Dimensional Descent

Sael stood in a training room, her expression quite blank. Dried streaks of tears left trails of salt down her cheeks, but she didn't seem to notice.

She had lost count of how much time she had spent in this training room. It was quite funny, she had made so little progress despite how much time she had put it. At the same time, as much as she would miss Valiant Heart Mountain, she probably had the most memories in this place as opposed to any other… this bland, grey walled, vacuous space.

As for packing her things up, Sael realized that there really wasn't much to take. When it came to the resources, she decided to let those lesser than herself have those things. When it came to her personal things… All of the most important items were in her storage ring anyway.

She just wanted to stand here.

Sael forgot about the half an hour time limit and just stood without a word for a length even she wasn't aware of. It wasn't until there was a sudden click at the door that she snapped away, turning her head over. But, when she saw who it was, she simply looked away, her gaze remaining blank.

"What do you want?" She asked.

In her mind, she thought her voice would come off colder. But, the reality was just that it sounded quite broken and hollow. She didn't have enough energy to put up a tough front. She just turned away, not facing the person.

This person was, surprisingly, Raylion.

"Are you done?" He asked.

The words in context sounded like he was asking about Sael's state of packing. But, both of them knew quite well that Raylion was actually referring to something far deeper than just this.

"Isn't that exactly what you wanted?" Sael replied. "For me to give up and hand everything to you? Well now you've gotten your wish. Congratulations. Enjoy these empty walls none of us can protect."

Raylion didn't answer for a long while as the two stood in silence.

"You aren't the woman I've been chasing after."

The words were like a stone thrown into a still lake. They seemed to be layered with two meanings that made Sael tremble.

"All those years ago, Teacher Ingsan chose you as his 15th disciple. I didn't say anything and just accepted it, even after he said that he would never take another.

"I've always been jealous of you. You are more talented than I am. You have more support than I do. And even though we are both without family, you at least have a little brother left while I have nothing.

"As much as you love Valiant Heart Mountain, I love it ten times more. As much as this might pain you, it pains me a hundred times more. As much as you want to give up, I want to give up a thousand times more.

"But, I haven't."

Raylion turned to walk away. "I really look down on you, Sael."

Sael's shoulders shuddered, her eyes reddening as her dried tears threatened to burst forth once again.

**

Leonel stood at the mountain pass, continuously drawing in the air with a finger. Every swipe he made seemed to carry a unique air to it. If it wasn't for the fact he was carrying a grown man over his shoulder, he might have even looked to be quite enigmatic.

An odd Force began to follow the flow of Leonel's finger. It was an extremely pale violet that was difficult to spot with the high sun above their heads like this and it didn't seem intent on growing any brighter. Even Leonel himself could only gain a faint glimpse of it. To others, it might not seem to be there at all.

Leonel had spent a long time thinking about how to strengthen his Mage Arts. But, he realized that his thinking had been far too rigid in this regard.

Whenever he prepared to create a Mage Art, his first thought would be about the practicality of the Element and what it could accomplish. For example, the Light Element was good for healing, the Star Element was quite hefty and good for energy, etc etc.

But, after seeing the lotus of arms and hands, Leonel realized that his thinking was lacking.

He thought to himself, if he had the Wood Element as an affinity, how would he use it? Would he be able to create such a powerful result?

The answer to that was no. He probably wouldn't even consider using the Wood Element to attack. He would use it for area control and at most use it for 'life stealing'. However, he would never even consider the possibility that it could create such flexible, powerful attacks.

It was then that he realized what he was missing.

[Grand Bell Construct] had been one of the most powerful defensive spells Leonel had. But, why was its shape important? Why was it a bell and not a shield or a dome? Why was it that if Leonel tried to change its form, it would weaken?

Leonel's conclusion was that there was an underlying Natural Force to the substance of an object.

Wasn't this where Universal Force originated from? It was the comprehension of one of the most natural and ubiquitous Cycles of the Dimensional Verse. Reflecting the Four Season or Heavenly Bodies in one's comprehension gave a tangible boost to one's strength.

But who was to say that these Cycles were the only things that held such a power?

What if [Grand Bell Construct] was so powerful because it embodied the essence of an ancient bell? What if his Snowy Star Owl's Instant Recovery was so powerful because it embodied the essence of a mythical creature?

What if he started forming spells not from scratch, but rather using Natural Phenomena and powerful treasures of the Dimensional Verse instead?

The possibilities were endless when he thought of things this way. He could imagine Fire Arts created from powerful mythical creatures. He could imagine Star Arts formed by observing real stars. He could imagine using medicinal herbs to form recovery Arts. He could even imagine Space Arts created from observing Void Beasts… Just what kind of result would that have?

And right now, observing the Force Arts that formed this pillar, Leonel felt like he was on the verge of creating a spell so powerful it even made him shudder.

A world of Fifth Dimensional Mage Arts had been blasted wide open.