Dhruv tilted his head and he saw a man which seemed to be in his 40s smiling.
The man infront of him is nearly six feet tall his hair having a shade of grey in his mostly black hairs.
Some wrinkles appearing near his head, chicks and beard appeared to be completely grey, his blue resembling that of a white tiger
Wearing a golden-brown jacket, a black jeans which has been outdated for the new trends, a grey colour fabric under his jacket and pair of normal leather boots.
He wore a pendant with a crystal which is slightly red in colour.
It was a Garnet.
The man in front of the Dhruv is known as Shaan but he persist on calling him Master.
The old man was smiling and looking directly at him.
Somehow that smile seemed wicked, horrendous and terrifying for the obvious reasons of Dhruv keeping Aether's identity a secret to the only person who gave him a house to stay, cloths to wear, food to eat, books to study and every other possible things one could do for a child.
Dhruv cursed himself inwardly and instantly trying to come up with an excuse but before he could do that Shaan interrupted him and said with a smile on his face
"I know you are excited about Knight Association and your upcoming trip"
Somewhere along the lines Shaan's smiles on his face shifted.
'Why is he looking to me like that' Dhruv thought awkwardly looking at Shaan
"Just keep this as a advice what I am going to tell you" He paused still looking at him his face feels uncertain like he still isn't sure whether he wanted to say it or not
However breaking the pause he said "That place is as dangerous as prestige it is , you need to be more aware of your surroundings there would be a lot of children like you who are special some less some more"
"There are things in this world that wear human faces but aren't human. There are truths that wear lies like armour. And there are questions you must never ask unless you're ready to lose everything that makes you."
Shaan looked directly at the eyes of Dhruv and said "Take great caution"
After hearing those words the only thing that came to Dhruv's mind is
'What was that supposed to mean'
But not trying to sound rude and mannerless Dhruv looked up at shaan and said with a naïve smile on his face
"Oh yeah Sure"
As those words escaped Dhruv's mouth the world surrounding him suddenly changed
Everything around him became silent and a sudden chill ran around Dhruv's body
The shadows became deeper and he can feel that some unknown force is colliding with his skin
Dhruv's whole body trembled but then instantly he inhumanly became calm like someone hadn't tried to threaten him just a moment ago.
Master Shaan noticed something but remained silent for some time
Then his facial expression changed again
And
With a hint of some satisfaction resembling on his face Master Shaan reached into his jacket. From its hidden chest pocket, he pulled out a compass, a map, and a faded photograph.
He pointed to the photo.
"This young lady is somewhat a friend of mine. She is Tamira You'll meet her at the shores of the Black Sea. She'll guide you to the academy."
Dhruv took the items silently, his eyes lingering on the photo. The lady in it looked beautiful and appealing but something about her gaze felt... distant.
Ignoring his thoughts Dhruv focused onto Master
Shaan turned to leave and took a few steps towards the door but paused at the door.
"You leave in two days."
"But how can I find her you know the black sea expanse in thousands of Kms" Dhruv said , with some curiosity lingering on his face.
"You don't have to worry about that" Master Shaan said in an assertive tone.
And then he was gone.
"That damned old geezer never answered something straight" Dhruv shouted those words