It must have caught him off guard, because the old, fading man assumed the most detail yet as Cira’s fist pushed him off his feet. The skin of his face rippled and the spatial displacement from her appearance generated enough heat to burn his entire beard off.
He hit the ground instantly and carved a track in the golden field before his face was caught under a boot crackling with black lightning. Cira opened her mouth to speak again but her foot suddenly slammed into the ground. The man had turned to mist and reappeared in front of her face with his fingertips pressed against Cira’s throat.
“You’ve returned sooner than expected,” He laughed as Cira reflexively stumbled back, “I hope you enjoyed my gift—”
Pah!
A flintlock’s burst startled Cira further until she turned to see Captain Shores shrouded in golden light, “Paladins, on me!”
“Bindings of the Sixfold Dawn!” Cira heard a distant shout she recognized as Marco
But six rays of light fell from the sky tight against the Paradise Mage’s body, essentially trapping him between a handful of meticulously placed stakes. He could not move an inch without touching one of them, and each was of similar power to that which she sent through Estelle’s kneecap.
“Radiant Transmission!” Multiple voices said in unison as the rest of Cira’s paladins appeared in the air in a circle, falling rapidly with ivory swords drawn. The golden earth quaked as their holy light formed waves on impact, knocking over surrounding pirates in droves.
No way… What the hell was that?
Once the world became less golden, Cira saw the only one still standing was the Paradise Mage. Even the paladins executing that ludicrous attack were sprawled out on the ground with fractured ankles.
That’s right. We must be in the training grounds. I guess I should be glad he kept them going, and clearly taught them something or other.
There were hundreds of pirates crowding around them in a circle with weapons drawn, half of them looked ready to pass out from training yet channeled their mana to attack regardless. It seemed they intended to destroy the old sorcerer once and for all over his transgressions against their master.
Right… I better stop this, right?
“Your students have made great strides, but their intentions consistently outperform their abilities,” The Paradise Mage spoke before Cira could get a chance. “The whole religion thing isn’t my style, but you seem to have amassed quite the loyal following.”
“I—you think I did that on purpose?!” Cira shouted before realizing there was no use arguing. She had to address her crew before things got out of hand, so she did so on a loud breeze, “The rules have not changed. Continue your training or go meditate with the children.”
Surprisingly, every single child was accounted for, calmly meditating without a worry.
I can’t complain about his treatment of the kids. How did he do that? Half of them were in tears by the time he sent me to the void.
Cira’s crew stared at her befuddled until she shooed them away with a hand and scattered them with a couple tremors.
“To answer your question,” Cira side-eyed the old sorcerer, “No. I did not enjoy your gift. My mind is still struggling to accept existence.”
“Oh? That’s a rather lackluster reaction for someone with so many pouches at her waist,” he replied with a seemingly irrelevant jibe. “You were so excited to receive a pendant with an entire realm within it, but is it not exhilarating to realize that you can draw it from your soul whenever you wish?”
“Huh…?” Are we talking about two different things? “What the hell are you saying? I’m talking about that stupid void you dumped me in. I learned a thing or two, but how dare you trap me?!”
Cira flexed her mana on accident, and was irritated to see it go unnoticed.
“Well, obviously the real void is long gone, so the realm I sent you to is imperfect. Still, time flows anywhere from five to ten percent of base reality’s pace. You have only been gone from Paradise for five days, so stop worrying.” He straightened out his clothes from the heavy battering he received, “But I never trapped you. That was the entire point. Now you can call upon the Paradise Anchor at any time.”
The only action Cira could muster was to stare at him with bewilderment, and he had no choice but to continue.
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“Fine then… Perhaps you did it by instinct. Pull out your pendant.”
Cira did as he instructed, reaching into her pouch and holding the pendant in her hand.
“Okay. Now what?” She was on the edge of her seat for a serious revelation.
“Wha—why do you still keep it there?! Are you so obstinate as to refute my lesson completely? You will never be a great sorcerer if you—”
“Calm down.” Cira said curtly, “I escaped from the void and now you expect me to praise your pendant? It’s the gaudiest thing I’ve ever seen, if you must know. I keep it in my pouch because I thought I may need it. What is your problem today? It’s too early for this.”
“What… what are you saying?” The Paradise Mage too looked profoundly confused. “You arrived here because you noticed the connection between you and the pendant I bestowed. This is my gift—”
“No, I arrived here because I wanted to punch you in the face. If your pendant has special features I’m unaware of, I do not see what that has to do with the void.”
“You…” His eyes went wide as he stared at Cira, “What… what did you do?”
“Also, you’re welcome for refraining from destroying your precious pocket realm, but I’m still not happy with you.” Cira crossed her arms and glared at the man.
“You… you fool.” He let out a chuckle then all of a sudden couldn’t contain his laughter. “You possess an aethereal connection to the Amulet of Paradise, and thus you can store it within your soul, drawing it at will. This was the lesson I laid out. The only way to escape the void.”
“Huh. Now that you mention it…” Cira felt a strange prick at the back of her soul when she thought about it. And what’s this…? That must be Breeze Haven. It dwarfs that which I feel from the pendant… How did I not notice this before? Likely because she was tired of soul searching.
Turns out, she could have appeared in her garden anytime if she wanted. It would have been easy, she just didn’t expect Breeze Haven to exist as a piece of her soul. Rather, it stained her own somewhat. While she was blind to its location, its existence never left her.
So, I could have come back to Paradise anytime, too? That’s too easy a lesson. What a waste of a void.
“I see now.” Cira spoke, “Quite convenient, I admit.”
“Convenient, my ass!” The Paradise Mage shouted, “How else did you get out!? Sheer will?! I refuse to believe it.”
“Fool. Do you know nothing of the void?” Cira was incredibly excited to be able to say that line back at him, despite her tone, “You said it yourself that I have a connection with Paradise. All I had to do was believe my fist would reach you.”
Cira received a swift smack on the noggin, “You are the fool. Even if your unconventional methods and results are impressive on their own, any praise I considered giving you is muddled by that arrogant personality of yours. It’s as if you think you can accomplish anything.”
“Is that not what it takes to be a sorcerer? Even if it’s too much for me, I am obligated to try if my sorcerer’s code has deemed it necessary. That’s how I ended up here, after all.”
“Hah. The sorcerer’s code… Never have I heard it spoken in such a serious, unironic manner. If a sorcerer needs to rely on a code learned through years of experience to do what’s right, are they even deserving of the privilege? Don’t tell me my student—”
The gold around them subconsciously turned molten, “You may offer me guidance if you so wish, but be careful refuting my father’s instruction. I am not opposed to feeding your current remains to my pet spider, though it goes against my sorcerer’s code.”
“It is a relief to see my student can be serious sometimes, at least.” The Paradise mage sighed. “Allow me to apologize for offending you. This old man has grown bitter. While the results speak for themself, I have never heard of a Great Sage. What even is a sage? I am curious, what was your father’s name?”
Cira in fact appreciated the apology. He was quite reasonable as far as dead men go. However, the Paradise Mage had mentioned things Tawny did and spoke about before even reaching Paradise, so she was certain he heard her explaining his father’s demise as they followed the clouds.
“He never explained it himself, or even claimed the title directly. That’s just what the people called him as we parted each time, more or less. It is my own understanding that a sage is one who has reached mastery over sorcery. But meeting you over a thousand years past your death has certainly made me concerned that perhaps I didn’t understand his status whatsoever.” Cira shook her head, walking through the orchard they found themselves in, “Are you not a sage, old man? I sure as hell don’t know what a high chancellor is supposed to be if not a pretentious way to phrase ‘king’. In fact, what even is your name?”
“Hah.” The chancellor picked an apple off the tree and took a bite, smiling at the sun he hadn’t walked beneath in so long, “You know it already. Your students have taken to calling me Grandmaster Ionath, but you may call me Master Io if you wish. The Coalition merely bore my name because I founded it.”
“Ah… How creative—”
“As Chancellor I led sixteen skies to mutual prosperity over a harrowing handful of centuries. The heights of my sorcery were unmatched in my time, but it seems there are even greater forces in this world…” Mana fell from his outstretched palm as despondence dripped from his voice. Can such a thing truly be said? I think this old man has grown perhaps a little too bitter.
“Io… You are very wise, that much is clear. Still, you claim to be a sorcerer yet know nothing about the nature of sorcery?” A golden table formed at the edge of her fertile seedbed overlooking the training grounds and two glasses filled with ale. “There is no such thing as powers which exceed sorcery, for sorcery itself is the very understanding and authority over said powers.” Aquon, Prismagora, Shadow Quill, and the orichalcum staff appeared in formation above her. Her father had his own set of weapons he called upon to prove a point or two, but then a dull wooden knock clattered against the table between them. “The power which brought you to ruin is something I have always known. A pox on my existence and a past full of regret. It was my real father who taught me the sorcerer’s code and the strength to overcome my sins—to command them to my own end. You know that so-called ‘god’ that granted the sovereign of Ventra his powers? I cannot speak to the depths of your mastery over sorcery, but my father, Gazen the Myriad Sage… He swatted one of those gods away with me in one arm a smile on his face.”