The only sound present in the strange grasslands was the rustling of the grass as the calm winds lulled them into their usual dance.

Tensions rose between two figures in the middle of the fields. Edem's smirking face didn't change even after minutes had passed by. He waited patiently for his answer.

"What…did you do to me?" Zanetor asked with dread still painted on his face.

"Hmm?" Edem raised an eyebrow. "I thought I asked you a question first."

Both males fell into an odd silence once again. The look on Zanetor's face gradually shifted to a fiercer expression.

Clearly, he wasn't who he was a few moments ago.

He glared at the cloaked man until the silence was finally broken.

"Ah well, can't help it," Edem sighed as he got up from the rock. " 'Soul Requiem' is a spell that allows me to change the vibrations of a soul's core."

Zanetor's eyes widened at Edem's response.

"Vibrations… of the soul's core?"

"Indeed," a devious grin appeared on the mysterious young man's face. "You see…"

Edem went on to explain both Soul Requiem and the core of a soul.

Apparently, whenever a human died, they were split into three forms: The Reincarnate, The Soul, and The Heart.

The forms allowed in the spirit realm were both the soul and the heart, which acted as the soul's core. As for the Reincarnate, it only served as the substance for the body of reincarnation, to which part of the main spirit lives in the next human life.

He further explained that the core existed even in humans and their unique vibrations were what kept them 'human'.

What his spell— Soul Requiem—did was to alter Zanetor's vibrations to be similar to his initial vibrations when he was alive. This made him regain his memories and even senses as a human, however, it was only temporary.

Edem also stressed that every single spirit had a core of some sort.

"The hell," Zanetor took a step back. "Spells? Soul cores?"

The young boy clutched his head in pain as the feeling of anxiety and the sudden retrieval of his memories took a toll on his mind.

He wasn't sure what to do.

Just who was this Edem person and could he even be trusted?

On top of that, he had to find his mother.

There was no time!

"Are you planning to leave?" Edem's eyes trailed towards the young boy's feet. "Are you really sure about that?"

A strange, cold chill ran down the boy's spine the moment he heard that.

Was he really sure he could survive with all the deadly monsters out there?

He also knew nothing about the spirit world, and it wasn't like he had completely regained his energy as well.

"Tch," Zanetor turned to leave. "I can't trust anyone."

Just then, the earth began to shake violently, and the beautiful night sky shifted into a pure black colour.

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Zanetor felt an incredible weight press against his shoulders as if gravity had been intensified.

"Huh, that's odd," Edem casually looked up. "Hey, kid. Whatever you do, don't move. Understood?"

…

There was no response.

A panicked look flashed across the cloaked man's face as he immediately looked around for any sign of the boy.

He was gone

There was no trace of him

"Damn it!!"

.

.

.

(Unknown location)

"It happened again"

Zanetor stood before what seemed to be nothing but a remnant of an ancient past; stone ruins covered in layers of thick vines. The only thing that seemed to be intact was a tablet which stood right before him.

Behind him was a flight of stairs that led a long way into a dense forest beneath him.

The young boy gulped as he glanced at the vast forest from above. Zanetor always had an inner fear of heights but no one else knew this except his mother.

"Where am I now?" He turned to look back at the stone tablet. "... and what was that heavy feeling from before?"

Zanetor examined the strange relic before him, trying to make sense of the awkward writings etched on its surface.

However, it didn't seem like he was having any luck with that.

An exasperated sigh left the lone boy's mouth. What was he going to do now?

Maybe he should've just stayed with Edem.

At that very moment, a familiar feeling pounced over Zanetor's body. Gravity multiplied and the blue skies turned murky black.

"N- Not again!"

This time, the feeling of being sat on by a thousand boulders was a lot more profound than before.

The poor boy found himself crashing to his knees under the immense force, gritting his teeth in pain as an uncomfortable sting swept throughout his body.

*Ssssss!*

An otherworldly hiss echoed violently within the ruins.

Zanetor then watched in horror as a strange reddish gas emanated from the tiny cracks in the ground. The young boy struggled to keep his head up against the increasing pressure as he stared at the large mass of gas that floated high above him.

Zanetor felt his body begin to collapse, "What- in the… world?!"

All the reddish gas had finally come together at that point, forming an image of a large serpent.

The creature's evil eyes glistened in the currently dark world as it moved in closer to the boy. Its tongue zipped in and out while it approached and the pressure that came with it heightened with every inch of its movement.

"Another one of those creatures!?", Zanetor thought. "No, this one feels different. It feels… sinister."

Both entities seemed to stare at each other, quietly examining.

In an instant, several things began to run through Zanetor's mind.

What exactly was that serpent?

Why did it exert so much pressure?

And more importantly, why did its presence feel so familiar?

"Sinister", the boy's thoughts slowed to a momentary halt. "Just like him."

Memories began to flash before his very eyes, showing him a single scene. It was the image of a man; a man whose presence was similar to that of the serpent.

The same man who took his mother away from him.

Even though it was faint back then, he wouldn't easily mistake it for anything else.

"So that's how it's going to be huh?" Zanetor's eyes darkened. "Of course, it makes sense. The path I'd take to get my mother back is definitely going to be full of your comrades willing to stop me."

Fear began to dwindle within the heart of the defenceless boy as the look in his eyes changed to that of pure rage.

*Roar!*

A blood curdling screech burst out from the gaseous serpent as if it noticed the boy's sudden change in heart.

The horrid creature opened its mouth and bared its sharp fangs as it charged towards the boy.

"Heh", a maniacal smirk flashed across Zanetor's face.

He then gathered up every ounce of his strength and slowly stood against the pressure released by the incoming beast until he completely overcame the constrictions.

"You can throw every bit of malice you have at me!", a dangerous gleam sparkled in his brown eyes as he lifted both arms towards the beast. "However no one will be able to stop me from reuniting with my mother!"

At that moment, Edem's voice echoed in his mind and made his smirk even more crazed.

The serpent let out a final screech before it completely engulfed its target in a tight gas storm.

No one would be able to survive the attack

No one

.

.

.

(Several hours later)

A figure instantly appeared within an old stone ruin. This figure was humanoid in nature and covered with a long cloak, leaving only his head and feet exposed.

His heterochromatic eyes narrowed as he happened to catch the view of a young boy right before him.

The boy faced away from him and didn't seem to move. In addition, it seemed like he had burn marks on his skin.

"Did it get him?", Edem thought.

The cloaked man was about to make a move when suddenly, the young boy spoke up.

"Every single spirit has a core of some sort", Zanetor turned around. "You weren't lying huh"

Edem was taken by surprise.

"You survived?", the cloaked man relaxed. "How?"

Zanetor smirked slightly and then put his hand forward, revealing broken fragments of a crystal.

Tiny amounts of fear pumped Edem's heartbeat into a frenzy as he clearly couldn't believe his eyes.

"You broke its soul core!?"

The young boy responded with a simple nod.

"That serpent seemed to be related to that pressure from before since it only intensified the closer it came", Zanetor explained. "So once it had engulfed me in its attack, I thought I could locate its core."

He continued, "Of course, it was quite easy to figure out. There's no way that intense pressure would be located anywhere near its core since it would fall apart-"

"You searched for the area where the pressure was minimal… and then pulled out its core", Edem interrupted.

"Yup!"

Excitement began to grow into an endless tsunami within Edem's chest. He found it completely insane! Extraordinary!

With such a person so close to him, with such a rare gem

He would be able to achieve his aim.

"Hey Mr. Edem", Zanetor looked into Edem's eyes with all seriousness. "All I really want is to get my mother back, but I can't do it alone… even though I hate to admit it."

Edem responded with a blank expression, "Uh huh."

"Also between us, you seem to know a lot about this realm", the young boy looked away after noticing Edem's comical gaze. "So uhm, I…"

"Yes???", the cloaked man pointed his ears in the boy's direction.

"Uhm", Zanetor's face turned red as he uttered in a really low tone. "I want you to help me find my mom."

"Hah!? Can't hear ya!"

"Jeez, I said I want you to help me find my mom dammit!"

"Heh Heh", Edem smirked.

He wasn't going to let Zanetor out of his sight. Especially now that he knew his plans were about to begin.

"I'll be glad to help!", the cloaked man smiled politely.

The boy's eyes instantly glittered at that response, "Really!?"

"Under one condition."

The expression on Zanetor's face cracked into sudden terror.

"W- What is it?", the young boy gulped.

"Don't address me as mister", Edem folded his arms. "Makes me feel too old."

Zanetor's expression turned to one akin to a clueless child.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Edem took a few steps back.

"Pfft"

"H- Huh!? What's so funny!?"

The stale silence of the ruins and its surroundings were softly broken by the laughter of a single boy.

Little did he know that a tiny portion of the shattered crystals had found their way into an open wound on his left knee.