"..This artifact..!"
In Lancelot's right eye, through the clear lens of the monocle, was Ector. But, there was something else-
It was like a beacon of steel-coloured energy emanating off of him, with wisps of fire-like orange reaching into the sky and the surroundings. It flowed through Ector's body, too, spreading like blood-vessels throughout it.
'Od Vessels..' Lancelot swiftly came up with a conjecture.
Additionally, it was extremely thick at the place where his heart was, forming a heavy sphere of pulsating gray.
'The Soul Dam!'
In comparison, when he looked at himself, he saw a thin layer of teal coloured energy covering himself, coalescing into his chest to form a small cobalt ball.
"..This is.. kinda trash...?" Lancelot raised an eyebrow, sighing.
He could only think of one use- and that was to obtain a faint clue as to what kind of Emblem the enemy had. This was because, after looking at Ector, he felt the sensation of being inside a forge.
With his [Analyze] ability, he had been able to find out that Ector's Emblem was called 'Forge', or at least, his main ability.
Anyways, even if it was handy, he still desperately needed an item that could make up for his lack in attacking power, movement, defense or even support.
Instead, Ector had given him another utility Emblem!
The sheer magnitude and majesty of Ector's aura was shocking, yes, and the fact that this artifact, despite being Practitioner Class only could sense it was impressive, but Magi could already sense other Magi. To Lancelot, this artifact was nearly useless.
He already knew where the Soul Dam was located- at the heart, and the existence of Od Vessels were common knowledge.
"Not necessarily, that artifact can be used to see through stealth-type Emblems and detect Spells, but, the main use is this.." Ector smirked, raising his hand towards the sun.
Immediately, countless flames bloomed around the two, turning into hovering swords which then shot towards the sky.
No matter how many times one saw this display of might, it would, without a doubt, awe them.
However, this wasn't the focus.
"Look at my aura now." Ector instructed.
Lancelot's breath hitched, his eyes widening.
As the volley of blades kept flying into the morning sky, Ector's steel, forge-like aura was, bit by bit, shrinking. However, it was still an absolutely ginormous amount, and only a centimeter or so had dissipated.
"You see it, right?" Ector smiled, "With this artifact, you can keep track of the Od of your opponent, and when they use their Emblems, you'll be able to anticipate it."
"Ah!" Lancelot's eyes shone, "I get it, it's not as useless as I thought.." Lancelot rubbed his chin.
'Though it increases my survivability by a lot, it doesn't really affect my battle strength a lot.' Lancelot calculated internally.
"Yeah, you can thank me later. Now, let's get going!" Ector shouted with a grin, holding up Lancelot by the scruff of his tunic.
"Eh? What are you..!"
Ector used his Emblem to create a sword, jumping onto the flat of the blade like a skateboard.
"Off we go!" Ector grinned, and with a mental command, the sword flew at extreme speeds, sailing through the air whilst the Ector balanced on it, holding Lancelot like a sack of potatoes.
"Ectorrrr!!" Lancelot roared, his mouth wide open as he screamed in fear.
Bleeeghh!
Lancelot leant on a tree, emptying out his breakfast onto the grass below.
"..Hehe.." Ector giggled sheepishly, rubbing his nape.
"Shut up!" Lancelot scowled, using a leaf to wipe off some vomit. He opened the flask attached to the leather armour's belt at his waist, rinsing his mouth before spitting it out.
"Aw, don't be such a baby! It was just a little flying." Ector draped his arm on Lancelot's shoulder, leading him out the woods.
If looks could kill, by the glare Lancleot shot him, Ector would've been dead a hundred times over.
"..Where are we, anyways? We were in the air.. for.. a long time.." Lancelot gripped his throbbing head, sighing.
He was, to a certain capacity, not shocked at Ector's stupid actions. He assumed it had to do with knowing Ector in his previous life.
"We were in the air for five minutes, Lancy-"
"Shut up!"
"Lancelot. Right now, we're at the perimeter of my precious Solar Magus Academy!" Ector excitedly explained, dragging Lancelot enthusiastically.
Lancelot too, felt a twinge of excitement, yet he didn't show it. He hadn't passed the Entrance Exams yet, there was no point in feeling overtly emotional over something that he wasn't guaranteed to be a part of.
Before long, they made it out of the woods, appearing before a large light-yellow cliff.
"Is it on that cliff?" Lancelot raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
"..Hehe, no, no. It's a secret." Ector chuckled, patting Lancelot's head.
Lancelot moved away from him, feeling extremely annoyed before dispelling the emotion with a sigh.
He blankly looked around the large flat plain around him, hundreds of meters of grassland surrounding them.
Beyond the grassland was a massive forest, with a thick canopy and vegetation growing wildly. There was, however, a large path that had been carved out by someone, letting people freely come and go without obstructions.
"We're three hours early, by the way." Ector notified, smiling, "The forest will be where the exam will take place. Inside it, there are numerous beasts which inhabit it. The only reason we never got attacked as we came out of it was because we followed the safe route."
"Hehe, don't even think about using it when the exam starts. The animals will be in a sort of.. frenzy.."
Lancelot narrowed his cobalt eyes, brushing away a strand of dark-blue hair that poked at his eye.
"So, the Entrance Exam is against wild animals..?" Lancelot probed.
"No," Ector grinned, "It's more fun than that."
Lancelot scowled, "Just tell me!"
"You'll find out when it begins, don't be so impatient." Ector shook his head, muttering "Kids these days..'
"Then, I'll go set things up." Ector smirked, bending his knees as he turned towards the cliff.
"Eh? You're leaving me here?" Lancelot asked incredulously.
With a burst of wind, Ector jumped from the flat grass land below, hundreds of meters into the air, and onto the cliffside, looking downwards at Lancelot.
"Yup! Go craft some stuff or whatever!" Ector called out from the top, his voice echoing throughout the area.
Even from up there, Lancelot could still make out that stupid, smug smirk on his face.
"..." Lancelot wisely chose to save his breath, turning around and walking towards the woods with a dark expression on his face.
'..I'm so gonna beat his ass one day..'