22 The Seventh

I looked at the ethereal man as I sat in front of him, he exuded so much power that my eyes just started to cry blood just by being in his presence.

"You seems stressed, you don't have to" his voice caressed my ears by crushing them

"If you were in my place, you'll be stressed too " I grunted as I started to heal my wounds using the last remaining souls that I gathered.

"It is not my fault if you are too weak to just be in my presence" I saw a smile etching on his ethereal lips

'This bastard' I thought with a snarl as I looked at him

As the mysterious figure's voice echoed ominously, I felt a shiver run down my spine. Shadows danced around us, casting an eerie atmosphere over the encounter.

"Who are you to decide what is meant to be or not?" I retorted defiantly, my voice tinged with skepticism. I focused my mana, fortifying my mind and body against whatever threat this entity posed. "I am free to carve my own path, untouched by the whims of destiny or fate."

His chuckle sent a chill through my bones as I eyed him warily. Ethereal blue orbs of arcane magic swirled around him, adding to the sense of unease in the air.

"A very optimistic perspective," he remarked, his tone dripping with cryptic implications. "But I see through the illusion of freedom you cling to, a false sense of liberty."

"Why are you telling me this?" I demanded, my heart racing with uncertainty. I sensed a warning in his words, but the meaning eluded me.

"I am merely offering insight into your future, Tomas," he replied, his words sending a jolt of fear through me as he spoke my name. How did he know who I was?

"How do you know my name?" I snapped, electricity crackling in my palm as I confronted him, my senses on high alert.

"It is of no consequence," he replied calmly, his demeanor unsettlingly serene. "In this realm, I perceive all that enters. Your past and future are laid bare before me."

I swallowed hard, the weight of his words sinking in. The surroundings shifted, and I found myself gazing out at a tranquil, sunlit clearing, the sense of foreboding lingering in the back of my mind.

"Did you transport me into your own dimension just to tell me this ?" I inquired, my steps cautious as I traversed the enchanting clearing. Despite my suspicions, I couldn't deny the surreal beauty that surrounded us—the air alive with the hum of magic, and ethereal lights dancing in harmony with the gentle breeze.

"Where exactly are we?" I pressed, my gaze sweeping over the vibrant foliage and the whimsical creatures darting through the underbrush, oblivious to our presence.

"Isn't it wondrous?" he replied, his voice carrying a hint of amusement as we strolled towards a verdant forest. "Magic knows no bounds here. It's a realm where imagination and mana intertwine seamlessly, unfettered by the constraints of mortal limitations."

His words resonated with me as we entered the lush forest. The sights and sounds enveloped me in a symphony of wonder, leaving me awestruck. Glowing motes of light pirouetted around us, their ethereal dance captivating my senses.

"How is it possible that you can conjure something as magnificent as this, Sar-Elam?" I uttered in awe, my eyes fixed on the enigmatic figure before me. Sar-Elam, the Seventh Dragon—the very same being recorded in history books as slain and imprisoned. Yet here he stood, defying all that I had been taught.

Could it be that the history books were mistaken? Or perhaps, as some whispered, the books themselves were his prison.

"You know me, demon, perhaps it is thanks to the knowledge of your worlds that you infer something like that, not many demons know me and can identify me" he said as he stopped, I stopped at his level before he pointed me in front of him.

"There" I looked where he pointed to see a cave, it's entrance so big, I was like an insect in front of it "You don't seem to comprehend what you are destined to become, Val-Beleth" 

"I am not destined to anything, I am my own man !" I exclaimed as his talks about prophecy and destiny started to annoy me greatly." I am free to do what I want, if tomorrow, I want to stop to help Azeroth, I will" 

"But you will not," Sar-Elam responded with certainty as we ventured into the cave. Its interior was a spectacle to behold, illuminated by the radiant glow of countless gemstones embedded in the walls.

"How can a cave contain so many magical gemstones?" I marveled aloud, unable to tear my gaze away from the dazzling display before me.

"Well, when gemstones are imbued with a particular type of magic, they can acquire these extraordinary properties," Sar-Elam explained as he approached a particularly large gemstone protruding from the wall. With a practiced hand, he reached out to retrieve it, the gemstone pulsating with an intense energy. It was unmistakably infused with the element of fire, its fiery glow casting an ominous light in the cave.

'This gemstone is overflowing with mana,' I thought in awe as I accepted the large gemstone from Sar-Elam's hands. Feeling drawn to its power, I focused my senses and delved into its magical essence. With practiced precision, I swiftly extracted a portion of the gemstone's mana, causing it to erupt in a fiery burst. As the mana surged forth, I deftly condensed it into a seething orb of molten magma.

I quickly throw it on the ground of the cave, melting the weak stone.

"Why are you showing me this ? " I looked around, looking at all the glowing gemstones

"This is a way for you to become stronger" he said to me as I saw suddenly dozen of gemstones started to fly all around him "I offer to tutor you in the way of magic Val-Beleth" 

"Why would you do that ? " I was skeptical, he was someone that wanted only to destroy demons, so why would he help me?

"Why ? Because I want it, and anyway, even without me, you would have easily repelled the Burning Legion, the habitants of Azeroth repelled them without you and with the power at the disposition of Kha-Beleth, our eggs and all the knowledge of every civilisations of Ashan you can easily crush these little ants under your boots"

"So tutoring me brings you what ?" 

"It brings me joy that the second coming of Kha-Beleth is tutored like he was" he replied with a smile as an enormous amount of magic erupted from his body.

"In this book, time passes differently from outside. One year is one day outside, the only problem will be the fact that you could become absolutely mad very fast, I am not going to be gentle on you, boy." his smile sent shivers down my spine as I looked at him.

"I accept, teacher" I kneeled my head at him as I sensed something on my armored skin, as if someone was painting me.

"I'm not particularly fond of gray; I prefer blue," he remarked casually. I glanced down at my arm and watched in amazement as the fiery red hue of my skin transformed into the serene blue of the ocean.

"For your first lesson, try changing your skin color back using pure arcane magic," he instructed. Before I could respond, he vanished into thin air, leaving me alone to contemplate his words. "Mages often impose unnecessary limitations on themselves. Why rely on existing spells when you can conjure your own magic in the moment?" I heard his voice all around me as I sat down on the ground as I started to think about what he told me

'Can I truly manipulate reality with just my imagination?' I wondered aloud, feeling a surge of excitement and apprehension. I reached out, searching for traces of pure arcane energy in the air around me. Sensing its presence, I began to gather it, shaping it into a swirling ball of vibrant purple energy. Though it wasn't my intended result, I knew that experimentation was essential. The last thing I wanted was to inadvertently transform myself into something unintended due to a botched transfiguration spell.

I spent hours experimenting with different combinations of spells on nearby rocks, attempting to shift their colors to something else. Despite numerous attempts and alterations to the spells and magical formulas, I finally succeeded in turning one of the stones blue. Encouraged by this progress, I created a magical circle in the air, focusing my efforts on adjusting it to transform the blue stone into red. Gradually, the top of the stone began to take on a crimson hue, and after some time, the entire stone had turned a vibrant shade of red.

'Finally,' I thought, relieved that I didn't have to resort to draining mana from the gemstones. Stepping back into the cave, I drew a magical circle on the ground and positioned myself in the center. With a flicker of magic, I ignited the circle, feeling the familiar sensation of magic enveloping my armor once again. However, unlike Sar-Elam's refined control, the magic felt wild and unpredictable.

Gritting my teeth, I endured the discomfort, akin to the sensation of being cut open, as my magic began to restructure my skin color. After what seemed like an eternity, the pain subsided, and I opened my eyes to find my skin returning to its normal tone. With a sense of relief, I reversed the changes that absorbing Ylath's pure power had inflicted on my skin.

I heard sounds of clapping, surprised I looked around to see my teacher looked down at me from the ceilings of the cave.

"Took you long enough, now let's dive into the true lessons" his smile didn't reassures in the slightest, it was like a predator looking down at his prey.

'Well, shit' I thought as I looked at my arms that seemed to disappear

"Next lesson, how to return to the real world after being banished into the Spirit World !" he exclaimed as I sensed reality shift

'May Urgash bless me,' I thought anxiously as I found myself confronted by a vast expanse of white, with swirling mists howling ominously at me.

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Little chapter for today

See you soon