Goddess of the Moon (2)

A drop of sweat mixed with the stones of the staircase. People gossiped on the edges as Theo climbed step by step. Hours had passed—so much time that he gave up counting after five minutes. He allowed himself, for a moment, the luxury of enjoying the fresh air, far from any power plant, before the atmospheric pressure affected his breathing.

His legs had already weakened countless times, yet he never stopped to rest. The way he found to distract his mind was to observe nature in its smallest details.

*'This place…'* he reflected. *'The staircase reminds me a lot of one on Mount Tiānshān…'*—the mountain range of the Xin Empire—*'…everyone here wears lighter, looser clothes. They look like the people of Zhuang…'* 

Theo finally stopped. But only for an instant. Just long enough to stretch his back and knees before continuing his ascent. 

*'Monastery of Alunne… I have no idea where that is. But Alunne is the moon, right? Seriously, is it that place?'* He questioned himself, observing from afar a monastery beneath floating mountains. A massive Greco-Roman temple with a moon at its entrance. On the opposite side stood a similar temple, but with a sun instead of a moon. 

Theo groaned inwardly, throwing his arms down in defeat. A gust of wind hit his face, urging him forward. 

The reason for his surrender? The path to the monastery was at least a hundred meters below Theo. Meaning, he had climbed higher than he needed to. After descending all the way, he burst into laughter, alone. His exhaustion was so palpable that he just wanted to collapse on the ground and rest. When he finally reached the path leading to Alunne's temple, Theo was met with a fifty-meter bridge. 

"Not enough," he muttered. 

Stepping firmly onto the wooden bridge, he continued walking while fighting his own fatigue. 

**Monastery of Alunne, "Lunar Temple"** 

**07:38 PM** 

Leaning against the natural rock wall, Theo struggled to reach the main entrance—a towering marble archway. The staircase he was on now led through a kind of cave, illuminated only by torches placed every ten meters. 

Finally feeling the sunlight touch his skin, Theo mustered his last strength to reach the gate as quickly as possible. He was bathed in the last rays of sunlight. A tear of exhaustion and relief slid down his face. 

"I thought it would take you longer to get here. But since you've arrived… Let's begin," said Luanne, walking toward her godson. Theo's legs nearly gave out at that moment, almost sending him to the ground. "Not used to something as exhausting as climbing an endless staircase?" 

"No." 

"I figured. What did you think about while climbing? What conclusions did you draw?" Luanne asked. 

Theo looked at her almost comically. "Was I supposed to think about something?" he retorted. 

Stunned, Luanne deflated completely. "Yes, you were…" she replied. 

"Well… I learned patience and how to control my anxiety. Does that count?" 

"Hm… Yes, it does," Luanne conceded, walking over to hug him. 

All of Theo's physical weakness gradually recovered with Luanne's embrace. Without realizing it, his godmother had shared her energy with him. In other words, by touching Theo, Luanne formed a covalent bond with her godson, restoring his energy and physical strength. 

*'Pure… such a pure hug!'* Theo thought. *'It's like she has no regrets.'* 

Luanne ruffled Theo's hair, sliding her arm down to his shoulder and guiding him through a courtyard of white stones. 

"Theo. Show me how far you can go with your attribute," Luanne said. 

"What do you mean?" 

"I restored your stamina, so you're at your peak now. Sir Amiah briefed me on all your training, so I based this on his recommendations." 

"But he barely even trained me properly…" 

"What *has* he done?" 

"Hm… Helped me unlock my Third Eye chakra. That's it." 

*'And he's already started the process… Now it's just a matter of time,'* Luanne thought, scratching her throat. "Right. Theo, do you know why you spent all that time meditating?" 

"Wasn't it to balance my emotions and core?" Theo asked, tilting his head. 

"Yes. But also for another reason." 

Releasing Theo, she took a few steps forward and stood still. Spreading her arms and taking a deep breath, a thin red line of energy enveloped her entire body. Theo was stunned—even though it was just a thin layer, the energy surrounding her was equivalent to a core's output. 

"This is what we call the 'initial essence.' A near-perfect way to manipulate our core's energy and project it outside the body, like an aura. This is what I want to see you develop right now." 

A bead of sweat rolled down Theo's face. 

"First, I need to understand your limit," Luanne said. "Of course, before understanding your essence. Once you finish here, we can move on to that." She pointed toward a massive white gate, adorned with a giant moon. 

"That's…" 

"The gate to the moon. Behind it is the place that will lead you to the best version of yourself. But first, you must understand who you are now. So…" 

The thin layer of energy vanished as Luanne swiftly appeared behind Theo and bent his knee, forcing him to sit. 

"Create a vortex in your hand and hold it for as long as you can. And, of course, meditate at the same time." 

"What?" 

"Begin. Just see the result." 

Theo opened his mouth to argue but realized it'd be a waste of time. If he tried to protest, he'd lose against his godmother and waste precious minutes of progress. 

He sat cross-legged on the ground, his left hand resting on his knee and his right palm facing the sky. In his right hand, he generated a weak wind vortex. Theo closed his eyes and sank into deep meditation. 

✳ 

Paul flipped through some documents on the table as his cigarette neared its end. He slapped the folder shut and pushed his chair back. Exhaling smoke, he walked over to Amiah, who was meditating on a couch. Watching his colleague in concentration, Paul pressed the cigarette against Amiah's forehead. 

"That actually works well," Paul remarked, watching the cigarette disintegrate upon contact. He took a step back and continued, "Listen here, foreigner." 

"Any problems?" Amiah asked, furrowing his brow and opening his eyes. 

"So… It's been over a week since we became mentors, right?" 

"Yeah, I guess so." 

"Up till now, we haven't acted like it." 

*I* have. You just beat them up." 

"It wasn't a beating. Technique… But the point is: they'll definitely want to participate in the inter-school tournament in two months. Only someone of rank seven or higher can nominate them, and only one per mentor…" 

"Yes. The Windsor boy already asked for your nomination, so that's one less worry. You're wondering about the others, right?" 

"Exactly. We can nominate two, and with Antony getting the dwarven patriarch's nomination… two will be left out." 

"Take Theo off the list." 

"Are you nominating him?" 

"No. But given his personality, he'll want to earn the nomination himself. So that leaves Ivan, Rebecca, and Aryna." 

"I'll train and nominate Rebecca. I understand what it's like to have an innate ability and feel useless. I think I'll get along with her." 

"Understood. I'll work with Ivan, then. That leaves Aryna…" 

"I'll take care of her," Luanne said, appearing on the bench beside them. 

Paul jumped back slightly. "Weren't you with Theo?" he stammered. 

"Moon reflection," she replied. "I *am* with Theo right now, but I projected a bit of my consciousness here to see what you were up to." 

"Intrusive… another privacy violation…" Amiah muttered. 

"It's nothing like that! I'm just sharing information with my godson's mentors. Anyway, Amiah already explained everything. Theo wants to earn his nomination on his own. So, I'll take care of his girlfriend." 

"They're dating?" Paul whispered to Amiah. 

"No," Amiah answered. 

With an awkward smile, Luanne continued, "From what I've seen of her, the girl has the theoretical core of infinite energy, so… I want to run some tests!" 

"Will dissection be involved?" Amiah asked. Paul's eyes widened in response. 

"Of course not!" Luanne exclaimed in denial. "The sirius they brought is more than enough for testing…" 

"Then you're authorized," Amiah cut in. 

"Thank you!" she said. "For now, I'll return to the monastery. See you later, professors." With that, Luanne's reflection vanished without a trace. 

"Are you sure about this?" Paul asked. "From what I know, she's a bit… unhinged." 

Stretching, Amiah interjected, "Question her methods, but not her results. Luanne is responsible for raising several monstrous deviants…" 

"I know, I know. Still, I can't trust her as easily as you do. Not after what she did to the druids." 

"We should get going. Time doesn't stop just because we're sitting around." Heading toward the door, Amiah ignored Paul's concerns. "I need to tell the boy what I have in mind before I forget. Later." He waved his fingers as he left the office. 

Paul lit another cigarette. Staring out the window at Fulmenbour, he crushed the cigarette in his hand with a dissatisfied grimace. 

"Time to work," he murmured.