"Through the use of Rasvian energy, all this is possible. Everything is composed of Rasvian energy, so what else is there to do but attempt to harness it?"
Leonardo, now awake, stared at the floating text in front of him. He had been interrogating it for the past five minutes.
"I always forget about the text," he muttered, watching it slowly vanish as it awaited a new question.
"There are 21 realms," it declared.
"Twenty-one realms, with five sages in jurisdiction of each realm," Leonardo read aloud. "One hundred and five sages," he muttered to himself, then abruptly slapped his face.
"Stop!" he snapped, realizing the dangerous path his thoughts could lead him down.
A shiver ran down his spine.
"Ehh," he grunted, shaking off the thought and slapping himself once more.
He glanced around, finally noticing that his vision seemed sharper than it had been just a few days ago.
[Landing incoming], the conductor announced.
Leonardo leaned back in his seat, quietly marveling at the view outside.
"Anna," he said softly, careful not to wake Elara just yet.
Anna, still groggy, blinked at him. "What is it, Leo?"
"Do you think we'll find any clues about the explosion at the tower?" he asked, genuine concern in his voice.
"I hope so," she replied, her tone shifting to something more serious. "We need answers—but not right now. That's for the guards, not us."
"We're going to the Stem to get the official start to the quest," she added. "Now that all the families' heirs have brought their guides."
Elara stirred, roused by the conversation.
"Are we there?" she asked, voice heavy with sleep.
"Yup," Anna replied, helping her sit up. "The scene is undoubtedly home…"
As the Right Star came to a halt, the guards stood by silently while everyone else on the train began to disembark.
Leonardo watched them. "They're not leaving?"
"They're going to investigate the destroyed train," Anna said with a yawn.
"Goodbye, Lady Anna," Fredrick said as the group exited through the train's door.
Anna turned back just as the doors began to close, catching Fredrick smirking faintly.
---
"Welcome to the tower—more widely known as 'the Stem,'" the man said joyfully.
Leonardo already knew that, and he was growing impatient, waiting for the man to direct them to the desk to pay in draws.
He turned to Anna, a note of desperation in his voice. "Anna, you have draws, right?"
"Yeah, I do," she said, guiding elara onward.
"Good. Because we're going to need them," he muttered, a mixture of relief and anticipation rising in him.
Anna eyed him. "I've done this at least two times more than you, i know i need draws."
"I haven't done it at all, so that's two separate attempts on your side."
Anna chuckled, then nodded in agreement.