Just then, a soft voice reached his ears, cutting through his thoughts.
"Are you okay?" Princess Lenavira's concerned tone pulled him back to the present. Max turned his head, spotting her standing a short distance away, her long golden-blonde hair swaying slightly as the gentle forest breeze filtered through the hall. Her expression was calm but clearly filled with worry.
"I'm fine," Max replied with composure, then asked, "How many days was I in that state?"
"A week," Lenavira answered softly, still watching him with curiosity. She could tell sothing had changed—sothing beyond the obvious. Before, Max had been a mystery, a calm boy whose presence was like a ripple in a quiet pond.
But now... there was sothing deeper. She couldn't put her finger on it, but the aura he now gave off felt vast, ancient, and a little frightening.
"A week, huh..." Max muttered, his gaze briefly dropping before rising again with purpose. "Have you prepared the lightning elental technique, soone who specializes in souls, and a place where I can train without being overwheld by evil energy?" he asked, his voice steady and focused.
"I have," Lenavira said with a nod, her tone turning serious. "Co this way."
Without wasting a mont, she turned and began walking, leading Max out of the sacred Ancestral Hall. They moved through the heart of the Sylvaria Kingdom, eventually reaching one of the palaces nestled high above ground.
The palace, though entirely constructed of living wood and resting atop the intertwining limbs of massive trees, didn't resemble a primitive forest structure at all. Instead, it was elegant, glowing with soft natural light, shaped with refined elven craftsmanship that blurred the line between nature and magic.
As Max followed behind Princess Lenavira, he couldn't help but notice the unusual liveliness of the forest around him. The air shimred with bright green specks of light, drifting gently like fireflies, giving the surroundings an ethereal glow. The leaves rustled softly, not with wind, but as if in joy—like nature itself had awakened and co alive.
Max's steps slowed for a mont as he looked around, taking in the beauty. 'So, I really did bring life back into the Elf Kingdom,' he thought, the realization settling quietly in his heart.
But that peace was short-lived, as his expression darkened almost instantly. The mory of the day the enemies invaded—those who had attacked his ho and tried to kill him—flooded his mind. Most of them had been elves. His hands trembled slightly.
'No... there's no need to dwell on that now,' he reminded himself, shaking his head. 'They aren't the sa elves as the ones here. These people... they aren't the sa as the enemies.' With a deep breath, he cald the storm in his chest and resud walking.
"Let's go inside," Lenavira's voice pulled him back, and she stepped through the palace's open doors. Max silently followed her in. The palace interior was just as stunning—polished wooden floors that glead under soft light, walls lined with gently glowing vines, and high ceilings with carvings of elven history.
They walked through a long corridor where elves moved about, each busy with their duties—so discussing maps, others arranging books or carrying glowing artifacts. No one paid Max much attention, though he could feel the curious glances so of them stole his way.
Eventually, Lenavira stopped at a wooden door and pushed it open. Max stepped into a spacious room and blinked in surprise. At the center of the room, lounging casually on a bean bag, was a young human boy around his own age, completely imrsed in so virtual world with a sleek VR headset on.
Max raised an eyebrow. 'This guy? A soul expert?' he thought skeptically. 'And most importantly what another human is doing in an elf kingdom?'
"Yeah! Go ahead and kill him! That bastard killed my teammates!" the boy shouted excitedly, clearly reacting to sothing in his virtual ga. Then, without warning, his expression shifted to seriousness. "Guys, I'll be back in a flash," he muttered before removing the headset.
His eyes t Max's, then shifted to Lenavira, and suddenly, his bored look was replaced with curiosity and a glint of excitent. "So, this is the guy you were talking about, Lenavira?"
"Yes," she answered with a respectful tone. "He is Max Voidwalker."
The boy stood up, stretching lazily before walking up to Max and circling around him like a hawk inspecting prey. "Hmm... interesting," he murmured, narrowing his eyes. "I see you've lost your Yin Soul... or rather, soone destroyed it."
Max froze. His breath caught in his throat, and his eyes widened in shock. This boy hadn't touched him, hadn't asked a single question, yet he had seen right through him. Not just that he had a problem—but the exact issue and its cause.
Princess Lenavira also froze at the mont hearing the boy. As a genius and the Princess of Elf Kingdom, she understood everything about soul. She also understood that a person couldn't live if either of the Yin or Yang soul get destroyed.
It was natural truth. And yet an anomaly stood right before her.
"Is there… is there a way to fix it?" Max asked after a pause, swallowing the mix of hope and nervousness rising in his chest. "Can you help solve this?" His voice was calm, but his heart thundered with anticipation.
"How are you even alive, buddy?" the boy asked, narrowing his eyes as he stared at Max like he was a walking contradiction. "I've seen a lot of cases in my short life, and trust when I say—people with your condition don't last long. All of them, without exception, died within a few days." His voice carried no malice, just the cold weight of reality spoken by soone who had seen death too often.
He tilted his head slightly, studying Max with a mix of fascination and concern. "And from the way your energy moves... I'd say you lost your Yin Soul years ago."
Max's throat tightened. A cold chill ran down his spine. Hearing that so many had died from what he now lived with wasn't comforting in the slightest, but he kept his composure and asked the most important question. "Do you have a solution?"
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