Moon

A young girl cautiously made her way through the barren hills, which were shrouded in an unnaturally thick mist. Her only guide was a luminous gemstone lantern, as the moonlight was unable to penetrate the haze.

A scholarly man in his sixties followed closely behind her, moving at a more leisurely pace. He carried a lantern tied to his cane, which seemed to emit a strong magical aura.

"There! I saw someone on the ground!" The young girl shouted aloud.

Few hours ago, they both were in the elderly man's spacious wooden cottage.

The girl just finished studying the advanced part of Venevisum—shortly called Vis, the term to refer to magical energy in this world—and about to tidy up the books back to its rack while the elderly man enjoys the last sip of his bland not-so-hot-anymore tea.

Suddenly, the entire cottage trembled, though not violently enough to knock a glass off the table. Even so, the luminous gemstone in the room momentarily dimmed, puzzling the the girl and the elder. They exchanged a silent look, knowing that a physical disturbance should not have affected the magical gemstone.

"Something is about to come," the elderly man whispered, his gaze fixed on the slightly open door of his room. He could feel the presence of Vis in the air, seeping through the crack.

Almost startled, the young woman hurried to the cottage entrance only to find that the night mist had thickened even more.

"Make haste, Adelle. We must discover what manner of things the portal brings," urged the Elder as he hurriedly snatched up his woolen cloak.

"Right on, Gramps." So did they begin their investigation, striding the mistful night.

The fluctuating flow of Vis in the air was strong and the Elder could feel its clarity, knowing exactly where to go to find its source.

However, the Vis flow was not aggressive or dangerous. It was rather pensive, something he was not accustomed to feeling.

"That kid?!" His wrinkly eyes widened after hearing Adelle yelled about someone on the ground. If only it was some kind of monster, he wouldn't be surprised.

"Halt!" His cane blocked her way. She was quite shocked, thinking that he was left a few steps behind.

Elder took a deep breath. After releasing it, his eyes glowed eerily with blue Vis of Sensus.

It scanned the lying body and its surroundings from a safe distance. Not a single clue was found indicating something hazardous. There was only a small anomaly, yet it was far from some kind of boobytrap.

"Should be fine now. Let's head there."

Adelle quickly approached the lying figure. "It's a boy!" she shouted.

Fresh blood rilling from the boy's shoulder to the ground. Adelle examined him closely and let the boy rest on his back. "Aw, that's an awful wound."

She's a bit charmed by how the boy's face looked, if not for his injuries and bruises.

Quickly Adelle reached his wrist and later neck. "Pulses on!" she added.

Elder just gave off a discomfort look, keeping his thoughts to himself.

"I'll try to slow down the bleed."

Adelle rubbed her hands together and focused her Vis, causing a warm red glow to form. The Vis had healing properties.

Without notice, Elder reached Adelle's hand. "Halt it. The wound weren't caused by mere metal." Elder pointed out the smoldered part of leather clothing and the boy's burnt skin near the wound. "It's ...."

"It's?"

As he examined the boy, his Sensus Vision mapped out the entire inner Vis flow of the boy's body. The blue light strings formed a network similar to the blood vessels, originating from the boy's heart and branching outwards.

Elder saw the anomaly near the boy's left shoulder. A scattered fraction of purplish dots. Something he does recognize with certainty.

"It is Behemoth's blood," he continued.

Adelle's face grimed. Red glow on her hands dissipated. She knew just how dangerous the substance is, even though it's very thin and abysmal.

The liquid substance was actually corrupt Vis, capable of devouring any other Vis it came into contact with. Once it consumed enough Vis and reached its activation energy needs, it would begin to grow uncontrollably and not only eat Vis but also flesh.

Behemoth used it to weaken their adversaries. Once they are feeble, it will swallow them, claiming their power as its own.

"Fortunately, those purplish thingies are currently dormant," said the Elder. "Since they are not actively receiving Vis and are too thin, they will remain that way as long as they are not exposed to any kind of magical energy."

"But, that means ... he came from the, Nethereal?" She still couldn't believe her own words. Place where Behemoth can only be found.

She thought that the wounded person was just unfortunate to wander around Barren Hill during thick mist, where he crossed paths with an alienatic monster that the portal teleported. It may not so often, but it certainly did happen.

But now, it was the other way around.

Elder nodded with no hesitation. "He is what the portal brings."

"But let's not dwell here any further. The boy could have bled to death," he added. "I'll leave the weight to you."

She nodded, as obedient as usual. Adelle then wrapped her wooly cloak to the boy before gently lifting him onto her.

Adelle was quite surprised to find that he was much lighter than expected, weighing not much more than a sack of flour. Despite her distraction, she couldn't help but notice the definition in his pectoral muscles as they pressed against her. Her cheeks began to shimmer slightly red, but her curiosity still got the best of her.

"But, just how? How could there be someone returning from there ever again? Wasn't the Great Gate supposed to be sealed two years ago? Could he be dangerous?" Especially concerned about the Behemoth blood.

"Yes, yes, indeed it was and possibly no." Elder played along the bombarding questions. Then he went silent.

Adelle knew that the Elder was not one to answer shortly and then remain silent. As her tutor, he always gave thorough explanations and logically pleasing answers.

She is not in position to pry deeply. Less she knew, the better. Lest Gramps angered, otherwise her master would be very displeased. The thought of her master getting irritated struck fear in her heart.

But she did know that the portal was located in the cottage basement. It was Gramps himself who had taken her with him to the Nethereal, the realm where time and space switched roles.

The night sky of the Nethereal was eternal, never having been changed to day even once. Sparkling galaxies, countless stars, and suns bigger than those seen on Earth were visible, but their light was never enough to fend off the perpetual darkness. It was as if the realm was destined to be dark and gloomy for eternity.

That was as far as Adelle could remember. Gramps had also lectured her that the Nethereal was an unknown rift that functioned as a bridge to another place. The Great Gate acted as a two-way portal connecting Earth and Nethereal. There was another Great Gate standing in the Nethereal, but it was inactive, and humans had never found any that actively connected to other places like one to theirs.

As for the portal on the cottage basement. Nobody could explain it. It was there the entire time before the cottage was built, acting like an emergency entrance to the desolate realm. Gramps found it and decided to study it further. Neither she nor Gramps had any uninvited guest sneaked in.

All in all, Adelle's conclusion narrowed to one event. The War.

It was a prolonged bloodbath between humans and demons. The last battle took place in Nethereal as recorded in history books. Humans won and destroyed remaining demon remnants that fled to there.

The battalion returned from the desolate realm through the Great Gate. Ranks of High Magus then sealed it off, for it never to be opened again. At least that was how the book said, an event ended two years ago.

The last piece of the puzzle was the boy's presence. He appeared to be a young soldier, but how did he end up locked in the basement? Did he run away during the fight and get trapped inside? Or was he dragged there against his will? Adelle couldn't help but wonder about the various possibilities.

Before she realized it, they had already arrived at the cottage.

Despite the biting cold of the strong night wind, Adelle found herself lost in thought during the journey, comforted by the warmth shared between her and the boy. It was a fair trade for her cloak, and she couldn't help but feel it was more than what she had bargained for, except for the blood stains on her clothes.

Just about entering the room, Gramps said about leaving immediately for a few days to contact an important person. Adelle couldn't say much, but it was just too sudden. She let the wounded rest in her room, looking with a hint of uneasiness on her face.

"Worry not, the boy is not a villain." Elder then was busy rummaging through the bookshelf and finally found what he was looking for. "Do tend to him." He pointed out a wooden cabinet.

Adelle opened it and found a pile of shiny silver coins neatly sat in its bag. She sighed with relief, gently grinned. "Alright. I'll take care of him." It came abruptly, as if Gramps had known the boy quite well.

"I know you will, child. Make sure nothing weird happened." And so Elder left the two. Vanished in the mistful night.

Out of curiosity, Adelle approached the bookshelf where Gramps took out something. She had a clear memory of what was in there and found out what was missing, since tidying up things was her chores.

"Hmm, I'm sure it was a research scroll about 'Necrolyte' that he took. But what for ...."

The latter Gramps' words echoed back in her mind, "nothing weird happened."

Adelle's mischievous grin spread across her face as she looked at the adorable boy, and a small giggle escaped her lips.

"Let's start by taking off his clothes ...."

She paused with a short sigh and shook her head to brush off the ungraceful thoughts she just had.

"... to apply the bandages."