30 •The Ghost Town

The night passed and now another day begins.

Extimum woke up early, he had had a good night. Looking at her chest, Bloom was still sleeping there, her wings seemed brighter and more colorful today, it seemed like it would only take a few days for her body to return to its normal state, her mind on the other hand, it might take More time, however, from the few observations and what he has been able to feel, Extimum did not believe that she was bad, although she was quite defensive at first, it was something understandable in her situation and even she was able to adapt quickly, however, he still didn't know much about her, but since they are now connected by contract, it would only be a matter of time before they got to know each other better.

Not wanting to wake her up like yesterday, he made the tail of his that sheltered her hold her and carry her a certain distance from him, while taking a bath and getting ready, he finally put it gently on her hair again, it was interesting the fact that he could ordering her even asleep, she had asked her by her link to shrink so he could put her there and her body had shrunk automatically.

Although Extimum had no plans to abuse such power over her, but it was an unexpected piece of information about the functioning of her role as master under the contract.

After that, he left his room. She would practice a bit with her new sword and try to infuse it with magic, she had seen Mei do it in her practice yesterday, her sword had taken on a certain magical glow as she waved it, it was quite a different method of focusing magic. Such methods were the interesting thing about visiting other magical communities, although common knowledge is quite widespread in the community, but the bases and approaches with which magic is practiced vary, although the great domain of every magician is to perform magic without a wand or artifacts, but using them is also not bad as long as you have perfect control without them, among such methods, Extimum had read some of using magical animals or creatures as a medium or even using a certain item, however such methods were more applied to something specific compared to common magic that can simply affect everything, but due to such approaches, a more intimate control of the associated aspects is acquired.

That said, it also came down to a certain talent, the magical creatures of yesteryear had strong inclinations towards a specific aspect and had a natural and detailed control of it, but they also had a much harder time mastering other opposites, the natural magicians , on the other hand, they did not have such limitations, their slight superiority was based on the fact that they had talents but not inclinations, this gave them the same abilities as other creatures or magical beings, but without their derived problems, that said, their talents were from birth and only transferable In the lineages, from them were derived the great ancient families of natural magicians or those who survived at least, such as the Shadowless and their natural talent with shadows, surely any magician who is dedicated to the study of such an aspect of magic could acquire the same domain, but do not have the same facility and capabilities, such as the "shadow stealing" spell, in addition to the Shadowless lineage, it does not exist another type of magician capable of touching shadows in a tangible way.

-

Extimum went to a practice room, he had asked a house elf on the way and he had pointed out the place.

The place was an artificial patio that simulated the outside environment.

Extimum had dressed in a white kimono with purple that he had bought in the city market, he had never used one but was able to hopefully put it on the right way, I wear it mainly to try the local style, they were certainly very comfortable and more more intricate than the clothes he usually wore.

After that, he put down his bag and other objects that he had on a table, took his sword and went to the center of the room.

He held his sword with one hand on the hilt and the other on the scabbard and closed his eyes.

Focusing on the sword in his hands, he needed to focus so he could flow his magic into it, unlike wands that focus and direct magic, his sword couldn't do it, so just like when he performed wandless magic, he had to focus, feel and flow the magic the way he wanted, this time, on the edge of his sheathed sword.

He maintained that state for a few minutes of calm, alone standing there in the middle of a courtyard, with total silence around him, focusing on feeling his sword. He already had the mastery of controlling and directing magic through his body, so his magic flowed through him smoothly, reaching every part of his body through which he directed it, without forcefulness, only with the strength to move forward.

At some point, he could feel and imagine how his magic passed from his hand and flowed through the cold steel of his sword, forming an invisible connection between his hand and the sword he held.

At the same moment he felt his magic flow on the blade of his sword, he drew his sword and held it in front of him, he did not open his eyes, just wait a little longer, he did not need his vision to see it, that supernatural sense that always accompanies him would allow him to see it in his mind, even if he could only see darkness, but gradually he was able to see his magic flow through every part of his sword blade until it could flow through it with stability, completing the cycle between the sword and his body, without having to overexert himself filling it with a violent flow.

At that moment he opened his eyes, his sword looked the same in a casual sight, but for those who can see magic, they could observe the energy that enveloped the sword and that occasionally emanated from it, magic has no shape or color, it is just energy, but takes on the characteristics that the magician applies to it.

Extimum did not speak words, he just silently appreciated his achievement and then began to perform his own martial dance with his sword, but maintaining the softness and calm of the silent courtyard.

** swoosh **

Although he did not move with the same force and speed with which he usually practices, the single energy emanating from the sword cut through the air every time it allowed him to stop his movement.

While performing the movements with his sword, he lightly waved his left hand invoking his wand that was waiting in its case and continued with his dance trying to follow it with his wand while directing part of his magic also to her gently.

Every time he supplied his wand with magic, the stability of his magic in his sword shook a little, it was not so much the fact of directing his magic to two different parts of his body, although doing so required a certain degree of control and effort, It was not problematic, the problem is that it was two magic tools that act as a focus and trigger of the magic energy, therefore, if you are not careful enough with any of them, you could end up casting spells or magic explosions around the place or in extreme cases even create a clash between the two.

His constant practice gave him good results in the first minutes, but at some point his concentration wavered when he felt the presence of someone and the magic he kept in his wand shot out crashing against a rock in the courtyard, creating a small explosion. It was fortunate that it wasn't his sword, or it could have cut through much of the yard.

It was Mei who was at the entrance to the courtyard. she had gotten up early to practice with his sword and had come to this area where the practice courts were, but before entering any of the courtyards, she heard the sound of someone practicing, it was not common for her to meet someone else here at this time and since they did not usually have many visitors, she had forgotten they had them, for that reason, she had approached the entrance of the patio from where the sound came and since Extimum had not closed the door, was able to enter directly without knocking on the door

Mei: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt". Mei bowed her head slightly apologetically.

Extimum: " it's okay, it was my fault for not closing the door".

Mei: "Do you want to practice with me? I usually do it with my father or someone else in the family, but I don't think I will come this morning or I would be here by now. On the other hand, your control of magic is really amazing, I have also tried to use the sword and the wand at the same time, but in the end I was only able to direct the magic to one of them".

Extimum: "Hmm, this was the first time I tried it, I just directed my magic first at my sword and then I did it slowly and carefully towards the wand and it seemed to be working ... well, let's practice".

Mei blushed a little embarrassed as she understood what Extimum was suggesting, clearly saying it was working until she arrived and interrupted him.

Although Mei was young, she seemed quite mature, perhaps her constant practice of martial arts and magic had tempered her into a calmer character, because she did not possess the normal effusiveness of children her age, however, such behavior was only more comfortable for Extimum, that way not many words would be needed besides those that should be said.

After both took positions, the fight began when both had found their resolve to fight in each other's gaze.

The first to move was Mei, Extimum wanted to learn a little from her, so he let her get ahead.

Mei's sword immediately glowed with a slight blue color, it didn't seem like it was going to give quarter, starting with attacking with her magic-infused sword.

Extimum also directing his magic to his sword and collided directly with hers, he was a little slower in directing his magic to the sword unlike Mei who did it immediately, but it was good to observe his first movement, otherwise, he would have directly collided with only his sword.

Mei's sword carried a great weight in her shocks, an effect of the magic she applied on her sword, it was fortunate that Extimum's natural strength allowed her to completely ignore such effect, because it was the first time she had fought by infusing magic in her sword and still did not know how to properly defend or attack using it, however, his luck did not last long when Mei seemed to notice him and switched to another focus, notable for the now green glow on his sword.

The fight lasted for about an hour, Extimum was much more skilled with his sword than Mei, but she still maintained superiority in combat, due to the difference in knowledge.

Extimum's mastery was limited to only wielding his sword with great skill, but Mei on the other hand, had trained in martial arts and swordplay, so what her sword could not achieve, she was compensating with some refined movements and efficient that allowed him to control his body to gain a certain advantage in combat, although Extimum could notice it, but it was not so simple to counteract it, managing only to leave the combat in a stalemate, however, the fight had so far been very illustrative in as to how to use magic on his sword and some other strategy in close fighting.

That said, they were both true geniuses to achieve such mastery at their age without neglecting the main path of magic.

After clashing with their swords for another 20 minutes, they both stopped, they were a bit sweaty and panting, but they were still in good shape.

Mei: "* pant *, you are very good with a sword." Mei gasped a bit and congratulated Extimum.

Extimum: "you are not far behind either, you were much more capable than me in the fight."

Mei: "Hmp, tell me that when you're not holding yourself back so as not to wake her up." Mei snorted lightly and pouted.

Extimum: "Could you tell? I really wasn't trying to hold back, I just reduced the force of my attacks a bit, but in a skill fight I shouldn't have lowered my level."

Mei: "We will know that after fighting again, for now, we should go to breakfast, my parents should have already prepared and it is likely that your friend has also gone, I saw him wandering the corridors when he was coming here."

Mei's words about Extimum were true, as Extimum was still holding Bloom on his head, his movements were mainly soft but firm, to avoid waking her, however, as Extimum had said, that only detracted from his attacks and he not underestimate his actual skill with the sword, so in addition to giving Extimum a bit of an advantage, he wouldn't have influenced the fight that much if he hadn't held back.

After finishing their fight, both of them organized their kimonos a little and dried their sweat with a spell, it was especially Extimum who did not have his kimono particularly well tied and ended up asking for help Mei who indicated the correct use of it. Then they went to the dining room to have breakfast.

.

When they entered the dining room, in fact, it was only they who were left to sit at the table.

Leonardo: "oh, they were practicing, hahahaha, it is good that they build a friendship, the best friendships are made by fighting and what better way than by entrusting your life to the edge of the other's sword." Leonardo seemed pleased with such development, he was especially ambiguous when he mentioned about making their friendship.

Rou: "Hmp, only barbarians like you would think of making friends in such a way."

Extimum and Mei took their seats in their respective places.

Lian Hua: "oh, now I remember, you two have not been in China long, what do you think if Leonardo guides you through the other magical cities, he might even take you to some really interesting places of those ... Muggles".

As they spoke, the elves were setting up the table and then serving the food.

Rou: "Hey, wait, why do you want him to take them? I could do it-". Rou seemed against the idea, but fell silent when she received a silent look from Lian Hua.

Harry: "I think it would be nice, so far we have already seen everything in the city of Xuézhě de xiūxí and it would be nice to have a guide to show us the best places."

Oh, Harry would probably regret his decision a few days later.

Extimum: "Yes, however, I would like to leave in about ... 3 days, practicing with Mei is very productive in my training."

Extimum could guess Lian Hua's motives, it was likely that he wanted Leonardo to accompany them for his safety, after all, this was not England and given China is one of the largest countries, it was also the place of residence of the ancient family Mòshuǐ.

The Shadowless family did not necessarily have a friendly relationship with the Mòshuǐ family, but they were not like seeing and killing either, they were more like simply neutral, however, It was not too much to be careful, not to mention what would happen if they discovered the origins of Bloom, who still could not hide part of her characteristics to pass for a normal fairy in front of the eyes of the connoisseurs. That said, it's not like they knew Extimum or that he had to necessarily date Bloom, but due to Extimum and Bloom's special and "particular" bond, it was better not to part until she recovered, that and Leonardo really I could show them the same places as if they went with Rou.

Leonardo: "do not worry, with me with you no one would dare to approach, unless he really did not know my name here in China."

.

The following days passed quite quickly, Extimum would practice with Mei fighting with magic and with his swords, Mei's magic was really very interesting, they were a derivation of some famous Chinese spells adapted by the family, if other magicians would shine by throwing flower petals Mortals, the Shadowless family had adapted and improved them in their own way, such that instead of a glittering petal, it was more like the shadow of a petal, they were basically invisible unless you saw their shadow flying towards you or were very sensitive to shadows or such an attribute.

Extimum also took the opportunity to practice his own space spells and some others that he saw in the library that Mei suggested, the library here was not hidden, it was only divided by an invisible barrier that limits public and family books.

Given that he had a fairly capable partner and did not seem to shy away from casting life-threatening spells on him, his sword and magic fighting training progressed rapidly, so much so that instead of the agreed three days it was 8 days.

Extimum naturally did not neglect Harry, but pointed out some books in the public library that had basic knowledge that a wizard should learn if he were born into a magical family and some other subjects that Harry asked about, such as Chinese language and some spells.

Since it was only the public library, nobody had a problem with accessing it, the purpose of such a library was precisely to entertain the guests.

On the other hand, Extimum also met the other relatives who lived in the other palaces, although they were also family, because they had already become independent and formed their own families, they did not live in the main building, they were the families of some of the uncles of Lian Hua and Rou, and there was even her grandmother, who raised Lian Hua and Rou when their parents died, that particular old woman gave an especially suffocating air around her when she wasn't paying attention, it wouldn't be strange if she was so strong or even more than Dumbledore. About her, Extimum learned because there were almost no elders in the family branches, although it was not tradition, but most of the elders used to retire from their administrative positions in the family and were mainly engaged in traveling the world, perfecting their magic and visiting the magical shrines of other branches of the family, sometimes going into seclusion to investigate a certain topic or simply wandering the non-magical world to broaden their knowledge and lead a more peaceful life.

However, Extimum did not have the opportunity to ask him if based on such information, he really had a grandfather or grandmother, he only knew that unless they wanted they would not return to the family or that there was an emergency at the level of war or destruction of a family branch.

-

Leonardo: "Well, well, today we will go to one of my favorite cities, Guǐ city, although it may not be the safest place or the most visited by ordinary tourists, but it will be an interesting experience."

Harry: "is it ... the ghost town?" Harry thought for a bit and said doubtfully.

Leonardo: "Wow, you seem to be a quick learner, you're right, it's a real ghost town, although over time it became a normal city, but in the beginning it was a city of wizards that was burned by an ancient dragon, none survived to such a calamity, except maybe those who were not there, since none were willing to go to the other side because of their hatred of the dragon, they became ghosts, however, although that is the history of the place, they do not have a particular hatred for the dragons, rather than for the dragon that killed them ".

Extimum: "oh, I read something about the place in the brochure, it seems to be a place especially inhabited by creatures or magicians with dark tendencies, but at the same time, it has the largest magic market in china."

Leonardo: "in fact, although the city in its beginnings was not so famous and not so well seen, but after we and the Mòshuǐ family invested in it, it was increasingly accepting more magicians with good dispositions and now you are a large market where you can find practically everything, it is not even difficult to find old materials or objects if you are lucky ".

Harry: "And why are we here? Aren't we going to floo? Or will we go by apparition? ".

Harry said this because at this moment they were on the terrace of the tower, instead of going near a fireplace or if they were to go through the apparition, they did not need to come here.

Leonardo: "hahahaha, if you come to visit, naturally, I must give you all the experience so that you have a good memory of your visit, I am sure you could discuss it with your friends, Abil!". Leonardo gave a great shuddering cry, his voice almost seeming to reverberate through space.

** Roarrr **

Shortly after Leonardo's voice calmed down, there was a terrible roar that came from the back of the building, opening a path through the dense fog that did not allow to see beyond, after that, a large shadow was projected over them, hiding the sunlight.

A large red dragon of around 10 meters had appeared hovering over them. Soft and scarlet scales, it had two wings and a pair of legs, its tail was long and ended in a shape similar to the tail of an arrow, it had a row of golden antlers around its face, a flat snout and extremely protruding eyes. , it was a 'Chinese Fireball' dragon.

The dragon did not land, he only gave a glance to those present and then he positioned himself still flying in front of the building, giving the opportunity for them to jump on his back.

Harry: "A Dragon!" Harry yelled in alarm after seeing such a large dragon, he was nothing compared to Kaida. (Norberto)

Leonardo: "Jojojo, but not just any dragon, it is a 'Chinese fireball' and perhaps it is one with the purest lineage today, just look at its impressive size."

Extimum was also a bit impressed, he didn't expect to meet a dragon here, but on second thought, it wasn't that rare that they had one, after all, they had quite a lot of territory to themselves, so keeping multiple magical creatures here shouldn't be a surprise.

Mei was the first to jump on the dragon's back, at first it was not planned for her to come, but at the last moment she had followed them here, keeping silent all this time.

Extimum also did not hesitate and jumped, followed by Leonardo, leaving only Harry who had a slightly doubtful look.

Leonardo: "come on boy, if you can't do it, you won't live long in the future, hahaha". Leonardo made a casual comment, but there seemed to be more implications in his words.

Harry: "ugh, good." Harry gathered his courage and leaped onto the dragon's back, which was surprisingly stable upon landing.

Mei: "you should hold on tight, Abil likes to start a bit roughly." Mei told Extimum who was next to her.

Extimum: "thanks for the warning".

Extimum just sat up and grabbed Bloom who was watching everything curiously from his hair and stuffed it into a pocket of his jacket.

Extimum: 'stay there until the dragon stabilizes'.

Bloom just nodded and peeked out from her pocket.

The dragon seemed to sense when everyone was on it and flapped its wings, propelling itself in the air several hundred meters ahead, although its movement seemed smooth, but for those on its back it felt like a strong push that tried to leave them behind, followed by a strong wind from the front.

Extimum had to sneakily grab Harry with one of his tails or he would have been blown off the dragon, Leonardo and Mei on the other hand, seemed to know the proper technique to keep a perfect grip, although only Leonardo remained standing, covering much of the wind that was trying to hit them. from the front.

The dragon flew fast and in a short time they reached the colorful forest that they had seen when entering, then, Leonardo shook his fist striking forward opening a large hole in the veil of reality, showing the plains and the two mountains that were in the entrance of the territory.

** Boom ** crack **

** Roarr **

The dragon roared and accelerated as it crossed the hole, enjoying returning to the original plane, after reaching a certain altitude it stopped flying so aggressively and began to glide over the air and an occasional flapping of its large wings.

After that, it was possible to observe and stay more relaxed on the dragon's back, allowing everyone to see the view of all the plains and valleys from the high altitude and enjoy the journey.

The location of the previous mountains was somewhere far away from civilization, so they didn't see non-magical cities for a long time.

Although Extimum did not perceive when Leonardo hid the dragon, he assumed that either he already had some spell or artifact on him or he had resorted to another method so that people would not have seen a large 10-meter dragon flying high in the air.

The flight lasted about 2 hours, mainly because Leonardo asked to slow down sometimes to show them certain places in non-magical cities, however, the flight was still quite fast to go from Nanchang to Jixi. After reaching Jixi, they flew towards a great mountain, flying over it until they reached a wide valley, the place seemed to have some ancient ruins, but they had already been erased for the most part with the passage of time, there were no non-magical settlements nearby, the last Extimum had seen was on the mountain they had passed before.

Leonardo: "hehehe, now comes the fun part of our entire trip, because Abil naturally cannot enter the city, he will only leave us on the road." Leonardo said while giving a wide smile and will laugh to himself.

Harry: "What's so funny about that? Isn't it just entering the city? Or is there something special at the entrance?"

Leonardo just kept smiling as the dragon began to fly over the ruins.

Extimum seemed to have a vague idea of ​​what he was referring to and quickly got up, drawing his sword and leaping at it, just in time to see the dragon jerk and twist his entire body, letting them all fall from his back to the scanties ruins.

Extimum: "Damn, Is everyone in my family crazy??" It was not a joke the great height in which the dragon dropped them and with the exception of Mei who was already flying on her sword that she always carried with her, Harry and Leonardo were in free fall.

Bloom: "no, it's his manticore lineage that makes him so wild, I wouldn't be surprised if I saw him eating humans."

Extimum: "have you recovered more of your memories?"

Bloom: "No, it's just things I know, are they like common knowledge? But they come to me sometimes when I see something, in this case it was more like I instinctively answered your question."

-

Harry: "Ahhhh."

Leonardo: "hahaha, you are a brave boy, I thought you would pee in your pants. Well, we're almost there, so get ready. " Leonardo approached a screaming Harry and said, his voice seemed magic induced because otherwise, it would not be possible for Harry to hear him with all the wind, after that, he extended his left hand and pulled Harry by his clothes pulling him closer to himself until he could hold it with his whole arm.

At some point, they quickly passed through a veil and their entire sight changed.

The landscape, previously warm and illuminated by the light of the morning sun, was transformed into a somewhat desert and rocky place, the previously sunny environment seemed to dull considerably giving the place a darker vibe, although the sun was clearly shining in the sky, but below It seemed almost night and you couldn't feel the earlier heat of the morning.

-

Extimum and Mei also descended on their swords behind Harry and Leonardo, although Extimum planned to take Harry, but when he saw Leonardo partially hug him, he guessed he had another way to land.

After crossing the veil that protected and hid the city, a great ancient city with a dark atmosphere came into his vision, with lamps that fed green fire. Although the place had a rather dark appearance at first glance, but the flow of people made you ignore it when you saw such liveliness, even among the most dead of the place.

[img]

Extimum and Mei followed closely Leonardo and Harry, until they saw that the back of their Hanfu was ripped and large red wings like a bat emerged from it, which with a flutter denied all the force of the fall and even raised them a little in the air to finally land hard on the ground, with Harry still keeping his eyes wide on his arm.

After releasing Harry, his wings went back into hiding and his Hanfu automatically repaired, as if nothing had happened. Although his arrival attracted a bit of attention, the locals seemed accustomed perhaps to so much eccentricism because they did not show great surprise, perhaps common sense in a magical world was quite broad compared to the truly incredible. On the other hand, the locals only saw him fall and then mysteriously slow his fall, they could not see the unfolding of his wings, perhaps only if there was a Mòshuǐ could have seen him.

Leonardo: "hahahaha, boy, was it not fun?".

** bluergh **

Harry vomited almost immediately as Leonardo clapped his back, his face was terribly pale, as if he had seen death just a moment ago.

Extimum: "no, that was not fun at all, maybe it would have been if we all had a flying tool and the security of being able to fly before landing."

Mei: "Yes ... he did it with me on my first visit here, I didn't go out with Dad again after that, that's why I only go out with Aunt Rou."

Leonardo: "uh, I thought it was fun, I have seen some Muggles do it and when I asked why they did it they told me that, for fun, so I tried jumping from Abil and found it fun, maybe it is a very boring experience for the magicians? ". Leonardo seemed to seriously consider his own question.

Harry: "Ugh, that's skydiving and you're not supposed to do it without a parachute, in fact, you're not supposed to do it from a dragon…".

Leonardo: "Skydiving? Parachute? What's that?".

Harry: "Didn't you say you saw them throw themselves?".

Leonardo: "oh, you got me wrong, that was on one occasion that I sneaked into a muggle plane carrying POWs, when I asked the soldier why he threw the prisoners, he said it was fun to see their faces before throwing them and then watch them fall, yeah… maybe I shouldn't be looking for recreational activities with the soldiers ".

Harry felt like patting his face when he heard his words, who sneaks a war plane carrying prisoners, even without Hermione, he himself could imagine many things to say about how bad he was doing it.

Extimum: 'sneaking into a war plane ...'.

Leonardo: "Well, changed the subject, what do you think of the city? I think it has grown in recent times, don't you think Mei'er?"

They had landed exactly in the flying tools take-off / landing area, Guǐ city, it was as the name indicated, there were many ghosts around the place, some just flying or roaming the place, but many others were the ones who ran the posts of trade, all wore old clothes and a little burned, others seemed to remain permanently on fire, but the vast majority were normal, they must have died almost instantly so that their cause of death was not noticed, however, it was not ghosts the only thing that stood out from the Instead, there were also many creatures and magicians from the darkest spectrum of magic, although they were all well covered, the general auras could not hide in such a place, Extimum even saw a Lich, perhaps they were the only skeleton that could enter a city without being destroyed.

Mei: "In fact, it looks much more lively and bigger than before."

Leonardo: "Well, although I came mainly to take care of you, but I don't want to be too annoying, just be careful around there, I'll be in that Bar, if you need me just shout my name, even if you don't believe it, I will be able to listen to you and I would get there immediately". Leonardo said that last part mainly for Harry than for Extimum and Mei, with his senses even if the city was very noisy, he could catch if someone called his name between all the voices.

The bar that Leonardo pointed out was an old tavern that was close to the place, with a rather peculiar sign.

"Tavern: Drunk to the bone."

After finishing speaking, he turned around and headed towards the indicated tavern.

Extimum: "Well, we are going to tour the city." Extimum was excited about the idea of ​​seeing this peculiar city, perhaps he could even find something interesting to buy.

Mei: "mmm, oh, we should visit an ice cream parlor that I know on the way, they sell some ice creams that look ghostly, I don't know how they make them, it's like eating a cloud, but it tastes like ice cream."

Harry: "like cotton candy?"

Mei: "is there cotton made of sugar?"

Harry: "uh ... no, it's a candy similar to the one you describe."

Mei: "I don't know, we'll see later."