.......
Azmodeus's facial features twitched because of the words of the troublesome girl atop his head as he continued walking, passing under a set of large, ominous gates.
However, contrary to what one would expect to be on the other side of the gates, there was an entirely different world inside the confines of the Emonius Triade.
From outside the gates, the place appeared quite dreary and morbid, with very little going on in the 'happy people' department. However, after passing through the gates, the once gray skies transformed into a bright blue shade with fluffy clouds covering it for as far as the eye could see.
It wasn't only the setting that had changed, as even the building's original black colors morphed into a bright green and blue. This color scheme meshed surprisingly well with the wands and vials that the lively members of the Emonius Triade carried around with them.
All the vines and weeds vanished into thin air... Even the number of people and the state of the building's infrastructure have been tremendously augmented...
Azmodeus was astonished by the fact that there were places in the Astral Plane that were capable of placing down formations capable of performing at such a level.
But for something like this to exist, one must at least be of the Heaven Rank in the Formation Profession... And after analyzing the difference in Qi between the inside and outside of this place, it is quite clear that Runes and Array's of the Heaven Rank also have a part to play in the shrouding of this 'Emonius Triade'.
A previous Astral Trial Participant of the Heaven Rank Professions, huh...?
Azmodeus's thoughts swirled around inside his head before he was swiftly interrupted by the boisterous voice of one of the professors of the Emonius Triade:
"Do you know what sacrosanct grounds you have entered, boy?? This is the Emonius Triade—a place of extreme prestige with many branches spread throughout every corner of the Azura Empire-!"
"I have come to sign up for your Potion Master request," Azmodeus interrupted the prolonged speech of the pointy hat wearing middle-aged dude as he took a flier out of his back pocket.
The wizard's eyes had dazzling coins shine within them as he rubbed his hands together before saying, "Very well, generous young master. The reception area is right over there—past those few neon-colored gazebos."
"That's good. Thank you for answering my questions. Now I will be on my way, and I hope to see you in the Emonius Triade after I successfully become a member," Azmodeus responded while passing by the professor, walking on the paved, octagon-shaped roads. He headed toward a large assortment of gazebos in the distance.
"Awooof...?"
Pumpkin Wolfy was utterly perplexed by the abrupt flips in the attitude of the unusual-looking man, as she was on edge during their entire interaction. But after seeing the nice red-eyed man leaving the scene, she got up and lept toward them, but not before growling at the weird pointy-hat man.
The professor ignored the snarling of the giant wolf as he laughed inside his mind and thought, 'There's absolutely no way that kid will make it past the first mark... But who really cares about him, as I'm now filthy rich! Time to go buy some time with a few pretty ladies!'
***
Meanwhile, as the haughty wizard mocked the downfall of the 'naive kid', said kid was standing at the front of a line with no one else in it.
"It seems like becoming a Potion Master is quite hard..."
Azmodeus looked around him and saw nothing other than an empty street and an old man with sparse strands of dark gray hair. He only had one eye and wore a set of misty gray robes that contrasted greatly with the colorful buildings in the vicinity.
This old man was sitting in a lotus position on a red circular cushion under a wide awning that had the words 'Registration Area' embedded on a hung up sign. The sign itself was barely holding itself up with the abysmally low number of nails stuck in it.
Not that it's shabby appearance made any difference for Azmodeus as he approached it, curious to see what would happen next...
.......