Shades of the New World

Chapter 206: The meeting

Eventually, the group reached the giant tree stump. As for the race, Arza ultimately won, because he was just much too fast compared to Evin, who was simply nimble and was lacking in raw power. But Arza wasn't satisfied with this win, since he knew that if the two every fought inside a forest like this, he would be the one losing, because he wouldn't be able to catch onto Evin. A race was one thing, but what truly mattered was battle prowess.

"Supposedly, this tree was something that could reach the heavens above and the people that lived around it could live in a state of utopia, almost. This incurred the jealousy of the other countries and they decided to cut this tree down," the boy in question started to explain the history of the tree stump.

"And then what happened?" Arza asked.

"When the tree was almost cut down in half, it directed all its energy downwards, becoming something that was connected to hell underground," Evin said.

"But we don't have hell or heaven on Alvox, right? The souls reincarnate in an endless cycle, while some retain their memories like you," Arza said and saw Evin smile back at him, awfully amused.

"I know, right? But that's what everyone says, so you know?" Evin replied with a shrug, walking towards an opening behind the stump.

History aside, Arza really admired this place. Not because of the impossibly huge tree stump, but because this place was simply brimming with life. Arza was almost sure that his mana-core would increase in size naturally if he stayed here for prolonged times. He could only regret not knowing of this place before almost right outside the town as well.

"What is this place, anyway?" he asked.

"You'll see soon," Evin smiled ambiguously and beckoned Arza over. 

Arza warily walked over to Evin's side, entering the small opening under the tree stump. Looking around, he could see that there was a cave of some sorts that underneath, seemingly created thanks to the root of the tree. 

"Wow" a sigh came out of his mouth.

As he was taking in the awe-inspiring sight, he saw Evin gather a bundle of Life Energy and throw it deep into the cave.

A weird feeling of anticipation took over Arza's head, as he excitedly thought of what was going to happen next.

He didn't have to wait long, as pink spheres of varying sizes appeared in his vision, floating towards him en masse. Arza didn't realize what these things were, but he could feel that they were very excited to see him. He did not shy away from them and let his body be taken over by the pink army.

Countless thoughts regarding a certain topic appeared in Arza's mind: how his body worked in general, about how he could use Life energy more efficiently, and solutions about the things he was struggling with.

As he was immersed with these new revelations, he felt an almost suffocating glare fall upon his body. Arza opened his eyes and saw that Evin and the others were kneeling in front of a gigantic serpent, one that was enveloped in the brightest pink hue that Arza saw in his life. When Arza's eyes met the serpent's gaze his body was paralyzed due to the unsurmountable gap between their levels. 

While Arza was wondering what he should be doing, the serpent seemed to not mind if and smiled as he slowly inspected Arza with unparalleled interest. Its head then came closer to smell Arza and its smile disappeared and a look of uncertainty appeared on its slitted eyes.

[FEAR?] An almost ear-shattering voice appeared inside Arza's head. It felt extremely similar to how Arza spoke to Karan, just a dozen times more pressuring.

[Who are you?] Arza asked back, trying to put on a brave front. Something told was telling him that this was the right move.

[DID THESE FOOLS BROUGH YOU HERE AS A SURPRISE? SHOULDN'T THEY PREPARE YOU A BIT, AT LEAST? YOU HUMANS AND YOUR POINTLESS GAMES,] the serpent's booming voice echoed in Arza' head, mercilessly reverberating in every little corner of it.

[What do you want] Arza replied with great difficulty.

[HAH, CAN'T EVEN TAKE ON MY VOICE. WHAT WILL YOU DO WHEN I MYSELF TAKE ROOT IN YOUR BODY? HA-HA-HA,] the serpent laughed inside Arza's head and Arza's bones seemed to vibrate in unison with the laughter.

[Please Stop] Arza was almost at the brink of blacking out.

The serpent then snorted and its presence disappeared from inside Arza.

[You alright? Damn that snake, even I was assaulted by his voice] Karan asked with a grunt.

[I think I'm fine,] Arza replied and fell onto the ground. He could then feel Evin coming to pick him up.

"What happened?" Evin asked as he checked whether Arza was okay or not.

Before Arza was able to reply, Ssatsko interrupted him.

"The Beast Lord wishes for Arza to follow him deeper into the cave."

Arza then felt the ground rumble as the gigantic Serpent turned around to head deeper into the cave.

'A Beast Lord? Of course' Arza realized and thought back on the previous experience. From what he could read from the books for beginner mages and from what happened with Evin and the Vulpine Mother of the Deep, Arza understood what was going on. 

"What about us?" Evin asked.

"Ugh, we can follow behind," Ssatsko replied, his hands massaging the skin around his pink horn.

The group then got back on their feet and started to walk deeper into the cave. The Serpent had left already, leaving a pink trail for the group to follow. Arza could notice how the pink blobs around them were gradually taking on the forms of little snakes, slithering about all over the place. Some of them seemed to be happy enough to latch onto Arza, making him ticklish all around his body. Although Arza was a bit dissatisfied with this, he could notice how they were gradually seeping into his body, strengthening it greatly.