While Tepo was still trying to get used to his new vision, Varei was hopping up and down next to him.

“Tepo, come! We need to test your spell, let’s go! Let’s go!”

After urging his partner, the little spirit suddenly flapped his wings, speeding out of the storage.

Tepo was still a bit slow, but soon followed behind Varei.

***

Tepo and Varei didn’t know that a certain mechanism suddenly activated as they left the storage.

Far, far away in another world a figure stood in the air. She wore a strange coat made from long stripes, which billowed in the wind. All kinds of colors were mixed in and some stripes were even translucent.

Everything one could see from the outside was her tall body and the long, cascading blond hair.

Her face was covered by a blank white mask.

Still, it was obvious that she was observing the ethereal gate floating before here.

Suddenly the figure seemed to sense something. Her head turned in a certain direction, a smile forming below her mask.

But as her whispering voice sounded out, one could hear a hint of guilt in it.

“You finally found a partner, Vareigarys? Let me wish you good luck.

I am sorry for everything you had to go through, but without you the spirits would have never revealed a connection to their world.”

As the wind carried away her words, the figure turned back to the gate. Just at this moment it began to open slowly, a bright light shining through the gaps.

The figure moved forward, her feet stepping on the air as if it were solid stairs. Soon, she entered the gate, leaving only a single sentence behind.

“The spirits have been behaving strangely for a long time. Let’s see what you are hiding.”

***

Varei didn’t know any of this. He was squatting outside on the large grassy field, focused on a chirping grasshopper in front of him.

The moment Tepo stepped outside, he felt a tug in his spellcircle.

Suddenly an enormous, archaic bell appeared in mid-air above Varei’s head.

The spirit grinned in excitement and fascination as he looked at the black bell made from unknown material. He studied the intricate murals adorning it, depicting ghosts and demons, life and death, peacefully ending lives and horrifying catastrophes.

His attention drawn in, Tepo focused on the mysterious bell twice as big as himself. Suddenly the murals seemingly came to life. The scenes moved like a movie on a screen.

Slowly the bell began shaking. It swayed as if its heavy weight had to be moved by a child. After about a second the bell’s wall hit its clapper.

A glorious tone rang out. It sounded regal, as if the master of life and death had spoken. It went through marrow and bone.

But a moment later the bell vanished instantly.

Tepo still had a solemn face, feeling the majestic sound still vibrating in his body. It took him a second to realize that the spell had already done its job.

With his new [God’s Soul] he easily spotted the small grasshopper hidden by Varei’s body. All life had left its small frame.

Tepo shook his head with a chuckle. Was this the definition of overkill?

Meanwhile Varei felt like he hadn’t gotten enough excitement yet. He just wanted to activate the spell again, when he suddenly felt movement in his chest.

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Confused, he focused on his core. It pulsed within his chest, berating its host.

It took the spirit a few seconds to understand that his core was indignant as its host wasted so much force for nothing.

Tepo noticed the change in expression.

“What’s going on Varei? Did something happen?”

“Yes, my core is striking. I think it doesn’t want me to waste so much force.”

Tepo was taken aback for a moment before he broke out in laughter.

“And I thought it was only my core who is stingy all the time. Turns out this is a shared feature.”

Suddenly both cores pulsed in anger.

Reminded by their cores the two warriors decided to skip the further test and began making plans.

Tepo decided that they couldn’t just challenge an ascendant without any preparation.

Thus, he insisted that they train first. Varei agreed reluctantly.

Therefore, a strange situation unfolded in the storage. Two warriors began running around challenging various guardians.

When they lost, they had to draw back and recover, and if they won, they drew back either way.

Although a few people in the outside world, especially Hoinar, who went home as he expected Tepo to be thrown out by the storage’s rules after picking his spell, were confused by Tepo’s absence, the warrior didn’t care, putting all his efforts into acquiring another forbidden spell.

Three days passed like this. With Tepo’s advanced strength his need for eating and sleeping were greatly reduced and could be temporarily satisfied by absorbing force.

Thus, the two partners went through some high intensity training, soon feeling ready to face their biggest challenge yet.

But there was only one problem left. Tepo and Varei had explored the entire dungeon, but didn’t find the place storing forbidden spells.

Fortunately, after carefully roaming the forest again they found a strange spot on the floor with their [God's Soul]. A short while later Tepo took out his token.

The small metallic plate formed a mysterious connection with something, prompting a large part of the earth to open up.

Obviously, the forbidden spells received special protection. Tepo could only hope that his action didn’t alarm the aristocrats.

Fortunately, unbeknownst to him his entry was recorded only for the headmaster to see.

Tepo quickly put the doubts at the back of his mind, focusing on the fight ahead. He watched as the floor slowly opened. Earth trickled down, falling on a set of stairs leading deep into the ground.

The stairs were made of stones, illuminated by torches which suddenly lit up one by one.

“Here goes nothing!”

“We got this!”

Tepo and Varei encouraged each other as they walked forward, their steps echoing in the dimly lit space.

Fortunately, the entrance remained open, light accompanying the duo’s backs as they bravely went deeper in.

A short while later they arrived before a large gate. An image could be seen in the flickering light of the torches. It showed a few scholars discussing, with the forum’s motto written in bold letters.

“Let knowledge enrich all worlds?”

Varei’s whisper was full of complicated emotions. As someone hated because he brought others to his own world, this sentence resonated with him.

Tepo calmly petted his partner’s head before stepping forward and opening the gate.

A loud scraping echoed in the underground space. The gate opened slowly, revealing a large empty hall behind it. Its high ceiling was supported by solid stone pillars.

Torches hung everywhere, giving the hall a solemn atmosphere.

Immediately Tepo’s eyes lit up. He spoke to Varei with [Telepathic Communication]:

“Try to put out all those torches. This should help us gain some advantage.”

The little spirit understood the idea, nodding calmly.

Meanwhile, the duo had arrived in the center of the hall. At the very front was another gate. A man was sitting cross-legged before it.

Although he looked mostly human, some features identified him as someone from another race.

The man was gigantic, almost three meters tall. (9,8’’). His hair was growing wildly all over his body, covering most of his skin and only letting him wear short pants.

His hands also appeared even bigger in proportion, just like his ears, which ended in sharp tips.

As Tepo and Varei came to a stop their opponent suddenly opened his eyes. They were red with deep black pupils.

For a moment a flash of confusion appeared in the man’s eyes, but he quickly focused on Tepo.

“Are you Tepmodus?”

A deep voice echoed in the hall.

“So what if I am?”

“Those b*stards told me that if I cripple you, I will regain my freedom. Don’t take it personal.”

With those words the man slowly stood up. A sturdy chain rattled behind him.

Tepo’s eyes narrowed. He understood who the man was talking about. But it was good to know that the guardian wasn’t really on the aristocrats’ side.

Tepo’s and Varei’s hearts began to beat faster as they watched the guardian in full height. His towering frame was enough to suppress some weaker minds, but the duo had already prepared themselves.

With a sign from Tepo, Varei suddenly vanished. This was the effect of his new spell [Spirit Form], which was a combination of [Phasing], [Subconscious Evasion], and [Minor Stealth].

It was an incredibly potent spell, which made it hard even for the powerful guardian to detect Varei from a distance.

The small spirit immediately began to fly around the hall, storing all the torches in a special space ring he wore around one of his claws.

The moment the guardian took his first step, the floor shook. Dust fell from the strong pillars.

He turned his head, seeing the first torch vanish but decided to ignore the issue. His target was the human.

Suddenly the guardian disappeared from where he stood.

Tepo couldn’t follow the fast movements with his eyes. But he already anticipated the move beforehand. With a [Chaotic Evasion] he dashed behind one of the pillars.