"I wonder how much fun the event will be. I hope I'll find my match," Aizis said with some excitement, changing subject.
"Let's see if anyone is worthy of being our opponent," Marco replied.
"I want to ask you guys something. Should I?" Raizel suddenly asked.
"What do you want to ask?" Aizis replied.
"Can either of you summon weapons from another dimension?" Raizel asked.
"Never heard of it. I sure can't," Marco replied with a long breath.
"I can."
An unfamiliar voice was heard. It wasn't familiar, but it wasn't unfamiliar either.
All three of them turned toward the direction the voice was coming from and saw a face with an adorable smile. She was wearing a long white gown — it was Maria from earlier.
"Who are you?" Raizel asked.
"I'm Maria. I know all your identities," Maria replied, speaking quickly but gently.
Aizis smiled.
"So, what do you want from us?" Aizis asked, casually.
"I don't want to make this complicated. I'll go straight to the point: I want to join your group," Maria replied, straight forward.
"You've been following us for a while, haven't you? I assume you've been following us since the first day," Aizis said, narrowing stare.
"I won't lie. Yes, I've been following you guys for a while. I'm even aware of your event with Mr. Aizes.'' Maria said.
She appeared casual, yet there was a hint of seriousness in her eyes. No trace of hesitation could be found within them.
''Is it only Aizes Relia who managed to sense your endless magic power, Edward Raizel?" Maria suddenly added with a mysterious smile.
Raizel didn't respond immediately.
"So, you want to join us? Is that your only desire?" Raizel asked slowly, ignoring her question.
Maria laughed a bit loudly.
"I'm just interested, so I want to join you guys. You know that already," Maria said.
"Well, well, it's fine for us if anyone wants to join. I don't think we need to introduce ourselves to you," Aizis said with a smile.
"I'm pretty much aware of you guys. Why would I need an introduction?" Maria replied, smiling.
"Hmm, since you're a member of the group, why are you still standing there? Come sit with us," Marco said.
"Sure."
Maria sat right beside Marco.
"It might be the first time for me to be friendly with someone this much, after breaking free from the restrictions of their so-called nobility," Maria thought to herself.
"So, Maria, you were saying you can use the outer dimension to bring things, right?" Aizis asked.
"Yes, it's a special forbidden magic from my family. Although the whole realm is aware of forbidden magic, it's officially prohibited. But who's going to stop the nobles from using it? I'm not one to judge, since I use it myself," Maria said with a broken smile.
"Yes, I've heard of forbidden magic, but I wouldn't say it's entirely forbidden. The whole realm is aware of it, and your family has been doing it pretty openly. They've made it more or less allowed," Aizis replied.
"I wasn't aware of the restriction, but I learned the magic. By the time I became aware of it, it was already too late. That's why I completely forbade myself from using outer dimension magic," Maria replied, visibly upset. Shame, upsetness, and sadness were clear on her face.
"But this time, I had to reveal that I'm a user of that forbidden magic just to join you guys. I'm sorry about that," Maria said with a lowered face.
"Hahaha, it's not something to be so upset about, Maria. Even though it's forbidden, there's no particular reason for that. As long as you use it in the right way, it's fine. The law was mainly created to prevent others from bringing forbidden magical items into the realm, so it's okay if you use it for righteous purposes, and we believe you will," Aizis replied, smiling a gentle smile.
"It's fine as long as you use it in a righteous way. However, it's forbidden for those who use it to fulfill their selfish desires," Raizel said suddenly.
"I'm thankful to you guys," Maria replied with a smile.
"Well, well, well, I knew that Raizel asked that just to find out if any of us use forbidden magic, right, Raizel?" Marco asked.
"Yes, I will allow anyone with me who doesn't use magic to fill their selfish desires," Raizel replied.
"Because this is what my master told me to do, and I won't do anything outside my master's words," Raizel thought to himself.
"Is it your words, Raizel? Or someone else's?" Aizis asked.
Raizel didn't respond.
"There is something interesting going on in the 2nd world. They're up to something new," Maria said suddenly.
"I'm not sure if it's just a rumor or not, but with my dumb luck, I accidentally overheard it from my father while he was talking to a demon elder." she added.
"Second world? What do you mean?" Marco asked curiously.
"You seem to be ignorant about that. The universe exists with a hierarchy of worlds. An infinite number of worlds exist in parallel. Each one has an infinite number of possibilities. These worlds grow as the universe does. It's nearly impossible to find a world unless it's parallel, since they grow consistently and change shape," Aizis explained.
"Did you see through my thoughts, or are we just sharing the same thoughts, Maria?" Raizel asked.
"I don't have that any sort of power to see through someone's thoughts. It's just that our thoughts matched somehow," Maria replied with a smile.
"Are we related somehow?"
"Haha, maybe I'm your lost sister," Maria replied with a sarcastic smile.
"Sister?" Raizel said, surprise flashing across his face. The word stirred something faintly familiar within him, yet it felt distant — like a memory missing a crucial piece.
"Yes? Is it something new for you?" Maria replied with a surprised look.
"Maria, I shouldn't be the one to order you around, but stop the subject here," Aizis said, a trace of seriousness in his eyes.
"Fine."
"What's wrong with him? He seems pretty upset about the word. Does the word bother him that much? Or is it a word he's unfamiliar with but somehow it manages to bother him? Why?" Maria wondered in her mind, her face full of surprise.
A person without the awareness of 'sister,' without the awareness of family, isn't something that won't bother a mortal. It simply left a question in Maria's mind. Just why does he seem different from a normal mortal?
"If you guys actually want to visit the 2nd world, then I believe evening is the best time for that. What do you think, Raizel?" Aizis said.
"Yes, I want to do it as soon as possible," Raizel replied.
"Well, I also agree," Maria replied as well.
"Fine by me too," Marco said with a long breath.
"Well then, we're going there in the evening. If everything runs well, then it's the best decision," Aizis said.
"I'm pretty much interested in the upcoming academy event. I wonder how strong the other academy students are," Marco said.
"Our academy currently holds the title of the strongest academy around the realm. Due to having a massive number of noble students, the academy always holds the title of the strongest. However, this year might be a bit different. Rumors say some other academies have managed to recruit some talented nobles. If it's true, we might be able to see some strong students as our opponents. Although it's just a rumor, so no need to get too excited, but if you want to, it's fine," Maria replied.
"If the outer academies manage to recruit actual talented students, then it can be a fair battle. I need to test myself against them, but don't I have a better way to do that?" Raizel thought to himself.
"Well, we're getting three rounds at best if we win consistently, so there are multiple chances," Marco said.
"Let's see what kind of talent is waiting for us," Aizis replied with a smirk.
After finishing the rest of the classes, the four of them stood in front of the academy gates.
Just as they had planned, they prepared to visit the 2nd world.
"As all of you are prepared already, I believe it's time, Raizel," Aizis said.
Raizel drew a huge purple magic circle. The purple circle surrounded them, creating lightning flashes around them. They vanished from the spot, leaving behind a spark of lightning.
They appeared in a huge, empty sand field. It was the beginning of the 2nd world. The 2nd world didn't have any barriers to prevent someone from entering, so it wasn't a problem for them to teleport there.
The 2nd world was vast and empty. The weather seemed warm, and sand was flying all around. The world itself was a desert. Nothing except sand appeared to exist.
"This isn't what I was expecting. It seems like we're in a desert world. Does anybody even exist here?" Aizis said curiously.
"Hmm, I'm pretty sure that no humans or demons exist here. But the world is ruled by someone known as the Master of Destruction. No one has ever seen his humanoid form. Rumors says he always causes destruction over other worlds in his dragon form," Maria said.
"Rumors... they say a lot, but how much of it is actually true?" Raizel said casually, a faint question lingering in his expression.
"Dragon form?" Marco suddenly spoke up, surprised.
"You mean he has a dragon form?
"That means the world isn't a world of humans or demons—it's a world of dragons," Raizel explained.
"Our goal is basically to test out our power, so it's much better to use magic spells on dragons than humans," Aizis said with a minor smile on his face.