Chapter 12: Sacred Pond

"Respectable Sister, this matter is really urgent. Mark…"

Not bothering to say anything else, Hekarion gestured at his former disciple. The message was obvious. Without even a moment of hesitation, the middle-aged arcanist pulled out the pouch and tossed it towards the leading female of the group.

"We are really in a hurry."

Sending a meaningful look across the small distance, Mark was surprisingly relaxed. It seemed as if just like with his master, being determined enough would serve as a message in itself.

"I'm worried that I will have to insist."

Replying with nothing but a bright smile, the head priestess moved a few steps to the front, pulling the herd of younger priestesses along. Putting the fingers of her right hand over her lips, her eyes exploded with sparks of satisfaction.

Wandering over the figures of the customers with her sight, this impossibly beautiful woman finally noticed Fen's existence. It was as if Mark alone was enough for her to ignore the rest of the world, not even mentioning Hekarion himself.

"Oho? I never thought I would see this crest on an apprentice's robe! And you want to rent Sacred Ponds? You are really going all in this time!"

Sarcasm oozed out of those words. Wearing the clothes that he was provided, Fen could only try to make himself disappear when the crest on his robes was mentioned.

"Respectable Sister, I'm the one requesting."

Just before everyone would be swept by this strange female antics, Hekarion stepped in. His face wearing the calmest expression one could only imagine, the old man was giving off a powerful aura of authority.

"I do understand your inner need to poke fun at this disciple of mine, but I do not believe you have the right to bar us from entering."

Standing strong, Hekarion proved that he wasn't someone who could be easily swayed. Staring daggers at the female, he didn't say a word more. And just with this, he actually made this strange woman back off!

Taking a few steps back, the head priestess taxed the trio with her eyes before shaking them away with her hand.

"Go on. I will await the rest of the payment within a week."

Dropping another bomb right as she moved herself and her entourage away for the group of men to pass, Fen could swear he could see her smiling brightly the moment before her hair hid away her retreating face.

"Let's go."

Using the opportune moment, Hekarion picked the pace, leading the entire group into the depths of the temple. Taking the right turn as soon as they reached the barrier separating the walkway from the endless void housing the draconic skeleton, they continued to walk for a moment before sharply turning right once again and descending down the stairs.

"How much does he know?"

Moving deeper and deeper into what seemed to be an extensive layer of underground chambers, Hekarion turned his head away and looked at his former disciple.

"Just the basics. I would say he knows less than your average."

The encounter from before most likely was the reason behind Mark's quick response, completely devoid of any emotion or energy. Even the way in which he moved oozed exhaustion!

"That's good. Listen boy, you need to be prepared for three things."

Moving those sharp eyes of his on Fen's face, Hekarion coughed in his hand. From the look on his face, it appeared that something extremely powerful was hindering his advance. Realising this fact, Fen instantly raised his eyes towards his saviour, only to see his movements slowing down. Looking at them, the young man couldn't help but compare the way they were moving to someone was actually swimming!

"First… There will be a lot of pain. Due to your failed initiation, in order to avert the damage, the potent blood will have to rip the faulty parts apart."

Ignoring how just opening his mouth visibly required a lot of effort, this old sage gnashed his teeth before picking the topic up.

"Secondly… You might see some hallucinations, hear some voices. While there is nothing to be scared about, try to remember as much as you can from it. Those visions will be created by your natural aptitude, or in other words, talent."

Finally reaching the bottom of the stairs, the three of the men stood at the beginning of a long, dark corridor. Only a small red aura gave off a bit of the light, located right at the end of the lengthy passage.

"Come on. Just a little bit more…"

Hearing Mark's whisper, Fen only got annoyed. With how Hekarion introduced two of the points he claimed he would brink when he heard the sound, he thought that his wait aking to awaiting the execution would be finally over.

"And thirdly."

Right before Fen could let his anger influence his mind in this strange atmosphere created by the dark area, Hekarion finally picked up his line.

"For the love of Draconis, do not let your fires out!"

Moving one steep for every word he said, this old sage ended his sentence right as his hands pushed the small, wooden gate open!

As if jumping out of the water, the moment his old man stepped inside the small, circular chamber, his movements regained his vitality. The next moment, Mark followed suit, freeing himself from this strange burden before turning around and closing the gate behind them.

"Now, strip and get to the pool."

'Just why everyone in this place wants me to strip so much?'

A stray thought appeared in Fen's mind, while he continued to pull his upper robe out of his back. Hoping that this was what those people expected from him, after pulling his pants down and kicking them aside, the young man placed his foot on the first step of the inner stairs of the inverted pyramid inside the pool, barely visible under the veil of the bloody-red water.

Yet, contrary to both his expectations and Hekarion's warnings, Fen didn't feel even a smallest tingle of pain!

Encouraged by this discovery, the young arcanist apprentice continued to submerge himself more and more, before only his head remained dry.

"Dive in and relax."

As strange as this command sounded, Fen only nodded his head before venturing even closer towards the pool's middle point. After all, the chances that Mark would bring him here only to make him drown in this pool on his own violation were too abysmally small for the young man to even consider them!

But no matter how he waited inside this strange liquid, there was no commands that would further direct his actions!

'Excuse me…?'

Even after several minutes of diving in this strange pond, the only discovery that Fen made was the fact that he didn't actually need to breathe while submerged!

It was as if his body found another way to ventilate, freeing him from this annoying duty he had ever since he was born!

Suddenly, Fen realised that he was no longer in that crimson pool. In fact, while the palette of colours surrounding him didn't change much, not even his feet could sense the cold touch of the stone below them!

'Just what the heck is going…'

Initially attempting to mutter those words, he had to finish them in his mind, as the young man realised that he didn't actually have a mouth or body to speak off!

'Wait, I know this place!'

Taking a look around, Fen's eyes would widen up in surprise, if only he had them in this place. This everpresent fire, this endless plane filled with nothing but flames…

But for some reason, Fen could feel that while similar, this wasn't the fiery graveyard he visited after losing his life to flames. All the distinctive features were the same, yet something in the young man's guts was telling him, that it was still… different.

"So that's how it is…"

Suddenly, a voice appeared. Just like when he was moved to this place, there was no delay before the speaker made his appearance. He was somewhere else, and just like that, he stood right in front of Fen.

As long, as word standing could refer to an unimaginably gigantic body of what looked like an ancient dragon of the same scale as the skeleton Fen saw just a moment ago!