Chapter 7-5: Shining Stars

The gate was a massive structure, consisting of several watchtowers and layered metal gates. As he and Princess Iris approached the structure, a group of soldiers stepped up from the shadows.

"Your highness," They said with a bow, then glanced at Ren. He remained silent; this wasn't his place to speak.

"They're here for their training exercises." Battlemage Auria's voice sounded. "You shall escort them through the gate, then leave them."

"Yes ma'am!" They said with a proper salute. "Your highness, please follow us." One of them said.

Princess Iris nodded and they were soon led through the gates. As each metal gate opened before them, Ren could feel his heartbeat quicken.

Soon, the last gate opened, revealing the outside, without the blur of the barrier.

Beneath the shining stars and the moonlight, despite his perfect sight, Ren could only see the dark silhouette of the forest stretching beyond.

"Beautiful." Princess Iris whispered. Ren flinched and glanced at her. She was looking up, to the starry sky. He followed her gaze. Millions of tiny lights blinked at him. Who knew how far away they were…

"Let's go," Only when the princess spoke again did he realise he was holding his breath. As the gates closed behind them, she gently pushed him. "We shouldn't waste any time."

Ren nodded and forced himself to look away from the night sky. He still couldn't believe how beautiful it was. They walked a few steps before Princess Iris took a deep breath and released her mana. Ren prepared himself for the icy blue mana's assault, but he felt nothing.

She held her breath as a tiny bit of mana seeped out of her skin. As soon as it did, Ren flinched. It was pale and weak, nothing like before.

"What happened?" He asked. She shook her head and whispered through her gritted teeth. "So… difficult." More mana seeped out. Soon, all of her mana was visible, though it was still pale, and that icy coldness was gone.

"I can hardly control it." She said, somewhat out of breath. "Is it because there's wildmagic around us?"

Ren looked around. He couldn't see a trace of mana – besides hers, of course – around them. "There isn't." He quietly said.

She flinched. Wide eyed, she glanced around in confusion and disbelief. "Then, why is it that I can't properly control it?"

Ren hesitated. "Perhaps," He said after some consideration. "It's because we're no longer in a 'pure' environment, as you've said." He chose his words carefully. "You will probably need to get used to being outside first."

Princess Iris hesitated, the nodded. "Your turn." She said after a short while. "You also have to release your mana."

Ren flinched. That, he didn't want to do. But it was the Council's wish that he did. He had no choice.

With a deep breath, he freed his mana.

As blackness enveloped him, he forced himself to remain calm. It grew larger and larger as it flowed out of his small body.

"Unbelievable…" Princess Iris whispered. He could barely see her through the thick veil of his own mana. Like a vast ocean, the black shadow around him continued to grow as a purple glow became visible. A few seconds passed, though it felt more like hours. Eventually, he breathed out a sigh of relief and glanced at the princess.

"Shall we?" He asked quietly. It took her a few seconds to respond. "Let's go." She mumbled in a daze.

"You didn't seem to have any trouble like I did." She said after a few minutes. Ren flinched. He didn't, in fact, his mana was calmer than ever. For the first time in his life, he didn't feel like he was about to cause a disaster.

"It was easier." He said. "But I don't expect it to always be like this. Besides," He added glancing around. "There is no wildmagic, or it's not visible to me."

Princess Iris nodded. "If there was any around, I'm sure things would have been much more challenging."

Ren nodded, though he couldn't think of a response. They walked in silence for a long time. The moon slowly shifted its position in the sky.

Rarely, they could hear the sounds of battle in the distance.

"It's the culling, isn't it?" Ren asked after a short while. He knew of it – Yu had taken part in it every year, after all.

Princess Iris nodded. "Yes, the battlemages and other, less powerful groups are hunting and killing most creatures close to the city." She explained. "I believe they're leaving a very small number of weaklings alive for repopulation purposes."

Ren's expression turned sour. He knew that they were a danger to Arkon and basically all of humanity, but he couldn't think of the culling as anything but cruel.

"Is something wrong?" The princess asked after a short while. Ren shook his head. "No, I'm just overwhelmed."

He glanced at the barrier on their left. They were walking maybe an arm's length away from it. He couldn't see anything but a blur of colours from this side. It was even worse than when looking from that side. He glanced towards the forest. Dragonkin sometimes came to trade, what did they think of the city? Since they couldn't enter and most humans couldn't exit, they probably had no clue as to what the actual city looked like.

It was a weird sound that pulled Ren out of his thoughts. Stopping in his tracks, he looked around. It didn't take him long to spot the source of the ringing in his head – a flower, with dark blue petals and crimson leaves.

Around it, he could sense mana. He could see it, smell it, even hear it. He stared at it wide eyed – the mana had a dark blue colour, though he could see many other colours flashing beneath the surface. It smelled like freshly watered earth.

"…Ren?" Princess Iris's words pulled him out of his daze. "Is something wrong?"

What was that pain in his chest?