The rest of the week passed without much activity, and the field trip day arrived.

Although it would have been easier to just travel by Mirror Realm, there weren't enough demons who could transport all of the first-years.

Leon and Elvis followed the groups that had been formed, this one being led by Duke Andras (the teacher of Skill studies).

As they all walked through the hallways, they arrived at a small door. It was labeled Mission Door.

Duke Andras threw it open, all of the students following behind her.

As they emerged from the school, Leon shielded his eyes from the red sunlight.

Looking around the clearing, he could see multiple carriages looped around in a circle. They were being towed by huge fiery beasts, whose bodies seemed to be burning with a pale blue fire.

Lily arrived right next to him. “Those are Nuckelavee. Pretty common, created when a Lost One fades away.”

Leon turned to her. “Do you like learning about this stuff?”

She nodded. “Aren’t they interesting?”

Leon was about to reply when Duke Andras called for them to get into a carriage, four in each.

As Leon, Elvis, and Lily entered one, Luke also joined them, his handsome face looking a bit depressed.

“You okay?”

As Luke shrugged in silence, Leon prayed a thanks to the Gods.

‘My wishes have been granted.’

As Lily and Elvis launched into a debate about whether cereal was soup or not, Leon stared out of the window as the carriage slowly began to roll.

Getting used to the slow thud of the wheels, he leaned his head against the cold glass, slowly falling asleep.

***

“Wake up! We’re here.”

As Lily jostled him awake, Leon woke with a garbled mumble.

Stepping out of the carriage, and stretching his muscles, he asked Elvis, “How long was I asleep?”

Making a tsk tsk sound, Elvis replied, “About six hours. How do you even sleep that long?”

“I’m so hungry.”

“We stopped for lunch, but Luke told us not to wake you.”

‘Damn that bastard.’

Looking around the landscape, he stared in wonder at the huge island floating in the sky. A huge set of metal stairs connected it to land, looking like a beautiful painting as the crimson sun slowly set into the horizon.

As all the kids in the carriages stepped out, they all began the trek up the stairs, arriving at the top after an hour of hiking.

They walked some more, marveling at the huge skyscrapers that were twisted into intricate shapes, and wincing at the groups of criminals nestled into their hidey holes.

Archlord Rangda went to the front of the crowd, signaling for their attention.

“We will go to our hotels to rest. Let’s meet at this place tomorrow morning.”

Yawning, she and the other teachers walked into a tall building, a Lost guard letting them in.

Lily walked up to him and Elvis. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow. I think the boy’s hotel is over there.”

As Leon and Elvis entered their building, a Lost attendee directed them into their rooms, providing them with an assortment of clothing to choose from.

Putting on clothing made with stronger materials - thinking about what he had to do today - Leon nestled into his bed and turned on his Genesis Plate, scrolling through the news.

As night soon fell, and Leon’s room was the only room with the lights still on, a light knock came.

Switching off the computer-like device, he opened the door, nodding a greeting to the young boy.

The boy walked into the room, leaping onto the bed.

“Are you ready?”

Leon nodded, anticipating the danger.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Okay.”

Suddenly, the boy’s hand lashed out, gripping Leon’s arm.

Immediately, the lights dimmed, and he was suddenly pushed out of reality, appearing inside a forest.

As nausea hit him, he groaned, clenching his teeth to prevent vomiting.

“Wh-what was that? That wasn’t the Mirror Realm.”

The boy rolled his eyes. “I’m not a demon. Only demons can access that. We’re stuck with using Intersai Skills.”

As Leon looked around his new surroundings, he realized that something was amiss.

“How are these leaves green?”

The forest had leaves that were bright green, the fragrance of pine needles in the air. It almost looked like a forest from Earth…

“It’s because this is a forest from Earth.”

“Wait, what?”

Whipping around, Leon stared in disbelief. “This is Earth?”

The boy laughed, shaking his head. “Of course not. This is just a forest from when an Intersai Mage used her magic incorrectly, separating it from reality. This is Attigarth, the Place of Lost Things.”

Sighing in disappointment, Leon looked around. “So where to?”

“Eh…” The boy looked around, pondering for a moment. “There.”

Both walking forward, Leon had to help the boy up multiple times as his tiny legs kept tripping over roots.

Soon, they arrived at a huge temple. It faintly reminded Leon of the Mayan temples he had learned about in Social Studies.

As the boy touched the stone door, runes began lighting up in blue, as the door slowly opened.

Stepping inside, the door slammed shut, making Leon jump.

“Can you get the items inside your Storage?”

Nodding, Leon complied. He took out an assortment of things, ranging from bottles of blood to dried bones.

The boy rubbed his hands, selecting a couple of gems. “These are the Tears of Aphrodite. Should work for the Wraiths inside this place.”

Throwing them into the long hallway, a huge purple fog descended on the stones.

“Hurry up! The Tears won’t work for too long!”

Both sprinting to the end of the hallway, they took a sharp left, where the boy tossed a bottle filled with a green liquid into the deep pool that awaited them.

The pool hardened, the surface steadying into a murky green stone. Running through it, the boy tossed open a wooden door, closing and locking it with one of the dried bones.

Humming a tune, he kicked open a secret door, pulling a lever. The wall sprang open, exposing a huge treasury filled to the brim with glistening gold artifacts and coins.

“Don’t touch anything. They’re all enchanted with a Blood Curse.”

Jogging over to a gold goblet, he handed it to Leon. “Drink this.”

Sniffing at the strange white liquid, Leon downed it, pleasantly finding that it tasted like pineapples and oranges.

Immediately, a man wearing a mask and a white cloak appeared, bowing to them. He then wordlessly pointed towards a direction, vanishing instantly after.

Walking over in that direction, avoiding the mounds of gold, they stopped at a small hole in the ground.

“Don’t worry, it’s just a visual trick. It’s quite wide,” the boy said, demonstrating as he put his hand through what had looked like the floor.

Both of them leaped into it, Leon grimaced as the smell of trash invaded his senses.

They emerged inside a circular room, where mounted crossbows immediately focused on them.

‘Where the fuck are we going?!’

“Hurry! Do something related to the Wish Stones!”

Hearing the boy’s shout, Leon fired a blast of water, when the crossbows immediately tucked back into the stone walls.

The boy removed a long pole - almost similar to the one that Lily had used - except that this one was gold-colored.

The walls rumbled, exposing a small door inside a corner.

“This is an illusion too.”

They easily walked through the wall, entering another hallway.

“Where are we even going? Why are there so many traps and stuff?”

The boy nodded. “Even I admit it, this is overkill. But the person we’re about to meet is very cautious. After all, she’s the most wanted demon in Sheol.”

“We’re going to a criminal?!”

“Of course not! She’s wanted because she’s the only person who can navigate and control Attigarth.”

“And you're comfortable sharing this with me because…?”

As the boy was about to answer, a trapdoor opened, a grunting giant exposing his shaggy head through.

“She’ll see you now.”

The boy nodded, gesturing for Leon to follow him.

They followed the giant down a spiral staircase, arriving in a huge throne room, where a woman with her face hidden by the folds of her cloak sat on a simple chair.

The giant knelt. “The visitors have arrived.”

The woman waved him off. “Thank you, Jebnir, you may go now.”

Her voice was rather screechy, a bit too high-pitched.

The woman jumped off her chair, approaching the duo.

“So this is the Blessing of the Abyss?”

The young boy knelt, saying, “I send my greetings to the Lost Queen.”

“Now, Jafir, no need to be so polite.”

The boy - Jafir? - nodded, standing up. The Lost Queen peered closer at Leon, her eyes peering through the folds. They were two different colors, one red and one blue.

“So it was you who ate the Wish Stones?”

Leon coughed. “Can someone please tell me what the Wish Stones are?”

The Queen nodded, sitting back in her chair.

“The Wish Stones are the embodiment of the four elements. Fire, water, light, and Prima Materia. And to think that a human would eat them…”

The Queen dug around her cloak, pulling out a tiny hand mirror. “Take off your mask and see your face.”

Deactivating his Skill, Leon peered at the dusty mirror. As he did so, his mouth dropped in shock.

His looks… were divine.

Although Leon had been rather handsome, he had his imperfections, just like everybody else. However, now as he stared into the mirror, he could spot nothing wrong.

Perfect nose, a perfectly shaped mouth, and his hair just the right style.

If he was compared to some of the most handsome men in the world, they would look regular compared to him.

“Wh-what happened to me?”

The Queen sighed. “The Wish Stones will improve every aspect of you. Of course, ONLY if you ingest the first three elements. But you had to go and absorb the Prima Materia as well. Y’know how every light has a shadow? Well, the Prima Materia is the shadow of the elements.”

She stood up, raising her hand. “This will be rather simple. I’ll absorb the Prima Materia, and then I’ll store it into an amulet.” She held up an amber stone.

Slowly, an inky darkness began emptying from his Cores. It began drifting to the Queen's hand, collecting in a dark orb. The process felt rather weird, as if he was losing something that was a part of him.

The Queen twisted the strands of darkness and then directed it into the gem. The gem darkened, changing from amber into a color similar to that of obsidian.

“That’s it,” she said, handing over the dark stone. “When you can control it, crush it. Then the power will simply go back to you.”

“It… it’s that easy?”

The woman nodded. “Of course, only to me. Nobody else could even attempt to do that.”

Jafir nodded gratefully. “Thank you. Your debt has been paid in full.”

The Queen smiled gratefully, her pearl-like teeth glinting.

As Jafir and Leon left, he turned to the tiny boy. “Is that it? So what do you want now?”

Jafir tilted his head, confused. “What do you mean?”

Leon shrugged. “You helped me this much. Don’t you want something from me?”

The boy shook his head. “I have a different reason.”

Quickly, Jafir grasped Leon’s arm, pushing him back into his hotel room, as Leon ran into the bathroom to vomit.

When Leon unsteadily walked out, Jafir was gone.