As soon as the team walked through the door, they found themselves inside this beautifully lit house with blue writings floating in the air. The writing was simple, direct, and read as such:
[Welcome to the resting area. You can rest and sleep here for 24 hours, with certain provisions provided. This place has two main rules: 1. Do not destroy any item. 2. You cannot take anything from the rest area into the subsequent trial. Have an excellent rest.]
"A rest area?" Christian muttered.
"Do you think there is any decent food?" Xin'er asked in a weak voice.
"Hopefully."
"I want a proper bath," Lucretia commented. "I would pay anything for that right about now."
Christian and the others watched the writing disappear, and then they walked deep inside to inspect the house. He had to help Xin'er, so his speed was slow, but Lucretia rushed ahead. "There is food," she yelled from the left side of the room. Christian guided Xin'er and saw a large table with three seats on each side.
He gazed at the table and was surprised by its lavish content: flatbread with honey and olive oil on the side, cheese and dairy products, a vegetable salad and stew, fruits like dates, figs, and pomegranate—both fresh and dry—three meat dishes of lamb, beef, and goat, and a few fish dishes—lastly, two containers of what appeared to be wine and a beard.
"How lavish," Christian commented.
"I'll dig in immediately," Lucretia said.
Christian suddenly coughed before pointing to a washing apparatus floating not far from the room.
"Where are my manners?" Lucretia said, embarrassedly. She walked over and washed her hands. As soon as she finished, the water disappeared before replenishing itself. Christian led Xin'er over and helped her wash her hands before putting her on the table. Then, he returned to do the same.
'This water doesn't seem to be ordinary,' Christian thought. 'It feels like rubbing alcohol. No, a better way to describe it would be to say it's similar to hand sanitizer from Jim's memories.'
Christian sat down and immediately started putting all the meat into his plate, followed by some bread. Then, he remembered that he was suffering from a minor illness and should start eating healthily, so he added a bit of the salad. He looked at the wine and mead before glancing at Lucretia, who was drinking like she was not a child. Ultimately, Christian realized this was a matter of cultural differences and decided not to say anything.
He removed his wand from his waist and conjured himself a fizzy drink before doing the same for Xin'er. He did not know whether she planned to drink, but he removed the choice for her. Christian then stood up to rewash his hands before eating.
The food was delicious, but it wasn't due to the seasonings; rather, it was a result of how fresh the ingredients were. Aunt Eleanor had taken him to the best Michelin Restaurants in the world, and the food was never this fresh. He did not know whether it was because he had been eating that horrible ant meat since the trial's start or something else, but the food was indeed extremely satisfying.
Christian wanted to take a break; he wanted to lose himself in this meal. He was still weak, and this dinner should be a time for recuperation. Sadly, his mind was not the type to remain quiet. He was thinking about recent events — especially arcane magic. Most of Christian's knowledge about arcane magic originated from the game [Hogwarts Legacy] that Jim played, but there seems to be some difference between the two.
'There was no such thing as Synchronization. However, the main character did have a bar that indicated whether they could use Ancient Magic, and the longer the bar, the more they could use it,' Christian thought. Although it was stupid to compare a game he saw in some memories to real life, he felt he could still learn something from it.
"Lucretia," Christian called upon her as he had a question he wanted to ask.
"Hmm?" Lucretia uttered as she gulped down her second wine cup.
"You should slow down."
"Oh, yes."
Christian shook her head; he decided to give her a break, given what they'd experienced. "Are there specific locales that can, how I say this, help increase the strength of arcane magic? Maybe increase Synchronization?"
"Specific Locals? Oh, are you talking about Ember Spots?"
"What are those?"
"They are places where arcane energy is special, and meditation in those spots can increase or accelerate synchronization," she explained.
"Special, how?"
"I don't know much, but my father described it as a unique environment where arcane energy is alive or has a spirit, making it easier for people to attune to it. Those are the words he used, but I don't really understand them," Lucretia explained. "But how did you know about Ember Spots? I thought you knew nothing about Arcane Magic?"
"I thought I didn't, but it turns out it was just called something else where I'm from," Christian replied, and he was somewhat telling the truth. Arcane Magic is called Ancient Magic in his time period, and he knew about the [Embers Spot] because, in the game, the main character had to travel to specific locales to increase his Ancient Magic Meter. Christian asked, thinking this was a long shot, but he did not expect it to be true.
"So, how do you find these Ember Spots?" The Curator promised to teach his mother Arcane Magic, so Christian wanted to help as much as possible, not only to protect her better but also so she could be proficient in teaching him by the time he was ready.
"That, I don't know," Lucretia shook her head.
"You need someone with Divine Eyes that can see those areas or hire a geomancer with some proficiency in arcane magic," Xin'er added. Christian's heart skipped a beat after the term [Divine Eyes], but he remained composed.
"Divine Eyes? Geomancy?"
"Divine Eyes are more of a myth, so you don't have to worry about them," Xin'er explained. "A Geomancer is what you would want. However, most of the Ember Spots have already been taken, so you might have to rely on the library to gain access to some."
"I see," Christian nodded. Based on his deduction, ancient magic was a dying magical art in his period, so finding a geomancer with any accomplishment in this field is impossible. 'I can try to bring some books from the library, and hopefully, Mom can learn on her own.' This was the best method he could think of.
Christian opened his mouth to ask another question about the spell Menes used to protect himself from the Ant Queen, but stopped midway. "Is there really no way to save Menes?"
"Unfortunately, no."
"Why not?"
Lucretia hiccupped before answering: "He would need to hire a [Master] or [High Mediwizard] to heal him, and the lowest price of these people is 50000 cold coins and 2000 blessed stones. His family will not waste such a large sum on him."
"What are blessed stones?" Christian asked.
"Pure ores or crystals that contained a great deal of arcane energy," Xin'er explained. "Wizard uses them because the energy is easier to control than raw arcane energy. It's also used as currency, as gold can be useless to alchemists or powerful wizards.
"I see. But, shouldn't it be called Arcane Crystal?" he commented, but the other just shrugged. That's how it's been called for centuries, and it was not their turn to comment on such a thing.
"I'm guessing they are extremely valuable?" Christian asked, not continuing that line of questioning.
"More than you think," Lucretia said. "The annual income of our entire Metallus family is about 3000 blessed stones, and we are one of the larger blood crest families."
Christian groaned softly. With some luck and planning, he might have been able to gather the 50,000 coins, but the blessed stone seemed entirely out of his depth.
"What? Do you want to save him?" Lucretia said.
"Of course."
"Why? He did it to himself," she sneered.
"He's only a product of his environment," Christian refuted. "If not for pressure from his family and society, he wouldn't make such a choice."
"Now it's everybody else's fault but his," Lucretia argued.
"I'm not absolving him of his fault, but I understand why he would make such a choice," Christian rebutted. "And even if he was completely wrong, he is our teammate and has fought side-by-side with us — he's even saved my life. I have enough empathy to try to help him if I can."
"Well, good luck with that," Lucretia said as she finished her drink. "I'll look to see if there is a bath." She stood up from her chair but almost fell; luckily, she swiftly supported herself with the table. "Oops," she giggled before waddling out of the dining room.
"I-I think it's nice that you want to save Menes," Xin'er suddenly said.
"Oh, thank you."
"After the test, I'll ask my mother if she can help."
"I appreciate it," Christian said sincerely. Although he has already decided to ask the Curator for help, he does not know whether the latter would agree, so Xin'er's mother might be an excellent backup.
"Well, I'm also done," Xin'er said.
"Already? You've lost plenty of life energy, and eating and resting are the best way to replenish it," Christian suggested.
"Maybe tomorrow for breakfast," Xin'er said, and Christian did not insist. He ate to the fullest and beyond. After digesting his food for an hour, he finally searched for a bath to wash the filth. He desperately wanted some good shampoo for his hair.