As Aeon recalled the story, he could not help thinking about the thing that has been bothering him for the past two months.
He did not tell Suri about it, but he had actually been thinking about his accident during the Grand Magic Examination. Also, it seemed like the latter had already forgotten about it. Was he really a Greater Demonic Beast?
Where was his magic, though?!
He actually did not mind being a demonic beast. Maybe he could be the first "Good" Demonic Beast in history.
As the grizzly bear that Aeon was hanging onto passed by a large tree, Aeon jumped over. The thoughts about payback on the bear were long forgotten because he was already dangerously deep into the forest. Luckily for him, the bear did not turn around and attack him. He settled on a thick branch and took out the notebook he always kept in his back pocket.
Aside from their large sizes and unusual appearances, magical beasts also had their own unique properties. The bear that they encountered had steel-like fur and possibly skin and the one in the morning had a hard shell on its back. Aeon carefully wrote those down on his notebook. After that, he reviewed his notes related to magical beasts.
There were no clear tiers regarding the strength of magical beasts due to the randomness in their unique properties. For example, the gigantic lizard they encountered during the morning had a shell on its back. This does not mean that everybody in its family had a shell on its back. One could have a metallic tail. Anything that one could imagine. Because of this, they were still recorded according to their origin.
The lizard with a shell was still a lizard. The bear with steel fur was still a bear. Of course, the bear was still more dangerous than a lizard if they evolved equally.
Aeon skipped over some pages and moved on to the notes where he wrote about demonic beasts. It was so important to him that the header even had a circle around it.
The Faully Town Incident was not the only case that concerned demonic beasts. There had been several more, but the rest were not as dangerous as the first. The succeeding incidents only dealt with magical beasts that were able to use magic. They were much weaker than the first, but they were still a pain to deal with. Gigantic creatures that could use magic were extremely dangerous. They were, however, not as smart and dangerous as the octopus child.
With this, the identity of demonic beasts had been established. Those demonic beasts who cannot transform into humans were called Lesser Demonic Beasts, while those who can were called Greater Demonic Beasts. Each was ranked according to their maturity.
There were also several reports regarding sightings of humans deep within the magical beast territories, and those were also taken as sightings of Greater Demonic Beasts.
Aeon closed his notebook.
That was enough contemplating for now. He had to go back to their camp. Luckily, most of the magical beasts were already scared shitless and ran away. The area he was currently in was, for the moment, peaceful. He jumped down from the tree and landed on the ground.
Instead of rushing back, Aeon simply walked while whistling, as if he was just strolling around the park. He had both his hands behind his head without any care in the world. If he could stare at the sky, he would've also done so. He had something to do though.
It was still a good two hours before noon so he had lots of time to search for the wanted items on the list with their images engraved clearly on his mind. In the list of things that could catch Aeon's attention, after the number one spot that belongs to the secrets of awakening one's magic power, money was probably number two.
Aeon hoped for a good harvest.
….
Suri walked back towards the group. Although Aeon was taken away by the bear, he did not look worried at all. A group approached him with Korona in the front.
Korona asked, "Where is Aeon?"
"He took a stroll with the bear," Suri replied.
"Oh, I see," Korona said, enlightened.
Hearing their casual attitude, the students behind Korona yelled, "HE WHAT?!"
Suri and Korona both flinched from their voices. They forgot that their other schoolmates were not used to Aeon's antics. They looked at each other and saw a slight hint of panic in each other's eyes.
"Oh no! Aeon was taken by the bear!" Suri said, waving his hands in the air, feigning a panicked expression. Fortunately, it was good enough to force a reaction from the crowd.
Immediately, the students went into an uproar that caught Klaus' attention. Klaus approached the group and calmed them down. After that, Suri was asked to explain what happened.
In front of authority, Suri had no choice. He carefully narrated everything. In the end, however, he added that Aeon told him not to worry about him and smiled crookedly at Klaus.
Klaus taught for a while, his hand on his chin. After a few moments, he nodded and spoke, "If he says not to worry, then we shouldn't. He must have had a plan or had things under control. Also, if he encounters danger, he should realize that it is the consequence of his rash actions."
Klaus turned around and left, leaving the students speechless with their mouths wide open.
That's it?!
All of them shivered, even Suri and Korona. Klaus was one tough person. Instead of being concerned about a student's safety and saving him from the clutches of the evil magical beasts, he instead looked it over.
Note to self: never be in danger because no one would be coming to help.
Everyone returned to the camp. They weren't really tired from the fighting. Instructor Bell's class was much tougher. Despite this, their shoulders drooped, making them look completely exhausted.
They were tired.
Mentally.
Because of Klaus.
….
"How are the operations?" Montis asked as he handed over a stack of papers to the person in front of him.
"Not very good," the man sighed, "the phenomenon occurs at random areas and at random times of the day making it hard for us to study it."
"Have you found the cause?" Montis asked.
"We believe that it is due to the circular platform in a cave near the mountain's peak," the man replied.
Montis patted the man's shoulder before saying, "That's already progress. Breakthroughs do not come by easily."
"Thank you, department head!" the man thanked Montis and resumed his work. He ran back towards the base of the mountain where other researchers gathered.
When the man was out of his sight, Montis sighed. Although they were doing a good job in the academy despite the lack of staff, he was not very pleased with the progress. The number of resources they were providing could not keep up with the amount they were using anymore.
Witnessing the possibility of severing the bonds between a mage and his own magic, many believed that it could also be possible through alchemy. Thousands of combinations have already been tested, but none were up to par. At most, they could do it by disrupting a person's thoughts for a short period of time, but such a thing could already be done by some drugs. They do not need an alchemist to concoct such a thing and waste resources.
What they need is to induce such an effect, without alerting anyone. It does not matter if it should be consumed or scattered in the air. It only has to be long-lasting and discreet.
Montis looked up the mountain and decided he would pay a visit to the site. After a moment, he disappeared from the spot he previously stood with a gust of wind.
….
It did not take Montis too long to reach the top with his speed. The mountain was not very high to begin with as well. In the said cave, many more researchers were gathered. On the sides, hundreds of books were stacked upon each other.
Some were bending over to look at the circular platform that the man mentioned earlier. It appeared that they were trying to copy the platform's surface. With his curiosity piqued, Montis moved closer.
He then saw the surface of the platform filled with symbols he could not recognize. He could not tell at all if they formed a word or a sentence. He then understood why there were a bunch of history books in the cave. They were trying to discover the origins of the symbols and check whether or not it had already been recorded before.
"How is this platform related to the phenomenon?" Montis asked himself. He had realized too late that he had blurted it out of his mouth.
The three researchers who were copying the symbols looked at him. Recognizing Montis, one immediately stood up and bowed. He adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat.
"My name is Rigel Moff, pleased to meet you, Mr. Leroux," the man extended his right hand forward which Montis immediately shook. "It causes it. At first, we could not believe that such an object could cause such a phenomenon. However, after a few tests, we discovered that the phenomenon could only occur within a certain area and this platform is at its center."
Montis nodded. "Why don't you just take it and carry it around. Put it somewhere to achieve it's supposed purpose?"
"That's the problem," Rigel Moff scratched his head, "it can't be moved. It extends all the way down to the base of the mountain that's why the base is also affected by the phenomenon. Moreover, it won't break. And we do not want to. If it breaks, it might lose its effect. That should only be the last resort"
Montis sighed. In his perspective, as a person who did not delve in research, he could not see any ways to replicate such a phenomenon. In simple terms, they were getting nothing from the platform. For sure, the platform was man-made because it had some engravings on it, but how could they copy the platform if they had no idea what it's made of.
To him, it was all a dead end. Might as well move on and accept the mystery of the mountain.
Montis said no more. He turned around and left the cave.
Note to self: Researchers are such weird creatures.
...