Donis sat inside his carriage all by his lonesome. Not a single student was required to join the [Monster Specialist] this year, as all the other apprentices.h.i.+ps had been filled out relatively equally. The lecturers were thankful for such a blessing, but Donis felt like he'd be bored.

He was warned the trip might be long, as all the other apprentices.h.i.+ps were a couple of weeks away by carriage, but his was on the other side of the continent. When Donis asked how long it would take to travel there by carriage, he was told a lovely figure of 7 months.

Shocked, he questioned if the staff in charge of this were mentally sound, and to Corvigs bemused reply, they were. The plan for Donis was to first go to the closest Portal town, which was actually only 2 weeks travel away. Then after he crosses the portal, he'll travel for another week until his destination. He was overjoyed that his 7 month trip was cut down to only 3 weeks, definitely a first cla.s.s upgrade.

His target was Grimbay. A dark and cutthroat town, with a populous fis.h.i.+ng port. He didn't hear much about it, but what was spoken of it, wasn't nice.

Before he could experience Grimbay, he needed to first travel to the city of Arral, the Southside Port. It was a quaint little town, with plenty of touristy attractions. Since very few people actually wanted to stay in the city, and they had no real exports, they ended up capitalizing on nifty trinkets and souvenirs.

The 2 week trip was strenuous on Donis's mind, as the carriage rarely stopped. The men driving would take s.h.i.+fts, and there would always be someone directing the Droveries. Donis did peek at the mens status, but it was nothing special. He was already far above them in stats.

This gave him time to reflect, to gain some insight into the life he's lived, and to even begin dreaming of his life ahead. He was finally doing it, he was finally setting his first steps into the world and becoming the man he wanted to become.

The trip, peaceful. The days, too long. Eventually the city of Arral came into view. Sky-high buildings made of stone and gla.s.s, definitely too large to be supported by just stone beams.

'Magic, I guess,' Donis mused.

There seemed to be an almost green glow to the city in front of him, a vibrancy not seen in the previous places Donis has been to. It only naturally fit for a city meant for tourists to be so grandiose. Plenty of places to see, and even more trinkets to buy.

Yet his stop here would be short, he didn't want to really waste much more time here, and he didn't know if the people on the other side of the portal are waiting for him already or not.

Deciding against dawdling around, the carriage brought him to the building which housed the portal. Surprisingly, it was a small and homely looking building. No grand arches, no overly-sized window panels, nor were there jewel encrusted candelabras floating around. It felt respectful, and most of all, within a budget.

'Stupid Lorenzo, making me actually miss his overbudgeted canteen…' grumbled Donis.

As he walked around the front of the building, he saw the receptionist sitting there, writing on some sort of doc.u.ments. She was pretty, with auburn hair, and fair skin. She wore a tight outfit that clearly didn't fit all too well in places, but it ended up adding to her 'charm'.

"Hey there, I'm Donis Laurent, I think my name should be down for access to this.. this.. portal?" said Donis with a hint of anxiety.

"Hmm, lemme check right there quick. Hmm… Yes, Donis Laurent, you're free to pa.s.s through. Just remember, hold your breath while going through!"

"Oh sure! Wh..wait, hold my breath?" stumbled Donis.

"Yes! Don't forget to do that!" said the receptionist with a bright smile.

"No.. No I mean why should I hold my breath?"

"Well silly, if you don't your lungs will collapse and be torn right out of you!" laughed the receptionist.

He was dumbstruck. The woman in front of him was talking about his near certain death with such humour. 'Is she r.e.t.a.r.ded, or am I being made fun of?'

"Oh silly, don't make that face, just hold your breath and everything will be fine! Go, go in to that room there, your transport should be ready, and I'm busy over here," shoo'd the receptionist.

With a bewildered look, Donis felt compelled to leave her vicinity and walk to the mentioned room. Which turned out to be incredibly close and entirely soundproof. The moment he stepped into the room a painful sound a.s.saulted his ears.

It was like metal and s.p.a.ce were being moulded in here. It wasn't painful in the normal sense, but it was overwhelming. It felt like the room itself wanted to collapse in on itself at any time. The void in front of him felt disorientating. He was looking ahead, but there was nothing there. Not like blackness nor whiteness, but nothingness. The absence of something was there, and it was hurting his mind.

His [Void Sense] could perceive and insane amount of Void Charged Mana in front of him. There was also an incredible amount of Etheric Charged mana there too, seemingly stabilizing the entire portal. It was beyond comprehension what he was witnessing, and for the first time in a long time, he felt at awe at the prowess of those above him.

Creating this, powering, and even conceptualizing this thing must have taken an incredible amount of time and resources.

Sweat began beading down his forehead. The words of the secretary resounded clearly in his mind once again.

He held his breath with great vigour, and stepped through.

It was unreal. It felt like he was unable to perceive the world, yet able to see so much more. It felt like his [Void Sense] was nothing, yet everything. He could see the framework of the portal from the inside, and he could perceive the void itself. A concept so difficult to explain unless experienced.

Yet as immensely disorientating as it was, it lasted for less than a second. His step finished and he felt like he got re-orientated in the same room as he was just in. The carpet was the same, the ambiance was the same, and even the temperature was the same.

'Odd,' thought Donis.

He walked out and he even saw an auburn haired secretary. Yet when she looked up, she was nowhere near as pretty nor as well endowed. Donis now accepted he did in fact just teleport.

Somehow the excitement of teleporting had lost some of it's magic when the woman told him of the dangers.

After filling out a form with the new secretary, Donis stepped outside and saw a carbon copy of the city Arral. He was now in the city of Shur, and sure it was cute, but it was nothing special since he had seen it's connecting city.

He didn't dawdle for too long, and set off in search of the carriages supposedly set up by the Academy. Asking the locals for directions and covering large areas with his enhanced physique, Donis made quick work of locating the carriages.

There was one already waiting for him with the insignia of the Academy. Donis inquired if he could potentially stay the night here in the city as his entire body was aching from the nonstop travel. The driver was surprised he even got here so quick, as most people would spend at least a few days in the other city before they got here.

Getting confirmation, Donis immediately set of to go enjoy the city a little bit before retiring in a nice bed, instead of the seating of his previous carriage.

The lights, the smells, the knickknacks that littered the windows of shops. It was truly a city to just aimlessly walk around in. There was so much to see and to hear. Jesters playing pranks on kids and adults alike, musicians entertaining the pa.s.serby's, street vendors cooking and selling the most wonderful smelling food.

It was magnificent.

'Shur sure seems satisfyingly scrumptious,' laughed Donis at his verbal prowess.

When walking upon a particularly savoury smelling stall, Donis pulled out Etheria. She was eager to try the new food, even if she didn't actually need to eat.

The two walked around the city, garnering looks of admiration and sometimes fear. Some of the kids would walk up to Donis and ask if they could pet Etheria, who would of course say yes. Her feathers were beyond soft and it would be a crime to disallow these poor people the pleasure of her feathers.

He ended up finding a library that was bigger than his entire house, and surprisingly populated.

Entering the library, he saw the mult.i.tudes of kids and their parents walking around, reading to them and just having a wonderful time. It warmed his heart, yet, it also hurt him. Uncertain of where this pain came from, the [System] chimed in.

-Donis, a corrupt memory is on the verge of coming back, do you wish for me to force it?-

'Are there side-effects if you do?'

-There might be, I'm not sure as we've never attempted this before.-

'Hmm, okay, force it.'

A searing pain shot through his mind, a yelp trying to escape his lips. An image formed in his mind. A child walking with his hands in his parents. The orchard they were in glowed with a pristine and holy light. The words were m.u.f.fled but the intent was there, a deep love. Donis's heart was filled with indescribable happiness.

The memory cuts for a split second and the parents are dismembered, with the boy on his knees crying. The light has turned from a holy white, to an ominous black. The boys aura had changed from peace to hate. The orchard no longer standing, it laid there in ashes still smoldering. Donis's heart shatters as the images continue to form in front of him.

His eyes snap open, and he's back in the library. A deep anger has taken root within his heart, but also a deeper love acted as a counterweight to the toll his heart was undergoing.

'What the f.u.c.k was that? What was the point of that?'

-I'm sorry Donis, I don't know. The memory wasn't linked to any of your skills or abilities, I'm not even sure how you gained it back.-

Donis just mentally sighed and a.s.sured the [System] that everything's fine. He took a breather and continued to peruse the library.

His mind is in disarray but Etheria kept close, trying to snuggle out the pain he felt. Ruffling her feathers, Donis smiled a little lighter.

Then he saw it, something that stirred the warrior within him. A book, a tome!

"Dragonfire, the Breath Spell"

"The image of Dragons breathing fire, or lighting, or gales as strong as hurricanes had long captured the imaginations of millions out there. So, I, L.G, have taken it upon myself to create something which can take us closer to these magical creatures, and bridge the gap between our species.

My Dragonfire, the Breath Spell."

After reading the book in a record time, a new skill appeared in his Status Window.

-[Dragonfire]-

[Intermediate - Adept]

[Damage: 90/s]

[Cost: 200MP/s]

[Level 1/30]

Requirement: Intelligence 15 + A breathing type skill.

An interchangeable spell in which you can focus a Mana Type into a powerful breath type spell. Invokes the ancient image of a dragon with each use.