Philip laid on the floor without moving. It's not that he can't move, he just didn't want to move because his body was in ecstasy because of the reformation
It felt good in his feelings
All this time, he listened to the Old Man. He was confused at first about his identity. He also became wary because the Old Man seemed to have an idea about his Fate Control and Future Vision
He learned a lot about Mana Stones, but he already knew them through logic and common sense
Well, based on his imagination and it looked like it was accurate
He already knew all of the types and kinds of Mana Stones that existed. That's why he can turn the Spirit Stones, from the cave up above, into Spirit Gems, to Spirit Crystals, to Spirit Cores, and into one Mystical Crystal
But he was intrigued when the Old Man told him about the Primordial Remnants. Philip wondered how the Old Man knew about the first objects of the universe that was created after the Big Bang
To his surprise, apparently, the Old Man has lived for over a billion years, almost the same age as the Earth itself
His initial impression was that he couldn't believe it, but since he was a believer of fantasy and he is open minded in all possibilities, he decided to believe it
He was just thinking who this Old Man really is and how he could live for a billion years
Philip then learned about half of the purpose ofnthe Mystical Academy. Apparently, it was for him
He found it cheesy and confusing, so he didn't want it. It makes him want to leave the Mystical Academy more
He also learned that there are several more Mana Hotspots around the world. He became happy as the world is starting to change, like what he wanted four years ago
He was even shocked that this Old Man was the shadow entity that he sees whenever he was sick. He thought that it was a nightmare or spirit that haunts him when he was in his weakest
After a few minutes of the Old Man talking and him listening, he learned about the upcoming "Division"
He has no idea if there would be new laws and leaders when the Mysticism Age is revealed to the world
Since the Old Man has told him about the Secret Organizations Division and what comprises it, it made Philip think about the actual drastic changes that will happen
If there will be divisions around the world, the world might turn into anarchy since the public will be forced to be placed in a division that they wouldn't like
He just hoped that the divisions have a proper purpose to develop the world into the better. Even if he used to hate the world before, he won't pass the chance for this world to descend into chaos and implode itself
So he had a goal in mind to develop technologies that have the power to stop people who are not in their right minds. Especially since people that can harness Mana and people that will have abilities will become more apparent in the future
The Cores that were hovering above his body might help with his goal. He had an idea how to use these
Of course, the Old Man had an idea of his plans, that's why he wanted to help and protect him
Philip saw the Old Man as a trustworthy fellow since he told him everything that he know. Though, he is aware that he couldn't trust anyone too much, unless they deserve to gain his trust
The Old Man was even willing to kill and destroy just for him, if he was being harassed or annoyed by the Secret Organizations
At this point, he decided to trust him so he could at least get his own place when he does his own research. He was pretty sure that this Old Man will at least give him a place to live
He had nowhere to go after graduating in Oxford University anyways
The Old Man then described the objects around him, including the hovering Cores
The Old Man said that there was a wooden sword that existed just for him. If the Old Man didn't know why the sword was in here, then he won't know why the sword belongs to Philip
The Old Man placed the sword besides Philip anyways because based on his billion of years of instinct, the sword wanted to go near Philip
Philip also felt that his hand was itching to hold the sword
"I have never seen this in my entire life, and this purple liquid is extremely odd." The Old Man said with interest in his voice
~~~
The Old Man stood from the large rock that he was sitting on. He walked towards the large pool of purple liquid that faintly glows with its color
He then looked at the floating geode above the pool of purple liquid
"This is really odd... According to my knowledge, this can't exist in the Earth, even in our universe... What is this?" The Old Man squinted his eyes as he looked at the geode with wariness
Usually, the Old Man would look at new objects with interest and intrigue, but this time, he looked at it with wariness
He picked up a long rock that looked like a stick and dipped it on the purple liquid up before where his hand is holding it
He then pulled out the stick and the purple liquid coated the stick
The purple liquid then solidified and crystallized across the coated part. The purple liquid became a crystal with jagged edges and irregular patterns, almost like a mutated pinecone
The Old Man observed the purple crystal stick on his hand and analyzed it. He could only analyze the crystal as a raw uncut crystal and nothing else
Just then, the air around the crystal became extremely turbulent and the space around it became distorted. The area around the crystal was filled with darkness. The darkness was not solid, it was actually dark, even though there is light illuminating the area
The crystal then was starting to disappear from the Old Man's view yet he could still feel the weight of the crystal from his hand
At that point, the weight of the crystal was disappearing and became lighter. The crystal was disappearing but he could still feel the crystal stick on his hand
He tried to channel his energy towards the crystal to understand what was going on but his energy was being erased
He accidentally let go of the crystal stick and let it fall onto the purple pool
The dark spot in space that sucks in air in a violent manner, almost like a singularity or void of darkness, fell in the purple liquid
As the dark spot entered the purple liquid, it created a ripple in the calm pool. The darkness disappeared and the violents winds stopped
The crystal disappeared in the pool like it was nothing. But in reality, the crystal melted and turned back to purple liquid
The Old Man observed everything and his danger senses were spiking
He looked back at the floating geode and saw the purple liquid dripping down from the bottom of it towards the pool
The then looked at Philip with furrowed eyebrows
"This geode... I don't know what this is but... You should take it and do whatever you want with it..." The Old Man smiled as he trusted Philip with a very dangerous object
As soon as the Old Man said those words, the purple liquid that is dripping stopped. The geode floated higher and moved. It floated towards Philip and hovered several inches away from the Cores
The Old Man observed the spectacle with wariness and caution in his eyes
He then reach his hand towards the ground and gripped the empty air on his hand. The ground crumpled and a rectangular stone rose grom the ground
The rectangular stone opened like a suitcase and six hemispheres, one large and five small hemispheres, formed at the bottom half and upper half of the suitcase
The Old Man detached the stone suitcase from the ground and like it was a sign, the five hovering Cores and geode flew towards the suitcase and placed themselves on their corresponding sizes
The Cores and geodes seemed to have a mind of their own and deemed the suitcase to be their suitable home or holding bag
The Old Man then closed the suitcase as soon as the Cores and the geode came inside. He picked up the suitcase using his aura alone and went closer to Philip
"Why won't you wake up and stand up? We're about to leave. Is it because you don't want to see me? I know you're conscious." The Old Man said as he also picked up the wooden sword beside Philip
"Hmp, whatever..." The Old Man harrumphed and surrounded Philip using his aura and lifted him in the air
"We'll leave now and I'll drop you off to you potential new home." The Old Man said with a smile as he began to hover in the air and disappeared in a blur, along with the stone suitcase, the wooden sword, and the levitating Philip
The Old Man shot through the chasm towards the Spirit Mines
~~~
The Old Man passed through the tunnels of thr Spirit Mines and exited from the entrance. He darted out towards the sky aiming for the hole that Akayuki and Sunstone made because it was faster that way
As the Old Man flew through the sky and everyone on the ground could be seen. Mostly anyone can't see the Old Man so he flew through unnoticed
Even though Philip could still be seen, he was wrapped and covered by the Old Man's aura and energy so no one present could see him
The unconscious students started to wake up and stand as they hold their head with one arm due to disorientation
The other students helped and tended to the unmoving Yashida that was sitting against the cliffside
Yozu and Yuze just then came out of the entrance of cave
Yuze had dried tear marks on her cheeks and reddish eyes. She still has her transformation of yellow and red tipped short hair. While Yozu had undone his transformation and he looked like what he usually looked
Meanwhile, Lyre was kneeling down on the ground, where Chihaya's body was supposed to. She was staring in the emptiness while Sonar had her head down with closed eyes as she holds Lyre's shoulders while levitating in the air
Alex was still lying on the ground with his right arm over his eyes. He was gritting his teeth as if he was in pain. Nana was beside him with her eyes closed as she enveloped Alex with a light green aura
Yozu stopped in placed and crossed his arms. He had a sad look on his face. He looked up towards the sky, past the Core Academy, and saw that the weather was slowly clearing, signifying the end of the conflict and storm
Yuze walked towards Lyre with slow steps. The black glint on her eyes were flickering and her eyes were full of sadness
Lyre slowly raised her head and turned her head behind her as she felt Yuze approaching her. Sonar turned her body and panned to the side so she won't be a bother
Lyre saw Yuze's demeanor and it was a bad one
Without them talking, Lyre already knew. Seeing only Yuze and the Headmaster, a bug tear flowed out from her left eye and dripped down on the ground
The spot where the tear dropped shone for a split second
Yuze then fell to her knees in front of Lyre like she was giving up. It was also because she feels worst because she didn't save Philip for the both of them
Lyre couldn't do anything but let her tear flow and stare at Yuze
At the far distance, just below the hole at the ground, Aoyuki just came and tended to Akayuki
He collected the shattered Japanese swords and picked up Muramasame. The sword let Aoyuki pick itself up as it was aware that he was Akayuki's blood brother. Although, Muramasame was still emitting bloodlust and demonic energy
Aoyuki was just absorbing the demonic energy while cancelling the excess bloodlust with his Ao Oni aura
He then lifted up Akayuki and placed her on his shoulders. He disappeared in a bright blue blur
At this point, the Old Man was flying through the hallways and passed Karina and Knight
Karina was seen pecking a kiss at the sleeping Knight, who fell asleep on Karina's lap
The Old Man then past the door frame of the Door of Recognition and exited the Core Academy
The weather was still raining with a slight drizzle here and there and quiet thunders. The intense winds became calm as a soothing breeze covered the Mystical Academy
The snow storm became a fall of majestiv snow flakes that melt as droplets from the drizzle collide with each other
The dark clouds began to move in the sky and was being replaced by a lighter color. There were only a couple occasional flashes of light in the horizon from lightning strikes
Overall, the intense weather has calmed down
The Old Man flew higher and past the Troposphere, past the clouds
As soon as the Old Man past the clouds, he was met by the bright Sun and the golden layer of the clouds due to the light from the Sun
The scene was majestic and mesmerizing but the Old Man was unmoved since he already saw this kinds of scenery since he was born
A few minutes later, the Old Man has exited the Mystical Academy and boosted himself to fly faster towards the east
At this moment, Philip has finally left the Mystical Academy, without saying goodbye to the good people that he met
He will go towards a new adventure and meet new people
What will he encounter after he arrived and what will he do once the world started to show change in the public?
~~~
A few hours later, the Old Man has arrived at the destination, Los Angeles, California
Truth be told, the Old Man would have arrived here in just a few seconds from China, but he has to be careful since he was carrying important items and Philip's body
"Have you finally opened your eyes?" The Old Man asked even though he already knew that Philip did it
Philip did not reply and just stared at the stars in space. He could see the stars since he was above the clouds and the visibility is clearer than below the clouds
At this time, it was night and the city lights can be seen high above the sky. Philip couldn't help but also look to his side to see it. It was a soothing feeling, seeing these individual lights, like a fire that was flickering and trying to live
Philip took a deep breath and began to speak
"Where are we?"
"We're at LA"
"Cali?"
"Yes"
"What are we doing here?"
"I have a mansion in the outskirts of the city. In that mansion, is full of personnel that follows all orders. They are all loyal, maybe too loyal." The Old Man boasted his mansion to Philip
"What does have to do with us coming here?"
"As I have said earlier, I'll be dropping you to a place where you can do whatever you want!"
"You don't mean..." Philip immediately understood what the Old Man was trying to say
"Yes, I'll be giving you my mansion"
"Hm... Okay..."
Philip was overwhelmed that he would be getting a mansion just like that. In truth, he was excited and happy, but he is aware and wary about the developments that this entails
Being given a mansion and living there could lead to different developments and those developments are unpredictable
Anyways, he just let the Old Man give him thr mansion and accept it. He would be grateful to be given a home and a chance to do everything he wants
A few more minutes later, the Old Man started to descend and aproached a large mansion that is well lit up. The mansion has a wide garden with well tended grass field
Around the mansion has 10-foot high Andesite walls that are intricately carved with patters. At the front inside of the walls, plants of varying species and types are scattered across with directional lights under them. Palm trees are also standing at the corners and a few meters apaty from each other
At the front of the mansion, a large metal gate is standing. The gate is automatic and has patterns inscribed all over it. Past the gate, is a stone paved road for cars to pass through it
The road goes across the center and loops around the large fountain in the middle of the grass fields, making it in a way so that cars will be able to exit without going in reverse
Around the mansion and grass field, several men in black are standing in watch with black sunglasses and ear piece attached to their right ears
The mansion itself was a simple kind, with a front entrance that leads to the main lobby and living room, a right wing and a left wing. The mansion has three floors with several rooms, bathrooms, large kitchen and dining area, and one master's bedroom
There is also a garden behind the mansion that almost looked like a greenhouse or a sunroom
One of the men in black lifted his arm and held it against his right ear piece. He was receiving a command
After a few seconds, he then waved and pointed to the other men in black and some of them began to move
From the front entrance of the mansion, the door opened and a woman, dressed in a maid outfit, walked out with discipline and grace
The maid had long tied hair and she wears eyeglasses. The maid had a fierce look on her face that resembles a strict but mellow leader
The maid stood in front of the mansion as if she was waiting for someone to arrive
The surroundings were quiet with a few men in black running around the mansion and the splashes of water from the fountain that is being illuminated by underwater lights and directional lights
~~~
The Old Man slowly dove down, straight towards the large metal gate. He slowly landed on the ground. Philip also slowly landed as he is already awake. He won't let the Old Man carry his body with his aura towards the mansion
"This is where you will be living for now. You can leave, you can travel, just know that this is for you"
"Okay." Philip didn't know what to say but okay
Then, a moment later, the large metal gate opened with a loud smooth transition of sliding metal
The gate opened sideways and revealed the big fountain in the middle along the road. There were also men in black that are staning in a line beside the road
Philip was overwhelmed by the grand welcome. He became stiff because he has never experienced this before. He felt like he doesn't belong here
Though, he manipulated his feelings and steeled himself because he wanted this place. He had a goal in his mind
The Old Man and Philip walked along the road and past the men in black. The men in black did not move at all when they passed them
Several seconds later, they arrived in front of the strict maid
The maid looked down at Philip before bowing down in a curtsey toward the Old Man
"I greet the Lord of the mansion"
~~~
The strict maid waited for the arrival of his master, the Old Man
The maid knew that the Old Man was coming because the mansion had a built in radar or detector for people that has abilities or Mana circulating around their bodies
The Old Man had a signature reading and that was why the mansion knew that the Old Man was coming
The maid then called for the head butler and head of security to prepare fot the arrival of the Old Man
The security then scattered and lined up along the road to prepare to welcome the Old Man
Meanwhile, the maids and a few butlers were preparing something inside the mansion
As the large metal gate opened, the gate revealed the Old Man with a suticase on his right hand and a wooden sword on his left along with a man beside him
The maid squinted her eyes and knitted her eyebrows upon seeing the man. Clearly, she looked down on the man
'Who is this person? Why is he with master? He's not taking advantage of the master, right?'
As soon as the Old Man and the man arrived in front of her, the maid examined him closer. She was unamused and looked away from him. She then curtseid towards her own master
~~~
Philip did not miss the maid looking down on him like he was some sort of trash. He knew that different kind of developments will happen when he'll stay here
He expected this development but he didn't liked it. He looked back at the maid with no expression but his eyes were piercing, almost trying to devour the maid
He was reminded of someone that he hated in his entire life. He unconsciously wanted to end this maid's career
The Old Man felt Philip's killing intent and it was so large that he had to intervene
"Anyways, Philip, this is Mathilda, the head maid of the mansion." The Old Man introduced the maid to Philip
"Mathilda, this is Philip"
Mathilda and Philip stared at each other before talking
"I greet master's guest." Mathilda slightly lowered her head with eyes closed
Philip only nodded from the greeting. He had bad first impressions of Mathilda so they need time to recognize each other. Mathilda didn't even greet Philip by name, as the Old Man introduced them by name
"Alright, Mathilda, please prepare dinner and call everyone else to eat." The Old Man said with excitement
"As you wish, master." Mathilda said with a bow before turning around to walk inside
The Old Man and Philip followed her and Mathilda opened the large door to the mansion, letting the two of them enter first before herself
As the large door opened, they were greeted by a row of maids from the left side and right side of red carpet that leads to the main stairs going up to the second floor
At the end of the main stairs, a large portrait or painting of the Old Man is plastered onto the wall with a cabinet situated at the floor adorned with ornaments
The end of the main stairs then splits into two that goes to the left and right
From the overview of the second floor, just right next to the end of the right stairs, a woman was watching while leaning against the railing
The railing was metallic with clear glass that blocks the way
The woman had brunette hair and longing but hopeless eyes. She was wearing a casual red bath robe that covers most of her body parts, except for the cleavage that was slightly peeking
Looks like the woman just dried her hair after taking a bath
Philip became overwhelmed once more to the point he became a bit dizzy that he can't think straight
The Old Man place his hand Philip's right shoulder, "We'll go to your room first"
The Old Man then walked forward as the maids bowed one by one. Philip followed him and Mathilda followed behind
The maids were trembling and fidgeting as they passed them. Philip was confused and wanted to ask but he chose to refrain from doing so
He also noticed that the maids that are far away were avoiding his gaze and the butlers wouldn't look his way at all
Just then, a butler that looked like an old man with aged white hair with his front bangs pulling to the sides of his head, approached the Old Man and took the white coat from the Old Man
The butler had a stoic face and he seemed like a tempered veteran when it comes to combat. He just exudes that type of aura
"Master, what is that sword on your hand?" The butler asked the Old Man. He asked in a tone like they were friends rather than a master-servant relationship
"Oh? I don't know either... Is your senses telling you something?"
Before the butler spoke, he narrowed his eyes at the wooden sword. His senses were screaming by the sight of the sword
"No..."
"Hm, alright then. Jude, please help Mathilda on preparing dinner for everyone"
"As you wish, master." Jude bowed and walked away
The Old Man climbed up the stairs and Philip followed. However, Mathilda instead followed Jude
"That was the head butler of the mansion, Jude"
Philip nodded upon the Old Man's introduction of Jude. He had a good first impression of Jude because he could feel that Jude was a seasoned veteran and exudes a feeling that he is a wise man
He felt that he could get along with him
The Old Man and Philip turned left and entered the hallway to the left wing. The brunette woman just watched them with interest, particularly towards Philip
At the end of a hallway, there was a door that is larger than the others and it was a double door
The Old Man walked towards it and opened the door with his aura
As the door opened, Philip was greeted by a spacious room. Even though the room was quite big, the contents were minimal with a large white bed complete with a matress, a blanket, and three incredibly fluffy pillows
There is a large office table that has two drawers on each side and one modern lampshade standing on top of the table
There was also an electric stand fan that was rarely seen in American homes. Seems like the Old Man specially requested for a fan that was always used by Philip in his home country
At the other side of the room is the bathroom, complete with a bathtub, shower, toilet, and sink. The bathroom's design suits Philip's taste. Black stone tiles along the floor and lower wall, concrete upper walls, and a potted plant in front of the mirror on the sink
Philip liked his room more and more
"What do you think?" The Old Man asked Philip as he placed the suitcase and wooden sword above the empty table in a manner that was symmetrical
"I... Like it." Philip chose to be honest. There was a swelling emotion deep inside his chest and wanted to burst out. But the emotions couldn't pass through and disappeared later on
"I'm happy to hear that." The Old Man said with a smile
"Very well then! Get yourself situated and comfortable here, I'll get going. Mathilda will get you when the dinner's ready"
"Okay." Philip answered in a sad tone
The Old Man then disappeared in a blur
Philip then went in front of the large bed and let his body fall on top of it. As soon as he fell, his body felt the softness of the bed. It was a very soothing feeling
He stared at the white ceiling and reached it with his right hand. He was not trying to touch the ceiling, he was get a hold of fate. He wanted to thank fate for what it has done for him
He then places his right arm on his face and breathed deeply
"Damn..."