Luis walked with his siblings, their footsteps being quiet. The Azurin crystals on the walls cast shadows on the ground as they moved. All around them were Phoenix Clan members setting up tents or moving supplies, while some were discussing plans.
Luis was walking ahead to a group of children who were gathered in a loose circle. Mira and Rico were among them. Rico and Mira's voices carried in the caverns as they played a game to keep the kids distracted.
A few feet away from the loose circle of kids, a Xoliti Clan member sat on the ground, inscribing glowing symbols on the arm of a kid. He wore a relaxed expression as he placed protective markings on each kid one by one.
Luis and his siblings' steps slowed as they observed the process. Then, he gestured for the kid to go away and looked at Mira and Rico to send another one. His eyes flickered to Luis and his siblings for a brief second before going back to inscribing. Mira and Rico noticed Luis after they followed the man's eyes. Mira excitedly waved at them while Rico gave a smile.
Before they could continue walking towards the circle, another person appeared before them. He was a tall man, six feet tall, with black hair that looked tousled, and his dark eyes reflected the cavern's light. He had a daunting frame, but the smile on his face made him look friendly and more approachable.
"Well, looks like you're here for your turn," he said, his voice relaxed. "Welcome, my name is Sylas, and what you're gonna be doing is putting protection inscriptions on your arm. They will help protect you if you are in danger. Also, I will tell you guys when it's your turn. Got it?" he said in a rehearsed tone.
"You're not gonna get any inscriptions for now. You can just relax, maybe play with the others." He looked towards Rico and Mira. "Mira and Rico have been keeping everyone occupied."
Luis, Lira, and Kael exchanged glances with each other before turning back to him.
Kael's brows furrowed. "We have never seen you in the village before."
Lira nodded. "Yeah, how have we never seen you at the village before?"
Sylas laughed. "Well, do you know Sera?"
Kael and Lira perked up instantly. "Of course we know Aunt Sera!" Kael said.
"I'm her disciple," Sylas replied.
Luis's eyebrows rose in confusion. Aunt Sera's disciple? He thought he would have seen him if he was her disciple.
Easily able to see the thoughts on the kids' faces, Sylas chuckled and moved his hands, forming an intricate shadow dragon about a meter tall. Each of its dragon scales was easily visible, and its mouth showed its fangs. Luis and his siblings were surprised by the complicated design of it and how effortlessly Sylas made it. "See? I'm using shadows just like Master Sera."
Luis didn't move, but Kael and Lira instantly tried touching the dragon. However, as soon as they touched it, the shadows broke and fell. "The shadow was weaker 'cause I focused on design rather than stability."
"Wait, if you're Aunt Sera's disciple, why have we never seen you before?" Luis asked.
Sylas crossed his arms, still smiling. "I was in a different village, so you wouldn't have seen me. Also, I am eight years older than Mira and Rico. Master Sera trained me since I was a kid, so I don't need more training. Okay, that's enough talking." Sylas then pointed to Luis. "You're up first. The rest go group up with Rico and Mira they will keep you entertained."
Kael and Lira listened and headed towards Mira and Rico. Sylas then took Luis to the Xoliti Clan member while making sure to keep a watch on the kids' shadows.
Luis followed him in silence, listening to his footsteps as he stepped on the cavern floors while staring at the glowing Azurin crystals.
As Luis arrived with Sylas, the Xoliti Clan member who was sitting on the floor looked like he was just about to finish putting a barrier on the kid before him.
"Okay, Luis, just follow what this nice man says and then head over to the circle, okay?" Sylas said while raising a fist towards Luis with a thumbs up gesture.
Luis nodded and stared at the Xoliti Clan member. He had a fierce look with a sharp gaze, but it wasn't a scary or unkind look. As the kid before Luis got up, the Xoliti Clan member gestured to him. "Come sit down here," he said, pointing at the same spot the other kid sat.
"Extend out your right arm all the way and turn so you're facing away from me while the right side of your right arm faces me."
Luis did as he was instructed, and then he looked to his right and saw the man's fingertips glowing. After they started glowing, he slowly started to trace a few patterns on Luis's arm. Luis could feel the strange sensation of the energy on his arm. It wasn't anything that felt too gross or weird that would make him tingle, but instead, it just felt warm.
The man spoke as he worked. "What this does is protect you from attacks multiple weak attacks and even one strong hit from an elite-tier aura user. But it will break after the attack, and it doesn't last long either only one day. I can make it stronger, but then the aura usage amount increases too much, and I won't be able to put one on everyone. Another thing it does is help you hide from detection blessings."
As the man finished the sentence, he raised the finger he was using to trace on Luis's arm. The symbols still glowed for a few seconds before disappearing. "And that's it. You now have a barrier for one day, but don't rely on it too much."
"That's it?" Luis replied in surprise. He hadn't expected it to end so fast it only took a minute or two.
"Yep, that's it. Now go join the rest."
Luis stood up, still a bit surprised at how fast it was. He couldn't even feel the barrier unless he really focused on it, which surprised him more. When he did focus on it, the barrier felt like the rock golem blessing but more complex. He didn't know how to explain it, but it felt like they had the same principles, except one was way more advanced.