Isaac watched Dante walk out the door, but paid little attention to his disciple.

Behind the pupils that had long ago tired of existence, hovered a rare feeling for him. Excitement.

Getting up, he looked into the emptiness to his right. Ordering existence to bend to his will, he opened a crack. It was ironic that someone who desperately wanted to escape life had the power to take the lives of so many others.

There were days when Isaac was grateful to be so focused. It wouldn't take more than a few hours to end this entire lower realm, which sometimes deserved death.

Crossing over to the other side, he was seized by a great coalition of energies. If not for his body, honed to the edge of perfection, at that moment there would be no more Isaac Asikav.

"Greetings, Isaac," said a voice whose deep denoted antiquity. It was that kind of voice that carries wisdom even when it has nothing. "How is our little project going, if I may ask."

Locating Zay's body without difficulty, Isaac replied "You knew all along, didn't you?"

Isaac long ago lost the need to speak, even before someone at the top of the sovereign' realm, with decorum.

With a brief grunt, Zay said, "If you're talking about how the boy's new Qi works, I had a vague idea. You see, when dealing with ancestral monsters, there's no way to be sure of anything."

"That I already figured. I'm talking about the rest of the four. You see, in those few days that I watched them, I found some very curious things about all of them."

With a movement of his mouth that looked like the outline of a smile, but with teeth that defied the concept of one, Zay said, "What an opportunity you have. Do you know how rare each of those four are? Even if I wanted to, I couldn't find anyone worth my attention in the sects. Only from time to time. Four children at the same time. That is almost without precedent. Why do you think I sent my best to a sub-sect? Even if aquamarine is one of our top ones, it's not easy to allocate a resource like you."

Thinking about it, Isaac couldn't help but agree. If just one of those four could live up to their potential. The possibilities were limitless. Faced with that realization, part of him couldn't help but root for Dante.

He didn't know exactly what was different about that boy. It was as if his eyes were pure flame, which consumed any word Isaac spoke about cultivation.

"Just tell me more about the plans. You know I don't like to be left in the dark," Isaac said, as he opened another crack to return to the castle.

Before he could pass through the reality cut, however, he was surprised by a voice that didn't even seem to come from the same throat as just now.

"How is she?" Zay said, pain echoing in the words.

"I've been paying attention to her, just like you asked me to. She seems ... fine."

"Good. Please take care of her in case something happens. If I come close to losing her again, I don't know what I would do..."

Agreeing with his head, Isaac returned his walk. Zay certainly knew that even with Isaac there, should there be another crisis, he doubted that anyone from that world would survive.

--

"About fucking time, huh," Rim said, as Dante entered the room.

A wonderful smell overtook Dante's senses before he could even think to respond.

"Be grateful that we waited for you. I told them to eat a long time ago," Rim said, still sounding angry.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Dante saw Hector raise one of his eyebrows in the kitchen. "Don't worry, we'd never eat without you."

When Dante passed through the living room and into the kitchen, the simple table that stood there was almost unrecognizable.

Sabrina was arranging the dishes, delicately placing the knife on the right side and with the bristles facing inward. Dante had lived with his grandmother long enough to know that this was the way etiquette dictated the arrangement of the silverware.

The sound of Dante's footsteps snapped Sabrina out of her trance-like state, and she frowned as she looked down at the table, scrutinizing the work carefully.

Turning around, she quickly returned to her usual Sabrina self, her cheeks slightly rosy.

"Hi, we've been expecting you!" said Sabrina, eyes fixed on Dante.

"Make way, coming through!" said Hector, just before coming to the table holding a pot with both hands.

"I hope you enjoy it. This is a traditional dish in my family. Salmon with green leaves."

He didn't have to make an effort for everyone to take their places at the table, eating.

The next few minutes were marked by absolute silence, save for the sound of cutlery and mouths. Dante ate voraciously. He had underestimated how hungry he was.

"Woa, Hector, that was fantastic," Dante said, as he pleased his friend.

"It's true! Thank you so much for doing that for us. You didn't have to. Let me know when we have to pay. Let's split the ingredients," said Sabrina, who shared Dante's opinion. For her, it might be even more remarkable to eat such a meal. The taste, the atmosphere. Everything reminded her of her old family. New memories like this were a luxury she had long forgotten.

"I agree, it wasn't so bad," Rim said, as she tried in vain to find some leftover food in the pot.

"Thank you all very much, it was a pleasure to cook for my new friends. Sabrina, you don't have to pay anything, I will make it a point to cook for you whenever we can. Even as cultivators, it is important that we maintain a strong friendship. It's true the saying that unity makes strength, these days you need to be a true genius to ascend alone."

Dante didn't know if Hector was being modest or in fact omitting the truth. He thought that now was a good time to try to clear up the doubts that had appeared earlier.

"Hector, how come you're not the same as the Drako clan members? I mean, you were the closest gold that came here, and I see Rim and you talking about your family, so it must be one of the powerful ones, but I haven't seen anyone from it so far," Dante said, staring at Hector, fishing for answers.

Hector instinctively looked at Rim, who stopped foraging for food and expressed a hard expression, very different from her usual good mood.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "Well, I'll be honest with you. Me and R-"

"Hector, no," Rim said, suddenly getting up from the table.

Gesturing with his hand for her to sit back down, Hector resumed, "Rim, don't worry, I'm not going to put you in danger. Dante trusted us, it's the least we can do," Hector said, as he pulled out of his pocket a circular, blue stone, a bit lighter than the usual sapphires.

Pressing on the stone, a barrier of Qi passed over Dante, who felt its icy touch. The barrier stopped at the edge of the kitchen, visible only at a closer look.

"That's so no one can interrupt us. Rim and I are here for something else. I can't reveal what to you yet, so for that I apologize. The bottom line is. My family resides a long way from here, and members usually go to another sub-sect. I came here because I am isolated. Why, I can't reveal yet either, but now you know that everything is a bit complex."

Rim looked at Dante and Sabrina alternately, as if trying to decide what to say.

"Dante, Sabrina, this is serious. Don't say any of this to anyone, even if the information seems to be not much. I know you have your own adventures too, but please don't say it," Rim said, with a seriousness that Dante thought was impossible to exist in her.

Dante just nodded his head in agreement. He knew how important certain secrets were to keep, and could harm their keepers if they were discovered.

"Don't you guys keep wondering who it was that put us on the same team?" asked Sabrina, earning glares from everyone. "I mean, I bet none of you told many people everything, so it must be someone with resources beyond what I can imagine."

Hector stopped to think for a moment, and then said, "After Dante told us today about what was happening to him, Rim and I came to the conclusion that it must probably be someone who focuses on our colleague, and put us together because we are the strongest here in theory."

Dante decided not to collaborate with the conversation. He couldn't let go of who was behind everything, and he didn't want to put himself in a web of lies that was bigger than he could handle.

After that, there wasn't much mood for conversation anymore. Everyone seemed exhausted from everything that had happened that day. Since Dante was no help at all, he washed the dishes, took a shower, and was the last to retire to his room.

After closing the door, he soon threw himself on the bed.

Looking at the emptiness, the boy thought about what a mess everything was becoming. A mysterious dragon, Isaac, the new monster inside his core. Everything was spinning in his head.

Remembering that he had to woken up with the sun's rays, he decided to go to sleep quickly. Tomorrow would be the first day of his routine, and he knew that Isaac would not expect Dante to give anything less than his best.

Closing his eyes, his senses began to give way immediately. There were many questions, but nothing would be resolved at that moment.