Light bent around them before the world came back.
Julian stumbled forward as his boots crunched over dry grass. They were in an open field now, miles from the market. The air was quiet here with moonlight spreading across low hills and trees.
The girl who saved him was already walking ahead with her cloak brushing against the grass.
Erevos' voice came through, smooth and old.
"Now that is how one bends space. You could learn from her, Julian."
Julian frowned, brushing dirt off his sleeve. "Yeah, thanks for the reminder."
He looked ahead again. The girl hadn't even looked back to check if he was following, she just kept walking toward a cluster of trees at the edge of the field, quiet and calm, as if teleporting strangers out of danger was normal for her.
The Relic display appeared beside his view.
[Scanning…]
Name: Elora Orym
Arc: 3
Strength: 85
Speed: 90
Endurance: 86
Affinity Slots: 2/2 (Core) | 1/1 (Astral)
AFFINITIES:
Pyro (Lv. 8)
Cryo (Lv. 9)
Spatial (Lv. 2)
Julian blinked and stared at the glowing text.
"...You've got to be kidding me," he muttered.
Even Erevos went quiet, which said a lot.
He watched as she stopped by a tree and reached up, plucking two fruits — apples, red and bright under the moonlight. She turned, pulling her hood back.
For a moment, he forgot to breathe.
Her hair was pale, white, almost silver and her eyes were bright green, almost glowing under the moonlight. For a second, Julian just stared. She wasn't what he expected. She was beautiful, the kind that made him forget what he was going to say.
Then he saw the pointed curve of her ears under her hair.
An elf.
She took a bite from one apple and walked toward him, holding out the other. "You look like you could use this."
He took it slowly and his hand touched hers for a moment. "Uh… thanks."
She swallowed and tilted her head. "Why didn't you teleport out of there?"
He blinked. "What?"
Her voice was calm and curious, not angry. "You probably had enough mana to use one. You could've teleported."
He rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly feeling awkward. "Yeah, uh… about that. I can't really… teleport."
Her brows pulled together a little. "Oh. So your Spatial magic is still Level one, then."
Julian squinted. "Level… one? What does that even—"
But then her next words stopped him.
"You used a Spatial shield back in the woods. Against the Howlers."
Julian's heart jumped. "You—wait. You saw that?"
She shrugged a little. "We've been keeping an eye on you."
"We?"
She waited a moment before smiling slighty. "Elora Orym."
He stared at her. "...Julian. But you already knew that."
"Mm." She took another bite of the apple and chewed quietly before turning away.
Julian hesitated as his mind rushed through thoughts. If she thought he was the one who used that shield, then she believed it was his Spatial magic. He couldn't let her know about Erevos. No one could know. If he started talking about a voice in his head and a relic that talked back, people would think he'd lost his mind.
He kept his face neutral and forced his voice to sound calm even though he was confused and angry at the same time.
"You gonna tell me why you were following me?"
She looked over her shoulder. "You ask too many questions for someone who almost got caught."
He opened his mouth to argue, but she cut him off. "You should get going. Wouldn't want to keep your mother waiting."
That stopped him.
He looked down at the wrapped medicine still in his pouch and his throat felt tight. "Yeah… right."
When he looked up again, she was gone, no flash, no sound, just gone.
He let out a breath and scratched his head. "...Okay. Sure. That's normal."
Erevos made a soft sound in his mind, almost like laughing.
"You attract strange company, Julian."
"Tell me about it," he said quietly and tucked the medicine into his bag.
Then he turned and started walking away from the dim lights of the village in the distance. The night wind touched his face, and for a moment, he thought he heard light footsteps behind him.
When he turned, there was nothing but grass moving in the wind.
He shook his head and kept walking.
---
SPIRE CATACOMBS, ARCADIA
Captain Monrel stood near a long table, talking to one of his men. Their voices were low and businesslike until the heavy doors opened.
Another soldier came in with his armor covered in dust and dried sweat before he saluted quickly.
Monrel turned with narrow eyes. "This better be important."
The soldier said nothing yet as Monrel waved off the man he'd been talking to. "Leave us."
Once the room was empty, Monrel leaned back in his chair. "Now speak."
The soldier stood straight and his voice was steady but a bit tight. "He finally talked, sir."
Monrel's eyebrows went up before a slow smile spread across his face. "Did he now?"
The soldier nodded once. "He gave the location."
Monrel laughed, a low, satisfied sound that bounced faintly through the room. He clapped his hands together once. "Finally. Took him long enough."
He stood and reached for his gloves on the table, putting them on with careful movements. "Get the men ready. I want a full strike team. No mistakes this time."
"Yes, Captain." The soldier saluted again before turning to leave.
When the door shut, silence fell over the room again with the only sound being the faint hum of mana from the rune lamps above.
Monrel looked at the floor before looking at the wall where maps and mission papers hung in neat rows. His smile returned, colder now. "The Scryer… hiding under my nose all this time. Let's see how far their faith takes them when I burn everything to the ground."
He turned away and his boots made sounds across the stone as he walked toward the door. Then he stopped and added under his breath, his voice low and mean.
"Reinard, you served well. Too bad it had to end this way."
A faint laugh came from him, not loud this time, just enough to fill the room with the kind of sound that didn't belong to someone sane.
He walked out and the door slammed shut behind him.