"This boy is a prodigy. No he is a monster!"
Lyra was astounded, not just by Grey's accomplishment but by the fact that a seven-year-old boy, with no formal instruction in magic, had managed to achieve this. Steadying her racing heart, she asked, "How did you manipulate time and space magic in such a way that I couldn't detect it?"
"By integrating both time and space magic, I actually sent my illusionary body to a different dimension. This rendered it undetectable because the mana existed in another realm," Grey explained, eagerly anticipating Lyra's reaction.
As he had anticipated, Grey elicited the reaction he wanted. Lyra's face was now etched with disbelief as she listened to him.
What Grey had achieved required a profound understanding of the principles of space and time, a feat only a few individuals in Thalassar could accomplish. Among those capable were a select few of the ten people sent to search for candidates for the trial, with Luna being one of them.
During the incident when the spatial tear opened in front of Grey, it was Luna who had signaled Lyra to save him. She had detected the spatial anomaly, sensed the shift in the surrounding space, and employed her space magic to stabilize it. Without her intervention, everything within a 5 to 10-kilometer radius would have been obliterated.
"How were you able to achieve that!?" she asked, her voice brimming with shock.
"Well, my understanding of space and time is quite advanced," Grey replied with a nonchalant shrug.
"Oh, let's leave i—" Lyra started, but she paused as Grey turned his gaze sharply towards a specific spot.
Lyra regarded him with curiosity. The boy had continually astounded her, and she was eager to uncover the layers of secrets he harbored. She followed his line of sight and narrowed her eyes, sensing something unusual. Turning her focus back to Grey, she thought, 'He truly grasps the principles of space magic. Although I can't gauge his full proficiency, I've witnessed Luna accomplish many impossible feats. From my perspective, his skills are on par with those of a novice space mage in Aakash.'
What Lyra thought might sound like underestimating Grey, but it was far from that. Aakash was a realm teeming with powerful magical beasts and mages wielding various forms of magic, including space, time, fire, and water. For Grey to be considered comparable to a novice space mage at his young age was remarkably impressive.
The spot where Grey was looking suddenly shimmered as a space portal materialized. A stunning woman with luminous white hair and silver eyes emerged. She wore an elegant, ethereal white gown that perfectly complemented her radiant locks.
Grey wasn't surprised; he had sensed that someone proficient in space magic was approaching. His own understanding of space felt like a mere drop in the ocean compared to this presence. He concluded it was Luna, as she was the only one who knew their location and had also been notably absent.
As Luna looked at both Lyra and Grey, her eyes shone with relief. She approached Grey, scrutinizing him closely. When she didn't find anything amiss, she stopped and asked, "Are you fine? Are there any side effects from the technique?" Her voice was filled with concern.
"No, I'm fine, better than ever," Grey reassured her.
Luna nodded, then turned to Lyra. "They are here, and each one has found someone to enter the trials."
"So, they've arrived," said Lyra, her aura shifting. She continued, "Grey, as we told you, there are eight others—three magical beasts, two humans, and three elves besides us. We've been sent here from Aakash because this place is weakly connected to it, and we've been tasked with finding people to clear the trial to save Aakash."
"Now that everyone of them is here, we need to go meet them. The trial will take place in this section of the ruined city, so we have to make preparations," Lyra added.
After their deliberations, the trio set about preparing everything needed to welcome their new members.
******
At the entrance, twelve figures stood in anticipation. Eight belonged to Luna and Lyra's companions, while the remaining four were the individuals they had enlisted to undertake the trial.
Within the quartet of candidates, three were human children, and the fourth was an elf. Two of the humans engaged in animated chatter, while the others remained aloof, showing no interest in joining the conversation.
Meanwhile, the eight Aakash members were engrossed in their own discussions, reconnecting after a prolonged period of separation.
"Hey Thalorin, how's it going?"a human named Draven greeted the elf with a friendly nod.
"Hey Draven, I'm doing alright, thanks. And you?"Thalorin replied with a warm smile.
"Not too bad, just glad to see everyone back together again, you know?" Draven remarked, looking around at the gathering.
"Yeah, definitely. It feels good to have everyone reunited," Thalorin agreed, nodding in agreement.
"So, have you caught up with everyone yet? By the way, which one of the new arrivals is the kid you and your sister Elara brought along?" Draven inquired, leaning in with curiosity.
"Oh, that's the green-haired elf girl over there. Her name is Elysia. It was quite a stroke of luck that we found her, and she's got some serious talent," Thalorin responded, gesturing towards the young girl with a smile.
"The human boy named Jack over there," Draven gestured towards a boy with brown hair and red eyes standing nearby.
"Yeah, I've noticed him. He seems pretty talented," Thalorin remarked, nodding in agreement.
"In terms of talent, he could be among the top 50 in Aakash in his age group," Draven said, his excitement evident as he talked about Jack.
"That's impressive. And those other two kids seem quite promising too," Thalorin observed, glancing at the other newcomers.
"It's like luck is on our side," Draven remarked with a grin.
"Indeed. But it's crazy to think about how different things could've been if we hadn't made it here safely," Thalorin mused, his tone turning somber.
"Yeah, if it weren't for the space restrictions and the dangers of the journey, things could've ended badly," Draven agreed, his expression thoughtful.
"Only the ten of us were able to traverse the space and reach here with the help of many masters of Aakash" Draven said with frustration and he continued "If the kids from our realm were to come with us, they would have perished, unable to endure and having their bodies destroyed in the void".
"But let's not dwell on that. We're here now, and we have a lot to catch up on with everyone," Thalorin said, trying to lift the mood.
"Absolutely. Let's go greet everyone and share our journey experiences," Draven replied, the excitement returning to his voice..
They both walked towards the others, and soon all eight of them were engaged in lively conversation, discussing various topics.
As everyone was engrossed in their discussions, a presence quietly entered the area, going unnoticed by most as they observed each person's face with curiosity.
Slowly and cautiously, the presence approached the eight members from Aakash. Suddenly, the chatter died down, leaving only the two boys and two girls still conversing in hushed tones.
The members from Aakash, one by one, turned their gazes towards the newcomer.
"Is it Luna?" asked a petite figure standing about 1.5 meters tall, with butterfly-like wings behind her back.
"No, Crystaline, that person over there is not Luna," replied a man with white hair, two blue horns on his forehead and blue wings like dragon behind his back.
"So, who's this person? Frost, can you identify him?" Crystaline inquired, her brow furrowed in concern.
Frost glanced at the newcomer, studying him carefully before responding, "Hmm, I can't quite put my finger on it. There's something peculiar about him. It's like he's here, yet not entirely present."
The group exchanged puzzled looks, their curiosity piqued by the mysterious presence in their midst.
As they conversed through telepathy, Grey remained unaware of their discussion, only noticing their sudden silence.
"His proficiency in space and time isn't very high, at novice level, but he's using something we can't sense," Thalorin remarked, his green eyes scrutinizing the area.
"Let's just leave him be. Despite his skill at hiding, he can't conceal his presence, and he's much weaker than us," Draven suggested, glancing around.
Draven then turned to Jack and called him over, assigning him a task. "Hey Jack, come here. I have a task for you," he said, prompting the boy to rise and approach him.
"Bring that person hiding over there. Though you can't sense him, he's there, and I believe you can handle him," Draven instructed, guiding Jack towards the forest.
"Why did you send him?" Thalorin questioned.
"Just for a bit of entertainment. Let's see a fight," Draven replied with a mischievous grin.
"That's a good idea," Thalorin agreed, and the others nodded in assent. Confident in their abilities, they weren't concerned about Jack confronting the mysterious presence, knowing it posed little threat to them.