The scene shifts to the forest behind Rumen Academy, where a shadowy figure is hidden by the darkness of the trees. The figure appears to be speaking, though no other person or creature is visible.
"The information was correct. It's here," the shadowy figure said.
Suddenly, a voice emerged from nowhere. It was deep and raspy, sounding as though the speaker were ill.
"Have you marked the target?" the voice asked.
"Locating it was hard enough. Marking it will take even longer." the figure replied.
"How long?" the raspy voice pressed.
"First, we need a plan. The target isn't someone who can be marked easily. We need to find the right moment."
"And when will this 'right moment' be?" the voice inquired.
"Next month. The elders of the academy will be leaving for a gathering. That's when we'll execute the plan."
"And what, exactly, is this plan?" the voice asked, curiosity laced in its tone.
"You don't need to worry about that. I've already placed my pawns within the academy. Once everything is in place, the marking will begin." the figure said confidently.
"Make sure you aren't discovered. And ensure the target remains hidden," the voice warned sternly.
The unknown voice faded as quickly as it had appeared, and the shadowy figure vanished into the darkness of the forest.
The scene shifts back to Lucian, who is sitting on in his training ground deep in the forest. Seated in a lotus position, he opens his eyes after a moment of concentration.
"It seems I'm back to normal. There's no pain in my heart. I was worried the spar with big sister might've affected my condition, but I'm fine," he muttered to himself.
"I guess I can return to Gideon for training. And thanks to the books Amara gave me, I have more knowledge about casting and channeling. Even though most of it was nearly identical to what I already knew, it still helped improve my understanding of magic." Lucian seemed more confident than before.
After returning home, Lucian went back to his room and searched through his bookshelf. He pulled out a diary hidden behind some boxes. Sitting down on the floor, he opened it to where he had last left off.
"I have so many questions, and only reading more can answer them," he whispered to himself.
He flipped to a page and began reading.
"So, a couple of things happened since the last time I wrote in this diary. One of the most shocking things was Yasolt showing up as I was leaving. I thought he came to see me off, but he was carrying bags and had a huge grin on his face. I had to ask him, 'What are you doing?' and he replied, 'You need a friend for your adventure, right?'
"Yup, the reason he ran off so quickly during the night we were talking was to pack his bags. Now he was planning to accompany me on my adventure. It was shocking and confusing, but at the same time, I felt relieved. I had been a little worried when he left so abruptly during our conversation."
Lucian let out a sigh of relief as he read on.
"So they're still friends, and Yasolt even wants to go with him. But why?" Lucian wondered, curiosity piqued as he continued reading.
"Why did he want to come with me? Even I don't know. But if I had to guess, Yasolt was bored. Being the strongest among everyone he trained with probably made him crave a real challenge. His family was strict, though, never letting him leave without multiple guards. Now, I think he just wanted to explore. 'You know that if you leave without notice, there'll be a massive uproar in your family, right?' I asked him. But he replied, 'I left a letter for my family, so no need to worry.'
'Really? What did you write in the letter?' I asked, expecting a detailed explanation. But he told me, 'I wrote that I'm leaving and not to try to search for me.' Just hearing that made my jaw drop. 'Why would you write something like that? Go and change it right now!' I told him frantically. 'Why? I think it's a perfect letter, straight to the point.' I can't even put into words the straight face he had when he said that to me.
"But I couldn't just let it go. I didn't want his family hunting me down after we left, so I told him, 'Go back and write down your reasons, and also let them know when you'll return. Otherwise, I'm not taking you with me.'
"After a moment of silence, Yasolt agreed and left to rewrite his letter. He came back so quickly it surprised me. 'So, what did you write this time?' I asked him. He stayed quiet for a second, then answered, 'I wrote everything you told me to write. So, are we ready to leave now?' I wasn't completely sure I believed him, but he reassured me about the letter, so I trusted him. 'I guess we can leave now.' I told him. Just saying those words lit up his face. We left the camp, ready to start our journey to who knows what."