It was the day after, Laex is sitting in their training hall.
It was uncharacteristically vacant, all because Laex was using it. Andrew strictly forbade anyone from entering it lest they disturb his son.
"The Codex is linked to one's soul. I should still have the same one," he said as he called upon his Codex.
A white book that seemed ethereal appeared before him. At the front cover of it lay a white Key, a familiar one, the very one he used to open the Gate of Rebirth. The Bow, or the head of the Key, had red liquid inside it, called the Source.
Seeing this, he could not help but sigh.
"How the mighty have fallen," he lamented, seeing the color of his Source.
Turning the pages of his Codex, he saw nothing but emptiness; nothing was written, all was lost.
"Hundreds of thousands of years of collecting Invocations and Incantations gone just like that. Alas, I cannot complain. This is a price that must be paid. Thankfully, I remember a few," he said as he turned to the back cover of the book. This time, it was not a Key, but a Plume.
The Plume also had a red liquid running through its vein.
Slowly and methodically, Laex called upon the Plume to his write hand and began writing on the first page of the Codex. He started to inscribe a letter from an unknown language with each small stroke he made, containing countless mysteries.
As he did, the Source from the Plume drained bit by bit. His face also turned paler by the second, until finally, when the Plume lost all its Source and his face turned whiter than paper, he managed to write a single letter.
A layman would not know its meaning, but even an untrained eye would feel serenity and unity with nature after seeing it.
Just writing this made Laex lie on his back and gasp, 'How pitiful,' he thought before closing his eyes.
After 30 minutes of resting, he took the red tea beside him, which he had previously prepared, and drank it completely. This was no ordinary tea, its name is Source Tea, from Source Leaves that only grow out of Source Trees.
It is the currency of the world, a leaf that makes the world turn.
Without stopping, Laex continued this cycle. Hours upon hours had passed until finally, he had finished writing the phrase.
{Gate of Arcadia}
"Fifteen hours of writing. Not bad," he affirmed himself before completely falling asleep.
In the morning, he woke up to the smell of Source Tea filling the entire training hall.
"What have you been doing, son?" Andrew asked as he poured Laex a cup.
"Training. I want to become an Adventurer," he replied with great determination.
"Ha, I figured," his father smiled.
"Nothing stirs a heart more than being an adventurer. I still remember the thrill 100 years ago. Alas, it is not for me. It had been years since the Incantations in my Codex had been used."
"Why have you not told me about this? I can enroll you in the best school on the continent."
"I was afraid you would not let me."
"Oh, please, just seeing you bursting with passion is enough for me. Although I walked away from the path of an Adventurer, it doesn't mean that you should too. To collect Incantations and Invocation, continuously improve your Source, and discover the secrets of the world is a grand life to live."
Hearing his response made Laex truly smile. He was amazed at his father's disposition. He had lived long enough to see countless families rise and fall, and he can say for certain that fathers like Andrew, who support their children's dreams even if it is not aligned with theirs, are hard to come by.
"Then, father, I have a request."
"Sure, don't worry about the money."
"Six months from now, enroll me in Hextia Codex Academia."
"..."
His father turned, speechless at the request of his son.
"Son. Ahem, you must know that it is impossible to get to HCA with money alone. It is the most prestigious academia in the entire zone, not just the entire country or the entire continent, but the entire zone! Even Dynasties have their heirs enroll there."
"I am aware. I just need you to promise to support me with everything I need in the six months that I prepare for it," he confidently said.
"Six months?" Andrew asked in disbelief.
'From the moment a child discovers their Codex, which is as early as 5 years old for those Dynasty heirs, they have been training without stop to enter this academia, which only accepts individuals from the ages of 20 to 25. How in the world will my son keep up in just six months?!' he thought; however, he could not say it to his son. He feared that he would lose his drive.
Thus, for the next six months, every resource was poured into Laex's training. Not one Source Leaf was spared to buy precious resources like Source Ginseng, Source Diamond, and other precious materials to improve one's Source.
All the while, Laex did not stop writing on his Codex. No one was allowed to see him train as per his request, but if they did, they would have knocked the lights out of him.
No one trains like that. It's like learning the guitar by writing down the notes. However, this posed no problem for Laex. His problem is not having any Invocations and Incantations, which he needs to write for himself to use.
The actual combat? Well, he had hundreds of thousands of years of experience already.
He spent his days drowned in Codex, Keys, and Gates, recalling the Incantations and Invocations he could use for now. His routine remained unchanged until the fateful time of his departure came.
"Are you ready, son?" Andrew asked with his heart filled with doubt. Though he saw his son persevere for the past 6 months, working his bones out, what enrollee of the Hextia Codex Academy didn't?
No genius is born without hard work, and though his son strived for 6 months, others had strived for more than a decade.
"I am."
For some reason, though, hearing his son's response gave him a bit of hope.