I slowly drifted off to sleep.
It felt diffrent though, like something was going to happen.
Inner world.
"Hello Levi, its been awhile" his voice was crackling.
"We didnt think you would show up again, not with the state your core is in"
i rubbed my eyes, and looked around. the blue sky had chunks missing which showed out to a void.
"I didnt think i would see you again Veryix, hows it been?" i dusted myself off and stood up.
"It has been chaotic, shortly after your duel Cyruss became active again and managed to escape, thankfully we sealed his power but he still exists somewhere in this world" their face seemed blurry.
"Is something Happening to you Veryix?" Everything about him seemed weird
"we will be seperating soon, since our objective is complete" its voice seemed matter of fact, as if it was common knowledge.
"So then what happens?" this cant be good.
Veryix walked towards the shard of purple that hung in the sky "Well our energies will seperate again, and we will become 2 beings again. quite simple" they nodded to themselves, seeminly quite pleased.
"It is quite intresting seeing you here again, i never though you would be able to see your inner world again" they sat bellow the purple crystal.
"Our time is limited, so its unlikely youll see us fused, the next time you see us that is.
i nodded "well how do i leave?" being here would strain my body further then it already was.
"Probably the same way you enterd" they seemed to be meditating now.
So what i had to go to sleep here, i looked around for a spot, there was this singular tree on a hill.
i marched up to it and rested against it, closing my eyes, it felt like i was sinking through tar.
It was slow at first, but it sped up quickly; I was being sucked into the ground.
Darkness. I felt something moving around me, but I couldn't move.
"Hahaha," the sound of laughter echoed around me. "Don't forget who owns you, Levi."
True World
Light hit my eyes, then the sound of knocking echoed around the room.
"Come in," I slowly opened my eyes.
"Master Levi, I've brought you something to eat." A silver platter was nearly blinding me due to the sunlight shining through the window.
I sat up and rubbed my eyes. "Thanks, Sebastian."
He brought the platter over and set it on the stand next to my bed. "Once you finish, meet me out by the garden." He stepped back and then turned around and left.
The door clicked shut behind him.
I threw my legs off the bed and removed the silver lid of the platter. Inside were 2 eggs, 3 pieces of toast, and some grilled fish.
I devoured them and found something to wear since I hadn't changed out of the stuff they had given me at the hospital.
I opened my dresser, and there was only 1 type of outfit, and a suit.
So, I put on the jeans and grey shirt, since that was the only thing I had.
I stepped out of my room, and there Elyssia was standing, well, more accurately leaning.
"So, have you thought about it yet?" Her voice still felt hostile.
"I don't need to; it was always going to be no. I'll be staying here for a month and then I'm going back to the academy." While choosing to stay had its own benefits, I needed to make Leon stronger.
"Well then, there isn't much to talk about." She walked off; a few guards followed her.
Each one of her steps echoed; she had to step in a specific way, but it drew attention to her.
I passed multiple doors on my way to the stairs.
As I walked down the stairs, I heard Mia talking to another maid; I had barely walked down 2 of the steps.
"I hope Levi stays; I hate seeing him getting hurt." Her voice sounded sincere.
The other maid had noticed me but didn't say anything; she looked familiar, but I couldn't remember where I had seen her.
I continued to walk down the stairs. Mia finally heard me.
"Master Levi, how are you feeling today?" Her smile seemed fake to me now.
"It's fine." She wanted me to do nothing, no way I could stay here or act the same after hearing her say that.
I opened the front doors and took a right; I could see Sebastian in the distance.
"Master Levi, wait up!" Mia and the other maid were running towards me. Mia seemed out of breath while the other maid didn't seem to be fatigued at all.
"What's your name?" I pointed towards the other maid.
Mia started to speak. "She's our ne—"
"Let this new maid speak. So, what's your name?" I continued to walk.
The new maid smiled and walked next to me. "I'm Irene, recently hired."
"Well, why are you following me?" Something felt off about that smile, same with the way she smiled.
"I'm following Lady Mia; she's meant to be teaching me the ropes." Her voice was high-pitched and cheery sounding, but her eyes told a different story; I felt like everything about me was being analyzed.
"Mia, do your job and teach the new hire well, unless they were hired to assist me specifically."
Mia bowed. "Okay." I might've hurt her feelings by being rude to her.
"Nice meeting you, Irene. Have you met any Elves?" I was smiling at her.
Irene's eyes were wide just for a second. "Yes, yes, I have."
"One more question, who?" My eyes were focused on any shifts in her face.
"Well, as hard as it is to believe, the Princess Thalia." If this was who I thought it was, then this could be a dangerous situation to handle.
"Well then, I'll leave you to your work." I turned around and walked towards Sebastian.
"So I see you've met the new hire. Did you notice anything about her?" He got straight to the point; he clearly didn't trust Irene and with good reason.
"She might have been trained, I can't say for sure, but something about her feels off. I'll look into it myself." There was no doubt she had killed before; no telling how many.
"So, Levi, what do you think I'll have you do?" He was smiling; well, this was about to be hell.
"Probably do a bunch of exercises until I die."
He nodded. "The best way to train is to train till you can't no more."
My head hung in despair; yeah, it was going to be hell.
"Master Levi, you'll run around the mansion 10 times without stopping."
There was a glimmer of hope; maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
"If you ever slow down to a walk, you'll have to restart." I would like to see this old man run around this place; actually, he probably could.
"Any questions?"
I shook my head in defeat.
"Actually, I have one. How will you know if I slow down near the back of the mansion?"
"Looking for the easy way out? No, I'll be running with you, because if an old man can do it, you can too."
His attempt at cheering me up just proved why we kept him as the head butler and the head of security.
"When do I start?" I said in a half-hearted cheerful tone.
"Right now."
I walked towards what should be the straightest path for me to run and began the long jog.
Three Hours Later.
I had to restart 3 times.
Sebastian was a monster; he didn't look worn out, and there wasn't a single bead of sweat on his forehead.
Clap clap clap. "Good job, Master Levi! Now we can move on to the 2nd part; you'll be lifting these." He pointed to some massive weights.
I blinked. "What?" They looked like each one could weigh over a ton.
"I need to test your strength, so you need to lift this." It just simply wasn't possible for me.
"Okay, joking aside, I have a bunch of weights set up; you'll lift them until you reach your max." That was his idea of a joke.
My eyes started to twitch. "OK." My teeth ground together.
The first sets of weights were easy, and they were easy until I got up to 450. That is when the real struggle began; I knew I would max out soon. And I did at 485.
"Better than I thought, especially without mana enhancement." He cracked his knuckles.
"The final test for today is a duel. You get 1 hour to rest before we start. No potions."
I nodded. "OK, and where will we fight?" I had half expected it.
He smiled. "The fighting pit I had gotten made to test new recruits."