At midnight Martha entered Magnus's room and was welcomed by the view of a cute chubby little boy hurled up sucking his thumb. With a gentle touch on his forehead his Martha had woken him up.
"I have something important to tell you." Her eyes were filled with determination as the window in Magnus's room ferociously opened letting in a cold breeze from outside.
Magnus rubbed his eyes trying to get rid of the tiredness. The previously blurred image of his mother slowly became crystal clear.
"I am going to meet a friend in a few days and was hoping you could come with. Maybe we could even celebrate your admission into the academy." The determination in her eyes seemed to be at its peak.
Magnus replied with a warm smile almost immediately. His smile had a tinge of redness and strongly emphasised the innocent childlike aspect of his personality.
"Sure, no problem mum, when exactly is this meeting taking place?"
The cold breeze continued to ferociously enter the room, the white curtain dancing in the background.
"In three days" as Martha replied she kissed little Magnus on the forehead and began making her way to the door.
"Sorry for waking you up, goodnight kiddo." Her smile illuminated the room as she exited.
As soon as she left the room the warm childlike smile displayed on Magnus's face was replaced with a much more eerie look. The look in his eyes could not easily be comprehend, the look was devoid of emotions, innocence, and attachment- a stark contrast of his usual self. If one word had to be used to describe this look, it would be "indifference." The look in his eyes could only be found in a special kind of people- people who had seen the face of human nature.
*Well, it seems like things are getting troublesome. * All of this occurred within a few seconds, the eerie look quickly reverted to the childlike innocent look he had. He then proceeded to close the window and went back to bed. At first, he found it difficult to sleep, he could not help but feel restless- there was a crisis looming, the question was how big? Fortunately, he soon fell into deep slumber.
............….
3 days before the meeting.
The sun shone brightly through the window. Tiny dust fragments could be seen floating in the air. On a bed rested a chubby boy looking at the ceiling in contemplation.
*There's something extremely wrong with this whole scenario, it simply doesn't make sense. From the start why did she choose to live in the wilderness when the city offers so much benefit even to ordinary humans? She also has never mentioned anything about her life on earth and the reason she ended up in the demonic realm, neither has she mentioned anything about her demonic affinity. One thing is certain, most people living in this realm are not innocent, however this does not fit in with her current persona. Also, since my birth she hasn't had any interactions with anyone besides me, she is young- so does this mean that the person she wants me to meet is a childhood friend? *
As he was thinking he heard a door closing from the main room indicating that Martha had left the house. This sound made him think back to a time when he was younger, as soon as his mom left- he located his mothers grimoire which he had found mistakenly a few days earlier while playing. The book was in the corner of the room under the wooden floor. Surprisingly it was black in colour and had the symbol of a skull with crows surrounding it, this finding contrasted with his belief that grimoires were supposed to have a red colour with the symbol of the eye of Luke. Furthermore, every time he touched the book, he could feel a burning sensation on his forehead. The pain was extremely excruciating and as a result he decided against trying to open the book.
*Now that I think about it, I know nothing about her except how she looks. As for her reasons for wanting to harm me. I don't know, but its better to be safe then sorry. If the meeting takes place in 3 days that leaves me with 3 days before academics begin. I have very little time left. *
Magnus felt uncomfortable by not knowing what might happen next. In his previous life, after he had failed as a son, lover, and a person he decided to live the rest of his 20 years as a loner. The only human interaction he ever had was when his mother would send him money to buy food. As a result, he never had to feel the uneasiness that is common when teenagers venture into adulthood- the uneasiness of not knowing everything and dealing with situations that cause discomfort. Subsequently after the death of his parents- it is no surprise that he decided to take away his own life. While in contemplation a picture of his earth parents suddenly appeared.
*I do not know what I want to do with this life, most people will choose to chase power or lofty goals such as immortality- but what is the point? After obtaining all these things you will still be the same loser but with slightly more fame and respect. I do not care if I must die at this very moment, what do I stand to lose? However, I do not want to die just yet- and don't want to take any risks that may end up with me dying, one such risk is the meeting in 3 days. At the very least, I need to meet my earth parents and tell them how sorry I am for the way things were back on earth. *
The entire day there was no sign of Martha within the house, this further rose Magnus's suspicion. Time flew and before Magnus knew it- it was already evening, and he had fallen asleep.
............
2 days before the meeting
The weather was cloudy.
*Whoosh whoosh* the wind could be heard, the trees on the outside the city were dancing to the sound of the wind. It was clear that a storm was approaching within the next two days.
The city streets were crowded as people made a desperate attempt to sell their goods before the inevitable storm arrived. Near the Abyssal Demons school countless of people had set up stalls, selling various items from potions to food. In one of these stalls stood a chubby kid with a goofy demeanour speaking to an elderly man who seemed to be an ordinary human.
"Uncle you are too stingy, if you are going to sell all the food in your shop for so expensive- how are you ever going to get customers."
The old mans face turned red as he furrowed his grey eyebrows and screamed at the top of his voice "Guards there is a young man harassing me."
"Uncle stop acting like a victim, with your prices everyone here is the victim." As Magnus said this, he pointed to the line of people behind him who were beginning to become irritated as Magnus was taking too long with his purchase and thus blocking the queue from progressing- half an hour had already passed. Even though there were other shop assistants, in this stall there was only one person who handled the transactions. The transactions were carried out using a currency called spirit essence crystals. Every being had spirit essence and if one had the desire to become stronger, the aggressive accumulation of spirit essence crystals was inevitable. The main reason for this is because they could allow one to fight for longer durations. Spirit essence crystals took the shape of a sphere and had each contained multiple colours, usually red, white, purple, and black. Legend has it that they resemble the interconnectedness of all the realms.
Upon seeing the black part of the spirit crystal in the stall owners' hands, Magnus instinctively thought about his mother's black grimoire.
*Wait does this mean Martha is from the shadow realm? *
Upon seeing that the elderly man did not respond to his taunt- Magnus then decided to speak again.
"Uncle how about…"
Suddenly two figures in black robes appeared before Magnus, one of figures tapped Magnus's forehead causing him to collapse immediately.
............…..
*SPLASH*
Within a dark room the sound of water splashing onto a surface could be heard.
Suddenly the unconscious Magnus woke up.
*Where am I? *
Magnus could sense that there were multiple people in the room all standing around him, however he could see there faces. He felt as if he was an antelope being surrounded by a pack lion. After what seemed to be an eternity the silence was broken.
"The reason I hassled the shop owner was to get your attention." Even though it was dark, Magnus had a sincere demeanour.
"Why did you want to get our attention rank D Magnus Freeman?" suddenly a voice was heard, it was hard to tell whether it was that of a male or a female.
"I have a suspicion that someone I know is a spy from the holy realm." As he said this a pressure could be felt within the room, magnus could hear his bones cracking, a feeling of millions of bugs eating on his flesh could be felt. Magnus's heartbeat began to race.
*If this continues my organs will collapse and I will probably die, I knew this was not a good idea- but it was my best shot at survival. *
"Who is this person?" the same voice could be heard, however this time there was an underlying fury to its tone.
"Her name is Martha, the person who raised me." Magnus was confused as to how he felt with this plan, he didn't want to harm Martha, but if she intended to harm him- then she deserved what was going to happen to her. Suddenly the pressure dissipated, and the voice spoke.
"Instances where children make claims like these to obtain their parents wealth is quite common. I hope you understand that if it is found that your claims are false- you will be put to trial before the eye of Luke, and only the eye will be able to determine your innocence. Do you want to retract your statement?"
"No."
"Very well then tell us as much as possible- if your information leads to the capturing of a spy, you will be rewarded for your loyalty."
In the dark room, Magnus spoke of his childhood- the grimoire he found and the meeting that is set to take place in two days. After saying everything he wished to say he fell asleep.
Upon seeing Magnus was unconscious, all the people in the room left. Only one remaining.
*This kid, when I tested his affinity on the examination day, I was certain I would never see him again. Later not only was I appointed as his teacher- but I meet him again in this way. What an annoying brat. *
"Alright let's get you out of here kiddo"
*Snap* with a snap of a finger the room lit up, multiple runes could be seen on the cement floor and ceiling. The yellow light from the runes made the appearance of a woman visible, as she chanted in a foreign language. Air fiercely circulated throughout the room, her brown hair and white robes swayed to in an angelic manner.
Magnus began floating towards the ceiling, his abdomen leading the way as if it had been attracted to the runes on the ceiling. Suddenly the chanting stopped, and an image of a mouth appeared from the ceiling and swallowed Magnus's whole body. The mouth had whiskers; it resembled the mouth of a black cat- only it was massive.
*Purr Purr*
*spit*
The mouth made purring sounds before spitting out Magnus's clothes.
The woman's mouth revealed a smile before she started giggling.
"This is revenge for what you did on the examination day."
The woman chanted words in a foreign language causing the robe to burn to a crisp, the room became reverted back to its initial darkness- showing no signs of any activity occurring that day.
.............
Day before the meeting.
*Drip drop* rain poured throughout the city. The sound of thunder could be heard throughout the city. Usually people would be indoors, however on this day people gathered on a road that led to the Abyssal Demons Academy.
"ewww" a girl remarked.
"Wahhhh wahhhhhh" babies could be heard crying.
Magnus slowly opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the dark blue sky.
"Ahh brings back memories, I always enjoyed ordering takeouts and reading the whole day on rainy days. I wonder if this world has take outs- I really enjoyed Asian soups back on earth. Hahaha, I remember the weather was exactly like this the day I finished all the books in my home library- the good old days." As Magnus said this a smile of contentment appeared on his face.
As he saw the dark sky, he couldn't help but ask.
"I wonder what is the meaning of life? are we a cosmic joke? Hopefully this life will provide me with the answers I always desired." Magnus's philosophical reflection was short-lived as he was interrupted by an elderly man's voice.
"What did he just say- I think he is a dangerous pervert, where is the guards?" an elderly man raised his concerns. These words made Magnus to stand up, as he stood up, he naturally looked down at his feet and realised he was naked. This realisation caused him to scream and start running towards his house- his actions caused the crowd to panic and make way for him.
Magnus displayed tremendous speed as he ran towards his house and soon, he had disappeared from the crowd's vision.
*There goes my reputation. *
Magnus soon reached home and burst into the door.
"MOM I'm home"
But he got no reply.
Time passed and soon it was evening- Martha had still not returned home.
Magnus did not sleep as he could not stop thinking about what would occur the next day. One thing was certain, it could be the last day seeing Martha.
*creak*
At midnight, Magnus heard his rooms door open slowly.
"Magnus"
"yes?"
"This is where the meeting is going to take place, just know that I love you and this is my final gift to you." Martha handed Magnus a piece of paper which had an address and time on it.
"Don't you think it was careless to simply leave my grimoire lying around for you to find it? The reason I did so was for you to find it and see the differences between our grimoires- hopefully it would have given birth to suspicion in your heart about me. I am grateful that it did. I also did not want to tell you directly because if you were too dumb to figure it out yourself, in this world you would inevitably suffer, and your suffering would be on my conscious for being the medium through which you came into this world. As a result, if you didn't find out, it was better for you to die than to be tortured and used your whole life simply because you are dumb."
After listening to Martha, Magnus decided to ask a crucial question
"That all doesn't explain why you are here, if you from the shadow realm- why come here and be so secretive? People from the shadow realm are allowed to travel to the demonic realm- hostility is only shown to those from the holy realm."
"I cannot answer this, all I can say is that you have around 10 years to become strong- if you don't you will probably die- the political relationship between all the realms is worsening- war is inevitable."
Martha continued
"Before you ask for the specifics, I am not telling you anything more about the war. As for my kindness, I am simply paying you back. You knew I was from the shadow realm but still told them I am from the holy realm- people from the demonic realm can naturally sense people from the holy realm- however they cannot simply sense people from the shadow realm- we simply too similar. Hopefully we will meet again in the future, only then would you be worthy of knowing my story, as for you going to the city's special defence unit- I forgive you. I am leaving for the shadow realm."
With tears in her eyes, Martha hugged Magnus causing the shoulder region of his robes to be soaked in tears.
"Goodbye Maggy and stop running around naked"
Magnus felt blood rushing to his face as he began to blush.
"Good…." Before Magnus could even finish his words, Martha silhouette had disappeared.
"I still had to ask her why I couldn't open her grimoire." Magus sighed with disappointment
............…
The day of the Meeting.
The rain persisted, however fortunately it had subsided to a drizzle. This allowed for merchants to set up stall.
In one such stall screaming could be heard.
"Hey uncle, your prices are even higher today- why you so greedy?"
"They are high because you keep coming to disrupt my business"
Naturally this was Magnus and the old Man.
"Uncle what sort of logic is that?"
"Guards help me!! This youngster is harassing me."
*HAHA this is becoming funny, even if I don't have to contact the guards- I can simply come annoy this guy for entertainment. Also, nobody in the line can harm me as it would go against city rules- so I can be a nuisance as much as I desire*
Suddenly a woman wearing white robes, had brown hair and youthful skin appeared.
"Magnus come with me."
Magnus immediately noticed it was the instructor who had tested his affinity on the examination day. Knowing that he had insulted her, Magnus reluctantly followed.
As they exited the stall the woman halted her movement and began staring at Magnus.
"You do know that you don't have to harass the old man every time you want to contact the guards, right?"
Upon seeing that the woman is relaxed and does not seem to be angry with him, he exhaled, dropped his shoulders, and asked.
"How?"
"Not too far from here there is a massive building that looks at least 1000 years old- that is where the special defence unit headquarters is situated. Why did you want to meet with the special unit today?"
Magnus handed over the address where the meeting is scheduled to take place, he however did not mention is conversation with Martha and the fact that Martha had already left for the shadow realm.
"For your safety, go pack up and head to the Academy immediately. I must go prepare, so let's part ways"
Magnus then returned home, packed his bags, and went straight to the academy.