Mention

Osoi grinned in response to Setchi's question. "I've learned two new things!"

Setchi's eyes widened with anticipation. "Are those two things strong!?"

Osoi shook his head with a chuckle. "No, not really..."

Arasu, intrigued, leaned forward. "Not even the forbidden spell?"

Oto and Gisei, caught off guard, echoed in unison. "Forbidden spell!?"

Osoi rolled his eyes, sensing where the conversation was heading. "Oh, here we go..."

Gisei's frustration bubbled to the surface. "NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES I ASK, NOBODY TEACHES ME FORBIDDEN SPELLS!"

Oto interjected calmly, attempting to provide clarity. "You know, forbidden spells are only forbidden because the 4 great wizards deemed them too dangerous for reality. If you called the spell by the exact type of magic it is, the spell comes out stronger and more effective."

Arasu connected the dots. "That's where he got it from..."

Osoi nodded, acknowledging Arasu's observation. "That's the last part!"

Oto continued his explanation. "The 4 great wizards are the only people in the world who have access to the book. They can't add or subtract spells in the book, but they can give certain spells the forbidden status, making the type of magic they are, not clear. Not many who know forbidden magic actually seem to know what type of magic they are using."

Arasu's curiosity peaked. "How do they perform it then?"

Oto leaned in, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "After learning a forbidden spell, instead of keeping the type of magic required to do it like every other spell does, it instead only momentarily creates a mysterious type of magic called forbidden magic in your body, that disappears after you use the spell, which prevents anyone from actually deep diving and figuring out what kind of magic was used."

Arasu pondered Oto's explanation. "Where does mana... even come from?"

Setchi, eager to keep the conversation going, interjected hastily. "YOU'RE GONNA KEEP HIM TALKI-"

Gisei silenced Setchi with a wave of his hand. "Shhhut up, this is a learning opportunity for me."

Tegami, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke up with curiosity. "How do you know all of this, baby?" 

Oto paused, taking a breath before continuing his exposition. "The only other thing I do other than spar with Setchi, play games with you guys, and train my focus abilities, is read non-fiction books. Arasu, from interviews with gods, demons, and other beings, humankind has the answer to your question."

He launched into an elaborate narrative, his words painting a vivid picture of cosmic creation. "Before the existence of existence, before times, reality, life and death, there was a being who called himself Nogasu Seizen. He was a being of limitless power, but was extremely lonely. So, he used his power to create the concept of life, death, time, and reality. And after a few trillions of years, life was born, and an infinite amount of universes were created. He did all of this in one big explosion called 'The Start'. And when he did that, an infinite resource of mana got itself caught in life, and life decided to only give a few universes life with magic, and gave them different ways of using magic, also spawning many different species of magic. A lot of those species aren't in our universe, and after 'The Start' happened, gods were created out of pure powerful mana that we now today call divine mana."

His companions listened intently as he delved deeper into the intricacies of cosmic order. "The gods are all supposed to be the embodiment of a certain concept or element, while demi-gods are the embodiment of philosophies and things that can never be physical. Though many gods that are supposedly of the same element or concept exist, those are not the real gods, those are only gods of their respective worlds. Our world was blessed with not having any fake gods, only we have the real gods."

Oto's voice took on a solemn tone as he broached the topic of the afterlife. "Multiple afterlives do exist, and it isn't as simple as heaven and hell. There are in-between, but those aren't true afterlives because the true afterlife only doesn't bring a cycle. You stay where you are when you actually die. True heaven is the world you only go to when you've truly died and are sent to a place where you only see white and a bright light for the rest of your days, and hell is just a black screen. But to avoid confusion, the real gods have created realms, an almost endless amount of realms actually... These realms are where every single person of a different religion goes after death, and is where their body and mind sits. We all live in the world but we all exist in our own zones. If you believe in something so much it actually exists, if your beliefs are actually so genuine, they actually exist. Nobody's religion is fake, everyone is right about their gods. If you want your afterlife to exist, it exists."

Setchi, growing impatient, interrupted. "How much longer are you going to go on for?"

Estel, voicing the sentiment of the group, chimed in. "Yes, you have been off track for a while."

Oto paused, realizing he had strayed from the original question. "Oh, sorry, I'll get back to answering the question!"

He resumed his narrative, his voice steady as he delved into the lore of the gods. "One of the gods created by 'The Start' was Gosha Daiuchu, an evil god who ruled over heaven for a good while. While Nogasu Seizen created everything, he isn't a god; his race is actually different. He's an Enbetwean, a race of extremely powerful celestial beings who have the power to effortlessly destroy dimensions, timelines, and multiverses. They were created by loose pieces of infinite energy that created a literal spawn point for these things, but Nogasu Seizen, being the person he is, decided to kill almost all of the Enbetweans and absorb their spawn point. Only a few of them exist to this day, with the great ones being a few of them. ahem Anyway, Gosha Daiuchu was the first person to learn about how to craft spells out of mana, and he created his own personal book of spells that would give power to the beings on this planet and a few others across the universe. He wanted to cause so much chaos that it would hopefully give him enough power to conquer other realities, but that dream was cut short when Nogasu killed Gosha, causing an entire war between him and Heaven, Hell, and the Spirit World. He didn't win because his power was decreasing every second due to everything he created draining his energy, but he used the last bits of his energy to create orbs of magic, hoping to be revived one day. The gods handed down the book to three powerful wizards who helped defeat Nogasu in the war, and the rest is history."

Rukyoi, ever the impatient one, interjected. "Took you a while to get to the point!"

Oto's tone turned sharp. "Don't make me come over there, I WILL COME OVER THERE!!!"

Rukyoi recoiled, sensing Oto's seriousness. "H-Hey, chill..." 

Arasu marveled at Oto's vast knowledge. "He sure does know... A lot..."

Setchi chuckled in agreement. "That's Oto for ya!"

Osoi nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah, Oto surely is a piece of work."

Setchi's comment triggered a memory for Arasu. "It kind of reminds me of when you first came to the sanctuary 8 years ago, Osoi..."

"I thought everyone here knew each other for 10 years" Arasu says.

Arasu's statement prompted Osoi to clarify. "Well, me... almost 10 years..."

[FLASHBACK - 8 Years ago]

Aki, bent over, spoke to a much younger Osoi next to a door.

Aki's voice was gentle but firm. "Mommy will be gone doing some work. You stay here, and if any kids are bullying you, tell me."

Osoi nodded eagerly. "Ok!"

Osoi, at the age of 7, entered the door and was met with chaos. Flaming tables and chairs flew across the room as a younger Setchi posed defiantly in the midst of it all.

Setchi, age 8, shouted defiantly. "YOU WON'T BEAT ME, YOU DAMN FIRE DEMON!"

Suddenly, Hiyoku came hurtling from the sky, delivering a swift kick to Setchi's stomach.

Hiyoku, also age 7, admonished Setchi. "Save it for later, green hair!"

Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, a younger Oto deftly dodged kicks from a younger Kemonoka, with Rukyoi cheering him on from behind.

Oto's voice, firm and commanding, cut through the chaos. "Apologize."

[Oto - Age 9]

Rukyoi, defiant as ever, retorted. "Come over here and make me!"

[Rukyoi - Age 9]

[Kemonoka - Age 8]

In the corner behind Oto, Lapi sat crying next to a ripped-in-half stuffed bunny.

[Lapi - Age 7]

Without hesitation, Oto leaped over Kemonoka and landed a punch squarely on Rukyoi's face.

Rukyoi cried out in pain. "A-A-A-A-OOOOWA! I GIVE IN, I'M SORRY LAPIII!"

Oto swiftly picked up the broken bunny and used his powers to undo the damage.

Lapi's voice trembled with gratitude. "Oto... Thank you."

Oto shrugged modestly. "All in a day's work."

Meanwhile, a young Gisei sat against a corner, observing Setchi and Hiyoku's fight.

[Gisei - Age 7]

Beside Gisei, Estel whispered words of encouragement, unseen.

[Estel - Age 9]

Across the room, a young Tegami sat quietly, admiring Gisei.

[Tegami - Age 7]

Setchi, determined to end the fight, announced his next move. "Time to end this! This is a technique I've been working on for a long time! SUPER BALL: PUNCHING STYLE!"

As Setchi charged magic into his left hand, Hiyoku retaliated by igniting his right hand in flames.

"Stupid!" Hiyoku taunted as they both leapt into the air and clashed fists, creating a shockwave that echoed through the building, sending everything around them flying into a wall.

Estel remained hopeful despite the situation. "This can still be accomplished by Setchi!"

Gisei, however, expressed doubt. "I doubt it."

Estel questioned Gisei's skepticism. "Why? He is much inferior to Setchi."

Gisei's response was succinct. "Because Vant is here."

Indeed, Vant stood before the clash, flanked by two children. One, a boy with shiny light blue hair, and the other, a girl with long black hair.

Vant addressed the combatants with a warning. "We don't want to destroy the Sanctuary, do we?"

[Hade Efeu - Age 11]

[Rebyu Subete - Age 11]

As Vant pointed at the clashing duo, the tip of his finger popped off like a bottle cap, revealing a dark and empty interior.

Hade muttered disdainfully. "Hopeless..."

Rebyu echoed his sentiment. "Idiots..."

A large orange beam erupted from Vant's finger, striking both combatants and causing an explosion.

Osoi, observing the scene, could only manage a shocked exclamation. "Oh my..."

Both Setchi and Hiyoku fell from the sky, charred and smoking, crashing to the ground below.

Hiyoku lamented his defeat. "I-I could have won that..."

Setchi, bewildered, questioned Vant's actions. "Why, Vant... Why..."

Gisei, acknowledging Vant's intervention, commented dryly. "You spoiled the fun, Vant."

Rebyu addressed Gisei directly. "Gisei! There you are. Your ninja mentor is coming to pick you up for training soon."

Gisei responded with a hint of impatience. "Took him long enough."

Vant, maintaining his composure, emphasized the importance of their new member. "We need to make a good first impression on our new member."

Gisei, Oto, and Estel exchanged surprised glances. "We have a new member?"

Vant stepped aside, revealing Osoi to the group.

Vant made the introduction with a flourish. "Osoi Tsuki, the son of the autumn season!"

Oto's reaction was one of astonishment. "She has a son!?"

Gisei echoed Oto's surprise. "And he's here?"

Vant confirmed with a nod. "Yeah, while his mom is out working for the day, he's here!"

Gisei and Oto exchanged a glance filled with ill intent.

[FLASHBACK OVER]

Oto recounted the past with a grim tone. "Then we attempted to drown him."

Gisei added, somewhat sheepishly, "But Vant stopped us."

Arasu, appalled, interjected. "YOU GUYS WERE HORRIBLE KIDS!"

Setchi chimed in with a hint of pride. "Yeah, we were THE horrible kids!"

Vant, somberly reflecting on their actions, admitted, "And I'm still not proud of it."

Setchi, catching Vant's attention, pointed out a peculiar sight. "Funny that you say that... VANT!?"

To everyone's surprise, Vant was standing upside-down on the ceiling.

Rukyoi, ever observant, raised a question. "Aren't you supposed to be training somebody?"

Vant responded with a hint of nonchalance. "They really didn't need me to train..."

Lapi, curious, inquired about Vant's presence. "How long have you been here?"

Vant's response was somewhat cryptic. "Ever since Osoi showed up. But I've been here at the Sanctuary for... days... I'm not gonna specify how many, just... days... days..."

Sai, eager for clarification, pressed further. "Mr. Vant, why are you here???"

Vant's demeanor shifted, and he addressed the group with urgency. "I'm here to alert everybody of some huge news! Purotekuta have investigated and found four important locations of our enemy. If we capture all four and use them to track down the location of the enemy, we can end this war early and go back to another break of training!"

Setchi, ready for action, volunteered. "I'm ready to take this challenge on! What do we do!?"

Vant's response was both practical and surprising. "I would like to be a dick and say, 'you're washing the Purotekuta's clothes', but the great ones have found this as an amazing opportunity to promote you all!"

Arasu, thrilled at the prospect of joining the mission, expressed his excitement. "Even me!?"

Vant confirmed with enthusiasm. "Arasu! Your mastery told me that you can join them and also be promoted! Your master Aki agreed to it. You too, Osoi."

Arasu cheered. "WHOOPEE!!!"

Osoi echoed the sentiment. "We can do this!"

Vant then proceeded to outline the mission plan. "So, what you guys are to do is... not so simple. I'll split you guys up into four UNEVEN groups. The four groups will take their own enchanted map to one of the four locations."

Gisei, impressed by the plan, remarked. "That sounds sick!"

Vant continued with the group assignments. "Now, onto the groups! They have been chosen based on how well you guys will work together. The first group is Setchi, Oto, Rukyoi, and Kemonoka; you guys will be going north to find their main mutation lab. The entrance is underground, but the base is inside of a random mountain. They won't retreat; instead, they will fight back, so be cautious."

Oto, ever the skeptic, couldn't help but voice his concerns. "It's almost like you don't know us..."

Vant, undeterred, urged them to consider the strengths of their team. "Elaborate..."

Oto explained his reservations. "Setchi is loud and might threaten to destroy an entire mountain range, and I refuse to work with Rukyoi."

Rukyoi retorted with a hint of sarcasm. "Wow, you could have just said, 'no thank you'."

Oto remained firm in his stance. "That'd be too nice."

Vant, however, saw potential in their dynamic. "You guys will work great together! With your strategic mind, Rukyoi's support, Kemonoka's brute force, and Setchi's unpredictability, you guys can make a dangerous team."

Oto, considering Vant's words, softened his stance. "Now that you say it like that, there shouldn't be any reason for Rukyoi NOT to help me. We are on the same team... and unless he's a traitor, we shouldn't have a problem."

Setchi, ever the optimist, chimed in with enthusiasm. "See, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship!"

Rukyoi, however, remained cautious. "Don't push it."

Vant continued with the team assignments. "Next team is Sai, Heunae, Toi, Seabi, and Corse. You guys will be heading east to destroy their armory. It is heavily guarded, but I think you guys can pull it off."

Toi expressed his apprehension. "This isn't gonna be easy!"

Vant reassured him with a smirk. "Oh, yeah, right! Toi, don't you have knowledge of M.A.G.I.C already?"

Toi admitted reluctantly, "I do! But not that much..."

Seabi injected a note of confidence. "If we stick to a plan, we can easily do this."

Corse, ever the optimist, offered an alternative perspective. "We don't need a plan if we have enough powerhouses! We can literally destroy the place from the outside."

Heunae, ever the realist, cautioned against overconfidence. "There could always be someone stronger than us waiting on the inside, though."

Sai, considering Heunae's point, suggested, "Maybe we should..."

Vant interrupted, urging them to focus on the task at hand. "Save the planning for outside the room! The third team will be...!"

With a snap of his fingers, two new individuals materialized beside him. One was a woman with long black hair, glasses, a full business suit, and a sheathed katana tied to her back. The other was a boy with shiny light blue hair, dressed in a formal black shirt, with a red cape, formal grey pants, and yellow high-tops.

Gisei's protest was met with Vant's insistence. "Yes! The third group will be Gisei, Hade, Rebyu, Tegami, and Lapi."

Gisei's frustration was palpable. "Stop pairing me... WITH MY SISTER!!!"

Rebyu let out an exasperated sigh. "Ugh..."

Hade attempted to reassure Gisei. "Don't worry, Gisei! You're not alone on this mostly feminine team."

Gisei remained unmoved. "I don't care about that! She just sucks."

Rebyu defended herself, albeit meekly. "I do not..."

Gisei's frustration grew. "What do you even want out of this? You're already a Gadian."

Rebyu's response was straightforward. "And I want to be higher..."

Meanwhile, Tegami was overwhelmed with excitement at the prospect of being on a team with Gisei. I get to be on a team? WITH GISEI!? I'M GOING TO FAINT!

Vant cleared his throat to regain control of the conversation. "Ahem. You guys will be taking on the hard challenge of going to the west and destroying their research facility. And the final team is Arasu, Osoi, and Estel. You guys will be doing the hardest location, you will be taking over their teleporting location, where all of their portals are and the portal to their base sits. Just go south."

Estel, ever gracious, expressed his gratitude. "I am honored to have been selected for such a noble gesture," he said before bowing on one knee.

Arasu, curious about Estel's capabilities, inquired. "What can this guy do?"

Osoi, eager to share, offered an explanation. "He has a powerful legendary weapon!"

Arasu's excitement was evident. "Legendary weapon? COOL!"

Vant's tone turned serious as he issued a final warning. "Okay, guys, before I send you all on your own ways, remember... This is life or death. If you die, you will be replaced."

Gisei, ever confident, brushed off the warning. "As if I'd ever die..."

Sai, however, whispered a solemn vow to himself. "I can't fail now..."