Beyond Leus

After staying for as long as he could inside the Barrier, Leus decided to come out

'This environment is mentally draining'

The constant need to re-focus on his objective and to re-live past traumas was taking a toll on both Leus' mental and physical health.

'I'm feeling fatigued and I have a splitting headache'

Continuing to train in this state was basically of no use

'I estimate that I have grasped almost 50% of this Abstract, the next time I enter I'll unlock it'

Leus put his hand on the magic circle and deactivated the barrier.

As soon as he did that, the trapped Darkness mana spread to the entire library, causing a chill to run down everyone's spine.

Most people felt disgusted by the Darkness mana, some felt intrigued and some didn't really care.

But Leus was in his room, so he didn't know any of that, he simply decided to take a shower.

'By the time I exit, Arno will probably come.'

'Based on how much time I spent inside, I'll decide if I should go home or stay.'

Just as Leus expected, when he was done showering, Arno was waiting for him in the room

"How was it?"

"Difficult, but I managed"

"Did you use it?"

"You mean the Potion? No, I still have it"

Arno nodded then Leus asked him

"How much time did I spend inside?"

"22 Days"

Leus started thinking to himself

'Not too short nor too long ... Should I go home or stay?'

He asked Arno

"Did someone come and ask about me?"

"No"

Leus felt relieved

'It means that nothing out of the ordinary has happened.'

'Also, Dad probably did not come back yet.'

He pondered for a couple of seconds until he came to a conclusion

'I think the best thing to do now would be sleeping here and then going back to training, I'm so close to unlocking the Abstract and I don't want to leave'

Leus was very excited about the expected Transformation, he didn't want to waste any time, so he told Arno what he was about to do.

"Master, I'll sleep here then go back to the Barrier"

"I see, well then, I'll leave you to it"

Arno left the room, and Leus opened the door to the small bedroom and went to sleep.

A couple of hours later, Leus got up and freshened up, then he picked up another black Mana Crystal and activated the Barrier

'It's time to unlock this Abstract'

Leus willed the Crystal to release all its mana, and once again, he was enveloped by Darkness.

Leus was busy in his seclusion, but the world outside didn't stop moving forward, and so, some things were unfolding outside The Library's walls.

--------------

One morning, a brown-haired girl paid a visit to the library, and her encounter went like this:

The girl got up early and happily strolled to the city

'I finally achieved what Leus asked me to, I can now cast Speck twenty-six times!'

She didn't know where the Library was, so she went to the place she knew, The Market Square, and asked for directions.

It took a while, but eventually, she reached her destination.

'Finally!'

It was a humongous building, bigger and more imposing than any other building the girl had seen before

'Leus must be really rich if he lives here'

She walked towards the library, and when she got closer she saw two men wearing blue armor standing at the door

'How interesting'

She was impressed, but she wasn't scared

'I've seen much more scary guys'

She slowly approached the library's door and was about to enter, but she was stopped by the Guards.

To them, she looked both suspicious and out of place, and she didn't seem like she could afford to buy even a booklet from the Crimson Library.

"Identify yourself, Soldier"

"S- Soldier?"

'Oh .. right, Scar told me that I became a Soldier ...'

She fixed her posture and responded properly

"I'm Melisandre!"

"What brings you here, Melisandre?"

"I'm here to meet a friend"

As soon as she said that, the guards became uninterested and wanted to shoo her away.

One of them spoke in a dismissive tone

"This is not a tavern, meet your friend elsewhere. Now leave."

Then he ushered her to quickly leave the premises.

Seeing that, she became annoyed and didn't budge.

She put her hands on her waist and said

"My friend lives here"

When she said that, both the guards looked at each other in confusion then one of them asked her

"Who is that friend?"

"Leus!"

After Melisandre said that, the guards' demeanor shifted considerably, and they spoke in a polite, formal tone.

"Are you an acquaintance of the Young Master?"

"... Leus is my friend"

'Why are they talking in such a complicated way'

While she was annoyed by the way they were treating and speaking to her, one of them asked her in a serious voice

"Is this an emergency?"

She was a bit taken aback by the change of attitude but she quickly replied

"No, not an emergency. I just want to meet my friend"

"Hold on a minute"

He went inside the Library and she was waiting with the other guard outside.

Melisandre looked slightly annoyed, seeing that, the Guard thought

'It's better to improve her mood, otherwise, the Young Master might be upset.'

So he spoke to her in a friendly tone

"Sorry for our earlier behavior, we were just doing our job.

We also didn't know that you're an acquaintance of the Young Master."

Melisandre looked at him and didn't say anything, so he extended his hand forward and said

"Let's start over. I'm Guardian Felix, nice to meet you Soldier Melisandre"

Melisandre became pleased by his behavior and shook his hand

"Nice to meet you too, Guardian Felix"

An awkward silence ensued for a couple of seconds, then Felix asked

"So, How did you get to know the Young Master?"

Melisandre smiled brightly and replied

"Leus helped my entire family!

He cured my father's illness, then he taught me how to chant Magic, and now he protects the entire area I live in!

Leus is great, no matter how much I say or do I can't repay his favors."

Felix was surprised when he heard that

'I knew the Young Master was benevolent ... But to this extent?'

The other Guard came out of the Library and interrupted their conversation by saying

"The Young Master is currently unreachable, he's training.

Is there a message you'd like me to pass when he is available?"

Melisandre became a bit disheartened upon hearing this, but she was understanding

'Leus must be training a lot since he's so strong .. Scar told me that Leus is stronger than their entire group combined'

She nodded and said

"Tell him Meli has achieved what you asked her to, and she awaits your visit to learn more from you."

The Guard assured her

"We'll relay your message"

She thanked them and left

After she was far enough, Felix turned around and spoke to the other Guard

"Robert, did you hear that?"

"What?"

"She just said that The Young Master protects the area she lives in"

"The area she lives in? That's interesting"

"Interesting indeed ...."