The light was a beautiful green, the sort that made one feel cozy and at home. It spread quickly, runic lines etching itself into the eroded rock until, with a burst, it bloomed into an ethereal tree.
It had bare branches of the same gentle illusory green, its branches spreading out to bloom sparkling golden leaves.
While the body of the tree was translucent, it carried a substance to it so heavy and ingratiating that Theron almost felt like he was levitating off of his feet toward it.
Just before he took an involuntary step forward, he managed to stop himself at the last moment, his eyes narrowing.
’What a strong pull…’
It wasn’t necessarily trying to control him. The feeling that Theron was getting wasn’t malicious at all. Instead, it more so felt like his body naturally understood that something ahead benefited him a great deal.
Interestingly enough, it should have been the actions of the Immortal Jellyfish despite the fact there wasn’t a particularly great increase of Water Mana in the region.
In fact, it seemed closer to Wood Mana than anything else, though it wasn’t quite that either. It was just a supremely strong, vitality-filled Mana.
’Well, there’s no going back now.’
Theron walked down the steps slowly as illusory plants of green and gold continued to spontaneously form, spreading out.
When he reached the bottom, he continued to walk forward until he walked right into the thick trunk of the translucent tree, vanishing.
Silence fell in the region, the beautiful scenery growing until it got right to the edge of the depressed rock formation.
It waited there, sitting for a long while as though hoping that someone else would e.
But no one did.
A depressed sigh seemed to echo through the air, and as though deflating, the beautiful foliage began to retreat. In its wake, the rock crumbled further.
The energy of the Verdant Bloomstone and Echo Pill ran out, and soon everything was gone.
All that was left behind was more crumbled, eroded rock.
Near the very edge of it all, the grass that once surrounded it wilted, withering away. The scent of death filled the air.
**
Theron felt a flash in his eyes, blinding and carrying quite some permanence. His body tensed as it took several seconds for the flash to finally leave him, clearing his vision enough to see what was ahead of him.
A hall.
Or was it? It was hard to describe it that way. It was almost more like an observatory, but it carried the grandiose air of a palace’s entry and hosting area.
Up above, there was a domed ceiling of glass that reflected the night sky, the stars, and nine moons that seemed… far too close to be natural, and yet felt every bit as real as any moon Theron had ever seen.
The moons reflected various colors, each one slightly different from the last, variations of pinks, violets, and blues.
Theron found himself staring at the blue ones for longer than usual, feeling like he quite liked the color for some odd reason.
Shaking his head, Theron looked ahead and saw the four statues that truly made this feel like a grand hall. They must have been at least 50 meters tall, if not more, but this wasn’t what truly caught Theron’s attention.
’Soul…’
One statue was that of a woman. Her breasts seemed almost exaggeratedly large, something that Theron wouldn’t even bother to take into account if not for the fact she wielded a staff she pressed right between them, resting the smooth orb that adorned it at the peak of their crevice.
’Spirit…’
The next statue was of a man. His eyes were particularly dark and murky, like a swirling mass of blackness. His features were sharp, and his stature was the shortest of them all.
Looking at it, though, one would wonder why Theron had concluded Spirit Mancer. The man looked far more like an assassin, countless blades sheathed on various locations on his body, not to mention the straps that almost certainly hid more lethality.
’Flux…’
Another man. He was calm and unassuming, not carrying the bulkiness of many Flux Mancers, and even having a bow strapped to his back.
Theron’s pupils couldn’t help but tremble when he looked at this bow. It felt like some unknown danger had locked onto him, like it didn’t matter how far he rushed away, he would find an arrow through the heart regardless…
Almost subconsciously, Theron’s head snapped back to the large-chested woman and the Spirit Mancer. He stared at them intently until he felt it, a looming mass that hung overhead, so far and away stronger than himself that nothing he did could ever allow him to catch up.
The assassin made sense. He did this all his life.
But the woman… she was even more deadly.
Those sweet eyes and that dripping-with-honey smile. She looked like a big sister that would rather starve and tremble in the cold than let her younger sibling go with food or blankets.
Yet, she was no less dangerous than the archer who arrogantly displayed his prowess.
Theron’s eyes slowly shifted to the last.
’… Elemental…’
A woman. Barely taller than the assassin, she stood in silence, her hands hidden beneath long sleeves and her head adorned by a pointed witch’s cap that hid much of her eyes. She almost seemed to be asleep, but when Theron watched very intently, he just barely managed to see the tip of her wand pointing out from her thick sleeves.
Dangerous. Every one of them was dangerous.
The hall rumbled.
The Elemental Mancer woman’s head slowly tilted up until her hidden eyes locked onto Theron.
Theron’s heart seized. He didn’t know why, but in this place, he was having a very hard time controlling his emotions like he usually did. But he also had no idea why.
Was it because he had truly never e across people so powerful before? Or was it something else?
The woman’s statue pulsed, and a projection formed out of a neutral Mana, descending until she faced off against Theron, standing at just a half-inch or so taller than him.
She smiled.
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