his grandmother¡¯s teachings to stop himself from stumbling backward. Gift? He should know better than anyone whether he had a rare gift or not. All he had achieved was due to his hard work, due to his blood, tears, and sweat. Gift?! What gift?! ¡°In short, you are here not to be tested on your spell replicating, but rather, to spell replicate to reveal whether you possess a special gift.¡± Silence descended onto the room, almost invading Kiel¡¯s very being with its suffocating presence. In the emptiness of Kiel¡¯s mind, a single word echoed painfully, rippling through the silence: Fu*k. He had thought that he would be able to get some special points through his spell replicating, yet it turned out to be just his wishful thinking. A wasted time and effort. He had unknowingly signed up for something else entirely. He should have known it wouldn¡¯t be so easy. There was a reason why very few people got special points. There was a reason why even among the accepted 100 students, who were the smartest and the most talented young men and women in the entire lands of Halnea, there were usually less than ten that got special points. Cold sweat drenched Kiel¡¯s back as he struggled to keep his expression neutral and his aura reserved. Yet, as if to shatter all his attempts of remaining calm, as if to demolish this entire pretense of poise, a tiny voice inside him spoke up: ¡°How embarrassing! To sign up for a special exam only to not get a single point on it! Aren¡¯t you worried you¡¯d be a laughing stock to everyone?¡± He recognized the mocking laughter of his brother. ¡°What? You thought you were gifted? That you possess something special?¡± ¡°Pfft, hahaha. As if! The only gift you possess is your resilience. You are like a cockroach, no matter how much one steps on it, it just keeps crawling back up!¡± Kiel¡¯s pale, trembling fingers curled into fists. It wouldn¡¯t matter that he had achieved a near perfect score in all other exams. What they would see was just his failure. That¡¯s what they did to make themselves feel superior. The glossed over his achievements and tightly caught onto his failures. He had hoped that he would be the first person in the Rroda family to get the perfect score in Muni exams. He had hoped that he could use these exams to silence all the doubters and haters. He wanted to prove to all that he was better than them. That their mocking and derision can never conceal his brilliance. Yet, in the end, he had shot himself in the foot. In the end, he had been defeated. Defeated not by them¡­ ¡­but by his own greed. ¡°Let us start¡± Only when the clear voice of the grandma shattered the silence, did Kiel remember he was currently in the middle of the exam. While he had been standing as still and pale as a statue, the unremarkable man had taken nine artifacts out of the cart and spread them on top of the teacher¡¯s desk. The artifacts were all the same, taking the form of an intricate bronze cog the size of an adult fist, with the only difference between them being an enchantment placed on a single one among them. Grandma stroked the enchanted artifact with her wrinkled, frail looking fingers. ¡°Your task is to replicate this enchantment on the remaining eight artifacts while balancing speed and precision to the best of your abilities. You need not be very precise, nor do you need to be very fast. What you need to be is efficient.¡± Replicate an enchantment? Kiel stared at the old woman dumbfounded. Just that? It was as if time suddenly started running again. As if the dark fog clouding Kiel¡¯s mind was exhaled through his deep breaths. This was not the time to wallow in misery and remorse! He¡¯d have enough time to drown in regret after the exam. Kiel¡¯s tightly pressed lips smiled a gentle smile once again, a wry, helpless smile. If they wanted him to replicate that spell, he could do it. He might not understand what that had to do with the special gift they spoke of, but it¡¯s not like he could back out of it now. The only thing he could do at this point is to treat it as if they were testing his spell replicating ability and do his best. Who knows? Maybe they¡¯d give him some consolation points if he performed spell replication well enough, just so he doesn¡¯t return empty handed? Kiel restrained a self-deprecating chuckle and concentrated on the enchanted cog. It was filled with intricate spell patterns that he didn¡¯t recognize, the enchantment was most likely mystified. The only thing that he recognized about the spell were its spell roots which exited through the small circular hole in the middle of the cog and spread out tall like a miniature tree. He vaguely remembered Elaru showing him how the enchantment on this cog looked like with her Aethernea of Sight earlier. He had chosen to disregard it and concentrate on remembering more intricate enchantments in the pile of artifacts, for this one, in particular, was clear enough for his own mana sense to pick up.
Coming up in the next episode: By the time Kiel was done with the last cog, his bangs were sticking to his damp forehead. He didn¡¯t notice that the examiners had finished trying out all his cogs, nor did he notice the strange looks and quiet whispers they were sharing between themselves. He didn¡¯t notice the frown pasted on the face of the middle-aged man, nor the unreadable flash in the old lady¡¯s eyes. ¡°If you don¡¯t know where the critical points are, we shall tell you.¡± The eyes of the three old men lit up and they seemed to forget the purpose of their gathering as Eyebrows spoke up: ¡°Child, since you have studied Spell Breaking, could you perhaps tell us the four different approaches to spell breaking?¡± Episode 135 – Replicating Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel and Elaru make their way towards Sapphire Quarters where there special exams will take place. Elaru is confronted by three old geezers who are acting high and mighty. While Kiel shot himself in the foot ¨C as it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam was not designed to test Kiel¡¯s spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is given a cog artifact whose enchantment he has to replicate onto other cogs.
Episode 135 ¨C Replicating ¡°You may begin whenever you are ready.¡± Just as the grandma¡¯s words fell, the youngest looking man of the trio, appearing to be in his fifties, pressed the button on the stopwatch he was holding. The clicking noise of the button made Kiel¡¯s heart skip a beat. However, he was able to quickly regain his calm and return his full concentration on the enchanted artifact before him. He tried to remember everything on it so he could replicate it to the best of his abilities. The pressure of the ticking clock making his entire being reach peak performance. Soon enough, Kiel approached the second cog, the first one of the eight that weren¡¯t enchanted. As soon as his mana touched the cog, he heard the click of a button press again, followed by the sounds of pen writing on paper. (The middle-aged man was writing down the previously measured time.) Kiel didn¡¯t let that disturb him and continued imbuing the cog with his mana until there was enough of it to weave the spell. Since the enchantment was mystified he didn¡¯t know which parts of the spell pattern were critical to the function of the spell and which weren¡¯t, so Kiel did his best to recreate the shape of the spell as he saw it, keeping the deviations to a minimum. After a while of weaving, a magic pulse spread out, signaling the successful activation of the spell. What followed was another click of the stopwatch button and some more scribbling noises. As soon as the spell was activated, Kiel released it from his control, turning it from an extension of himself to a foreign entity, a self-sustained spell, an enchantment. Once the mage released control of a spell, they could no longer regain it. The released spell would remain in the state it was in when the control was released. Although the creator could no longer dispel or control such a released spell in any way, the spell would still need to be powered by the mana of its creator. Luckily, the enchantment could absorb such mana by itself when needed, as long as it existed in the vicinity of the spell. This allowed enchanters to recharge their enchantments when the mana they had initially imbued them with started running out. Enchanters could personally re-imbue their mana, or they could just place a mana crystal filled with their mana in the vicinity of the enchantment. Of course, there were also other, supplementary, ways to power enchantments, such as including a light absorbing spell fragment into the enchantment to power it through light or include a devouring spell fragment to feed on free mana. Since Kiel didn¡¯t know what method of powering the enchantment used due to it being mystified, and he didn¡¯t want to waste time trying to figure it out, he ensured that he left a similar amount of mana inside his cogwheel as was left in the original magical artifact, before moving to the next cog. Kiel kept repeating the same process of the enchanting on the following cogs, trying to weave each one more efficiently than the previous. Each time he started or finished enchanting a new artifact, the middle-aged man would click his stopwatch and write down the measured time. The trio of examiners smiled approvingly, or perhaps encouragingly but said nothing. Kiel had the impression that they thought his spell replicating was quite good, but since that wasn¡¯t what they were testing, they weren¡¯t really moved by it. By the time Kiel was done with the last cog, his bangs were sticking to his damp forehead. Only when he was done with the last one did the hunchbacked grandma confirm his thoughts: ¡°Young man, your spell replicating is rather good.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Kiel gave her a sincere smile that made the woman pause. The old man next to the grandma which had been silent so far was the first one to recover. He grabbed the stack of papers that were in front of him and offered them to Kiel. ¡°How about you look through these papers while we test the artifacts you just enchanted? The papers depict the next enchantment you will be required to cast.¡± Kiel accepted the papers with another one of his gentle, heart stopping smiles that looked even more alluring than usual. Due to his exertion, his skin glistened softly with sweat and his cheeks had a rosy tinge. A natural allure boxed in a lovely masculine package. The grandma coughed awkwardly several times, but Kiel ignored it and averted his gaze to the spell pattern drawn on the papers. He didn¡¯t inspect it thoroughly, his attention still captured by the actions of the examiners.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. The unremarkable man pulled out a medium sized apparatus out of the cart and placed it in front of the old man who gave Kiel his papers. The device looked like a glass water tank with a bronze lid but the liquid inside was pale blue instead of clear. The old man pulled out a small leather pouch from his robes and shook it upside down. Several small pearls made out of a purple crystal rolled onto his palm. With his other hand, he grabbed the first cog that wasn¡¯t enchanted by Kiel and placed it upside down on the lid, so that the spell roots were directed towards the blue liquid. The cog effortlessly slid into an indentation located on the top of the bronze lid. The man then picked up a single crystal pearl and placed it in the small circle in the middle of the cog. The old grandma, who was paying attention to Kiel, must have noticed his lack of attention towards his papers because she spoke up: ¡°When we activate the enchantment on the cogwheel, it will use the mana contained in this small mana pearl to heat up the liquid through its spell roots.¡± The old lady tapped the glass tank, which was marked with numbers and thin horizontal lines. ¡°As the temperature increases, the volume of the liquid will also increase. Once the mana in the crystal runs out, we will note down the final volume increase.¡± The old man proceeded to do just that ¨C he cast a trigger spell on the cog and the level of the pale blue liquid inside the tank slowly started moving up. While liquid inside the tank grew in volume, the mana crystal on top of the cog kept melting down. It took less than ten seconds for the mana crystal to completely disappear, following which the liquid stopped moving. While the old man removed the cog from the cap, the old lady read the result out loud and the third man wrote it down. The old man picked up the first cog Kiel had enchanted and placed it inside the cap, adding another mana crystal in the middle. ¡°These mana pearls have all been measured to be exactly the same, providing exactly the same amount of mana. This allows us to see how much more or less efficient your enchantments are compared to the original enchantment. Since all of them will be powered with an exact same mana pearl, the enchantment which manages to increase the volume of the liquid more is more efficient.¡± The examiners waited for the pale blue liquid to constrict back to its original volume, which wasn¡¯t long. It must have been some kind of cold attributed magical liquid because it cooled down abnormally quickly. When it finally did cool down to its original temperature, the examiners repeated the same actions as before. Since the process was repetitive, Kiel lost interest and instead, concentrated on the papers in his hands. The papers depicted another mystified spell, which was supposed to be used on a small hollow object in the shape of a star which was made out from a metal mesh. Instead of providing him with an actual enchanted artifact, the examiners provided him with the spell design. The dimensions of the spell would be so small that the mana sense of most people wouldn¡¯t be able to accurately see the details, which was probably why they decided to give him a clear spell design. Kiel absorbed himself in the design, eventually forgetting everything around himself. He didn¡¯t notice that the examiners had finished trying out all his cogs, nor did he notice the strange looks and quiet whispers they were sharing between themselves. He didn¡¯t notice the frown pasted on the face of the middle-aged man, nor the unreadable flash in the old lady¡¯s eyes. * * * By the time the three old men were done with their performance Elaru had been sitting at the desk prepared for her long enough for her arms, which were supporting her head, to turn stiff. She had wanted to interrupt their monologue several times, asking them to get on with the exam already, but thought better of it. Interrupting them would earn her no extra points. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Beard produced a pair of black leather gauntlets enchanted with a simple reinforcement spell which increased their defense and durability. One glance was enough for Elaru to conclude that the enchantment was done by someone who had no idea what they were doing. The problem was not the mana density of the enchantment, which was mediocre, but rather the convoluted shape that could barely be recognized as a reinforcement enchantment. The performance of such an enchantment would be horrid, which was most likely the reason why the trio of spell breakers was given the gauntlets in the first place. Someone had to remove the enchantment so that the gauntlets could be enchanted again. To avoid spell interference, Eyebrows quickly cast an Acceleration on the air inside the gauntlets and made them float slowly towards Elaru. Are you not going to measure the mana density of the enchantment? Elaru cocked her head to the side but did not speak up. She would break everything regardless of its mana density anyway and measuring it would only take extra time. Considering how much time these three old fogies were wasting as it is, she was better off not asking. ¡°These gauntlets are enchanted with a simple, poorly done reinforcement enchantment,¡± Moustache spoke in a light tone. ¡°Young one, you are free to try breaking it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll show you where the critical points are.¡± Eyebrows added magnanimously. ¡°It¡¯s alright child. We aren¡¯t testing you on spell breaking knowledge.¡± Beard nodded his head, his beard jumping like a flag. ¡°We just want to test the density of mana you can achieve without mana solidification.¡± The gauntlets landed softly in Elaru¡¯s outstretched hands. Eyebrows waved his arm, producing a pointing stick from his long sleeves. ¡°Here, let me show you where the critical points¡­¡± Eyebrows never finished his sentence, for, at that moment, the reinforcement spell on the gauntlets lost its shape, particles of mana sliding like granules of sand through the openings between Elaru¡¯s slim fingers. The faces of the three old men froze. What just happened¡­? Only when the melodic voice of ¡°What¡¯s next?¡± reached their ears did they wake up from their stupor. They directed their gaze towards the redhead, unable to conceal the sparkle that had appeared in their previously peaceful eyes. ¡°So, you do know a thing or two about spell breaking!¡± Beard exclaimed, his voice revealing pleasant surprise. Yeah¡­ a thing or two¡­ Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. More like 12 years of hard work¡­ ¡°It is quite impressive for a young lass of your age to be able to compress your mana to this state.¡± Eyebrows looked towards Elaru¡¯s hand, as if looking at her fingers would be able to tell him how she managed to break the enchantment. The three were not paying attention and her actions were too fast, so they didn¡¯t see it at all.
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Lass, are you a certified spell breaker?!¡± Eyebrows gasped loudly. Silence. Deafening silence. ¡°Shut up!¡± ¡°How can it be the same?!¡± Sh*t. What have I done¡­?! Episode 136 – Core Principle of Spell Breaking Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel and Elaru make their way towards Sapphire Quarters where there special exams will take place. Kiel shot himself in the foot ¨C as it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam was not designed to test Kiel¡¯s spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Meanwhile, Elaru is confronted by three old geezers who are acting high and mighty. * * * ¡°So, you do know a thing or two about spell breaking!¡± Beard exclaimed, his voice revealing pleasant surprise. Yeah¡­ a thing or two¡­ Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched. More like 12 years of hard work¡­ ¡°It is quite impressive for a young lass of your age to be able to compress your mana to this state.¡± Eyebrows looked towards Elaru¡¯s hand, as if looking at her fingers would be able to tell him how she managed to break the enchantment. The three were not paying attention and her actions were too fast, so they didn¡¯t see it at all.
Episode 136 ¨C Core Principle of Spell Breaking ¡°Even breaking two spells simultaneously! Impressive!¡± Mustache¡¯s voice sounded queer. Trying to come up with something to praise without revealing the fact that he had no idea what just happened was an arduous thing. The remaining two nodded their heads in agreement before producing another magical artifact. This time it was an intricate looking red sword. The rosy glint reflecting the bright sunlight was almost as sharp as the adamantite blade itself. Such a finely crafted blade deserved only the highest quality of enchantments. This was probably exactly what the enchanter who enchanted the sword was thinking at the time. For the enchantment on the sword was weaved with very dense mana making it difficult to break. In fact, the density of mana used to weave it was so high it was probably the reason why the enchantment ended in failure. The enchanter wanted to create the highest quality enchantment that he could and ended up miscalculating. He spent the majority of his mana weaving the main spell and ran out of mana before he could finish forming the spell roots. Thus, the spell roots had gaps, not covering the entirety of the sword. Making it so that there were many spots not covered by the enchantment. ¡°I¡¯m afraid this one won¡¯t be as simple to break.¡± Beard sighed. ¡°The mana density of the main spell is too high. Simply too high.¡± Mustache nodded gravelly. Eyebrows anchored his acceleration spell where the enchantment spell roots couldn¡¯t reach and sent the sword floating towards Elaru once again. The entire time he nodded his head slowly, agreeing to the words of his colleagues. ¡°This enchantment is rather unusual as well. I doubt you¡¯ve had the opportunity to see it before.¡± Elaru ignored their words, instead intently staring at the sword, or rather, staring at the enchantment on the sword. Her Aethernea of Sight could see many things, but critical points of a spell weren¡¯t among them. She could see no glaring red lines, or any other kind of sign marking a critical point. Sometimes there would be a slight, difficult to catch, distortion in reality, but most of the time there was nothing at all. If she could simply see the critical points of a spell, would she have almost lost her life in the incident 12 years ago? If she could see them so easily, would she have needed to spend her childhood studying theory of magic? No. There was no shortcut. Talent could only take you so far. This ability¡­ it was a product of hard work. Before the floating sword could even enter inside her aura, there were already four whirlpools of mana in front of her, looking like they were devouring mana from her aura. When the whirlpools stopped spinning, in their place remained four, marble-sized, high-density balls of mana. Elaru didn¡¯t even wait for the sword to land in her hands before the four mana bullets shot towards the sword, piercing straight through it. The previously vividly glowing enchantment fractured into several large pieces, like shattered glass, sizzling and melting away until nothing remained. The sight startled Eyebrows so much that his control over the Acceleration slipped and the deathly silence was broken by the loud clattering of the sword, as it fell to the floor. In a moment of distraction, the three old men forgot to act high and mighty, their demeanor losing all of its grandeur. ¡°What¡¯s with this spell breaking speed?! Have you seen this enchantment before?¡± Beard almost pulled out several strands of his beard. ¡°Can you not look so leisurely?! You are not even sweating!¡± Mustache¡¯s mustache quivered. ¡°Lass, are you a certified spell breaker?!¡± Eyebrows gasped loudly. Elaru paused slightly to sort out their questions, but in the end, all she responded with was a nod and a: ¡°Yes¡± It was unclear to which question she was responding to, but her pleasant voice, nonetheless, woke the trio up from their stupor. Realizing how unsightly their current behavior appeared, hastily they adjusted their demeanors back to their dignified selves. Though, putting on airs was not nearly enough to cover up their embarrassment. ¡°Good, very good, excellent!¡± Mustache feigned nonchalance, however, the tremble of his voice gave him away. ¡°You are able to pinpoint the critical points in such a complex enchantment. Admirable, admirable!¡± Beard continued to stroke his beard, but his movements were visibly stiffer.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Eyebrows coughed awkwardly and retrieved the fallen sword. ¡°Indeed. For a lass your age, your knowledge is not bad. Not bad at all.¡± ¡°Perhaps you could tell us a bit more about the process of spell breaking?¡± Mustache nodded his head solemnly. ¡°How about telling us about the five methods of spell breaking?¡± Beard interjected. Learning from her previous mistake, Elaru nodded her head and quickly spoke up to prevent any of the other two from opening their mouths again and prolonging the whole ordeal: ¡°Every spell consists of a spell target, a weaved spell pattern, and a reality-altering phenomena. If either of the three is removed from the equation, the spell will cease to exist. To weave a spell pattern mana is needed, and equally so, sustaining the reality-altering effect of the spell requires a constant expenditure of mana. Even if the spell is sleeping, its reality-altering effect temporarily not affecting reality, mana is still needed to sustain its grip on reality. Thus, all sustained spells need a constant supply of mana. If such is unavailable, the reality-altering effect will start feeding off mana used to weave the spell pattern causing it to destabilize and fall apart, leading to the destruction of the spell. The spell pattern is like a sand castle. No matter how many times it is kicked, the dispersed sand can form back together. But how can one form a sand castle without sand? This is why the first method of spell breaking is to cause the spell to run out of mana. This is done either by removing the mana supply if possible or by increasing the mana expenditure of the spell through various means. For most enchantments this is an arduous, time-consuming process, thus this method is only used as a last option.¡± Elaru explained carefully, as if she was a master breaker trying her utmost to teach her disciples in words they could easily understand. She then paused briefly, giving each one of the old men a serious look, before repeating the core principle of spell breaking once again: ¡°Every spell consists of a spell target, a weaved spell pattern, and the reality-altering phenomena. If either of the three is removed from the equation, the spell will cease to exist. Thus, the second and the simplest way to break a spell is to destroy the target of the spell. Unfortunately, most of the times this is undesirable or, in case of spells targeting illusive things such space or the mind, impossible.¡± The three old men nodded their heads in agreement. Beards opened his mouth to say something, but Elaru, worried that the three would start talking some more drivel, continued her explanation immediately. ¡°The third method aims to destroy the spell pattern. However, the spell pattern, no matter how damaged, can reverse-engineer itself from the information present inside the reality-altering phenomena, recovering back to its original form (as long as the mana making it isn¡¯t consumed). Thus, one needs to completely destroy it to stop the self-regeneration. This is done by attacking the whole spell pattern with a mana construct of a higher density and size than the spell pattern itself. Unfortunately, the sheer amount of mana needed to accomplish this makes this method unusable for the majority of spells.¡± Elaru took a quick breath, before continuing. ¡°The fourth method aims to destroy the reality-altering phenomena. To destroy the spell phenomena, another spell that causes destructive interference with the first spell is needed. When the reality-altering phenomena of two spells affect similar properties of reality, they will interfere with each other and struggle for control over reality. If the difference in level between the two spells isn¡¯t too high, both reality-altering effects would be damaged due to the spell interference. Even if one of the spells overpowers the other, allowing it to affect reality, the losing spell would still continue to struggle to regain its control over reality causing continuous damage to both reality-altering effects. This damage, however, will not cause the spell to be broken because the solidified spell pattern, which is the source of the reality-altering effect, will constantly repair the damage done to the reality-altering effect, as long as it has enough mana to do so. The solidified spell pattern is the source of the spell phenomena to begin with so no matter how damaged the spell phenomena is, as long as it is not completely destroyed, the spell pattern will be able to recreate the reality-altering effect. That¡¯s why we need to completely destroy the reality-altering effect without giving it a chance to regenerate. And for the overpowered reality-altering effect to get completely shattered, it isn¡¯t enough to just overpower it. Rather, the difference in level between the two wrestling spells needs to be so enormous that the losing spell can¡¯t even struggle. Regrettably, this method of spell breaking is not usable for high-level spells, because we are unable to produce an interfering spell that is much higher in level. The required difference in spell level can only be achieved if a master mage is wrestling against someone who just started learning magic or if one of the opposing spells is a high-level enchantment while the other is a normal spell cast on the go. After all, when mages enchant a magical artifact, they have a lot of time to perfect their spell so the spell levels of enchantments are much higher than spell levels of spells cast on the go.¡± The trio of old men kept nodding their heads enthusiastically as if they were clucklings pecking rice, this time not even attempting to interrupt. ¡°Since the first method is arduous and time-consuming, while the latter three methods are not viable for most purposes, spell breakers generally use the fifth method most of the time. The fifth method is to sabotage the self-recovery function of the spell, followed by causing enough damage to the spell pattern to destabilize the spell. The reason why spells are so resilient and able to recover themselves lies in the connection between the solidified spell pattern and the reality-altering phenomena. Each one of the two is able to recreate the other if damaged. To prevent this cyclic self-recovery, spell breakers need to sever the connection between the spell pattern and the reality-altering effect. This is done by finding the touching points (a.k.a. critical points) between the two and destroying them simultaneously. Interestingly enough, if one does succeed in destroying the critical points, not only does it stop the self-recovery of the spell but it also causes the entire spell to destabilize and fall apart. Spell breakers are still arguing whether severing the connection between the spell phenomena and the spell pattern is the cause of spell destabilization, or if the touching points between the two are just located in areas critical to the functioning of the spell.¡± Elaru paused, giving a mischievous smirk to the three old men. ¡°Personally, I believe the former.¡± Silence. Deafening silence. And then¡­ ¡°That is exactly right!¡± Eyebrows bellowed excitedly. ¡°How could the location of the critical points be mere coincidence!¡± Mustache slammed his hand on the table and glared at Eyebrows. ¡°Stop spouting drivel! Spells have been simplified so much over the years that everything that is left of them is critical to the functioning of the spell, so how can the critical points possibly not be located in non-critical areas?!¡± Beards sighed groggily. ¡°Not again¡­ can¡¯t you two agree to disagree? Isn¡¯t it the same either way?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± ¨C ¡°How can it be the same?!¡± Much to Elaru¡¯s horror, what followed was an animated argument between the trio of old men, who seemed to completely forget that they were in the middle of an exam. Elaru was forced to stare at them speechlessly, with a violently twitching eyebrow. Sh*t. What have I done¡­?!
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°Do you have enough mana for another round of tests?¡± The middle-aged man added tentatively. In Kiel¡¯s opinion, ¡°Please say no¡± was written all over his face. But just as he was about to say no, his dark side reared its ugly head filling him with rage and spite. It was their job to run this test, yet they wanted to cut the exam short?! Did they find him not worth their precious time? Were they looking down on him? Who did they think they were?? He¡¯d be damned if he let them off early! After a moment of petrification, Kiel rigidly glanced towards the professors who seemed to be sitting on the edge of their seats, their aura flaring in preparation of casting life-saving magic if needed. Needless to say, it took Kiel some time to regain his perfectly calm state of mind. (Was this payback for making them waste their time?? Vicious! Petty!!) Episode 137 – Clay Mines Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel and Elaru make their way towards Sapphire Quarters where there special exams will take place. Elaru is confronted by three old geezers who are acting high and mighty while Kiel shot himself in the foot ¨C as it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam was not designed to test Kiel¡¯s spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. He is tasked to spell replicate several cogwheels and then given an intricate enchantment to place on star-shaped artifacts.
Episode 137 ¨C Clay Mines As Kiel was wholeheartedly absorbed in enchanting his third metal star, the professors had finished testing the last cog. In his peripheral vision, Kiel saw them giving each other strange looks, their faces riddled with frowns. In the end, one of them set up a sound isolation barrier around their table so that they could talk freely without disturbing Kiel¡¯s replicating. Kiel tried to ignore their rapidly moving lips expressing clear doubts, tried to overlook the way they passed the papers between themselves, tried to disregard how their frowns kept deepening with each passing second. Alas, it was too conspicuous. Each time Kiel finished an enchantment, he would take a breath, giving the professors a quick glance, and then his concentration would waver, worry invading his mind once again. He¡¯d wonder if they had figured out that he was a fraud, that he didn¡¯t have the talent they spoke of. That he was here by mistake. He wondered whether they were upset that he was wasting their time and debating whether they should cut his exam short. As he looked at their faces, he could almost hear their debate. The granny looked like she wanted to go by the book, seeing the exam until the end. The younger members looked like they were arguing that she was too traditional, that there was no point torturing themselves and the examinee further. And of course, there would always be that one person who¡¯d try to pacify both sides and wonder whether the measuring apparatus was malfunctioning, and the examinee actually did have the required talent. And then they would test the cogs again. Even going as far as enchanting another previously unenchanted cog for comparison. Kiel shook his head and once again concentrated wholeheartedly on enchanting the hollow metal star in his hand, extricating himself from the outside world. Replicating this complicated enchantment required his undivided attention, for the professors had asked him to concentrate on accuracy instead of speed. Each woven line had to be the right width, the right length, even the density of mana had to be precise. With all his mental faculties occupied he had no room for his mind to wonder. After the 6th replicated artifact, sweat drops were rolling down the sides of Kiel¡¯s face as if he were a leaking faucet. Sometime later and his breathing was labored. Finally, after the last artifact was done, Kiel took the time to calm his breath. The professors were no longer arguing. The old granny must have given them a tongue lashing so no one dared complain further. Instead, they gave Kiel a few silent minutes of rest before removing their sound isolation barrier to speak to him. ¡°How is your condition?¡± The old grandma expressed her worry. Perhaps she was worrying that he wasn¡¯t in a good enough condition to display this special skill. ¡°Do you have enough mana for another round of tests?¡± The middle-aged man added tentatively. In Kiel¡¯s opinion, ¡°Please say no¡± was written all over his face. Kiel briefly debated whether to take this chance to back out of the exam and spare himself more embarrassment and torture. They were clearly giving him a way out. But just as he was about to say no, his dark side reared its ugly head filling him with rage and spite. It was their job to run this test, yet they wanted to cut the exam short?! Did they find him not worth their precious time? Were they looking down on him? Who did they think they were?? He¡¯d be damned if he let them off early! Thus, Kiel gritted his teeth, his eyes flashing unyieldingly. He nodded his head, stifled an angry snort, and squeezed out one of his signature smiles. ¡°I¡¯m alright. I have plenty of mana left in me. Feel free to test me further.¡± If you think you¡¯ll make me run out of mana and cut this farce short, think again! Kiel almost chuckled. Internally he was giving thumbs up to Elaru. Her soul was truly a bottomless pit. Besides being a bit mentally fatigued, he was in perfect condition. His body could handle his current mana channeling speed without issues for quite some time. Seeing that he didn¡¯t seem to be lying, his face healthily flushed, the middle-aged man had no other choice but to pull out a briefcase. He opened it to reveal several dozens of ash brown pebbles padded within the box as to avoid damage. Unlike the previous artifacts that Kiel had to replicate, which he wasn¡¯t familiar with, these seemingly ordinary pebbles were something Kiel recognized. Made from a flexible yet highly explosive clay found in swamps, these pebbles could be used as weapons in various ways, however, most people knew them by their application in creating Clay Mines. These pebbles would be enchanted with a spell modifier that triggered a temperature increasing spell if it detected sufficient deformation of the pebble. Thus, if one stepped on the pebble, flattening it, the sudden increase of temperature of the clay would cause an explosion. The Clay Mine was a textbook example of a simple augmentation-magic-based trigger enchantment. In fact, possessing a single primal spell and a single spell modifier, this enchantment was one of the first enchantments Kiel¡¯s class learned in school. (Needless to say, they were testing it on ordinary clay, and not the explosive variety.) ¡°Are you familiar with the concept of a Clay Mine?¡± The granny drawled, her question clearly perfunctory, for she was aware that Clay Mines were a part of the basic magic curriculum in most schools. Kiel nodded. ¡°Yes. Do you want me to turn these into Clay Mines?¡± ¡°Correct. We have a finished example here that was enchanted with the highest possible mana density.¡± The middle-aged man picked up one of the pebbles that already had an enchantment in place. ¡°When enchanting you should aim to reach this mana density. You¡¯ll know you¡¯ve reached it when the clay starts heavily resisting further increase of mana.¡± Most materials had a constant mana resistance and would start to crumble and fall apart if one went over their mana threshold. Higher the mana density, faster they would fall apart.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. However, some materials had a different behavior if their mana threshold was reached. They would put up a mighty resistance to prevent mana density increasing above its tolerance threshold. Meaning that their mana resistance would suddenly increase sharply, making it incredibly difficult to go above its tolerance. However, if one still managed to increase the density, such materials would crumble almost instantaneously. There were like animals putting up a final struggle before death. However, thanks to this property of the clay, Kiel would feel when his enchantment reached the required mana density. This was probably the reason why they used such a material in this exam ¨C they wanted to make it easier for Kiel, intuitive even. Or perhaps they wanted to limit the density of his spell so that he wouldn¡¯t waste time on making it reach a higher level. ¡°This time, you should concentrate on speed over accuracy. Enchant as many mines as you can as fast as you can. As long as the shape is good enough for the spell to form, it doesn¡¯t matter if it isn¡¯t high quality.¡± The grandma elaborated. ¡°And, of course, try not to lose a limb.¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow twitched, unsure if that was the grandma¡¯s attempt at humor. They weren¡¯t really giving him real Clay Mines¡­ were they? Surely, they wouldn¡¯t use something so dangerous for the special exam¡­? Yes, he had signed an agreement stating that any injury or death was not to be blamed on the university¡­ but that was just an insurance in case of accidents such as examinees tripping and falling down the stairs. The exams were never actually dangerous! Kiel squeezed out a mirthless smile and waited for the assistant professor to deliver the briefcase to his desk. He was overthinking things, of course, they wouldn¡¯t give him explosive clay. They must be using normal clay, just like his old teacher did in class. He stared at the opened briefcase that was just placed in front of him. Yeah. Just like his old teacher did in class¡­ Kiel¡¯s smile froze on his face. He remembered that class. He was practicing his weaving and wanted to create the highest quality of enchantment possible. When he presented the clay to his teacher, he praised him for being a genius. But he also told him that his enchantment wouldn¡¯t be able to reach such density if they were making real Clay Mines. For explosive clay was one of the materials with low mana tolerance that put up a high resistance once the mana density reached its threshold. After a moment of petrification, Kiel rigidly glanced towards the professors who seemed to be sitting on the edge of their seats, their aura flaring in preparation of casting life-saving magic if needed. F***!! These things are real Clay Mines!! * * * Needless to say, it took Kiel some time to regain his perfectly calm state of mind. (Was this payback for making them waste their time?? Vicious! Petty!!) In the end, his reason won over his emotions. If handled with care these mines weren¡¯t really that dangerous. After all, while not enchanted, these clay pebbles could be thrown around and stepped on as much as one wanted without worry. They would only explode if they were set on fire, however, they wouldn¡¯t combust on their own under normal room temperature. And even after they were enchanted and turned into Clay Mines, they would still not explode so easily. He remembered reading a book on pressure triggers where Clay Mines were mentioned as an example of an artifact triggered by pressure. It included detailed calculations of the force exerted by a foot of a walking person in relation to their weight and walking speed and how it is relevant to pressure triggered enchantments. Simply put, due to their negligible weight, Clay Mines could even be thrown at high speeds without worry of an explosion. Thus, as long as he didn¡¯t end up dropping one and stepping on it, he¡¯d be safe. And so, Kiel didn¡¯t touch the clay pebbles at all and chose to enchant them while they remained securely sitting inside the briefcase. Due to his high spell casting speed, it took less than a minute to mass produce a briefcase filled with Clay Mines. And the enchantment was even of reasonably high quality. When one reached his high proficiency in mana weaving, it was actually impossible to do a sloppy enchantment unless he actively tried to do one. But even though this task wasn¡¯t hard for Kiel, being much easier, and taking up much less time than the previous, complicated enchantment, for obvious reasons, the amount of sweat dripping down Kiel¡¯s forehead was in no way inferior to the drops sweated during the previous task. The professors, also for obvious reasons, didn¡¯t start testing his previously enchanted metal stars until the briefcase, filled with enough explosive to blow up the entire room, was once again, securely seated on top of their desk. Kiel could swear that they let out a collective breath of relief when the briefcase was closed. One of them nonchalantly coughed to mask his exhale, another one casually wiped the sweat from his forehead. The old grandma kept her composure the best, merely sitting back in her chair and relaxing her aura. After that, she gave a signal to the youngest among them, who woke up from his daze and pulled out another apparatus from the cart. It was a metal sphere with a flat bottom and a star-shaped hole in the middle. It also had a round meter above the hole designed to show the result of the measurement. What followed was a process almost identical to the process that the professors used to test his cogs. They would place the star in the hole and note down the displayed result on the meter. This time the professors didn¡¯t explain the purpose of the enchantment on the star, however, they did explain the purpose of the apparatus, which was to measure mana efficiency of the enchantment, which in turn would give them a number describing the level of Kiel¡¯s spell. Higher the level of the spell, the higher its stability and its mana efficiency. This meant that less mana was required to sustain the spell and lesser amount of mana was needed to produce a bigger effect than lower leveled spells. It also meant that the spell was harder to break, less affected by spell interference and had a faster spell regeneration. Out of all the effects, mana efficiency and effects of spell interference were easiest to measure so they were usually the ones measured to determine a level of the spell. What Kiel gathered from all the information that they revealed so far was that the professors were interested in his spell weaving and the quality of the spells he could produce. However, although the density of mana used in spell weaving was also considered a part of spell weaving skill, they didn¡¯t seem to be too interested in that. So since the density of the mana used to weave the spell affected the spell level they needed to remove spell density from the equation. Therefore, they gave him artifacts whose materials imposed a limit to the density of mana he could weave. This also allowed them to create an example artifact with the highest quality that they thought was producible as a comparison to his own artifacts.
About Spell Quality and Spell level Every spell is assigned a spell level by the Association of Magic which is a rating that describes how that spell compares to other spells. Higher level spells are more mana efficient and more stable than lower level spells, however, they are also more complicated and more difficult to cast. By seeing a level of the spell one can tell how difficult it would be to learn such a spell, and by seeing the level of the spells a mage can cast it would shed light on his ability as a mage. Spell quality is also something that describes the excellence of a spell, but instead of comparing it to other spells, it is compared to itself, meaning, all spells with the same spell pattern. Even if two mages cast the exact same spell, the result will be different. You can cast the spell with a minimum mana density that causes the spell to activate, or increase it several folds as far as you can make it. You can create a messy doodle or put a lot of effort into weaving the spell pattern. Naturally, all of this affects the quality of the resulting spell. So when one says that a spell is of high quality it means that it has been weaved well, reaching almost the highest level this spell can possibly reach. (There is a big difference between low and high quality. A higher quality spell has a higher spell level.) When spells were assigned spell levels, the level given to the spell was the lowest possible level that spell can achieve, meaning that the level of the spell is determined by the level of the lowest quality spell one can manage to cast with that spell pattern. E.g. Spell X might be rated as a level 3 spell, but that means that if a novice mage casts it sloppily, barely managing to succeed, the level of the resulting spell will be 3. However, if a professional enchanter were to optimize it and cast it as best as he can, the same spell might be several levels higher, e.g. reach level 6.
Coming up in the next episode: Seeing their hunched backs and heads almost pressing together, even an idiot would be able to tell that they were up to no good, let alone Elaru who had spent the majority of her life beating up scoundrels. In the end, they could barely sit still and couldn¡¯t help occasionally rubbing their hands greedily. Faces thicker than the city walls! Elaru¡¯s vision turned dark. As Kiel stared at the chaos, his mouth dropped open, his pupils dilated and his mind stalled. Episode 138 – Bad Luck Previously: It¡¯s Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams. It is time for the last exam of the day ¨C Special exam. Kiel shot himself in the foot ¨C as it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam was not designed to test Kiel¡¯s spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. He is tasked to spell replicate several cogwheels and then given an intricate enchantment to place on star-shaped artifacts. After finishing enchanting the stars, he is given real Clay Mines to enchant. On the other hand, Elaru is confronted by three old geezers who are acting high and mighty and she shows them her spell breaking knowledge, accidentally provoking them into an argument on their spell breaking views.
Episode 138 ¨C Bad Luck After the three old men settled their argument (or rather, they got tired of arguing), they brought out several more artifacts for Elaru to break, each one trickier than the last. They stared with their maws gaping and eyes wide as she broke them with seemingly little effort. ¡°Is that all?¡± Only when her question fell did they regain their senses. They shared a look and then abruptly their bodies shook with what seemed to be sudden enlightenment. With utmost effort they controlled their mouth from blooming into a grin, however, their excited aura gave their true feelings away. Still, they continued posturing. They cleared their throats and with an air of the wise, older generation they informed Elaru they needed to privately discuss her performance. Thus, they huddled together like a group of bandits, set up a sound isolation barrier, and turned their backs to Elaru to conceal their crafty grins. Seeing their hunched backs and heads almost pressing together, even an idiot would be able to tell that they were up to no good, let alone Elaru who had spent the majority of her life beating up scoundrels. Briefly, she pondered whether it would be worth the effort to concentrate her Aethernea of Sight on their mouth and attempt lip reading. But in the end, she decided against it. They didn¡¯t seem evil, merely a bit mischievous, like oversized children. And they didn¡¯t have any enmity with her, on the contrary, they seemed to be very satisfied with her abilities. They were probably thinking about which hard to break artifact to bring out next. Meanwhile, under the sound barrier¡­ ¡°Quick! Where is the list of things headmaster asked us to break by the end of this week?¡± Mustache slapped his thighs. ¡°I¡¯ve got it right here.¡± Eyebrows hurriedly searched his pockets and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Beard snatched the paper right out of his hands, wet his thumb with his tongue, and quickly unfolded it. The three pressed their heads tightly together reading down the long list for several seconds. ¡°Are you thinking what I¡¯m thinking?¡± Mustache was first to speak up. ¡°Hehe, if you are thinking that we¡¯ll be hard-pressed to finish all this by Monday then yes.¡± Beard chuckled coyly. ¡°Indeed, indeed, imagine how much sleep we¡¯ll lose. This stress isn¡¯t good for our old bones.¡± Eyebrows added with enthusiasm that created a sharp contrast with the severity of his words. ¡°Might cause hair loss too.¡± Beard was better at controlling his facial expression thus he nodded gravely. Unfortunately, the lightness of his voice didn¡¯t match the heaviness of his face. The three shared a knowing look and looked back at the pretty redhead. The more they looked at her, the more pleasing to the eyes she was. They turned back, their eyes unconsciously squinting. ¡°I¡¯ll supervise the young lass and cross things off the list¡­¡± Eyebrows screamed dibs for the easiest task. The other two looked at him disgruntled but in the end, let it pass, they were in too good of a mood to be petty. ¡°I¡¯ll go search the cabinets,¡± Mustache added with eyes squinted into a clear smile, stroking his long white mustache. ¡°I¡¯ll go bring more stuff.¡± Beard volunteered, rubbing his hands together like a merchant who just made a lucrative business deal. And so, what followed next was bringing out one artifact after another. Shelves, closets, and pockets, everything that could be overturned and emptied was quickly emptied, the contents piling in front of Elaru. More enchantments she broke, the more excited the three became at the prospect of finding an artifact she couldn¡¯t break. Their faces went through several different phases: shock, admiration, reverence, excitement, glee, curiosity. In the end, Mustache could barely sit still, rubbing his hands greedily. Meanwhile, Eyebrows couldn¡¯t hide the blissful look on his face as he continued crossing out items from his list with incredible satisfaction. Just as Elaru emptied the pile in front of her, Beard came back to the room with a cart full of miscellaneous stuff and resumed watching Elaru break one artifact after another with glittering eyes. At some point the trio found themselves cheering and clapping as if they were three cheerleaders supporting their favorite airbalt team, the shattered remains of their dignity couldn¡¯t even be scrapped off the floor. Therefore, they decided to thicken their skin and go even further ¨C they kindly asked her if she was running out of mana, and whether they should visit the alchemy department to get a mana replenishing potion. Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched at their feigned worry as she once again squeezed a polite ¡°No, thank you.¡±This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. Even if she did run out of mana, she¡¯d rather stop this exam than take a mana replenishing potion. It¡¯s not like these few meagrely points would be the difference between success and failure of her exams. And mana potions squeezed out mana that had seeped deep into the flesh and bones to nourish them. If used too often the prolonged mana deficiency would cause serious damage to one¡¯s body. Mana potions were something mages used only when the stakes were very high. Mostly as a life-saving trump card. Yet, these three old fogies actually wanted her to take one just to continue spell breaking?! Luckily, the three old men were perfectly aware that spell breaking wasn¡¯t an activity with a large mana consumption, so they didn¡¯t actually insist on it. After all, unlike spell casting, spell breaking didn¡¯t directly consume mana. The only loss was caused either by mana dissipating naturally with time, or mana dissipating due to the damage caused by the repeated collision with solidified mana. Thus, while spell breaking required the mage to have a large amount of mana available to form a dense mana construct, only a negligible amount of all that mana would dissipate after a single spell breaking attempt. Running out of mana was highly unlikely to happen. Fainting due to mental fatigue was a much more realistic scenario. Fortunately, or perhaps, unfortunately, Elaru¡¯s mental fortitude was pretty high so she kept breaking and breaking, all the while longingly looking at the clock on the wall, hoping that it would tick just a bit faster. If only time dilation magic wasn¡¯t far beyond her capabilities¡­ * * * When the final item was crossed off from the list, the trio of old men was too drunk with glee to stop. One after the other, they ran towards their personal studies and brought back everything they could find. (¡°Eh, eh, how about this one?¡±, ¡°Oh, oh! I found another one!¡±, ¡°Ooooh! I lost this one ages ago.¡±) And then they would once again watch and cheer on, gazing at the redhead with gentle eyes as if they were looking at their long-lost kin. Lovable, so lovable! The little lass was saving them days of hard work, who wouldn¡¯t find her endearing? Coupled with the increasingly disturbing looks and the never decreasing pile of items, Elaru finally reached the edges of her patience. As politely, yet as meaningfully, as she could, she glanced at the clock and commented. ¡°We are running out of time. I am afraid I won¡¯t manage to break all of these.¡± Unfortunately, the three old men had shed their dignity long ago, so they just looked at her comfortingly and reassured: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We don¡¯t have anything scheduled after this.¡± Elaru¡¯s face fell. You give them an inch and they ask for a mile¡­ ¡°I know you, three esteemed experts¡­¡± Elaru squeezed out ¡°¡­just want to test me to the best of your abilities¡­¡± The three nodded their heads appreciatively, showing absolutely no sign of shame or regret. Faces thicker than the city walls! Elaru¡¯s eyebrow twitched, yet her voice still remained pleasant as she continued: ¡°But since I¡¯m sure your time is very valuable, I can¡¯t bear to waste it.¡± She didn¡¯t dare to give them any time to respond, firing another statement right after. ¡°So how about you pick the most difficult thing to break you have and I break that?¡± And so¡­ ¡°How about this one?¡± ¡°No, no! This one is better!¡± ¡°You call that difficult?? Not only does this one have higher mana density but it also contains more spell fragments!¡± ¡°Tsk! The quality of mystification in this one is much higher than that one!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll stuff mana density and mystification down your¡­! This one uses secret arcane magic that no one has seen before!¡± ¡­Elaru¡¯s vision turned dark. * * * Meanwhile, Kiel¡¯s professors were finally finished measuring all of the stars he had enchanted. Thus they gathered together to see the results, however, before they could inspect them, the old grandma¡¯s eyes flashed and she folded the paper. ¡°Patience! Let¡¯s inspect the mines first.¡± And thus, another apparatus was placed on the table ¨C a silver box. ¡°Clay Mines are an important weapon in the Purge arsenal with strict quality control. A non-functioning mine could cost a Purger his life, thus the Purge check the quality of every mine.¡± The grandma patiently explained. ¡°This device¡­ is a modified version of the apparatus used to inspect Clay Mines. It is enchanted with an enchantment higher in level than the enchantment on the Clay Mines and it will cause strong spell interference with Clay Mines.¡± While the old lady continued her explanation, the middle-aged man placed the example Clay Mine inside the box and closed the lid. ¡°When the apparatus is activated the two sides of the box will flatten the Clay Mine, and the mine will activate. However, due to the strong spell interference, the temperature increase caused by the activation of the mine won¡¯t reach the required level to make it explode.¡± The middle-aged man twisted a switch under the meter on the front face of the cube and activated the apparatus. As the meter jumped and settled on a number, the old lady elaborated. ¡°The temperature of the mine will still increase, and the box will measure this increase to calculate the quality of the enchantment on the mine.¡± The middle-aged man deactivated the apparatus and opened the lid of the box. However, instead of removing the mine, he placed both of his hands inside the box and kneaded the flattened clay mine back into the shape of a pebble. Only then did he remove the mine from the box and place it back into the briefcase. As the professors busied themselves with measuring the quality of his Clay Mines, Kiel sat in his seat deep in thought. Why were they interested in the quality of his enchantments? Why were they measuring all these things? They checked the quality and speed of his spell replicating as if this was nothing more than a spell replicating exam. But this was wrong! Weren¡¯t they supposed to be testing for some special ability? Did they really need all those numbers? What could those numbers really tell them about the presence or absence of a special power? If such a special power manifested there should have been some obvious sign of it. Like glittering lights, pulses of power, or anomalies in the fabric of reality. Yet, what were they doing?? Data mining? Were they looking for some kind of anomaly in the data? But what kind of anomaly could there possibly be? They were only measuring time and spell quality. Well, whatever, they would probably explain these things for him, so he would understand why he got a zero on the exam. He should just be patient, since they didn¡¯t give him any more things to enchant, it should mean that this exam was coming to a close. And so, the last Clay Mine was put inside the metal box. The middle-aged man activated the apparatus and everyone eagerly awaited for the end of this exam. Unfortunately, things seldom go as planned. For just as the box was activated¡­ BOOM! The ground shook and Kiel almost fell out of his chair. The fragments of the box flew everywhere like snowflakes. The hourglass on the table crashed on the floor, spilling sand on the carpet. The professors rolled on the floor, their faces black, their hair all over the place. White, mostly intact, papers rained all over the room, covering the furniture and the floor. As Kiel stared at the chaos, his mouth dropped open, his pupils dilated and his mind stalled. ¡­fu**! Don¡¯t tell me Elaru passed her bad luck onto me?!?
Coming up in the next episode: The professors disliked him already for wasting their time¡­ and now¡­ he just hoped they wouldn¡¯t expel him from the exams. ¡°¡­going to expel¡­!¡± Kiel¡¯s blood chilled, becoming colder and colder with each word. His heart thumped hard against his chest, each beat reverberating like a drum inside his head. He had no way out. They never left him a chance to begin with. He was alone. He had never stopped being alone. Episode 139 – To see the Light Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. * * * For just as the box was activated¡­ BOOM! The ground shook and Kiel almost fell out of his chair. The fragments of the box flew everywhere like snowflakes. The hourglass on the table crashed on the floor, spilling sand on the carpet. The professors rolled on the floor, their faces black, their hair all over the place. White, mostly intact, papers rained all over the room, covering the furniture and the floor. As Kiel stared at the chaos, his mouth dropped open, his pupils dilated and his mind stalled. ¡­fu**! Don¡¯t tell me Elaru passed her bad luck onto me?!?
Episode 139 ¨C To see the Light Luckily, the silver box absorbed most of the explosion, so no one got injured. After several seconds of dizziness, even the old grandma got up to her feet by herself. The professors shared incredulous looks coupled by sour faces and collectively glanced back at Kiel. Kiel gulped inaudibly. The professors disliked him already for wasting their time¡­ and now¡­ he just hoped they wouldn¡¯t expel him from the exam. He wasn¡¯t even at fault here. Elaru caused so much more trouble and she was still fine. Surely, he would be fine. The old lady, although the frailest, was the first to recover from the shock, she coughed awkwardly and made the scattered papers fly into her hand. Her action seemed to awaken everyone else and they huddled together over her shoulders anxiously, hoping that the papers were alright, praying that they wouldn¡¯t need to redo the test. In fact, they were so worried about redoing the test that they didn¡¯t even take the time to tidy up their sorry appearance. They looked over the papers with black faces and hair standing up like it was a tiwi nest. The grandma¡¯s hands shook. Judging by the paling faces of the examiners, things didn¡¯t look good. The results probably got damaged. Before anyone could erupt, saying something inappropriate, someone erected a sound isolation barrier around the examiners. Just in time too, for not a moment later, one of them started yelling something. Another one grit his teeth and glared at the first one. Granny was frowning, as the rest erupted into an insult-spewing clamor, giving Kiel sneaky glances from time to time. Kiel¡¯s back was already drenched with cold sweat, they wouldn¡¯t take their irritation out on him, would they? Yet, judging by their black faces¡­ they were cursing him for sure! Kiel anxiously concentrated on their expressions, hoping he¡¯d be able to lip read what they were saying. He couldn¡¯t just silently wait for their verdict! If he wanted a chance to defend himself, at least he ought to know which ones were cursing him and which ones were reprimanding the cursing ones! Unfortunately, the little words that he managed to recognize with his poor lip-reading attempts weren¡¯t enough for him to make sense of the conversation. ¡°¡­ go off¡­ theoretical limit¡­ is unlikely¡­ artifacts malfunctioning¡­ impossible¡­ data¡­ perhaps¡­ wrong¡­ ability¡­ ¡± The more they argued, the more shaken they seemed to be. ¡°¡­already¡­ 3¡­ not talented¡­ personal¡­ not willing¡­ going to expel¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s blood chilled, becoming colder and colder with each word. Finally, just as Kiel was about to become a popsicle, the grandma opened her mouth and strictly said something that made everyone shut up. (¡°¡­argue¡­later¡±) She glared at each and every one of them daring them to say something else. Her look was so intimidating that not one of them managed to hold her gaze. And thus, the matter seemed to be temporarily settled. The sound barrier was removed, and all pairs of eyes looked towards Kiel. He could almost feel their gazes poking holes into him. They looked at him as if he was a piece of meat on the chopping board, like they were a pack of hungry lupaxes staring at a little meep. He barely restrained himself from stepping back in fright. The grandma coughed, her eyebrow twitching. She reached into her robe and pulled out a smoking pipe. It seemed like she had been restraining herself from smoking for the duration of the exam, but the recent explosion was too much for her to handle. She needed her pipe to relieve the stress. Her deep inhale broke the dense veil of silence covering the room. After several seconds of stillness, her closed eyes snapped open and she reached into her robe once again, this time pulling out a small jewelry box.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. She flicked her hand and an empty piece of paper, followed by a pen, came flying towards Kiel¡¯s desk. ¡°This is the last test we have for you.¡± Grandma declared solemnly before the jewelry box in her hand came flying towards Kiel as well. Suppressing his fingers from shaking, Kiel grabbed the pen with one hand and the box with another. ¡°Your task is to sense the enchantment on this artifact and draw out its spell pattern as accurately as you can.¡± The solemn gazes of the examiners made the atmosphere in the room turn suffocating. Kiel felt as if something heavy was pressing onto his chest. ¡°Do your best.¡± The grandma wished him luck, as if this task was his last attempt to redeem himself. The last attempt to show his worth. The last attempt to avoid getting expelled from the exam. Kiel regretted signing up for this special exam, he regretted it so much his intestines turned green. Slowly, he opened up the little box to reveal a small azure bead with a golden hook. It was either an earring or a pendant. Kiel closed his eyes, swallowed down his saliva, and concentrated on sensing the enchantment. And then¡­ He almost snapped the pen in half. For he realized that no matter how hard he concentrated¡­ The enchantment on this little bead remained blurry. It was so intricate, so small, so complicated, that his mana sense simply wasn¡¯t good enough to see it. Lines were too thin, packed tightly together blending with one another into blurs of various densities of mana. He felt like a person who had taken off their prescription glasses, squinting with all his might to no avail. He sat rigidly, his back drenched with cold sweat, his black hair sticking to his forehead, his already fair face turning even whiter. His fingers almost dropped the jewelry box. He was forced to put it down and hide his trembling hands under the desk. Ticking seconds stretched, every next moment lasting longer than the previous. Kiel felt the eyes of the examiners burning holes on his body. Waiting for him to pick up a pen and start writing. Yet, he couldn¡¯t pick up that pen. Not because his fingers were shaking too much to write. But because he couldn¡¯t see. He just couldn¡¯t see it! His heart thumped hard against his chest, each beat reverberating like a drum inside his head. He had no way out. They never left him a chance to begin with. Such an intricate enchantment¡­ very few mages would be able to accurately sense something this small. He doubted that even they, themselves, would be able to draw it out. It was now clear to Kiel that they were just looking for an excuse to kick him out. Their mind had already been made up. Kiel opened his mouth gently, yet no sound came out from his throat. What was he supposed to say? That he couldn¡¯t do it? That he couldn¡¯t see? That he gave up? Words of forfeit were something that just couldn¡¯t come out of his throat. It was as if his very existence was refusing those words. He didn¡¯t have a special power. He didn¡¯t have an incredible talent. All he had was his perseverance. All he had was built upon never giving up. Even when he knew that it was hopeless, that he couldn¡¯t do it, he still couldn¡¯t say those words. His entire mind, entire will concentrated on that little azure bead. As if doing so could help him see. As if his will would be enough to make impossible possible. His mind spun and spun in circles. His teeth clenched, his nails almost cut into the palm of his clenched hands. With every fiber of his being, he wished he could see the spell. With every drop of blood running through his veins he wished his eyes could be like Elaru¡¯s. He wished she were here, wished that he could hear her warm voice, wished that it could bring comfort to his spirit, wished that perhaps that melodic voice could solve his troubles. But there was something inside of him that held him back from speaking to her. Like tight thick chains, binding around him, preventing him from calling out. No matter how he tried, he couldn¡¯t send his thoughts towards her. He was alone. He had never stopped being alone. Therefore, he stopped reaching out, returning to his empty and cold world, where nothing existed other than him and this infernal bead. He imagined how this bead might look like in Elaru¡¯s world, recalling those vivid, bright memories Elaru had shown him, as if by doing so his gray world would gain color. He didn¡¯t know if his heart got too tired and slowed down, or if his perception of time was getting warped¡­ ¡­but everything in his world seemed to slow down. He ¡°stared¡± at the pearl with all of his mind, stared until he felt as if his entire Mind would congeal. Like he was forcing too much water into a bucket that was his head, making it on the verge of exploding. It was so painful, so tight, like an overly stretched balloon. Time continued to slow down until the world stood still. Turning everything into lifeless, gray, ice sculptures. Even his blood seemed to coagulate. Everything other than him and the azure pearl faded out of existence. And then¡­ in the darkest of night¡­ a bright flash of color invaded his gray world, dazzling his eyes. So many different colors wrapped around him, almost strangling him with the power of their presence. It was only for a moment. An incredibly excruciating moment. And then they were gone, like they had never existed. Yet, in that brief moment, an incredibly beautiful image imprinted itself deeply into his memory. And as he recalled it, he knew. He knew that every line, every pattern, every breath of color, it belonged to the azure bead in front of him. He could see it. The enchantment that had eluded him. Before he even realized what was going on, that brief moment passed, and time started flowing again. His closed eyes snapped open to reveal the gaping maws of the examiners in front of him. Only then did he register that his hand was gripping the pen tightly, finishing drawing the last lines of the enchantment onto the paper in front of him. His eyes moved down to the picture he had drawn, and he felt relief flood over him, followed by self-satisfaction, glee, and excitement, setting his spirit free. And right after that what followed was pain and exhaustion. He felt like he had been run over by a rampaging herd of girls after a several-days-long chase. Every muscle on his entire body screamed in agony, his head feeling like it would split. He swallowed down a hiss of pain and slumped back in his chair. The silence in the room was broken by excited exclamations of: ¡°This is it! No doubt about it!¡± ¡°Such accuracy! Incredible!¡± And the examiners ran towards him, hounding him like a group of fangirls, squealing out exclamations of surprise, amazement, and praise. Kiel stared at them dazed, weren¡¯t they going to expel him from the exam a second ago? What is with this sudden shift?? ¡°I already called dibs!¡± ¡°And we collectively vetoed it!¡± ¡°You can¡¯t call dibs on a person!¡± ¡°Young man, do you have a master already?¡± ¡°Even if you do, it doesn¡¯t matter! I¡¯m willing to share! How about you join our engineering department?¡± ¡°Boy, if you are willing to join our spell replicating department I can take you as my only personal disciple!¡± ¡°Whatever he offers, I¡¯ll double it! Our enchanting department is a much better place to go!¡± ¡°Succeeding disciple! I can take you as my succeeding disciple!¡± ¡°Aya¡­ I have a pretty and talented daughter your age¡­ I know that the position of the main wife is impossible¡­ but a concubine is fine!¡± The examiners started to argue with their teeth bared, like starving hounds fighting for a fresh piece of meat. They even started tugging and pushing each other like a bunch of kindergarten kids. And then it occurred to Kiel that¡­ What the bloody meep??? ¡­he had absolutely no idea what was going on!
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°As you might already know, the professors in our university are required to mentor students, so it has become our tradition to look for suitable candidates to take on as disciples during the exam itself.¡± A talented person, that person, it wasn¡¯t him. And he didn¡¯t need to constantly be reminded of it. ¡°¡­there is no need. Thank you for your good intentions¡­¡± Kiel responded politely. It was very common for people to have a high affinity for a specific type of magic, being less talented when it came to using other types of magic. ¡°Did he ever find out the reason behind it?¡± Kiel cautiously asked, trying not to reveal his skepticism. Episode 140 – Magic Talent Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. Examiners are thankfully fine but they start arguing with each other. They give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw it out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. In this stressful situation, Kiel manages to see a flash of light inside his head for a brief moment, showing him how the enchantment looks like. After he successfully draws out the spell design of the enchantment, examiners get excited and ask Kiel to be their disciple. * * * The examiners started to argue with their teeth bared, like starving hounds fighting for a fresh piece of meat. They even started tugging and pushing each other like a bunch of kindergarten kids. And then it occurred to Kiel that¡­ What the bloody meep??? ¡­he had absolutely no idea what was going on! Episode 140 ¨C Magic Talent Kiel stood gobsmacked and frozen, unable to make sense of the sudden twist. ¡°Enough! Don¡¯t you see you are confusing the poor boy!¡± The old grandma glowered menacingly, her pipe almost falling out of her mouth. ¡°Act with dignity! We are in the middle of the exams!¡± She berated, instantly quieting everyone else. She puffed out a cloud of white smoke, glaring left and right, daring anyone to speak up again. When she settled her gaze on Kiel her eyes turned gentle. ¡°As you might already know, in our university, professors are required to mentor at least one student, providing them with their personal teaching, supervision, and guidance.¡± Kiel already knew as much. One of the main reasons why all Muni graduates without exception were the leaders of their generation was because of the invaluable one-on-one tutoring of a Muni mentor. Most of the times, if mentors were satisfied by their charges, they would turn them into their disciples and put in more effort than required by Muni into teaching them. And if they really liked their charges and wanted to continue teaching them in the future, regardless of their mentor/mentee status, mentors would take their charges as their personal disciples. Kiel had even heard many stories about Muni professors being so impressed by a student that they took them on as a succeeding disciple. Just the title of a personal disciple of a master was enough to raise the status of the student in question, let alone becoming a succeeding disciple. There could be only one succeeding disciple to inherit the master¡¯s legacy and it was naturally a very sought-after position. The relationship between a master and his succeeding disciple were often times even closer than kin. ¡°Just as there is a tough competition between students for the mentorship of esteemed experts in a certain field of study, there is also a tough competition between mentors for recruiting talented students suited for their field of study. That¡¯s why it had become our tradition to look for suitable candidates to take under our wings as early as the entrance exams.¡± The gray-eyed granny took out the pipe from her mouth and let out a sigh that turned into a wisp of white smoke. ¡°My colleagues just got very excited upon seeing your talent in magic. Your weaving is exquisite, mana abundant, and even your mana sense is extraordinarily accurate. As such you are perfectly suited to join our Sapphire Division that specializes in magic theory related professions.¡± The granny glanced back at other professors giving them a death glare. Usually, Kiel would have been very proud to have multiple esteemed experts vying to make him their disciple. In fact, the first half of granny¡¯s words did make him happy. But when she praised his talent instead of his skill, all that satisfaction evaporated into thin air. Now, not only didn¡¯t he feel happy, but on the contrary, he felt sourness swell up within him. For people talented in magic, magic would come naturally. They would learn it quickly and easily. But would a non-mage ever be able to learn magic quickly and easily? Of course not. No matter how talented, one needed to practice magic to learn it. And without mana, how could one practice magic? A person with a lot of mana might be able to repeat the same spell thousands of times in the single day, an average person perhaps several hundred of times, a non-mage, several dozen at most. If their talent was the same and they put in the same amount of effort, what would take a year for an average person to learn, would take a month for a person with an abundant mana. As for a non-mage? Ten years. Mentioning talent in front of a non-mage¡­ was equivalent to rubbing salt into his wounds. Even a godly talent wouldn¡¯t be enough to overcome the disadvantage of being born as a non-mage. Thus, what Kiel detested the most was being reminded of it. Reminded of how much more effort he had to put in to walk the same distance as everyone else. He didn¡¯t need or want a constant reminder of the blood and sweat that paved his path! And as if that wasn¡¯t enough to irritate him, the reason why these professors suddenly shifted their attitudes towards him was because they thought that he had a very accurate mana sense. Which again, was something he didn¡¯t have!If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It would have been better if they didn¡¯t say anything at all! He wasn¡¯t sure what was worse ¨C not being appreciated for the talents he did have, or being appreciated for talents he didn¡¯t have. Unaware of the irritation brewing inside the black-haired boy in front of her, the grandma harrumphed: ¡°But recruiting isn¡¯t the main purpose of this exam, and neither is magic talent.¡± Kiel wasn¡¯t sure if her goal was to remind her colleagues or him. Most likely it was both. ¡°You¡¯ve been wondering about the purpose of this special exam, haven¡¯t you?¡± Granny¡¯s gaze softened once again, and her tone lost its edge. Kiel nodded his head rigidly. Grandma smiled at him appreciatively and took out the pipe from her mouth to refill it. ¡°This story began almost eight centuries prior, with the building of D¡¯Arca¡­¡± Grandma let her words hang in the air while she put more Crystal into her pipe. Crystal that she was pouring in resembled coarse salt, white and glittery, but if one looked closer to it, it had a bit of a green tint to it. Kiel didn¡¯t smoke so he wasn¡¯t all that familiar with the different Crystal flavors, but it wasn¡¯t hard to guess the type of Crystal from the rich scent, reminiscent of grass or tea, which was spreading in the air. The middle-aged man took this pause as his chance to butter up to Kiel. Thus¡­ ¡°Here, your lips are looking a bit dry. This explanation will take a while¡­¡± ¡­he offered him a bottle of water that he pulled out of nowhere, well, at least Kiel didn¡¯t notice when and how he got his hands on it. ¡°¡­there is no need. Thank you for your good intentions¡­¡± Kiel responded politely, even squeezing out a bright smile through those dry lips. Grandma squeezed too, but not a smile, rather, she squeezed her eyes into a death glare, making the man retreat behind her like a startled tiwi. The fact that her pipe lit up with flames at this moment only served to add more intimidation to the picture. ¡°Ahem¡­¡± She coughed, meaningfully, or it could have been that she choked on the smoke, Kiel couldn¡¯t tell. ¡°¡­D¡¯Arca was envisioned as a modern, most magically advanced city. Building it required the making of countless magical components, artifacts, and enchantments. And of course, many enchanters and spell replicators to make them.¡± Grandma delved into the story. ¡°Lord Alann Farhice, as the leader of the project, set up a large-scale artifact manufacturing factory, hiring all kinds of different people with the only requirement being an ability to reproduce low-level enchantments. Enchanters, spell replicators, normal mages, or even people who weren¡¯t mages, he accepted them all with open arms, giving them a chance to turn their lives around.¡± All professors straightened up their backs, their expressions showing great respect and even reverie for the great man that was Alann Farhice. ¡°Those that worked hard were rewarded and encouraged. Lord Farhice would even personally inspect the products and meet the workers. If he discovered talented workers he would even sponsor their study of magic.¡± ¡°A great man he was.¡± The middle-aged man nodded his head, looking as if he was ready to give the man a salute at any moment. They would probably faint on the spot if they knew that the man they were praising into the heavens was¡­ not as perfect as the books portrayed him. While books praised Alann Farhice for his contributions in modernizing the society by making magic artifacts available to everyone, they failed to mention that his main motive for doing so could be summed up in two words ¨C saving money. What history books spoke of as a noble act of extending a helping hand to poverty-stricken populace had another name in Alann Farhice¡¯s book ¨C cheap labor. Still, Alann Farhice might have had many questionable personality traits, but no one doubted his great vision, intellect, hard work, and humility. It was actions that spoke louder than words, and his actions never failed to make the future brighter to everyone involved. This story that the granny continued to narrate was no exception. Apparently, after many months of production, on one of his inspections, Alann Farhice discovered several artifacts whose enchantments deviated from his original design. The curious thing was that the mana density of those enchantments wasn¡¯t as high as the original, yet their performance was higher than the original! Alann Farhice, while not a mage himself due to the lack of mana, was still one of the most accomplished spell designers and inscriptionists. His spell designs weren¡¯t something that anyone could just casually improve. When he went to meet with the workers that had improved his spell design, he realized they were uneducated peasants who had no knowledge of magic theory. In fact, they didn¡¯t even realize that they had managed to produce several artifacts whose enchantments were of higher quality than the original, let alone know how it happened. They weren¡¯t particularly skilled at weaving magic, and their talent didn¡¯t seem that high either, their improvement speed just average. Thus, Alann concluded that their ¡°handwriting¡± was just coincidentally very suited for the enchantments they were doing which ended up inadvertently creating several enchantments that were better than the original. After all, it wasn¡¯t strange for people to have a special affinity for a specific type of magic. And thus, Alann Farhice rewarded the workers for their contribution by promoting them to do better-payed enchantments. However, after some more time passed, these same workers, somehow, again managed to improve the new enchantment they had been given to replicate. Once could have been a coincidence, but twice? Unlikely! Was it possible that these people had a special affinity for two completely different enchantments? It didn¡¯t seem likely. Alann decided to look into this matter more thoroughly and soon he noticed several peculiarities. These people all had below average amount of mana so the number of enchantments they were able to do daily was several times lower than average. Yet, their improvement with each spell cast was several times higher than average, meaning that they were actually rather talented in magic. The reason why their talent wasn¡¯t discovered earlier was because, due to them doing fewer enchantments, the time it took for them to improve was the same as average people making them not stand out at all. It wasn¡¯t that these people had a special affinity towards those enchantments in particular but that their talent was extraordinary, to begin with. It was only natural that mages with great talent for magic could improve their spellcasting abilities quickly through repeatedly using magic. Anyone else would have dropped the matter at this point, but Alann Farhice didn¡¯t do so. Something didn¡¯t feel right to him. Looking at those new and old enchantments, he had asked the workers: ¡°Why has your ¡®handwriting¡¯ changed?¡± Their answers were surprisingly similar ¨C they felt it would be better ¡°this way¡±. They followed their own intuition when it came to weaving the enchantment. Do talented mages have a strong intuition when it comes to casting magic? ¨C Alann pondered. But if that was the case, then why was it that mages with even greater talent than those workers needed years of experience to improve their spells? This intuition, sense of right and wrong, what is better and worse ¨C it wasn¡¯t something granted by talent, but rather, experience!
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°A lot of examinees with good spell weaving skills are tempted by the prospect of extra points so many apply for this exam every year.¡± Grandma responded vaguely. Kiel almost choked on his own saliva. Wasn¡¯t he one of those examinees?! Kiel felt that he was missing a piece of a puzzle. Something wasn¡¯t quite right. Perhaps it was some kind of Aethernea he hadn¡¯t been aware of? Not that he was knowledgeable in this area, he had only heard rumors of three, perhaps four, Aetherneal gifts, and knew nothing more about it. Still, he had every intention to fix this lack of knowledge as soon as he got access to Muni library. And knowing the names of those Aetherneal gifts was a good place to start. This time it was Kiel¡¯s turn to start coughing, for he almost choked on his own spit. Good thing he refused that bottle of water. Had he been drinking it now, he¡¯d be spewing it straight into the faces of the examiners. Episode 141 – IPOMQ Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. Examiners are thankfully fine but they start arguing with each other. They give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw it out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. In this stressful situation, Kiel manages to see a flash of light inside his head for a brief moment, showing him how the enchantment looks like. After he successfully draws out the spell design of the enchantment, examiners get excited and ask Kiel to be their disciple. Kiel is confused and they explain how professors in Muni are required to mentor students and start telling him the story of Alann Farhice and how he discovered a special ability. * * * Anyone else would have dropped the matter at this point, but Alann Farhice didn¡¯t do so. Something didn¡¯t feel right to him. Looking at those new and old enchantments, he had asked the workers: ¡°Why has your ¡®handwriting¡¯ changed?¡± Their answers were surprisingly similar ¨C they felt it would be better ¡°this way¡±. They followed their own intuition when it came to weaving the enchantment. Do talented mages have a strong intuition when it comes to casting magic? ¨C Alann pondered. But if that was the case, then why was it that mages with even greater talent than those workers needed years of experience to improve their spells? This intuition, sense of right and wrong, what is better and worse ¨C it wasn¡¯t something granted by talent, but rather, experience! Episode 141 ¨C IPOMQ Experienced mages could estimate the quality of the spell by its mana density and weaved pattern, but they had to base this on its similarity to the officially accepted spell pattern. Only if they had used the spell countless times would they be able to develop a sense of quality for their spells beyond the confines of the widely accepted spell pattern. Quality was not something mages could inherently sense, it was something they estimated based on their previous experiences in using the spell! These workers shouldn¡¯t even be able to gauge the quality of the spell let alone develop this ¡°intuition¡± for they had never used the enchantments they created! They didn¡¯t even know what these enchantments did! And then Alann came to a startling realization ¨C could it be that these workers have a special ability that allows them to sense the quality of the spells they had created, without needing to use them or accumulate experience? Some kind of inner meter of spell quality? Alann¡¯s conjecture turned out to be correct. Those workers could pick up an enchantment they had never seen before, weave it a couple of times and intuitively feel which one of their attempts was the highest in quality, no matter how minuscule the difference. Kiel internally sighed seeing the excited examiners as they were talking about this discovery. If you asked him, this power didn¡¯t seem all that useful. It could help one evaluate oneself, and make fewer mistakes, but in the end, without hard work and talent, one¡¯s ability as a mage wouldn¡¯t improve much. It was like a sense of aesthetics, just being able to tell that a picture was pretty wouldn¡¯t give you the ability to paint a pretty picture. For goodness sake, he¡¯d been constantly improving too and didn¡¯t need a special power to do it. If he had such a useless power, he¡¯d trade it for more mana in a heartbeat. Even higher magic talent would be far more useful. Alas, the professors didn¡¯t share his view. In their opinion, getting hold of a talented mage with such a power could help move magic research forwards by decades, perhaps even centuries. As current magic was already extremely optimized, improving it further was near impossible. Not being able to tell whether the change was an improvement or not without extensive testing certainly played a large role in hindering further magic development. So, a person who could instantly tell whether the change was an improvement or not would be invaluable. ¡°Over all these years, how many people with such an ability did you manage to find?¡± Kiel couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°A lot of examinees with good spell weaving skills are tempted by the prospect of extra points so many apply for this exam every year.¡± Grandma responded vaguely. Kiel almost choked on his own saliva. Wasn¡¯t he one of those examinees?! ¡°Oh. Then you must have found quite a few¡­¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow continued to uncontrollably twitch. ¡°A couple, a couple.¡± The grandma coughed awkwardly. So, basically, no one? Kiel stared at them, clear pity oozing out of his blue eyes. Recognizing the pity in Kiel¡¯s gaze, the middle-aged man couldn¡¯t help but speak up in defense. ¡°The problem is that we have no sure way of detecting such a power!¡± Kiel rubbed his chin. He almost suggested for them to just make the examinees sign a truth contract and ask them if they can accurately sense the spell quality of cast spells. But then he remembered that people with this ability didn¡¯t even realize they had it, otherwise Alann Farhice wouldn¡¯t be the first to discover it. These people were just like everyone else, following their own subtle intuition when it comes to learning magic. How could they possibly know that their ¡®feeling¡¯ was actually a special power? They probably didn¡¯t even realize that they were subconsciously changing their own spellwork based on sensed spell quality.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. In the end, Kiel settled for asking: ¡°How about giving the examiners two similar spell designs and asking them which one is of higher quality? Wouldn¡¯t they be able to tell?¡± Grandma sighed sadly. ¡°For some reason, their ¡°intuition¡± only works if they had cast both spells themselves. However, how many people have the spell weaving capability to perfectly copy a spell design? There would always be differences from the original, and this difference might change the result of the test. The test wouldn¡¯t be reliable. Since we are limited by time and the examinees are limited by the size of their mana pool, the prerequisite alone for us to be able to detect this power is hard to satisfy. The examinee in question has to possess a very precise mana control so that his first attempt at weaving is already very close to the original spell design. The examinee also needs to have a high magic talent, so that a clear improvement in spellwork would show in only couple of dozen replications.¡± No wonder they didn¡¯t find anyone. Kiel was speechless. It was impressive that they even bothered to keep such an inefficient, useless exam for all these years. But wait¡­ Kiel¡¯s heart skipped a beat. If they had low hopes of finding anyone, to begin with, why would they be so agitated earlier when they had found out he was a fraud? Even talking about expelling him? If he hadn¡¯t shown his ¡®exceptional¡¯ mana sense accuracy they might have even kicked him out. Kiel felt that he was missing a piece of a puzzle. Something wasn¡¯t quite right. But in the end, he decided to not question the examiners further, least he provoked their ire again. Also, he should probably get lost before they remembered their intentions of recruiting him. He wasn¡¯t sure what field of study he wanted to pursue but the theory of magic wasn¡¯t on top of his list. ¡°I see.¡± Kiel looked at the examiners gratefully. ¡°Thank you for taking the time to explain this to me.¡± ¡°It is our duty.¡± Granny refused his thanks, waving her pipe at him dismissively. Kiel smiled politely and was about to turn around to leave when he abruptly remembered he still didn¡¯t know the name of this ability. ¡°Could you perhaps tell me the name of this ability?¡± Kiel inquired. Perhaps it was some kind of Aethernea he hadn¡¯t been aware of? Not that he was knowledgeable in this area, he had only heard rumors of three, perhaps four, Aetherneal gifts, and knew nothing more about it. Still, he had every intention to fix this lack of knowledge as soon as he got access to Muni library. And knowing the names of those Aetherneal gifts was a good place to start. ¡°We call this ability ¡®inherent perception of magic quality¡¯, or IPOMQ for short.¡± Granny put her pipe back into her mouth for another whiff. That name¡­ Kiel stared blankly, his polite smile frozen on his face. ¡­doesn¡¯t sound impressive at all! ¡­ and the abbreviation¡­ Kiel¡¯s eyebrows twitched. ¡­why does it sound so silly¡­?? ¡°Alann Farhice named it¡­ IPOMQ?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but blurt out. In an instant, everyone¡¯s face turned a bit strange. Granny even choked on the smoke of her pipe and started coughing. After several seconds of awkward silence, one of them spoke up hesitatingly: ¡°No¡­ He called it ¡®natural inherent divine sense of magical order and alterations in reality without required knowledge¡¯¡­¡± Someone in the background coughed a strange cough that sounded like he said ¡°needs more work¡±. The man continued ¡°¡­ but the association of magic later changed it into IPOMQ¡­¡± No wonder they changed it¡­ Kiel stared blankly. What a mouthful! And the abbreviation¡­ His eyebrows furrowed as he combined the first letters of the words: NI¡­DS¡­MO¡­ AR¡­WR¡­K And then he froze, remembering the previous strange cough. NIDS¡­ MOAR¡­ WRK¡­? This time it was Kiel¡¯s turn to start coughing, for he almost choked on his own spit. Good thing he refused that bottle of water. Had he been drinking it now, he¡¯d be spewing it straight into the faces of the examiners. Kiel¡¯s face, too, inadvertently turned strange, mirroring the expressions of the examiners. When both Kiel and the grandma finally recovered from their coughing fit, Kiel quickly broke the uncomfortable silence with the intention to flee before things turned even more uncomfortable. ¡°I am very sorry about the mine. I hope you will be magnanimous and not take it against me. There is no need to trouble yourself by redoing my tests.¡± He intended to say his goodbyes next, however, when he looked up and noticed the confused expressions of the examiners his words died in his throat. ¡°Redoing the tests? Why would we do that?¡± Someone blurted out. Not sure how to respond, Kiel could only smile awkwardly. ¡°Didn¡¯t the papers with the results get damaged?¡± ¡°Luckily, no. They are in perfect condition.¡± Grandma looked truly relieved. ¡°Boy, you have no reason to apologize. On the contrary, we should be the ones to apologize for the previous fiasco. We have been using this mine checking apparatus for too long, so the intensity of spell interference had fallen below permissible levels.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t caused by me?¡± He stared at the professors baffled, his long black eyelashes blinking repeatedly. ¡°But I could swear one of you mentioned expelling me from the exam?¡± Only after his words were done did he realize that spoke his thoughts out loud. He didn¡¯t have the chance to regret it for the confusion on the faces of the examiners only deepened. Grandma chuckled. ¡°Oh, I never said you didn¡¯t cause it¡­¡± but before she could finish what she had intended to say, one of the examiners facepalmed himself in realization, interrupting her words. ¡°Oh! Expel! You must have heard Morloc mentioning that.¡± Realization swept over everyone¡¯s faces, and the middle-aged man hurried to explain. ¡°I wanted to recruit you as my disciple¡­¡± The other man interrupted him with a humph. ¡°But I told him that he already had 3 disciples, so he couldn¡¯t give you the attention you deserve. I said I have only one disciple who is not talented. You see, I wanted to take you on as my personal disciple.¡± The middle-aged man, who was apparently named Morloc, glared at the other man viciously. ¡°And then I said that I wasn¡¯t willing to let your talent be wasted following a wrong master. I am even willing to expel all my disciples if you¡¯d become my succeeding disciple.¡± Kiel almost fell down, planting his face on the ground. He had been panicking that they would expel him this entire time while they were actually arguing about who would get to take him as their disciple?!? What is this?! What the bloody meep is this?!?! Why did he try so hard to detect that last enchantment if not to avoid expulsion?! He felt like the stress had taken away 5 years of his life! He had thought they were mad because he was wasting their time when in reality they were just barring their teeth to each other to prevent anyone from stealing fresh meat from their mouths! Grandma cod snort, coupled with her glare, quietened the bickering instantly. She turned back to Kiel and continued her previous sentence. ¡°Actually, boy, you were indeed the cause of the explosion.¡± Although her words were blaming him, her eyes held mirth instead of resentment. ¡°If your enchantment wasn¡¯t of a higher quality than the original, how could it have possibly managed to activate? The quality of your last Clay Mine went beyond the theoretical limit.¡± ¡­ Kiel stared at the grandma blankly. For full 10 seconds. Before he managed to produce a response: ¡°Huh?!?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel opened his mouth several times like a fish out of water. After his frozen mind managed to recovered from the damage enough to form words, he managed to speak out: ¡°What about the azure bead?¡± Kiel¡¯s entire body froze, and he felt like spewing blood and fainting right then and there. What did he overdraft his powers for?? Why did he stake his life on this exam?! He dug a pit and jumped in himself! In the middle of this deep, deep pit that he had dug himself, Kiel suddenly got an epiphany. He¡¯d better stop worrying about things out of his control and jumping to conclusions, otherwise, next time he might end up losing a leg by shooting himself in the foot. Did this have something to do with Elaru and her Aethernea of Sight? Was he able to borrow it through the Aetherneal bond? Elaru sat in her seat with a wooden expression, watching the trio of old men almost getting physical with each other. Episode 142 – Mere decade Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. Examiners are thankfully fine but they start arguing with each other. They give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw it out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. In this stressful situation, Kiel manages to see a flash of light inside his head for a brief moment, showing him how the enchantment looks like. After he successfully draws out the spell design of the enchantment, examiners get excited and ask Kiel to be their disciple. Kiel is confused and they explain how professors in Muni are required to mentor students and start telling him the story of Alann Farhice and how he discovered a special ability IPOMQ which alows the user to feel the difference in spell quality of spells cast. * * * ¡°If your enchantment wasn¡¯t of a higher quality than the original, how could it have possibly managed to activate? The quality of your last Clay Mine went beyond the theoretical limit.¡± ¡­ Kiel stared at the grandma blankly. For full 10 seconds. Before he managed to produce a response: ¡°Huh?!?¡±
Episode 142 ¨C Mere decade Seeing Kiel¡¯s half-petrified half-gobsmacked expression, grandma couldn¡¯t hold her mirth in any longer and she burst out laughing. ¡°Why did you think we spent all this time talking about IPOMQ?¡± The other examiners also joined in the laughter. ¡°Why did you think we were so excited? Even fighting over recruiting you?¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s because you are one of those people with IPOMQ!¡± Kiel felt as if lightning struck him from the clear skies. His mind in disarray, all he could do was stare dumbly at the laughing professors in front of him. After they were done laughing, Kiel was still standing in dumbfounded silence, but hey, at least he tried to break it ¨C he opened his mouth to say ¡°Impossible! How could I not know I had such an ability?¡±, but then, he realized that the examiners had already explained the reasons why he would be unaware. Therefore, he closed his mouth without saying a word. Still, he could hardly accept this turn of events. How could there be such a coincidence? He applied mistakenly for this special exam and it just so happened that he actually had such a talent? Him? A non-mage? He actually had a special sensitivity towards magic quality? Could this get any more absurd? He didn¡¯t dare get his hopes up, so he shook his head, smiled wryly, and finally uttered words: ¡°You said yourself that this power is hard to test for. And the measuring apparatus is aged, it might be malfunctioning¡­¡± ¡°One might be, but not all of them!¡± Granny shook the stack of papers in her hands. ¡°You¡¯ve got impossibly high numbers in all of the tests. It isn¡¯t that there is something wrong with the data but that the speed of your learning ability is off the charts!¡± Seeing Kiel who looked like his spirit had left his body, the middle-aged man hurried to explain: ¡°The purpose of the first test was so that we could see your normal spell weaving style and how precise your weaving is usually, when you are not putting in special effort. It would also allow us to see your learning speed when you are concentrating on improvement. The second enchantment was both intricate and mystified. It was given to you to test how high your weaving precision can reach. However, the main point of the test laid in the fact that the enchantment was mystified and had many places where it could be improved. If you were a wielder of IPOMQ, this is where you¡¯d have the most opportunity to display it. You had the time to perfect your weaving and learn the most from your previous attempt. This should have resulted in you making several alterations to the spell design in the pursuit of quality.¡± After the man ran out of breath, granny continued: ¡°The Clay Mine served only as a confirmation of what we already detected in the previous two tests. You didn¡¯t have the time to inspect the quality of your casting and adjust your weaving accordingly. However¡­¡± She gave Kiel a knowing look. ¡°¡­you could still tell, couldn¡¯t you? The quality of your spells I mean.¡± Kiel stood petrified, not even attempting to respond. Luckily, granny¡¯s question seemed to be rhetorical for she spoke up soon after. ¡°Even when you didn¡¯t have enough time to think about it, you subconsciously improved with rapid speed and changed your weaving style to better match the spell.¡± Like a fish out of water, Kiel opened his mouth several times before his frozen mind managed to recover enough to form words: ¡°What about the azure bead?¡± Unfortunately, the response he got made him deeply regret that he had bothered to ask. His mind that was about to recover from the suffered damage received another blow: ¡°Oh, that last one wasn¡¯t part of the special exam. We just got very excited when we realized you possessed the IPOMQ, so we were curious about the accuracy of your mana sense. If even your mana sense was incredible than you¡¯d be a godsend to our Sapphire Division!¡± Kiel felt horrible enough to spew out blood and faint right then and there.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. What did he overdraft his powers for?? Why did he stake his life on this exam?! Why did he end up in this miserable state where every cell of his body was screaming in agony?! He felt so stupid! He had totally misunderstood everything that happened! He dug a deep pit and jumped in himself! And it was in the middle of this deep, deep pit that he had dug himself, that Kiel suddenly got an epiphany ¨C he¡¯d better stop worrying about things out of his control and jumping to conclusions, otherwise, next time he might end up shooting himself in the foot and losing the entire leg. Still, didn¡¯t such a realization have too big of a price tag?! What should he do if these excited elders ended up spreading that he had a perverse mana sense?? He wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep in peace out of worry that his lack of an extremely accurate mana sense would be revealed! Even if he wanted to accept one of their apprenticeship offers in the future, he wouldn¡¯t dare to, for they would surely notice he didn¡¯t have such an awesome mana sense! Kiel felt droplets of cold sweat dripping down his back. And what kind of shitty talent was this? IPOMQ, no, NIDSMOARWRK? Elaru got the godly cheat that is Aethernea of Sight, while he got¡­ NIDSMOARWRK? Where was the justice in this world?? This talent was something he couldn¡¯t even casually mention without feeling his face burn. What would he say? ¡°Hey, guess what, I am actually talented. I¡¯ve got IPOMQ.¡± The first response he¡¯d get in return would be: ¡°What is that? A sexually transmitted disease?¡± When had his life ever been so full of ups and downs?! Alann Farhice, couldn¡¯t you use your great intelligence to give it a better name?! And the worst thing was, even if the person in question could hear the soul-wrenching cry of poor Kiel, he would probably snicker and deliver a final blow: ¡°I admit, it ¡®nids moar wrk¡¯.¡± Kiel had yet to recover his wits when the professors started shoving cards with their contact details into his hands saying things like. ¡°Boy, think about it and let me know if you are interested in becoming my personal disciple.¡± Even the grandma stepped out to declare that she was the leader of the enchanting department as well as the head of the Sapphire Division ¨C the big boss of everyone working in the field of theory of magic, with only people above her being the headmaster and the vice-head of the university. (No wonder everyone listened to her like a flock of scared tiwi.) And then she went straight to the point and asked him to become her disciple. Kiel ended up politely refusing all their offers, telling them that he had yet to decide which field of study he wanted to pursue. Only after promising he would definitely, seriously consider joining the Sapphire Division, was he allowed to leave. Luckily, by this point, the training of the Rroda family kicked in and he managed to put on his flawless mask, concealing his turbulent emotions. Otherwise, they might have noticed that he had no intention of looking for them in the future. At least not until he figured out what happened back then when he could see mana, and how he could make it happen again. Did this have something to do with Elaru and her Aethernea of Sight? Was he able to borrow it through the Aetherneal bond? And this IPOMQ, was this a talent that belonged to him or was it also something given to him by the Aetherneal bond? If it was given by the Aetherneal bond, then how come those random commoners had it? And if it was something he had all along¡­ ¡­was it possible that there were other things about himself that he never noticed? Thinking back on it, he had always thought that he had used hard work to make up for the lack of mana, but could it be that the reason why he managed to reach such a level in a mere decade was something else? Perhaps IPOMQ, an internal compass guiding him all along? For the first time, those past years seemed like a short amount of time to Kiel. Could an internal compass really shorten the training time that much? If a non-mage like him could reach such a high level with a mere decade of hard work and a bit of guidance, then how come very few normal people became prominent mages? Why wasn¡¯t everyone working hard for a better future, a better life? Why did everyone still put talent on such a high pedestal? * * * Elaru sat in her seat with a wooden expression, watching the trio of old men almost getting physical with each other. Weren¡¯t they too simple-minded? If each one picked a single artifact to spell break, the problem would be solved. Yet, the solution didn¡¯t seem to occur to them at all, as they argued like kindergarten kids over whose toy was better. Indeed, talented people often had areas in which they were even more lacking than an average person¡­ Elaru opened her mouth, intending to put a stop to their fight, however, a sudden disturbance within her interrupted her. Powerful, chaotic emotions roiled inside of her, threatening to overwhelm her reason. What happened? Her heart skipped a beat, her consciousness wandering towards her soulmate. From the start of this exam, she had felt several disturbing spikes of emotion, with the worst one arriving right at the start of the exam. She had thought Kiel¡¯s mood had already reached rock bottom back then, but apparently, he could go even lower. For an icecube, your insides are pretty squishy, aren¡¯t they? She furrowed her eyebrows, her teal eyes revealing helplessness and worry. Concealing all that emotion all the time must be really tiring. That initial dip in mood could be attributed to nervousness and grumpy examiners, but what was this chaos? With Kiel¡¯s abilities, what kind of problems could he have run into? Don¡¯t tell me he got poisoned again? ¨C was the first thing she thought of, but then she remembered that she had been keeping an eye on him and no one suspicious had gotten near him, let alone touched him. His form was still inside her field of view, sitting inside the classroom, seemingly inspecting an artifact. Her mind reached over, attempting to connect with his. She couldn¡¯t talk to him; however, she could use her own emotions to help soothe his, like she had been doing from the start. Her purpose had always been to be the light. She had an abundance of positivity, more than enough for both of them. At least that¡¯s what she thought until she felt another wave of emotions raise within her and for a moment, she completely lost her sense of direction, forgetting that she too was in the middle of the exam. Desperation, helplessness, fear. Like a swarm of bloodmites they nibbled on her light, infecting it with pain and worry. Yet that feeling wasn¡¯t even the worst of it. No. The one thing that hurt the most was that she could feel him reaching out towards her, yet she couldn¡¯t touch him, couldn¡¯t grasp his extended hand. She couldn¡¯t flash him a smile. She couldn¡¯t tell him that everything would be alright. She couldn¡¯t wake him up from his nightmare. All she wanted to do was to embrace his consciousness, enveloping it in warmth. Yet she couldn¡¯t. The anti-cheating magical contract that they had been forced to sign stood like a thick wall between them, preventing them from communicating in the middle of an exam. She felt him falling deeper into the pit, slipping like grains of sand between her fingers, unable to be grasped no matter how much she tried. Yet she wasn¡¯t willing! She wasn¡¯t willing to stand by helplessly! She wasn¡¯t willing to watch him struggle alone in the darkness of night. ¡°Anti-cheating contract.¡± She felt herself saying with steely conviction. ¡°This is the last exam and there is no need for it any longer. No matter how you look at it, it is the hardest spell to break out of all of your suggestions. So how about it? If you give me your word that I won¡¯t have any problems enrolling due to breaking the anti-cheating contract, I¡¯ll break it right now.¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Beard slapped his chest spiritedly. ¡°Set your heart at ease! If you can break that, not only will I promise that but I¡¯ll even promise to hail you as my master!¡± And as the entire picture stood in place, those fluctuating defects in reality showed themselves clearly like black ink on white paper. After several coughs, she managed to swallow down the sweet, metallic taste that rose in her mouth. ¡°Why would a lovely lady such as yourself go for a couple of old guys when you can get a couple of healthy young virgins.¡± ¡°I swear, it¡¯s not what it looks like!¡± Episode 143 – 5 stages of grief Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. Examiners are thankfully fine but they start arguing with each other. They give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw it out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. While Kiel is stressing out, Elaru can feel his panic and wants to help him, however, the anti-cheating contract they had signed prevents them from communicating. * * * All she wanted to do was to embrace his consciousness, enveloping it in warmth. Yet she couldn¡¯t. The anti-cheating magical contract that they had been forced to sign stood like a thick wall between them, preventing them from communicating in the middle of an exam. She felt him falling deeper into the pit, slipping like grains of sand between her fingers, unable to be grasped no matter how much she tried. Yet she wasn¡¯t willing! She wasn¡¯t willing to stand by helplessly! She wasn¡¯t willing to watch him struggle alone in the darkness of night. ¡°Anti-cheating contract.¡± She felt herself saying with steely conviction. ¡°This is the last exam and there is no need for it any longer. No matter how you look at it, it is the hardest spell to break out of all of your suggestions. So how about it? If you give me your word that I won¡¯t have any problems enrolling due to breaking the anti-cheating contract, I¡¯ll break it right now.¡±
Episode 143 ¨C 5 stages of grief The trio of old men almost choked on their own spit, their eyes looking as if they would pop out of their sockets at any moment. The anti-cheating contract was a mass-produced item that wasn¡¯t of high production quality. Neither the density nor the quantity of mana used on it was high, making it last just enough for the exams to pass. However, the quality of the spell design, as well as the quality of mystification, was high. Therefore, although any of the top-ranked spell breakers were capable of breaking it, the amount of time it would take them to do so would range in weeks. By that time the exam would have already ended. And even if that wasn¡¯t the case, it wouldn¡¯t matter. Every examinee that was detected not to have the anti-cheating contract active on their mind at any moment in the exams would be disqualified. The trio of old men, if they joined hands, could manage to break the contract in less than a week¡¯s time. However, this little redhead was all alone, so even if her skills were on par with theirs and she had been studying the contract for days, she shouldn¡¯t be able to break it. If she had the help of a spell breaker in studying the contract, the anti-cheating contract would have prevented her from even suggesting breaking it as a part of the exam, for that would constitute as receiving outside help. Naturally, this suggestion of the little girl made all three of them very agitated. Wasn¡¯t this redhead making light of their decades of study? Fine, they had to admit that she was a genius when it came to spell breaking. They would be idiots if they couldn¡¯t tell that much. However, this idea was simply¡­ making light of the entire spell breaking profession! If a little girl could reach such a level in her teens then all of them three old men should just go and die. And so, the faces of the trio went through all shades of color, black, white, green, purple, finally settling on an agitated red. The healthy flush contrasted sharply with their pure white facial hair making their faces seem even redder. Eyebrows was first to speak out and the other two were quick to follow: ¡°Lass, don¡¯t make it hard on yourself. That contract is something even we can¡¯t break!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. It is the highest form of a limiter spell the Arite family can produce.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bite more than you can chew!¡± If matters had continued going as before, Elaru would have still been able to endure their antics. However, right now, time was of the essence, Kiel needed her. And thus, her patience evaporated into thin smoke, her previously pleasantly polite tone turned solemn and authoritative. ¡°Do you give me your word that you will take care of any future problems that breaking the anti-cheating contract would cause?¡± The abrupt change in the warm presence of the redhead startled the trio. Her imposing and majestic aura that commanded obedience made their minds sober up, their backs unconsciously strengthening. Mustache grit his teeth and jumped on his feet, his palms slamming against the table. ¡°If you can break that, not only will I take care of the problems but I¡¯ll even be willing to hail you as my master!¡± Worried that he would be outdone, Beard slapped his chest with enough vigor to cause him to have trouble holding in his coughs. ¡°Ha! Not only will I hail you as my master, I¡¯ll even throw in a tuition fee! Cross my heart and hope to die!¡± Eyebrows also stood up and exclaimed with fervor: ¡°Set your heart at ease! I promise all that and I¡¯ll double his tuition fee! If I break my promise let the nine generations of my descendants be turned into porklings!¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Elaru almost choked on her spit. Who would want you three old men as their disciples?? She shook her head but had no intention to waste any more words with the trio. Time was of the essence. Like an endless ribbon, her Mind unraveled around her, just enough to reveal the anti-cheating enchantment placed on her mind. The arcane enchantment spun around her like a silver hallo made out of countless intricate symbols, connected into a dense pattern. The symbols were decorated and stylized to the point where their original shape was unrecognizable. Her eyes scanned over it, her mind spun trying to decode the hidden meaning, to calculate the position of the critical points. So many variations, so many combinations. Her mind was filled to the brink with symbols, pushing out every other thought. Like a machine, she kept crossing over the possibilities one after the other with the highest speed she could muster. Every time she felt Kiel¡¯s form falling deeper and deeper into the darkness, her mind would speed up. She had to be faster, faster! What was the purpose of her spell breaking? Why did she study it so hard? It was all for this! To remove all limits and chains from herself and those she loved. So that no one would be able to control her fate and the fate of her loved ones! The ticking sound of the clock turned into a slow beat of drums when it reached her long ears. The beats synchronized with her heart, or perhaps it was the other way around. Even the revolving halo seemed to be pulsing in the rhythm of the slowing beats. It went slower and slower, until it completely stopped. And the entire halo of silver light stood still. It was not shifting, rotating, dripping, writhing, nor flickering. No. It stood completely deathly still. And as the entire picture stood in place, those fluctuating defects in reality showed themselves clearly like black ink on white paper. Elaru¡¯s arms rose into the air as if she was a conductor directing a song. The coat of mana surrounding her body, so dense that it almost seemed tangible, turned inwards on her, aiming for the center of her mind. Ten pikes materialized from the sea of mana, mercilessly ramming themselves into the silver halo. A single collision. And the exquisite silver brand fell apart like glass, showering her with beautiful silver snowflakes. A cage around her mind tore as if it was made out of thin paper all along. Her lips turned upwards. She would finally be free to grab his hand, to speak. Yet, just as she was about to reach out to him, a bomb went off in her head. Her smile froze, her mind crumbling as if it had been struck with a hammer, as if she too was made of paper. Her slim body slumped back in her chair, her pretty eyes turning clouded, unable to take in the beauty of the falling silver lights. Her limbs turned weak, her raised arms falling lifelessly down. Her dull eyes stared straight at the gobsmacked trio of old men in front of her, but she couldn¡¯t see them. She didn¡¯t know for how long she sat there dazed, her consciousness running in circles like a headless cluckling. But by the time she came back to her senses, the darkness brewing inside was nowhere to be seen. Her mind moved towards Kiel, and his glee and relief swept over her turning into her own. Everything was alright. It turned out he didn¡¯t need her help after all. The smile that had long vanished from her face returned to it, more beautiful than ever. She opened her mouth to let out a breath she didn¡¯t know she was holding, but she ended up choking. After several coughs, she managed to swallow down the sweet, metallic taste that rose in her mouth. And then she finally took in several large, fresh breaths. Unfortunately, fresh air gave her no release, on the contrary, it stung her lungs like a winter chill. Luckily, her sharp intake of breath was covered up by the louder sound of inhales of the three old men. All the veins were red and visible on their round eyes as they stared, their jaws open so wide that they might have gotten dislocated. Eyebrows rubbed his eyes as if trying to rub the sleep out of them. Yet even after rubbing them to the point they started tearing, the scene in front of him didn¡¯t change. A squeal resembling a porkling getting slaughtered cut through the tension. ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Apparently, Beard pinched the skin on Moustache¡¯s hand causing the latter to jump up and screech. ¡°Checking whether I¡¯m dreaming.¡±, was his response. ¡°Why did you pinch me?!¡± Mustache didn¡¯t let up, his glare turning even more vicious. He then pointed towards Eyebrows. ¡°He has more skin on his bones. Much easier to pinch.¡± The person in question finally stopped rubbing his eyes instead starting to wail: ¡°What have I been doing all my life?!¡± Seeing his miserable face full of tears, the other two couldn¡¯t help but join in, like lupaxes howling at the moons. ¡°Decades of spell breaking! Only to be outdone by a little lass!¡± ¡°Why the heck did you apply for student exams?! Shouldn¡¯t you be applying for a teaching position instead?!¡± It took the trio a while to go through all five stages of grief, which was fortunate, because Elaru needed this time to recover from the crippling pain that wrecked every inch of her body. Finally, the trio wiped away their snot and tears and calmed down their breathing. Eyebrows sighed and spoke up with a trembling voice that turned steady and commanding by the end: ¡°Girl, apply to join our spell breaking apartment as an associate professor!¡± The other two nodded their heads in agreement. Heatedly they stared at Elaru, awaiting her answer, only to receive a disinterested: ¡°Thanks, but no thanks. Spell breaking is just a hobby of mine.¡± ¡­ One can only imagine how heavy of a blow her words delivered to the already fragile psyches of the three poor old men. In a desperate attempt to recover from the critical hit, Beard squeaked out weakly: ¡°Then why did you apply for this exam?¡± Yet, it was all for naught. For the redhead licked her dry lips, swallowed down her saliva in order to wet her throat, and then delivered a knock out hit: ¡°Easy points.¡± * * * After almost coughing up blood (Spell breaking is just easy points for you?? Lass, could you not hit us while we are down?!), the trio of old men turned into frozen popsicles. And then they spent some time dazed, with mourning expressions and slumped shoulders. Finally, after they recovered into a state a bit less miserable, they shared a helpless look. And then they looked back at the patient redhead, who seemed to be waiting for something all this time. And then it fully dawned on them what the redhead was waiting for! It was as if a switch got flipped in their minds. Their dejected forms suddenly straightened, their eyes lighting up like torches, looking at the redhead as if she was a juicy piece of meat. The three simultaneously bowed down deeply and yelled. ¡°Master! Thank you for accepting this one as your disciple!¡± Elaru, who had been forced to remain sitting there, waiting for her body to recover, felt as if a lightning struck her from the clear sky. What is this?! How come no one ever asked me if I agree with this arrangement?! ¡°Don¡¯t you worry, master. I am a man of my word. I¡¯ll go prepare my tuition fee right away.¡± Beard rubbed his hands in glee thinking about what gem he had accidentally managed to pick up on these exams. ¡°Master, don¡¯t you worry about the seniority. I¡¯ll go talk to the head of division right away to make you an honorary head of the Spell Breaking department.¡± Eyebrows rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Better tie this one down before other departments stretched out their greedy paws. ¡°Hey, hey! Don¡¯t make such a decision on your own!¡± Elaru¡¯s protests fell on deaf ears. ¡°I am not accepting disciples!¡±
Coming up in the next episode: ¡°He is a bit young, but give him a couple of years and he¡¯ll be ripe for plucking.¡± ¡°Why would a lovely lady such as yourself go for a couple of old guys when you can get a couple of healthy young virgins.¡± ¡°I swear, it¡¯s not what it looks like!¡± He jumped up like a lunar with his hair standing. ¡°Get off! Get off! What are you doing?!¡± Episode 144 – Special Exam End Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. As it turns out, the Spell Replicating exam Kiel chose was not designed to test spell replicating ability, but rather, to test for a special talent that can only be revealed through the process of spell replicating. Kiel is tasked to spell replicate several artifacts, including Clay Mines. Unfortunately, an accident happens while testing his Clay Mines and an explosion occurs. Examiners are thankfully fine but they start arguing with each other. They give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw it out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. While Kiel is stressing out, Elaru can feel his panic and wants to help him, however, the anti-cheating contract they had signed prevents them from communicating. So she comes up with an idea to break it as a part of her special exam and shocks the trio of old men with her ability. * * * The three simultaneously bowed down deeply and yelled. ¡°Master! Thank you for accepting this one as your disciple!¡± Elaru, who had been forced to remain sitting there, waiting for her body to recover, felt as if a lightning struck her from the clear sky. What is this?! How come no one ever asked me if I agree with this arrangement?! ¡°Don¡¯t you worry, master. I am a man of my word. I¡¯ll go prepare my tuition fee right away.¡± Beard rubbed his hands in glee thinking about what gem he had accidentally managed to pick up on these exams. ¡°Master, don¡¯t you worry about the seniority. I¡¯ll go talk to the head of division right away to make you an honorary head of the Spell Breaking department.¡± Eyebrows rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Better tie this one down before other departments stretched out their greedy paws. ¡°Hey, hey! Don¡¯t make such a decision on your own!¡± Elaru¡¯s protests fell on deaf ears. ¡°I am not accepting disciples!¡±
Episode 144 ¨C Special Exam End ¡°Master, listen! I have many nice things I can add as my tuition fee. I even have a grandson who is single, you see. A son too, if you prefer mature men.¡± Mustache smiled widely, showing his sparkling white teeth that looked nowhere near his actual age. Beard¡¯s body shook, with his long beard waving left and right like a ribbon, he turned to stare at Mustache in abject disbelief: ¡°Shameless!¡±, then he spun around to face Elaru and added hastily: ¡°I have two grandsons. It¡¯s two for one deal. Think about it carefully. Marry one as a husband, get the other one for free. They are both handsome and healthy, lots of stamina. Well-bred lads, you won¡¯t be disappointed.¡± Elaru¡¯s protests died in her throat and she stared at the trio dumbfounded. ¡°Look at how low you¡¯ve fallen. Humph!¡± Eyebrows snorted derisively at the shameless duo. He turned towards Elaru, proudly raised his chin, and spoke up: ¡°My youngest grandson is the best looking of the lot and has just reached maturity. What¡¯s more, there is no need to marry him, he¡¯d be more than happy to just warm the bed. I¡¯ll even throw in my great grandson as a freebie. He is a bit young, but give him a couple of years and he¡¯ll be ripe for plucking.¡± Mustache almost pulled out his mustache in shock. ¡°Can you be any more shameless!! He is three years old!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t listen to him! He is just jealous that his grandsons aren¡¯t as good as mine. Too old.¡± Eyebrows smiled jovially at Elaru. ¡°Why would a lovely lady such as yourself go for a couple of old guys when you can get a couple of healthy young virgins.¡± ¡°Whose grandsons aren¡¯t as good as yours?!¡± Beard got agitated and pulled out his wallet. As soon as he opened it a long string of folded pictures unfurled like a ribbon. ¡°Look how powerful mine are! Look at those large swords! These are real hotblooded men! Fine mages too.¡± Elaru¡¯s mouth twitched and after several attempts of stopping their argument she finally managed to silence the trio with: ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯m not interested in your grandsons.¡± Even she was surprised that she finally managed to interrupt the trio who were previously completely ignoring her protests. They were silent for several seconds looking like they¡¯ve swallowed a fly, before one of them finally spoke up: ¡°I have a granddaughter too.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¨C and that was the point where Elaru decided to just get up an leave. Unfortunately, her legs wouldn¡¯t listen to her command, making her fall back in her seat. Her lips pressed tightly together, not producing a single sound of pain, even though her usually strong and healthy body now felt like it was falling apart, as if it was made out of porcelain. Ignoring the crippling pain, her eyebrows furrowed. What happened earlier? Why was her body in such a state? She sighed, deciding to ponder the question later. Expertly, as if she had done so countless times before, she cast Acceleration spells on her extremities, as well as one in the center of her chest. Then she pulled on those spells as if they were strings controlling her as if she was a puppet. Since her legs couldn¡¯t support her weight she pulled on the center of her chest upwards, negating the effect of gravity. Finally, she was able to get up from her seat and make her way towards the exit. And she looked so natural doing it too, the trio of old men didn¡¯t notice anything strange in her movement. When they noticed her intention to leave they hurried over, pleading for her to stop: ¡°Wait!¡± ¡°Master, don¡¯t leave!¡± ¡°We don¡¯t even know your name yet!¡± Elaru¡¯s only response was to increase her walking pace. Trio sped after her but was unable to overtake her before she reached the door. So as a last resort, the three lunged and grabbed the only thing that they could manage to grab ¨C her legs.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. They intended to shamelessly hang themselves on her thighs like oversized children, not allowing her to take another step. Unfortunately, Elaru wasn¡¯t truly walking to begin with ¨C she was floating. So, when three extra weights were suddenly added onto her, it was like a heavy anchor was suddenly added to a speeding ship. She ¡°tripped¡± and fell like a ragdoll with her arms stretched out in front of her. Fortunately, her reaction speed was high enough, even in such a wretched state, so she managed to reverse the direction of her Acceleration and stop herself from slamming headfirst onto the floor. Her body had no weight in it at the moment of impact thus it was as if a feather fell to the floor. Her fall didn¡¯t even produce a thump, which cannot be said for the trio behind her. While they were still dazedly gripping her thighs, she moved her arms to support herself up and looked towards the classroom door that had just been opened from outside. * * * When Icya Arite told him that the three antiques of the spell breaking department still didn¡¯t deliver the majority of the artifacts they had been asked to spell break, headmaster Eruan Arite decided to pay them a visit personally. He would have sent someone else to remind them, but he knew that the trio wouldn¡¯t take it to heart unless either Icya or he scolded them face to face. Unfortunately, Icya was too busy supervising the entrance exams, making the task fall to him. Initially, he had intended to send someone to call the trio over to his office, but when he counted the number of people laying a siege outside his door, requesting to see him, he decided to abandon his post and make his way towards Sapphire Quarters. Hopefully, by the time he came back, the crowd would have solved the majority of their issues themselves. Naturally, Eruan Arite had no need to leave through the front door, lest the sieging troops outside stopped him. Instead, he teleported away like a boss. He was an Arite. Arites didn¡¯t waste their time walking and flying around like normal people. By the gods, it would be awkward if he, the headmaster of the most prestigious mage university, actually walked across the campus like a student. All Muni buildings had a specially marked area of empty space where arcane mages could set up their teleportation points and Eruan visited his regularly, making sure that they never ran out of mana. And so, he popped up into the teleportation area of the Sapphire Quarters. Yet, who could have predicted that the first thing he heard after his arrival was an explosion coming from the fourth floor? His first thought was ¨C Wasn¡¯t Deora banned from entering the Sapphire Quarters? His second thought was ¨C For the love of Origin, please let them solve it by themselves. I don¡¯t need more people joining the queue in front of my office¡­ Shockingly, when he scanned the afflicted classroom with his mana sense, he realized that Deora had nothing to do with this incident (Well, that¡¯s a first¡­) and more so, the chief granny of the Sapphire division was present at the scene. Thus, he concluded he had nothing to worry about. There was certainly no need to interrupt their exam, situation under control. Eruan let out a breath of relief and flew towards the Spell Breaking department on the sixth floor. A quick sweep of his mana sense revealed that the three antiques were inside a classroom, apparently in the middle of an exam? Eruan¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. Was there someone who applied for the spell breaking exam this year? Well, judging by the time, the exam should be coming to an end any second. Eruan¡¯s eyebrows relaxed and he decided to just wait for the examinee to leave and confront the trio in the classroom. Unexpectedly, 10 minutes later the trio still showed no sign that the exam was coming to an end. Eruan¡¯s pale forehead creased as he considered reminding the trio that the allotted time for the exam had already passed. After all, he was the headmaster, his every minute was very precious. Who would dare make him wait so long? Just as he was about to knock on the door he noticed that the examinee was finally leaving, thus he stopped himself. Yet, before he could even step away from the door he heard a muffled thump and several squeals. His eyebrows twitched, and decisively, he opened the door with one hand while simultaneously knocking with the other. (After all, it wouldn¡¯t be polite if he just went in without knocking.) The scene that entered his eyes made him freeze on the spot, his beautiful face turning wooden. Four bodies laid sprawled on the floor. The three esteemed old experts were hugging the thighs of a young girl, looking miserable. The poor thing weakly lifted her red head to look at him with a pale face and puckered her lush red lips. Then she let out a tired sigh and swiped her thumb under her nose to wipe away her nosebleed before it reached her mouth. The trio of old men also looked up, their faces stuck in between shock, embarrassment, and dread, but Eruan¡¯s purple gaze didn¡¯t move from the redheaded beauty. Her large teal eyes were deep and calm like two pools of stagnant spring water. There was no place for surprise, pain, or fear in those clear eyes. Eruan¡¯s facial expression remained calm and composed, however, inexplicably, he felt his hair stand on end. Unsettling, uncanny sense of familiarity. Yet no matter how he cycled through acquaintances with similar features, he couldn¡¯t find the source of the feeling. The closest resemblance that he could pinpoint was the similarity of color to the eyes of councilman Zaal Etezza. However, the feeling their gaze left on him was totally different. Being stared at by Zaal felt like being stared at by a poisonous viper. Yet, the gaze of this girl held no danger, no hostility. Just unreadable depth. Her aura also held absolutely no resemblance to any member of the Etezza family he had met previously. He was sure that this feeling of familiarity didn¡¯t come from the Etezzas. There was something, someone else¡­ Eruan Arite stood still for a moment, his facial expression showing nothing of the confusion inside, remaining composed and calm. The thoughts flashed by in an instant, only several seconds of silence passing by. ¡°What is going on here¡­?¡± Headmaster Eruan opened his mouth to ask. However, before the words left his mouth, the three old men jumped up like they had been burned, with vigor that should have been impossible for their old bones. ¡°I swear, headmaster, it¡¯s not what it looks like!¡± ¡°It was an accident! Accident!¡± ¡°Nothing inappropriate happened!¡± The three spoke up at the same time, fumbling their words. The more they tried to look innocent, the guiltier they looked, and the more stifling Eruan¡¯s aura became. His eyebrows never furrowed, his eyes didn¡¯t become chilly nor reprimanding, he didn¡¯t even speak, however, his ramrod straight, elegant yet apathetic figure left one feeling like a child that committed a wrong. Eruan Arite didn¡¯t need to do anything. His presence was enough to inspire obedience. ¡°Who can explain what is going on here?¡± Headmaster¡¯s steady voice cut through the air, the unmistakable authority silencing everyone else. * * * After explanations and apologies from the headmaster and the three old men, Elaru was advised to visit the infirmary and finally allowed to depart. The trio wanted to protest but one look at that pretty face of the headmaster was enough to make them shut their mouths. Papa once told Elaru that Eruan Arite was a smart man who could grasp the weaknesses of his opponents and hit them right where it hurt the most with exactly the right amount of force. If outsiders looked at it, there was nothing inappropriate about his punishments, they even seemed light. Yet in truth, there was clever psychological warfare involved, making it something that the entire Muni faculty strangely dreaded. She felt assured that the trio would receive their due punishment for taking advantage of her, thus she left the thoughts of the trio behind as soon as she closed the classroom door. Without further ado, she erased her presence, wrapping herself in her mind cocoon and layers of invisibility. She had just flown several meters down the corridor, when her entire vision turned dark.
Coming up in the next episode: The only sound that could be heard was her labored breathing. And the dripping of blood, as it rolled down her chin onto the floor. Her mana vision had returned, and she could once again see the bloody red flower of flames staring at her from deep underground. ¡°Forceful activation of Aethernea has destabilized your vessel.¡± She stared at the black markings on her face that were no longer black. They had faded out like an old tattoo, their black color washed out. Episode 145 – Reunion Previously: Friday, the last day of Muni entrance exams, Special exam. Examiners give Kiel a final artifact, whose enchantment he doesn¡¯t need to replicate but to just draw out. However, Kiel finds that the enchantment is too small and he can¡¯t sense it clearly with his mana sense. While Kiel is stressing out, Elaru can feel his panic and wants to help him, however, the anti-cheating contract they had signed prevents them from communicating. So she comes up with an idea to break it as a part of her special exam and shocks the trio of old men with her ability. After breaking her contract she realizes that Kiel no longer needs her help and a backlash of Kiel¡¯s actions hits her. After the appearance of the headmaster Eruan Arite, she finally manages to break away from the trio of shameless old men, leaving the classroom. * * * Without further ado, she erased her presence, wrapping herself in her mind cocoon and layers of invisibility. She had just flown several meters down the corridor when her entire vision turned dark. Episode 145 ¨C Reunion Her mana vision blurred in front of her eyes, her mind turning foggy. She stopped to lean on the wall. The corridors were strangely empty. Strangely quiet. In the deathly silence, her labored breathing was especially audible. Even the dripping of her blood could be heard clearly, as it rolled down her chin onto the floor. With her back pressed against the wall, she slid down onto her behind. This time, she didn¡¯t bother to wipe away the trickling blood. Instead, she reached into her pouch, fumbling through it for some time before her trembling fingers managed to take out a bottle of pills. She flicked the cork out and stuffed a handful of pills down her throat as if eating candy. Then she just sat, with her eyes closed, taking in deep breaths. Her mana vision had cleared up, once again revealing the bloody red flower of flames staring at her from deep underground. Without an eye or a pupil, even for Elaru it was difficult to tell the focus of its attention. But right now, she could feel its gaze clearly. It was almost prickling her skin. ¡°Those pills can only lessen the symptoms, not treat the cause.¡± A disembodied emotionless voice whispered inside her head. ¡°Forceful activation of Aethernea has destabilized your vessel.¡± Elaru let out a long sigh before speaking out into thin air. ¡°Can you fix it?¡± * * * Elaru blinked her long black eyelashes furiously. As if trying to blink away sleep, to blink away the moisture in her eyes blurring her vision. She didn¡¯t think of whether her blinking would be effective. It was just a natural instinct of a person whose bright world had suddenly turned dark. An instinct to blink the darkness away. As her own reflection became crystal clear in front of her eyes, her fluttering eyelashes finally calmed down. She stared at the black shiny surface that was so clear it could have just as well been a mirror. For a moment she thought that something went haywire, for the face looking back at her wasn¡¯t quite the same as she remembered it. It was paler than usual, looking even paler due to the faded markings on her face. Their usually deep black color was washed out, fading out, almost blending with her skin. And then she realized that her current state was to be expected. Thus, she only sighed tiredly and wiped her hand over her face. When she looked back at her reflection, her face had been restored back to its usual radiance, her markings looking the same as they always did. * * * Kiel had been sitting under this tree for an indeterminate amount of time, yet only after he felt Elaru¡¯s familiar warm aura wash over him did he wake up from his daze. Only then did it occur to him that he had no recollection of how or when he arrived here. He had been walking slowly, scarcely paying attention where he was going, his mind occupied with various thoughts. Out of habit he made his way to this familiar place and then he just sat there, not knowing what to do with himself, looking like a soulless statue. Thinking about it now, he did have a vague recollection of walking here but the memories of what he was thinking at the time were much clearer. Feeling Elaru¡¯s aura coming closer he let out a sigh of contentment. Her presence felt like a warm water bath on a cold winter night, instantly relaxing him and sobering him up. He raised his eyes to ask her ¡°What took you so long?¡± but before he could do so Elaru lunged at him with her arms outstretched making his entire body involuntarily stiffen. His head rigidly moved to look down at the arms circling his waist and the red head burrowing into his chest, and suddenly blood rushed into his head. A second later he jumped to his feet, resembling a hissing lunar with its hair standing up. ¡°Get! Off! What in the name of everything sacred are you doing?!¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°It¡¯s called a hug.¡± He could hear a murmur from the region of his stomach, the vibration causing a tickling yet electrifying current to spread from his navel to his limbs. ¡°I know what it is called!¡± He hissed, doing his utmost to control his volume. ¡°And I can¡¯t imagine what made you think that it would be a good idea!¡± Surprisingly, this time her hold was unusually weak for he easily managed to push her away. And even more surprisingly, instead of feeling satisfied that he had managed to get her off easily for a change, he felt¡­ almost disappointed. It gave no sense of achievement if she complied so easily ¨C he reasoned. ¡°I thought that you might be in a need of a hug. And I wanted to remind you that you are not alone in whatever mess you¡¯ve gotten yourself into.¡± And that¡¯s when Kiel realized that his earlier episode didn¡¯t go unnoticed by his little soulmate. ¡°Ah¡­ it¡¯s nothing¡­¡± His glare melted and he looked away to hide his embarrassment. ¡°¡­what do you mean mess? I don¡¯t get us into trouble¡­ that¡¯s your job¡­¡± Kiel mumbled under his breath. Elaru¡¯s mouth jerked upwards. Who was the one being chased by the entire Rroda family and even an assassin? ¨C she thought, but decided not to bring that up. Instead, she scanned him up and down with an unreadable face, yet no matter how good she was at controlling her facial expression Kiel could feel worry oozing out of her aura loud and clear. ¡°Is your body feeling alright?¡± She didn¡¯t wait for Kiel to respond before stuffing a bottle of healing pills into his arms. ¡°Here, I¡¯ve got some healing pills.¡± Kiel looked at the encouraging smile spreading on her calm face, then he looked down at the bottle of pills in his hand, and his mouth couldn¡¯t help but twitch. Why are you putting on a nonchalant attitude when you are clearly worried sick? Well¡­ forget it¡­ Kiel shook his head wryly; both his heart and face couldn¡¯t help but warm up. He looked away again, avoiding her large inquisitive eyes, yet his slim fingers unconsciously patted her red head. The feel of the silky red strands was nothing short of addicting. Elaru stared at the side of Kiel¡¯s face, feeling his cold but gentle fingers on her head. A conflicted expression flashed briefly on her face tinged with sorrow, before she once again covered it up with a bright smile. * * * When Kiel mentioned his sudden ability to see the spell as if he was seeing it through her eyes, Elaru didn¡¯t have much to say about it: ¡°You should avoid doing something like that in the near future.¡± ¨C was her conclusion. ¡°It obviously puts a lot of strain on the body. It is possible that you forcefully activated some ability for which our bond isn¡¯t ready yet. I feel that our bond sustained some damage in a backlash. It¡¯ll take some time for it to recover to its previous state.¡± That¡¯s when Kiel realized that the mana coming from his marking had decreased. And then he felt very, very glad that the mana exam had already passed. ¡°What kind of ability do you think it is? Is it possible that the bond can allow me to use your Aethernea as if it was mine?¡± ¨C he had asked her. ¡°Your guess is as good as mine.¡± Elaru had shrugged her shoulders and that was the end of that. Instead of lingering on this topic, Kiel had continued his recollection, moving onto IPOMQ. ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve heard of such a power. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s something granted to you by the Aetherneal bond. As for the possibility of it being an Aethernea¡­ it doesn¡¯t resemble any Aethernea that I know of. But then again, I¡¯m hardly an expert on the matter. I am not even that familiar with my own Aethernea of Sight let alone others.¡± Elaru mused. ¡°What do you mean? How can you not be familiar with your own Aethernea?¡± Kiel¡¯s eyebrow jumped. ¡°Aethernea of Sight gives one the ability to see things others can¡¯t see. But not everyone who possesses it can see the same things. All of us get a basic boost to vision making our eyes keener than argel eyes, and all of us can see mana. But that is where our similarities end. Some wielders of Aethernea of Sight can zoom in on their target to the point of seeing cells and tiny particles. And then there are others that have the ability to see through all illusions. Others still, can see through things¡­ like walls¡­ or clothes.¡± Kiel¡¯s abrupt change of expression and unconscious covering of private parts didn¡¯t escape Elaru¡¯s eyes. She couldn¡¯t help but burst out into a fit of giggles. ¡°No, I can¡¯t see through clothes. And if I could, I wouldn¡¯t have used it to peep.¡± After a brief pause to giggle some more she didn¡¯t forget to add another jab: ¡°Unless it was something that I can¡¯t control. In which case I would have already seen all your assets. No need to cover up now.¡± A grumpy glare was her only response. That and him nonchalantly moving back his hands from his lap as if he had just been stretching and not covering himself up in a fluster. ¡°Actually, since I don¡¯t know what my specialty is, it could be anything. Perhaps I can see through things after all.¡± Elaru stroked her chin in thought and teasingly glanced towards Kiel¡¯s lap. He barely restrained the urge to throw something at her face. ¡°My specialty is probably something that isn¡¯t active all the time but rather needs to be activated first. And I just haven¡¯t figured out how to activate it yet. Or perhaps my ability is something like increased range and accuracy of mana vision? I do have better mana vision than other wielders of Aethernea of Sight¡­¡± He hummed a bit and then shrugged. ¡°Aetherneal gifts improve with usage so papa has a theory that all Aethernea have the ability to evolve. That after they are strengthened up to a certain point, a new ability would become available to the wielder. He thinks that in its ultimate state, Aethernea of Sight encompasses all sight related abilities and even more. But because each wielder takes a different route to the top, they activate different abilities at different points in time.¡± Kiel¡¯s icy blue eyes flashed with suspicion. ¡°Since wielders of Aethernea can activate a never before seen aspect of their power then¡­theoretically, IPOMQ might be a power granted by an Aethernea?¡± ¡°Does your body heal at a rate visible to the naked eye?¡± Elaru blurted out. ¡°What? No.¡± Kiel turned to look at Elaru baffled. ¡°Then you don¡¯t possess the Aethernea of Life.¡± Elaru concluded. Seeing Kiel¡¯s strange look, she elaborated. ¡°Each Aethernea has a basic set of abilities that every user possesses. So even if you had an Aethernea and awakened an unknown power as a part of its evolution, you would still have access to the basic abilities of that Aethernea.¡± She paused again, scratching her head. ¡°Do you have an extremely keen sense of smell that allows you to track people and things after smelling them just once?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± Kiel drawled. I¡¯m not a trackog¡­ ¡°Do you have frequent inexplicable feelings driving you to do strange things?¡± Kiel shot a you-can¡¯t-be-serious look her way. ¡°Like what? Are you making fun of me?¡± ¡°I kid you not ¡­uh¡­ wielders of Aethernea of Fate are known for being¡­ lucky. They have a keen intuition for danger and fortune.¡± Elaru smiled sheepishly. ¡°I suppose you would have surely realized if you had a keen intuition¡­ How about hearing other people¡¯s thoughts? I suppose you can¡¯t do that either?¡± Kiel threw her an annoyed glare. ¡°If I could hear your thoughts why would I even bother talking to you?¡±
Coming up in the next episode: Kiel broke out in goosebumps. Forget it. Aethernea wielders are a bunch of weirdos¡­ I certainly don¡¯t belong in that group. Kiel didn¡¯t respond. He even momentarily forgot that Elaru was still messing up his hair with her pats. What is this? I guess there is some compassion left in me after all. Straight through the heart! Kiel felt like puking blood. Can you not be so direct?! Seeing her flailing arms, drooping ears and aggrieved look that was an ultimate combination of cuteness and seductiveness, Kiel concluded that he had administered the appropriate punishment, and finally, regrettably, let go of her soft cheek.