Ashes of a long gone forest rise and fall due to the turbulence caused by Amon's aura. There are no obstacles left to hold us back, as everything was flattened. The entire perimeter has either become charred black or filled with gray ash.

A strong bang rings out over the decimated land, as Cidion observes from afar. The only thing left was a patch of grass and trees in our house's vicinity, where Evy was sitting by the table.

The deafening sound was one of Amon's head smashing against mine with tremendous speed. Both him and I were bleeding from many places, our clothes torn to shreds. From expensive clothes to rags that hung over our lower bodies, our constant sparring made us lose worry at our appearance.

During the last month, Amon managed to climb his manapool to my level, beyond a barrel and a half. His fighting has also improved tremendously, as his insane reflexes gave him an advantage. If I didn't have a sword and two types of magic, he would defeat me in a matter of minutes.

Today, we've been fighting for 10 hours without a break.

His fire still burned bright, even if it dwindled to near-extinguish a few times. Both of us managed to increase our endurance to a new level, time becoming less important as we trained more and more.

Amon pitched one of his fireballs, barely missing me as I wasted as little energy as I could to evade. "Getting tired!?" he shouts, rushing forward with a speed that didn't lose any ferocity.

I throw the Sunsword into the air, gracefully grasping it by the hilt and launching my newly-learned 'Spear'.

"I think your increase in aura has gotten to your head! Maybe those horns of yours had dug into your skull!"

We clash again, sending flattening shockwaves that Cidion restricted with his magic. I thought he hadn't brought any items, but I was wrong. He had special artifacts that exist all over the Center of Holdanis, which limit the destructive energy of magic cast by higher beings.

Lower beings couldn't even take down a building in the Center, which is wild considering that the larger part of the population isn't enlightened.

Cidion stares at our fight, observing us for the whole 10 hours without issue. There's much more to this geezer than it seems at first glance. His eyes trail our every movement, taking note of our weaknesses.

"These kids are the best in the whole nation, I'm sure of it. I don't think there has ever been someone so strong at their age in the entire history of our world."

After another well-spent five hours had passed, we finished our spar for the day.

Amon was on the brink of attaining his stigmata, something that Cidion forbade.

"You have to best Adam without it, after which you can unlock it," were his words, which I didn't quite get. I just went with the flow, listening to what the man with over 300 years of experience has to say.

The Sword Saint rustled both of our hairs, congratulating us on our win. "I can't believe you fought for 15 straight hours while being so sleep deprived."

He was referring to a problem I've been having recently. The Dreamer has started to invade my dreams more and more, taunting me with his threats and stories. I didn't know which of them were true, and which ones were just his manipulation techniques, but he has gotten to my head.

Cidion learned the basics of dream magic with me, so he could chase my nemesis away while I slept, but couldn't do anything else.

I tried to ignore it, fight it with my understanding of dream magic, but it was fruitless. His presence got to me, and his strategies carved into my psyche.

Evy was extremely close to unveiling the secret of the book that I was relying on, expanding her own manapool while also becoming a master of dark magic. Cidion was as surprised with her intellect as he was with Amon and myself.

-

On one faithful day about a week later, Evy stopped our spar. Amon was almost beating me, but it was because my reactions had gotten slow and my body didn't listen to what I ordered it to do. Amon could defeat me, but I saw him holding back. He couldn't accept his victory if I wasn't at my full strength.

The bags under my eyes told of my handicap, which made Amon furious. "I'll carve his heart out, that stupid dream asshole!"

I just stared at the ground blankly. "The Dreamer isn't a he or she, it is an entity, purely made to antagonize me..."

Remy has tried contacting me to help him with the rising red-eyes situation, but Cidion insisted on me staying here, telling Remy that I have no useful information. I was honestly close to telling Cidion about my previous lives, and my whole history, but I still stayed with just revealing that the Dreamer wants me and my mark.

I was tired, but couldn't get quality sleep. The Dreamer's magic was untraceable, and he was hidden well. It knows that Cidion could defeat it, so it plays its moves well.

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Thankfully, this was the day things would change.

Evy opened her hands in front of her, motes of black appearing out of thin air, connected by see-through lines of the same color.

My tired eyes opened fully. "Did you master it??"

She smiled pridefully. "That I did! We have everything prepared," she says while handing me the book. "I've studied it so much that I know its contents down to the letter.”

Amon was excited, just like me. Cidion would also witness something that he has never seen before, so he, too, looked forward to this. After everything was set up, he took hold of the book. "I'll be the vessel for this ritual, as it is beyond the scope of simple dark magic that my colleagues use. If something goes wrong, just run and leave me be. We've got everything down and secured, but just in case."

This wasn't your everyday magic ritual that someone can do by forcing a large burst of mana into the dark affinity. It was a very complex spell chain that would invoke the presence of 'the Ancestral Ones' from the Other Realms. Neither Cidion nor I knew what either of those truly meant, but he understood the magic.

"Ready?" Cidion asks.

We nod our heads, with Evy grinning like this was a school project she's about to present to her teachers, and Amon rubbing his hands together in suspense.

I was nervous, as my gut told me something bad was about to happen.

Dark mist circled around Evy as she focused on casting spell after spell. Motes of black appeared again, starting to circle around her just like the mist. The dots became circles, as muted colors resembling a dark blue also appeared. Her ponytails levitated with her clothes, being under the influence of intense pressure from mana. Cidion grabbed her shoulder, lending his plentiful amount of mana for her spells.

The sky darkened.

Black crows of mist started appearing, some flying in the air, and others standing on the ground while observing us. Their loud cawing was overshadowed by a rumbling sound, coming from the dark sky.

The black clouds started rotating, forming a cyclone that spanned far enough to encase the whole sky from our perspective.

Cidion's face hardened, as the tough part came. "Steady now, just like we practiced."

Evy was fully focused, her eyes closed as she raised her hands, now reaching slightly over her head. The magic was intense, as I felt incredible power surging around her. The circles of black around her started gyroscoping, as the ground began shaking violently. An earthquake that only a proficient enlightened mage could create erupted, almost making us stumble onto the floor.

What happened next seemed out of this world, and caused the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up. Liquid drops of a jet-black material hung from the sky like butterfly cocoons. They were enormous, the size of a building. No, they might've been the size of a castle or larger.

I barely heard Cidion screaming at me, projecting his voice with magic. "Calm the quaking down!"

Amon and I nodded to each other, using our full power to influence the ground beneath us. He was incredible, doing just what he was supposed to. We had to calm the raging mana that started cracking the ground, influencing the mana in it, treating it like a giant structure. This kid wasn't just a short-tempered demon that had burning flames, he was a prodigy just like myself.

Amon's hands shook, veins popping on his arms and neck. "I can't hold it for long!!"

I was also at my limit, and not even a minute had passed. We managed to calm the quaking, but the amount of power was too much for us to handle. It seemed like the world was ending.

Rays of blue light akin to lightning rained down in almost-straight lines, creating enormous craters and lifting the gray ash we created into the air.

Evy's voice cut through the mayhem. "I've got it!!!"

Cidion jumped away from her, lifting his hand into the air while casting a giant ball of dark magic above him. "Come on, let's see what you got!"

A ray of blue light struck above him, but didn't make contact. The light piled into a shifting mass of blue magic, but we couldn't sense it. This wasn't mana...

My fists clenched as I realized what was happening. This was a bad development.

"It wants her!" I yell with as much mana as I could muster, releasing my grip on the ground.

Cidion had a look of confusion on him that I despised at the moment, as it meant something went the way it wasn't supposed to. Evy waved her hands at him. "Let me! I can handle it!"

No, she cannot!

I felt the ground shaking again, as urgency made itself clear. I looked at Amon, who was bleeding from his nose. "Do something!!"

If she doesn't finish the ritual, the entire area might be in danger, and even the whole region of Holdanis. Is Anul going to come here to stop this? I couldn't rely on him, even if his Greatness is a Hand.

I could see Cidion was against the idea of making Evy the vessel, but it seemed like this was the only way.

Did I screw us up? Are we about to die and I'll be sent back to the treasury??

Suddenly, Cidion released his black sphere, allowing the blue energy to strike Evy, just as it wanted to. He broke the only restriction he had over that energy, the only control we had...

With a deafening bang, everything stilled. Our surroundings stabilized, but the sky remained black with the droplets still hanging.

Cidion, Amon and I rushed to see if Evy was okay, but all three of us stopped about 10 feet shy of her. Something was wrong.

She unbuckled her hair, letting it flow freely. Her dark hair levitated like it was in water, as her eyes opened to reveal an abyss sprinkled with stars out of this world. Her eyes showed a universe that we couldn't comprehend and she looked older physically. It was like her body entered the late teens, with subtle dark makeup appearing on her face.

She cracked her neck and took a look at us. "Invoking something that you don't understand. How usual for the Messiah," she said in a deeper, yet still feminine voice.

I grit my teeth. "Who are we speaking with?"

She chuckled condescendingly, covering her mouth with her hand, which had turned black with white fingernails. "I couldn't explain such a thing to your little head yet. It is beyond your current understanding."

Cidion stepped in front of me, grabbing the hilt of his sword, ready to protect me and fight for Evy. "How about you try someone that has a few centuries up his ass."

She laughed again. "You're all the same to me. A few centuries in this world means nothing to me, you're still a newborn that hasn't taken its first breath."

Cidion smirks, even though he's probably petrified. He's trying to remain calm, so that we don't panic. The thing was, we couldn't sense its aura... "What if his Greatness arrives here, you wouldn't talk down on us, would you?" Cidion states firmly.

Her smile doesn't waver. "What you view as the pinnacle of strength couldn't be less important. Let's not waste my time and get to the point," she says while taking a step forward.

Cidion takes his sword out, pointing it at Evy—or whatever was possessing her.

Whatever was in Evy's body snaps its fingers, and Cidion's sword turns to ash, falling onto the floor in a few shocking moments. "Are you deaf perhaps? I asked of you to not waste my time, did I not?"

We were powerless against it, even though whatever was in Evy was heavily shackled by the magic used to summon it. It stepped toward me, holding my chin in its cold hands while looking at me through those galactic eyes. "I can help you defeat the Dreamer, and offer some information on your mother's murderer," it says while glazing its fingers over my neck gently. "But naturally, I have a favor to ask in return."