Lesser Mages would have turned back, their resolve crumbling in the face of such raw, elemental fury. But Neil was no ordinary practitioner. His lips curled into a smirk, a gleam of excitement lighting up his eyes.
This was what he had come for – a challenge worthy of his talents, a crucible in which he could forge himself anew.
With a single, decisive step, Neil crossed the threshold into the chamber. In that instant, the world around him shifted, reality itself seeming to warp and twist.
He was no longer standing in a room within the manor, but in a vast, open space that defied comprehension.
The "sky" above was a swirling vortex of colors, while the ground beneath his feet seemed to pulse with a life of its own.
