"Ughh..." Grinos woke up. "That bastard. I thought I was dead."

"You are finally awake." Bisak reprimanded. He was sitting at a wooden chair beside Grinos' bed. "You are too impulsive. Did you forget that we are in the cafeteria?"

"What do I care! People occasionally fight everywhere. The cafeteria is no different." Grinos sat up, grinding his teeth. "That kid was lucky. I was not prepared for that."

"Stop pretending. We understood how strong he is. Don't cause anymore trouble."

"That's rubbish. I am ranked 40! He must have used some amplifier tech for his spell." Grinos asserted.

"Amplifier or not. It doesn't change the fact that you lost. Top Intermedis and freshmen don't even have that much difference. Our only advantage is that we enrolled here earlier than them."

"Hmph!" Grinos snorted, standing up. "Where is Melos?"

"They went to meet with Helar. We should also go and-"

Bang! The door opened wide.

"Who?" Bisak stood up, alerted by the sudden opening of the door.

Blood red eyes. A malicious grin. A black colored dagger. Ortix greeted the two as he slowly entered the room with a fear inducing killing intent.

"Finally found you. Oh! Why are there only 2 of you?" He asked as he stood at the doorway.

Bisak and Grinos immediately stood side by side.

"What are you doing here?" Bisak asked as he cautiously activated his stored aether energy. He activated an advance form of reinforce body called iron skin which greatly increased his defensive capabilities.

Grinos also activated his own combat arts. Similar to the one he used before, his muscles started to bulge again but this time it was on an even higher level. It even included his torso and upper legs. His shirt started to get ripped as it became too small for his body. He was confident on himself but he still understood that his opponent was not someone so simple. "Your friend might have surprised me but it won't happen again."

"You actually still didn't learn your lesson? " Ortix scrutinized the two. "You two seemed really confident with your body. That's gre-"

Grinos charged at Ortix, not waiting for him to finish speaking. He opened his arms wide, planning to crush him with a big bear hug but he caught nothing. Ortix turned into a black smoke.

"Where are you?" Grinos shouted. "Stop running!"

Ortix appeared seated in another bed, swiping his fingers on his dagger. "I'm still talking you know. I'm actually complementing you two. I'm not also that fond of magic. I prefer to also fight-" He was interrupted again as Grinos charged at him again. He then threw his dagger towards him and it pierced Grinos' right upper leg. The dagger then disappeared before reappearing in his right hand.

Grinos stumbled on the ground and fell down the ground.

"Grinos!" Bisak shouted as he ran forward towards him.

Grinos was starting to heal himself using the combat art regenerate but that ability has limitations. It was lucky that he was not hit in other vital organs. "How did that dagger... Easily... Pierce me.." He slowly said.

"You should be careful. This new dagger I got is pretty sharp. It might not be that effective against the creature we fought but I am pretty sure that this could easily cut human limbs." Ortix uttered as he admires his black dagger containing the blood of Grinos. The blood started to evaporate and the dagger became clean again. "Oh! I didn't know that it could do that." He then pointed it at Bisak who stood beside Grinos.

"Stop! I don't want to fight!" Bisak shouted. "What do you want?"

"What I want? Aren't you the one looking for me?" Ortix chuckled. "Here I am. What are you waiting for?"

"No! Wait! We are just ordered to bring you but we don't want to do anything about it anymore." Bisak explained.

"What the hell are you saying Bisak! Do you plan to double cross Helar and the Mundus Group?" Grinos yelled, he then looked at Ortix. "I told you didn't I. They just have those advance weapons or tech that's why-"

"Shut up Grinos! Can't you see-"

Before Bisak could finish his sentence, Ortix appeared in front of him. The dagger that Ortix was holding disappeared. Instead, a tattoo on Ortix' left arm was glowing. It was an image of some large blue beast. The color of his skin has also changed to a blue hue like those of an Ocarian but his size became as big as a Corynis. He was now also more than 7 feet tall. He then swatted Bisak with the back of his left hand. Even with Bisak's fully reinforced body, he flew straight to a table on the right side of the room. The table and the tools on top of it were broken while Bisak lied down on it. His reinforcement art was broken and some of the broken tools scratched his body.

"Do you actually think that I need to use a weapon to kill you?" Ortix slowly walked towards.

"You! What are you?" Grinos started to show fear but when Ortix was close enough, he grabbed at Ortix lower right leg. To his surprise, when he tried to pull on Ortix, he was not able to move him. It was as if he was trying to pull on a foundation of a large building.

Ortix grabbed Grinos by his neck with his right hand and Grinos was raised above the ground. Grinos tried to thrash around hitting and trying to pull the hand of Ortix away from his neck but he still was not able to bulge Ortix. Ortix continued to grip on Grinos neck, watching him hopelessly trying to escape.

Bisak stood back up then activated the combat art explosive feet. He dived towards Ortix, aiming to knock him down but instead he was stopped on his track. He hugged Ortix on his torso but he was also not able to bring him down. Ortix felt annoyed by Bisak and pulled him away using his left hand, broke his neck and threw him towards the wall. Bisak fell limply on the ground.

"Ha! So you really have also recovered." The voice of Volus suddenly reverberated inside the room. "I guess it was thanks to that angel statue and artifact we saw." Volus then appeared standing in the entrance of the infirmary. He then closed the door.

"And here I am waiting when are you going to show yourself? Are you here to stop me kill these people?" Ortix smiled at him.

Volus smiled back. " You know me. I also don't care about them. Cy probably also don't care about these people but-"

"Yeah! Yeah! I know.... The people around him do. Honestly, I'm pissed." Ortix then pierced the hole in Grinos stomach with his left hand, twisted his arm, making it a lot bigger and causing blood to squirt from Grinos stomach. Grinos also involuntarily vomited blood. It stained the face of Ortix but Ortix ignored it. "Why can't we just root them out. Why does he listen to those people?"

"You shouldn't worry about that. He would soon get bored. Worst case, someone backstabs him and he understands that we can't just trust anyone. You should remember that he didn't have a similar childhood like ours and-"

"Okay stop! I understand!" Ortix then released Grinos, letting him fall. Grinos has already fallen unconscious. He then smirked. "I would hate for Cyziel to experience what we did but if it is what is needed to let him learn then so be it."

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

"That's what we are here for after all." Volus then turned serious. "Right now though, we have a bigger problem. That abyssal aura coming from him."

"Yeah I also felt it. At first, I thought that it was just some lingering abyssal energy but it was not getting weaker."

"Yes. Instead, it kept getting stronger. We need to talk about this with him but for now-" Volus stared at the two people who seemed to be almost dead. "You should have already released your anger have you?"

"Yeah yeah! Go heal them!" Ortix sat back down in one of the beds.

Volus took of his black cloak then suddenly white wings appeared on his back. It was radiantly blinding that Ortix momentarily looked away. Volus formed an orb of white light between his hands then it started to expand engulfing everything inside the room. The moment it hit Grinos and Bisak, they started to be healed at a fast pace. The hole in Grinos stomach started to close and the broken bones in Bisak's neck started to mend.

Volus' white wings went back inside his body and he put back on his cloak. Ortix carried the two unconscious people towards the back wall and sat them on the ground. Ortix squat in front of the two then slapped them on their face to wake them up.

"Uhhhh...." Grinos and Bisak slowly woke up. Their head was still a bit muddled.

"Hey wake up! Haven't you already slept too long today?" Ortix slapped again Grinos.

"You!?" Grinos and Bisak was immediately roused and tried to get up but ropes made of white light emitted from Volus then tied up the two.

"Tell me. Why shouldn't I kill you today?" Ortix asked.

"Wait! I already told you that we don't want to take part in any of this already." Bisak fearfully said and this time Grinos didn't argued. "We could bring Jaza to you!"

"I could catch him by myself. Oh wait-" Ortix then paused, starting to think about something. "Hmm... Are you also members of those bandits?"

"What bandits? I don't know what you are talking about!" Bisak answered.

"I don't also know what you are saying!" Grinos seconded.

"Do you know Jaza's brother?" Volus asked.

"No! I don't know him!" Grinos answered.

"I-I think I have heard of his brother... I heard he is an old student of this school and also once a member of the Mundus group but I believe he didn't graduate. " Bisak narrated. "Though I am not sure if this is true."

"Hmm.. Interesting... Is that everything you know?" Ortix asked.

"Yes! That is all I know!"

*Creak*. The door of the infirmary suddenly opened. Cyziel, together with the rest has finally arrived.

Cyziel looked at the two people tied up on the floor. "I told you. There is no need to worry." He sighed. He was glad that nothing bad actually happened. As soon as he stood up from his seat in the cafeteria, he already knew where Ortix and Volus went but he purposely slowed down because he also do not want to always obstruct on his friends' decisions.

Vera went in the infirmary and observed the surroundings. "Where is the rest of your group?"

"They reported back to the leader of our group." Bisak answered.

The dagger of Ortix suddenly appeared on his hand and made way to Bisak's neck. "I thought you already have nothing to do with us? Are you lying to me?"

"No-No... It is because Jaza... He went to also meet Helar... He was the one who started this.. He must be planning something." Bisak shakily answered. Sweat was pouring down from his face.

"Heh! This Jaza really entertains me. Well, it would be fine if I am your only target but my friend here would not be happy if you hurt his new friends." Ortix chortled. It was quite hard to know if he was angry or actually happy.

Cyziel looked away, feeling embarrassed, not knowing what to say.

Ortix then cut the ropes made by Volus with his dagger. "Tell your friends, your boss or whoever that if they want me to apologize then I will welcome them myself. Do not touch anyway else. Now! Go!" Ortix shouted.

Bisak and Grinos immediately stood up, preparing to leave.

"Wait! You do not actually know Jaza's connection with the bandits do you?" Volus asked.

"Are you asking about what the member of the Vile Brigands said before?" Vera interjected before turning to Grinos. "You know who the Vile Brigands are don't you?"

Grinos was partially enraged. He was looked down again by another person but he understood that he cannot show any aggressiveness right now or he might be killed. "No.. We don't have anything to do about the Vile Brigands... If Jaza is a member then we would make sure to report it. "

"Alright leave!" Cyziel shouted. "And never cross us again."

The two immediately ran away from the infirmary.

Ortix looked at Lucia who was hiding behind Cyziel. "So are you satisfied now?"

Lucia didn't answer and ignored the question. She position herself to be invisible to Ortix.

"Okay. Let's stop now. I think everyone already made a point." Cyziel said.

"No. You still haven't explained yourself to us." Volus uttered.

"Alright!" Cyziel looked at the people at his back. "You all could leave first. I'll be talking with them privately."

"Wait! Let Lucia stay." Volus said.

Draka stepped forward. "No! Why would you need her here?"

Cyziel frowned. "Do you not trust me anymore?" Cyziel understood why Volus would want her here. After all, she was the only one present when he lost control. Still, he was disappointed of the thought that the two are starting to doubt him.

"Do you actually think that I would not trust you?" This time, it was Volus who seemed to be in a pained expression. He was the first person that Cyziel met in Daraksta and the two have been together for a long time. He was the most loyal of all his friends. Ironically, since he was the one with him the longest, he also understood best his character. There was a possibility that he wouldn't tell everything completely. "I just thought that her knowledge might be helpful but if you do not want her to stay here then she could go."

"Its okay. I could stay." Lucia said. Seeing the atmosphere started to get heavy again, she finally stepped in front.

Cyziel sighed. He was a bit relieved. "Don't worry, we will just talk about what we previously talked about."

Cyziel assured everyone that nothing bad would happen and they would just talk. A lot of the people actually wanted to stay because if they would just talk about the previous topic then there was no reason for them to leave but the hostile attitude of Volus and Ortix prevented them to argue and they just went away. It was specially true for Vera. Everyone was concerned for Cyziel but she was also really curious about this new type of energy.

As Cyziel promised, the four just talked about what Cyziel experienced. Volus and Ortix would occasionally look at Lucia's reactions for confirmation. As for Lucia, she eventually lost her heedfulness on the two and would sometimes join the conversation, injecting her own thought about it.

"So why were you not able to immediately distinguish the abyssal energy?" Volus asked.

"It has the same color as the void energy. Moreover, void energy cannot mix with other energies. You should already know that my magicus special. "

"What do you mean your magicus is special?" Lucia asked.

"He just means that it is really big and it is able to store any energy or essence he encounters." Ortix nonchalantly answered.

"That's right. It is like a whole world. It is nothing really to brag though. You, yourself are special. Of all the people I met, you are the youngest person I know that have a really high affinity with divine energy. You weren't even born with divine related marks. Of course, Volus and Ortix are also special themselves." Cyziel smiled around. "But back to the topic, if you have affinity for some energy then you naturally accumulate them everyday. The magicus would normally absorb the aether energy around us until it is full. It is the same for the essences we gather from the elemental planes that we are connected. Tell me, do you think that the essences and energy are stored in the same place in the magicus?"

"No. It should be separate. Each essence or energy should be separate from each other." Lucia answered.

"That's right! That is also what I am told when I was young. There should be a different chamber for each that is connected to a metaphysical space that would store them. As for me, it is different. It is just one really big space that every energy and essence that I have are stored in there." Cyziel then had a sullen look. "And that is where the problem comes in. The first time I absorbed a void energy, it was eating away at any other essence or energy that it came in contact with. I need to manually separate it from the rest."

"Then the abyssal energy?" Volus uttered.

"Yes. Like the divine energy, it was not able to corrode it. Since they have the same color and it was not getting corroded then I have them located at the same place in my magicus. It was only today that I learned that they actually do not mix properly. It was like a liquid with different density. It just so happens that they look exactly the same." Cyziel answered.

"Is it possible that the abyssal energy and the void energy are related?" Lucia asked.

"Most likely, I got both types of energy in Daraksta." Cyziel then frowned. "The real problem is why I can't control it."

"Maybe there is some kind of unique requirements you need?" Ortix uttered. "Do you have any plans for now?"

"I don't know but I currently encapsulate it with void energy." Cyziel shrugged. "Maybe, I could also find an answer in the capital or if I found my family."

"Cyziel. Do you think that it has something to do with-" Volus was about to ask something when the door suddenly opened.

It was doctor Bion. He finally came back.

"You two are here again." Bion jerked seeing Cyziel and Lucia. He then became furious as he saw that his table and tools are destroyed. "What happened here? Where are those kids?"

Ortix bit his lips, looking away.

"We don't really know. Cyziel just got dizzy again so he wanted to lay down on the bed." Lucia gave an excuse.

Volus nodded. "We already arrived here like this. We have really no idea."

"Ahhh!! They might have started a fight here. Do they even not understand what I said? Do they think that just because they are part of some group that I can't touch them? I'll make sure that they are severely punished." Bion walked out of the infirmary, stomping the ground.

Cyziel chuckled. "We might not even need to do anything against them."

"No! No! Those people are my prey!" Ortix cried out.

"Hmph! That would be for the better." Volus snorted.

Lucia giggled. She finally has a deeper understanding at the three people in front of her.