“You’re earlier than expected.” A bat-winged man flew towards Ren. The familiar grey mask covered his face.

“The credit goes to this guard.” Ren shrugged and continued, “Can you remind him of the importance of keeping this meeting a secret?”

The masked man paused. Inwardly panicking, Ren glared at the masked man. He didn't want the news of the meeting to spread through the guard.

Fortunately, the masked-man understood his hints.

“…Right! You’re one of Miss Kana’s subordinates, right?” The masked man turned to the werewolf guard.

“Yes, Lord.” The werewolf guard bowed. His subservience to the bat-winged man was visibly greater than any respect he had displayed towards Ren.

“The Honored Guest never came to the Mother Tree. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Lord.”

“You’re dismissed.” The werewolf guard departed, and Ren let out a sigh of relief.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. But I do not understand. Why keep this a secret?”

“I don’t wish to attract further envy from the demi-humans.” Ren replied honestly. At present, his infamy was dropping. He could only hope that the storm over his title would settle, reaching a stage where the demi-humans completely forgot about him.

“I understand. Please wait here. Your companion should arrive soon.” The masked-man took to the air. Staring at his receding back, Ren smiled wryly.

‘It's no wonder that demi-humans hold humans in contempt. Intelligence is mankind’s sole weapon. If creatures with flight and other mystical abilities have intelligence, humanity will plunge to the bottom of the hierarchy. Whatever! This isn't my concern.’

Alone, he spent his time in contemplation.

‘I can safely assume that the Divine Emperor is unparalleled in strength. At least, it should be impossible for me to surpass him without Void Arts. Otherwise, Rui would never agree to the bet.’

‘Then, my Forbidden Skills should be insufficient. Its main purpose is ancillary support to Void Arts or a last resort in life-and-death battles. Thus, in my case, Forbidden Skills has minimal use. Even so, I shouldn't abandon it altogether. At present, ignoring the invisible glove, it is my greatest trump card. If only I could substitute Void Arts...'

'There were three other paths in the trial. Spirit Bonding, Magic Crafting, and Honing... But none of them can substitute Void Arts or work well with Forbidden Skills. I need something that improves my endurance and defenses, while at the same time holding its own in normal battles. The last thing I want is to spam Forbidden Skills at every battle. Hm...’

‘Damn it! If only Tara were here. His earth magic was what I needed. Does this world even have Earth Magic?’

As Ren dwelled deeper into his thoughts, he lost track of his surroundings.

Whoosh! Thud!

An object collided onto his head, painfully knocking him out his thoughts.

“Ren!” Hearing the familiar voice, Ren groaned.

“Nez, can you not do that?” The eagle transformed into a familiar cat that jumped onto his head.

“Nehaha! You couldn’t avoid it this time! Lord Nez’s stealth is unparalleled! I was just warming up the other day!”

Ren smiled. Nez reminded him of Rui. However, unlike the deceiving fox, Nez was much more genuine and trustworthy.

“Yeah, It’s almost dawn… I guess?” The humongous tree blocked the skies. Ren could only see the slowly brightening horizon.

The bat-winged man returned. Opening a letter, he spoke.

“Ren, the Honored Guest, and Nenyo-Nonyoki…” The masked man stuttered.

Ren bit his tongue, fighting his urge to burst into laughter. Apparently, Nez’s name was foreign to the masked man.

“It’s Nonyokinyono! Lord Nez to you!” Nez pouted. Its cheeks bulged in disgruntlement. The masked-man coughed before continuing in a serious tone.

“…the searcat, The Divine Emperor will meet you. Before you meet His Grace, remember your manners. Bow upon His Grace’s arrival. Do not speak without permission, and answer every question with utmost honesty and deference. Any sign of disrespect will be taken as a sign of rebellion! Is that understood?”

“Nehaha! Understood.” Nez’s carefree attitude worried Ren. Nevertheless, he nodded.

The mana density in the vicinity changed. Mana charged into the masked man's body as he chanted.

[“Edahi Arts: Instant Teleportation!”]

With a flash, Ren’s surroundings warped.

As his line of sight settled, an empty hall greeted Ren. Purple inscription circles were spread evenly throughout the wooden floor. Ren happened to stand on one of the complex circles.

“Please follow me.” The masked man led the way.

Just as Ren left the circle, a blue liquid covered the inscription circle.

Ssss! With a sizzling sound, the inscription dissolved into nothingness, leaving a clean floor.

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“What is that?” Ren asked.

“Standard security procedure. It stops any unwanted teleportation.”

“Interesting, but how does that work?” Ren asked.

“The Teleform recognizes anyone that travels through it at least once. We destroy any Teleforms used to teleport guests. That way, the guests can’t use them to sneak into the Mother Tree. Effectively, they become one-time-use Teleforms.” The masked man explained while entering a corridor.

‘Ah! So these circles are called Teleforms… Peculiar name.’ Ren hid his smile.

“How are you capable of teleporting to a... Teleform directly? I usually need another teleportation circ- ehem, I meant Teleform.” He asked, unused to the new term.

“It seems like the Honored Guest is interested in Teleportation. Would you like to enroll in Edahi’s university? They teach Magic Crafting in detail.”

“Maybe, but you didn’t answer my question.” Ren replied. He was determined to learn more about teleportation.

“It’s quite simple. I used Magic Arts.”

Ren’s eyes brightened. He remembered reading about Magic Arts. Unfortunately, it demanded heavily on one’s knowledge of the basics.

"Is it possible to teleport without any Teleforms?"

The masked-man fell silent. Puzzled, Ren opened his mouth to ask again, when the masked-man replied.

"Yes, but this subject isn't my expertise. In my limited knowledge, it is an extremely dangerous process, subject to many peculiar rules. You must enquire with an expert for more information."

'Dangerous? Then why would Zuzi use it for a random trip?' This question was doomed to be unanswered for now.

For the remainder of the walk, no one spoke. Ren studied the wooden walls, the occasional statue, and the rare strangers, which mostly consisted of lions.

He expected walls with precious decorations, many powerful guards, and an extravagant display of wealth. However, the Mother Tree betrayed his expectation. It was plain, just like an ordinary wooden house. Besides the vastness of the corridor, nothing caught his eye.

‘Do beasts not care about wealth?’ He kept his thoughts to himself.

The corridor expanded into a large circular hall. Mats were spread in a circular formation, spaced evenly.

A lone black-armored werewolf stood on a mat. With closed eyes, his body was motionless. If he didn’t breathe, Ren would have considered him another statue. He noted a mild killing aura around the werewolf, confirming that the werewolf had plenty of experience with killing.

Besides the armored werewolf, the circular hall only had a notable large door.

“Lord Discipline, I have brought the children.” The masked man bowed.

Discipline opened his eyes. His gaze flew past Nez before stopping at Ren.

“Leave.” The confused Ren wondered if the order was targetted at him.

“Understood.” The masked man departed, leaving Ren and Nez alone with the werewolf.

“Congratulations. Today, you shall become first-class Edahins.” Discipline smiled, but it was awkward and forced.

Nonetheless, Discipline's words reminded Ren of his conversation with Lena. Becoming a first-class citizen was one of the benefits of completing the trial.

“Nehahaha, I’m already a first-class citizen! That isn’t enough for Lord Nez!”

Ren’s heart skipped a beat. Nez’s tone terrified him. The cat had no cognizance of time, place or occasion.

The werewolf’s expression didn’t change and Nez’s demand was left hanging.

Nez pouted and opened its mouth when the door opened, revealing the darkness behind it.

Instantly, an oppressive pressure compressed the air. The temperature rose and it seemed as though the space within the hall was compressed.

It felt like drought had struck. Ren struggled to breathe and his throat was parched. All kinds of complex emotions wreaked havoc within his heart.

‘Calm down!’ Ren took a deep breath. The silhouette of a beast emerged from the darkness.

““Divine Emperor!”” An invisible force pushed Ren to his knees. Before he could understand anything, he heard a low, yet dignified voice.

“RRise!”

Regaining freedom, Ren caught a glimpse of a giant lion of about 4 meters in height. Without hesitation, Ren focused all his attention on the lion. To succeed in his bet, he would have to surpass this lion.

However, his attempts at scanning the lion yielded failure. He couldn’t sense any killing aura from the beast. Either the lion hadn’t killed before or it knew of a method to evade his senses.

Ren’s expression darkened. He could safely discard the first scenario. No ruler could have earned the title of ‘Strongest in the forest’ peacefully. The path to ruling an empire was filled with bloodshed.

This led him to the second scenario; a possibility he dreaded to think. The Divine Emperor could hide its killing aura, a feat which he believed was impossible.

Ren's skill in detecting killing intent was unparalleled. After all, it was one of the requirements that earned him the right to use Forbidden Skills and Void Arts. Ren had never encountered someone capable of hiding their killing aura from his senses. The Divine Emperor was the first exception!

“Discipline, accept my orrder!” The lion commanded.

The werewolf bowed.

“Edahi has adopted these cubs! Frrom today, their fates arre linked to my Empirre.”

The werewolf lowered his body even further.

Ren felt a warmth within his abdomen. It grew warmer, like a stream of hot water traveling throughout his body.

‘What’s going on?’

Flames burst throughout Ren’s skin. Weirdly, they did not burn his body to crisp. Instead, they combined to form a fireball on Ren’s forehead. It solidified into a medallion.

The medallion consisted of a crystalline base with the engraving of a life-like lion. Staring at it, Ren saw an illusion of a burning lion.

ROAR! The lion roared and the earth shook. Ren's face paled as the ground collapsed.

“You arre worthy of wielding my medallion. Take it!” The Divine Emperor's voice broke the illusion. Ren grabbed the medallion. His hand warmed as he felt a special connection to the mystical object.

The lion returned to the darkness behind the door. The befuddled Ren couldn't regain his bearings as he didn't know what to say. The memory of the illusion terrified him.

Ren felt a piercing gaze from Discipline. Instantly, he bowed.

“Thank you, Divine Emperor!” Only then, did the werewolf relax his gaze.

As the giant door closed, Ren heard a fleeting voice in his head.

‘Human cub, do not rrely on Void Energy. It is a path of evil and destrruction.’

Ren smiled weakly. The Divine Emperor far surpassed his expectations. He couldn’t even estimate the lion's strength while the Divine Emperor had already spotted his trump card.

He could only take solace in the Divine Emperor's benevolent act of keeping his trump card a secret. From the expressions of the cat and the werewolf, he inferred that they knew nothing about the last words of 'advice'.

‘Five years at most… I will surpass you.' Ren steeled his heart.

“Neho? What’s wrong with you?” Nez asked.

“Ah, it’s nothing.” Ren smiled wryly.

“Have you determined your path to strength?” Discipline asked, his voice as frigid as ever.

Ren tilted his head, wondering the werewolf meant. However, Nez replied quickly.

“Bloodline Skills!”

“I see. Do you need a teacher?” The werewolf asked.

“Teach Lord Nez? Nohohoho! Bring your teachers to Lord Nez! Lord Nez will teach them Bloodline Skills!” Nez laughed loudly.

The werewolf's eyelid twitched, but he turned to Ren and asked, “What about you? Which path have you chosen?”

Ren’s heart skipped a beat. He couldn’t say Forbidden Skills, lest the news spread to troublesome Kyo hunters.

However, Ren saw an opportunity! An opportunity to pick a new path! An opportunity to replace his Void Arts! He already had a guess, but he doubted if this world had this legendary path.

Discipline frowned at his silence.

Seeing this, Ren answered, “Earth Elemental Magic…”

He desperately wished the world had Elemental Magic. He had noted Magic Arts and Magic Crafting, two peculiar paths. But in his heart, nothing compared to Earth Elemental Magic, the signature ability of the Zarstorm clan.

He stared at Discipline's mouth, awaiting the next words. If it went against his wishes, he'd have to search for another path.

Discipline's frown deepened. Seeing this, Ren lost hope. After all, the magic systems in the two worlds were so different.

“Do you want a teacher?” Disciple asked.

Ren’s eyes opened wide and his mouth opened unconsciously. Ren couldn't begin to describe his joy as a tsunami of happiness flooded his chest. The change from despair to hope was too quick!

“Yes, please!” He replied enthusiastically.