>Chapter 22<

Walking through the corridors behind the butler, the boys started getting nervous all of a sudden. This would be their first normal contact with a person of this world. Yes, they slowly started to accept that they're not in their own world anymore, even if they didn't discuss it, they all just kind of accepted it. No, they were forced to accept it due to the situation in which they found themselves in.

They're calling it a normal contact because the first person they met tried to kill them as soon as they got out of the carriage and the butler they're following right now just said a few sentences without even letting them say a word.

They soon found themselves in a crossroad of hallways. The butler just turned to the left a continued walking.

"Looks like the illusion was dispelled," The boys thought.

They continued walking in the hallway where stairs slowly appeared in their vision. After walking up the stairs, the boys were now in a straight hallway with only one door on the other side.

They walked up the door with the butler, who approached them and knocked a couple of times.

*Knock*

*Knock*

*Knock*

"Sir Caedis, I have brought the guests." The butler announced.

There was a minute pause and soon, a voice was heard from the other side of the door.

"Enter."

The butler turned the handle, opened the door before standing at their side and preforming a low bow.

The boys gulped a little before steeling their minds and walking inside. They were now in a room with a blood red carpet. It was also mostly made from the white marble. On the walls were paintings with some disturbing content painted on them. For example, there were animals eating each other, a woman eating a man's heart and many others, which made the boys' stomachs churn.

In the middle of the room, sitting on a black couch was a man probably in his early twenties. He was just looking out of the balcony and sipping something from a cup, tea most likely, the boys thought. He was also dark-skinned and had pointy ears, which basically confirmed the boys' doubts of this being a certain race.

He was also wearing something comparable to a military uniform except the color was royal blue with golden lines at the ends of the sleeves.

The man didn't even look at the butler and said.

"You can go now, Albert."

"Yes sir." The butler, whose name was Albert, replied while exiting the room before he closed the door behind him.

There was a moment of silence where the boys just awkwardly stood there and waited for the man to say something.

"What are you waiting for? Come and sit." The boys flinched at his monotone voice but complied nonetheless and sat down on the couch opposite to the man.

Before the boys could say anything, the man stood up and introduced himself.

"An introduction is in order, my name is Victor Caedis. I hope the room wasn't too cramped for you. We didn't want you to panic if we separated you, so we were trying to be considerate." He then continued. "And you needn't worry. Your rooms will be prepared shortly after this conversation."

The boys were stunned at this show of respect and hospitality. They never expected someone to be this nice to them since they were really just powerless kids in this world.

Seeing the boys stunned expressions, Victor chuckled. He knew what they were thinking and didn't disturb their thoughts.

Realizing that they hadn't introduced themselves yet, they stood up stiffly and started speaking.

"My name is Patrick, nice to meet you" Patrick introduced himself while the others followed right after.

"My name is Phillip, nice to meet you."

"My name is Timothy, nice to meet you."

"My name is David, nice to meet you."

"My name is Jacob, nice to meet you."

Seeing that the boys introduce themselves, Caedis nodded to them in acknowledgement.

The boys were relieved that they didn't offend the man in front of them. Especially if he was the one who created the illusion earlier. They would probably already be dead.

"Now that we have introduced ourselves, it is time to get to business." Caedis said after a pause, still maintaining his friendly smile. "I have a proposal that may interest you."

The boys' ears perked up.

"Firstly, let me explain the situation." Caedis started speaking. "We, or more specifically, I have found you in the forest and from the looks of it, you were used as a means to start a war between us, the dark elves, and the other races of this continent."

He made a pause to let the boys digest the information, which they just heard and continued.

"Things are a little more complicated than what I had just said but that should be the gist of the situation." He took a quick sip of his tea and crossed his legs. "So this is where our proposal comes in."

The boys would be lying if they said that they weren't feeling nervous. After all, they still didn't really know where they were and would really appreciate having that information.

"The king and I have come to a consensus to let you study magic at our academy." Caedis said, but before the boys could reply, he continued. "But, that is only under the condition that you will help us fight in this war after your studies end."

The boys were baffled. They were going to study magic? Is that the energy that they were using until now?

But reality hits differently. They would have to participate in a war, fighting for their life. Were they willing to lay down their lives for some knowledge, which they weren't sure would help them in this world?

Seeing the boys' expressions, Caedis's smile didn't fade in the slightest. He was expecting this actually. Who would believe the words of a person that basically kidnapped them? So he just had to make the fish bite the bait.

"The academy teaches both magical knowledge and general knowledge of the world. For your information, I have estimated that your talent in magic should be higher than the most talented in this academy."

Now that the bait was set in place, all he had to do now was to wait. "I will give you a day to consider our offer. Albert will take you to your individual rooms."

Caedis's smile widened briefly. "I will be waiting for the good news."

As if he remembered something important, Caedis spoke up once again with a mysterious smile on his face.

"Oh and lest I forget, I have removed all the curses that have been placed on your soul, so you don't have to worry about having nightmares anymore."

With that last sentence, he stood up and left the room, leaving behind only the five youths sitting there with contemplative expressions on their faces.