4. Start of the Journey

Levana walked to the living room looking for Hanok. As per usual, he was sitting on a cushion in the middle of the living room. Chairs surrounded him, there were wooden ones, plastic ones, some that looked ancient and some that looked freshly manufactured.

Each chair represented one of the thousands of demigods that had found their way to the Mansion of Learning at some point in time. Levana was certain that there were more chairs hidden somewhere. After all, there were only about 50 chairs in view.

She walked over to her wooden chair. The chair itself was enchanted to be durable and to clean itself. She herself had sat in the chair covered in blood or dirt, yet the chair was as clean as ever. Never shall it stain and hopefully it would last forever. She hoped that the rather simple-looking chair would last till long after her death to remind Hanok that she had once existed.

The chair truly was simple in design only having her name inscribed on its backrest and a small carving of a stylised sun above her name. Though it was a little uncomfortable, it was one that she had used for 8 years. Sitting on it, she sat in silence for a while as she thought about what she wanted to say to her teacher.

" Teacher, I want to leave the mansion," She said after a few minutes of sitting still.

" Is that so?" The man said not stopping his reading to look at Levana. A few seconds later, he bookmarked the page he was on and put away the book. He then stared into Levana's green eyes.

" You were done with the mandatory lessons 5 years ago. You have learnt mathematics to a rather advanced level. You are now capable of drawing. Your ability to fight is... sufficient. How are your powers developing? Can you conjure hard light yet?"

Levana nodded. She then raised her palm to eye level. Suddenly, her perspective of time slowed. Controlling light in an immense flex of her willpower, she slowly printed a 3-centimetre-long needle from one line of light to another. Once the needle of light was shaped she took a step further and willed the object to harden.

Gritting her teeth in concentration, she let Hanok see her work.

" It is strange how much you struggle with conjuration... Your siblings that I have thought over the centuries normally can do it by instinct. Alright, fair enough, you have a good enough grasp on your power. Did you learn any enchantments?"

" I did."

" Which ones?"

" I learnt the repair enchantment from Tate and a Chinese preservation spell from Naft." Naft Kallaf, Son of Enbilulu, was a demigod who was learning to cook. He dreamed of becoming a world-class chef.

" I see." Then, there was a short and awkward silence. At least it was so for Levana as she was unsure of what to do while Hanok thought.

" Alright, you may leave. However, you will have to wait for a few days. I need to settle your identification, create a bank account in your name and you need to plan your journey." He said with a slight smile, he threw her a knowing look as he knew that Levana had yet to plan her journey.

" I will also be giving you 1500 USD. Just to help you survive for at least a month." Hanok said, still smiling. Levana scratched her head, a sheepish smile on her face with a small blush. She felt a little embarrassed, she had forgotten that travelling would also require her to procure food for herself in addition to transportation. Perhaps she could touch up on her survival skills first before leaving.

" Hey, teacher... You said that you keep our chairs to remember us... I was just wondering but where do you keep the rest of them?" Levana said after a short silence.

" There are 68 chairs around me at the moment. 68 demigods, 68 of my students still live today. At least as far as I know."

" Those ten chairs against that wall belong to the 10 students that have achieved godhood, immortality or something along those lines. Asher Lepid's chair will one day be there too." Hanok said while pointing at the wall to his left. One of the "chairs" was simply a tree stump. Another was a stone block, with a name inscribed on it. The rest of the eight were actually chairs though each looked to be ancient in design.

" The rest? The rest are in my pocket dimension. As you will never catch me entering the pocket dimension, you will never see the rest of the chairs." Hanok said solemnly.

" How... How many chairs are there?" Levana asked with a hint of hesitation.

" A hundred and three thousand, two hundred and seventy-seven chairs."

" I see..." There was yet another length of silence before Hanok snorted.

" Go! Go plan your journey! I don't want to have to add your chair to my collection anytime soon so make sure to plan it out well. Go! Now!" He said in amusement.

Smiling, Levana got up and quickly made herself scarce as Hanok returned to the book he was reading. The words on the page he read shifted and changed every few seconds. It was a book he could never finish reading. Though the book itself was thin, a book that dictated the ever-changing future was one that would never end.

....

It had been a week since Levana informed Hanok of her desire to leave the Mansion of Learning. She stood at the boundary between the dimension that housed the Mansion or learning and what is usually perceived as the real world.

She had a huge send-off party. Most demigods usually leave the Mansion of Learning at 16 or 17 years old. Yet, Levana who was now 19 years old had stayed for quite a bit longer and hence had befriended more of the demigods.

" Bye, Leva!!" A little girl with scales shouted.

" I wish you good luck, my friend." Another said while shaking her hand.

" Make sure you keep exercising! Monsters might avoid eating you if you are lean enough!" Naft Kallaf shouted from the back of the crowd.

" BYE GUYS!! MAKE SURE TO TRAIN HARD!!! I HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL AGAIN!!!!" Levana yelled as she stepped past the boundary.

Instantly, she found herself in the same forest she had nearly died in all those years ago. Shouldering her rucksack, she cracked her neck. Then, she used her left hand to feel the hilt of her sword and the dagger that she had strapped to her left hip. The dagger above the sword. Feeling the familiar weapons, the anxious girl slumped her shoulders a little in an attempt to relax.

" This is the start of my journey." She whispered, excitement and anxiousness brimming in her voice.