Bastion was in a ring of local children in bragging mode: “I am Bastion of team Drisil, an important member of the team. You may not see it now, but I am the secret weapon—like Rion. I am strong, but don’t tell the others. It’s supposed to be a secret.”

“Wow…” Said some young elven children. It took a while for them to gain access to the world’s powers. So, they had no concept of how powerful a kid could get after gaining theirs.

The few human children older didn’t quite buy the boast, but they also weren’t academy trained. They didn’t have the conditioning or prowess of a student from Drisil. To be fair, Bastion had very little conditioning. It was enough to make up for his size if an unawakened ten-year-old started hitting him, but not by much. As he was still in a fragile state of growth, he needed to be careful.

An orange-haired girl with white irises approached. Kyrion had no idea what school she was from but recognized that the irises marked her spirit. She was four years older, which would place her at around nineish. To Kyrion, it was like a toddler talking to a slightly taller toddler.

“I don’t believe you! You haven’t fought once! I bet you’re just their to fill in a slot.”

“Nuh uh!! I’m a fighter too!”

“Really? Then swear on your spirit that you will fight in the next round.”

“We should stop him.” Lin said.

“No. This is his decision to make. Also, do you want to embarrass him by interfering?”

“He’s five.”

“I mean, I’m fine with it. If Volain and I are on the same team, then we can use a few handicaps.”

Bastion eyed the woman and bluntly asked, “Why is an old lady pretending to be a kid?”

“I’m no old lady. I’m a kid,just like you.”

Bastion scratched his nose and squinted. “You don’t look like a kid to me. You look like one of those grown-ups in the tournament with me but on another team.”

“Are you saying that you’re so scared that you have to lie to get out of fighting?”

“Can’t you…Fine I swear to participate in the three team matches!” Bastion felt a chain attempt to wrap itself around his core but touched it with his left hand out of reflex. No one would know the significance of such a motion save those who knew Bastion’s abilities.

The oath was made, but its power was taken and drained. Oaths held power all on their own, namely D.E. To absorb it so easily spoke of a top-tier power.

“Are you done now Miss?” Bastion blinked slowly.

Lin turned to Rion and whispered. “Did he just destroy an oath?”

“Absorbed it. I do not know the limit of his talents.”

“Like I said i’m–”

Bastion teleported ten feet, appeared behind the girl, and flicked her shoulder with his left hand. Instantly dispelling her illusion, he revealed an orange-haired woman around Bella’s age with the exact same features that the nine-year-old had, just much older.

The look in Bastion’s eyes was that of a shark that had just smelled blood. “See this! My enemies and rivals bind me with oaths and lies. To get me to fight them, they don’t understand my power. They resort to lying and trickery. An old woman tricking a young and impressionable boy like me is pathetic! You’ll make all old people seem like liars. Am I even going to get the victory ice creams I was promised?” Basion’s gaze landed on Lin and Rion, who were hidden and inconspicuous. He threw up a tiny fist and continued his rant against grown-ups. Ie. Older teenagers.

The orange-haired woman fell back after getting what she wanted but realized it may have been more than she bargained for.

Rion laughed. “I think he was only rude because she tried to act ten years younger. Illusions don’t work on Bastion, so I imagine the scene just looked wrong to him.”

“See through illusions, at his age?”

“It’s a natural ability. His ability to track hidden objects is quite high. I’ll need to get him a victory Ice cream.”

“You made such a promise?”

“No, but he entertained me, and I won’t make Bastion a liar.” Rion shook his hand and stood.

“Will Eden also be participating?”

“Might as well, have them both in. Put them on Max’s team with Brion. Bella, Cecil, and I will be on the cooking defense.”

“Do you intend to sit out the entire match?”

“Meat Fire Lin, Meat Fire.” Rion said bluntly.

“What does that even mean?”

“The first mortal to discover meat plus fire, was an orc, and from their discovery brought forth an age of culinary experimentation.”

“The orcs discovered cooked food… What next their nomadic tendency is so that their tribes can try and develop new tastes and flavors?”

Rion nodded.

“I don’t have to tell you how insane you sound, right?”

“It’s history. The orcs brought this knowledge to the other continents as well.”

“The only reason humanity made it this far is because of the orcs.”

“I don’t hear a question.”

“How did we even get here?”

“I think I was complimenting your pretty hair and you said something about my eyes, and things spiraled a bit.” Rion said, not admitting the truth.

“Is that so? What did you say about my hair?”

Rion had been called out. “Uh…”

“Did you lie?”

“Yes…Not even I could say what came to mind as a complement with a straight face.”

“As punishment. You must say it anyway. If you get off with simple lies now, they could grow in the future.”

“Your hair is perfection, as though the gods of beauty wove falling snow into silk when they created you.” Rion’s face reddened.

Lin’s face also reddened. “I see. That’s a bit over the top even if it comes from you.”

A white-haired boy poked his head out of a trash can. “Get a room, you’re giving me diabetes.”

“White Fox, what are you doing in a trashcan?”

“Hide and seek. Duh.” White Fox put the lid above his head and retreated into the trash can.

Rion swiped his hand to the side, and the trashcan was teleported two levels up.

“That was mean.”

“It was indeed. Had he not been spying on us I’d have been nicer.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“So that wasn’t a coincidence.”

“He’s been regularly checking up on us while we’re together. He’s usually quiet about it so I ignore him. I also suspect that he can teleport.”

“He can. He also could have resisted it. My guess is that he was trying to kill the mood.” Lin said suspiciously.

“Let’s go check up on Ander.”

“Ander is currently not in this world.” Karl said through their link.

“Let’s not check up on Ander.” Kyrion’s expression was stony.

“What’s with that face?”

“Where’s my father?”

“He’s been busy protecting Mamon. She’s been sick lately.” Lin lied as she let her eyes land on a masked pair in a nearby bar, acting inconspicuously.

Rion noticed them instantly and kicked himself for not keeping a closer watch. It also appeared that they dumped his trackers. “Little Fox is sick…wait... does Mamon have a connection to that White Fox?”

“No idea. But the naming scheme is annoying. Little Fox is also a white fox.”

“You don’t say.” Rion looked around for a bit before taking Lin’s hand.

“What are you doing?”

“Can you fly on your own?” Rion asked.

“No. Why do you ask?”

“Do you have a fear of heights?”

“Not particularly.”

“Perfect. Take my hand, I want to show you something.” Rion let loose a genuine smile that looked as though it belonged to a wild wolf.

“What do you intend to show me?” Lin was skeptical.

“It’s a surprise.”

“Uh huh.”

“If I showed it to you down here, my father might try to kill it. Also, keep it a secret. I don’t want people to know where you received this if you can help. Unless your life is in danger.” Kyrion added, to be precise.

“Gotcha, don’t just tell anyone where I received something that seems rare.”

“So, are you ready to take my hand yet?”

“You sure like giving out gifts.”

“It’s a somewhat recent hobby of mine. Think of it like a late Christmas present.”

“What is a Christmas and why does it hurt to say and hear?”

“A holiday from Cece’s world where everyone hands out gifts and gets drunk on the nog of the eggs. Also, there are tons of things people like to call cookies.”

“So cookies are a food.”

“The best food!” Said a trash can that hadn’t been there a minute before.

“If he follows us into the sky, i’ll swat him down so lets go.” Kyrion held out his hand.

Lin took it, but instead of just flying up, she noticed that the two of them had moved a great distance via teleportation. Not that she would speak on it, as the clouds were currently right below her.

Kyrion sat upon the cloud as though it were a cushion and sighed. “I recently had a flash of knowledge of a place far away. It was interesting, so to speak, and there are many things I need to get off my chest. First off, my gift.”

Kyrion opened his domain, pulled a confused blue wiener dog from it, and sat it on top of the cloud. “This is my gift.”

“A dog?”

“I am no dog, I am dragon!”

“It’s a baby dragon with the power of a young adult. When I fought it, it used cold fire which is a type of ice magic that somehow burns as it freezes. Think of it as an apology for going on vacation without you.”

Lin eyed the creature suspiciously. “It’s a dragon. And you want to give it to me?”

“I already have a dragon friend. I don’t need another. Also, my dad would try to kill it out of habit.”

“So, you want it to be one of my cores?”

“A living core which you can summon when you need it.”

“I can handle sentient spirits. Thank you, if it’s truely…”

The dog transformed into a long dragon with sky-blue scales and a misty sprinkle of white that made it appear like an evening sky. The creature had grown to the size of a small settlement in total length, with a head the size of a house.

“Dog, you now belong to Lin. Treat her as an extension of myself and protect her with your life.” I ordered the dragon as my oath was transferred to her.”

“Yez Mazter!.” The dog cried before shrinking back to that form.

Lin sighed. “Since, we’re here and youre doing this. Did I die during the time loops?”

“I suspect you were slain by Everest. He’s paying for it, but I’ll be honest. I want you to have all the power you can. I don’t want anyone I care about to die just because I wasn’t there to save them.”

“If you keep talking like that, someone might mistake you for a hero.”

“Right. Since we’re here, care to see my orchard?”

“Your orchard?”

“It was a garden until I started growing trees... or expanded it to this degree.” Kyrion moved the air platform he was sitting on and sent it south while getting closer to the ground. After passing through the cloud layer, a forest became visible.

At least it looked like a forest, but it was too orderly to be one. Various fruit trees were arrayed in rows some distance apart. Underneath, multiple herbs and mushrooms grew in the shade of trees, while gaps between them were visible. Various bushes full of berries spotted the ground. Past the tree, it appeared that one had instantly gone from forest to farm, as different crops seemed to be growing in regularly maintained plots.

“So you share the area with someone else?”

“Not quite, that’s the farm that my helpers keep. I have quite a few farms in my domain, but this is where my best and brightest assist in keeping a reliable food supply present. I provide everything that’s needed from tools to seeds and water.”

“So that forest is where you grow your experiential plants?”

“No! No… no. I’m not allowed to grow experiments in public places after I created a plant that induces sentience, while calming them down, and even causes hallucinations. After the first few roaring bears accidently ate them I’ve been banned from public experimentation. Cecil called them Stone Bears.”

“So they were hard like stone?”

“More like as immovable as a boulder.” Kyrion pointed to a team of 7 bears being taught a martial art by his teacher, Exac. The sight was sobering.

“Is that a dance?”

“Not sure but I feel like we should go now. Got anywhere you want to go?” Kyrion asked.

Lin proceeded to catch on. “Is this your roundabout way of taking me on a date?”

Kyrion sighed. “No, I just wanted to spend time with you, without all those stalkers.”

“How fast can this dragon go?” Lin asked an important question.

“Mach two without a passenger, mach 1 with. So we’d arrive back at the capital in an hour and a half.”

“We? Can’t you fly as well?”

“Do you want to race?” Kyrion raised an eyebrow.

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll give you a head start, ten minutes or so. I need to pick up some of Cecil’s things.” Kyrion stated.

Truth be told, Kyrion needed to come by here anyway, as Cecil had some things brewing back home that he hadn’t been able to pick up on the way through. The Dragon Buster Mech, for one, and the A.N.G.E.L. O.S., which stood for something in Cecil’s language.

The Dragon Buster, Codenamed Caladbolg, was Cecil’s baby, so Kyiron would usually refrain from altering it. However, he’d recently gained the knowledge required to get it going without causing an issue, so Cecil wouldn’t mind if he flew the machine to the tournament square.

As Kyrion entered the warehouse, he eyed the 60-foot-long mechanical humanoid and sighed as he replaced one of the longswords with a set of three Mech-sized Phoblades.

Kyrion then equipped the A.N.G.E.L to the back of Caladbolg. The A.N.G.E.L constituted a pair of sapphire blue wings that caused a similarly colored circle to appear on the mech’s faceplate when active. From there, he pressed his hand on a metal board next to the cockpit and let it read his mana signature.

The machine opened, and the next thing Kyrion knew, he was sitting in the passenger’s seat, acting as the machine’s battery. Moving to the driver’s seat proved he had no idea what he was doing.

“Wake up you murderous giant.” Kyrion said to the mech.

“Master?” Jala asked while in Kyrion’s core.

“Yes?”

“There’s this guy, salivating at the chance to fly your metal person.”

“Does he know what he’s doing?”

“I believe so. Apparently it’s the only reason he agreed to come.”

“Gods, the gaps in memory are annoying.” Kyrion sighed, holding out a hand in front of him as he waited.

Jala, understanding the gesture, summoned a black-haired boy with red-rimmed glasses. His red shirt had the symbol of a three-headed dog on his right arm, and his depression was confused.

“Kyrion, where the hell was I?”

“My domain. Why?”

“It’s like another world, with an ecosystem, countries and wars.”

“Wait, war? When did a war start? Are my spirits fighting each other?”

“You mean the fox, and the bird? No, they just like to stay separate. I mean the gremlin, goblin civil war. Then there are the tower residents going to war with the floating city states.”

“Eh?”

“Why didn’t anyone tell me about this?” Kyrion asked Jala, who hadn’t cut the connection.

“Because the energy they expend goes to you, which also means us. I assumed you’d want to know when you had free time. This isn’t exactly free time.”

“Ok, Jin, start the engine. Without that eye, tech is harder to understand.” Kyrion sent a command to the warehouse to open up while shifting a few items he almost forgot about into a vault within his domain. That way, the residents wouldn’t get any ideas.

Jin flipped two switches, and the machine turned on. “So, why do you need a mech and when did you have time to build it?”

“Already built, just needed a stable power source and weight managing devices, I have plenty of those.”

Jin read words that appeared on the screen along with a logo. “Angel? What does that mean?”

“Cecil will always be better than me at putting together complex systems.”

“Cecil? Are you taking about…”

“Have you met him?” Kyrion asked.

“No, but are you going to convince him to go back home? We need all the bright minds we can get.”

“After I get the permanent gate set up. Aside from that, a month in your world is about a year here. While you may be close to a practitioner in level, there is still more to learn.”

“And you’ll be able to do so in a year?”

“Only if I break into the expert tier soon and have help. As far as the current me is aware. I’m working with memories from right after we left the island and my perception. I could already hold the key to sending you back.”

“Gotcha.” Jin caused the mech to stand up before it altered its gravitational field and floated out of the warehouse, or it tried to, when, due to means, Kyrion hadn’t understood. Vines sprouted from the door that opened the cockpit with a strength neither expected.

Momentarily, a red-haired woman with long hair in a ponytail swung in with the grace and poise of an acrobat. Spectacles covered her emerald green eyes as she examined the two trespassers.

“What’s Dwen doing here, and how did her hair get so long?” Jin asked.

“That’s her younger sister Thalia. Not twins but there was a two year gap. I think.”

“What is my little brother doing mech jockeying without letting any of the others know, and how did you get it to work?”

“Do you want to know now or later? It’s been well over ten minutes, and my fiance is moving at mach 1,” Kyrioni said.

“Fine, Kyrion, scoot over.”

“Why me?” Kyrion protested.

“Because I’m small and thin so you have space, and we both know you’re not the one flying this thing.”

“Fine.”

“So…Thalia, are you single?” Jin asked unabashedly.

“Are you attempting to court me? If so, you must know that I am from noble birth and have quite a few suitors.”