Two years (2)

'Have I really just wasted two years of my precious time!?' Gelnar inwardly exclaimed as anger rose in him like a tide.

"Had it not been for you, none of this would have happened!" Gelnar yelled as he gnashed his teeth while looking at Rick's figure.

"Hah!? Why are you blaming it on me? You're the one who intruded into the mansion and stole the mirror. What was I supposed to do knowing that there's a thief roaming around my place?" Rick retorted.

"Ahem! My place" Lisa childishly interjected.

"I told you! I have my own reasons for doing it and I warned you about the dangers of the mirror and the mansion!" Gelnar countered.

"There you go again with those vague words. If you had just made it clear, then maybe I'd have listened to you!" Rick retorted back.

"How did you know about the mirror and the mansion?" Lisa said as she eyed Gelnar with suspicion.

"I can't say. All you need to know is that I have my own reasons and I mean no harm" Gelnar replied.

Suddenly, the atmosphere around the already cold room turned even colder as they felt a suffocating pressure.

Lisa's hair flickered as her eyes locked on to Gelnar's figure with a terrifying gaze.

"I'm asking you a question." Lisa said with a threatening gaze.

'As expected of the Vice Headmaster of the Golden Gate Academy..' Gelnar inwardly praised as he was sweating bullets despite the cold.

However, his eyes gleamed with determination and firm will as he stared back at Lisa without fear in his eyes.

'Oh? What a good lad. Well then, let's increase the pressure' Lisa thought to herself.

"[Deprivation]"

The air around the room seemed to have mysteriously disappeared as suffocation dawned on Gelnar and Rick.

Gelnar just grit his teeth as he glared at Lisa with no intention of giving in.

'Just you wait, I'll pay you back for this favor' Gelnar thought to himself as he steeled his resolve.

'What a firm determination. He didn't even flinch under my pressure. In this regard, he's somewhat similar to Rick' Lisa thought to herself as a hint of respect could be seen from her eyes as she looked at Gelnar.

"Fine. Keep your secrets." Lisa said as the suffocating pressure disappeared.

Huff! Huff!

"Huff! Mad woman! If you want to threaten him, just threaten him alone! Huff! Why did you have to include me!?" Rick complained as he panted for breath.

"Ooops, sorry. Hehe" Lisa replied with an apologetic gaze as she chuckled.

"But is there anything you can tell us though?" Lisa asked as she looked at Gelnar.

To her disappointment, Gelnar lightly shook his head.

...

Two days later, Rick and Gelnar were moved to different rooms. They could now barely move their body slowly and walked around the place.

Rick once asked Carla about Leon but she seemed to be avoiding the topic. Rick noticed this and grew suspicious of it so he asked Lisa about Leon.

It was then that he learned that Leon went missing without a trace. His expression turned sour when he learned of it. He somewhat blamed himself for Leon's disappearance. Had he not gotten caught inside the mirror, Leon wouldn't have decided to go to the Academy alone. He wouldn't have gone missing.

Lisa had the city guards search for Leon but to no avail, they found nothing. There were also reports of other kids missing that night, mostly orphans and poor kids.

Just like Leon, it was said that they were also on the streets back then. The good thing was that ever since the missing kids incident, the number of children and teenagers roaming outside during the night plummeted.

At this time, Rick stood in the backyard as he looked up at the clear blue skies. Behind him was a seemingly ordinary brick house. The surrounding area wasn't covered by a wall, but instead it was covered by an invisible wall.

It was a Sealing formation which conceals the house from outside view and at the same time, blocks outsiders from entering without permission. It was Lisa who set up the Sealing formation as some sort of favor towards the owner of the house.

The owner of the house was the ice mage recommended by the Sky Dragon Guildmaster. At the moment, Rick and Gelnar still hadn't met this ice mage who prevented their bodies from rotting. They had long wanted to meet this ice mage to thank him but they didn't have the chance to do so.

The area outside the house was a vast grassland with a few harmless magical beasts in sight.

'Had I been strong enough, had I been fast enough to react, none of this would have happened. I wouldn't have wasted two years of my time. Spatial Magic, what do I have this magic for if I don't use it' Rick thought to himself.

He steeled his resolve and made up his mind. His eyes gleamed with burning desire to get stronger as he looked down.

'Leon.. I swear, if you're still alive, I'll bring you back. If you already passed, I'll avenge you, no matter what' Rick swore to himself as he clenched his fists tightly.

"Rick? How are you feeling?" a voice greeted him from behind.

He turned his head around and saw Carla. He then approached her and patted the top of her head.

"I'm fine. Thanks for taking care of me all this time" Rick said as he flashed out a gentle smile.

A flush crept up on her face as she looked away from Rick's eyes.

'He's gotten handsome.' Carla thought to herself as her eyes darted on Rick's face.

"Now then, it's time for me to get back into shape" Rick said as he bumped his right fist with his left palm.

It was at this moment that Gelnar revealed himself as he approached Rick.

"You came at just the right time, Gelnar." Rick said as his eyes locked on to Gelnar's figure.

"I was looking for a sparring partner. I've long since wanted to bash that ugly face of yours" Gelnar replied with a grin.

When Gelnar learned that he wasted two years of his time, at first, he was angry at Rick. But his anger quickly died down when he gave it a thought and realized that Rick wasn't the one to blame. He had just done what everyone with common sense would have done.

As for Rick, although Gelnar's thievery was the root cause of Leon's disappearance, he didn't hold a grudge against him.

'He's got the looks too' Carla thought to herself as she stared at Gelnar's face.

"Careful, you two." Carla said as she looked at the two of them. But they appeared to have paid her words no heed as their eyes locked on to each other.

"[Steel Sword]"

A steel sword appeared on Gelnar's right hand and pointed it at Rick.

Rick put his hand on his back pocket and grabbed a knife. He similarly pointed it at Gelnar.

They then rushed forward at the same time with their weapons and swung their weapons but before their weapons collided, they both fell at the same. It was a comical sight.

"I told you two to be careful. You still haven't fully recovered yet!" Carla said as she helped the two of them get up.