Epilogue

We all sit in the bookshop as our minds go over the events of the past half hour. After the Devourer had been banished to the Abyss, Hugo turned his attention to the person who had truly suffered the most. The man the Majin had been possessing. The moment the Majin was separated from him, his body began to fall apart as whatever the Majin had used to hold him together faded. He had almost died, but the quick action of Daniel and Hugo saved him and kept him alive until others arrived.

It wasn't long until the venue of our fight became full of Wranths doing one thing or another. Some fixing everything that had been destroyed during the fight, others getting rid of the array the Majin had made, and finally the wipers whose only goal was to make sure no one had seen the fight. And if they found someone who did, well, that person was going to get their brain mopped clean.

In the meantime, Drew, his team, and I returned to the bookshop where we promptly collapsed. Drew, however tired he was, seemed ecstatic that he had finally opened his third eye. David and Daniel were trembling for an unknown reason, while Lathia seemed sad that she hadn't participated as much in the fight. Something I was glad about as she had gotten another more important task: making sure Hugo came to save us all on time. The only one missing is Emma. She had lost quite a lot of blood and had to be taken to the hospital.

As for the deer, it had long since left me after asking if it could be my Familiar. I had agreed. If not for it, I probably wouldn't be alive. Still, before it left it had given me some heartbreaking news.

"So Ian," Drew suddenly says, "what's the purity of your Uua?"

I look up at him. "Seventy-eight."

He nods to himself. "That means your third eye-"

"Yes, it was as a result of the Watcher." By mixing its Uua with mine, the Watcher had been able to temporarily boost my Uua's purity to the point where I could finally use the third eye. That is the reason it had left me to fight the Majin alone in the first place, to put me in mortal danger and enable me to produce that strange spark - the key to the third eye. Without its help, however, there is no third eye for me. My Uua just isn't pure enough.

There was one advantage, however. In the future, as long as all other requirements for opening the third eye were met, I didn't have to put myself in mortal danger anymore.

"Lucky," Drew says. "Once you become a Protector it's a straight shot to Wranth for you. You don't have to waste time unlocking the third eye."

"I almost died."

"Me too. It was exhilarating."

I give him a strange look. It seems unlocking the third eye had turned him partially mad. "By the way, whenever Hugo punched the… Majin, did you guys also hear the punch hit twice."

"Yeah," Lathia answers this time. "He was using a Fiis Technique. Double Impact."

Fiis technique? "What's a fiis technique?"

"In a battle, noers can only do so much. Fiis techniques are basically skills that have tremendous power when used in battle, however, they mostly require the third eye to learn. Double Impact is one of them, you know Newton's Third Law?"

I nod. Newton's Third Law: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It basically translates to this: whenever force is applied to something, the receiver reacts by producing an equal force, only in the opposite direction. To make things simpler, if you punch a wall, then the wall hits your fist back with the same amount of force you used to punch it.

"Well, Double Impact is based on it. Some Laens have a strength that can reach ridiculous levels, at that point, if for instance, you hit something with enough force to send it flying, you'll also be sent flying in the opposite direction. Apart from that, it can cause serious injury if your body cannot handle receiving whatever it is dishing out. So, a member of the Super Trump invented Double Impact. Basically, the equal but opposite force created whenever you hit something is manipulated so that it is directed back at whoever you're hitting, freeing you from the repercussions. In layman's terms, you hit someone once, and with Double Impact, they feel the hit twice."

"That is busted," I point out.

Drew scoffs. "It's not even the most powerful fiis technique. There's still Redirection, Flash Focus, Alpha Counter…"

"Wait, didn't you say they required the third eye to learn? But I've seen Keldin use Alpha Counter."

"Alpha Counter is an exception, as well as Flash Focus to an extent."

"What does Flash Focus do?"

"Well, Flash Focus can be done without the third eye, but it also kind of needs the third eye to learn. It's used to counter all Uua-based attacks. Basically, you need to understand that for some reason, Uua cannot exist in a place void of Eani. If someone sends an Uua-based attack to you and you use the third eye to turn all the Eani around you into Uua, before Focusing it extremely quickly, a temporary void is created. Eani usually fills in the void quickly, but if you time it so that the attack is within the void for even a moment, then puff. It's gone."

I think back to when the deer first opened my eyes and I Focused the Eani around me. Is that why Majin's attack dissipated? Did I use flash focus? And then after Drew opened his third eye, when we had attacked the Majin, the Majin had done something that made Drew's attack dissipate before reaching him. Is that also Flash Focus?

Entranced, I spend the rest of my time talking with Drew and Lathia about Fiis Techniques, and the more I hear, the more fascinated I become. From what they tell me, a Laen's strength above the Wranth level is truly determined by the Fiis Techniques one knows and how masterful you are of it.

Time passes and Hugo returns bearing good news. Emma is fine. After hearing that the twins relax. It is then I notice that it is getting late. Excusing myself, I hurry back home. I head quickly to my room and collapse on my bed as fatigue weakens me. I quickly fall asleep.

* * * * * *

Emily

I get back home and look around. Ian seems to be in his room. Doing my best not to make too much noise, I head quietly to my room and lock the door. It is only then I am able to relax.

Placing my bag gently on my bed, I slowly open it, my heart pounding with excitement at what I had found. With my bag fully open, I take a step backward and watch with bated breath. The seconds pass by painfully, but I don't move, instead, I get more and more excited. And then it happens.

A small glowing creature floats out of my bag.