Tepo couldn’t help but smile as he saw Varei’s sudden excitement. He could more or less interfere the little spirit’s situation.

After all, spirits were known for their long lives. Who knows how many generations of Varei’s family were still alive? Even if they owned forbidden spells, they couldn’t kill themselves for their grandson.

The same was true in many human forces as well, where a leader could often stabilize their position by owning a forbidden spell. Thus, if they want to keep their linage stable it was best to have more than a single spell so their designated successor could engrave one early on.

But obviously Varei’s family didn’t have this luxury.

Thus, the little spirit looked at Tepo in excitement, realizing that he was able to use the spell as well. But suddenly he tilted his head, confused:

“But why is your spell so strange? It seems almost damaged.”

“This, for example, is something my core did for me. It sealed the spell for now until I have spell which can diminish the side effects.”

“Ohhh. Is this why you came here? You looked up my spells right, which one do you need?”

Varei’s eyes sparkled, clearly more excited than even Tepo himself.

The human chuckled as he answered:

“Your [God’s Soul].”

“Great! Come on, let’s engrave it right away! I want to use our spell!”

Tepo had an amused smile on his face as his spell had immediately become ‘our spell’.

But he felt that this wasn’t the best place to engrave spells. After all, someone might still come in at any time.

“Why not search for a training place first?”

“But… but…”

Varei’s eyes shifted as he tried to come up with anything which might allow him to play with the forbidden spell earlier. Suddenly a light lit up in his mind.

Tepo was confused as the small spirit shivered in excitement. Obviously, it came up with a special idea.

“Didn’t you come in to grab some spells?”

“Not quite. I came to take ‘A’ spell. After we leave this storage, I won’t be able to enter another one. Those are the rules.”

Varei snickered, raising his head proudly. Tepo was somewhat surprised as he noticed the grey patch on the spirit’s head beginning to turn golden again.

Obviously, the rule weakening spirits outside their favorite environments seemed to be broken.

But Tepo didn’t bring up the topic as Varei’s spoke in his childish voice but filled with pride.

“Hehe, foolish human. How could this noble dragon spirit count as a spell?!”

“What do you mean? Your information is within the rulebook.”

“That was done by the Mirage Lord to attract possible partners for me! Actually, I’m not really a part of the storage! This means, you can still choose another spell!”

Now Tepo was indeed surprised, immediately pondering what else he could need.

“I assume you have a suggestion?”

“Yes! A while ago a group of people came in. They weren’t subtle, so I overheard them.

They talked about how they could prevent a certain forbidden spell from being taken by anyone else until they get another chance.”

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Suddenly a frown formed on Tepo’s face as he guessed something, quickly interrupting Varei:

“Wait a second. Do you know when those people came, and have you heard their names?”

“Hmm, probably about a month ago? They had odd names, like Blutom or Greencham…”

Tepo balled his fists as Varei confirmed his guesses. Obviously, the aristocrats came to reserve the forbidden spells for themselves.

“But why would they go through so much trouble?”

“From their conversation it seems they can’t break the rules of this storage. They mention a headmaster and headquarters…

But they still found another solution. They exchanged the guardian, from the initial middle rank acolyte to a low-ranked ascendant!”

Drawing a sharp breath Tepo cursed the shameless aristocrats in his mind.

The students coming to this place for spells were at most nine-circled aspirants. How should any of them defeat a low-ranked ascendant?

But this is naturally their purpose…

Tepo felt angry even though he didn’t aim for a forbidden spell in the first place. Simply the fact that those aristocrats dared to block a path for him let him grit his teeth.

But Varei didn’t think about these issues as he tried to persuade his new partner.

“A low-ranked ascendant sounds powerful, but with their spells blocked we might have a chance. Just think about it!

Usually, a single person can’t engrave two forbidden spells, as they will clash within the body, leaving the host crippled or dead. But… what if each of us has a forbidden spell? Wouldn’t we be able to use them both?

Isn’t it the same as having two forbidden spells?”

Varei overflowed with enthusiasm. From a spirit without a forbidden spell, he had the chance to become one of the only two beings alive able to use two forbidden spells!

How glorious! Only this was suitable for a noble dragon spirit like himself!

Infinite determination gripped his mind. Varei decided he would do anything to make it possible!

Even Tepo had to admit that he was tempted, a conflicting expression on his face.

“Tepo! What are you hesitating? Those guardians aren’t allowed to kill students, right? There is now risk and only endless rewards!”

Those words were the final nail to convince Tepo.

The young man’s face turned solemn as he adjusted his mindset. If he went for this fight, he had to do it with confidence and ready to give it his all.

“Alright. Let’s do it!”

“Yeah!”

“We will first prepare our spells. Our only chance is the [Bell of Death]. I doubt if our other spells can even hurt a low-ranked ascendant.

So, let’s not delay more and begin engraving!”

Varei nodded eagerly.

A few minutes later the duo was sitting calmly in the center of the pavilion. They concentrated on the connection between their cores. It was as if an invisible bridge formed between them, allowing the exchange of information.

Affected by [Life Bond] the two warriors instinctively knew what to do.

Tepo began to send out his mental strength, inspecting the [God’s Soul] spell. Varei did the same as the duo came to the conclusion that the [Minor Stealth] might have good synergy with the spirit’s other spells.

Thus, the storage fell silent as they began engraving.

Tepo had already readied his pills, knowing that it wouldn’t be easy to engrave the nine-runed spell.

But to his surprise it was easier than expected. It felt as if Varei’s finished spell proactively supported him.

Both warriors were surprised as they finished in a short time. For Varei it was incredibly easy, succeeding with the six-runed spell at the first try.

Tepo needed a bit longer but with the help of a single pill he only took three tries as well and didn’t even use too much mental strength.

Sighing, the young man could only praise Varei’s unique core.

“Wow, this was so easy Tepo!”

“I know. It’s unbelievable.”

“Now you can unseal your forbidden spell! Go, go!”

Infected by his partner’s excitement, Tepo was also getting more eager. Only now did it sink in how special it was to own a forbidden spell.

The young man took a deep breath as he gave a go to the Core of Time.

Suddenly the spellcircle shone brightly. The connections between runes pulsed, finalizing the spell’s formation.

A moment later Tepo suddenly grew unsettled. His hearing vanished entirely. The singing of birds, Varei’s excited chatter, nothing remained.

The warrior’s heart beat rapidly. A shiver ran down his spine, sweat following right after.

Suddenly he seemed to notice something. Tepo turned his head around, glancing at the door.

There, a bloody person appeared out of nowhere. They stared at Tepo, opening their blood-filled mouth.

Although the person was human, their monstrous appearance clearly identified them as one of the ‘outsiders’.

But Tepo kept his mind stable. He didn’t forget the [Bells of Death]’s side effects.

Now, he already had the antidote prepared.

Concentrating on his mind, Tepo soon felt the small dot of light circling his soul. It still appeared weak, obviously with much room for growth.

Tepo even had to urge it, despite this being the effect of a passive spell.

But the [God’s Soul] finally began to work. It circled Tepo’s soul faster and faster, spreading a mysterious energy outwards.

Tepo closed his eyes, embracing the effect. A moment later Varei’s voice reached his ears:

“Tepo? Do you hear me? Are you studying your forbidden spell? Not fair! Don’t do it without me!”

A smile formed on Tepo’s lips as he clearly heared the young dragon spirit. He listened to the faint sound his partner’s fur made as he jumped up and down, the scurrying of insects in the gras outside, the air streaming by birds’ wings in their flight.

Gradually an image appeared in his mind. Tepo even felt somewhat dizzy, not used to the 360-degree sight around him.

A few moments later he carefully opened his eyes again, seeing the world in a new light.