Chapter 16

"Fufufufu, welcome to District 9, also known as the entertainment district."

"I see why it's named that..."

"Yes, this district is mostly made up of recreational attractions, although there are several similar districts, we will go to them later."

"I had no idea this existed, today everything is a new experience."

"Fufufufu, that's what happens for being a hermit, but come on, we'll be late." Eleonora 'dragged' Erik down the street with a big smile on her face.

"Where are we going, Mast..." Erik stopped dead again when Eleonora turned to look at him with a small smile, so he corrected himself, "Eleonora?"

"To see a movie of course."

"..."

Eleonora led Erik down a street that was filled with holographic screens of all kinds displaying endless images and advertising videos, until they reached an area full of movie theaters, where Erik read the marquee and noticed something particular.

"What is arcane reality?" Erik asked a little confused to his master as they approached what seemed to be the cinema box office.

"It's a way of enjoying movies, where you see the story as if you were in it, there are even times when you become a character within it and it's the type of projection we're going to see."

"That sounds impressive..."

After swiping her crystal card at the ticket counter, Eleonora took Erik to the food area, where she bought popcorn of various types and various kinds of junk food with a big smile, while Erik carried everything with an expressionless face.

Seeing Erik's face, Eleonora laughed mischievously while she approached him flirtatiously. Upon arriving, she took a french fry from one of the countless containers Erik was carrying on a rather large tray and brought it to his mouth.

"Fufufufu, don't be like that, look, here you have a little fry for behaving like a good boy."

"..."

Erik, 'indignant' at the inhumane treatment he was receiving, carried out the greatest possible act of protest given his situation, by turning his head away from his master. However, this resulted in smearing a bit of the french fry oil on his cheek, which put a dark expression on his face.

"HAHAHAHAHA," Eleonora laughed heartily at Erik's appearance, but after calming down a bit, she approached with a tease and slowly licked the oil off Erik's cheek, finishing by running her small tongue gently across Erik's lips, who opened his eyes in surprise and turned to look at his master, who returned a flirtatious smile and continued walking towards the inside of the theater.

Erik stood in shock for a moment, frozen like a statue, but shortly after, he sighed a bit and followed his master carrying the huge tray full of all sorts of food like the good porter he was.

Not much later, the pair arrived at the entrance of the screening rooms area, where a young man with an elegant demeanor dressed in a red and black uniform, with a smile, asked Eleonora to swipe her card through a kind of scanner he held in his hand, which she did with a smile.

The young man was slightly surprised to see Eleonora's crystal card, but without showing any special reaction, he took out 3 amulets from a nearby shelf that had a precious stone embedded in them and handed them to Eleonora.

"Welcome, please proceed to theater number 3." The young man pointed to one of the rooms that had a large sign with the number three on it before adding, "Enjoy your movie."

"Thank you very much."

Eleonora responded with grace and elegance, after which, she placed one of the amulets around Erik's neck with a smile before gently taking his right arm, making sure not to destabilize the tray full of food so it wouldn't fall, and they headed to one of the theaters.

The theater itself looked more like an ancient opera house than a traditional cinema. The seats were not merely chairs, but rather thrones upholstered with velvet and decorated with golden threads. The ceiling was a starry dome that mimicked the night sky, and the stars twinkled as if you were outdoors.

Instead of a flat screen at the front of the theater, there was what appeared to be an arch, surrounded by runes engraved that softly glowed in the darkness. There was also no visible projector, so Erik was especially curious about how the 'arcane reality' worked.

Eleonora guided Erik to the seats located at the back of the cinema, in an area that seemed quite 'discreet', causing Erik to turn to look at his master with a suspicious gaze, but she only responded with an elegant and carefree smile and led him to sit down in one of the seats without a worry in the world.

"How have you found the experience so far?" Eleonora, sitting in the chair, leaned gently on Erik's shoulder, who finally was able to put down his large tray on the extra seat that Eleonora had purchased beside him.

"Apart from being the errand boy, everything has seemed very interesting to me."

"Fufufufu, that's good."

"By the way, Mas... Eleonora, why buy an extra seat instead of storing things in the storage ring?"

"For the same reason you didn't do it, to live the experience, fufufu."

"I guess you're right..."

Eleonora looked at Erik's thoughtful face and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before leaning back on his shoulder.

"And how does this arcane reality work?" Erik asked, looking around the room curiously.

"Fufufufu, don't be hasty, you'll see soon enough."

Eleonora smiled softly at the same time she took Erik's arm and hugged it between her ample bosom.

"That's fine..."

Not long after, more and more people kept arriving in the room, until it was completely full. Suddenly, Erik felt the amulet he was wearing start to vibrate slightly, but with increasing intensity, so he turned to look at his master with excitement.

"Is it about to start?"

Eleonora smiled affectionately at the sight of an excited Erik and tenderly commented, "Yes, it's about to begin."

As Eleonora responded, the arch at the front of the room began to fill with what seemed to be fog, which together with the runes that glowed softly, made it look like the entrance to another world.

Time passed slowly with an excited Erik watching in amazement as the fog eventually filled the entire room, obscuring the view, but soon after, it began to clear, revealing a completely different world.

Everything around no longer seemed like a theater; instead, it now appeared to be a university exhibition hall, and in the middle of the stage stood a man who appeared to be about 30 years old, with an athletic build and a healthy tan, black hair, and brown eyes, giving a lecture about the importance of exploring ancient ruins and uncovering their mysteries.

Erik watched excitedly as he seemed to be just another listener at the lecture, experiencing a striking realism, so he turned to look at Eleonora who was watching him with a small smile still hugging his arm.

"This is insane..."

Eleonora put a finger to her lips and then whispered softly, "It's rude to talk during the movie, just enjoy the moment for now."

Erik nodded at Eleonora's words and turned back to continue watching the lecture, which soon ended, and the handsome man who seemed to be the protagonist left the room as the entire audience disappeared amidst the fog, leaving only Erik and Eleonora who then appeared in a raised corner of a neatly organized office with various showcases that contained what seemed to be relics.

Not much later, the man, also known as Edward Thorne, as Erik had heard in his lecture, entered the office. He sat in the principal chair behind a beautiful wooden desk where he found a letter sealed with a strange symbol.

The letter appeared to contain cryptic clues and a map that pointed to the supposed location of the City of Shadows, causing evident excitement in the man who immediately rushed out of the office to assemble a team of experts to assist him in his journey.